English in Dutch Commercials: Not Understood and Not Appreciated

Inge Gijsbers, Frank van Meurs, Hubert Korzillius and Marinel Gerritsen

Advertising agencies are increasingly using English in Dutch commercials because of financial and image reasons.

English in Dutch Commercials: Not Understood and Not Appreciated

Marinel GerritsenHubert KorziliusFrank van MeursInge Gijsbers University of Nijmegen

Dutch consumers are increasingly exposed to English in commercials on television. Advertising agencies appear to use English because of financial and image reasons. This article investigates how often commercials that contain English occur in the Netherlands and whether consumers comprehend the English text and appreciate the English that is used.

We show that one-third of the commercials on Dutch television contain English words and phrases that are pronounced with a Dutch accent based on an American English...

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