Applied linguistics from the Global South: way forward to linguistic equality and social justice

Abstract The Commentary critically reflects on the papers published in the Special Issue (SI) of Applied Linguistics Review titled ‘Reflection and Reform of Applied Linguistics from the Global South: Power and Inequality in English users from the Global South’. While the papers in the SI add new insights to the recent innovations in the ontology and epistemology of Applied Linguistics based on research studies done in the contexts of Australia, Brazil, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and Nepal, the Commentary shows that more research studies on the multi-modal meaning-making processes and the spatiality and temporality of semiotic resources will give a greater understanding of the meaning-making processes. The Commentary also indicates that the politics underlying the governance, policy packages of neoliberalism in education, and hidden linguistic governmentality observable in language policies and practices in both Global South and Global North require further attention. Decoloniality, moreover, requires delinking from the academic practices that give immense importance to northern theories. Minimizing intellectual dependency on northern theories may help gain the intellectual sovereignty of the South. Hence, the Commentary indicates that it is high time to explore what the epistemological South and geographical South have to say about the Global South.