Introduction. Until recently, most of the research on intercultural communication has focussed on native /non-native speaker interaction both in the context of immigration

Until recently, most of the research on intercultural communication has focussed on native /non-native speaker interaction both in the context of immigration and minorities and in intercultural politics and business. Interaction among non-native speakers of a language, however, has not received much attention. When speakers do not share each other's language but can resort to a third language for communicative purposes, they use a lingua franca, a language which is the mother tongue to neither of them. This paper is concerned with this latter type of intercultural communication.

A lingua franca may be any natural or any artificial language which is used among speakers of different mother tongues. It may be used either intra nationally, like e.g. English in India or Nigeria, or inter nationally e.g. English between Germans and Japanese. Whereas speakers of intra national lingua francas have often acquired these as nativized second languages and use them in a variety of domains, most participiants in inter national lingua franca conversations need to be regarded as learners of a language they use for restricted purposes only. Because of the diverse linguistic and cultural background of speakers, conversation in lingua franca English is rather heterogeneous. In the course of this paper, the most noticeable features of lingua franca English small talk conversation will be discussed. Suggestions will be made for both the analysis and the interpretation of intercultural conversations involving speakers who do not form a stable speech community and who, therefore, need to negotiate the norms for every individual conversation depending on the specific participants.