LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE & SHIFT LANGUAGE & SOCIETY

WHEN ONE LANGUAGE MEETS THE OTHER Language maintenance Language shift

LANGUAGE SHIFT

Non-migrant communities SCENARIOS Migrant minorities Migrant majorities Non-migrant communities

Migrant minorities Local majority Immigrant minority

Migrant minorities Language shift for practical reasons Job Education Business Pressure from the host society Language shift is expected A sign of successful assimilation

The language shift of 2nd-generation immigrants L1 monolingual L1 and L2 bilingual L2 monolingual

If you don’t want to be part of us… Debate Rages On Over 'English Only' Policies

Migrant majority Immigrant majority Local minority

Migrant majority Colonization The colonial powers impose their languages on the colonies.

Colonization More Population Immigrants Local population

Colonization The Dominant Culture Immigrants Local population

Case: The Isle of Man The official language of the Isle of Man is English, while Manx Gaelic has also had official status since 1985. Manx has traditionally been spoken but is now considered "critically endangered". Manx has been officially recognised as a legitimate regional language.   Manx is closely related to the Irish language and Scottish Gaelic. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isle_of_Man#Language)

Case: The Isle of Man Why is there a language shift on the island?

Factors contributing to language shift Economic, social, and political factors Job opportunities See no reason to maintain L1

Migrant majority Language shift does not necessarily occur when multilingualism is widespread. many indigenous vernacular languages Language shift could occur When one primary indigenous language is used

Non-migrant communities Language shift due to political, economical and social changes

LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE

Demographic factors Where people live The size of the group Rural areas vs. urban areas. The size of the group Spanish in the US. Chinatowns.

Attitudes and values Positive attitude slows down the language shift. A symbol of ethnic identity The father in ‘My Fat Greek Wedding’ explaining the root of any word is Greek. http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=2ALrm3nDGXI An internationally recognized language slows down the speed of shift French-Quebec

LANGUAGE DEATH & LOSS

Language death and loss When all people of a language die, the language dies too. Endangered languages Why is it an issue? A language carries the cultural heritage of its speakers.

Examples 'Language Death: A Problem for All' By David Crystal http://vimeo.com/6677955/

How a minority language can be maintained It is a symbol of group identity. The degree and frequency of contact with the the home group. Social factor may help. Extended family vs. nuclear family Institutional support Domains: education, law, religion, government, media

Ethnolinguistic vitality We can predict the likelihood that a language will be maintained by measuring its ethnolinguistic vitality. Components The status of the language The size of the group The extent of institutional support

Language revival Attitude How strongly the speakers want to revive the language Their reasons for doing so

Six factors which may help a language to progress (Crystal, 2000) An endangered language will progress if its speakers: increase their prestige within the dominant community increase their wealth increase their legitimate power in the eyes of the dominant community have a strong presence in the education system can write down the language can make use of electronic technology

Examples of language revival Puyuma Language Revival http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHh_P72_fxA Bunun Language Revival http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZklCYG2LNwA Hebrew http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCzEVczcZbQ Ocitan http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5IxLW39D7s Maori http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WG2Abfglzq4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbE53FKUV5g