scholarly journals Family Language Policy, Language Maintenance and Language Shift: Perspectives from Ethnic Chinese Single Mothers in Malaysia

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-75
Author(s):  
Teresa Wai See Ong
Keyword(s):  
Language Policy ◽  
Single Mothers ◽  
Language Maintenance ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Language Shift ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Family Language Policy ◽  
Heritage Languages ◽  
Ethnic Chinese ◽  
Family Language

Family language policy comprises three components, namely, ideology, practice, and management. Using the conceptual framework of family language policy, this study draws on data from semi-structured interviews and participant observation to explore the role of mothers in the process of language maintenance and language shift in Malaysia. First, it investigates the language choices and ideologies of four Chinese single mothers from Penang that lead to speaking heritage languages and/or dominant languages with their children. Second, it examines the strategies for heritage culture maintenance adopted by these mothers. The study found that two of the mothers speak Chinese heritage languages with their children to reinforce emotional attachment and family cohesion. Conversely, two other mothers face socioeconomic and educational pressures in relation to maintaining Chinese heritage languages, which trigger a shift to using dominant languages such as Mandarin Chinese and English with their children. Nevertheless, all four mothers made efforts in exposing their children to ethnic Chinese cultures. The findings indicate that maintaining heritage languages in the current era has become a challenge for many families in Malaysia while speaking dominant languages is becoming a necessity.

Family language policy by Hakkas in Balik Pulau, Penang

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 (244) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wang Xiaomei
Keyword(s):  
Language Policy ◽  
Language Maintenance ◽  
Language Shift ◽  
Management Theory ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Language Management ◽  
Family Language Policy ◽  
International Language ◽  
The Family ◽  
Family Language

AbstractFamily domain is crucial for language maintenance. It is also a critical avenue for children’s language acquisition. In Spolsky’s language management theory, family is one of the key domains for language management. In this study, we focus on family language management in Hakka families in Balik Pulau, Penang. Structured-interviews were conducted in November 2012. In total, 14 Hakka families were interviewed. In each family, one parent and one child were interviewed. This article examines family language policy from three perspectives: ideology, practice, and management. The results show that Hakkas in Penang give great importance to Mandarin and almost abandon Hakka in the family domain. However, they still have strong Hakka identity and some parents have restarted to speak Hakka with their children consciously. Multilingual capacity is a common expectation from parents. With multilingual input in the family domain, most of the children become passive bilinguals or multilinguals. The regional prestige dialect Hokkien is part of the repertoire of these Hakka families. However, there are no intentional efforts from the parents to teach Hokkien to their children. Conscious language management is only found for Mandarin and sometimes for English. This results from the parents’ language ideology that Mandarin is the most important language for Chinese Malaysians and English is an international language for their children’s future career. Findings from the current study contribute to the understanding of language maintenance and language shift in general.

scholarly journals Socialization of Language Through Family Language Policy: A Case Study

2014 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
Orly Kayam ◽  
Tijana Hirsch
Keyword(s):  
Language Policy ◽  
Heritage Language ◽  
Language Maintenance ◽  
Family Language Policy ◽  
Heritage Languages ◽  
Heritage Language Maintenance ◽  
Family Language ◽  
English Dominant

Abstract Challenges of heritage language maintenance and benefits of bilingualism have been widely acknowledged. Heritage language maintenance research most oft en focuses on heritage languages in English-dominant societies. This paper presents a case study on family language policy experiences, strategies, and outcomes led by an American-born mother in her effort to maintain and promote English, her heritage language, within the home in the Hebrew-dominant environment in Israel

When X doesn’t mark the spot: the intersection of language shift, identity and family language policy

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 (255) ◽  
pp. 133-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cassie Smith-Christmas
Keyword(s):  
Language Policy ◽  
Second Generation ◽  
Language Shift ◽  
Third Generation ◽  
Family Language Policy ◽  
Scottish Gaelic ◽  
The Third ◽  
Family Language ◽  
Language Revitalisation ◽  
Isle Of Skye

Abstract This article discusses the reflexive relationship between language shift and identity in the case of Scottish Gaelic on the Isle of Skye, Scotland, demonstrating how (Fishman, Joshua A. 1991. Reversing language shift. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.) concept of X versus Y as related to language is problematic in this particular context. The article posits that in many ways, the processes by which Gaelic has been alienated from a sense of Scottish identity at the macrolevel are reproduced at the microlevel and discusses the implications of this in terms of Family Language Policy (FLP). Using a nexus analysis approach, this article focuses on a second-generation member – referred to as “Seumas” (the children’s uncle) – of three generations of a Gaelic-speaking family and discusses how, although Seumas appears to see Gaelic as part of his identity in terms of “family” and “heritage”, other identity orientations often take precedence, ostensibly contributing to his high use of English. The article discusses the possible impact that Seumas’ linguistic practices have on the third generation, as well as the double-edged sword nature of using “identity” as a tool in language revitalisation.

scholarly journals ‘One Cas, Two Cas’: Exploring the affective dimensions of family language policy

Multilingua ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cassie Smith-Christmas
Keyword(s):  
Language Policy ◽  
Language Shift ◽  
Minority Language ◽  
Family Language Policy ◽  
Scottish Gaelic ◽  
Affective Style ◽  
Family Language ◽  
Linguistic Input ◽  
Laissez Faire ◽  
Affective Dimensions

AbstractThe aim of this article is to illustrate the fluid nature of family language policy (FLP) and how the realities of any one FLP are re-negotiated by caregivers and children in tandem. In particular, the paper will focus on the affective dimensions of FLP and will demonstrate how the same reality – in this case, a grandmother’s use of a child-centred discourse style as a means to encouraging her grandchildren to use their minority language, Scottish Gaelic – can play out differently among siblings. Using a longitudinal perspective, the paper begins by examining a recorded interaction between a grandmother, Nana,All names are pseudonyms.and her granddaughter Maggie (3;4) and will discuss how Nana’s high use of questions andlaissez-faireattitude to Maggie’s use of English contribute to the child-centred nature of the interaction, and in turn, to Maggie’s playful use of Gaelic. The paper then examines an interaction recorded five years later in which Nana interacts with Maggie’s brother Jacob (4;0) in the same affective style; however, unlike Maggie, Jacob evidences overtly negative affective stances towards his minority language. The paper concludes by discussing these observations in light of the reflexive nature of FLP in terms of emotional affect, linguistic input, and language shift.

scholarly journals A deliberate language policy or a perceived lack of agency: Heritage language maintenance in the Polish community in Melbourne

2021 ◽  
pp. 136700692110008
Author(s):  
Piotr Romanowski
Keyword(s):  
Language Policy ◽  
Heritage Language ◽  
Language Maintenance ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Immigrant Community ◽  
Family Language Policy ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Heritage Language Maintenance ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Family Language

Aims: By applying the tripartite framework of family language policy, this study seeks to gain insight into heritage language maintenance of Polish families in Melbourne. To this end, an integrative investigation of family language policy encapsulating the heritage language perceptions, practices and management will be employed. Methodology: Based on the data collected through the online questionnaire supplemented with in-depth interviews, quantitative and qualitative analyses have been conducted to obtain a sociolinguistic picture of the convoluted dependencies. Data and analysis: The interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim and coded according to the grounded theory approach. The recurrent themes were noted. The existing social patterns were conceptualised through the process of constant comparison. The excerpts selected for analysis illustrate how critical have been the informants’ beliefs and practices concerning heritage language maintenance. Findings and conclusions: The data analyses of the researched families disclose a wide range of practices where certain discrepancies are observed between declarations and the actual language behaviours. It also emerges that without parents’ reinforcement and establishing the heritage language as a default means of communication at home, children suffer from lower productive skills. Originality: This paper delves into how Polish is maintained as a heritage language by the second generation of Polish-speaking immigrants. It explores the Polish community, one of the well-established yet understudied groups that make up multicultural Australia. It unfolds an account of the dynamics of family language policy, illustrating how they are constantly negotiated, contested and formed by parents. Significance/implications: The findings contribute to the ongoing discussion of language policies and heritage language maintenance by demonstrating that the hardship and distress resulting from heritage language acquisition as well as language maintenance are incumbent primarily on family language policy. The researched group is an average-size immigrant community situated in the context with limited institutional support resolving down to Polish Saturday schools.

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