Morphosyntactic Restructuring in Child Heritage Georgian

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 234-263
Author(s):  
Cass Lowry ◽  
LeeAnn Stover
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Heritage Speakers ◽  
Heritage Languages ◽  
Oral Fluency ◽  
Heritage Speaker ◽  
Default Case ◽  
Age Patterns ◽  
Subject Agreement ◽  
Object Agreement ◽  
Person Agreement

This study investigates morphosyntactic restructuring in Heritage Georgian, a highly agglutinative language with polypersonal agreement. Child heritage speakers of Georgian (n = 26, age 3-16) completed a Frog Story narrative task and a lexical proficiency task in Georgian. Heritage speaker narratives were compared to narratives produced by age-matched peers living in Georgia (n = 30, age 5-14) and Georgian children and young adults who moved to the United States during childhood (n = 7, age 9–24). Heritage Georgian speakers produced more instances of non-standard nominal case marking and non-standard verbal subject agreement than their homeland peers. Individual morphosyntactic divergence was predicted by lexical score, but not by oral fluency or age. Patterns of divergence in the nominal domain included overuse of the default case (nominative) as well as over-extension of non-default cases (ergative, dative). In the verbal domain, person agreement was more consistently marked than number. Subject agreement exhibited more divergence from the baseline than object agreement, contrary to previous evidence from similar heritage languages (e.g., Heritage Hindi, Montrul et al., 2012). Results indicate that morphosyntactic production in child Heritage Georgian generally displays the same divergences as adult heritage-language grammars, but language-specific differences also underscore the need for continued documentation of lesser-studied heritage languages.

Who did what to whom, and what did we already know?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tania Ionin ◽  
Maria Goldshtein ◽  
Tatiana Luchkina ◽  
Sofya Styrina
Keyword(s):  
Information Structure ◽  
Judgment Task ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Heritage Speakers ◽  
Heritage Languages ◽  
Heritage Speaker ◽  
Narrow Focus ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Speakers Of Other Languages ◽  
Prior Literature

Abstract This paper reports on an experimental investigation of what second language (L2) learners and heritage speakers of Russian know about the relationship between word order and information structure in Russian. The participants completed a bimodal acceptability judgment task, rating the acceptability of SVO and OVS word orders in narrow-focus contexts, under neutral prosody. Heritage speakers behaved like the control group of baseline speakers, preferring SVO order in answer to object questions, and OVS order in answer to subject questions. In contrast, L2 learners preferred SVO order regardless of the context. While the heritage speaker group was more proficient than the L2 group, proficiency alone cannot account for differences in performance: specifically, with regard to acceptance of OVS order for subject narrow focus, heritage speakers improved with proficiency, but L2 learners did not. It is proposed that heritage speakers have an advantage in this domain due to early age of acquisition (cf. Montrul, 2008). This finding is consistent with prior literature on narrow focus with heritage speakers of other languages, and suggests that this phenomenon is not particularly vulnerable in heritage languages.

scholarly journals Aspectual distinctions in Dutch-Ambon Malay bilingual heritage speakers

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 178-193 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca R Moro
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Heritage Language ◽  
Great Likelihood ◽  
Heritage Speakers ◽  
Heritage Languages ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Heritage Speaker ◽  
Bilingual Speakers ◽  
Aspect Markers ◽  
Contact Situation

Aims and Objectives/Purpose/Research Questions: This paper investigates the effects of Dutch on the tense-aspect system of heritage Ambon Malay, a variety spoken by Dutch-Ambon Malay bilinguals in the Netherlands. The study asks whether the cross-linguistic contrasts between the two languages – Dutch obligatorily marks past/non-past and finiteness, whereas Ambon Malay lacks a grammaticalized expression of these distinctions – has an effect on the aspectual system of heritage Ambon Malay. Design/Methodology/Approach: The database for the study consists of video descriptions provided by 32 bilingual speakers (the experimental groups) and by three control groups: 27 homeland speakers of Ambon Malay, 5 first generation speakers of Ambon Malay in the Netherlands (late bilinguals), and 10 monolingual speakers of Dutch. Data and Analysis: The frequency and distribution of aspect markers is analysed statistically in the four groups. Findings/Conclusions: The analysis of the data reveals that, under the influence of Dutch, the Ambon Malay progressive marker ada has undergone a shift in temporal status and frequency and it is now interpreted as a marker of present tense, as well as of progressive aspect. The other two aspect markers, the iamitive/perfective su and verbal reduplication (iterative) are used significantly less by heritage speakers. Originality: This study shows that when a grammatical category is present and productive in the dominant language of a bilingual heritage speaker, but not in the heritage language, there is a great likelihood that it will undergo contact-induced grammaticalization, even in a relatively short time contact situation. The study also shows that input-related factors, such as transparency and phonological salience, contribute to the (in)stability of aspectual forms in the heritage language. Significance/Implications: This finding has implication for the incomplete acquisition perspective on heritage languages, which sees these languages as grammatically simplified systems (see, e.g., Montrul, 2009; Polinsky, 2008), because it shows that heritage languages can also gain grammatical distinctions previously absent in the (homeland) language.

Lithuanian Saturday Schools in Chicago: Student Proficiency, Generational Shift, and Community Involvement

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 108-133
Author(s):  
Aurelija Tamosiunaite
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Community Involvement ◽  
The United States ◽  
Internet Survey ◽  
Linguistic Community ◽  
Heritage Speakers ◽  
Heritage Languages ◽  
Community Activities

This article explores the Lithuanian heritage speakers’ community in the United States. It aims to look at the correlations between generation or age of arrival in the United States, and self-reported language proficiency. Usage of Internet materials in Lithuanian and involvement in Lithuanian activities are also addressed. The case study contrasts findings from two different sources: a survey conducted in two Chicago-area Lithuanian Saturday schools in 2007 and an Internet Survey administered to Lithuanian-American middle, high school, and college students via Survey Monkey in 2008. The empirical data indicate that Lithuanian heritage speakers form a diverse linguistic community having different linguistic competences in the heritage language. Consistent with the findings of other heritage languages (Carreira & Kagan, 2011), Lithuanian heritage speakers exhibit high oral proficiency but lack writing and reading skills. The correlation between the age of arrival and linguistic competence in Lithuanian was also observed: the younger the age of arrival in the United States, the weaker competence in Lithuanian was reported. Findings on Lithuanian heritage speakers’ involvement in the heritage community indicate that most of the respondents are highly involved in community activities. All of the third-generation (G3) respondents reported their involvement in Lithuanian Saturday schools, which indicates that Lithuanian education is still actively promoted among G3 heritage speakers.

Phonological Complexity: Bernese Swiss German in Ohio and Misiones

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-26
Author(s):  
Robert Klosinski ◽  
Andrew D. Hoffman
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Language Change ◽  
The United States ◽  
Heritage Languages ◽  
Swiss German ◽  
Local Contact ◽  
Additional Reference ◽  
Phonological Complexity

Abstract This article investigates the notion of complexity as it applies to two phonological characteristics of Heritage Bernese Swiss German, namely /l/-vocalization and /nd/-velarization. We survey literature on the role of complexity in language change generally, as well as how it applies to heritage languages specifically. We then present findings from our study of two groups of Heritage Bernese speakers, one in the United States and one in Argentina, with additional reference to the local contact languages. Our findings suggest that the loss of /nd/-velarization in Misiones, Argentina is most likely the result of an internally-driven reduction of complexity. For both the Ohio and Misiones communities, however, /l/-vocalization has been maintained. We conclude by discussing the importance of research into language dyads beyond those in the United States as well as pursuing research on lesser-studied heritage languages.

Heritage Language Instruction for Post-secondary Students from Immigrant Backgrounds

2001 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-25
Author(s):  
Kimi Kondo-Brown
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Students ◽  
Intergenerational Transmission ◽  
Heritage Language ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
The United States ◽  
Language Instruction ◽  
Short Paper ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Heritage Languages ◽  
Post Secondary

The “intergenerational transmission” of heritage languages (HLs) is crucial to the vitality of heritage language communities (especially for indigenous communities, where immigration is not a source of new speakers). We know, however, that HLs in the United States often do NOT survive well from one generation to the next as the shift to English takes place. In conjunction with the Second National Conference on Heritage Languages in America, a small group of researchers met to discuss priorities for research on intergenerational transmission of languages. Each of the ten researchers who participated prepared a short paper, posing research questions with some commentary to guide future research. Those papers form the major part of this article, covering topics related to language ecological patterns (in communities, families, and institutions), language ideology, measurement issues, and literacy.

Introduction: Vitality of Heritage Languages in the United States: The Role of Capacity, Opportunity, and Desire

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. i-viii
Author(s):  
Joseph Lo Bianco ◽  
Joy Kreeft Peyton
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
National Level ◽  
The United States ◽  
Minority Languages ◽  
Specific Context ◽  
Heritage Languages ◽  
Development Opportunity ◽  
Intergenerational Connections

A framework to examine vitality of languages in a specific context, developed by Francois Grin and elaborated by Joseph Lo Bianco, specifies that three conditions are necessary for language vitality and revitalization: Capacity Development, Opportunity Creation, and Desire (COD). This framework was developed as a tool to help communities and governments support regional and minority languages and to promote policy development at the national level related to language revitalization and use. The framework is used in this issue as a guide for examining the vitality of languages spoken in the United States as “heritage” languages, which are spoken by individuals who have home, community, and intergenerational connections with the languages as well as some proficiency in them.

Problematizing heritage language identities

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 189-213
Author(s):  
Rebecca Pozzi ◽  
Lina Reznicek-Parrado
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Identity ◽  
Study Abroad ◽  
Qualitative Analysis ◽  
Heritage Language ◽  
Mexican Descent ◽  
Heritage Speakers ◽  
Language Pedagogy ◽  
Heritage Speaker ◽  
Linguistic Awareness ◽  
Relevant Topic

Abstract Heritage speaker identities have traditionally been a relevant topic of inquiry among scholars of heritage language pedagogy. Nevertheless, there is little research on Spanish heritage language identities in a study abroad context. Additionally, most existing studies on this topic focus on heritage speakers of Mexican descent studying in Mexico (e.g., de Félix & Cavazos Peña, 1992; McLaughlin, 2001; Riegelhaupt & Carrasco, 2000). This study examines heritage language identities in a non-heritage context by exploring the experiences of three heritage speakers of Mexican descent studying in Mendoza, Argentina. By focusing on a non-heritage context, we move away from the presumption that all heritage speakers seek to (re)claim a specific ethnic identity through language study (see Leeman, 2015). Instead, our qualitative analysis illustrates the diverse ways heritage speakers in a non-heritage context construct, contest, and negotiate their identities with respect to linguistic awareness, negotiation between varieties, and perceptions of their abilities.

Preposition Stranding in Spanish as a Heritage Language

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 186-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diego Pascual y Cabo
Keyword(s):  
Heritage Language ◽  
Comparison Group ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Heritage Speakers ◽  
Heritage Speaker ◽  
The Core ◽  
Preposition Stranding ◽  
Crosslinguistic Influence ◽  
Spanish Heritage Speakers ◽  
Timing Of Exposure

Previous research examining heritage speaker bilingualism has suggested that interfaceconditioned properties are likely to be affected by crosslinguistic influence (e.g., Montrul & Polinsky, 2011; White, 2011). It is not clear, however, whether the core syntax can also be affected to the same degree (e.g., Cuza, 2013; Depiante & Thompson, 2013). Departing from Cuza’s (2013) and Depiante and Thompson’s (2013) research, the present study seeks to determine the extent to which this is possible in the case of Spanish as a heritage language. With this goal in mind, a total of thirty-three Spanish heritage speakers (divided into sequential and simultaneous bilinguals) and a comparison group of eleven late Spanish-English bilinguals completed a battery of off-line tasks that examined knowledge and use of preposition stranding (i.e., a syntactic construction whereby the object of the preposition is fronted while the preposition itself is left stranded), an understudied core syntactic phenomenon that is licit in English but precluded in Spanish. Overall findings reveal that the sequential heritage speakers pattern with participants from the control group. The simultaneous heritage speakers, on the other hand, seem to have a grammar that is not so restricting as they accept and produce ungrammatical cases of preposition stranding. Herein, we argue that these results do not obtain the way they do due to incomplete acquisition or L1 attrition but crucially because of the timing of exposure to the societal language. We propose that this property was completely acquired, although differently acquired due to the structural overlap observed between the two languages involved (e.g., Müller & Hulk, 2001), and most importantly, to the timing of acquisition of English (e.g., Putnam & Sánchez, 2013).

Asian Immigrant Communities' Civic Participation in Cultivating Bilingualism and Biliteracy in the United States

2019 ◽  
pp. 157-171
Author(s):  
Kwangok Song
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Heritage Language ◽  
Immigrant Students ◽  
The United States ◽  
Immigrant Communities ◽  
Asian Immigrant ◽  
Heritage Languages ◽  
Heritage Language Schools ◽  
Children's Literacy ◽  
Language Schools

This chapter discusses how Asian immigrant communities in the United States cultivate Asian immigrant children's literacy learning in their heritage languages. Although the United States has historically been a linguistically diverse country, bilingualism has not always been valued and acknowledged. Strong social and institutional expectations for immigrants to acquire the socially dominant language have resulted in language shifts among immigrants. Concerned about their descendants' heritage language loss, Asian immigrant communities make organized efforts to establish community-based heritage language schools. Heritage language schools play an important role in immigrant children's learning of their heritage language and culturally appropriate ways of behaving and communicating. It has also been noted that heritage language schools encounter several challenges in motivating heritage language learners. Heritage language schools should be considered as complementary education for immigrant students because they take critical responsibilities to support immigrant students' language and literacy development in their heritage languages.

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