Bilingual or “Bye-Lingual”? An Analysis and Discussion of Bilingual Education Mode in China and the US

This article compares bilingual education mode in two countries: China and the US. For China, the bilingual education been analysed includes mandarin and ethnic minority languages, Chinese and English. Extant research on bilingual education tends to focus on one country whilst there is a paucity of papers comparing various kinds of bilingual education. In this paper, by using the systematic review method, the differences and similarities of bilingual education mode in these two countries are been discussed and the tensions, as well as opportunities of bilingual education behind these two countries is explored. This paper ends a call for non-English native speaking EFL/ESL teachers to see their first language as an asset for developing bilingual education worldwide.

Social Factors Influencing the Acquisition of the Romanian Language by Students Belonging to a Local Community Hungarian Minority

Research on language acquisition is a central theme in sociolinguistic research. Contemporary social, economic and political processes affect the life of communities and the languages what they speak. Globalization, migration and the enlargement of the European Union can significantly change the role and the future of majority and minority languages. In this research, we aim to reveal the family level language choice strategies of the Hungarian community in the small town of Margitha (Bihor County, Romania), discussing the role of family related social framework that positively or negatively influences the motivation of minority students to acquire knowledge of the Romanian language. For this purpose, we used both quantitative and qualitative methodological approaches. The results of research confirm that in multi-ethnic communities perhaps the most important, however at the same time the most vulnerable component of ethnic identity is the linguistic identity, which plays a key role in shaping the cultural landmarks and contents that determine the social integration of the individual. The positive family effects of socialization with the Hungarian language can be observed mostly in the ethnically homogeneous family. However, if one of the spouses is ethnic Romanian, the dominant language of communication within the family is more likely to be the Romanian language.

Języki mniejszości

Minority LanguagesReview Helena Krasowska, Języki mniejszości: Status, prestiż, dwujęzyczność, wielojęzyczność [Minority Languages: Status, Prestige, Bilingualism, Mutilingualism], Warszawa: Studium Europy Wschodniej, Uniwersytet Warszawski, 2020, 226 pp.This review presents an academic textbook by Helena Krasowska. The article outlines issues discussed in the work, and presents the reviewer’s theoretical and practical observations, which are based on her own empirical research. Języki mniejszościRecenzjaHelena Krasowska, Języki mniejszości. Status, prestiż, dwujęzyczność, wielojęzyczność, Warszawa: Studium Europy Wschodniej, Uniwersytet Warszawski, 2020, 226 ss.Recenzja przedstawia podręcznik akademicki autorstwa Heleny Krasowskiej. Zostały tu omówione zarówno poszczególne zagadnienia poruszane w pracy, jak również teoretyczne i praktyczne rozważania, którymi autorka dzieli się na podstawie własnych badań empirycznych.

Language shift and language (re)vitalisation: the roles played by women and men in Northern Fenno-Scandia

The research question of the present paper is the following: to what degree (if any) is gender relevant as an explanatory factor in, firstly, the process of assimilation and later, the process of (re)vitalisation of indigenous and minority languages in northern Fenno-Scandia (the North Calotte)? The assimilation of the ethnic groups in question was a process initiated and lead by the authorities in the three different countries. Finland, Sweden and Norway. Nevertheless, members of the indigenous and minority groups also took part in practicing, though, not necessarily promoting, the official assimilation politics, for different reasons. (Re)vitalisation, on the other hand, was initially – and still is – mostly a process stemming from the minority groups themselves, though the authorities to a certain extent have embraced it. The paper thus addresses the question of whether gender played a role in the two different processes, assimilation and (re)vitalisation, and if that was the case, how and why.

Status Quo and Comparative Study of Fujianese College Students’ Language Abilities, Language Attitudes and Language Use

The study undertakes a diachronic comparative analysis of college students’ Mandarin, dialect, English use status, language aptitude, and language attitudes between 2015 and 2020 using data from a questionnaire of Fujian Province college students. The findings show that: (1) Mandarin’s function and status are increasing, resulting in a situation in which Mandarin is the dominant language and multiple language codes, such as dialects and English, coexist; (2) Mandarin use is increasing, while dialect use is decreasing; (3) Mandarin and English listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills are improving, while dialect listening and speaking skills are deteriorating; (4) Although Fujianese college students have a higher overall opinion of Mandarin, dialects, and English, their views toward Mandarin, dialects, and other languages are deteriorating. Based on this, the paper proposes curriculum ideology and politics in foreign language classes, as well as a variety of strategies to preserve Fujian’s strong dialects and scientifically protect weak dialects and endangered minority languages.

Moscow Mari: Ethnic Culture in the Internal Diaspora

The article deals with the problem of maintaining and preserving Mari ethnic culture in the conditions of an internal diaspora. The purpose of the article is to identify the conditions for maintaining and to determine the prospects for preserving Moscow Maris’ ethnic culture in Moscow’s multicultural urban space. Methods. In 2019–2021, the author of the article conducted a sociolinguistic survey in the Mari diaspora of the Moscow region; the selective sample includes 106 respondents (100 respondents belong to the first generation of the Mari diaspora, six to the second). One of the aspects of the survey was to study markers of ethnic identity in two generations of the diaspora. Results. The results, obtained in the interviews, reveal that Mari culture (knowledge and observance of Mari traditions and customs) is one of the key markers of ethnic identity in the first generation (coming only third after the small homeland and the Mari language markers). Respondents in the second generation demonstrate remnant knowledge of ethnic cultural practices due to a weak intergenerational transmission of the Mari language. The author concludes that in order to preserve ethnic traditions and customs in the diaspora, it is extremely important to maintain an ethnic language; at the same time, as the world practice of revitalizing minority languages shows, ethnic culture can be viewed as a source of initiation into an ethnic language, and later become a channel for its maintenance.

Some Important Factors Hindering the Civic Integration of Ethnic Minorities

The purpose of this article is to compile and group the list of problems that hinder the integration of ethnic minorities in the political, economic and cultural life of the country, based on research conducted by various organizations over the past 10 yearს. According to these studies, the main problem is, on the one hand, the language barrier and, on the other hand, ethnic-nationalist tendencies and stereotypes. These national mythologies and notions play one of the crucial roles in the formation of national self-identification. Ethno-nationalist tendencies are strong both in minorities and in ethnic Georgians. There are several factors behind the emergence of the ethnonationalism in Georgia First of all, it is the legacy of Soviet totalitarianism, as well as the result of the current socio-political situation. Understanding these two factors will give us a better answer as to why ethnic-nationalist sentiments are still prevailing in Georgia and why the integration of the ethnic minorities is hindered, despite being repeatedly declared by the state. The language barrier of ethnic minorities is also an important problem in the process of integration into society. The education system should make the knowledge of the state language accessible to ethnic minorities and, at the same time, ensure the protection of minority languages. To do this, the state must maximize and encourage local staff; The general system of education should ensure the upbringing of the citizen of the country and not put any group (even the majority) in an advantageous situation. show the advantage of any (even the majority) group.

Jezik in turizem, Language and Tourism, Sprache und Tourismus

In the monograph ten scientific chapters oriented towards language for tourism that span from language learning and teaching, to lexicography, minority languages, and selected linguistic concepts are presented. Among them is the analyses of the features of the Slovene LSP Dictionary of Tourism, the question of minority communities and their tourism websites, the collocation strength and contrastive analyses of adjective-noun collocations, the concept of movement in tertiary education, the analyses of Slovene –German translations of chosen online menus, the tourist web resources as part of the L2 classroom, the connection of linguistic landscapes with tourism, writing skills in English for Tourism, local language variants of personal names, and teaching and learning language for special purposes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Minority Languages as a Resource for Tourism Promotion on the Web: The Case of Some Minority Communities in Italy

Minority languages have been the subject of a rich literature in the field of the sociolinguistics of tourism and a number of works have underlined that they have been increasingly used in tourism promotion in the last few decades as they convey overtones evoking authenticity. Travel websites do not only provide a first glance at a destination for potential guests, but they are also part of the tourist experience because they introduce visitors to relevant contents related to specific places. In view of this, in websites of a destination where a minority language is spoken the use of the local variety could be particularly relevant in order to promote a specific place as offering an immersion into a unique cultural experience. The present article addresses the question how ten minority communities in Italy mobilize their local languages for self-representation purposes within their tourism websites.

Key Challenges and Recommendations to Provide Europe With a Film-Subtitling Protocol in the Digital Era Through Three Case Studies

By analysing European cultural policies and paradigmatic case studies, this article highlights the close link between the normalisation of minority languages ​​in Europe and film subtitling. Film subtitling is an activity that urgently needs to be protocolised insofar as it guarantees both the preservation of the cultural originality of the audiovisual work and its value as tangible and intangible European cultural heritage. To do so, we will analyse the legal divide between the all-encompassing European Union declarations and their implementation by state and local administrations, which often occur in erratic, random, contingent packages of measures that lead to a systemic absence of results. Finally, we will propose some key challenges and recommendations to provide Europe with a film subtitling protocol to promote cultural diversity and normalise non-hegemonic languages.