This study is a sociolinguistic exploration into the survival of a transnational language in the United States - a multilingual and multicultural environment. Using an adapted General Ethnicity Questionnaire, it interrogates the social dimensions of heritage language use and the diverse linguistic experiences of 120 first-generation Yorùbá-English…

Despite the high number of recognised Indigenous groups who are struggling to maintain their languages, cultures, and identities in Russia, there is little research done on the matters of cultural and linguistic revitalisation. This study sought to address this gap by exploring the views of two Indigenous groups, Karelian and Mari, on the…

Israel's population includes over a million Russian-speaking immigrants and more than 300,000 native English speakers. These groups differ in social integration and in the status of their heritage languages in Israel. We compared children's and parents' perceptions of children's identities, language abilities, and language preferences among…

This paper reports on a study that examined patterns of language maintenance and use -- standard Persian as well as dozens of dialects spoken by Jews in provincial towns -- among three generations of Israeli residents of Iranian origin. Issues of identity, acculturation, and the immigration experience were explored through a language prism as well…

This study investigated the Family Language Policy of second- and third-generation Turkish parents in Melbourne, Australia. Earlier research has shown that the family home is a crucial site for language maintenance [Fishman 1991. "Reversing Language Shift: Theoretical and Empirical Foundations of Assistance to Threatened Languages."…

The present contribution focuses on the Galician-descendant community in the city of Buenos Aires. Its aim is to draw attention on the academic interest of research on the processes of assimilation to the language and identity of reception (in that case, Spanish) and maintenance or recovery of the language and identity of origin in the case of a…

The article presents a comparative analysis of the subjective vitalities (SVs) of the minority groups of Latvia (Russian-speakers), Lithuania (Russian-speakers and Poles) and Mari El (Maris) in the Russian Federation, with a particular focus on the Mari case. The same extended version of the SV questionnaire was used in quantitative surveys in all…

First-generation Bangladeshi grandparents in the UK have consciously taken on the role of maintaining the linguistic and cultural identity of their grandchildren. Through their life experiences, they have built up "funds of knowledge" and skills that they are able to use to promote learning using strategies that are personalised and…

Diasporic communities around the world regularly encounter challenges of preserving their identities and communication practices while adapting to their host social-cultural environment. Grounded in communication accommodation theory (CAT) and informed by recent research on deviance, this study investigated the relationships between Tibetan…

The present study offers an in-depth look at heritage language maintenance and loss among the children of immigrant professionals from Eastern Europe residing in the USA. Based on semi-structured interviews with 50 married mothers and fathers, I explore: (1) parental attitudes related to heritage language transmission to their children; (2)…

Based on ethnographic fieldwork carried out in Toronto, Ontario, this article examines the schooling behaviour of parents who have migrated from France to Canada. The population under study, engaged in a "northern" kind of migration, generally benefits from an education acquired in the pre-migration period and from the legitimacy of…

Discusses the assimilation process of the Kven (descendants of Finnish-speaking immigrants from Northern Finland and the Tornio River Valley in Sweden to Northern Norway) and the historical factors and government policies which has lead to their status today as an assimilated group speaking the majority language. (SED)

Examines language retention among German immigrant families in North Queensland, Australia. Major factors encouraging language shift were the presence of school-age children, prior knowledge of English, and a high education level of immigrant parents. Women maintained the first language longer as a result of occupational and social segregation.…

Although it is commonly believed that language and culture are inexorably linked, the precise nature of this relationship remains elusive. This study investigated the hypothesis that a loss in language signals a loss in culture if language is considered a central value. This hypothesis was investigated by rating the Hindi and English proficiency…

Investigates the status of Arabic in the U.S. in four institutional areas: (1) the periodical press; (2) radio and television; (3) ethnic community schools; and (4) places of worship. Findings based on responses to questionnaires distributed in 1981 and 1982 indicate conscious efforts to maintain Arabic in these communities. (SED)