The Zhuang language test ("Vahcuengh Sawcuengh Suijbingz Gaujsi", VSSG) is the first minority language test in the People's Republic of China. It was designed with multiple goals including improving Zhuang language teaching, recruiting students for relevant majors of tertiary study, identifying proficiency for work-related applications,…

In the present study, we have explored language learning motivation, attitudes and exposition strategies in participants' L2 and FL in an attempt to adopt a multilingual view that better suits the complex sociolinguistic context of the Basque Country. The study includes 200 young multilinguals from the Basque Country. Most of them have Basque as…

As part of its ambitious Belt and Road initiative, the Chinese government, cognizant of the fact that establishing strong people-to-people bonds locally, regionally, and internationally will be key to the initiative's success and that languages will play a pivotal role in facilitating this, has called for the diversification of language programmes…

Despite growing attention paid to the language ideologies of teachers as actors in bilingualism or multilingualism studies, little research has examined whether and how power dynamics between majority and minority languages play a role in the promulgation of a majority language to ethnic minority learners of that majority language. This paper…

Previous studies of linguistic "mudes" in minority language contexts, this is, biographical junctures where speakers enact changes in their linguistic repertoire, have contributed to our understanding of how linguistic codes are appropriated across the lifespan using a largely temporal frame of reference. However, our research in Catalan…

One of the features of the growing prominence of English across the globe is the proliferation of English-medium instruction (EMI) programmes at all levels of education, driven by a neoliberal agenda which places a disproportionate value on English over other languages. While this spread has primarily affected more developed, urban contexts, EMI…

This article discusses the effectiveness of Participatory Action Research-PAR to foster linguistic mudas, transformative processes among young new speakers of Basque leading to linguistic mudas (Pujolar and Gonzàlez. 2013. "Linguistic Mudes and the Deethnicization of Language Choice in Catalonia." "International Journal of Bilingual…

In order to distinguish between language-related ideologies, Ruiz (1984) proposed three language orientations, namely 'language-as-problem', 'language-as-right' and 'language-as-resource'. Although this typology has been applied to various countries and regions around the globe, relevant research in China, a multi-ethnolinguistic country, remains…

Attitudes and motivation seem decisive in successful language learning (Dörnyei, Csizér, and Németh 2006. "Motivation, Language Attitudes and Globalisation: A Hungarian Perspective." Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.). Research in Spanish multilingual contexts analysing the influence of the L1 on attitudes and motivation to learn foreign…

In response to a growing call for developing flexible, multilingual spaces in dual language bilingual education (DLBE) programs, this paper explored how [Sánchez, M. T., O. García, and C. Solorza. 2018. "Reframing Language Allocation Policy in Dual Language Bilingual Education." Bilingual Research Journal 41 (1): 37-51.] translanguaging…

Indigenous languages of Mexico have largely been excluded from formal education spaces. This ethnographic action research study highlights a context where "Diidxazá"/ Isthmus Zapotec, an Indigenous language of Oaxaca, has recently begun to be taught in higher education. We examine the ways that administrators, the teacher, and students…

The paper considers whether bilingualism has an economic value in Slovenia's two ethnically mixed regions, or whether its value is more related to identity, and restricted primarily to the personal, educational and cultural spheres. Specifically, it asks whether bilingualism is rewarded on the labour market and what local people think about this…

The sociolinguistic context of Irish, a minority language which is also the first official language of the Republic of Ireland, presents a multitude of issues for consideration in relation to Irish language teaching and learning. This article reports a small-scale (n?=?12) exploratory qualitative study of the range of motivations to be observed…

Charts the recent debates in France in response to the European Charter for Regional and Minority Languages that, if ratified and implemented, would grant limited protection to minority regional languages there. Examines the tenor and substance of the debates surrounding the fate of the charter. Argues that much of its opposition rests on France's…

Presents a detailed study of the language planning situation in Sweden with particular emphasis on minority languages. Suggests Swedish language policies towards minorities have been nationalistic, reluctant, and directed towards assimilation. (Author/VWL)