Mountain Jewish immigrants to Israel from the Eastern Caucasus used two heritage languages, Juhuri (Judeo-Tat) and Russian. Juhuri was their home and Russian the societal languages prior to migration. In Israel, Juhuri and Russian are Heritage Languages and Hebrew is the societal language. The present study reports on frequency of use and…

This study examines the role of age of arrival (AoA) in immigrant students' perceived multilingual proficiency. Additionally, the study investigates the demographic, linguistic and social-psychological variables distinguishing young-arriving immigrants from their middle and older-arriving peers. The sample included 274 eleventh grade Russian (L1)…

Research conducted on emotionality in bilinguals suggests that language use modulates emotional expression. The current study examines bilingual disadvantaged minority members' emotional experience and expression as shaped by the group relations in a conflict area. We hypothesised that, in general, greater emotionality will be found in one's…

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…

The research on language dynamics in the context of migration and integration has been dominated by applied linguists and educators, who described and measured native language attrition and emerging bilingualism among immigrants and their children. In parallel, sociolinguists discussed the role of language ideology/policy of the host society and…

Limited research to date has addressed the language socialisation of transnational children during global movement with their parents. The aim of this study was to explore the complexity of language socialisation for a transnational child experiencing a multilingual environment both at home and in preschool. This transnational English- and…

A study exploring the relationship between language-related attitudes of English-speaking immigrants in Israel and their choice of their native language or Hebrew for communication with their Israeli-born children showed that lack of proficiency in Hebrew just as often encouraged parents to choose that language as their child's native language.…

Investigation of the ethnolinguistic vitality perceptions of Jewish and Arab high school students in Israel showed that both groups' perceptions corresponded remarkably to objective reality in direction, although not in intensity, with the Jewish majority accentuating the differences and the Arab minority attenuating the differences. (Author/CB)

In 1983, United Kingdom's Department of Education & Science filed a complaint that a Hasidic school, which devoted bulk of day to teaching Hebrew texts through medium of Yiddish, was not providing "suitable preparation for adult life in Britain" under the Education Act. Article analyzes views expressed in the case, in light of…

Shows that sociolinguistic patterns reflect and transmit sociopolitical patterns. The modernization of Israeli Palestinian society, resulting in a heterogeneous social structure, will probably lead to little conformity to any one social code. Supporting evidence is found in the differentiation of Hebrew and English words in Palestinian Arabic. (24…

Investigated the relationship among identity, affective variables, and achievement in English as a foreign language (EFL). Participants were 135 native Hebrew speakers and 53 native Russian speakers studying advanced EFL at an Israeli university. Results showed that ethnolinguistic identity was a greater predictor of achievement than any of the…

Examines native Hebrew- or Arabic-speaking students' translations from English into their native language as a means of evaluating reading comprehension. Results show that mistranslations in vocabulary, expressions, and utterance-level were good indicators of lack of comprehension. (Author/CB)

Examined perceptions of Jewish ethnic group identity relative to attitudinal/motivational processes in the learning of Hebrew, French, and, in some cases, Yiddish by anglophone Jewish-Canadian high school and university students. The Jewish Ethnodynamic Questionnaire was administered to assess student attitudes regarding Jewish identity. 87…

Examines Israeli-Druze students' reading comprehension in Hebrew as a second language as related to their attitudes, cultural background, and interest in the material. Participants were administered questionnaires, Arab and Jewish cultural stories, and multiple-choice questions about each story. Results are discussed. (51 references) (Author/CK)

Documents and evaluates Israel's language policy shift from its traditional Hebrew-enforcement policy to the fostering of an immigrant language as a channel of information and culture in the face of a sudden 10% addition to its population due to one-half million Soviet migrants attached to Russian culture. (33 references) (Author/CK)