This article focuses on the ever-increasing stress on multilingual education (MLE) in policy documents, especially its pairing with mother tongues in education (MTE). This focus brings into relief the relationship between MTE, the preservation of linguistic diversity and social democracy. We argue that the outcome of this relationship crucially…

The present study contributes to the field of bilingual and trilingual language acquisition by analysing four multilingual families. In each family, at least one parent is bilingual. Following research questions will be addressed: (A) "How relevant are the (amount of) input and the (kind of) parental language strategies for language…

This article uses cognitive measures previously developed within linguistic relativity research to explore the thinking patterns of Yucatec Maya-Spanish bilingual children in the Yucatan peninsula. These measures were designed to detect cognitive patterns associated with specific language patterns. Here, these measures are used to test whether 12…

With a focus on an under-studied group of immigrants in the UK, this paper examines Iranian families' language ideologies and practices at home in relation to Persian acquisition and maintenance for their children. Working within a family language policy (FLP) framework, we draw on sociolinguistic data from semi-structured interviews with eighteen…

This scholarly investigation delves into the metamorphosis of China's language policies across three distinct epochs spanning over two millennia, tracing from ancient China to contemporary times. Employing a sociolinguistic lens, the analysis elucidates the historical trajectories of these policies, accentuating their theoretical and pragmatic…

In this study, we examine how mobility and on-going changes in sociocultural contexts impact family language policy (FLP) in the UK. Using a questionnaire and involving 470 transnational families across the UK, our study provides a descriptive analysis of different family language practices in England and establishes how attitudes influence the…

Bilingual parents must often make difficult and complex choices about which languages to use with their children. While existing research has explored family language practices and attitudes within certain language communities, the experiences of African parents are conspicuously absent from the literature. This study explores factors influencing…

In this article, we--three Asian MotherScholars in the field of language and literacy education--conducted a collaborative self-study to examine how our individual and shared experiences as transnational mothers of emergent bilinguals have shaped our ways of promoting bilingualism and biliteracy. Our study drew on transnational feminist…

In this study, the relationship between the family language practice and the level of linguistic (in)security of adolescent Gagauz speakers is examined in the context of an endangered language. To this end, a language-use questionnaire and linguistic insecurity scale were administered to 674 participants. The questionnaire included questions…

This paper analyses adolescent Ukrainian-Russian bilinguals' stances towards polylanguaging as evidenced in their talk about and use of "suržyk," a stigmatised polylingual practice that combines features from Ukrainian and Russian. Drawing from group interviews with 39 Ukrainian young people (aged 14-15), it uses Bakhtin's ("The…

This study explores language practices of the Blang people and their perceptions of the changes in language ecology through the lens of chronotopes, hoping to better understand patterns of language shift in the Blang community in China. It takes a qualitative approach and draws on semi-structured interviews and ethnographic observations conducted…

Heritage language speakers, those who have or claim a connection with the language of their ancestors, have become a group of interest in the United States, especially since programs to serve this population were initiated four decades ago thanks to the advocacy of grassroots organizations. Still, the reach of those programs is minimal and the…

This comparative case study explored the discourses in Ohio's Seal of Biliteracy (SoBL) policy and promotional materials, and the perceptions of stakeholders regarding its value and benefits in an urban, suburban, and rural district. In doing so, this study aimed to analyze the discourses adopted in the SoBL policy and promotional texts at the…

The lack of equivalence between African languages on the one hand and Afrikaans and English on the other hand under the governments that ruled South Africa until the collapse of apartheid has seriously undermined the status of African languages. Indigenous South Africans experienced decades of marginalisation -- so much, in fact, that many,…

This research was carried out in the framework of a larger qualitative study within the Hungarian community in Israel. The original aim was to identify and describe the appearance of the Hungarian language in the Israeli linguistic landscape. However, in the meantime, it became very clear that the existence and characteristics of the Hungarian…