Pub Date : 2023-10-03DOI: 10.1177/13670069231198232
Bene Bassetti, Rosicler Reinboldt
Aims and objectives: This exploratory study investigates experiences and perceptions of Sanskrit language learning in Western non-heritage learners by analysing their language learning narratives. Methodology: Sanskrit language learning narratives were elicited through unstructured interviews. Data and analysis: Four Italian adults at a Sanskrit language Saturday class in Italy volunteered to participate: The teacher and three students, all yoga practitioners. Narratives were analysed using a combination of structured, thematic, and discursive approaches based on Riessman’s dialogic/performance approach. Findings: Sanskrit appears to be a sacred language to these learners, as it is the language of ancient philosophical or spiritual texts, and its sound has special effects on the mind and body. They learn Sanskrit to access texts in the original language and appear to have internalised Sanskritic views of perfection of the sounds of Sanskrit, their effects, and the joy of Sanskrit. Their approach to learning Sanskrit is at the interface of Western and Sanskritic traditions, as they embrace Western grammar-translation and Sanskritic teacher-disciple oral transmission and ignore the Western communicative approach and Sanskritic rote memorisation. Originality: This is the first investigation of Sanskrit learning in non-heritage Western settings and one of the first to investigate the learning of a sacred language. Yoga practitioners are a hitherto unexplored population in language learning research. A narrative approach facilitates the exploration of participants’ meaning-making and understanding. Significance: The study contributes to the emerging field of research on the learning of sacred languages, revealing some similarities and differences between learners of Sanskrit and other sacred languages. It shows that narrative approaches are suitable for researching sacred language learning.
{"title":"Learning Sanskrit as a sacred language in the West: A narrative study","authors":"Bene Bassetti, Rosicler Reinboldt","doi":"10.1177/13670069231198232","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069231198232","url":null,"abstract":"Aims and objectives: This exploratory study investigates experiences and perceptions of Sanskrit language learning in Western non-heritage learners by analysing their language learning narratives. Methodology: Sanskrit language learning narratives were elicited through unstructured interviews. Data and analysis: Four Italian adults at a Sanskrit language Saturday class in Italy volunteered to participate: The teacher and three students, all yoga practitioners. Narratives were analysed using a combination of structured, thematic, and discursive approaches based on Riessman’s dialogic/performance approach. Findings: Sanskrit appears to be a sacred language to these learners, as it is the language of ancient philosophical or spiritual texts, and its sound has special effects on the mind and body. They learn Sanskrit to access texts in the original language and appear to have internalised Sanskritic views of perfection of the sounds of Sanskrit, their effects, and the joy of Sanskrit. Their approach to learning Sanskrit is at the interface of Western and Sanskritic traditions, as they embrace Western grammar-translation and Sanskritic teacher-disciple oral transmission and ignore the Western communicative approach and Sanskritic rote memorisation. Originality: This is the first investigation of Sanskrit learning in non-heritage Western settings and one of the first to investigate the learning of a sacred language. Yoga practitioners are a hitherto unexplored population in language learning research. A narrative approach facilitates the exploration of participants’ meaning-making and understanding. Significance: The study contributes to the emerging field of research on the learning of sacred languages, revealing some similarities and differences between learners of Sanskrit and other sacred languages. It shows that narrative approaches are suitable for researching sacred language learning.","PeriodicalId":47574,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Bilingualism","volume":"100 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135695526","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-09-29DOI: 10.1177/13670069231193727
Nana Lehtinen, Anna Kautto, Kati Renvall
Purpose: Verbal fluency (VF) tasks are an efficient tool for exploring lexical retrieval. Attriters generally produce fewer words in semantic categories than monolinguals, but the processes underlying attriters’ lexical retrieval remain unclear. Phonemic tasks are scarcely applied in language attrition studies. We aim to identify processes underlying attriters’ phonemic verbal fluency (PVF) and semantic verbal fluency (SVF) performance by extending the analysis beyond total scores in the first (L1) and second (L2) language. Design: We modeled total scores and temporal aspects of task performance in L1 and L2 for the attriters, with L1 use and length of residence (LoR) as predictors. We analyzed the number and types of errors between languages and compared L1 task performance with a matched monolingual group. Data and analysis: Attriters’ ( N = 38) phonemic and semantic task performance in L1 (Finnish) and L2 (English) were modeled, and results were contrasted to a matched monolingual control group ( N = 50). Findings: Attriters demonstrated strong proficiency in L1 and similar lexical retrieval processes in L1 and L2 after 20 years of immersive L2 exposure. Frequent L1 use supported overall performance but slowed performance down in both languages. Compared with monolinguals, attriters show a disadvantage in SVF, but not due to slower initiation. Instead, attriters rely more on rapid L1 retrieval than monolinguals. Originality: Prior research on VF tasks in language attrition populations has mainly focused on SVF total scores in L1. Our investigation explores underlying mechanisms of L1 and L2 task performance in PVF and SVF within a language attrition population and contrasts L1 performance to a matched monolingual group performance. Implications: This study demonstrates the importance of investigating L2 alongside L1 in language attrition studies for a holistic approach to language processing strategies. Our findings enhance understanding of the processes underlying VF task performance, emphasizing the significance of VF task early-stage performance.
{"title":"Frequent native language use supports phonemic and semantic verbal fluency in L1 and L2: An extended analysis of verbal fluency task performance in an L1 language attrition population","authors":"Nana Lehtinen, Anna Kautto, Kati Renvall","doi":"10.1177/13670069231193727","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069231193727","url":null,"abstract":"Purpose: Verbal fluency (VF) tasks are an efficient tool for exploring lexical retrieval. Attriters generally produce fewer words in semantic categories than monolinguals, but the processes underlying attriters’ lexical retrieval remain unclear. Phonemic tasks are scarcely applied in language attrition studies. We aim to identify processes underlying attriters’ phonemic verbal fluency (PVF) and semantic verbal fluency (SVF) performance by extending the analysis beyond total scores in the first (L1) and second (L2) language. Design: We modeled total scores and temporal aspects of task performance in L1 and L2 for the attriters, with L1 use and length of residence (LoR) as predictors. We analyzed the number and types of errors between languages and compared L1 task performance with a matched monolingual group. Data and analysis: Attriters’ ( N = 38) phonemic and semantic task performance in L1 (Finnish) and L2 (English) were modeled, and results were contrasted to a matched monolingual control group ( N = 50). Findings: Attriters demonstrated strong proficiency in L1 and similar lexical retrieval processes in L1 and L2 after 20 years of immersive L2 exposure. Frequent L1 use supported overall performance but slowed performance down in both languages. Compared with monolinguals, attriters show a disadvantage in SVF, but not due to slower initiation. Instead, attriters rely more on rapid L1 retrieval than monolinguals. Originality: Prior research on VF tasks in language attrition populations has mainly focused on SVF total scores in L1. Our investigation explores underlying mechanisms of L1 and L2 task performance in PVF and SVF within a language attrition population and contrasts L1 performance to a matched monolingual group performance. Implications: This study demonstrates the importance of investigating L2 alongside L1 in language attrition studies for a holistic approach to language processing strategies. Our findings enhance understanding of the processes underlying VF task performance, emphasizing the significance of VF task early-stage performance.","PeriodicalId":47574,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Bilingualism","volume":"55 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135244605","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-09-21DOI: 10.1177/13670069231168247
Mikhail Kopotev, Aleksandr Klimov, Olesya Kisselev
Objective: The objective of this article is to discuss the pedagogical and practical need for automated assessment tools that enable teachers, researchers, and other language practitioners to relatively quickly and automatically assess the general proficiency of second language (L2) speakers according to a number of different linguistic parameters, specifically the use of collocations. Introduction: The Introduction discusses existing approaches to the concept of collocation and its role in L2 corpus studies. Methods: In the main part, Toward the automatic detection of collocational strength, we describe an approach to assessing collocations in Russian L2 written production, which is based on the corpus-driven contrastive analysis. In brief, this approach proposes ranking L2 collocations in accordance with the “collocational scores” of bigrams extracted from a reference (L1) corpus, with the assumption that the greater number of native-like bigrams in an L2 text and the higher collocational scores associated with them, the more proficient is the learner who created the text. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a series of experiments based on an L1 reference corpus and split the L2 datasets into four proficiency groups (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, and Superior). Results and evaluation: The findings, presented in the section Results and evaluation of the methods, established an empirical minimum and maximum of mean reciprocal rank (MRR) values, and the variation of the MRR across the four proficiency levels. In the last sections, we discuss shortcomings of the methods and propose further steps for overcoming them. We believe that the proposed method for assessing the collocational skill of Russian L2 writers can be successfully integrated into a bigger system capable of multifaceted automatic assessment of Russian learner texts.
{"title":"Exploring collocational complexity in L2 Russian: A corpus-driven contrastive analysis","authors":"Mikhail Kopotev, Aleksandr Klimov, Olesya Kisselev","doi":"10.1177/13670069231168247","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069231168247","url":null,"abstract":"Objective: The objective of this article is to discuss the pedagogical and practical need for automated assessment tools that enable teachers, researchers, and other language practitioners to relatively quickly and automatically assess the general proficiency of second language (L2) speakers according to a number of different linguistic parameters, specifically the use of collocations. Introduction: The Introduction discusses existing approaches to the concept of collocation and its role in L2 corpus studies. Methods: In the main part, Toward the automatic detection of collocational strength, we describe an approach to assessing collocations in Russian L2 written production, which is based on the corpus-driven contrastive analysis. In brief, this approach proposes ranking L2 collocations in accordance with the “collocational scores” of bigrams extracted from a reference (L1) corpus, with the assumption that the greater number of native-like bigrams in an L2 text and the higher collocational scores associated with them, the more proficient is the learner who created the text. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a series of experiments based on an L1 reference corpus and split the L2 datasets into four proficiency groups (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, and Superior). Results and evaluation: The findings, presented in the section Results and evaluation of the methods, established an empirical minimum and maximum of mean reciprocal rank (MRR) values, and the variation of the MRR across the four proficiency levels. In the last sections, we discuss shortcomings of the methods and propose further steps for overcoming them. We believe that the proposed method for assessing the collocational skill of Russian L2 writers can be successfully integrated into a bigger system capable of multifaceted automatic assessment of Russian learner texts.","PeriodicalId":47574,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Bilingualism","volume":"23 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"136153634","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-09-02DOI: 10.1177/13670069231190729
Julia Davydova
The empirical goal of the paper is to document the linguistic distribution and patterning as well as the sociolinguistic conditioning of intensifiers in English spoken by educated young adults from Germany. Here, I also seek to understand how the empirical data presented here informs our understanding of the mechanisms underlying language change in those forms of English that emerge through the combined impact of naturalistic L2 acquisition and instructed foreign language learning (henceforth, EFL or Learner English). The study reports intensification data from 53 advanced learners of English from Germany and compares it with that reported for L1 English vernaculars. The data were elicited with the help of sociolinguistic interviews tapping into learners’ natural linguistic behaviour. The processes of language change are explored against the backdrop of grammaticalisation theory, as espoused by variationist sociolinguists. The study employs two methods of analysis: distributional percentages and fixed-effects logistic regression analyses. These allow pinpoint rates and patterns of intensification as well as its language-internal and language-external conditioning. Systematic comparisons of language-internal conditioning underlying the occurrence of linguistic variants pinpoint ‘functional specialisation’ (also ‘entrenchment’) as a driving mechanism of and a potent constraint on language change. While demonstrating how functional specialisation is operative in the system of German Learner English intensification, the present study highlights the relevance of EFL data to empirical testing and advancement of (socio-)linguistic theory. The study also highlights the relevance of learners’ linguistic identity and the sociopsychological construct of ‘relatedness’ in the adoption of the globally available features of the English language. The study pleads for more research at the intersection of historical/general linguistics and SLA as such an approach adds to knowledge about language acquisition, language variation and, ultimately, language change.
{"title":"Tracking global English changes through local data: Intensifiers in German Learner English","authors":"Julia Davydova","doi":"10.1177/13670069231190729","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069231190729","url":null,"abstract":"The empirical goal of the paper is to document the linguistic distribution and patterning as well as the sociolinguistic conditioning of intensifiers in English spoken by educated young adults from Germany. Here, I also seek to understand how the empirical data presented here informs our understanding of the mechanisms underlying language change in those forms of English that emerge through the combined impact of naturalistic L2 acquisition and instructed foreign language learning (henceforth, EFL or Learner English). The study reports intensification data from 53 advanced learners of English from Germany and compares it with that reported for L1 English vernaculars. The data were elicited with the help of sociolinguistic interviews tapping into learners’ natural linguistic behaviour. The processes of language change are explored against the backdrop of grammaticalisation theory, as espoused by variationist sociolinguists. The study employs two methods of analysis: distributional percentages and fixed-effects logistic regression analyses. These allow pinpoint rates and patterns of intensification as well as its language-internal and language-external conditioning. Systematic comparisons of language-internal conditioning underlying the occurrence of linguistic variants pinpoint ‘functional specialisation’ (also ‘entrenchment’) as a driving mechanism of and a potent constraint on language change. While demonstrating how functional specialisation is operative in the system of German Learner English intensification, the present study highlights the relevance of EFL data to empirical testing and advancement of (socio-)linguistic theory. The study also highlights the relevance of learners’ linguistic identity and the sociopsychological construct of ‘relatedness’ in the adoption of the globally available features of the English language. The study pleads for more research at the intersection of historical/general linguistics and SLA as such an approach adds to knowledge about language acquisition, language variation and, ultimately, language change.","PeriodicalId":47574,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Bilingualism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2023-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48985000","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-09-02DOI: 10.1177/13670069231190209
Inga Hennecke, Evelyn Wiesinger
Code-switching and calquing are two widespread language contact phenomena in bilingual speech. While both phenomena have been discussed extensively in research on language contact in the past decades, only very few studies systematically investigate code-switching and calquing of and within multiword units or constructions. In our contribution, we aim at developing a more differentiated account of code-switching and calquing of and within multiword units and constructions, bringing together recent usage-based psycholinguistic and Construction Grammar theories and modeling with cognitively oriented approaches to language contact and bilingualism. We analyze and discuss corpus data from the Corpus of Spanish in Southern Arizona (CESA) from first-, second-, and third-generation bilingual Spanish–English speakers in Arizona. The corpus analysis focuses on code-switching and calquing of and within N Prep N, NN(N), and Adj N/N Adj patterns (N = noun, Prep = preposition, Adj = adjective). The analysis highlights the importance of both lexically specific multiword units and partially and fully schematic constructions in code-switching and calquing as well as a continuum between constructions situated closer to the lexical or to the syntactic pole. Whereas multiword sequences have been found to play an important role in (mostly first language [L1]) acquisition, use, and processing, the role of multiword units and constructions in bilingual speech has been much less studied so far. The study shows that both lexically specific constructions or multiword units as well as partially or fully schematic constructions play a central role in code-switching and calquing. The study argues that code-switching and calquing may ultimately be viewed as a continuum, since the speakers rely on similar, highly frequent, and productive constructions and their interlingual correspondences for both phenomena.
{"title":"Language contact phenomena in multiword units: The code-switching–calquing continuum","authors":"Inga Hennecke, Evelyn Wiesinger","doi":"10.1177/13670069231190209","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069231190209","url":null,"abstract":"Code-switching and calquing are two widespread language contact phenomena in bilingual speech. While both phenomena have been discussed extensively in research on language contact in the past decades, only very few studies systematically investigate code-switching and calquing of and within multiword units or constructions. In our contribution, we aim at developing a more differentiated account of code-switching and calquing of and within multiword units and constructions, bringing together recent usage-based psycholinguistic and Construction Grammar theories and modeling with cognitively oriented approaches to language contact and bilingualism. We analyze and discuss corpus data from the Corpus of Spanish in Southern Arizona (CESA) from first-, second-, and third-generation bilingual Spanish–English speakers in Arizona. The corpus analysis focuses on code-switching and calquing of and within N Prep N, NN(N), and Adj N/N Adj patterns (N = noun, Prep = preposition, Adj = adjective). The analysis highlights the importance of both lexically specific multiword units and partially and fully schematic constructions in code-switching and calquing as well as a continuum between constructions situated closer to the lexical or to the syntactic pole. Whereas multiword sequences have been found to play an important role in (mostly first language [L1]) acquisition, use, and processing, the role of multiword units and constructions in bilingual speech has been much less studied so far. The study shows that both lexically specific constructions or multiword units as well as partially or fully schematic constructions play a central role in code-switching and calquing. The study argues that code-switching and calquing may ultimately be viewed as a continuum, since the speakers rely on similar, highly frequent, and productive constructions and their interlingual correspondences for both phenomena.","PeriodicalId":47574,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Bilingualism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2023-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49342599","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-24DOI: 10.1177/13670069231194341
Kamil Długosz
The study investigates the extent to which offline and online comprehension of reflexive possessive pronouns in L3 and L4 is modulated by previously acquired native and non-native grammars. Thirty-one intermediate to advanced L1 Polish learners of Swedish, who have also acquired German and English (L4 Swedish learners) or only English (L3 Swedish learners), completed a self-paced reading task and a grammaticality judgement task. The tasks targeted learners’ sensitivity to possessor and possessee agreement violations. Reading times and judgement accuracy were collected and analysed using generalised linear models. In online comprehension, L3/L4 Swedish learners showed sensitivity to possessor and possessee agreement, which was affected neither by their proficiency, nor by their prior native and non-native grammars. In offline comprehension, however, they had difficulty deploying possessor and possessee agreement. Performance on possessee but not possessor agreement increased with advancing proficiency, indicating the persistent influence of L1 Polish grammar. Furthermore, L4 Swedish learners achieved an overall higher judgement accuracy than L3 Swedish learners. At the same time, L4 Swedish learners read the relevant regions longer than L3 Swedish learners, suggesting a speed–accuracy trade-off for L4 Swedish learners. The study investigates cross-linguistic influence in the comprehension of reflexive possessive pronouns in multilingual learners, which has not been explored before. It is also the first to provide evidence for a multilingual advantage in the accuracy of reflexive possessive agreement, albeit at the cost of reading speed. The study demonstrates that native and non-native grammars differently affect the offline comprehension of reflexive possessive pronouns in L3 and L4. The native language seems to have a more direct effect that consists in the employment of agreement mechanisms, while the non-native language has a more indirect effect, as it can increase learners’ sensitivity to morphosyntactic violations.
{"title":"Cross-linguistic influence in the comprehension of reflexive possessive pronouns in L3 and L4 Swedish","authors":"Kamil Długosz","doi":"10.1177/13670069231194341","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069231194341","url":null,"abstract":"The study investigates the extent to which offline and online comprehension of reflexive possessive pronouns in L3 and L4 is modulated by previously acquired native and non-native grammars. Thirty-one intermediate to advanced L1 Polish learners of Swedish, who have also acquired German and English (L4 Swedish learners) or only English (L3 Swedish learners), completed a self-paced reading task and a grammaticality judgement task. The tasks targeted learners’ sensitivity to possessor and possessee agreement violations. Reading times and judgement accuracy were collected and analysed using generalised linear models. In online comprehension, L3/L4 Swedish learners showed sensitivity to possessor and possessee agreement, which was affected neither by their proficiency, nor by their prior native and non-native grammars. In offline comprehension, however, they had difficulty deploying possessor and possessee agreement. Performance on possessee but not possessor agreement increased with advancing proficiency, indicating the persistent influence of L1 Polish grammar. Furthermore, L4 Swedish learners achieved an overall higher judgement accuracy than L3 Swedish learners. At the same time, L4 Swedish learners read the relevant regions longer than L3 Swedish learners, suggesting a speed–accuracy trade-off for L4 Swedish learners. The study investigates cross-linguistic influence in the comprehension of reflexive possessive pronouns in multilingual learners, which has not been explored before. It is also the first to provide evidence for a multilingual advantage in the accuracy of reflexive possessive agreement, albeit at the cost of reading speed. The study demonstrates that native and non-native grammars differently affect the offline comprehension of reflexive possessive pronouns in L3 and L4. The native language seems to have a more direct effect that consists in the employment of agreement mechanisms, while the non-native language has a more indirect effect, as it can increase learners’ sensitivity to morphosyntactic violations.","PeriodicalId":47574,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Bilingualism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2023-08-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44001198","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-08-12DOI: 10.1177/13670069231183149
G. Stell
This study investigates how the perfective/imperfective distinction is encoded across various ethnic varieties of Namibian English, with a specific focus on progressive -ing, simple verbal forms, and used to. The sample involves 158 Coloured and White Afrikaans-speaking informants, Damaras (L1: Khoekhoegowab), Hereros (L1: Otjiherero), Ovambos (L1: Oshiwambo). The sample thus includes Bantu, Khoesan, and West Germanic languages. The informants were administered an L1- into-English translation task. The analysis follows two steps. First, the study looks at the distribution of English verbal forms across tenses, event classes, and English verb types. Second, the study looks at the distribution of English verbal forms across aspectual indicators in the informants’ respective native languages. Regardless of event classes and verb types, Khoekhoegowab-speakers are the most frequent users of -ing while Afrikaans-speakers are the most frequent users of simple verbal forms. A close look at how English verbal forms are distributed across L1 aspectual indicators possibly reveals hypercorrect L1-pattern avoidance, spearheaded by women. Along with L1-pattern avoidance, one finds overreliance on positively transferable L1-patterns, manifest in the use of used to by Bantu-speakers, who grammatically mark the habitual in their L1s. Finally, one finds instances of English output features that cannot be triggered by L1-patterns. This concerns primarily -ing and used to among Afrikaans-speakers and used to among the Damaras. Unlike most research on aspect in postcolonial English varieties, this study systematically tracks transfers to their linguistic origin. The paper argues that transfers (or their absence) are often better accounted for from the perspective of inter-group relations than as mere ‘interferences’.
{"title":"Native languages and aspect-marking in New Englishes: The (im)perfective in Namibian English","authors":"G. Stell","doi":"10.1177/13670069231183149","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069231183149","url":null,"abstract":"This study investigates how the perfective/imperfective distinction is encoded across various ethnic varieties of Namibian English, with a specific focus on progressive -ing, simple verbal forms, and used to. The sample involves 158 Coloured and White Afrikaans-speaking informants, Damaras (L1: Khoekhoegowab), Hereros (L1: Otjiherero), Ovambos (L1: Oshiwambo). The sample thus includes Bantu, Khoesan, and West Germanic languages. The informants were administered an L1- into-English translation task. The analysis follows two steps. First, the study looks at the distribution of English verbal forms across tenses, event classes, and English verb types. Second, the study looks at the distribution of English verbal forms across aspectual indicators in the informants’ respective native languages. Regardless of event classes and verb types, Khoekhoegowab-speakers are the most frequent users of -ing while Afrikaans-speakers are the most frequent users of simple verbal forms. A close look at how English verbal forms are distributed across L1 aspectual indicators possibly reveals hypercorrect L1-pattern avoidance, spearheaded by women. Along with L1-pattern avoidance, one finds overreliance on positively transferable L1-patterns, manifest in the use of used to by Bantu-speakers, who grammatically mark the habitual in their L1s. Finally, one finds instances of English output features that cannot be triggered by L1-patterns. This concerns primarily -ing and used to among Afrikaans-speakers and used to among the Damaras. Unlike most research on aspect in postcolonial English varieties, this study systematically tracks transfers to their linguistic origin. The paper argues that transfers (or their absence) are often better accounted for from the perspective of inter-group relations than as mere ‘interferences’.","PeriodicalId":47574,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Bilingualism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2023-08-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47377695","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-07-29DOI: 10.1177/13670069231181508
K. Li, Li Nguyen, Christopher Bryant, Kayeon Yoo
Previous research has revealed much about the syntactic and social variables conditioning code-switching (i.e., the alternation between two or more languages in a discourse or utterance); however, little is known about the phonological effects. Our work explores this area by asking two main questions: (1) Does lexical tone affect code-switching between a tonal language and a non-tonal language? and (2) Is this effect (or lack thereof) observable cross-linguistically? We examine natural code-switching production between Cantonese and English, Mandarin and English, and Vietnamese and English. We use a semi-automatic natural-language processing method to process and extract relevant variables, including tonal categories at switch points. Data include transcribed natural speech from three bilingual corpora: the HLVC corpus (Cantonese/English, 25 speakers), the SEAME corpus (Mandarin/English, 20 speakers), and the CanVEC corpus (Vietnamese/English, 45 speakers). We use logistic mixed-effects models to examine tonal effects, taking into account other factors such as frequency and grammatical category. We found a robust tonal effect in Cantonese/English, a less robust effect in Mandarin/English, and no effect in Vietnamese/English. This indicates there is a tonal effect in code-switching between a tonal and a non-tonal language, but this effect is language-dependent. We also found a specific T3 ‘step-up’ pattern at Cantonese-English switch points and offered some possible phonological explanations. This is the first study that systematically investigates tonal effects in code-switching across different language pairs, using comparable data and methods. Our finding of a Cantonese-English T3 ‘step-up’ pattern is also a novel discovery that hitherto has not been documented. Theoretically, our findings support Clyne’s ‘facilitation theory’ in code-switching at a prosodic level. Empirically, we nevertheless emphasised the complexity of different prosodic features and social variables in play, thereby rejecting the idea of ‘predicting’ code-switching solely based on linguistic factors.
{"title":"Lexical tonal effects in code-switching: A comparative study of Cantonese, Mandarin, and Vietnamese switching with English","authors":"K. Li, Li Nguyen, Christopher Bryant, Kayeon Yoo","doi":"10.1177/13670069231181508","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069231181508","url":null,"abstract":"Previous research has revealed much about the syntactic and social variables conditioning code-switching (i.e., the alternation between two or more languages in a discourse or utterance); however, little is known about the phonological effects. Our work explores this area by asking two main questions: (1) Does lexical tone affect code-switching between a tonal language and a non-tonal language? and (2) Is this effect (or lack thereof) observable cross-linguistically? We examine natural code-switching production between Cantonese and English, Mandarin and English, and Vietnamese and English. We use a semi-automatic natural-language processing method to process and extract relevant variables, including tonal categories at switch points. Data include transcribed natural speech from three bilingual corpora: the HLVC corpus (Cantonese/English, 25 speakers), the SEAME corpus (Mandarin/English, 20 speakers), and the CanVEC corpus (Vietnamese/English, 45 speakers). We use logistic mixed-effects models to examine tonal effects, taking into account other factors such as frequency and grammatical category. We found a robust tonal effect in Cantonese/English, a less robust effect in Mandarin/English, and no effect in Vietnamese/English. This indicates there is a tonal effect in code-switching between a tonal and a non-tonal language, but this effect is language-dependent. We also found a specific T3 ‘step-up’ pattern at Cantonese-English switch points and offered some possible phonological explanations. This is the first study that systematically investigates tonal effects in code-switching across different language pairs, using comparable data and methods. Our finding of a Cantonese-English T3 ‘step-up’ pattern is also a novel discovery that hitherto has not been documented. Theoretically, our findings support Clyne’s ‘facilitation theory’ in code-switching at a prosodic level. Empirically, we nevertheless emphasised the complexity of different prosodic features and social variables in play, thereby rejecting the idea of ‘predicting’ code-switching solely based on linguistic factors.","PeriodicalId":47574,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Bilingualism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2023-07-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49634873","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-06-30DOI: 10.1177/13670069231173259
Janine A. E. Strandberg, Charlotte Gooskens, A. Schüppert
This study examines fennicisms (i.e., Finnish loanwords and calques) in Finland-Swedish, a Swedish variety spoken in Finland. We investigate how fennicism frequency relates to speakers’ regional backgrounds and fluency in Finnish. 134 participants from four regions in Finland performed a picture-naming task designed to elicit fennicisms. The participants also rated their own fluency in Finnish. A regression analysis with the outcome variable of fennicism frequency and the predictors of region, fluency in Finnish, and gender was performed. Results show that speakers from the more bilingual regions of Southern Finland and Helsinki used significantly more fennicisms than speakers from Ostrobothnia or Swedish-speaking Åland. The study suggests that fluency in Finnish was a strong predictor for fennicism use, as speakers with low or moderate knowledge of Finnish used fewer fennicisms than speakers with high or native(-like) fluency. No significant effect of gender was found. While fennicisms are considered widespread in Finland-Swedish, there is little previous research on their use and distribution. The results demonstrate that while many of the fennicisms are well-established in the Finland-Swedish variety, their use is limited to certain groups and communities.
{"title":"Regional background and donor-language fluency as predictors of Finnish loanword frequency in Finland-Swedish","authors":"Janine A. E. Strandberg, Charlotte Gooskens, A. Schüppert","doi":"10.1177/13670069231173259","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069231173259","url":null,"abstract":"This study examines fennicisms (i.e., Finnish loanwords and calques) in Finland-Swedish, a Swedish variety spoken in Finland. We investigate how fennicism frequency relates to speakers’ regional backgrounds and fluency in Finnish. 134 participants from four regions in Finland performed a picture-naming task designed to elicit fennicisms. The participants also rated their own fluency in Finnish. A regression analysis with the outcome variable of fennicism frequency and the predictors of region, fluency in Finnish, and gender was performed. Results show that speakers from the more bilingual regions of Southern Finland and Helsinki used significantly more fennicisms than speakers from Ostrobothnia or Swedish-speaking Åland. The study suggests that fluency in Finnish was a strong predictor for fennicism use, as speakers with low or moderate knowledge of Finnish used fewer fennicisms than speakers with high or native(-like) fluency. No significant effect of gender was found. While fennicisms are considered widespread in Finland-Swedish, there is little previous research on their use and distribution. The results demonstrate that while many of the fennicisms are well-established in the Finland-Swedish variety, their use is limited to certain groups and communities.","PeriodicalId":47574,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Bilingualism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2023-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42274852","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-06-22DOI: 10.1177/13670069231181254
Zhilong Xie, Qianyun Zhong
This study investigates whether bilingualism and bidialectalism influence cognitive control, and whether the two variables interact. The study compared two matched groups differing in second language (L2) proficiency through the Flanker and Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). The two groups were further divided into four groups differing in dialect proficiency, so that the effects of L2 proficiency and dialect proficiency and the interactive effect were examined. A mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to the Flanker task data, with the task condition as the within-subject variable and the participant group as the between-subject variable. Independent t-test and ANOVA analyses were used to compare the performance differences between groups on the WCST. The high L2 proficiency group performed better than the low L2 proficiency group both in the Flanker task and the WCST, reflecting better monitoring and shifting ability. L2 proficiency effect on cognitive control was significant. However, no dialect effect was observed, and no interaction effect was found. Further multiple regression results confirmed the role of L2 proficiency but not dialect proficiency. This is one of the first bilingual studies to incorporate both bilingualism and bidialectalism simultaneously. The current research provides robust evidence that bilingualism is related to the enhancement of cognitive control, but questions the effect of bidialectalism.
{"title":"Bilingualism but not bidialectalism influences cognitive control among young adult Chinese–English bilinguals","authors":"Zhilong Xie, Qianyun Zhong","doi":"10.1177/13670069231181254","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069231181254","url":null,"abstract":"This study investigates whether bilingualism and bidialectalism influence cognitive control, and whether the two variables interact. The study compared two matched groups differing in second language (L2) proficiency through the Flanker and Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). The two groups were further divided into four groups differing in dialect proficiency, so that the effects of L2 proficiency and dialect proficiency and the interactive effect were examined. A mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to the Flanker task data, with the task condition as the within-subject variable and the participant group as the between-subject variable. Independent t-test and ANOVA analyses were used to compare the performance differences between groups on the WCST. The high L2 proficiency group performed better than the low L2 proficiency group both in the Flanker task and the WCST, reflecting better monitoring and shifting ability. L2 proficiency effect on cognitive control was significant. However, no dialect effect was observed, and no interaction effect was found. Further multiple regression results confirmed the role of L2 proficiency but not dialect proficiency. This is one of the first bilingual studies to incorporate both bilingualism and bidialectalism simultaneously. The current research provides robust evidence that bilingualism is related to the enhancement of cognitive control, but questions the effect of bidialectalism.","PeriodicalId":47574,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Bilingualism","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.5,"publicationDate":"2023-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43992197","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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