Chapter published in:
New Approaches to Language Attitudes in the Hispanic and Lusophone World
Edited by Talia Bugel and Cecilia Montes-Alcalá
[Issues in Hispanic and Lusophone Linguistics 25] 2020
► pp. 138–154

Patterns of linguistic vitality

Intergenerational transmission in indigenous and immigrant bilingual communities

| Palacký University Olomouc
Language use among different generations of speakers related to an informant is a frequent query in surveys about the vitality of heritage languages. This chapter shows how self-reporting is influenced by attitudes in favor of the dominant language. I identify patterns of reported use comparing immigrant and indigenous languages, especially language use with siblings. I then analyze these patterns within family members according to the generation of informants. The patterns of reported use with children and with parents show radical disagreement, which points to the significant influence of language attitudes especially when reporting on language use with children. I conclude that reported use does not accurately reflect the actual process of losing minority languages, which is slower than reported.
Keywords: minority languages, indigenous languages, intergenerational language loss, self-report
Published online: 30 April 2020
https://doi.org/10.1075/ihll.25.06zaj
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