tag:theconversation.com,2011:/id/topics/bilingualism-9563/articlesBilingualism – The Conversation2024-03-27T16:39:54Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2265572024-03-27T16:39:54Z2024-03-27T16:39:54ZHow can a baby learn two languages at the same time?<p>Language acquisition in children is one of the most fascinating features of the human species, as well as one of the most difficult problems in linguistics and cognitive science. What are the processes that enable a child to <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Understanding-Child-Language-Acquisition/Rowland/p/book/9781444152654">completely master its native language</a> in just a few years, and to a degree of competence that adult learners of a second language can almost never match?</p>
<p>Far from being a matter of consensus, this subject has in fact greatly divided the research communities in these fields: the 20th century was marked by Noam Chomsky’s influential idea that native-language acquisition might stem from a <a href="https://iep.utm.edu/chomsky-philosophy/">universal and innate grammatical faculty in humans</a>, distinguishing them from other animal species.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">What do all languages have in common?</span></figcaption>
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<p>If it’s so impressive that a baby can learn even just one language, then how do we explain that it can go on to learn two, three or even more?</p>
<h2>Half the world’s population is bilingual</h2>
<p>This question presupposes that bilingualism or multilingualism is sporadic in human societies, the exception rather than the rule. However, not only do experts estimate that almost <a href="https://www.hup.harvard.edu/books/9780674066137">half the world’s population is bilingual</a>, but also that <a href="https://www.linguisticsociety.org/resource/multilingualism">multilingualism</a> is actually more common than monolingualism. Just look at some of the world’s most populous countries, such as India and China.</p>
<p>It’s thus hardly surprising that a child might have multiple native languages. This is something that should be encouraged, not prevented as if it were an obstacle to the child’s development or cultural and social integration. Numerous researchers have highlighted the many cognitive and social benefits of bilingualism throughout life. These include a <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23175648/">better memory</a>, a <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32036490/">later onset of neurodegenerative diseases</a>, or a <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2017-43419-001">better adaptation to different social contexts</a>.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">The benefits of a bilingual brain.</span></figcaption>
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<p>The <a href="https://www.hup.harvard.edu/books/9780674017641">keystone of bilingualism</a> in children seems to lie first in a set of general cognitive skills in human beings of all ages (such as analogy, abstraction and encyclopaedic memory), and secondly in a child’s astonishing cerebral plasticity, particularly between the ages of 0 and 3.</p>
<p>From birth, a child is able to retain and categorise linguistic stimuli that are extremely rich in information about their pronunciation, structure and meaning, as well as the family and social contexts in which they are used. On the basis of this information, a child can very quickly infer that one set of linguistic constructions differs from another in terms of conventions for two different languages (for example, French and English), particularly after the first year.</p>
<p>In this way, they acquire a skill known as “code-switching”, enabling them to switch easily from one language to another, for example depending on who they are speaking to, and sometimes within the same sentence (<em>code-mixing</em>).</p>
<h2>Leave time for the child</h2>
<p>Of course, just because bilingualism is easy for a child does not mean that their linguistic development is identical to that of a monolingual. Whether children are learning two languages simultaneously or a second language before the age of three, mastering two alternative grammars for specialised social contexts represents an additional cognitive load. It is not uncommon for a bilingual child to take slightly longer than a monolingual child to fully learn the language they have in common. This slight discrepancy – which sometimes manifests itself in the form of language “mixtures” – <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35399292/">quickly disappears as the child grows up</a>.</p>
<p>In order to guide children further and facilitate their bilingual acquisition, the <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/studies-in-second-language-acquisition/article/abs/raising-children-bilingually-through-the-one-parentone-language-approach-a-case-study-of-japanese-mothers-in-the-australian-context-takeuchi/F34BF798A2367F3833A5DA82F0FFD9EF">“one person, one language” parental approach</a> is often cited. For example, if one parent speaks more English to the child while the other uses more French, the baby will be able to distinguish between the two linguistic systems more quickly and to summon them up in interactions with specific people, in our example, Anglophones and Francophones.</p>
<p>Moreover, a balance in the frequency of use of the two languages at home will enable the child to successfully entrench them for regular use in later years. So if you’re a couple who speak two languages and you want to pass them on to your child, there are a few habits you can get into, but you don’t have to worry too much: just speak the two languages consistently to your child, and they’ll take care of the rest.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/226557/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Cameron Morin ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.</span></em></p>If you’re lucky enough to be able to teach your child several languages, don’t hesitate!Cameron Morin, Docteur en linguistique, ENS de LyonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2250682024-03-07T17:53:14Z2024-03-07T17:53:14ZNot just a love story: ‘Past Lives’ gives a glimpse into growing up bicultural<p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2023/06/09/1180748796/past-lives-review-greta-lee-teo-yoo"><em>Past Lives</em></a>, a film centring on a nostalgic love story between childhood soul mates, is one of this year’s <a href="https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies">Oscar nominees for best picture</a>. </p>
<p>Although it’s been somewhat overshadowed by <a href="https://apnews.com/article/barbenheimer-barbie-vs-oppenheimer-61a6ec6c67359b851ddeccd6d655b5ab"><em>“Barbenheimer,”</em></a> <em>Past Lives</em> is worth the watch. It can provide meaningful insights on how immigrant youth grow into their cultural identity. </p>
<p>The film follows childhood sweethearts Nora and Hae Sung, who grow up together in Seoul, South Korea, then are separated when Nora’s family immigrates to Toronto. They briefly reconnect as 24-year-olds via regular video calls, but their relationship fizzles. </p>
<p>Fast forward 12 years, and Nora is now a playwright in New York living with her husband, Arthur. Hae Sung has not forgotten about Nora and decides to visit her in New York. The two face their adult lives and realities, and although they wonder about what could have been, Hae Sung ultimately returns home. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Trailer for ‘Past Lives.’</span></figcaption>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/oscar-nominees-2024-past-lives-spotlights-the-pull-of-first-love-alongside-the-yearning-for-glory-221574">Oscar nominees 2024: 'Past Lives' spotlights the pull of first love alongside the yearning for glory</a>
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<h2>Not just a love story</h2>
<p>Reviewers have dubbed <em>Past Lives</em> an <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/jan/22/past-lives-review-delicately-sad-romantic-drama-is-a-real-achievement">achingly sad love story</a> that makes you question where you would be now if you had ended up with the one that got away. </p>
<p>But under the surface level, the film tells a subtle tale of the sometimes <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-021-00807-3">chaotic and emotionally draining</a> experience of newcomer youth as they grow into their <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S0092-6566(02)00510-X">bicultural identity</a>. Their feet are in two worlds: their heritage culture and their current culture. And they must learn to ebb and flow between these worlds effortlessly. </p>
<p>As a developmental psychologist, I saw clear parallels between Nora’s experiences with her two loves and immigrant young people’s emotional turmoil as they grow up belonging to two worlds. Hae Sung represented Nora’s ties to her Korean heritage, while Arthur represented her identity as an American. <em>Past Lives</em> draws us into Nora’s intimate experiences as she courses between these two identities as a person who is bicultural. </p>
<h2>Navigating a bicultural identity</h2>
<p>Psychology research shows that immigrant youth who feel they truly belong to both their heritage and current cultures are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0022022111435097">socially, emotionally and psychologically well-adjusted</a>. Referred to as bicultural competence, immigrants who can move more fluidly between their heritage and current cultures have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/cdp0000467">better self-esteem and mental health</a>, and report having <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/21676968211034309">higher quality relationships with others</a>. </p>
<p>However, many immigrant children also have difficulty finding comfortable footing between these two worlds. In the film, reflecting on meeting with Hae Sung, Nora says to her husband, “I feel so not Korean when I’m with him, but also more Korean.” </p>
<p>Nora’s experiences are not uncommon among immigrant young adults who move at a young age. These individuals can feel that their heritage culture <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9004.2009.00228.x">starkly contrasts</a> with their currently held values that are based on the culture of their adoptive country. Yet, for many immigrant youth, spending time with others who share their heritage can increase <a href="https://doi.org/10.5195/jyd.2019.708">feelings of closeness and connection</a> to their ethnic and racial identity. </p>
<p>Nora’s bilingual <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069211019466">code-switching</a> — spontaneous shifting between two languages in a single conversation — also mirrors immigrant youths’ shifting between their bicultural selves. Most immigrant bilingual youth <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0261927X19865572">tend to code-switch easily</a>, and use the communication skill to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0261927X19865572">mark how fluent they can be</a> in both of their cultures. </p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-non-english-language-cinema-is-reshaping-the-oscars-landscape-222484">How non-English language cinema is reshaping the Oscars landscape</a>
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<p>Korean Canadian director Celine Song, who wrote and directed the film partly based on her own life, has <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/past-lives-final-scene-ending-celine-song-explains-1850119">actually lived the intimate bar scene</a> in the film in which Nora code-switches when talking to Arthur and Hae Sung. In recalling her own experience, Song said, “At one point I realized I was translating beyond language and culture, that I was actually translating between two parts of my own self… But both of those people are me.”</p>
<h2>Two trees in one pot</h2>
<p><em>Past Lives</em> may resonate with many immigrant adults who arrived to North America at a young age, partly because it mirrors their own experiences. The film draws upon a life lived between two cultures as the two clash and flow both literally and figuratively.</p>
<p>When explaining why she and her husband fight, Nora reflects how immigrant youth form their bicultural identity: “It’s like planting two trees in one pot. Our roots are finding their place.” For many who live between cultures, bicultural identity takes root like two plants in one pot. </p>
<p>Nora’s story evokes a reflection of the push-and-pull of heritage and current cultural values, traditions and norms among bicultural youth. So be sure to put the film on your list if you’re planning on watching your way through this year’s nominees. </p>
<p>Not into sentimental love stories? No problem. </p>
<p>Instead, watch the film with the aim of immersing yourself into a first-hand account of how immigrant youth learn to unite their loved cultures. You might find your eyes opened up to the rich, and sometimes rollercoaster, experience of a bicultural identity.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225068/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Hali Kil receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.</span></em></p>The film ‘Past Lives’ provides meaningful insights on how immigrant youth grow into their cultural identity.Hali Kil, Assistant Professor, Psychology, Simon Fraser UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2176652023-11-21T19:06:29Z2023-11-21T19:06:29Z‘Your United States was normal’: has translation tech really made language learning redundant?<p>Every day, millions of people start the day by posting a greeting on social media. None of them expect to be arrested for their friendly morning ritual. </p>
<p>But that’s exactly what happened to a Palestinian construction worker in 2017, when the caption “يصبحهم” (“good morning”) on his Facebook selfie was <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/oct/24/facebook-palestine-israel-translates-good-morning-attack-them-arrest">auto-translated</a> as “attack them.”</p>
<p>A human Arabic speaker would have immediately <a href="https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2017-10-22/ty-article/palestinian-arrested-over-mistranslated-good-morning-facebook-post/0000017f-db61-d856-a37f-ffe181000000">recognized “يصبحهم” as an informal way to say “good morning”</a>. Not so AI. Machines are notoriously bad at dealing with variation, a key characteristic of all human languages.</p>
<p>With recent advances in automated translation, the belief is taking hold that humans, particularly English speakers, no longer need to learn other languages. Why bother with the effort when Google Translate and a host of other apps can do it for us?</p>
<p>In fact, some Anglophone universities are making precisely this argument to <a href="https://www.axios.com/2023/08/30/west-virginia-university-foreign-language-classes">dismantle their language programs</a>.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, language technologies are nowhere near being able to replace human language skills and will not be able to do so in the foreseeable future because machine language learning and human language learning differ in fundamental ways.</p>
<h2>How machines learn languages</h2>
<p>For machine translation, algorithms are trained on large amounts of texts to find the probabilities of different patterns of words. These texts can be both monolingual and bilingual.</p>
<p>Bilingual training data comes in the form of human-translated parallel texts. These are almost always based on the standard version of the training language, excluding dialects and slang phrases, as in the example above.</p>
<p>Diversity is a characteristic of all human languages, but diversity is a problem for machines. For instance, “deadly” means “causing death” in most varieties of English, and that is what appears in the training data. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.macquariedictionary.com.au/blog/article/609/">Australian meaning</a> of “excellent” (from Aboriginal English) puts a spanner in the works. If you input “<a href="https://deadlys.com.au/">Deadly Awards</a>” into any translation app, what you’ll get in your target language is the equivalent of “death-causing awards”.</p>
<h2>How machines store languages</h2>
<p>The internal linguistic diversity of English, as of any other language, is accompanied by great diversity across languages. Each language does things differently. </p>
<p>Tense, number or gender, for example, need to be grammatically encoded in some languages but not in others. Translating the simple English statement “I am a student” into German requires the inclusion of a grammatical gender marking and so will either end up as “I am a male student” or “I am a female student”.</p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/friday-essay-is-this-the-end-of-translation-156375">Friday essay: is this the end of translation?</a>
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<p>Furthermore, some languages are spoken by many people, have powerful nation states behind them, and are well resourced. Others are not.</p>
<p>“Well resourced” in the context of machine learning means that large digital corpora of training data are available.</p>
<p>The lists of language options <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09500782.2021.2010744">offered by automated translation tools</a> – like the list of 133 languages in which Google Translate is currently available – erase all these differences and suggest that each option is the same.</p>
<h2>AI speaks English</h2>
<p>Nothing could be further from the truth. English is in a class of its own, with over 90% of the training data behind large language models <a href="https://dl.acm.org/doi/pdf/10.1145/3442188.3445922">being in English</a>.</p>
<p>The remainder comes from a few dozen languages, in which data of varying sizes are available. The majority of the world’s 6,000+ languages are simply missing in action. Apps for some of these are now being created from <a href="https://aclanthology.org/2020.findings-emnlp.445.pdf">models “pre-trained” on English</a>, which further serves to cement the dominance of English.</p>
<p>One consequence of inequalities in the training data is that translations into English usually sound quite good because the app can draw both on bilingual and monolingual training data. This doesn’t mean they are accurate: one recent study found about half of all questions in Vietnamese were <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14790718.2023.2224013">incorrectly auto-translated as statements</a>.</p>
<p>Machine-translated text into languages other than English is even more problematic and routinely riddled with mistakes. For instance, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y--NX0aVnSQ">COVID-19 testing information auto-translated into German</a> included invented words, grammatical errors, and inconsistencies.</p>
<h2>What machine translation can and can’t do</h2>
<p>Machine translation is not as good as most people think, but it is useful to get the gist of web sites or be able to ask for directions in a tourist destination with the help of an app.</p>
<p>However, that is not where it ends. Translation apps are <a href="https://bmchealthservres.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12913-018-3823-1">increasingly used in high-stakes contexts, such as hospitals</a>, where staff may attempt to bypass human interpreters for quick communication with patients who have limited proficiency in English.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-problem-with-machine-translation-beware-the-wisdom-of-the-crowd-171913">The problem with machine translation: beware the wisdom of the crowd</a>
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<p>This causes big problems when, for instance, a patient’s discharge instructions state <a href="https://bmchealthservres.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12913-018-3823-1">the equivalent of “Your United States was normal”</a> – an error resulting from the abbreviation “US” being used for “ultrasound” in medical contexts.</p>
<p>Therefore, there is consensus that translation apps are suitable <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/nop2.1099">only in risk-free or low-risk situations</a>. Unfortunately, sometimes even a caption on a selfie can turn into a high-risk situation.</p>
<h2>We need to cultivate human multilingual talent</h2>
<p>Only humans can identify what constitutes a low- or high-risk situation and whether the use of machine translation may be appropriate. To make informed decisions, humans need to understand both how languages work and how machine learning works.</p>
<p>It could be argued that all the errors described here can be ironed out with more training data. There are two problems with this line of reasoning. First, AI already has more training data than any human will ever be able to ingest, yet makes mistakes no human with much lower levels of investment in their language learning would make.</p>
<p>Second, and more perniciously, training machines to do our language learning for us is incredibly costly. There are <a href="https://www.businesstoday.in/technology/news/story/microsofts-water-usage-surges-by-thousands-of-gallons-after-the-launch-of-chatgpt-study-397951-2023-09-11">the well-known environmental costs of AI</a>, of course. But there is also the cost of dismantling language teaching programs.</p>
<p>If we let go of language programs because we can outsource simple multilingual tasks to machines, we will never train humans to achieve advanced language proficiency. Even from the perspective of pure strategic national interest, the skills to communicate across language barriers in more risky contexts of economics, diplomacy or healthcare are essential.</p>
<p>Languages are diverse, fuzzy, variable, relational and deeply social. Algorithms are the opposite. By buying into the hype that machines can do our language work for us <a href="https://faculty.washington.edu/ebender/papers/Bender-CogSci-2022.pdf">we dehumanise what it means to use languages to communicate</a>, to make meaning, to create relationships and to build communities.</p>
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<p><em>The author would like to thank Ava Vahedi, a Master of mathematics student at UNSW, for her help in writing this article.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/217665/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ingrid Piller receives funding from the Humboldt Foundation. </span></em></p>Machine translation can seem alarmingly good – but it’s still no substitute for human language knowledge.Ingrid Piller, Distinguished Professor of Applied Linguistics, Macquarie UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2148322023-10-31T12:40:34Z2023-10-31T12:40:34ZLanguage induces an identity crisis for the children and grandchildren of Latino immigrants<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555349/original/file-20231023-16-6w6a7l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=68%2C319%2C5682%2C3509&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Many second- and third-generation Latinos feel insecure about their Spanish-speaking abilities.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/yvonne-mendoza-lies-on-her-couch-at-home-yvonne-is-a-first-news-photo/626450154?adppopup=true">Shaul Schwarz, Verbatim/Getty Images for Be Vocal</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://theconversation.com/el-idioma-provoca-una-crisis-de-identidad-en-los-hijos-y-nietos-de-inmigrantes-latinos-217166"><em>Leer en español.</em></a> </p>
<p>A young Latina mother I was interviewing once laughed uncomfortably as she described her sons’ embarrassment when put on the spot by older Latinos. </p>
<p>They would speak to her sons in Spanish, before quickly adding in the same language, “How awful! You don’t understand me in Spanish?” Her sons would then sheepishly reply – in Spanish – “Yes, I understand. But I don’t speak it.”</p>
<p>Despite our different backgrounds, her story hit close to home. </p>
<p>I grew up in Arizona as the child of Chinese immigrants, learning to navigate the language and cultural currents that surrounded me inside and outside of the home. Reclaiming my Chinese language and understanding its role in my life has been a lifelong journey. At the same time, I was also immersed in the bilingualism of the U.S.-Mexico border, where Spanish and English are both used but the power and politics of language always linger in the background.</p>
<p>I’ve also witnessed these dynamics in my extended family, where my husband’s Latin American roots bring with them the expectation of Spanish fluency. While he is fluent, many children of Latino immigrants are not. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.american.edu/cas/faculty/tseng.cfm">I’ve studied these issues</a> for many years as a linguist, and I’m currently exploring them in my current book project on how language helps shape Latino identity in Washington, D.C. </p>
<p>What I’ve learned upends assumptions that heritage languages are “lost” from one generation to the next because of a simple lack of motivation or children rejecting their roots. My research paints a more complex picture that delves into how we understand – or misunderstand – the bilingualism of heritage speakers.</p>
<h2>Assimilation nation</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.cal.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/HeritageBriefWhoisaHeritageLanguageLearner.pdf">Heritage speakers</a> are people who, although they may have learned their parents’ native language at home, no longer speak it in the same way as a traditional native speaker because of growing up in a bilingual environment.</p>
<p>Their language abilities are often misunderstood both within their cultural communities and by outsiders. That’s what happened with Celia’s sons: Other community members assumed they couldn’t speak Spanish, even though they could understand and respond in the language.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555384/original/file-20231023-19-7996xo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Cleveland Board of Education poster from 1917 that reads 'Cleveland: Many Peoples, One Language.'" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555384/original/file-20231023-19-7996xo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555384/original/file-20231023-19-7996xo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=897&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555384/original/file-20231023-19-7996xo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=897&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555384/original/file-20231023-19-7996xo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=897&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555384/original/file-20231023-19-7996xo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1127&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555384/original/file-20231023-19-7996xo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1127&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555384/original/file-20231023-19-7996xo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1127&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">A 1917 poster printed by the Cleveland Board of Education and the Cleveland Americanization Committee advertises English language learning to European immigrants.</span>
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<p>Heritage speakers face a unique set of circumstances. The U.S. has a long history as a multilingual society, <a href="https://www.multilingual-matters.com/page/detail/Bilingual-Education/?k=9781853599071">and an equally long history</a> of oppressing minority groups and their languages and cultures.</p>
<p>Many U.S. families descended from Europe lost their heritage languages because of pressures to assimilate. Policies promoting English as part of broader “Americanization” efforts <a href="https://www.colorincolorado.org/article/immigrant-era-focus-assimilation">were enacted through school policies and legislation</a> in the late 19th century and early 20th century. Most heritage languages in the U.S., such as German and Polish, <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Handbook-of-Heritage-Community-and-Native-American-Languages-in-the-United/Wiley-Peyton-Christian-Moore-Liu/p/book/9780415520676">were no longer spoken in families after three generations</a>.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Native American groups are still fighting to revitalize languages <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/analysis-how-indigenous-languages-can-be-preserved-and-why-those-efforts-help-revitalize-culture">weakened by targeted cultural eradication</a>. Within living memory, <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2023/09/23/latinos-spanish-language-fade-hope-future-generations/70903045007/">Latinos were punished for speaking Spanish at school</a>. I will never forget when a middle-aged Latina in my bilingual education class shared her humiliation and fear when her kindergarten teacher physically punished her for speaking Spanish – the language of her home and her family, and the only language she spoke at that time. Decades later, the memory was still raw.</p>
<p>Heritage speakers <a href="https://www.multilingual-matters.com/page/detail/Bilingualism-for-All/?k=9781800410039">still face discrimination in school</a>, and examples of linguistic prejudice – people being attacked for speaking languages other than English – <a href="https://doi.org/10.1057/s41276-018-00171-x">are rampant on the internet</a>.</p>
<h2>Straddling two worlds</h2>
<p>Under these circumstances, support for heritage languages in the home and within the community is key. Speaking Spanish is certainly an important value for many Latino parents. But they can be quick to criticize their children’s Spanish acumen, which can inadvertently undermine these efforts.</p>
<p>In my research, I discovered that elders’ negative judgments of the Spanish abilities of younger Latinos <a href="https://academic.oup.com/applij/article-abstract/42/1/113/5748305?redirectedFrom=fulltext">created insecurity and language avoidance</a>. Youth were held to unrealistic standards that did not reflect their bilingual realities. When younger Latinos <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/9781405166256.ch13">code-switched</a>, understood more than they could say, had a non-native accent in Spanish or spoke English among themselves, older community members often saw this as evidence that they didn’t really speak Spanish. </p>
<p>In reality, these are normal behaviors for the children of immigrants all over the world. But parents’ comparison of their children to monolingual norms – the speech of native speakers who speak only one language – meant that they often inadvertently disparaged their kids’ bilingualism instead of celebrating it.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/06/01/1000922653/a-daughters-journey-to-reclaim-her-heritage-language">The relationship between language and identity is intensely personal</a>. Since language is intimately linked to identity, it is often used as a gatekeeper, with young Latinos being shamed for being “Americanized” or seen as rejecting the home culture.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Family poses wearing red and blue outfits in the style of the Puerto Rican flag." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555350/original/file-20231023-15-f48ze2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555350/original/file-20231023-15-f48ze2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555350/original/file-20231023-15-f48ze2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555350/original/file-20231023-15-f48ze2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555350/original/file-20231023-15-f48ze2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555350/original/file-20231023-15-f48ze2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555350/original/file-20231023-15-f48ze2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Within families, language is intimately linked to identity and culture.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/family-posing-at-the-annual-street-festival-in-calle-ocho-news-photo/916125654?adppopup=true">Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images</a></span>
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<p>Many of the children and grandchildren of immigrants whom I spoke with told me they felt insecure about their ability to speak Spanish. Even if they were quite fluent, they felt that it was never good enough. As one U.S.-born Latino commented, “I speak Spanish, you know, people down the street can hear me and be like, ‘This guy’s a gringo.’”</p>
<p>Criticizing the way they speak, even with good intentions, can cause <a href="https://one.npr.org/?sharedMediaId=528816293:531824445">them to question their identity and feel insecure</a>, discouraging them from speaking Spanish – the exact opposite of the desired result.</p>
<h2>Never enough</h2>
<p>While their Spanish comes under attack, Latinos also weather doubts and assumptions about their English. Even Latinos who speak only English <a href="https://theracecardproject.com/assume-dont-speak-english/">get stereotyped as not speaking it</a> based on their ethnicity. People often mistakenly assume that Latino English – a native dialect – <a href="https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230510012">is “broken” English</a>, or criticize it as “nonstandard” due to its historic Spanish influence. </p>
<p>Latino English can also experience another layer of prejudice since it is often influenced by <a href="https://www.linguisticsociety.org/content/what-ebonics-african-american-english">African American language</a>, as I found while researching <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/15348458.2023.2263568">how Latino children acquire their peers’ African American English</a> as a second language.</p>
<p>The heritage-speaker dilemma encapsulates some of the contradictions that Latino youth must navigate: Their parents see them as not Latino enough, while many others view them as not American enough. This dynamic can make them doubt themselves and give others ammunition to question their identities.</p>
<p>These beliefs are so entrenched that even powerful Latinos cannot escape them. U.S. Rep. <a href="https://www.oprahdaily.com/entertainment/a33636539/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-spanish-language-fluency/">Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s bilingualism is constantly under scrutiny</a>. She has been mocked <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/latina-thing-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-s-name-latest-culture-war-n985916">for pronouncing her name in Spanish</a>, as if the English pronunciation were more correct. She’s also been accused <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11966927/Shes-total-fraud-Squad-member-AOC-slammed-video-emerges-using-accent.html">of faking her accent</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Young woman wearing pink jacket gestures during press conference in front of large white building." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/556660/original/file-20231030-25-m5bnui.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/556660/original/file-20231030-25-m5bnui.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/556660/original/file-20231030-25-m5bnui.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/556660/original/file-20231030-25-m5bnui.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/556660/original/file-20231030-25-m5bnui.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/556660/original/file-20231030-25-m5bnui.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/556660/original/file-20231030-25-m5bnui.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has found her bilingualism to be a source of scrutiny.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/rep-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-speaks-during-a-news-news-photo/1246564047?adppopup=true">Drew Angerer/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
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<p>Criticism of heritage speakers lies in the mistaken belief that there is only one “pure” way to speak a language and that this lines up neatly with culture and identity. But language always evolves, and culture is always changing. Fluid forms, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780199329175.013.808">such as Spanglish</a>, play an important role in identity for many young Latinos.</p>
<p>Increasingly, heritage speakers are sharing their experiences and realizing that wherever they are in their language journeys, <a href="https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2022/05/10971837/no-sabo-kid-meaning-new-definition">it’s good enough</a>.</p>
<p>Their language and culture is not “less than” or inauthentic – just different. It’s based on the experience of growing up in a diaspora. Ultimately, many people can identify with their experiences, regardless of their different backgrounds. Learning how to integrate different aspects of yourself into a whole while not losing your roots is a quintessentially American – and, ultimately, human – experience.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/214832/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amelia Tseng does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Young Latinos in the US often navigate a contradictory landscape: Their parents see them as not Latino enough, while teachers and peers view them as not American enough.Amelia Tseng, Assistant Professor in Spanish and Linguistics, American UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2115302023-08-16T18:02:37Z2023-08-16T18:02:37ZWhy bilinguals may have a memory advantage – new research<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542978/original/file-20230816-17-dvfign.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=89%2C35%2C3880%2C2446&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/student-shouting-by-megaphone-over-flags-281242769">Luis Molinero/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Think about being in a conversation with your best friend or partner. How often do you finish each other’s words and sentences? How do you know what they are going to say before they have said it? We like to think it is romantic intuition, but it’s just down to how the human brain works.</p>
<p>In any communication, we generate myriad predictions regarding what we are about to hear. It’s just like when we play the game hangman, where we try to predict the target word based on a few letters. To begin with – when we only have one or two letters to go on – the pool of potential candidate words is massive. The more letters we guess correctly, the more the pool of candidate words narrows down, until our brain clicks and we find the right word. </p>
<p>In natural communication, we rarely wait to hear the entire word before we begin to plan what to say back. As soon as we hear the first sounds of a word, our brain uses this information, and together with other clues – such as frequency, context and experience – fills in the blanks, cutting down from a vast list of potential candidate words to predict the target word. </p>
<p>But what if you are a bilingual with languages that have similar sounding words? Well, then, the list of candidate words is much larger. This may sound negative – making it more difficult to predict words. But a new study, <a href="http://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adh0064">published in Science Advances</a>, has revealed that this may actually give bilinguals an advantage when it comes to memory.</p>
<p>The languages of a bilingual are interconnected. The same neural apparatus that processes our first language also processes our second language. So it is easy to see why, upon hearing the first sounds of a word, potential candidate words are activated, not only from one language, but from the other one as well. </p>
<p>For instance, upon hearing the sounds “k” and “l”, a Spanish-English bilingual will automatically activate both the words “clock” and “clavo” (nail in Spanish). This means the bilingual has a tougher cutting down job to do in order to settle on the correct word, simply because there is more to cut down to get to the target. It is not surprising then that bilinguals usually take more time to retrieve or recognise words in psychological and linguistic experiments. </p>
<h2>Experimental set up</h2>
<p>Consistently having to access competing words from a large pool of candidates may have long-term cognitive consequences. In the new study, Spanish-English bilinguals and English monolinguals heard a word and had to find the correct item among an array of object images, while their eye movements were recorded.</p>
<p>The other objects in the array were manipulated so that they resembled the corresponding word sound of the target item. For instance, when the target word was “beaker”, there were images of objects such as a beetle (whose sounds overlap with beaker) or a speaker (that rhymes with beaker). Participants looked longer at those images than at ones with no overlap (such as carriage). </p>
<p>Increased looking time reflected the fact that observers activated a larger pool of competing labels, which happens when words sound similar. Not surprisingly, bilinguals looked longer at images that overlapped both within and across their languages – meaning they looked longer at more objects than monolinguals.</p>
<p>The study examined whether this kind of cross-language competition leads to better ability in remembering objects. This is because the more objects you look at, the more likely you are to remember them later on. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Los Angeles sign in English and Klallam as a way to honor the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542977/original/file-20230816-25-63ashs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/542977/original/file-20230816-25-63ashs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542977/original/file-20230816-25-63ashs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542977/original/file-20230816-25-63ashs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542977/original/file-20230816-25-63ashs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542977/original/file-20230816-25-63ashs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/542977/original/file-20230816-25-63ashs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Los Angeles sign in English and Klallam as a way to honor the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/low-angle-view-bilingual-english-klallam-2186364953">365 Focus Photography/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Participants were required to identify the correct object image after hearing a prompt word. They were then tested on their recognition memory of objects they had previously seen. Participants had to click on a box labelled “old” if they recognised the item and on a box labelled “new” if they did not.</p>
<p>The findings showed that recognition memory for objects with many competitors (such as beaker, beetle, speaker) was enhanced relative to items with low competitors (such as carriage) in both monolinguals and bilinguals. In addition, bilinguals showed the effect for cross-language competitors as well (for example clock, clavo) – giving an overall memory advantage. </p>
<p>Interestingly, second language proficiency played a crucial role. The memory advantage was most profound in bilinguals with high second language proficiency than in bilinguals with low second language proficiency and monolinguals. Clearly, to play bilingual hangman efficiently, you need to develop high proficiency in the second language, so that its words become competitors alongside those of the first language. </p>
<p>The eye tracking data confirmed that items with more competitors were looked at the longest, which led to the memory advantage for those items later on. These findings show that the bilingual cognitive system is highly interactive and can impact other cognitive components such as recognition memory.</p>
<p>Other studies <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797614567509">also show</a> enhanced memory processing in bilinguals relative to monolinguals in categorisation tasks that require suppressing distracting information. This could certainly indicate that bilinguals are more efficient at multi-tasking and more able to focus on the task at hand, especially when the task requires ignoring irrelevant information (think trying to work in a noisy cafe). </p>
<p>The picture that emerges is one where bilingualism is a cognitive tool that enhances basic cognitive functions, such as memory and categorisation. Bilingual hangman is a tougher game, but one that, ultimately, pays off.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/211530/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Panos Athanasopoulos does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Bilinguals may struggle with hangman but they excel at remembering and categorising objects.Panos Athanasopoulos, Professor of Linguistics and English Language, Lancaster UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2036052023-06-21T15:03:22Z2023-06-21T15:03:22ZHow Mexican indigenous languages are surviving against the odds – new research<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531375/original/file-20230612-260763-m87frt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Tzeltal Maya women attend a mass wedding celebration in Zinacantan, Mexico, in March 2023.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/zinacantan-mexico-march-12-2023-mexican-2284208649">SL-Photography/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Being able to speak the dominant language wherever you are in the world has long been shown to be <a href="https://direct.mit.edu/rest/article-abstract/86/2/481/57467/Language-Skills-and-Earnings-Evidence-from">economically beneficial</a>. This is particularly the case when you’re <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF00173616">looking for work</a>. </p>
<p>Being able to speak global languages can also help to secure a job in export-oriented sectors or in the civil service. The benefits accrued, for instance, by being an <a href="https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/full/10.1086/668277?casa_token=mJqM04VUUwUAAAAA:ItNgeKc5_QPRfambYs2xOVipyZDCJOzWMZdY9OP8lQF-iWStcFsNxgciwRKPxLFRtX49yAEI">English speaker in India</a> – what sociolinguists term the “English premium” – are <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272775715001181?casa_token=s097jRfaMiAAAAAA:iddpLqsZjzlSvo0ajwivgsFXR-Ob7NOybuDPTtLb0Oes3F5TtoqQw5ygawqxibaYJNnpa-4">well documented</a>.</p>
<p>However, when it comes to minority languages, and especially indigenous ones, economic benefits are rarely mentioned. It is often taken as granted that it is precisely the lack of economic opportunities that drive the <a href="https://oxfordre.com/linguistics/display/10.1093/acrefore/9780199384655.001.0001/acrefore-9780199384655-e-347">language shift</a> – the adoption of economically dominant languages from one generation to another.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Street food sellers lined up on a pavement." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531543/original/file-20230613-19-codmc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531543/original/file-20230613-19-codmc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531543/original/file-20230613-19-codmc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531543/original/file-20230613-19-codmc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531543/original/file-20230613-19-codmc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531543/original/file-20230613-19-codmc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531543/original/file-20230613-19-codmc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Economic opportunities for minority language speakers are often minimal.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/san-de-las-casas-chiapas-january-2314681881">Nichimar/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p><a href="https://users.ox.ac.uk/%7Eromaine/vvoices.html">Sociolinguists suggest</a> that within the next century, 90% of the world’s languages will disappear. This shift is mostly driven by larger, often colonial, languages dominating economies, educational systems and state governance. </p>
<p>In a recent study, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305750X22002868">we looked at</a> minority languages in Mexico, most of which are in decline, with persistent pockets of resistance. We found that, even with minimal state support, languages can sustain themselves within tight social networks and specialised labour markets. </p>
<h2>Economic benefits</h2>
<p>Before Spain colonised Mexico in the 15th century, there were an estimated <a href="https://harpercollins.co.uk/products/empires-of-the-word-a-language-history-of-the-world-nicholas-ostler?variant=32553032646734">350 indigenous languages</a>. In 1820, about 60% of the population in Mexico still spoke them. </p>
<p>The 19th century saw that figure drop substantially. By 1930, it stood at 38%. By 2020, it stood at only 5.8%. Experts estimate that <a href="https://www.inali.gob.mx/clin-inali/">282</a>of these indigenous languages have now disappeared. Of the 68 that have survived, the three most spoken are Náhuatl, Maya and Tzeltal, accounting for 1.44%, 0.72% and 0.46% of the population, respectively.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Man in a traditional parade costume with musicians." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531545/original/file-20230613-25-hcaxfb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531545/original/file-20230613-25-hcaxfb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531545/original/file-20230613-25-hcaxfb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531545/original/file-20230613-25-hcaxfb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531545/original/file-20230613-25-hcaxfb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531545/original/file-20230613-25-hcaxfb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531545/original/file-20230613-25-hcaxfb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Oaxaca is the most linguistically diverse state in Mexico.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/man-traditional-costume-posing-camera-on-2286266185">Seyhan Ahen/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In most countries, measuring the economic benefits of minority languages can be difficult because they are typically spoken by ethnic minorities, who are on average poorer than the majority. This is also the case in <a href="https://www.coneval.org.mx/Medicion/MP/Paginas/Pobreza_2020.aspx">Mexico</a>. However, in other countries it is often difficult to access the data needed to compare language transmission across generations, while the Mexican census documents the passage of languages within families. It also asks respondents for both ethnicity and knowledge of language.</p>
<p>For our study, we focused on 34 native languages, including Nahuatl, Maya, Tzeltal, Mixteco, Tzotzil, Tarahumara, Mayo and Cora. We augmented census data from 2000, 2010 and 2015 with household surveys from 2014-2018. We created tightly matched comparison groups of indigenous minority people who have maintained their bilingualism. We compared them to similar local indigenous people who have given up the minority language and speak only Spanish. </p>
<p>This comparison reveals that men who are bilingual, have a two percentage point higher likelihood of being employed. Their wages are also 5% higher, on average. This was not a quirk driven by a particular group. Of those 34 indigenous languages, 16 were found to have statistically significant positive employment benefits.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Children in uniform sitting on a step." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531547/original/file-20230613-23-nvayas.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531547/original/file-20230613-23-nvayas.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531547/original/file-20230613-23-nvayas.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531547/original/file-20230613-23-nvayas.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531547/original/file-20230613-23-nvayas.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531547/original/file-20230613-23-nvayas.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531547/original/file-20230613-23-nvayas.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Only 52,318 people in Mexico speak Huichol.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/nayarit-mexico-june-30-2016-children-2044210793">Montez Kerr/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The finding goes against the view that indigenous minority languages have no economic worth. We found that employment benefits mostly originate from agriculture, crafts and other traditional occupations. We also found economic benefits appearing at the top end of the educational scale, as some highly educated indigenous people are more likely to be employed due to their bilingualism.</p>
<h2>Language transmission</h2>
<p>We then examined data about more than 200,000 bilingual families from Mexican censuses to identify patterns in how parents transmit language to their children. The data shows how language transmission is influenced mostly by family structure and social environment. But we also discovered that in rural areas, if the local indigenous language skill is estimated to improve employment prospects, the language is also more likely to be passed from one generation to another. </p>
<p>If both parents can speak the indigenous language, they have a 73% likelihood of transmitting the language to children. If either parent speaks only Spanish, the likelihood of transmission drops to only 5-8%. This highlighted the vulnerability of minority languages in mixed marriages. </p>
<p>Another important factor is how many native language speakers there are in the locality or in the household, such as grandparents. The more there are, the more likely it is that the language will be passed on to the next generation. </p>
<p>We also found that in rural areas, where 68% of the indigenous people live, those indigenous languages that provide more employment opportunities are also more likely to be passed to the next generation. </p>
<p>Most indigenous languages in Mexico are used only at elementary levels in education, and government services are rarely provided in these languages. </p>
<p>Whether a language survives or dies out depends largely on its network – the degree to which it is transmitted. State support can also make a big difference, particularly if, as our results suggest, it focuses on the economic opportunities that knowledge of the language brings.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/203605/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Sociolinguists suggest that within the next century, 90% of the world’s languages will disappear, due largely to colonial languages dominating economies, education and governance.Panu Pelkonen, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Sussex Business School, University of SussexDiego De la Fuente Stevens, Lecturer in Economics, University of Sussex Business School, University of SussexLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2050122023-06-12T20:01:22Z2023-06-12T20:01:22ZA silver lining from the pandemic: how lockdowns helped kids learn the languages their parents speak<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/524804/original/file-20230508-21-tsmues.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>None of us is a stranger to the downsides of the pandemic. For families with kids, kindergartens and schools closed during the lockdown, and parents had to manage schooling and working from home. </p>
<p>Yet there is a silver lining: <a href="https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/multi-2023-0011/html">our research</a> shows that, in families where a parent’s mother tongue is not the language spoken in wider society, children learned more about that language during lockdowns.</p>
<p>Let’s call the language these parents speak the “home language” and the language society uses the “societal language”. Take me as an example: at home I speak Shanghainese with my mum, Mandarin with dad, and Telepath with my cat. But in the community and at work, I speak English, the societal language. </p>
<p>To many multilingual families, our kids’ home language often comes second to the societal language, which dominates their language development as they grow up. When parents witness this transition, they fear their children will gradually lose the ability to use the language they speak. They fear that, as a consequence, their children will lose touch with their roots.</p>
<p>Along with my colleagues, <a href="https://linktr.ee/eligarciag">Elisabet García González</a> and <a href="https://www.hf.uio.no/multiling/english/people/core-group/elanza/index.html">Elizabeth Lanza</a>, we conducted a survey of around 200 multilingual families in Norway (published in the journal <a href="https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/multi-2023-0011/html">Multilingua</a>). Parents expressed their concerns about their children’s development of home and societal languages. For example, one said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Since our daughter mostly speaks [home language] with her father and [societal language] with me and at kindergarten (although her father and I exclusively speak [home language] to each other), her [home language] is generally less advanced than her [societal language] […]</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Multilingual children rarely use all their languages in the same contexts or with the same frequency. This is often perceived as being more or less “advanced” in one language than the other, but in reality multilingual speakers use their languages as best fits their needs. </p>
<p>Despite these concerns, there was a silver lining. Our study found children’s home language literacy improved during the pandemic. The parents who reported the concern above later said: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>We’ve clearly noticed that her spoken [home language] has developed during the lockdown.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Another family told us: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>With the two-year-old, I noticed an improvement in her [home language] vocabulary while kindergarten was closed.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>What is the reason for this improvement in the home language? As one family shared: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>My children started to be interested and speak more [home language] during the lockdown. Assume this is a result of (us) working from home for an international company and them hearing mum use this (home) language.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Another said: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>My kids have started using more [home language] in their [societal language] speech with parents and each other during the lockdown, because they are watching more YouTube and playing Minecraft, Animal Crossing and Zelda. Words from the games are difficult to translate into [societal language].</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Our statistical analyses had something even more interesting to say: the improvement of a child’s home language made their parents feel more positive about their children being multilingual. Parents see it as a source of wellbeing, especially when they notice their child is picking up their mother tongue. Overall, family relationships, resilience, cultural connection and hope are boosted even in the darkest days of the pandemic.</p>
<p>Is this at the expense of the societal language, one may ask? Indeed, some parents were worried about the development of kids’ societal language, especially when it was not spoken at home. Others said the societal language was still being used during the lockdown, such as in online media. One parent said: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>My son is a bit behind the level of the class. He really improved his [societal language] reading during the lockdown, since we had more time to individually support him in a positive way. Before, he was much more negative.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Another family told us: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>The difference (in language use) was noticeable when the kindergarten reopened. [Societal language] came back for the kids as easily as restarting to ride a bike.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The societal language is often strong in young children – sometimes so strong that it can bully the home language into a corner. The key task for many multilingual families is not so much to find a balance between the two languages, but to make sure the home language is being actively used and not being overshadowed by the societal language.</p>
<p>Unity is important in society. Being able to speak a common language is important, but equity and diversity are important too. The ability to speak one’s mother tongue can become a source of belonging and wellbeing. </p>
<p>In addition, children growing up in a culturally and linguistically diverse environment tend to be more flexible. Their neurocognitive plasticity shines across developmental domains, from <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1367006914566082">language learning</a> to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10339-016-0780-7">music perception</a>.</p>
<p>So the pandemic lockdowns were bad, but not all bad. Our kids adapt and adjust to the new environment, and can surprise us with stronger skills that make mum and dad proud.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205012/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Liquan Liu receives funding from uropean Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No. 798658 hosted by Center for Multilingualism across the Lifespan at the University of Oslo, financed by Research Council of Norway through its Centers of Excellence funding scheme grant agreement No. 223265; and from Western Sydney University School of Psychology 20820 83181.
The corresponding academic publication will be published on journal Multilingua. DOI details to be added. Co-authors are Elisabet Garcia Gonzalez and Elizabeth Lanza.</span></em></p>Amid all the stresses of lockdowns, our research found there was some good news: children had the chance to better develop their home language.Liquan Liu, Senior lecturer, Western Sydney UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2056202023-06-12T12:24:33Z2023-06-12T12:24:33ZLinguists have identified a new English dialect that’s emerging in South Florida<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/530654/original/file-20230607-23-bbcsrb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=3%2C9%2C2171%2C1548&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Travel to Miami, and you might hear people say 'get down from the car' instead of 'get out of the car.'</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/protesters-hang-out-the-window-of-a-car-on-flagler-street-news-photo/51091597?adppopup=true">Miami Herald/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>“We got down from the car and went inside.” </p>
<p>“I made the line to pay for groceries.”</p>
<p>“He made a party to celebrate his son’s birthday.”</p>
<p>These phrases might sound off to the ears of most English-speaking Americans.</p>
<p>In Miami, however, they’ve become part of the local parlance.</p>
<p>According to <a href="https://news.fiu.edu/2023/get-down-from-the-car-miami-dialect">my recently published research</a>, these expressions – along with a host of others – form part of a new dialect taking shape in South Florida.</p>
<p>This language variety came about through sustained contact between Spanish and English speakers, particularly when speakers translated directly from Spanish. </p>
<h2>When French collided with English</h2>
<p>Whether you’re an English speaker living in Miami or elsewhere, chances are you don’t know where the words you know and use come from. </p>
<p>You’re probably aware that a limited number of words – usually foods, such as “sriracha” or “croissant” – are borrowed from other languages. But borrowed words are far more pervasive than you might think. </p>
<p>They’re all over English vocabulary: “<a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pajamas">pajamas</a>” from Hindi; “<a href="https://animalia.bio/arabian-gazelle">gazelle</a>” from Arabic, via French; and “<a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/tsunami">tsunami</a>” from Japanese.</p>
<p>Borrowed words usually come from the minds and mouths of bilingual speakers who end up moving between different cultures and places. This can happen when certain events – war, colonialism, political exile, immigration and climate change – put speakers of different language groups into contact with one another. </p>
<p>When the contact takes place over an extended period of time – decades, generations or longer – the structures of the languages in question may begin to influence one another, and the speakers can begin to share each other’s vocabulary.</p>
<p>One bilingual confluence famously changed the trajectory of the English language. <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Norman-Conquest">In 1066</a>, the Norman French, led by William the Conqueror, invaded England in an event now known as “<a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Norman-Conquest">the Norman Conquest</a>.” </p>
<p>Soon thereafter, a French-speaking ruling class replaced the English-speaking aristocracy, and for roughly 200 years, the elites of England – including the kings – did their business in French.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Faded color illustration of soldiers and injured troops." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/530640/original/file-20230607-26-mlovtv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/530640/original/file-20230607-26-mlovtv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=357&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530640/original/file-20230607-26-mlovtv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=357&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530640/original/file-20230607-26-mlovtv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=357&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530640/original/file-20230607-26-mlovtv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530640/original/file-20230607-26-mlovtv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530640/original/file-20230607-26-mlovtv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An 18th-century illustration of the Battle of Hastings, which initiated the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/the-battle-of-hastings-found-in-the-collection-of-british-news-photo/520722235?adppopup=true">Heritage Images/Hulton Fine Art Collection via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>English never really caught on with the aristocracy, but since servants and the middle classes needed to communicate with aristocrats – and with people of different classes intermarrying – French words trickled down the class hierarchy and into the language. </p>
<p>During this period, <a href="https://medium.com/english-language-faq/how-many-french-words-are-there-in-english-how-did-they-get-there-538f54ea016b">more than 10,000 loanwords</a> from French entered the English language, mostly in domains where the aristocracy held sway: the arts, military, medicine, law and religion. Words that today seem basic, even fundamental, to English vocabulary were, just 800 years ago, borrowed from French: prince, government, administer, liberty, court, prayer, judge, justice, literature, music, poetry, to name just a few.</p>
<h2>Spanish meets English in Miami</h2>
<p>Fast forward to today, where a similar form of language contact involving Spanish and English has been going on in Miami since the end of <a href="https://dp.la/primary-source-sets/cuban-immigration-after-the-revolution-1959-1973">the Cuban Revolution</a> in 1959.</p>
<p>In the years following the revolution, hundreds of thousands of Cubans left the island nation for South Florida, setting the stage for what would become one of the most important linguistic convergences in all of the Americas. </p>
<p>Today, the vast majority of the population is bilingual. In 2010, more than 65% of the population of Miami-Dade County identified as Hispanic or Latina/o, and in the large municipalities of Doral and Hialeah, <a href="https://www.academia.edu/15765243/Multilingual_Miami_Trends_in_Sociolinguistic_Research">the figure is 80% and 95%</a>, respectively.</p>
<p>Of course, identifying as Latina/o is not synonymous with speaking Spanish, and language loss has occurred among second- and third-generation Cuban Americans. But the point is that there is a lot of Spanish – and a lot of English – being spoken in Miami. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Black and white photo of Cubans walking on beach holding luggage and children." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/530639/original/file-20230607-29-tu4xz9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/530639/original/file-20230607-29-tu4xz9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=433&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530639/original/file-20230607-29-tu4xz9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=433&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530639/original/file-20230607-29-tu4xz9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=433&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530639/original/file-20230607-29-tu4xz9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=544&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530639/original/file-20230607-29-tu4xz9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=544&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/530639/original/file-20230607-29-tu4xz9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=544&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Cuban refugees on the island of Cay Sal wait for the U.S. Coast Guard to take them to Florida in 1962.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/cuban-refugees-on-sal-cay-waiting-for-us-coast-guard-to-news-photo/50679206?adppopup=true">Lynn Pelham/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Among this mix are bilinguals. Some are more proficient in Spanish, and others are more skilled English speakers. Together, they navigate the sociolinguistic landscape of South Florida in complex ways, knowing when and with whom to use which language – and when it’s OK to mix them.</p>
<p>When the first large group of Cubans came to Miami in the wake of the revolution, they did precisely this, in two ways. </p>
<p>First, people alternated between Spanish and English, sometimes within the same sentence or clause. This set the stage for the enduring presence of Spanish vocabulary in South Florida, as well as the emergence of what some people refer to as “<a href="https://www.npr.org/2012/08/10/158570815/puedes-believe-it-spanglish-gets-in-el-dictionary">Spanglish</a>.” </p>
<p>Second, as people learned English, they tended to translate directly from Spanish. These translations are a type of borrowing that linguists call “<a href="https://www.thoughtco.com/loan-translation-calque-1691255">calques</a>.”</p>
<p>Calques are all over the English language. </p>
<p>Take “dandelion.” This flower grows in central Europe, and when the Germans realized they didn’t have a word for it, they looked to botany books written in Latin, <a href="https://www.etymonline.com/word/dandelion">where it was called dens lionis</a>, or “lion’s tooth.” The Germans borrowed that concept and named the flower “<a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/L%C3%B6wenzahn">Löwenzahn</a>” – a literal translation of “lion’s tooth.” The French didn’t have a word for the flower, so they too borrowed the concept of “lion’s tooth,” calquing it as “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2012/may/25/plantwatch-dandelions-hawthorn-sunshine">dent de lion</a>.” The English, also not having a word for this flower, heard the French term without understanding it, and borrowed it, adapting “dent de lion” into English, calling it “dandelion.” </p>
<h2>A new lingo emerges</h2>
<p>This is exactly the sort of thing that’s been happening in Miami.</p>
<p>As a part of my ongoing research with students and colleagues on the way English is spoken in Miami, I conducted <a href="https://www.jbe-platform.com/content/journals/10.1075/eww.22036.car">a study</a> with linguist <a href="https://buffalo.academia.edu/KristenDAlessandroMerii">Kristen D’Allessandro Merii</a> to document Spanish-origin calques in the English spoken in South Florida. </p>
<p>We found several types of loan translations. </p>
<p>There were “<a href="https://pureenglish.org/2012/05/06/calques-loan-translations/">literal lexical calques</a>,” a direct, word-for-word translation. </p>
<p>For example, we found people to use expressions such as “get down from the car” instead of “get out of the car.” This is based on the Spanish phrase “bajar del carro,” which translates, for speakers outside of Miami, as “get out of the car.” But “bajar” means “to get down,” so it makes sense that many Miamians think of “exiting” a car in terms of “getting down” and not “getting out.” </p>
<p>Locals often say “married with,” as in “Alex got married with José,” based on the Spanish “casarse con” – literally translated as “married with.” They’ll also say “make a party,” a literal translation of the Spanish “hacer una fiesta.”</p>
<p>We also found “<a href="https://langeek.co/en/grammar/course/359/loan-words-and-calque">semantic calques</a>,” or loan translations of meaning. In Spanish, “carne,” which translates as “meat,” can refer to both all meat, or to beef, a specific kind of meat. We discovered local speakers saying “meat” to refer specifically to “beef” – as in, “I’ll have one meat empanada and two chicken empanadas.” </p>
<p>And then there were “phonetic calques,” or the translation of certain sounds. </p>
<p>“Thanks God,” a type of loan translation from “gracias a Dios,” is common in Miami. In this case, speakers analogize the “s” sound at the end of “gracias” and apply it to the English form.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yoTeQ73rP9I?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Examples of unique expressions that have emerged in Miami.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The Miami-born adopt the calques</h2>
<p>We found that some expressions were used only among the immigrant generation – for example, “throw a photo,” from “tirar una foto,” as a variation of “take a photo.” </p>
<p>But other expressions were used among the Miami-born, a group who may be bilingual but speak English as their primary language. </p>
<p>In an experiment, we asked Miamians and people from elsewhere in the U.S. to rate local expressions such as “married with” alongside the nonlocal versions, like “married to.” Both groups deemed the nonlocal versions acceptable. But Miamians rated most of the local expressions significantly more favorably than folks from elsewhere.</p>
<p>“Language is always changing” is practically a truism; most people know that Old English is radically different from Modern English, or that English in London sounds different from English in New Delhi, New York City, Sydney and Cape Town, South Africa. </p>
<p>But rarely do we pause to think about how these changes take place, or to ponder where dialects and words come from. </p>
<p>“Get down from the car,” just like “dandelion,” is a reminder that every word and every expression have a history.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205620/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Phillip M. Carter does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>It came about through sustained contact with native Spanish speakers who directly translated phrases from Spanish into English, a form of linguistic borrowing called ‘calques.’Phillip M. Carter, Associate Professor of Linguistics, Florida International UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1962502023-02-02T05:49:47Z2023-02-02T05:49:47ZCurious Kids: are some languages more difficult than others?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/505917/original/file-20230123-26-nrew7g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C8%2C6000%2C3979&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/child-studying-english-747595933">maroke/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><strong>Some languages seem harder than others. Does that mean that the brains of people who speak those languages are more stimulated? – Maria Júlia, aged 14, São Lourenço, Brazil</strong></p>
<p>Are some languages harder than others? For example, is Japanese more difficult than English?</p>
<p>To answer the question, the first thing we have to do is distinguish between babies learning their first language and children or adults learning a second language. For babies who learn their first language, no language is harder than another. Babies all learn their first language in about the same period of time. This is because <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-babies-learn-language/">learning a language is natural for all babies</a>, like learning to walk.</p>
<p>A baby’s brain comes into the world prepared to learn any human language they hear spoken around them. The brain gets the same stimulation from exposure to any language, although it adapts to <a href="https://earlychildhoodmatters.online/2017/big-surprises-from-little-brains/">certain features of the language</a> such as specific sounds. There is no evidence that some languages make you smarter.</p>
<p>In fact, babies can even acquire two (or more) <a href="https://www.scienceabc.com/humans/babies-learning-language-bilingualism-possible.html#how-babies-learn-their-native-language">languages together</a>, if they hear them regularly. The languages can be similar, like Portuguese and Spanish, or very different, like English and Chinese – but the baby’s brain can learn them at the same time.</p>
<p>But that changes if you already speak a language and are learning a second one. A language that is very different to the one you already know is going to seem harder than one that’s quite similar to your first language.</p>
<h2>Learning a second language</h2>
<p>For example, if your first language is English, Spanish words like <em>león</em> for “lion” or <em>sal</em> for “salt” are going to be easier to learn than, say, Chinese <em>shīzi</em> and <em>yán</em>, or Turkish <em>aslan</em> and <em>tuz</em>.</p>
<p>To make English words plural, you usually add -s or -es, and the same is true in Spanish, so “lions” is <em>leones</em>. But in Turkish “lions” is <em>aslanlar</em>, and in Chinese there’s no difference between “lion” and “lions” at all. It’s mainly <a href="https://blog.duolingo.com/whats-the-easiest-language-to-learn/">the difference from your first language</a> that can make another language “easier” or “harder”, not the language itself.</p>
<p>The more languages you know, the easier it is to learn other languages. Babies who learn two languages at the same time often have <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/10/171002084841.htm">an easier time</a> learning a third or fourth language when they are older. Their bilingual brains already understand something about the ways that languages can be different. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Cards with words in Portuguese and English: " src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/507059/original/file-20230130-22-omoysa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/507059/original/file-20230130-22-omoysa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507059/original/file-20230130-22-omoysa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507059/original/file-20230130-22-omoysa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507059/original/file-20230130-22-omoysa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507059/original/file-20230130-22-omoysa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/507059/original/file-20230130-22-omoysa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Learning about fruits in Portuguese and English.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/portuguese-learning-new-language-fruits-name-507878815">Eiko Tsuchiya/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p><a href="https://clareseltcompendium.wordpress.com/2014/02/10/is-there-a-critical-period-for-language-learning/">Scientists used to think</a> that there was a cutoff point, at around the age of 12 or 13, after which it was impossible to learn a new language completely. We now know that young people can <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jan/21/the-joys-and-benefits-of-bilingualism">learn another language</a> <a href="https://news.mit.edu/2018/cognitive-scientists-define-critical-period-learning-language-0501">throughout their teen years</a>. After that, it does become harder - but not impossible - to reach high levels of fluency in a new language.</p>
<p>The reason that babies are so good at learning languages, though, is partly because they have more time to do it. A teenager’s brain or a grown-up’s brain may <a href="https://medium.com/@chacon/mit-scientists-prove-adults-learn-language-to-fluency-nearly-as-well-as-children-1de888d1d45f">still be flexible enough</a> to learn another language, but as people get older, they’re busy with school, work and friends. When babies are learning their first language or languages, they’re spending hours every day practising.</p>
<h2>Reading is different</h2>
<p>While understanding and speaking a language comes naturally, though, learning to read and write is a different story.</p>
<p>Reading is not something that brains develop automatically. It actually has to be learned. And because different languages are written in different ways, it really does make sense to say that some languages are easier to learn to read than others.</p>
<p>Children who speak English or French spend <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/6876970_Becoming_literate_in_different_languages_Similar_problems_different_solutions">more years in school learning to read</a> than children who speak Italian or Finnish. This is because in Italian or Finnish there’s a close match between written letters and spoken sounds, while in English or French there are lots of complications. If you’re reading this, you’ll already know about some of the complications in English.</p>
<p>In some languages where writing was invented a long time ago, especially in Asia, there are other complications. In Chinese and Japanese, especially, writing is based on separate symbols for words or parts of words instead of letters that stand for individual sounds. Learning to read these languages can take <a href="https://blogs.ntu.edu.sg/blip/does-the-brain-read-chinese-the-same-way-it-reads-english/">even longer</a>. In certain particular ways, then, some languages can be harder to learn than others.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/196250/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Antonella Sorace is a Professor of Developmental Linguistics at the University of Edinburgh. She received grants from the Economic and Social Research Council, the Leverhulme Trust, the EU, the Carnegie Trust and other international funders in support of some of the research mentioned in this article. She is also the founder and director of Bilingualism Matters, a non-profit organisation that aims to bring research on bilingualism and language learning to people in different sectors of society. </span></em></p>It depends on whether you are learning as a baby or not.Antonella Sorace, Professor of Developmental Linguistics, The University of EdinburghLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1965992023-01-10T11:51:54Z2023-01-10T11:51:54ZWhy being bilingual can open doors for children with developmental disabilities, not close them<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/501612/original/file-20221216-14-xribej.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Antoni Shkraba / Pexels</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>When parents learn their child has a developmental disability, they often have questions about what their child may or may not be able to do. </p>
<p>Children with developmental disabilities, such as Down syndrome, often have challenges and delays in language development. And for some families, one of these questions may be: “Will speaking two languages be detrimental to their development?” </p>
<p>However, studies consistently demonstrate exposure to an additional language, including a minority language, <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/studies-in-second-language-acquisition/article/abs/predicting-language-proficiency-in-bilingual-children/40E27364CCAEB48D4F878EE64C377CF2">does not impact language outcomes negatively</a>. This highlights the importance of giving children the opportunity to become bilingual.</p>
<p>Many parents feel speaking one language would be easier than two. Some may feel <a href="https://pubs.asha.org/doi/abs/10.1044/2016_JSLHR-L-15-0348">bilingualism would be too confusing</a> for a child with a developmental disability. This is a belief which is also sometimes held by teachers and clinicians who may be consulted on their view towards bilingual exposure. </p>
<p>With good intentions, paediatricians, speech–language therapists, teachers or social workers <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1460-6984.2011.00071.x?casa_token=3-Vp9tBfaUYAAAAA:1yG64kISIh9vPRWEnD1VSyE8P9lVl9skv8ZSn8o6AQbL1_A2mEd1mErgXaPm7oxdfz5AoQRcpI7SwB4">may advise parents</a> to avoid using a heritage or minority language in the home, as children will also be exposed to the majority community language.</p>
<p>Research also shows children with disabilities may have <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0021992416300272?casa_token=b33PrWslSUoAAAAA:BPWMufWoUG8p0W7CB-KqpJKiBCTadDMU_K6tpzjgolramxAtSXjvKj4UrzUvpSsuWD_AAj6XIA">fewer opportunities to access services</a> in a second language.</p>
<p>However, bilingualism is possible for children with developmental disabilities, as our research on children learning both Welsh and English shows. Children who are able to access bilingual provisions may also benefit. In fact, research shows bilingualism may have a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0891422219300149?casa_token=Qk0mgmkJTCEAAAAA:kdSYpyVLrCx84jDJbtaU1LRP4MFyUFhc4GSWiWSi_JJCOcj2idcZEjut9jhrgb1BmKk-Nx_vSKM">positive impact on these children’s social interactions and the formation of their identity</a>.</p>
<h2>Bilingualism in Wales</h2>
<p>The most recent census data for England and Wales suggests <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/culturalidentity/language/bulletins/welshlanguagewales/census2021#:%7E:text=In%202021%2C%20an%20estimated%20538%2C000,2011%20(562%2C000%2C%2019.0%25)">the number of children able to speak Welsh in Wales has declined by 1.2 percentage points</a> from 19% in 2011 to 17.8% in 2021. The largest decline was in those aged between 5 and 15 years old. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1600061790410493952"}"></div></p>
<p>While these latest figures are unexpected and <a href="https://www.gov.wales/written-statement-response-census-2021-results-welsh-language">disappointing according to the Welsh government</a>, the age group with the highest percentage of Welsh speakers was also children between the ages of 5 and 15. This gives a promising outlook for the future of the Welsh language. </p>
<p>Crucially, converging evidence shows bilingualism does not cause <a href="https://www.child-encyclopedia.com/second-language/according-experts/second-languagebilingualism-early-age-emphasis-its-impact-early">additional difficulties or lead to confusion for children learning more than one language</a>.</p>
<p>Parents may have reservations about Welsh-medium education if they do not speak Welsh themselves, for example. Parents of autistic children or children with developmental disabilities may have further reservations still. </p>
<p>Once again though, studies show <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/aur.2023?casa_token=1Iib1mcuGscAAAAA%3Akc31b2-oE-T2BP9EEu9meC6mzjiPqAuIxptAVJDAoRoo38-pRgtWMhqzp3E-sCUZ8uW4wA2j3RCazdc">bilingualism does not cause additional difficulties</a> for these groups either. This includes children with more <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02699206.2020.1818288">complex and co-occuring conditions.</a></p>
<h2>Why parents should embrace bilingualism</h2>
<p>Regarding children with Down syndrome, <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34126402/">we found parents need not have these concerns</a>. Indeed, our research suggests families should embrace bilingualism. We recruited children with Down syndrome alongside typically developing children who were either acquiring only English, or were exposed to both English and Welsh. These children completed a range of specialist tasks to assess their cognitive and language skills.</p>
<p>We found Welsh-English bilingual children with Down syndrome had comparable English skills in important language areas to children with Down syndrome who had only been exposed to English. </p>
<p>Meanwhile, the bilingual children were also developing skills in their additional language. Those also acquiring Welsh had similar abilities in that language as younger children without Down syndrome, who were at the same level of development. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Girl with Down syndrome smiling with painted fingers" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/503289/original/file-20230105-14-ydlxj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/503289/original/file-20230105-14-ydlxj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/503289/original/file-20230105-14-ydlxj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/503289/original/file-20230105-14-ydlxj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/503289/original/file-20230105-14-ydlxj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/503289/original/file-20230105-14-ydlxj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/503289/original/file-20230105-14-ydlxj6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Denis Kuvaev, Shutterstock</span></span>
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<p>Children with Down syndrome should therefore be supported in accessing similar educational provisions as more typically developing children. In the context of Wales, this could mean accessing Welsh-medium schools or being included in second language classes.</p>
<p>In Wales, parents can opt for their children to receive Welsh-medium education, regardless of their home language. Children who receive Welsh education can flourish if they have access to bilingual education.</p>
<p>Research on typically developing bilingual children and adults suggests there may be other <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-does-being-bilingual-affect-your-brain-it-depends-on-how-you-use-language-146264">benefits to being bilingual</a>. These include better mental skills, creativity and even the possibility of being <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6868000/#:%7E:text=Bilingualism%20is%20one%20form%20of,monolingual%20patients%20through%20cognitive%20reserve.">protected against cognitive decline</a>, such as Alzheimer’s disease. </p>
<p>Being bilingual opens up a range of opportunities such as <a href="https://ojs.deakin.edu.au/index.php/jtlge/article/view/1077">better prospects of gaining employment</a>, and <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13670050.2020.1799323?casa_token=5tlcOYoZ1C4AAAAA%3AisI1jclMPKZlLwklTkl2z1rNI2LnQg1tmBpLIsgbv--ItUGNFoBtlpuV5VyQSWWEgb8itiX2WKDE">helping to develop social skills</a>.</p>
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<p>Research shows some of these benefits, such as enhanced thinking skills, <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32157943/">may also extend to autistic children</a>. </p>
<p>Giving children the opportunity to develop abilities in two languages also enables them to be able to choose what language they want to communicate in. It may also make them feel connected to their community. </p>
<p>These findings challenge the view that bilingualism is detrimental to children’s development. In contrast, including children with developmental disabilities in bilingual provisions gives them the chance to blossom alongside their typically developing peers.</p>
<p>As a result, families should feel empowered to reach informed decisions for themselves by considering the potential opportunities being bilingual may provide.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/196599/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rebecca Ward has received funding from the Economic and Social Research Council's Doctoral Training Partnership Programme and The Coleg Cymraeg.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Eirini Sanoudaki collaborates with the Down’s Syndrome Association, schools and groups involved in supporting individuals with developmental conditions. She receives funding from the ESRC for research on bilingualism in neurodiverse populations.</span></em></p>There are many benefits to being bilingual.Rebecca Ward, Lecturer in Psychology, Swansea UniversityEirini Sanoudaki, Senior Lecturer in Linguistics (Bilingualism), Bangor UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1961842022-12-15T15:56:24Z2022-12-15T15:56:24ZNumber of Welsh speakers has declined – pandemic disruption to education may be a cause<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500766/original/file-20221213-20457-576dx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C17%2C6000%2C3970&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/bilingual-school-crossing-warning-sign-welsh-2020430945">David Pimborough/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The recent 2022 census held unexpected news for Wales. It found the number of Welsh speakers in the country had decreased by 1.2% since the previous 2011 census, from 19% to 17.8%. </p>
<p>This represents an estimated loss of almost 24,000 Welsh speakers between 2011 (562,000) and 2021 (538,300). Despite the introduction of the Welsh government’s language strategy, the number of Welsh speakers in Wales has continued a downward trajectory begun in 2001.</p>
<p>One of the reasons for this decline could be found in the disruption caused to Welsh-medium education by the <a href="https://gov.wales/sites/default/files/pdf-versions/2022/12/3/1670412951/welsh-language-wales-census-2021.pdf">global COVID-19 pandemic</a>. </p>
<p>The revitalisation of the Welsh language is seen by many as a story of success. The 2011 <a href="https://www.torfaen.gov.uk/en/AboutTheCouncil/EqualityDiversity/WelshLanguageScheme/Welsh-Language.aspx#:%7E:text=The%20Welsh%20Language%20(Wales)%20Measure,and%20implement%20Welsh%20Language%20Schemes">Welsh Language (Wales) Measure</a> gave Welsh equal legal standing with English in Wales. Welsh speakers can access their language <a href="https://arts.wales/welsh-language-media">on radio</a>, <a href="https://www.s4c.cymru/en/about-us/">on TV</a> and online. </p>
<p>Welsh was even broadcast to the world at the 2022 men’s football world cup, spoken by players at a <a href="https://nation.cymru/sport/special-to-be-the-first-person-to-speak-welsh-at-world-cup-press-conference-says-ben-davies/">press conference</a> – and used by Brazilian football legend Cafu in an <a href="https://nation.cymru/news/watch-brazil-legend-cafu-speaks-welsh-in-budweiser-advert/">advert for Budweiser</a>. </p>
<p>This confidence is reflected by the Welsh government’s current <a href="https://gov.wales/sites/default/files/publications/2018-12/cymraeg-2050-welsh-language-strategy.pdf">Welsh language strategy</a>, introduced in 2017, which aims to have one million people speaking Welsh by 2050. </p>
<p>This has included growth in <a href="https://gov.wales/written-statement-guidance-school-categories-according-welsh-medium-provision">Welsh-medium education</a>. This sees pupils receive the majority of their school education in Welsh, in many parts of the country. It’s particularly notable in urban locations where Welsh had declined as a community language. </p>
<p>So the recent decline will be troubling for those involved in promoting the Welsh language, especially as the largest decreases were found among school-age pupils. Education is a <a href="https://gov.wales/sites/default/files/publications/2018-12/cymraeg-2050-welsh-language-strategy.pdf">key strategic theme</a> within the government’s language strategy – which aims to increase the number of young Welsh speakers and see them go on to use their language beyond the education system and within their daily lives.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1600063085854670848"}"></div></p>
<p>The 2021 census showed that the <a href="https://digitalanddata.blog.gov.wales/2022/12/06/chief-statisticians-update-understanding-census-2021-data-about-the-welsh-language/">largest decreases</a> in the number of Welsh speakers were in the five- to 15-year-old age range. The number of school-age Welsh speakers decreased by 6%, from 40.3% in 2011 to 34.3% in 2021, and the number of three- to four-year-old Welsh speakers fell from 23.3% in 2011 to 18.2% in 2021. </p>
<h2>Learning in lockdown</h2>
<p>Before the release of the census results, the impact of the pandemic was noted as a <a href="https://hwb.gov.wales/api/storage/ad1bd45e-9537-48fb-8cd0-ed7e3d0b7dd4/covid-rs3-final-en.pdf">possible concern</a> for language acquisition and educational attainment within schools in Wales. </p>
<p>The annual census data collection day was March 21 2021, which followed periods of lockdown and school closures where many families were working and <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-53171919">learning from home</a>. School closures had a <a href="https://theconversation.com/bilingual-education-in-wales-despite-lockdown-difficulties-parents-should-persevere-144381">significant impact</a> on the number of opportunities available to children and young people to learn and use the Welsh language consistently. </p>
<p>New Welsh speakers who had learnt the language in the educational system and did not have Welsh speakers in their households may have been particularly disadvantaged. The pandemic may have led to a loss of skills for some young Welsh speakers over a sustained period of time. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1600119857332203520"}"></div></p>
<p><a href="https://hwb.gov.wales/api/storage/ad1bd45e-9537-48fb-8cd0-ed7e3d0b7dd4/covid-rs3-final-en.pdf">Recent research</a> funded by the Welsh government looked into how the pandemic affected children who were not in regular contact with the Welsh language at home. The study noted that this group would require additional support to get back on track with their Welsh – but also that this is feasible if appropriate support is put in place. </p>
<p>The lack of exposure to the Welsh language may also have negatively affected children’s perceptions of themselves as Welsh speakers. Their linguistic <a href="https://hwb.gov.wales/api/storage/ad1bd45e-9537-48fb-8cd0-ed7e3d0b7dd4/covid-rs3-final-en.pdf">confidence and fluency</a> is likely to have been affected by a significant period of isolation away from Welsh-speaking teachers and peers. </p>
<p>Similarly, this could have influenced how non-Welsh speaking parents viewed their children’s Welsh language skills. Opportunities for children to showcase these skills were limited, as school events such as sportsdays and schools concerts were postponed indefinitely. This may have led to parents, who complete the census on behalf of their children, to under-report their children’s Welsh language ability.</p>
<h2>Generation COVID</h2>
<p>There is evidence that the pandemic affected the <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/11033088211027412">educational attainment</a> of children and young people on <a href="https://blogs.worldbank.org/education/global-education-crisis-even-more-severe-previously-estimated">a global scale</a>. </p>
<p>In Wales, the pandemic also highlighted a range of social inequalities based on gender, ethnicity and social class, and has been followed by an increase of <a href="https://www.jrf.org.uk/press/wales-faces-rising-tide-poverty-after-coronavirus">poverty</a>. For children who do not have Welsh-speaking family members at home, these factors may have led to inequality in access to Welsh language activities. </p>
<p>The decrease in Welsh speakers can also be attributed to many complex factors beyond the influence of COVID-19. There are <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/bulletins/populationandhouseholdestimateswales/census2021">fewer people aged under 15</a> in Wales than there were in 2011, and fewer school-age pupils in the population could dilute the important influence of education on the Welsh language.</p>
<p>However, the reality remains that a generation of children have had their lives and education affected by the pandemic. Further research and a policy response is now needed to assess this impact, and to provide the necessary support for this generation of Welsh speakers in Wales.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/196184/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Rhian Hodges has received funding in the past from the Welsh Government, The Welsh Language Commissioner, The ESRC, and the Community Renewal Fund to to conduct social research.
Dr Rhian Hodges is also one of the Directors of Menter Iaith Bangor, a community language initiative in Bangor, north Wales.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Cynog Prys has received funding in the past from the Welsh Government, Welsh Language Commissioner, The ESRC, and the Community Renewal Fund to to conduct social research. Dr Cynog Prys is a Community Councillor for the ward of Y Felinheli. </span></em></p>School is a key location for young people to learn and speak Welsh.Rhian Hodges, Senior Lecturer in Sociology and Social Policy, Bangor UniversityCynog Prys, Lecturer, Bangor UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1956782022-12-05T13:44:17Z2022-12-05T13:44:17Z2021 census shows English decreasing as main language but masks England and Wales’ true diversity<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498532/original/file-20221201-18-ucc1x0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=118%2C0%2C4802%2C3253&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Multicultural Tooting High Street, London. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/london-tooting-high-street-south-west-729198901">William Barton/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/releases/ethnicgroupnationalidentitylanguageandreligioncensus2021inenglandandwales">latest release of data</a> from the 2021 census has given us new information about the languages people speak across England and Wales. There is <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/culturalidentity/language/bulletins/languageenglandandwales/census2021">growing linguistic diversity</a>: over 90 different languages were reported as the main language of people living in England and Wales. </p>
<p>However, the ways in which the census asked people about their language use and language proficiency call into question the accuracy and relevance of the data. Many more people may speak additional languages than recorded in the census.</p>
<p>The 2021 census revealed that the proportion of residents who speak English (or English or Welsh in Wales) as their main language has <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/culturalidentity/language/bulletins/languageenglandandwales/census2021#main-languages-in-england-and-wales">decreased since the last census</a>, falling from 92.3% to 91.1%. This means that 8.9% of residents of England and Wales – over 5 million people – speak another language other than English or Welsh as their main language. </p>
<p>The top ten other languages spoken by residents were Polish, Romanian, Panjabi, Urdu, Portuguese, Spanish, Arabic, Bengali, Gujarati and Italian. </p>
<p><strong>Percentage of people who reported English (English or Welsh in Wales) as a main language in the 2021 census, by local authority:</strong></p>
<iframe height="570px" width="100%" src="https://www.ons.gov.uk/census/maps/choropleth/identity/main-language-detailed/main-language-detailed-23a/english-english-or-welsh-if-in-wales?embed=true&embedInteractive=true&embedAreaSearch=true&embedCategorySelection=false&embedView=geography"></iframe>
<p>However, these figures mask wide variation in language use. The <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/census/censustransformationprogramme/questiondevelopment/census2021paperquestionnaires">2021 census asked people</a>, “What is your main language?” with the options given as “English” (“English or Welsh” in Wales) or “other”. If they answered “other”, respondents were asked to give their main language, and also asked, “How well can you speak English?”</p>
<p>People who reported English as their main language were not able to list any additional languages that they spoke. People who answered “other” were also only able to list one language, and then were asked their English language proficiency, with categories ranging from “Can speak English very well” to “Cannot speak English”.</p>
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<p>The census language question required bilingual and multilingual people – who may have grown up speaking one or more languages at home and others at school or with their friends – to choose between their languages. </p>
<p><a href="http://ceemr.uw.edu.pl/sites/default/files/CEEMR_Vol_5_No_1_Moskal_Sime_Polish_Migrant_Childrens_Transcultural_Lives.pdf">Research</a> has shown that multilingual people may already experience conflict around language use and identity in their daily lives. They have to negotiate the requirement to use English at work or school alongside desires to maintain community languages and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/14733285.2021.2003302">connections to their families and heritage</a>. </p>
<p>For some people, their “main language” could be the language they spend most of their time speaking. For others, it may be the language they feel best <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/14649360120073860">represents their identity</a>.</p>
<p>A person who speaks five different languages would only be able to report English or Welsh and one other language, or just English if they consider English their main language. This means that the number of speakers of languages other than English or Welsh could be dramatically underestimated in the 2021 census.</p>
<h2>A different picture</h2>
<p>This is clear in the differences between the language data from the census and that reported by schools. <a href="https://www.gov.uk/guidance/complete-the-school-census/census-dates">All schools in England</a> are required to complete a termly census recording demographic information about their pupils and staff. </p>
<p>In 2020-21, <a href="https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics">19.5% of pupils in schools in England</a> were recorded as having a first language other than English. There is a significant discrepancy between this figure and the <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/culturalidentity/language/bulletins/languageenglandandwales/census2021#main-languages-in-england-and-wales">9.2% of residents in England</a> who are recorded as speaking a language other than English as their main language in the 2021 census. </p>
<p>It is unlikely that there is a significantly higher proportion of speakers of other languages in school-aged pupils than across the general population. This is because children are likely to live with family members who also speak the same additional language or languages. </p>
<p>My <a href="https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/cross_fac/mgsdtp/studentprofiles/ellenbishop/">own research</a> with pupils in diverse schools has shown that many multilingual young people communicate in several languages in different environments and with different people. Pupils spend so many of their waking hours at school communicating in English that they may consider it their “main language”. But the national census may not fully capture the additional languages they may speak at home, with friends, in their places of worship, or in phone calls with relatives overseas.</p>
<p>The UK census data is used by <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/census/2011census/2011censusbenefits/howothersusecensusdata">many different people and industries</a>, including government departments, public sector organisations, local authorities, charities, community groups, businesses and researchers. Census data informs important decision making at local, regional, and national levels around <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/census/2011census/whywehaveacensus">public services</a>, such as education, healthcare, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/covid-skewed-journey-to-work-census-data-heres-how-city-planners-can-make-the-best-of-it-189071">transport</a>. It is imperative that census data is accurate to inform decisions and policies. </p>
<p>Regarding language specifically, organisations need a reliable picture of the languages spoken in the UK population and their language needs. This information helps them to plan and provide appropriate translation services, educational support for speakers of other languages, and <a href="https://www.mylondon.news/news/east-london-news/london-underground-stations-bilingual-signs-23438741">translated signage</a> and documentation. </p>
<p>Linguistic inclusivity is also important to make speakers of other languages feel valued and part of <a href="https://www.bell-foundation.org.uk/app/uploads/2020/06/Churchill-Report-2020-FV-web.pdf">multicultural British society</a>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/195678/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ellen Bishop received funding from the ESRC MGS for her PhD studies, and her current postdoc is funded by the ESRC Impact Acceleration Account. </span></em></p>The way questions on language were posed call the results into question.Ellen Bishop, Postdoctoral Innovation Associate (Human Geography), University of LeicesterLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1946832022-11-30T16:35:31Z2022-11-30T16:35:31ZCould the Netherlands crack the secret of language learning using this approach?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/497700/original/file-20221128-20-kjjanz.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C1000%2C627&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">file okebk</span> </figcaption></figure><p>From the UK government’s latest <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/reforms-to-encourage-more-students-to-take-up-language-gcses">post-Brexit language-learning reforms</a> to France’s eternal debates over the <a href="https://www.slate.fr/story/179265/reforme-enseignement-langues-vivantes-etrangeres-lycee">supposed linguistic inadequacy of its youth</a>, governments regularly scratch their heads over how to improve how languages are taught.</p>
<p>While the Netherlands carried out a <a href="https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/eujal-2020-0020/html">major reform</a> to its modern foreign language education as early as 1968, the current courses are seen by many as no longer preparing students well enough for the modern world. The baccalaureate exams do not test students’ actual skills and knowledge so much as their ability to strategically answer multiple-choice questions.</p>
<p>This is particularly true for modern languages, where the final exam – a reading-comprehension exercise – receives hundreds of complaints from students who find it either <a href="https://nos.nl/artikel/2236117-opnieuw-ophef-over-niveau-vwo-examen-frans-verdrietig-de-zaal-uit">too difficult or too ambiguous</a>.</p>
<p>In the Netherlands, French is compulsory for students from age 11 to 15, yet a declining number continue to study it beyond that age. In such a context, educators in the Netherlands are asking how other methods might better meet the needs of students. Supported by many teacher trainers in the
country and the <a href="http://etc-languagelearning.web.rug.nl/">language learning team</a> at the University of Groningen, a <a href="https://prezi.com/view/DvEQLkR9O8wZP4Ev4qPY/">usage-based approach</a> to French has gained ground.</p>
<h2>The Dutch and French</h2>
<p>As in many European countries, Dutch students are frequently exposed to English, but that’s not the case with French. The language is spoken by 70 million people in France, Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Monaco, Franco-Dutch firms do <a href="https://platformfrans.nl/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Het-economisch-belang-van-het-Frans-2022.pdf">40 million euros in business annually</a>, and organisations such as the <a href="https://institutfrancais.nl/">French Institute</a> and <a href="https://www.cfci.nl/la-chambre/roles-et-missions.html">CCI France Netherlands</a> provide support, yet for students there are few situations outside the classroom that <a href="https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/eujal-2020-0020/html">afford the opportunity to practice</a> the language informally.</p>
<p>Researcher Marjolijn Voogel indicates the perceived <a href="https://lt-tijdschriften.nl/ojs/index.php/ltm/article/view/1550">importance of speaking French</a> in the Netherlands is declining. Despite studying French for six years at school, the students’ overall level is not proportional to the work they put in, according to <a href="https://projectfrans.nl/storage/Informatie/Publicaties/Hoe_Frans_terrein_kan_terugwinnen.pdf">Wim Gombert</a>, a researcher in applied linguistics.</p>
<p>These results are similar to those found in France, which also suffers from an environment with limited opportunities for regular use of foreign languages and teaching methods based on <a href="https://lt-tijdschriften.nl/ojs/index.php/ltt/article/view/1631">grammar and translation</a>. And this despite the fact that teachers regularly look to modernise their courses, organise trips and use digital technologies, as Lynne West and Marjolijn Verspoor note.</p>
<p>In response to this situation, one of the initiatives has been the development and implementation of several usage-based inspired methodologies such as the <a href="https://www.aimlanguagelearning.com/">Accelerative Integrated Method (AIM)</a> invented by Wendy Maxwell in Canada. They’re found most often in primary and secondary schools (about 100) but also in <a href="https://projectfrans.nl/aim-voor-de-bovenbouw">secondary schools</a> (about four schools) and finally at the <a href="https://taalwijs.nu/2022/10/24/hoe-kan-taalonderwijs-leerlingen-en-studenten-helpen-om-zelfstandig-te-worden/">University of Groningen</a>.</p>
<h2>Access to the language outside the classroom</h2>
<p>AIM methods are inspired by research on <a href="https://benjamins.com/catalog/lllt.29">dynamic usage theory</a>, which considers languages to be a collection of words shaped first and foremost by socialisation. Language learning happens through repeated exposure via creative activities and real-life tasks, rather than grammar rules and vocabulary lists.</p>
<p>Stories (in primary and middle school), creative and non-fiction texts, or videos (in high school) and films (in university) are central to the approach. In addition, high school and university students use learning software such as <a href="https://www.fluentu.com/">Fluent U</a> or <a href="https://www.slimstampen.nl/">SlimStampen</a>. </p>
<p>Students take quizzes several times a week and the software remembers words that are not acquired. They’re then reintroduced into the following work sessions until they’re firmly embedded. The idea is that students <a href="https://webtv.univ-rouen.fr/videos/conference-dylis-daudrey-rousse-malpat-du-18102021-decoupage/">learn vocabulary in context</a> rather than simply memorise it. </p>
<p>In the classroom, the activities are varied and focus on listening and speaking. The aim is first to reduce the anxiety linked to speaking by de-dramatising what are typically seen as errors. Repetition is emphasised until responses are integrated and become automatic. The activities are mostly done in groups so that the learners develop a certain self-confidence. Individual language development happens throughout, and mutual aid is encouraged.</p>
<p>By focusing on the meaning of language and not its form, each learner can use their own linguistic repertoire and learn from the repertoire of others. At the same time, each learner can work individually on linguistic weaknesses. </p>
<h2>The decentred role of the teacher</h2>
<p>This way of working gives a new role to teachers. Instead of being the only transmitters of knowledge, language models and evaluators in the classroom, they provide resources, organise activities that encourage repetition and language automation, and create an environment conducive to practice. Collaboration takes place between learners in the target language, ensuring it is used most of the time. The teacher is also the one who determines learners’ individual or collective needs and offers activities to meet them.</p>
<p>Teachers also play a key role in organising peer feedback, testing language skills and assessing the learners’ state of development – the strengths and the elements that each one needs to work on. The method moves away from counting students’ “errors”.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/HB4WXDWqeCs?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Webinar “Innovative language teaching methods”, with Audrey Rousse-Malpat.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In this regard, teachers need to <a href="https://www.multilingual-matters.com/page/detail/Language-Learning-and-Teaching-in-a-Multilingual-World/?k=9781788927611">move away from the way they learned the language</a> – and sometimes even from their personal beliefs. Their actions will be all the more relevant if they understand how language develops from a <a href="https://eboutique.didierfle.com/fr/FR/products/cognition-et-personnalite-dans-l-apprentissage-de-langues-2019-livre-numerique">social and psycho-cognitive point of view</a>, and consider how and when to intervene.</p>
<p>Several studies have shown the benefits of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3AmZRkdXSA">usage-based inspired methodologies</a> on learners’ listening, speaking, and writing skills. These methods are underpinned by the idea that the language speaker is a <a href="https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2019/05/26/kesku-se-een-nieuw-soort-franse-les-a3961620">social agent</a> rather than a grammarian.</p>
<p>What is happening in the Netherlands shows the relevance of the research and education communities working together to experiment with and implement methods that are based on contemporary scientific knowledge about language and languages.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194683/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Audrey Rousse-Malpat has received funding from NWO (the national research organisation in the Netherlands). She works as a professor of language and language didactics at the University of Groningen and is a teacher trainer at Project Frans.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Grégory Miras ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.</span></em></p>Language-learning research in the Netherlands has determined that using a foreign language rather than just memorizing its grammar can transform how students progress.Grégory Miras, Professeur des Universités en didactique des langues, Université de LorraineAudrey Rousse-Malpat, Assistant Professor of language learning at the program European Languages and Cultures, University of GroningenLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1943002022-11-22T17:31:54Z2022-11-22T17:31:54Z‘Still here’: Welsh world cup song Yma o Hyd and how the language is adapting to survive<p>The official Wales song for the <a href="https://www.faw.cymru/en/news/watch-music-video-yma-o-hyd-dafydd-iwan-ar-log-and-red-wall/?back=/en/news/&pos=7">FIFA Men’s World Cup 2022</a> is “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43Fag8ZQcz4"><em>Yma o Hyd</em></a>” (“Still here”), a protest song first released by Dafydd Iwan and Ar Lôg in 1983. Its unashamedly patriotic verses describe the adversity that Welsh people have endured over the centuries, including:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Byddwn yma hyd ddiwedd amser, <br> a bydd yr iaith Gymraeg yn fyw. <br> (We’ll be here until the end of time, <br> and the Welsh language will be alive.)</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The Welsh government has a <a href="https://gov.wales/sites/default/files/publications/2018-12/cymraeg-2050-welsh-language-strategy.pdf">language strategy</a> that aims to have a million people speaking Welsh by 2050. And it seems to be working: recently on TV channel S4C, <a href="https://jambori.urdd.cymru">230,000 children</a> from more than 1,000 schools across Wales sang “<em>Yma o Hyd</em>” together at the same time. They included children not only from Welsh-speaking households or so-called Welsh-speaking heartlands, but from across Wales. </p>
<p>The Welsh language, Cymraeg, has changed linguistically a lot over the centuries, which means the words, sounds and grammar used today are very different to 1,000 years ago. Welsh will continue to change – and if we want to see and hear a living Welsh language in the future, its grammar changing isn’t something that should worry us.</p>
<h2>Still here</h2>
<p>As “<em>Yma o Hyd</em>” suggests, Welsh has survived despite opposition. It is only in the past few decades that Welsh has regained a degree of social prestige, being now taught in schools across the country. Some of the children singing might not have even heard much Welsh had they been born a few generations ago. So the coming together of thousands of children singing in Welsh in 2022 is no small thing.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1590778063628951552"}"></div></p>
<p>Welsh is a minority language, spoken by perhaps <a href="https://gov.wales/welsh-language-data-annual-population-survey-july-2021-june-2022#:%7E:text=For%20the%20year%20ending%2030,to%20around%2013%2C700%20more%20people">one-third of the Welsh population</a>, having been stigmatised for many centuries. Stigma is the opposite of prestige, and in the case of Welsh it has been treated as subservient to English since <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/history/sites/themes/periods/tudors_04.shtml">at least the time of Henry VIII</a>. English was for a long time considered the language of formality and officialdom, while Welsh was the language of the home and the street. </p>
<h2>Contact between two languages</h2>
<p>Language contact happens when speakers of different languages coexist in the same community – and, the longer the contact, the more intense and intertwined it becomes. Welsh has been in contact with English since the early middle ages, and although Welsh remained the language of most of Wales until the late 19th century, factors such as industrialisation and migration changed the demographics. Now every Welsh speaker also speaks English. They are what we call bilinguals or multilinguals.</p>
<p>When languages are socially in intense contact like this – and especially where bilingualism is common – we can see those languages influence each other linguistically. That means changes to the sounds, syntax or words. And a minority language will typically be affected more by a majority language’s grammar than vice versa.</p>
<p>An aspect of the influence of English on Welsh grammar that I study is how people use multiple languages in the same conversation. In linguistics, this is called code-switching. Here are two examples from <a href="http://siarad.org.uk/speakers.php?c=siarad">the casual speech of Welsh-English bilinguals</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Oedd hi’n edrych yn STUNNING. <br>(<a href="http://siarad.org.uk/glossed.php?c=siarad&file=fusser30">She looked <em>stunning</em></a>.)<br></p>
<p>Pan dach chi’n defnyddio WIDE-ANGLE LENSES dach chi’n EMPHASISE-io’r FOREGROUND. <br>(When you use <em>wide-angle</em> <em>lenses</em> you <a href="http://siarad.org.uk/glossed.php?c=siarad&file=fusser17"><em>emphasise</em> the <em>foreground</em></a>.)<br></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Code-switching is very common in the speech of Welsh people, although it’s associated more with speaking informally than formal speech. It’s also something that some Welsh speakers have a negative attitude towards. There is even a term, <a href="https://www.wordsense.eu/bratiaith/"><em>bratiaith</em></a> (literally “ragged language”), which is sometimes used to describe code-switching, contrasted with “pure” Welsh speech that doesn’t contain English words.</p>
<p>My colleagues and I at Bangor University recorded conversations between Welsh-English bilingual participants and analysed their speech for code-switching. <a href="https://research.bangor.ac.uk/portal/en/researchoutputs/building-and-using-the-siarad-corpus(01ce0a97-a4cd-4eea-8697-8ba78b76c949).html">We found</a> that, although switching was found in almost everyone’s speech, the grammar of the sentences that contained code-switching was almost always Welsh. </p>
<h2>Language patterns</h2>
<p>Welsh and English have different grammatical structures, such as the order in which words go in a sentence – like where an adjective goes when it is describing a noun. A speaker who inserts, say, an English adjective to modify a Welsh noun has to make a (perhaps unconscious) choice of whether to put that adjective before the noun, which would be the English pattern, or to put it after the noun and use the Welsh pattern. </p>
<p>Almost always, our participants used adjectives in keeping with the Welsh pattern, like the English word <em>Egyptian</em> modifying the Welsh word <em>bethau</em> (“things”) in <a href="http://siarad.org.uk/glossed.php?c=siarad&file=fusser27">this example</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>‘CAUSE hwnna wnaeth atgoffa fi fod ‘na bethau EGYPTIAN yno. <br>('Cause that’s what reminded me that there are Egyptian things there.)<br></p>
</blockquote>
<p>We found throughout our data that speakers stuck with Welsh grammar, despite inserting some words from English. And the majority of the words they spoke were Welsh. Put another way, even though code-switching is happening, they are still clearly speaking Welsh.</p>
<p>If the government’s ambition of a million Welsh speakers is to succeed, then we will need not just those people who speak “pure Welsh”, but people that speak Welsh however they wish – even if that means switching in and out of English while doing so. </p>
<p>The presenters and guests on the videos on the S4C-funded Youtube channel <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/HanshS4C">Hansh</a>, aimed at a young adult audience, are a great example of people speaking Welsh and effortlessly switching between Welsh and English. This is now, for many, what colloquial Welsh sounds like, and research suggests that it’s no negative thing for the future of the language. </p>
<p>So if Dafydd Iwan is right, and Welsh will endure until the end of time, then it’s good to embrace the Welsh language today in all its many forms, however it is spoken.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194300/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peredur Webb-Davies works for Bangor University and has received research grant funding in the past from the ESRC and Research Council UK. </span></em></p>Speakers of minority languages (like Welsh) often insert words from a majority language (like English) while speaking.Peredur Webb-Davies, Senior Lecturer in Welsh Linguistics, Bangor UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1895052022-09-22T17:02:02Z2022-09-22T17:02:02ZIndian Matchmaking: English can be a valuable asset for young women seeking husbands – but it can also backfire<p>After a popular and <a href="https://theconversation.com/netflixs-indian-matchmaking-at-the-emmys-the-problems-with-nominating-this-indian-reality-167011">controversial</a> first season, Netflix’s Indian Matchmaking is back with more Mumbai elites and American <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/brown-desi-south-asian-diaspora-reflects-terms-represent-erase-rcna1886">Desis (diasporic South Asians)</a> looking for love. The show offers a glimpse into matrimonial negotiations and the arranged marriage process, guided by matchmaker Sima Taparia. Contestants and their families outline their preferences – from values to profession, hobbies to looks – and scrutinise potential partners. </p>
<p>While some criteria are more or less explicit (“must like dogs”), others, such as “good education”, work as implicit references to social class. In India – much like <a href="https://theconversation.com/when-english-becomes-the-global-language-of-education-we-risk-losing-other-often-better-ways-of-learning-143744">across the globe</a> – good education is synonymous with an English medium education. </p>
<p>This is where English is the language through which all subjects are taught – <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315107929-8/mind-language-medium-gap-chaise-ladousa">a model favoured by fee-paying institutions</a>. English speakers are widely assumed to be more educated, more affluent, more modern. </p>
<p>August marked 75 years of Indian independence from British colonial rule. But the English language has continued to play a key role in upholding inequality. For years it remained accessible only to the wealthy. </p>
<p>Over the past two decades, as India’s economic policies shifted, English has become more widely accessible and demand continues to increase. Part of this is due to the longstanding <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/modern-asian-studies/article/abs/below-english-line-an-ethnographic-exploration-of-class-and-the-english-language-in-postliberalization-india/BFC18D5713CFC14EECC62AAE280BBBEB">prestige of speaking English</a>, and the narrative that investing in English can bring opportunity and success. </p>
<p>Young Indians are feeling pressure to speak English, both to boost their chances of securing a professional job and to increase the probability of finding a good match for marriage. Unmarried women aspiring to the middle classes are bearing the brunt of the pressure. </p>
<p>In my <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/josl.12567">ethnographic research</a>, I looked at how English gets linked to social mobility in India. I spent several months working alongside young adults at a free English and employability training organisation on the outskirts of South Delhi. </p>
<p>While most of the students enrolled had hopes of becoming socially mobile, many of the young women were also aware that their newly acquired English skills could benefit them in the search for a husband. But, as my interviews with these young women showed, their association with English sometimes ended up backfiring.</p>
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<p>In matrimonial negotiations, English is often favoured by both sides, but is increasingly becoming a requirement for women. At times this appears more explicitly transactional. Young English-speaking brides are in high demand for their potential to secure a place at an international higher education institution. </p>
<p>Some have termed this phenomenon “<a href="https://www.dw.com/en/ielts-marriages-indias-ideal-bride-is-proficient-in-english/a-53341947">IELTS brides</a>”, indicating young women who have scored highly on the International English Language Testing System. But mostly, the desire for English in a future wife is more about what the language says about her class status and her perceived ability to be a part of modern India.</p>
<p>This was the case for Rupal – one of the teachers from the organisation – who was in the process of meeting potential husbands with her parents when I met her. After attending a school where Hindi was the language of instruction, she joined the organisation as a student to develop her English skills. </p>
<p>She was the first member of her family to speak English, and then trained to become a teacher at the same organisation. Rupal knew that this could be leveraged to find a “better” husband, someone from a more securely middle-class background. Her parents had already rejected a proposal from a young man who had not finished school, arguing that, “My daughter is an English teacher … she is so educated.”</p>
<p>English gave Rupal a form of cultural capital which worked in her favour. This was an advantage that her sister, who had left education early to help financially support the family, was not able to wield.</p>
<h2>When English backfires</h2>
<p>But, as Rupal told me, “converting” her English capital into marriage appeal was not so straightforward. More than once, Rupal was rejected by the families of potential suitors precisely because she spoke English. Because of the widespread associations between English, modernity and progressiveness, Rupal’s language skills raised suspicions about the type of wife she would be. </p>
<p>Parents of potential matches worried, “She will control my son, she will not allow him to do anything else, she will order [him].” Rather than giving her leverage in marriage negotiations, Rupal’s status as an English speaker was taken by some families as an indication that her behaviour may not conform to what they expected from a woman and a wife. </p>
<p>Pursuing social mobility through the promise of English turned out to be a risky investment. Rupal was forced to carefully balance contradictory demands of “tradition” and “modernity” to show she was capable of being a respectable woman and a good wife. While inability to speak English can disadvantage both men and women, the risks of speaking English are specific to expectations of womanhood.</p>
<p>In its first season, Indian Matchmaking <a href="https://theconversation.com/indian-matchmaking-a-show-about-arranged-marriages-cant-ignore-the-political-reality-in-india-144441">came under fire</a> for its silence on the politics of caste, gender, religion and nationalism. It has been equally quiet on the unspoken dimensions of language on the marriage market, and what speaking certain languages represents socially. </p>
<p>The increasing demand placed on young Indians aspiring to the middle classes to speak English is fuelled by an often unquestioned acceptance of the utility of English across the globe. But what this narrative hides is how English is deeply entrenched in unequal social stratification through class, caste and gender. </p>
<p>Stories like Rupal’s reveal how the lists of criteria for potential matches that Indian Matchmaking puts into the spotlight are less about “personal preferences”, and much more about maintaining social order.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/189505/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Katy Highet received funding from Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC Postdoctoral Fellowship) 2021-2022.</span></em></p>The controversial reality show is only part of the picture when it comes to class and education in Indian marriage negotiations.Katy Highet, Lecturer in English Language & TESOL, University of the West of ScotlandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1890962022-08-29T18:05:17Z2022-08-29T18:05:17ZIs it important to post election signs in languages other than French in Québec?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/481629/original/file-20220829-24-109am8.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=40%2C0%2C4550%2C2997&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Coalition Avenir Québec Leader François Legault launches his campaign at the Montmorency Falls with candidates, Aug. 28, 2022 in Québec City.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/is-it-important-to-post-election-signs-in-languages-other-than-french-in-quebec" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>In electoral campaigns, election signs help candidates market themselves. But does the language of an election sign matter in a multilingual society?</p>
<p>This question is relevant in Québec, especially as the province begins <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/quebec-2022-election-campaign-start-1.6564813">its fall election campaign</a>. </p>
<p>While Québec is predominantly French-speaking, the population of potential voters in Québec is linguistically diverse. According <a href="https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm">to the 2021 census</a>, 93.7 per cent of Quebecers know French, but 28.2 per cent speak a language other than French at home. And the majority of the population <a href="https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/as-sa/fogs-spg/Page.cfm?Lang=E&Dguid=2021A000224&topic=6">knows more than one language</a> — 14.5 per cent know three or more. This makes Québec the province with the most bilingual and multilingual people in Canada. </p>
<h2>Languages on election signs</h2>
<p>Despite that linguistic diversity, Québec’s political parties post few signs in languages other than French during campaigns. In fact, our research — yet to be published — shows that over the last 100 years, less than 10 per cent of political signs posted in the province were bilingual or in English. </p>
<p>The majority of signs were in French or did not convey a particular message other than the name of the candidate, party or riding. </p>
<p>Our findings also show that the presence of English on election signs has fluctuated over time. For example, 22 per cent of signs had some English on them in the 1950s and ‘60s. This percentage fell to 2 per cent from the 1970s to 2000s, followed by a timid resurgence of English in the 2010s. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480924/original/file-20220824-10117-wneb24.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Languages on election signs by decade in Québec" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480924/original/file-20220824-10117-wneb24.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480924/original/file-20220824-10117-wneb24.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=327&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480924/original/file-20220824-10117-wneb24.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=327&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480924/original/file-20220824-10117-wneb24.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=327&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480924/original/file-20220824-10117-wneb24.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480924/original/file-20220824-10117-wneb24.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480924/original/file-20220824-10117-wneb24.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Which language appears on election signs in Québec has varied for the past 100 years.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Marc Pomerleau)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In translation studies, we say that translation not only serves as a textual indicator of meaning, but also as a sociopolitical indicator. This is clearly the case when it comes to election signs. </p>
<p>The overall disappearance of English from election signs coincides with the redefinition of the political and social balance of power in Québec <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/quiet-revolution">since the 1960s</a>. </p>
<p>One might assume that posters are almost exclusively in French because of the <a href="https://www.legisquebec.gouv.qc.ca/en/document/cs/C-11/19991022#se:59">Charter of the French Language</a>, but in no way does it prevent political advertising in other languages. The explanation here lies in the context rather than the law.</p>
<h2>Should political parties post signs in different languages?</h2>
<p>As the vast majority of Quebecers know French, political parties could easily decide to post their election signs in French only. But it is also true that people tend to <a href="https://csa-research.com/Featured-Content/For-Global-Enterprises/Global-Growth/CRWB-Series/CRWB-B2C">prefer content in their mother tongue</a>. </p>
<p>That fact however doesn’t mean a political party would gain votes by posting signs in English or other languages. </p>
<p>To find out how Quebecers perceive election signs in different languages, we conducted a survey on electorate language preferences — the results of which will soon be published in <a href="https://www.erudit.org/en/journals/meta/"><em>Meta</em></a>. Our survey consisted of multiple-choice questions where participants were shown several hypothetical unilingual and bilingual election signs.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480926/original/file-20220824-12-911l98.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A collage of three election signs with varying degrees of bilingualism." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480926/original/file-20220824-12-911l98.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480926/original/file-20220824-12-911l98.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=302&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480926/original/file-20220824-12-911l98.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=302&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480926/original/file-20220824-12-911l98.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=302&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480926/original/file-20220824-12-911l98.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=379&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480926/original/file-20220824-12-911l98.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=379&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480926/original/file-20220824-12-911l98.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=379&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">In Québec, election signs are predominantly in French.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Musée québécois de culture populaire, Collection Dave Turcotte/Musée virtuel d'histoire politique du Québec, Québec Solidaire)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Perception of French and English signs</h2>
<p>The vast majority of Francophones (82.9 per cent) had positive feelings towards a unilingual French poster. Among non-Francophones, 61 per cent felt the same. </p>
<p>For a sign in English only, a mere 4 per cent of Francophones liked it, compared to 18.7 per cent of non-Francophones. When it came to bilingual (French-English) signs, 39.1 per cent of Francophones and 69.5 per cent of non-Francophones had positive feelings. </p>
<p>This shows that what bothers Québec voters is not so much the presence of English on signs, but the absence of French — English-only signs bothered 91.5 per cent of Francophones and 61 per cent of non-Francophones. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480927/original/file-20220824-9546-6hueb.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A graph showing how people feel about bilingual election signs in Québec." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480927/original/file-20220824-9546-6hueb.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480927/original/file-20220824-9546-6hueb.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=333&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480927/original/file-20220824-9546-6hueb.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=333&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480927/original/file-20220824-9546-6hueb.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=333&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480927/original/file-20220824-9546-6hueb.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480927/original/file-20220824-9546-6hueb.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480927/original/file-20220824-9546-6hueb.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Over 69 per cent of non-Francophones had positive feelings towards bilingual signs.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Marc Pomerleau)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Perception of signs in other languages</h2>
<p>When presented with signs with a message in a foreign language, participants generally felt more positively towards those showcasing languages closer to French like Spanish, Italian and Portuguese — especially compared to those using a different script like Arabic, Mandarin and Russian. </p>
<p>The bilingual French-Spanish sign was the most widely accepted. Spanish is also the most widely understood foreign language in the province with a total of over 450,000 speakers. So what seemed to bother participants was their inability to understand a language. </p>
<p>However, a sign in Inuktitut generated very positive feelings across all Quebecers, especially when the sign was bilingual with French. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480932/original/file-20220824-4026-r6jk1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Québec election signs in French from over the years." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480932/original/file-20220824-4026-r6jk1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/480932/original/file-20220824-4026-r6jk1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=303&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480932/original/file-20220824-4026-r6jk1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=303&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480932/original/file-20220824-4026-r6jk1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=303&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480932/original/file-20220824-4026-r6jk1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480932/original/file-20220824-4026-r6jk1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/480932/original/file-20220824-4026-r6jk1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">As the vast majority of Quebecers know French, political parties could easily decide to post their election signs in French only.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Bibliothèque de l'Assemblée nationale du Québec, Collection Richard G. Gervais/Bibliothèque de l'Assemblée nationale du Québec, Marc Pomerleau)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Should political parties post signs in multiple languages?</h2>
<p>Although our participants’ perceptions of hypothetical signs don’t necessarily translate into who they will vote for in real situations, they exemplify the linguistic preferences of the Québec electorate. </p>
<p>Francophones prefer by far French-only signs and non-Francophones have similar positive feelings towards French-only signs and bilingual French-English signs, the latter being slightly preferred. </p>
<p>Our findings suggest that Québec politicians who wish to put up provincial election signs in languages other than French should do so with caution. </p>
<p>Bilingual signs and signs in other languages could be used strategically in locations chosen with care, taking into account where said languages are actually spoken. </p>
<p>It will be interesting to see what political parties actually do during the 2022 campaign, especially in the context of <a href="http://m.assnat.qc.ca/en/travaux-parlementaires/projets-loi/projet-loi-96-42-1.html">Bill 96</a> and the newly released census data showing a <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/220817/g-a002-eng.htm">decline of French</a>. </p>
<p>Signs in languages other than French could be seen as an outstretched hand in yet another episode of linguistic tensions, but also as an indicator that French is indeed losing ground.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/189096/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Marc Pomerleau receives funding from Fonds d’aide institutionnel à la recherche, Université TÉLUQ.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Esmaeil Kalantari does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Signs in languages other than French could be seen as an outstretched hand in yet another episode of linguistic tensions, but also as an indicator that French is indeed losing ground.Marc Pomerleau, Professeur de linguistique et de traductologie / Professor of linguistics and translation, Université TÉLUQ Esmaeil Kalantari, Auxiliaire de recherche, Université TÉLUQ Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1773112022-07-14T12:33:36Z2022-07-14T12:33:36ZNina Otero-Warren – Latina champion of women’s voting rights and education in New Mexico – now graces US quarters<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/447886/original/file-20220222-25-1ugewyk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C1994%2C1991&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A new U.S. quarter shows Nina Otero-Warren, a leader in New Mexico’s suffrage movement and the first female superintendent of Santa Fe public schools.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.usmint.gov/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/2022-american-women-quarters-coin-nina-otero-warren-proof-reverse.jpg">U.S. Mint</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>Adelina “Nina” Otero-Warren was an activist who fought for women’s voting rights during the 20th century. She was the first Latina to run for Congress and the first Latina superintendent of the Santa Fe public schools. She is one of several women whose images are being featured on <a href="https://www.usmint.gov/coins/coin-medal-programs/american-women-quarters/nina-otero-warren">the U.S. quarter in 2022</a>. The quarter in her honor <a href="https://www.coinnews.net/2022/08/24/us-mint-sales-otero-warren-quarters-and-silver-medals-debut/">was released on Aug. 15, 2022</a>. Here, <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/anna-maria-nogar-1318882">Anna María Nogar</a>, professor of Hispanic Southwest studies at the University of New Mexico, writes about Otero-Warren’s work and legacy.</em> </p>
<h2>1. How did Otero-Warren contribute to women’s political rights?</h2>
<p>Otero-Warren tirelessly advocated in Spanish and English for New Mexico to ratify the <a href="https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/19th-amendment">19th Amendment</a> to the U.S. Constitution, which gave women the right to vote. In order for a constitutional amendment to take effect, it must be <a href="https://www.ncsl.org/research/about-state-legislatures/amending-the-u-s-constitution.aspx">ratified by three-fourths of all states</a>. </p>
<p>In New Mexico, Otero-Warren implemented strategies advanced by the <a href="https://spartacus-educational.com/USAWcuws.htm">Congressional Union</a>, a national organization established in 1913 to advocate for women’s right to vote. She lobbied state leaders to vote in favor of ratification. Since the first language of the vast majority of New Mexicans <a href="https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520297074/an-american-language">was Spanish</a>, her bilingualism helped her work with opinion leaders across communities to keep suffrage and women’s rights front and center. </p>
<p>She was accompanied in her fight for women’s rights by fellow nuevomexicanas – as Otero-Warren and her colleagues referred to themselves – <a href="https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1004&context=archives_documents">Soledad Chávez Chacón</a> and folklorist <a href="https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1018&context=shri_publications">Aurora Lucero</a>. Together, these women worked to pave the way for future female leadership in the state. In 1922, for example, Chacón became the first Latina in the country to be elected to statewide office, serving as New Mexico’s secretary of state.</p>
<p>In the early 1920s, Otero-Warren served as a chairwoman of the State Federation of Women’s Clubs. As chairwoman, she worked toward progressive goals. Part of her work included persuading lawmakers to raise the age of consent from 16 to 18. She also worked to advance an act to provide for the care of dependent and neglected children.</p>
<p>In 1921, women were guaranteed the right to run for office in New Mexico by passage of an amendment to the state constitution. In 1922, Otero-Warren became the first Latina in the country to vie for a congressional seat, running as a Republican. Despite losing to Democrat James Hinkle by 9 percentage points, her ability to speak directly to nuevomexicanos made her candidacy highly visible. </p>
<p>Her policy platform was published in Spanish-language newspapers like La Revista de Taos. This ensured that the Spanish speakers would understand her support of farmers, ranchers, educators, children and families. She was devoted to nuevomexicanos and said she would consider it “un alto honor y una oportunidad para el servicio” – “a high honor and opportunity to serve” if elected to Congress.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/466942/original/file-20220603-14205-soz1y3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A black-and-white portrait of a woman from the 1920s." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/466942/original/file-20220603-14205-soz1y3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/466942/original/file-20220603-14205-soz1y3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=839&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466942/original/file-20220603-14205-soz1y3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=839&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466942/original/file-20220603-14205-soz1y3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=839&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466942/original/file-20220603-14205-soz1y3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1054&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466942/original/file-20220603-14205-soz1y3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1054&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466942/original/file-20220603-14205-soz1y3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1054&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">American suffragist and politician Adelina ‘Nina’ Otero-Warren poses for a portrait on July 11, 1923.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/american-suffragist-and-politician-adelina-nina-otero-news-photo/1324262665?adppopup=true">Library of Congress/Emcee/Getty Images</a></span>
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<h2>2. What did she do for education in New Mexico?</h2>
<p>As the first Latina superintendent of the public schools of Santa Fe, a position she held from 1917 to 1929, Otero-Warren promoted education in Santa Fe and its surrounding rural areas. She also pushed for bilingual and Native education in schools and communities. From 1848 on, federal politicians had tried to eliminate Spanish in educational settings and for official purposes in New Mexico <a href="https://www.worldcat.org/title/so-all-is-not-lost-the-poetics-of-print-in-nuevomexicano-communities-1834-1958/oclc/36261096">as a condition for its statehood</a>. In 1912, when New Mexico became a state, its constitution ultimately retained Spanish as an official state language.</p>
<p>Otero-Warren balanced the needs and desires of Spanish-speaking nuevomexicanos with federal-level expectations for English usage in public schools. Otero-Warren and others lobbied state leadership to ensure Spanish was retained as a public language so that Spanish speakers were not impeded from employment and appointment to federal and state-funded positions. In doing so, they maintained social and political enfranchisement for nuevomexicanos. </p>
<p>She also pushed to improve the sanitary conditions and children’s living quarters at the Santa Fe Indian School, a boarding school for Native children established by the federal government in 1890. Otero-Warren was an inspector of Indian Services for the Department of the Interior from 1922 to 1924 and was the first woman to occupy that role.</p>
<p>Otero-Warren served as state supervisor of literacy classes in 1937 under the auspices of the Works Progress Administration. In this role, she designed a teaching curriculum for Spanish-speaking adults to learn English in their communities while retaining their Spanish literacy.</p>
<p>Later in her life, she wrote about Indo-Hispano life in New Mexico. Her book “<a href="https://www.sunstonepress.com/cgi-bin/bookview.cgi?_recordnum=499">Old Spain in Our Southwest</a>” told the stories of New Mexicans in their own words. This ran counter to the depiction of New Mexico’s people in many English-language publications as <a href="https://unmpress.com/books/contested-homeland/9780826321992">primitive, uncultured or unlettered</a>. </p>
<p>In her book, Otero-Warren made New Mexican culture intelligible to outsiders. She did this by documenting community practices such as Holy Week celebrations or rituals for marriage, recording bilingual expressions such as “Ni con jabón de la Puebla” to say something so dirty that not even fine soap could clean it, and recalling shared values and educational practices that predated American colonization.</p>
<h2>How is she remembered in New Mexico today?</h2>
<p>Otero-Warren is commemorated as an advocate for voting rights for women on a <a href="https://www.indianz.com/News/2018/11/19/yes-magazine-indian-country-vote.asp">mural</a> in downtown Albuquerque. It is a daily visual reminder in the heart of the city of her vital political interventions. The New Mexico Historic Women Marker Initiative, begun in 2007, dedicated a <a href="https://www.nmhistoricpreservation.org/outreach/historic-women-marker-initiative.html">historical marker</a> to Otero-Warren in her birthplace of La Costancia, connecting her to community and home.</p>
<p>The 2021 publication of <a href="https://unmpress.com/books/el-feliz-ingenio-neomexicano/9780826363275">El feliz ingenio neomexicano</a>, a bilingual collection of poems by journalist Felipe M. Chacón, brought Otero-Warren’s active political life back to the fore. His 1922 poem supporting her campaign for Congress noted that her election would reflect New Mexico’s progressivism, advanced by its Spanish-speaking citizenry. His words reflect how she is still known today:</p>
<p>“Cubrirá Nuevo México de Gloria / Poniendo una mujer en el Congreso … Un brindis de alegría / Placer del progresivo ciudadano.” </p>
<p>“New Mexico will be covered in glory / By sending a woman to Congress … A toast of joy / And gratitude from its progressive citizens.”</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/177311/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Anna María Nogar does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>As a women’s rights activist, Nina Otero-Warren fought for the right for women to vote in New Mexico. Now, her image is featured on the US quarter.Anna María Nogar, Professor of Hispanic Southwest Studies, Department of Spanish and Portuguese, University of New MexicoLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1797102022-05-29T14:43:29Z2022-05-29T14:43:29ZUkrainian language schools in Western Canada were shaped by shifting settler colonial policies<p>Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the number of people studying Ukrainian globally <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/education/2022/apr/08/ukrainian-langauge-interest-spikes-support-country-war">via the language learning app Duolingo</a> has grown: figures <a href="https://blog.duolingo.com/duolingo-statement-ukraine/">from March 20 showed a 577 per cent increase</a>.</p>
<p>In Canada, there is also <a href="https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/interest-in-learning-ukrainian-language-on-the-rise-in-the-lower-mainland-and-the-rest-of-the-world">new interest</a> in learning Ukrainian.</p>
<p>As solidarity with Ukraine grows, Canadians may be curious to know more about the history of Ukrainian-language schools in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, spanning roughly 125 years. </p>
<p>Ukrainian-language education in the Prairies has been shaped by national, provincial and territorial policies. In Canada’s settler colonial context, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-56654-8_4">these policies have shifted over time</a> in how they accommodate, marginalize and privilege settler languages other than English.</p>
<h2>Colonial settlement</h2>
<p>Following Canadian Confederation in 1867, interconnected approaches and policies were consolidated and developed to displace Indigenous Peoples from their lands. Canada used dispossession to make the territory that would become Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba available for European settlement. </p>
<p>As historian James Daschuk explains, “<a href="https://uofrpress.ca/Books/C/Clearing-the-Plains">clearing the plains</a>,” entailed using starvation against Indigenous people to clear the way for settlement. </p>
<p>In 1876, Canada passed <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/indian-act-plain-language-summary">the Indian Act, designed to assimilate and control First Nations</a>. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Video about The Indian Act from the Canadian Encyclopedia.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>After the <a href="https://indigenouspeoplesatlasofcanada.ca/article/red-river-resistance/">Red River Resistance</a> of 1869-70, the Manitoba Act transferred land from the Hudson’s Bay Company to the Dominion of Canada. </p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/louis-riels-trial-from-135-years-ago-continues-today-with-competing-cultural-stories-and-icons-133049">Louis Riel's trial from 135 years ago continues today with competing cultural stories and icons</a>
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<p>The Canadian government created a system called <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/metis-scrip-in-canada">Métis scrip</a> to provide Métis families already living in the area with titles to their lands (land scrip) or money in exchange (money scrip). The process was slow, complicated and served <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/14623528.2015.1096589">to extinguish Métis title to land</a>.</p>
<p>Métis scrip commissions coincided with the <a href="https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/indigstudies/chapter/numbered-treaties/">numbered treaties</a> (1871-1921), which pertained to lands from <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/numbered-treaties">Lake of the Woods in the east to the Rocky Mountains in the west, and to the north, as far as the Beaufort Sea</a>.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/let-indigenous-treaties-not-the-duty-to-consult-lead-us-to-reconciliation-105473">Let Indigenous treaties -- not the duty to consult -- lead us to reconciliation</a>
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<p>In this era, as historian Kenneth Taylor notes, Canadian immigration law was “<a href="https://www.proquest.com/docview/1293193158?fromopenview=true&imgSeq=1&pq-origsite=gscholar">explicitly racist in working and intent</a>”: it discouraged and prohibited non-white and non-European immigration in several ways.</p>
<p>The 1910 Canadian Immigration Act provided the Ministry of the Interior with the authority to ban entry of people of any race “deemed unsuited to the climate or requirements of Canada.” Immigration officials used this section <a href="https://www.blackpast.org/global-african-history/perspectives-global-african-history/quest-land-and-freedom-canadas-western-prairies-black-oklahomans-alberta-and-saskatchew/">to limit Black settlement</a> in the Prairies. Prior to this policy, <a href="https://canadaehx.com/2022/02/19/black-immigration-into-the-prairies/">roughly 1,500</a> <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/newsinteractives/features/black-on-the-prairies">Black settlers</a> moved to <a href="https://vimeo.com/257364347">the Canadian Prairies</a> and research has documented <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/44685111?seq=3">long Black community histories</a> and ongoing presence there.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3rOosOiBUIU?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">CBC video, ‘Black on the Prairies.’</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While there were well-established Chinese communities in British Columbia prior to 1923, and <a href="https://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=rvinAwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=the+making+of+chinese+prairie+canada&ots=SLISKDhGoj&sig=FcepRyQ7Bde6j8KqHQQfWmyiQdY#v=onepage&q=the%20making%20of%20chinese%20prairie%20canada&f=false">Chinese immigration to the prairies</a> between <a href="https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA215835972&sid=googleScholar&v=2.1&it=r&linkaccess=abs&issn=02265044&p=AONE&sw=w&userGroupName=anon%7E6bc0cd4e">the 1870s</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1755-618X.1982.tb00879.x">and 1923</a>. Widespread Asian <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1755-618X.1982.tb00879.x">immigration to</a> the prairies did not happen until the 1960s due to to federal legislation including <a href="https://pier21.ca/research/immigration-history/continuous-journey-regulation-1908">1908 amendments to the Immigration Act</a> and exclusionary 1923 amendments to <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/chinese-immigration-act">the Chinese Immigration Act</a>.</p>
<p>While the promotion of Eastern European immigration was <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/sir-clifford-sifton">not without some controversy</a>, the recruitment of these early “agricultural immigrants” became government practice.</p>
<p>Canada opened the door to the <a href="https://doi.org/10.21226/ewjus421">first wave</a> of Ukrainian settlement in 1890.</p>
<h2>400 Ukrainian schools</h2>
<p>Ukrainians arriving during this period were <a href="https://www.ciuspress.com/product/ukrainians-in-canada-the-formative-years-1891-1924/?v=3e8d115eb4b3">pushed out of Ukraine</a> by overpopulation, poverty and foreign domination, and pulled to Canada by the prospect of what Canada billed <a href="https://umanitoba.ca/libraries/units/archives/prairie_immigration/educational_site/illhist/04.shtml">as free farm lands</a> and jobs. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Poster shows a map of Canada floating over a planned community and large text reading 'Dominion of Canada,' free farms of 160 acres." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/463456/original/file-20220516-22-bpteow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/463456/original/file-20220516-22-bpteow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=811&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463456/original/file-20220516-22-bpteow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=811&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463456/original/file-20220516-22-bpteow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=811&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463456/original/file-20220516-22-bpteow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1019&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463456/original/file-20220516-22-bpteow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1019&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463456/original/file-20220516-22-bpteow.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1019&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Poster advertising free farms of 160 acres for settlers in Manitoba, Canadian North-West (present-day Alberta and Saskatchewan) and British Columbia, from circa 1890.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/lac-bac/35944428846/in/album-72157686217853525/">(BiblioArchives/Flickr)</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>At the time of this wave of settlement, western Ukraine was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Ukrainians from Galicia, Bukovyna and Transcarpathia were <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0067237800018877">officially called Ruthenians</a> in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. </p>
<p>From their arrival, Ukrainians directed most of their organized effort to <a href="https://doi.org/10.21226/ewjus530">maintaining their language</a>. By 1915, there were roughly <a href="https://archive.org/details/ukrainiansettler00skwa">400 Ukrainian schools</a> in Western Canada. </p>
<h2>‘Laurier-Greenway Compromise’</h2>
<p>How were Ukrainians able to create Ruthenian bilingual schools and teacher training programs? </p>
<p>An 1896 agreement for bilingual schooling in Manitoba called the <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/manitoba-schools-question">Laurier-Greenway Compromise</a> holds part of the answer. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="People seen in a black and white photo standing in front of a barn." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/463431/original/file-20220516-15-wejwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/463431/original/file-20220516-15-wejwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463431/original/file-20220516-15-wejwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463431/original/file-20220516-15-wejwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463431/original/file-20220516-15-wejwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=550&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463431/original/file-20220516-15-wejwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=550&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463431/original/file-20220516-15-wejwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=550&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Ukrainian or central European farm family in front of their barn, seen circa 1910 in Saskatchewan, location unknown.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(R-A7229/Provincial Archives of Saskatchewan)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This regulation stated that when there were 10 or more students who spoke French or another language, the school could provide instruction in a language other than English. This policy made it possible to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/0030923700100302">establish Ukrainian bilingual schools</a> in Manitoba, and influenced their creation in Saskatchewan and Alberta too. </p>
<h2>Teacher shortages</h2>
<p>Another reason for the creation of Ukrainian schools was a teacher shortage in Ukrainian districts. Historian Orest T. Martynowych explains that English-speaking teachers were unwilling to work in Ukrainian communities due to “<a href="https://books.google.ca/books/about/Ukrainians_in_Canada.html?id=71Wnflm9lYgC&redir_esc=y">prejudice, a sense of cultural superiority and more lucrative positions elsewhere</a>.” </p>
<p>To address the shortage, the provincial governments assisted young Ukrainian men in qualifying as teachers. The Ruthenian Training School opened in Manitoba in 1905 and operated for 11 years. Similar programs opened in Saskatchewan in 1909 and in Alberta in 1913. </p>
<p>In Manitoba, the province also produced a Ukrainian bilingual school textbook called the <a href="https://bac-lac.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1019392462?lang=en&new=-8585515648415251482">Manitoba Ruthenian-English Reader</a>.</p>
<p>As historian Cornelius Jaenen notes, the success of bilingual Ukrainian education programs angered influential members of society who wanted <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/0030923700100302">schools to assimilate immigrants</a> towards building an English-speaking Prairies. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Black and white photo from about the turn of the last century (1900) of two women in traditional Ukrainian dress cutting logs." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/457791/original/file-20220412-35181-e3xl29.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/457791/original/file-20220412-35181-e3xl29.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=339&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/457791/original/file-20220412-35181-e3xl29.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=339&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/457791/original/file-20220412-35181-e3xl29.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=339&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/457791/original/file-20220412-35181-e3xl29.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/457791/original/file-20220412-35181-e3xl29.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/457791/original/file-20220412-35181-e3xl29.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=426&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Ukrainian women cutting logs, Athabasca, Alta. Year unknown.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(BiblioArchives/Flickr)</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>‘Enemy aliens’</h2>
<p>The outbreak of the First World War in 1914 further threatened these programs as <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/0030923700100302">Eastern Europeans fell under surveillance and suspicion</a>. The issue of bilingual schools became mixed up with the question of “enemy aliens,” which included <a href="https://www.warmuseum.ca/event/enemy-aliens-internment-in-canada-1914-1920/">people from Germany, the Turkish Empire, Bulgaria and the Austro-Hungarian Empire</a>. </p>
<p>The same year, the government of Alberta declared itself <a href="https://doi.org/10.32316/hse/rhe.v8i2.1662">opposed to bilingualism in its school system</a>. </p>
<p>By 1916, the option for bilingual schooling was <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/0030923700100302">also removed in Manitoba</a>. Saskatchewan waited until 1919 to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/0030923700100302">introduce a regulation naming English</a> as the sole language of instruction. </p>
<h2>English-only status quo</h2>
<p>For <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55761-4_7">the next 50 years</a>, the Prairie provinces maintained an English-only status quo, resulting in considerable language shift in Ukrainian and <a href="https://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=DSi6UP8ThLIC&oi=fnd&pg=PA87&dq=wilfred+dube+anglo+dominance&ots=s6W-RDbpCe&sig=w0BGfhJ7jb2yUGzM2MdvpIqbaac#v=onepage&q&f=false">Francophone communities</a> and many other immigrant language communities also. </p>
<p>During this time, 66 Indian residential schools operated in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba <a href="https://www.facinghistory.org/stolen-lives-indigenous-peoples-canada-and-indian-residential-schools/chapter-3">under federal responsibility</a>. First Nations children were taken from their families to attend these institutions and forced to learn English, <a href="https://brill.com/view/book/edcoll/9789462092181/BP000003.xml">systematically resulting in Indigenous language loss</a>.</p>
<p>As a result of Métis scrip, many Métis people were living on <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/metis-road-allowance-communities">road allowances</a>, settlements they created on unused portions of Crown land. There, multilingual Métis people maintained community languages, including <a href="https://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=dcdBAAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA295&dq=michif+language&ots=JH3gZdt1WO&sig=v--q_U94cgHs9tE2C8IlAhZKnao#v=onepage&q=michif%20language&f=false">Michif</a> and other Indigenous languages. Between the 1920s and 1960s, however, provincial governments forcibly dispersed these communities, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/14664208.2016.1201239">introducing a period of rapid language shift to English</a>.</p>
<p>Ukrainian children were <a href="https://doi.org/10.21226/ewjus530">often not permitted to speak Ukrainian at school</a>. Adults faced workplace discrimination and many Ukrainians anglicized their family names.</p>
<h2>New era of bilingual Ukrainian schooling</h2>
<p>In 1969, <a href="https://utorontopress.com/9781442610163/multiculturalism-within-a-bilingual-framework/">Canada introduced the Official Languages Act, and the Multiculturalism Policy</a> followed in 1971. Soon, the Prairie provinces’ education acts were changed to allow languages other than English to be used for instruction in schools again. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/463439/original/file-20220516-14-q84fvv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Picture of a brochure that reads 'Debates of the Senate,' 'Canada a Multicultural Nation' from 1964." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/463439/original/file-20220516-14-q84fvv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/463439/original/file-20220516-14-q84fvv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=859&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463439/original/file-20220516-14-q84fvv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=859&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463439/original/file-20220516-14-q84fvv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=859&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463439/original/file-20220516-14-q84fvv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1080&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463439/original/file-20220516-14-q84fvv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1080&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463439/original/file-20220516-14-q84fvv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1080&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Ukrainian Canadian Senator Paul Yuzyk discussed Canada as multicultural nation a year after Liberal Prime Minister Lester Pearson launched the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism in 1963.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These developments led to a <a href="https://books.google.ca/books/about/Osvita.html?id=MdNeBA6_cUoC&redir_esc=y">new era of Ukrainian bilingual Prairie schools</a>. In 1974, advocates established a bilingual Ukrainian program in Edmonton. In 1979, programs in Manitoba and Saskatchewan classrooms followed. </p>
<p>Today, Ukrainian bilingual programs are once again found in school divisions in all three provinces. <a href="https://shkola.ucc.ca/">Ukrainian learning opportunities</a> also include heritage language classes for children (<em>Ridna Shkola</em>), summer camps, preschool programs (<em>Sadochok</em>) and adult language classes.</p>
<p>As Canada begins to receive displaced Ukrainians, <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/manitoba-ukrainian-bilingual-schools-refugees-1.6409773">Ukrainian language education programs</a> can help bridge communication gaps. </p>
<h2>Laws, culture and languages</h2>
<p>Language policies and language-in-education policies shape the ability of individuals, families and communities to maintain minoritized languages. When languages are under-protected by policy — or intentionally attacked through cultural genocidal policies, as in the case of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2014.892499">Indigenous languages in Canada</a> until <a href="https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/I-7.85/page-1.html">recently</a> — language loss is difficult to prevent. </p>
<p>Confronting settler colonial legacies is a reminder of why the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada <a href="http://courseware.acadiau.ca/trctalk/call-to-action-14/">urgently advocated policy</a> to bolster <a href="https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/I-7.85/page-1.html">Indigenous language resurgence</a>.</p>
<p>In the case of the Ukrainian language, today’s programs exist due to changes in federal policies, provincial education act amendments and the hard work of Ukrainian Canadian communities who have maintained their language despite many obstacles.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/179710/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrea Sterzuk does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Ukrainian language education in the Canadian Prairies was shaped by shifting policies governing non-English immigrant settler language instruction in a larger settler colonial context.Andrea Sterzuk, Professor of Language and Literacies Education, University of ReginaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1821732022-05-16T13:58:22Z2022-05-16T13:58:22Z‘You can’t even talk English, so don’t talk!’ How linguistic racism impacts immigrants in the UK<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/463286/original/file-20220516-21-re3mf5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">From the playground to the workplace, people from immigrant communities in the UK say accent-based racism impacts their daily lives.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/serious-african-american-young-businesswoman-hold-1613072614">fizkes | Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>When Holan Liang was 17, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/feb/19/to-be-happy-you-have-to-feel-you-belong">she spent her holidays</a> working at her father’s computer parts company. In her <a href="https://guardianbookshop.com/a-sense-of-belonging-9781a780724683">recent book</a>, A Sense of Belonging: How to Find Your Way in a Fractured World, Liang, now a psychiatrist, recounts the racist ways in which customers would respond to her family’s Chinese roots. </p>
<p>Her father, who had a PhD in hydraulic engineering, was called “a useless Chinaman” who “can’t speak a bloody word of English”. Liang points out that he actually could speak fluent English, but did so with an accent and some grammatical errors because English was his second language.</p>
<p>What Liang’s family experienced – discrimination due to accent, dialect or speech patterns – is called <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13670050.2020.1783638">linguistic racism</a> or <a href="https://theconversation.com/ask-or-aks-how-linguistic-prejudice-perpetuates-inequality-175839">linguicism</a>. It is directed at people who speak in ways considered to be non-standard or “foreign-sounding”. It is not based on the proficiency or intelligibility of a language speaker, but rather on their accent and verbal delivery. </p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/accentism-is-alive-and-well-and-it-doesnt-only-affect-the-north-of-england-148825">Accentism</a> sees people suffer comments and ridicule for regional accents and dialects. But as an extension of racism, linguistic racism in the UK centres whiteness by deeming any so-called non-standard ways of speaking English to be abnormal and inferior. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Secondary-school pupils in uniform walk out of school grounds." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/463283/original/file-20220516-11-rj350l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/463283/original/file-20220516-11-rj350l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463283/original/file-20220516-11-rj350l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463283/original/file-20220516-11-rj350l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463283/original/file-20220516-11-rj350l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463283/original/file-20220516-11-rj350l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463283/original/file-20220516-11-rj350l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=525&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Young people from immigrant communities report being ostracized and bullied for their accents.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/london-uk-0309-secondary-school-pupils-1933374749">Yau Ming Low | Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Impact on family relationships</h2>
<p>Our respective doctoral research projects, which focus on Zimbabwean and South Asian communities in the UK, show that bilingual immigrants suffer from linguistic racism, due to their English accents <a href="https://aclanthology.org/2020.cllrd-1.7.pdf">being influenced</a> by their mother tongue and the community’s particular speech patterns.</p>
<p>We have found that this discrimination can affect their access to education, employment and social opportunities. It also impacts their self-esteem, resilience and efficacy.</p>
<p>Christine researches young people within the Zimbabwean community, who have reported experiencing playground bullying, mocking and exclusion from peer social groups at school, due to linguistic racism. “At the beginning, it was rough,” one participant in the research said. “I had a different accent to everyone else and hadn’t caught the London accent so people would try to pick on me, and no-one wanted to hang out with me.”</p>
<p>Young people described how linguistic racism impacted their self-esteem and sense of belonging, leading some to become ashamed of their ethnic identity. For some this in turn affected their relationships with their parents, often due to resentment of their heavy foreign accents. </p>
<p>One girl said of her mother, “When she does talk English, her accent is annoying. You know like, a person’s who’s got a really strong Zimbabwean accent, trying to talk in English? It annoys me, actually aggravates me. I don’t even want her to talk to my friends, because she’s embarrassing, because she just tries to talk and be all normal with them, in English, and it’s just like ‘Mum, you can’t even talk English, so don’t talk!’” </p>
<p>Other participants said they would avoid being seen in public with their parents or try to prevent them attending school events. </p>
<h2>Impact on access to opportunities</h2>
<p>Zanib has interviewed south Asian-heritage Muslim women at Apna Haq, a Rotherham-based charity. Most of the women reported facing accent-based microaggressions daily, despite many being proficient English speakers, born and raised in the UK. </p>
<p>One interviewee reported an incident in a library, where a stranger mockingly shouted out, “You talk Bud-Bud English!” “Bud-Bud” is a derogatory term that supposedly mimics south Asian accents. </p>
<p>This type of interaction led the women to experience feelings of deep shame and a loss of confidence in speaking English publicly. This limited their engagement with social and professional opportunities. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman in a pink headscarf talks on the phone as a woman in a blue headscarf looks on." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/463274/original/file-20220516-20-omcus7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/463274/original/file-20220516-20-omcus7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463274/original/file-20220516-20-omcus7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463274/original/file-20220516-20-omcus7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463274/original/file-20220516-20-omcus7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463274/original/file-20220516-20-omcus7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/463274/original/file-20220516-20-omcus7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Women in South Asian communities in the UK have spoken about how accent bias impacts job opportunities and social interactions.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/muslim-business-woman-on-phone-over-740839630">UfaBizPhoto | Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In 2020, sociolinguists at Queen Mary University of London conducted research into the effect of <a href="https://accentbiasbritain.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Accent-Bias-Britain-Report-2020.pdf">accentism and linguistic racism in job recruitment</a>. They found that this discrimination affects interviewer perceptions of candidate suitability for particular occupations. </p>
<p>They also found that candidates’ success at interview was disproportionately lower the further their accents were from received pronunciation, regardless of how strong their qualifications, skills or interview proficiency were. This mainly affected non-white candidates. </p>
<p>France set a positive example in 2020, when it passed <a href="https://la1ere.francetvinfo.fr/glottophobie-la-discrimination-par-l-accent-sera-desormais-sanctionnee-par-le-code-penal-et-le-code-du-travail-896872.html">a ground-breaking law</a> banning what French sociolinguist Philippe Blanchet terms <a href="https://theconversation.com/la-glottophobie-ou-la-langue-comme-outil-de-discrimination-53345">“glottophobie”</a>, racism based on regional or foreign accent. The new law attracts a <a href="https://www.thelocal.fr/20201127/france-approves-law-banning-discrimination-based-on-a-persons-accent/">maximum penalty</a> of three years’ imprisonment and €45,000 fine. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, in the UK, there is little clarity on linguistic racism within the Equalities Act (2010), and therefore no real protection. Unchallenged, linguicism endures as a pretext for perpetuating racism under the radar.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/182173/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Zanib Rasool was a community researcher on the University of Sheffield Imagine project that received Arts and Humanities Research Council /Economic and Social Research Council (AHRC/ESRC) funding.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christine Makuve does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Non-standard ways of speaking are often deemed inferior, affecting schooling, social lives and job prospects.Zanib Rasool, Doctoral Researcher in Education, University of SheffieldChristine Makuve, Doctoral Researcher in Social Anthropology, The University of EdinburghLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1823202022-05-05T13:47:15Z2022-05-05T13:47:15ZBill 96 will harm Indigenous people in Québec. We need more equitable language laws<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/461349/original/file-20220504-15-euyt2q.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=10%2C0%2C3487%2C2375&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Québec Premier François Legault defended Bill 96 saying he doesn't want the province to become Louisiana.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/bill-96-will-harm-indigenous-people-in-quebec--we-need-more-equitable-language-laws" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>One of the reasons I moved to Québec in 2015 was because of the <em>mélange</em> of languages in which many Quebecers — <a href="https://languagescompany.com/wp-content/uploads/14_1228-LUCIDE-Montreal-Report-V8_HRONLINE.pdf">especially in Montréal</a> — live and work. Some are able to change languages from sentence to sentence; others will switch in the middle of sentences or speak in an ever-changing <a href="https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2011/dp-pd/vc-rv/index.cfm?Lang=ENG&VIEW=D&GEOCODE=24&TOPIC_ID=4">medley of languages</a>.</p>
<p>The language dance happens most frequently between French and English, but other languages can be involved — such as Indigenous and immigrant languages. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/quebecs-bill-40-further-undermines-the-provinces-english-language-school-system-131595">Québec's Bill 40 further undermines the province's English-language school system</a>
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<p>The reality of multilingualism goes very far back in Québec: the perceived founder of French Québec, Samuel de Champlain, even knew “<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/49790/champlains-dream-by-david-hackett-fischer/9780307397676">a smattering of [Indigenous] languages, not enough to speak directly on sensitive questions. Most of his communications had to happen through interpreters</a>.” However the mythic view of historical dominance held by some Quebecers is that “<a href="https://www.journaldemontreal.com/2022/01/04/a-propos-du-respect-de-notre-langue"><em>la langue française […] s’est implantée officiellement au Québec avec Samuel de Champlain en 1608</em></a>” or, the French language was officially established in Québec with Samuel de Champlain in 1608.</p>
<p>As the leader of a tiny, vulnerable French outpost, Champlain probably thought more about making alliances with Indigenous nations, which would allow the French colonists to survive, than he did about official languages. </p>
<p>Indigenous nations, and languages, have endured — as have the descendants of the original French settlers (including me), joined by British settlers and a mix of immigrants from all over the world, to create a diverse and complex society.</p>
<p>And all of this contributes to why Bill 96 is so problematic. The <a href="http://m.assnat.qc.ca/en/travaux-parlementaires/projets-loi/projet-loi-96-42-1.html">proposed bill</a>, “An Act respecting French, the official and common language of Québec,” will reduce the accessibility to health-care services in English, which will <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/first-nations-leaders-call-bill-96-cultural-genocide">drastically and negatively impact Indigenous people</a>. As a researcher and teacher of Inuit health, I find this deeply troubling.</p>
<h2>Indigenous experience in Québec</h2>
<p>Part of Québec’s complexity is ensuring equity for all its citizens. For Indigenous people in the province, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-021-01500-8">equitable treatment can seem fleeting</a>. </p>
<p>In the health-care system, systemic discrimination against Indigenous people has been formally recognized. In 2019, the Québec-mandated Viens Commission concluded that “<a href="https://www.cerp.gouv.qc.ca/fileadmin/Fichiers_clients/Rapport/Final_report.pdf">it is clear that prejudice toward Indigenous Peoples remains widespread in the interaction between caregivers and patients</a>,” and recommended “cultural safeguard principles” be incorporated into health services and programs for Indigenous people. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Protesters walk wearing ribbon skirts, holding signs that read 'Justice pour Joyce'" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/461325/original/file-20220504-27-me06yd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/461325/original/file-20220504-27-me06yd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461325/original/file-20220504-27-me06yd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461325/original/file-20220504-27-me06yd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461325/original/file-20220504-27-me06yd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461325/original/file-20220504-27-me06yd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/461325/original/file-20220504-27-me06yd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Thousands of people take part in a rally in support of Joyce Echaquan in Trois-Rivières, Que., in June, 2021.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In October 2021, coroner Géhane Kamel’s <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/joyce-echaquan-systemic-racism-quebec-government-1.6196038">top recommendation</a> in her report on the death of Joyce Echaquan was that the province needs to recognize that systemic racism exists and take concrete action to eliminate it. </p>
<p>To receive health care in a language that you speak is obviously a dimension of cultural safety. So it’s all the more disappointing that a recently released plan to reform the Québec health-care system <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/opinion-quebec-health-care-plan-fails-to-respond-to-indigenous-concerns">ignores systemic discrimination and cultural safety for patients</a>.</p>
<h2>The problem with Bill 96</h2>
<p>In an analysis of Bill 96, Montréal lawyer and advocate Eric Maldoff <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/opinion-its-essential-to-exempt-health-and-social-services-from-bill-96">says</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“Even when the staff and institutions have the option to use another language, Bill 96 strongly directs them to avoid exercising it and specifies that a language other than French should not be used systematically, such as by establishing translation services. There is an option to use a language other than French in case of health, public safety and natural justice. However, it seems aimed at dealing with a health emergency of an individual.”</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Nunavik Inuit in northern Québec have been identifying challenges within the health-care system for years. A report prepared by <a href="https://nrbhss.ca/sites/default/files/health_surveys/The_IQI_Model_of_Health_and_Well-Being_report_en.pdf">the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services</a> says: “Many [Inuit] do not understand medical terms and translation is sometimes inefficient, as many terms do not have an equivalent in Inuktitut. Consequently, many people struggle to understand their health problems and to follow medical advice.” </p>
<p>Ninety-eight per cent of Nunavik Inuit <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/89-656-x/89-656-x2016016-eng.htm">speak Inuktitut as their first language</a>. This should be celebrated, not hindered during the <a href="https://en.unesco.org/idil2022-2032">Decade of Indigenous Languages</a>, which Canada supports. Although many Indigenous people in Québec — including most Inuit — may have recognized rights to services in English, many, including myself, think Bill 96 will create greater impediments to accessible health care for Inuit and First Nations people. The bill will worsen health and health care, instead of improving it.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1514348290506203136"}"></div></p>
<h2>Multilingualism shouldn’t be a threat</h2>
<p>Bill 96 will also create new <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/opinion-quebecs-language-requirements-put-first-nations-students-at-a-disadvantage">challenges in education for Inuit and First Nations people</a> who use English. </p>
<p>Indigenous students will now have to complete an additional three French-language courses <a href="https://montreal.ctvnews.ca/quebec-rolls-back-proposal-forcing-english-cegep-students-into-three-french-language-classes-1.5877572">to receive a CÉGEP diploma</a> (typically required for university admission). In practice, most Inuit, and about half of First Nations students have been predominantly educated in English and will struggle with an additional French requirements.</p>
<p>Québec Premier François Legault recently <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/new-political-parties-would-turn-quebec-into-a-new-louisiana-legault">defended the draft Bill 96 by saying</a>: “If Québec is bilingual, unfortunately the attraction in North America to English will be so strong it will be a matter of time before we don’t speak French in Québec and we become Louisiana.”</p>
<p>Turning into Louisiana is a commonly deployed bogeyman in Québec, to imply that without restrictive measures on the use of other languages, French is endangered.</p>
<p>For most Québec residents, there is broad consensus that French should be protected. But many of us believe that multilingualism — including Indigenous languages — need not threaten French.</p>
<p><em>This is an updated version of a story originally published on May 5, 2022. It clarifies that many Indigenous people in Québec have recognized rights to services in English.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/182320/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Richard Budgell does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>For most Québec residents, there is broad consensus that French should be protected. But many of us believe that multilingualism need not threaten French.Richard Budgell, Assistant Professor, Family Medicine; Ph.D. student, History and Classical Studies, McGill UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1817642022-04-27T17:35:17Z2022-04-27T17:35:17ZNew Brunswick’s ruling that the lieutenant governor must be bilingual needs to be appealed, but not for the reasons you think<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/459835/original/file-20220426-2677-mlixrh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=34%2C0%2C5708%2C3771&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Brenda Murphy is the 32nd lieutenant governor of New Brunswick. She was appointed Sept. 8, 2019.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Stephen MacGillivray</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/new-brunswick-s-ruling-that-the-lieutenant-governor-must-be-bilingual-needs-to-be-appealed--but-not-for-the-reasons-you-think" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>Earlier this month, New Brunswick’s <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/new-brunswick-lieutenant-governor-brenda-murphy-1.6420040">Court of Queen’s Bench ruled</a> that the province’s lieutenant governor must be bilingual. The ruling brought to an end an <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/sanb-legal-unilingual-lieutenant-governor-1.5406601">18-month legal challenge</a> launched by the Société de l'Acadie (SANB) over the appointment of the Honourable Brenda Murphy. </p>
<p>Because Murphy is not functionally bilingual, the SANB argued that the appointment violated <a href="https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/rfc-dlc/ccrf-ccdl/rfcp-cdlp.html#s6">official language rights</a>, specifically sections <a href="https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/rfc-dlc/ccrf-ccdl/check/art16.html">16, 16.1</a>, <a href="https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/rfc-dlc/ccrf-ccdl/check/art18.html">18</a> and <a href="https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/rfc-dlc/ccrf-ccdl/check/art20.html">20</a> — all protected by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. New Brunswick is the only bilingual province where English and French are official languages.</p>
<p>Though the court’s conclusion is laudable (and I agree with it completely), the process by which it reached that conclusion is deeply flawed. The federal government must appeal this ruling — not because it disagrees with it, but because such a consequential decision requires greater appreciation of the Crown and its constitutional nuances.</p>
<h2>An illogical court ruling</h2>
<p>We need to separate the ruling’s conclusion from the logic it took to arrive there because the logic is highly problematic and the ruling is <a href="https://lagassep.com/2022/04/14/bilingualism-the-charter-and-the-lieutenant-governor-of-new-brunswick/">constitutionally incoherent</a>. It demonstrates a poor understanding of who or what the Crown is in Canada. </p>
<p>The ruling conveniently avoids using one part of the constitution (the Charter) to invalidate another (<a href="https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/fulltext.html">Section 58 of the Constitution Act 1867</a>), raising questions about the case’s <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/justiciability">justiciability</a>. </p>
<p>Legal scholar Kerri Froc describes it as an “<a href="https://twitter.com/KerriFroc/status/1514667265010147334">unreasonable interpretation</a>” of the Charter and a “<a href="https://twitter.com/KerriFroc/status/1514667268214759424">massive overstep on the separation of powers</a>.” Political scientist Stéphanie Chouinard <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/8772492/trudeau-feds-align-n-b-lieutenant-governor-ruling/">notes that the ruling</a> poses “new questions on law that have far-reaching consequences beyond language rights.”</p>
<p>The ruling’s logic is also odd because it focuses primarily on access to service delivery from the lieutenant governor through their legislative roles and interactions with the public. While important, they are not essential to <a href="https://www2.gnb.ca/content/gnb/en/lgnb/ltgov/role.html">the constitutional purpose of the lieutenant governor</a> and can be remedied. </p>
<p>For example, if the lieutenant governor’s capacity to deliver a throne speech in both languages is a problem, New Brunswick could follow Québec’s lead and do away with having their lieutenant governor <a href="http://www.assnat.qc.ca/fr/patrimoine/lexique/discours-d-ouverture.html">pronounce the government’s legislative agenda</a>. </p>
<p>If the concern is the lieutenant governor’s ability to understand both language versions of a bill before <a href="https://www2.gnb.ca/content/gnb/en/lgnb/faq.html">granting Royal Assent</a>, New Brunswick could adopt <a href="https://sencanada.ca/en/about/procedural-references/notes/n6">Ottawa’s approach</a> and delegate these duties to representatives of the lieutenant governor. </p>
<p>The lieutenant governor’s ability to interact with members of the public in both languages is also not a constitutional requirement of the job. It is a vanity to justify the public expense of the position. The courts should know better than to conflate the two. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="The New Brunswick flag waves in the blue sky" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/459840/original/file-20220426-20-otrlhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/459840/original/file-20220426-20-otrlhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=394&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459840/original/file-20220426-20-otrlhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=394&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459840/original/file-20220426-20-otrlhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=394&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459840/original/file-20220426-20-otrlhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=495&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459840/original/file-20220426-20-otrlhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=495&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459840/original/file-20220426-20-otrlhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=495&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">New Brunswick is the only official bilingual province in Canada.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>An extraordinary conclusion</h2>
<p>The court’s conclusion is a fascinating one: that for the equality of New Brunswick’s settler linguistic communities to be realized, the position of lieutenant governor must be bilingual. Therefore, the position’s officeholder must also be — making New Brunswick’s lieutenant governor the only individual in provincial office bound by the province’s constitutional official language obligations. </p>
<p>In other words, New Brunswick’s Crown and thereby its lieutenant governor is distinct from others in Canada.</p>
<p>Despite not demonstrating a solid understanding of the Crown, the Court of Queen’s Bench arrived at a similar destination as <a href="http://cspg-gcep.ca/pdf/awards_winner_burroughs-e.pdf">my own research</a>. The ruling asserts that there is not a single unified Crown in Canada represented differently across provinces. Rather, there are multiple Crowns in Canada with their own distinct features and unique obligations to place upon officeholders. </p>
<p>New Brunswick’s Crown, the court argues, is the only one in Canada with a constitutional responsibility to two linguistic communities that are equal partners in the development of their settler state. This is an extraordinary declaration from the court and a critical advancement for our federation.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, the novelty of the court’s ruling is undermined by its reliance on the status quo. </p>
<p>The constitution identifies New Brunswick’s settler nation as composed of two linguistic communities of <a href="https://officiallanguages.nb.ca/content/frequently-asked-questions">equal status</a>. The lieutenant governor, as the provincial head of state, is the political expression of this nation and therefore, according to the court, <em>has</em> to be bilingual. </p>
<p>Yet the court also affirms that the lieutenant governor’s position remains a fundamentally British institution, meaning minorities, including francophones in New Brunswick, must continue to navigate <a href="https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/february-2021/will-the-gg-search-scrutinize-the-underlying-whiteness-of-the-role/">the flawed limits of representational politics</a>.</p>
<p>Basically instead of assuming that francophones are equal partners, the court asks francophones to continue to be a minority, subservient to an <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/8772492/trudeau-feds-align-n-b-lieutenant-governor-ruling/">English and Loyalist default</a> to which the French language is an add-on. Although this court ruling is “<a href="https://www.thestar.com/politics/2022/04/14/cp-newsalert-court-rules-new-brunswick-lieutenant-governor-must-be-bilingual.html">wonderful news for the French language</a>,” it is not wonderful news for New Brunswick’s broader French-speaking community because it does not affirm the equal status of francophones. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A man walks down steps, he's wearing a suit, there's a woman standing in the doorway behind him wearing a white dress." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/459837/original/file-20220426-18-snkc3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/459837/original/file-20220426-18-snkc3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459837/original/file-20220426-18-snkc3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459837/original/file-20220426-18-snkc3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459837/original/file-20220426-18-snkc3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=555&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459837/original/file-20220426-18-snkc3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=555&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/459837/original/file-20220426-18-snkc3f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=555&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Lt.-Gov. Brenda Murphy stands in the doorway at Government House in Fredericton, N.B.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A made in New Brunswick solution</h2>
<p>Where does this leave New Brunswick? In desperate need of leadership. </p>
<p>Federal ministers like Dominic LeBlanc and Ginette Petitpas-Taylor, who are francophone and from New Brunswick, may be in an awkward position. They cannot be seen supporting an appeal of a ruling celebrated by some members of New Brunswick’s francophone communities, but their government cannot let a court ruling stand that is so ridiculous and that confirms francophones are second-class citizens and not equal partners in relation to the provincial viceregal.</p>
<p>LeBlanc and Petitpas-Taylor must spearhead the government’s appeal of this ruling — greater judicial clarity grounded in a solid understanding of the Crown and its purpose are desperately needed. </p>
<p>And while we wait, there is much that the federal government can do to support New Brunswickers in determining for themselves — <a href="https://www.parl.ca/DocumentViewer/en/44-1/bill/S-229/first-reading">without the help</a> of senators from Québec — who and how their head of state should embody their society.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/181764/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robert Tay-Burroughs's research is supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and the Leonard and Kathleen O'Brien Humanitarian Trust through the O'Brien Foundation.</span></em></p>The federal government must appeal this ruling — not because it disagrees with it, but because such a consequential decision requires greater appreciation of the Crown and its constitutional nuances.Robert Tay-Burroughs, PhD Student, Interdisciplinary Studies, University of New BrunswickLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1777012022-03-09T13:28:09Z2022-03-09T13:28:09ZCanada must accommodate Indigenous and minority languages to be truly multicultural<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/448561/original/file-20220225-21-1volwta.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3932%2C2984&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Mary Simon, Canada's first Inuit governor-general and a native Inuktitut speaker, inspects the honour guard as she arrives at Rideau Hall in July 2021.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The time has come for Canada to revisit its approach to languages. With <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/indigenous-languages-decade-make-inuktitut-an-official-in-canada-inuit-un-rep-1.6311525">recent calls from top Inuit figures to make Inuktitut an official language of Canada</a> alongside English and French, and an <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/nti-suing-government-of-nunavut-inuktut-education-1.6209460">earlier lawsuit over the right for students to be educated in Inuktitut in Nunavut</a>, there is no better time for this conversation.</p>
<p>This year is a good time to starting a nationwide discussion because it’s the inaugural year of the <a href="https://en.unesco.org/idil2022-2032">International Decade of Indigenous Languages</a>, the 30th anniversary year of the <a href="https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/minorities.aspx">UN Declaration on Minorities</a> and the 40th anniversary year of the <a href="https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/page-12.html">Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms</a> </p>
<p>These anniversaries are of special relevance because languages are a matter of fundamental human rights.</p>
<h2>How multicultural are we?</h2>
<p>Canada is renowned for its multiculturalism. Yet a still unsettled issue in Canadian multiculturalism pertains to languages. As a human rights researcher, I believe multiculturalism isn’t truly possible without multilingualism. </p>
<p>Language is the foundational dimension of most cultures, and therefore the maintenance, development and use of a culture’s language is indispensable for its preservation and practice.</p>
<p>Canada’s historical oppression of Indigenous Peoples directly concerns languages. The residential schools system <a href="https://essentialsoflinguistics.pressbooks.com/chapter/11-2-indigenous-languages-and-the-legacy-of-residential-schools/">specifically targeted Indigenous cultures and languages</a> to such an extent that many argue it constituted genocide, especially after the mass graves of Indigenous children were discovered. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-canada-committed-genocide-against-indigenous-peoples-explained-by-the-lawyer-central-to-the-determination-162582">How Canada committed genocide against Indigenous Peoples, explained by the lawyer central to the determination</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The Truth and Reconciliation Commission, as well as Indigenous leaders and activists, <a href="https://ehprnh2mwo3.exactdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Calls_to_Action_English2.pdf">explicitly state</a> that reconciliation and rebuilding in Canada cannot happen without the revival and reaffirmation of Indigenous languages.</p>
<p>Historically, the issue of languages was a matter of colonialism and dominance in Canada. Making English and French the country’s official languages was <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/canadians-official-languages-act/history-official-languages-act.html">an administrative decision by the ruling colonial powers of the time</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Two children watch and engage with one another as two other children dance in front of them." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/448538/original/file-20220225-13-33nev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C58%2C3000%2C2137&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/448538/original/file-20220225-13-33nev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/448538/original/file-20220225-13-33nev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/448538/original/file-20220225-13-33nev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=445&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/448538/original/file-20220225-13-33nev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/448538/original/file-20220225-13-33nev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/448538/original/file-20220225-13-33nev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=560&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Grade 3 pupils watch classmates rehearse a traditional Inuktitut dance in Iqaluit, Nunavut.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This decision was taken without due consideration to Canada’s Indigenous Peoples or other settler minority groups — speakers of German, Ukrainian, Italian, Punjabi and many other languages. </p>
<p>Canadian bilingualism was formalized first <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/official-languages-act-1969">in 1969</a>, and later in the <a href="https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/page-12.html">1982 Charter of Rights and Freedom</a>, and accommodated the English-speaking majority and French-speaking minority. But it <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/11-630-x/11-630-x2018001-eng.htm">left aside speakers of multiple Indigenous and other languages</a>.</p>
<p>In a human rights-based country, linguistic issues cannot be resolved simply because majority groups out-vote minority groups. Linguistic rights are human rights and apply to majorities and minorities alike, and not at the discretion of those who hold the power.</p>
<h2>Minority rights to language</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/ccpr.aspx">1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights</a>, a foundational human rights document of modern times, states that people who belong to linguistic minorities are guaranteed the right to enjoy their own culture and use their own language.</p>
<p>This is a binding legal provision for every country that’s ratified the treaty, including Canada.</p>
<p>Furthermore, the <a href="https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/minorities.aspx">1992 United Nations Declaration on Minorities</a> states that countries must protect the existence and the linguistic identity of minorities within their respective territories and encourage the promotion of that identity by adopting laws and other measures. </p>
<p>Nations are supposed to ensure that minority populations have adequate opportunities to learn their native languages, or to receive instruction in their native languages.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/IPeoples/Pages/Declaration.aspx">UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples</a> passed into law in Canada through Bill C-15 also states that Indigenous Peoples are guaranteed the right to revitalize, use, develop and transmit their languages to future generations.</p>
<p>It states that countries should provide Indigenous Peoples, particularly children and including those living outside their communities, with education in their own language.</p>
<p>Other applicable international standards come from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). <a href="https://www.osce.org/hcnm/thematic-recommendations-and-guidelines">These standards</a> direct institutionalized use of minority languages in justice, education, elections, policing, mass media and other areas of public life.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman in a hat and jacket walks past a stop sign displayed in both English and Inuktitut." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/448568/original/file-20220225-25-10d1uro.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/448568/original/file-20220225-25-10d1uro.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/448568/original/file-20220225-25-10d1uro.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/448568/original/file-20220225-25-10d1uro.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/448568/original/file-20220225-25-10d1uro.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/448568/original/file-20220225-25-10d1uro.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/448568/original/file-20220225-25-10d1uro.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A woman walks past a stop sign displayed in both English and Inuktitut in Iqaluit, Nunavut.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A matter of human rights</h2>
<p>It’s clear that international standards explicitly demand that minority languages be used and institutionalized in virtually all spheres of life. These standards clearly indicate that the institutionalized use of minority and Indigenous languages is not a matter of politics or choice, but a matter of imperative human rights.</p>
<p>Promotion of linguistic diversity isn’t just an international obligation. It’s key to many vital Canadian challenges, including reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, overcoming systemic racism and colonialism, ongoing health-care crises and the accommodation and inclusion of migrants and refugees.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/should-bilingualism-change-in-canada-the-debate-over-gov-gen-mary-simon-164836">Should bilingualism change in Canada? The debate over Gov. Gen. Mary Simon</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Canadian institutionalized multilingualism will advance the national economy, will make Canada more competitive on international markets and will bolster its reputation as a global human rights champion and a progressive immigration model.</p>
<p>In addition, it will transform Canada into a truly multiculturalist state.</p>
<p>This year is a perfect time for a broad public discussion about the use and status of languages in Canada. Human rights should inform and guide this discussion. The demand for revitalizing Indigenous languages, the compelling calls from Inuktitut champions and the appointment of our Inuktitut-speaking governor general create an excellent starting point for this nationwide endeavour.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/177701/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Veaceslav Balan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Linguistic rights are human rights that apply to majorities and minorities alike, not just at the discretion of those who hold power.Veaceslav Balan, PhD Candidate, Faculty of Law, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of OttawaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1686922021-10-05T16:36:22Z2021-10-05T16:36:22ZWe speak a lot of languages in Canada — elections should reflect our diversity<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424778/original/file-20211005-15-6caq9k.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C210%2C3600%2C2182&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">New immigrants to Canada, including Syrian-born Tareq Hadhad (centre) who founded the company Peace by Chocolate in Antigonish, N.S., swear allegiance at an Oath of Citizenship ceremony in Halifax in January 2020. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Riley Smith </span></span></figcaption></figure><p>According to the <a href="https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2011/as-sa/98-314-x/98-314-x2011003_3-eng.cfm">2011 census</a>, almost 213,500 people reported an Indigenous mother tongue, including 144,000 who speak an Algonquian language and 35,500 who speak an Inuit language. All Indigenous languages are the languages of this land.</p>
<p>In the same 2011 census, <a href="https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2011/as-sa/98-314-x/98-314-x2011001-eng.cfm">more than 20 per cent of Canadians</a> (6.8 million people) reported a mother tongue other than English or French. At home, more than a million Canadians reported speaking a variant of Chinese, and six other languages (Punjabi, Spanish, Italian, German, Tagalog and Arabic) were each spoken by some 400,000 to 500,000 Canadians. </p>
<p>The census revealed more than 200 languages spoken by Canadians as a home language or a mother tongue, with 20 languages each numbering over 100,000 speakers.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424767/original/file-20211005-14-1f6nteg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3000%2C1935&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A man holds a sign that reads We Are All Immigrants (Except First Nations)" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424767/original/file-20211005-14-1f6nteg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3000%2C1935&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424767/original/file-20211005-14-1f6nteg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424767/original/file-20211005-14-1f6nteg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424767/original/file-20211005-14-1f6nteg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=421&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424767/original/file-20211005-14-1f6nteg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=529&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424767/original/file-20211005-14-1f6nteg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=529&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424767/original/file-20211005-14-1f6nteg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=529&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A pro-immigration supporter attends a rally near the Canada-U.S. border in Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle, Que., in 2019.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These “immigrant” languages are also the languages of Canadians, along with the two official languages — English and French (which are also immigrant languages). With some 350,000 new immigrants arriving to Canada each year <a href="https://www.cicnews.com/2020/10/canada-to-release-2021-2023-immigration-levels-plan-1016133.html#gs.ch5x91">and numbers rising,</a> the variety and number of non-official minority language speakers are constantly increasing.</p>
<p>Canada has taken the first steps towards the linguistic accommodation of its minority citizens. During the 2019 federal election, Elections Canada developed and offered to voters two publications — the Guide to the Federal Election and the Voter ID info sheet — in <a href="https://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=vot&dir=eth&document=index&lang=e">more than 30 minority languages</a> and <a href="https://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=vot&dir=abo&document=index&lang=e">16 Indigenous languages</a>. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/e-2.01/">Canada Elections Act</a> also specifies that electors may contact electoral returning officers if they require a language or sign-language interpreter. The aim is to facilitate greater participation of all citizens in the fundamental democratic process.</p>
<h2>Discretionary accommodation measures</h2>
<p><a href="https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/I-7.85/page-1.html">Canada’s 2019 Indigenous Languages Act</a> states that a federal institution (like Elections Canada) may provide access to services in an Indigenous language. It may also translate a document into an Indigenous language, or provide for interpretation services to facilitate the use of an Indigenous language in the course of the federal institution’s activities. </p>
<p>However, these otherwise progressive provisions do not mandate linguistic accommodation, meaning these measures are discretionary and not guaranteed.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Justin Trudeau listens to Perry Bellegarde as he gestures during a meeting." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424768/original/file-20211005-29-1v5yjy2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424768/original/file-20211005-29-1v5yjy2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424768/original/file-20211005-29-1v5yjy2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424768/original/file-20211005-29-1v5yjy2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424768/original/file-20211005-29-1v5yjy2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424768/original/file-20211005-29-1v5yjy2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424768/original/file-20211005-29-1v5yjy2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Prime Minister Justin Trudeau listens to Assembly of First Nations National Chief Perry Bellegarde during a meeting with Assembly of First Nations leaders in Ottawa in 2019. Protecting Indigenous languages was a key topic of discussion.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Electoral rights are universally recognized as among the most fundamental of civil and political rights. They are the hallmark of democracy. Barriers to their exercise and enjoyment — including linguistic barriers — are a human rights and equality issue.</p>
<p>The law and its practice in the United States are instructive. The language minority provisions of the <a href="https://www.justice.gov/crt/language-minority-citizens">U.S. Voting Rights Act</a> state:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>“Whenever any state or political subdivision provides registration or voting notices, forms, instructions, assistance, or other materials or information relating to the electoral process, including ballots, it shall provide them in the language of the applicable minority group as well as in the English language.” </p>
</blockquote>
<p>These provisions apply to situations where more than 10,000 people, or five per cent of the total voting-age citizens in a single political jurisdiction, are members of a single language minority group, have depressed literacy rates or don’t speak English sufficiently well in order to exercise their electoral participation rights.</p>
<p>During the November 2020 elections, <a href="https://share.america.gov/u-s-states-and-localities-offer-ballots-in-many-languages/">voters in California were able</a> to request ballots in widely spoken languages like Arabic, Armenian, Hmong, Korean, Persian, Spanish and Tagalog. </p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.harrisvotes.com/VotingInfo">Harris County in Texas</a> (home to America’s fourth largest city, Houston) the ballot was printed in four languages: English, Spanish, Vietnamese and Chinese.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A voter and a poll workers, both wearing masks, have a conversation at a polling station." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424775/original/file-20211005-29-qtbhcx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424775/original/file-20211005-29-qtbhcx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424775/original/file-20211005-29-qtbhcx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424775/original/file-20211005-29-qtbhcx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424775/original/file-20211005-29-qtbhcx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424775/original/file-20211005-29-qtbhcx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424775/original/file-20211005-29-qtbhcx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A voter receives his ballot access code from a poll worker on election day in November 2020 in Houston.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/David J. Phillip)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In Cook County (home to Chicago, America’s third-largest city), where over one-third of residents speak a language other than English at home, <a href="https://www.cookcountyclerkil.gov/agency/2020-elections?language=en">elections-related information</a> and fully translated ballots were provided to the voters during the November 2020 elections in 12 languages: English, Spanish, Chinese, Hindi, Korean, Tagalog, Arabic, Gujarati, Polish, Russian, Ukrainian and Urdu.</p>
<h2>The UN urges accommodation</h2>
<p>International human rights standards under the United Nations system and within the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), of which Canada is part, urge the accommodation of linguistic minorities.</p>
<p>Most notable provisions can be found in the <a href="https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/ccpr.aspx">1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights</a>, the <a href="https://www.osce.org/odihr/elections/17569">2001 OSCE Guidelines to Assist National Minority Participation in the Electoral Process</a> and the <a href="https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Minorities/SR/LanguageRightsLinguisticMinorities_EN.pdf">2017 handbook Language Rights of Linguistic Minorities</a> by the UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues. </p>
<p>Similar provisions on political participation of Indigenous peoples can be derived from the <a href="https://www.un.org/development/desa/indigenouspeoples/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2018/11/UNDRIP_E_web.pdf">United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples</a> (UNDRIP), brought into Canadian law <a href="https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/declaration/about-apropos.html">this year through Bill C-15</a>.</p>
<p>To be more inclusive and rights-based, Canada needs to fully embrace linguistic diversity for its elections. Greater use of Indigenous and minority languages will enhance the quality of Canada’s elections in line with international norms and standards.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="Mary Simon smiles as she speaks into a microphone." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424777/original/file-20211005-27-ieqbtm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424777/original/file-20211005-27-ieqbtm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424777/original/file-20211005-27-ieqbtm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424777/original/file-20211005-27-ieqbtm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424777/original/file-20211005-27-ieqbtm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424777/original/file-20211005-27-ieqbtm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424777/original/file-20211005-27-ieqbtm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Gov. Gen. Mary Simon gives her address after she took the oath to become the 30th Governor General of Canada in Ottawa.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This will certainly resonate well with current pledges of reconciliation with Indigenous peoples <a href="https://theconversation.com/should-bilingualism-change-in-canada-the-debate-over-gov-gen-mary-simon-164836">and with Canada’s Inuktitut-speaking new governor general, Mary Simon</a>. </p>
<p>As a multicultural, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2021.1931244">plurilingual</a> and well-heeled country, Canada can do better to accommodate and facilitate the fuller participation of citizens in our elections. In so doing, we can offer a leading example to the world.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/168692/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Slava (Veaceslav) Balan is a PhD candidate at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law, and member of the University of Ottawa Human Rights Research and Education Centre.</span></em></p>Following the Sept. 20 federal election, an important question must be asked: How is the Canadian electoral process accommodating the country’s increasing linguistic diversity?Veaceslav Balan, PhD Candidate, Faculty of Law, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of OttawaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1642192021-08-31T12:28:18Z2021-08-31T12:28:18ZBilingual people with language loss due to stroke can pose a treatment challenge – computational modeling may help clinicians treat them<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/415558/original/file-20210810-21-9b77fs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5991%2C4122&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Researchers can program neural networks composed of artificial neurons to simulate language processing.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/artificial-intelligence-brain-royalty-free-image/1256860085?adppopup=true">Andriy Onufriyenko/Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>The <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/topics/research-brief-83231">Research Brief</a> is a short take about interesting academic work.</em></p>
<h2>The big idea</h2>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-89443-6">New research shows that computational modeling</a> can predict how bilingual stroke patients will respond to language treatment – and that could help clinicians identify which language to focus treatment on and increase chances for improvement in both. </p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1212/01.wnl.0000265600.69385.6f">Aphasia</a> is a speech and language disorder often caused by stroke. Bilingual people with aphasia typically experience difficulty retrieving words in both of their languages. While language therapy can help them improve their ability to communicate, it’s not often clear to clinicians <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/bs10090144">which language to target in treatment</a>.</p>
<p>I’m a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=mexG-2kAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">cognitive neuroscientist</a>, and my current work focuses on language treatment outcomes in bilinguals with aphasia. As part of the <a href="https://www.bu.edu/aphasiaresearch/">Aphasia Research Laboratory at Boston University</a>, my colleagues and I worked with <a href="http://nn.cs.utexas.edu/">computer scientists at the University of Texas at Austin</a> to develop <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bandl.2019.104643">BiLex</a> – a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.semcdb.2015.07.001">computational model</a> that simulates the ability to retrieve words from memory in bilinguals.</p>
<p>The BiLex model is a <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-a-neural-network-a-computer-scientist-explains-151897">neural network</a> composed of artificial neurons that are programmed to simulate language processing. Our team trained individual BiLex models to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-89443-6">simulate word retrieval abilities in Spanish-English bilinguals with aphasia</a> after language treatment. </p>
<p>We simulated their word retrieval abilities before their stroke and then recreated the effects of stroke lesions in each person’s brain by deleting <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pneurobio.2011.08.002">neurons encoding</a> different word sounds and meanings. Our team used varying degrees of damage intensity to simulate the levels of word retrieval loss of each patient. We then retrained these BiLex models to simulate the effects of language therapy provided in either English or Spanish on both the treated and the untreated language.</p>
<p>Our findings show that BiLex can simulate treatment response, accurately predicting up to 82% of patient recovery in the treated language and 60% in the untreated language. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Two stick figures speak through a tin can in Spanish and English" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/414430/original/file-20210803-27-fbk3ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/414430/original/file-20210803-27-fbk3ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414430/original/file-20210803-27-fbk3ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414430/original/file-20210803-27-fbk3ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414430/original/file-20210803-27-fbk3ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414430/original/file-20210803-27-fbk3ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/414430/original/file-20210803-27-fbk3ii.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">According to the U.S. Census Bureau report on language use, 83.6% of the foreign-born population aged 5 and older speaks a language other than English at home, which suggests a large bilingual representation in the general population.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/tin-can-phone-spanish-and-english-conversation-royalty-free-image/157561203?adppopup=true">JulNichols/via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Why it matters</h2>
<p>Despite the growing <a href="https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/abstract/10.1055/s-0029-1225951">bilingual aging population at risk for post-stroke aphasia</a> worldwide, evidence on what language treatment works and for whom it works best is still limited. </p>
<p>Typically, predicting treatment outcomes for bilinguals with aphasia requires large-scale studies over a long period of time. This is because each person has unique characteristics that affect their recovery. Computational models like BiLex can offer a faster approach by reliably simulating multiple different profiles of bilingualism and language impairment. </p>
<p>Accurate computational simulations of response to language therapy could ultimately help clinicians decide which language to treat in bilinguals with aphasia in order to maximize <a href="https://pubs.asha.org/doi/10.1044/1058-0360%282013/12-0085%29">treatment response in their two languages</a>.</p>
<h2>What still isn’t known</h2>
<p>While our findings may help develop better and more personalized treatment plans in the future, questions about language recovery in bilinguals with aphasia remain unanswered. </p>
<p>Further research is needed on how people who know two languages differ from people who know just one language in their recovery from brain injuries affecting communication. Similarly, little is known about what determines aphasia recovery for different language combinations outside of Spanish and English, or what factors lead to optimal response to language therapy.</p>
<h2>What’s next</h2>
<p>Currently, our team is conducting a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2020-040495">clinical trial to test if BiLex can correctly identify which language treatment option will lead to the maximum recovery in both languages on real bilingual patients</a>. If study results confirm that BiLex can help identify the optimal treatment language for bilinguals with aphasia, our computational model could help clinicians tailor treatment plans to promote better recovery in this population in the future.</p>
<p>[<em>Over 100,000 readers rely on The Conversation’s newsletter to understand the world.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=100Ksignup">Sign up today</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/164219/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The PROCoM project receives funding from the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders of the National Institutes of Health (grant U01DC014922) awarded to Swathi Kiran.
Claudia Peñaloza is currently affiliated with the University of Barcelona and receives funding from Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Agencia Estatal de Investigación (IJC2018-037818). </span></em></p>Computational modeling can predict language therapy response in bilingual people with aphasia. In the future, this could help clinicians identify the best language for treatment.Claudia Peñaloza, Researcher, Aphasia Research Laboratory, Boston UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1648362021-07-25T14:11:31Z2021-07-25T14:11:31ZShould bilingualism change in Canada? The debate over Gov. Gen. Mary Simon<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412707/original/file-20210722-21-175fml0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=8%2C275%2C5551%2C3417&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Mary Simon, an Inuk leader and former Canadian diplomat, has been named as Canada's next governor general — the first Indigenous person to serve in the role.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick </span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Raymond Théberge, Canada’s official languages commissioner, says his office has received more than <a href="https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/probe-launched-after-400-complaints-over-new-ggs-lack-of-french">400 complaints about the appointment of Inuk leader Mary Simon</a> as governor general. </p>
<p>The “problem” is her lack of French-English bilingualism, although she is bilingual, speaking both Inuktitut and English. </p>
<p>Canada has had an <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/official-languages-act-1969">official bilingualism policy for 50 years</a>, established to deal with a <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/quiet-revolution">1960s constitutional crisis</a> regarding francophone Canadians. </p>
<p>Today a very different crisis presents itself: the reckoning of Canada’s colonial practices towards Indigenous people. The uncomfortable clash between different minority languages is coming to a head with the appointment of Simon. </p>
<p>But which languages “count” in Canada? And who gets to be the “right” kind of bilingual? </p>
<h2>Anglophones vs. francophones</h2>
<p>In the 1960s, the Canadian government was dealing with <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/history/EPISCONTENTSE1EP16CH1PA1LE.html">the Révolution Tranquille (Quiet Revolution)</a> in Québec. This period of social unrest caused the Catholic Church’s influence to decline and placed language at the forefront of Québécois identity. </p>
<p>This was after a long history of economic asymmetry in Québec. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the English made up <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/francophone-anglophone-relations">the bulk of the governing and merchant class</a>, while the French laboured for the English (for instance <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/coureurs-de-bois">as coureurs de bois</a>, or unlicensed fur traders), or <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/quebec-rural-society">lived on subsistence farms</a>. Overall, the French were more populous, but also more rural, less educated and poorer. </p>
<p>This pattern changed only slightly over the decades, coming to a head in the 1960s during the <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/royal-commission-on-bilingualism-and-biculturalism">Laurendeau-Dunton Commission — also known as the Bilingualism and Biculturalism Commission</a> — that revealed deep economic and social inequities between francophones and anglophones in Québec. </p>
<p>In order to raise the status of francophones in Canada, Pierre Trudeau’s government passed the <a href="https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/o-3.01/page-1.html#h-384138">Official Languages Act in 1969 (revamped in 1985)</a>, giving French equal institutional status as English. </p>
<p>This set the stage for today, where most Canadians take official bilingualism as a given. It is perhaps unsurprising, then, that Simon’s lack of French fluency would raise some eyebrows.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Stop sign reads STOP in english, french and Inuktitut" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412733/original/file-20210722-23-1wy47d8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412733/original/file-20210722-23-1wy47d8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412733/original/file-20210722-23-1wy47d8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412733/original/file-20210722-23-1wy47d8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412733/original/file-20210722-23-1wy47d8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412733/original/file-20210722-23-1wy47d8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412733/original/file-20210722-23-1wy47d8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A stop sign in English, French and Inuktitut is seen in Iqaluit, Nunavut.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Bilingualism vs. Multiculturalism</h2>
<p>The Official Languages Act has always been at odds with Canada’s claims of multiculturalism. The Canadian ideal was to promote multiple cultures while promoting only two languages, or as linguist Eve Haque has called it, “<a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3138/9781442686083">Multiculturalism within a Bilingual Framework</a>.” </p>
<p>However, given that language is usually believed to be an essential component of culture (indeed, <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/language-policy">Québecers argued this</a>), this is already a tenuous policy. </p>
<p>When we establish “official” languages, we demote all other languages to “unofficial.” Equality is only for French and English, not for Cree, or Mohawk, or Inuktitut, or even German — whose speakers have always <a href="http://www.canadanewsagency.com/Sociology/1029.html">greatly outnumbered French speakers on the Prairies</a>. In fact, <a href="https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/as-sa/fogs-spg/Facts-PR-Eng.cfm?TOPIC=5&LANG=Eng&GK=PR&GC=46">the 2016 census reports more than 66,000 German mother-tongue speakers in Manitoba</a>, compared to 46,000 French mother-tongue speakers.</p>
<p>Current language policy in Canada establishes a hierarchy of French and English above all other languages that underpins how we talk about everything in this country. The census reports on French and English separately, but groups all other languages together. Being bilingual only <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/bilingualism">“counts” if it is French-English</a>. </p>
<p>This is why more than 400 complainants to the official languages commissioner consider Simon’s bilingualism inadequate, despite Inuktitut being <a href="https://www.clo-ocol.gc.ca/en/timeline-event/the-legislative-assembly-of-nunavut-adopts-the-official-languages-act-and-the-inuit">one of three official languages of Nunavut</a>. </p>
<p>Although most may agree that it is always desirable to speak an Indigenous language, it is <em>in addition</em> to French and English, not as a replacement.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Simon stands behind a podium in front of Canada Flags" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412732/original/file-20210722-27-1g7qsch.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/412732/original/file-20210722-27-1g7qsch.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412732/original/file-20210722-27-1g7qsch.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412732/original/file-20210722-27-1g7qsch.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412732/original/file-20210722-27-1g7qsch.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412732/original/file-20210722-27-1g7qsch.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/412732/original/file-20210722-27-1g7qsch.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Simon speaks during an announcement at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Que., on July 6, 2021.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Indigenous language endangerment</h2>
<p>Fast forward 50 years from the Official Languages Act, and there is a different crisis afoot in Canada. </p>
<p>Today we are reckoning with decades of colonial government practices towards Indigenous people and languages. Policies such as <a href="https://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/the_residential_school_system/">residential schools</a> and <a href="https://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/sixties_scoop/">the 60s scoop</a> were the direct cause of Indigenous language loss. </p>
<p>Removing children from their families and forcing them to learn an “official” language <a href="https://essentialsoflinguistics.pressbooks.com/chapter/11-2-indigenous-languages-and-the-legacy-of-residential-schools">resulted in an abrupt end of familial language transmission</a> for nearly all of the <a href="https://en.ccunesco.ca/-/media/Files/Unesco/Resources/2018/09/IndigenousLanguagesCCUNESCO.pdf">70-plus Indigenous languages spoken in this country</a>. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://trc.ca/assets/pdf/Calls_to_Action_English2.pdf">Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) Calls to Action</a> include the revitalization and re-establishment of these languages. The federal government response to these recommendations led to the <a href="https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/I-7.85/page-1.html">Indigenous Languages Act of 2019</a>. </p>
<p>Canada’s Official Languages Act states that it will “advance the equality of status and use of the English and French languages within Canadian society.” And the Indigenous Languages Act states that the “recognition and implementation of rights related to Indigenous languages are at the core of reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, and are fundamental to shaping the country.” </p>
<p>How can Canada reconcile the two?</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/canadas-new-governor-general-mary-simon-is-poised-to-engage-in-her-most-challenging-diplomatic-mission-yet-164229">Canada's new governor general, Mary Simon, is poised to engage in her most challenging diplomatic mission yet</a>
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<p>While French remains a minority language in Canada, many <a href="https://www.ictinc.ca/blog/why-is-it-important-to-protect-revitalize-indigenous-languages">Indigenous languages are on the brink of extinction</a>. Inuktitut is among the Indigenous languages most spoken today as a mother tongue, and even <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/inuktut-nunavut-statistics-canada-1.5205870">it is declining</a>. The federal government and all Canadians have an obligation to work towards reconciliation with Indigenous people, and to implement the TRC recommendations. </p>
<p>Recognizing Indigenous languages as equal in status to French and English, and accepting Inuktitut-English bilingualism in a first Indigenous governor general, would be a good start.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/164836/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nicole Rosen receives funding from The Social Sciences and Humanities Council of Canada and Canada Research Chairs. </span></em></p>Which languages get to “count” as bilingual in Canada? And who gets to be the “right” kind of bilingual?Nicole Rosen, Professor and Canada Research Chair in Language Interactions, University of ManitobaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.