LANGUAGE MAINTANANCE AND SHIFT

LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE AND SHIFT

Language shift in different communities:

Migrant Minority

As an example contained in the book: About someone who use English more increases with increasing tenure in which he works. Experience as an example of this is the type of person who uses a minority language in the language of the majority culture and society. The state of an area where there might be a language change can occur in different individuals and groups, but as time went on the language of the wider society can move the minority language is the mother tongue.

Shift of language (language shift) comes to the use of language by a speaker or group of speakers that can occur as a result of movement from one speech community to another speech community. If a person or group of people moving to other places who is speaking a foreign language, and mingled with them, it will pass this language shift. Immigrants or immigrant group is for the purpose of communicating like it or not, must conform to the "stripped" of his own language, then use the local language. In the group of origin, they are able to use their local language, but to communicate with other, of course they do not survive to continue using their own language. Little by little they have to learn to use the language of the local population.

Non-Migrant Community

Language shift is not always the result of migration. Political, economic and social change can happen in one community, and this may result in a shift in language as well. As an example: On the existence of language shift is due to the domination or occupation by a nation. This is a regulatory and social distance.

One of the factors driving a shift in language is the migration or movement of people, which can manifest two possibilities. First, small groups migrated to other regions or countries which of course led to a language they do not work in new areas. This example occurred in the migration of various ethnic groups in the United States. Second, a large wave of immigration speakers overwhelm a small area with low population density, causing the local population split and shifted its language. It's such a lot happening in the UK as the industry develops. Displaced by some small languages ​​of English laborers brought by the industry to where it's small.

Migrant Majority

Shift in language often reflects the influence of political factors and economic factors, such as the need to work. People might move the location and language for a reason. The last few centuries, the people who speak Irish, Scottish Gaelic and Welsh, has been switched to English, solely in order to get a job. They need English to succeed in work and for social welfare, and also to have many friends. But we found similar results when a group of the majority to make the transition physically.

When the colonial powers invaded another country, they often become the dominant language. Multilingualism is also determined and occurs naturally in a country such as India, Papua New Guinea, and in African countries. It is not possible for a single alien and foreign languages ​​to move between languages ​​and eradicate hundreds of local languages. But when multilingualism is widespread in the area, or where only one language that has been used before the colonists arrived, the language is often under threat. In this context, the English language has been described as a 'killer language'. Where one group of rank into the political power and impose its language with the institutions, public administration, law courts, education, religion, the possibility that minority groups will find themselves at increased pressure to adopt the language of the dominant group.

Sometimes it is transferred to the community of colonial languages, English, and language of their own lost and gone. When this language shift occurs, the language is almost always turned toward the powerful and dominant groups. One of the dominant group has little incentive to adopt the language of a minority. Dominant language associated with status, prestige and success of the community. It is used as an 'attraction' in the context of the wider society, for official talks on the customs, by the readers of news events on television and radio, and fans of pop star, model fashions, and disc jockeys. It's rarely surprised some young minority characterize the speaker must understand the benefits to abandon their own language.

Language death and language loss:

When a person dies, then the language is dead, one person's first language, but because people were not able to preserve it, then the language is extinct. Sometimes this fact is clearly happening. When languages ​​die gradually, as opposed to all speakers are wiped out by massacre or epidemic, the process is similar to the shift in language. Function of the language of a region is to take over other languages​​. As a regional power in which speakers use the language of depreciation, speakers of the language is gradually becoming less proficient in its use.

According to Kloss, 1984, there are three main types of language extinction: (a) the extinction of a language without a language shift  he said disappeared), (b) the extinction of the language because the language shift ( said not to be in "said the compact area", or language surrendered to the "intrinsic contradictions of modern cultural infrastructure that is based on technology"), and (c) nominal language extinction through metamorphosis (for example a language dialect demoted to the status when he said  no longer write in it and started using other languages​​).

As examples in the book: On the use of language in the long run it is lost or reduced because there is no skill its application (language loss). As other examples, on the use of language in a society. Are like for instance the marriage of two different tribes.

Factors contributing to language shift:

Economy, social and Politic factor

The most obvious factor is that the community view of the important reasons for learning a second language. The reasons are economic, but they also could be a political as in the case of Israel. Economic development is also a driving factor language shift. One factor is the industrialization of the economy (which is sometimes joined by a factor migration). Economic progress is sometimes raised the position of a language that has a high economic value. English for example, be the interest of many people to master and if necessary leave the first language.

Getting a job is the most economic reasons, a clear and present to learn another language. In the British-dominated state, for example, people learn English in order to get a good job. This is called `billingualism`. Billingualism defined as the use of two languages ​​by a speaker in her interaction with others in turn (Mackey 1962:12, Fishman 1975:73). Billingualism always necessary for a shift in language, though, because the people who showed stable diglossic, does not always result in a shift in the second important factor, it seems the community does not see any reason to take active steps to maintain their regional languages​​. Without the active language maintenance, shift is almost inevitable in some contexts. Without the deliberate maintenance of this can and probably will disappear in at least three generations. Rapid shift occurred when people passion to succeed in a society where knowledge of a second language is a prerequisite for success.

Demographic factor

Demographic factors are also relevant in the calculation of the speed of the shift in language. Language shift durability tends to be longer in rural than in urban areas. This is partly a reflection of the fact that rural groups tend to be isolated from the centers of political power, and they can meet most of their social needs in regional or minority languages​​. Shift tends to occur more rapidly in some groups than others. The size of this group is sometimes a critical factor. To maintain the language, you must have people who can use them regularly. Language shift usually occurs in the state, county, or region that gives hope for social and economic life better, so invite immigrants / migrants to the country.

Attitudes and Value

As an example in the book is about language shift that will grow more slowly when the first language is highly appreciated by its users. The status of an international language can lead to this positive attitude. Pride in their regional identity and their language can be an important factor leading to the maintenance of the language, provided there is a strong community to support and encourage this attitude. If someone has a good sense of value, or rather to a state, then the person is said to have a positive attitude. If on the contrary, is said to have a negative attitude.

According to Anderson (1974:37), language attitudes is the belief system or a relatively long-term cognition, partly on language, the object language, which gives to the person's tendency to react in certain ways a favorite. But keep in mind because attitudes can be positive (if judged good or preferred) and can be negative (if judged to be good or not like), then the nature of the language too.

How can a minority language be maintained:

There are some specific social factors that appear to inhibit the shift in language to a language minority group, at least for a while. Language is regarded as an important symbol of a minority group identity, for example, language maintenance may be even longer. If families from minority groups who live near each other and see each other often, it also helps them maintain their language. Another factor that may contribute to the maintenance of language for those who emigrate are the degree and frequency of contact with ground water. How much love and joy to the homeland, it can also be determined from the attitude of the individual themselves, their language will definitely last longer.

 Language Revival:

Sometimes people become aware that language is in danger, will disappear and they will take steps to revitalize or revive it. Language shift will occur only if, and how far, a group wants to eliminate the socio-cultural identity as an identifiable group themselves for the sake of identity as part of another group. Very often other groups it is a larger group that controls the first place group it as a minority. However, this will not help us in the suspect. Therefore, we must be able to predict when a group would like to (willing) to change the identity that way.
Forecast (prediction) is probably not possible, at least for now. There are several groups that maintain their language and regional identity in the socio-economic conditions are very similar to those affecting other groups to shift the identity and language. In fact, although we can identify group who are in the process of change in the concept itself though, we still face the uncertainty of forecasts, because there is no guarantee that the sense of identity group was not changed.