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12 pages, 2159 KiB

Open AccessArticle

An Approach to Studying the Sociolinguistic Integration of Romanian Immigrants Residing in the Community of Madrid

by Yara Pérez Cantador

Languages 2020, 5(1), 3; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages5010003 - 2 Jan 2020

Viewed by 3097

Grounded in different theoretical approaches of sociolinguistics, this study aims to examine the sociolinguistic integration process of the Romanian immigrant population that resides in Madrid. Semi-guided interviews are carried out with Romanian immigrants in order to obtain qualitative information regarding different aspects of [...] Read more.

Grounded in different theoretical approaches of sociolinguistics, this study aims to examine the sociolinguistic integration process of the Romanian immigrant population that resides in Madrid. Semi-guided interviews are carried out with Romanian immigrants in order to obtain qualitative information regarding different aspects of the sociolinguistic integration of the immigrant population; additionally, questionnaires are administered to the same informants, with the objective of obtaining quantitative information on attitudes. Furthermore, questionnaires on attitudes were administered to 1534 informants of Spanish origin who reside in Madrid to analyze their attitudes with regard to the Romanian immigrant population living in Madrid. The analysis performed thus far indicates that the Romanian informants seem to have a good attitude toward the speech of Madrid and, in general, seem highly predisposed to integrating into their host community. The most significant conclusions drawn from the preliminary phase of analysis presented here are that although the Romanian informants perceive their integration positively, the host community does not perceive it in the same way. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to the Sociolinguistic Integration of Migration)

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21 pages, 1375 KiB

Open AccessArticle

“Esa no soy Yo”: Self-Image and Name Change from the Perspective of Female Immigrants

by María Cecilia Ainciburu and Irene Buttazzi

Languages 2019, 4(4), 83; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4040083 - 31 Oct 2019

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4911

Abstract

The given name by which we call ourselves in our native language contains a series of phonetic, social, and cultural elements that determine its value in any given context. When people migrate, these elements change and, consequently, so does the individual’s self-perception. This [...] Read more.

The given name by which we call ourselves in our native language contains a series of phonetic, social, and cultural elements that determine its value in any given context. When people migrate, these elements change and, consequently, so does the individual’s self-perception. This research consists of an analysis of focused interviews with Peruvian and Chinese migrants carried out in Spanish and Italian. The most common phenomenon identified in the interviews was the use of names that do not correspond to birth names, either because they are not pronounced correctly or because—as in the case of most of the Chinese informants—the name was changed to adapt to Western standards. We attempt to categorize the nonconformity of the version of the name used by the host population and the emotional reactions that this provokes. The results demonstrate that there is a correlation between the desire to integrate into the host country and positive reactions to the image given to them by the foreign name. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to the Sociolinguistic Integration of Migration)

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18 pages, 2166 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Translingual Practices and Reconstruction of Identities in Maghrebi Students in Galicia

by Adil Moustaoui Srhir, Gabriela Prego Vázquez and Luz Zas Varela

Languages 2019, 4(3), 63; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4030063 - 15 Aug 2019

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3887

Abstract

In this article, we explore the emergence of a new translingual repertoire among young adolescents of Moroccan and Algerian origin in Galicia and the role it plays in reconstructing the transnational identity of young people within the Maghrebi diaspora. The data include a [...] Read more.

In this article, we explore the emergence of a new translingual repertoire among young adolescents of Moroccan and Algerian origin in Galicia and the role it plays in reconstructing the transnational identity of young people within the Maghrebi diaspora. The data include a multimodal corpus with spoken and written interactions, collected as part of a classroom action research project, in which each student reconstructed their family and school language repertoire, as well as a WhatsApp group chat set up with the same young people. The results of our analysis reveal how the intercrossing of parental and adolescent agency plays a crucial role in dealing with the new multilingual translingual repertoire. The findings also indicate how this repertoire is deeply rooted in Moroccan Arabic as the family language and the incorporation of local languages, namely Spanish and Galician, and relies heavily on translingual multimodal practices, associated with transnational trajectories and the local schooling process of these young people. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to the Sociolinguistic Integration of Migration)

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17 pages, 1124 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Identity Construction of Migrants on Facebook

by Giovanna Mapelli

Languages 2019, 4(3), 52; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4030052 - 4 Jul 2019

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 5473

Abstract

Social network sites, such as Facebook, allow access to a series of resources or discursive forms that constitute a multimodal and dialogical system that transcends barriers of time and space, favouring transnational communication, something particularly important to migrants. In addition, the comments and [...] Read more.

Social network sites, such as Facebook, allow access to a series of resources or discursive forms that constitute a multimodal and dialogical system that transcends barriers of time and space, favouring transnational communication, something particularly important to migrants. In addition, the comments and dialogues that take place in such socialisation spaces allow us to develop a greater knowledge of the identity and positioning of the user with respect to others. With this work we analyse, from a qualitative point of view, 150 posts each containing at least five comments, published between 2017 and 2019, in each of five Facebook groups of Latin American migrants living in Italy: Uruguayans, Argentinians, Colombians, Peruvians and Venezuelans. We determine their role in the migratory process and how the digital environment affects the relationships between migrants. In addition, we investigate how the identities of migrants are negotiated and (re)defined in discursive practice. Results shows that social network sites are “transnational social spaces”, in which a community is based on bonds of solidarity that derive from a shared conception of collective identity, and they forge deterritorialised “community of feeling”. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to the Sociolinguistic Integration of Migration)

18 pages, 1278 KiB

Open AccessArticle

“My Child Is a Perfect Bilingual”: Cognition, Emotions, and Affectivity in Heritage Language Transmission

by Olga Ivanova

Languages 2019, 4(2), 44; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4020044 - 20 Jun 2019

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3770

Abstract

One of the key questions of studies on heritage language (HL) transmission is which factors most likely foster the intergenerational transmission of HL and more saliently favor its acquisition in second-generation speakers. The present study explores the effect of the cognitive and affective [...] Read more.

One of the key questions of studies on heritage language (HL) transmission is which factors most likely foster the intergenerational transmission of HL and more saliently favor its acquisition in second-generation speakers. The present study explores the effect of the cognitive and affective disposition of first-generation speakers on the subjective HL proficiency level in the second generation of Russian-speaking immigrants in the town of Salamanca, central Spain. Based on a scalar questionnaire which enquires into the language practices, language attitudes and language motivations of the first-generation speakers, the study analyzes the effect of self-categorization, attitudes towards HL utility, and strategies of HL intergenerational transmission in ten mixed families. The main results of the study show that positive HL affectivity is key to assuring proficient HL acquisition in second-generation speakers, while negative HL affectivity systematically drives unbalanced Spanish–Russian bilingualism in children. The final results are consistent with those of other recent studies on affectivity in HL and suggest the importance of positive attitudes towards HL in its transmission. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to the Sociolinguistic Integration of Migration)

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24 pages, 1024 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Revisiting the Use of the Proximity Lexicon in the Classroom for Immigrant Populations at Risk of Social Exclusion: Does It Really Help?

by Antonio-Manuel Ávila-Muñoz

Languages 2019, 4(2), 43; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4020043 - 19 Jun 2019

Viewed by 2756

Abstract

This paper shows the convenience of using linguistic resources in foreign language teaching based on the proximity lexicon (dialectal and local) in order to facilitate the integration of socially vulnerable immigrant groups. The social barriers facing them intensify because of lack of knowledge [...] Read more.

This paper shows the convenience of using linguistic resources in foreign language teaching based on the proximity lexicon (dialectal and local) in order to facilitate the integration of socially vulnerable immigrant groups. The social barriers facing them intensify because of lack of knowledge of the linguistic varieties of the host countries and their functions. This study is a continuation of another one published in 2019 in which we presented a theoretical model of language teaching based on the gradual introduction of specific lexical material with the aim of facilitating sociocultural adaptation. The proximity lexicon associated to communal belonging meanings was considered a powerful social inclusion tool. We worked with two student samples to confirm the efficacy of the model. In a group, the dialectal strategy was employed in a programmed and conscious manner, whereas in the other one, the control group, the model was not followed. The results are based on the answers to questions in a wellbeing questionnaire designed ad hoc to evaluate the efficacy of the proposal. The group to which the proposed system was applied showed a greater degree of social wellbeing, satisfaction and adaptation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to the Sociolinguistic Integration of Migration)

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12 pages, 1158 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Sociolinguistic Integration of Immigrant Populations: Reflections on Its Study

by María Sancho Pascual

Languages 2019, 4(2), 35; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4020035 - 7 Jun 2019

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 5377

Abstract

Taking as its main point of departure the research carried out in the Madrid context by the Hispalin-UAH team of the IN.MIGRA2-CM project, the goal of this article is to reflect on the role of the linguistic dimension within the process of the [...] Read more.

Taking as its main point of departure the research carried out in the Madrid context by the Hispalin-UAH team of the IN.MIGRA2-CM project, the goal of this article is to reflect on the role of the linguistic dimension within the process of the social integration of migrant populations. It trains its sights on the need to work from a cognitive angle which may help to show how those involved in the process construct and re-define the new context, and on the need to consider the host population—as the prime conditioner of the process—and to identify and analyse in depth the components of identity that are modified as a result of cultural contact. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to the Sociolinguistic Integration of Migration)

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13 pages, 366 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Use of the Present Perfect (pretérito perfecto compuesto) with Aoristic Value in the Speech of Latin American Students

by Rosana Ariolfo

Languages 2019, 4(2), 32; https://doi.org/10.3390/languages4020032 - 3 Jun 2019

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3592

Abstract

This article focuses on the use of the present perfect (he cantado) with aoristic value, or rather, on pre-hodiernal contexts in which, as a rule, the simple form (canté) should appear. This verbal form is examined on the basis [...] Read more.

This article focuses on the use of the present perfect (he cantado) with aoristic value, or rather, on pre-hodiernal contexts in which, as a rule, the simple form (canté) should appear. This verbal form is examined on the basis of a corpus of semi-guided interviews provided to Latin American students living in Genoa and taking into account its characteristics, the syntactic environment in which it is used, combinations with other verb forms, adverbial complements, temporal expressions, deixis and the communicative context in which it is inserted. This phenomenon has already been analyzed in several recent studies carried out by Azpiazu, Kempas, Montoro del Arco, Bermejo Calleja and Soto, both in European and American contexts, and has led to the conclusion that it could be related to discursive strategies of the speaker as well as to a convergence towards the local language (i.e., Italian). Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Theoretical and Methodological Approaches to the Sociolinguistic Integration of Migration)

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