Transmitting Minority Languages: Complementary Reversing Language Shift Strategies

This book explores the diverse ways in which minority and heritage languages are transmitted, highlighting the importance of alternative modes of transmission when traditional methods fail. It examines the challenges and opportunities presented by these mechanisms and initiatives, emphasizing the participation of the minority community in language and cultural transmission. The book covers a range of language contexts, including Basque, Breton, Galician, Guernesais, Irish, Māori, Russian, Scottish Gaelic, Sorbian, and Spanish.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 376 pages
Publication date: 15 April 2023
Publisher: Springer Nature Switzerland AG

This comprehensive book delves into the intricate dynamics of minority and heritage language transmission across diverse sociolinguistic contexts. As traditional modes of intergenerational transmission face challenges, minority language and diaspora communities resort to alternative strategies to complement and preserve their languages. This volume brings together a diverse range of studies that explore these alternative transmission modes, examining the complex practical, ideological, and personal challenges that arise in various settings.

Beyond examining language use within the home and family, the book emphasizes the crucial role of the minority community in language and cultural transmission. These mechanisms and initiatives, often overlooked or dismissed in academic literature, hold immense importance in ensuring the survival and vitality of minority and heritage languages into the 21st century and beyond.

The book is organized into four sections: intergenerational transmission, transmission in post-traditional families, alternatives to traditional transmission, and transmission in diasporic contexts. The language contexts discussed encompass a wide range of minoritized and diasporic languages, including Basque, Breton, Galician, Guernesais, Irish, Māori, Russian, Scottish Gaelic, Sorbian, and Spanish.

This book appeals to students and scholars of sociolinguistics, language acquisition, heritage language maintenance and revitalization, language policy and planning, and anyone with an interest in the preservation and promotion of linguistic diversity. Its insights and analysis provide valuable contributions to the field and offer valuable perspectives on the challenges and opportunities facing minority and heritage language communities.

Weight: 511g
Dimension: 210 x 148 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9783030879129
Edition number: 1st ed. 2022