Call for Papers

Family language policy: Orality and language transmission 

 

PLIDAM, INALCO

Paris, 29-30 November 2021

 

Sociolinguistic studies over the last twenty years (Curdt-Christiansen and Huang, 2020; Spolsky, 2019; Blommaert, 2019; Schwartz and Verschik, 2013) conducted in the field of “family language policy” have demonstrated the central importance of the multiple language dynamics at play within monolingual, bilingual and multilingual families, which are considered to be privileged places for intergenerational transmission and socialisation. If the studies undertaken during recent years in the field of family language policy – in particular, those that focussed upon established immigrant families – have extensively analysed methodological and epistemological aspects, rather less attention, to our knowledge, has been paid specifically to orality. The second edition of the symposium on family language policy invites researchers to reflect upon and to examine orality as defined by Derrida; namely, as communication “in presence”, a natural and immediate presence that gives meaning to “the soul in the logos” (Derrida, 1967). Within family settings, orality should be viewed as a dynamic and direct communication channel between parents and their children, revealing the representation of the self and of others through one or more spoken, sung or even chanted languages.

In certain civilisations where little emphasis is placed upon writing, oral communication remains a powerful tool to convey knowledge, cultural practices, and religious traditions (Cohen and Lesley, 2015). Ameziane (2013) emphasises the paramount importance of orality as a means of literary expression favoured by the Berbers of North Africa. Further, according to Devy and Davis (2021), “language and orality are two major fronts of the existential struggle that the indigenous peoples of the world have to face”. Likewise, as noted by Uzendoski (2012), when contemplating indigenous people for whom oral transmission is of fundamental importance, orality should not be limited to literacy. He reminds us of the existence of rich and complex forms of textuality that are practised by communities in Latin America, in Africa and elsewhere which do not rely upon the written word (Arnold and Yapita, 2006; Finnegan, 2007; Hill and Mignolo, 1994). In addition, by textuality, Uzedonski refers to multimodal practices that are based upon song, music, dance, story-telling, rituals, and other human activities. It is, therefore, a question of discussing ‘oral cultures’ which include myths and rituals in their many forms: popular story-telling and oral literature (see Goody, 2014) whose role in the transmission of knowledge and language within family settings is crucial. Moreover, the studies of Ndjavé (2013) illustrate, that “in large cities, the practice of story-telling is being eclipsed by other types of culture (…), the predominance of writing in the media seems to be clearly established, and, in the absence of orality within family settings, there is a loss of transmission of knowledge around heritage or indigenous culture”.

 As shown by the works of Greimas (1976), particular attention must be paid to the various modalities of orality, described as follows:

·      orality as culture (exotic cultures, original cultures, children’s cultures)

·    orality as an anthropological means of communication (speaking to the dead or to God, talking to animals, to objects, to oneself)

·      orality as a type of speech (nursery rhymes, lullabies, proverbs, songs, etc.)

·      and finally, orality as an everyday practice (spontaneous, regulated, or formalised orality)

 

Some recent works complete the conception of orality by Greimas, understood henceforth as a disciplinary field (See Ursula Baumgardt https://oralites-du-monde.huma-num.fr/) putting the speech in the center of communication of orality.

The ethnographic and sociolinguistic work undertaken by Haque (2019) within a Hmong family in France demonstrates the extent to which the religious practice of Shamanism, characterised by long, chanted recitations, was able to stimulate – amongst the oldest children – interest and attachment to the Hmong language and its community, from which the sibling group seemed to have distanced itself. Similarly, it has been shown that prayers in Sanskrit, in Arabic, in Urdu or even in Punjabi within families of Indian origin in Europe influence the development of verbal repertories in children with some knowledge of these religious practices (Haque 2012; 2020). The techniques for learning sacred texts – like the Quran in Koranic schools, or in yeshivas for Jews – differ little; they involve repeating passages word for word, and memorising the text.

In the same vein, children within sibling groups start to learn their parents’ language as long as oral communication in the home language is maintained. Many studies (Haque 2012; Haque 2019, Rezzoug et al. 2007: 64, Thamin 2007.) have shown that, in established immigrant families, parents speak to the oldest children in their heritage languages, and it is through these oral exchanges, often comprised of various forms of bilingual communication (code-switching, code-changing, borrowing; cf. Lüdi and Py, 2003) and marked by heterogeneity and non-uniformity, that children acquire the phonemic subtleties of their parents’ languages (as well as socially and culturally constructed forms of bodily expression), even if their exclusive exposure to the home language is short-lived, i.e., it comes to an end once a child starts school.

In school settings, orality tends to be put on hold in favour of writing, since, as emphasised by Langlois (2007), institutions and school culture foster a “denial of orality”. As a direct, spontaneous, and credible interaction, orality seems to us to be one of the fundamental pillars in the field of family language policy: several studies (Rozier 2020; Kang, 2015; Haque 2012) have shown that language transmission continues uninterrupted if parents speak in their heritage languages. This finding is corroborated by studies undertaken in Wales with monolingual Welsh-speaking parents (Edwards and Newcombe, 2005), or indeed within immigrant families of Indian origin in Norway and in Finland (Haque, 2012).

Other factors, such as the consistency of the input, the frequency of exposure to the language, the active use of the language and the presence of education in the language (Montrul, 2016), must also be considered. However, it should be noted also that orality is inseparable from certain aspects of body language that very often reflect a people’s cultural practices.

Proposals might focus on the following issues:

How can we improve our understanding of the role of orality in the transmission of heritage languages within family settings?

  • What importance do families of immigrant descent place upon orality, and how can this be leveraged to preserve heritage languages?
  • Why, in some cases, might children fail to assimilate the family language to which they have been exposed?
  • In what ways does the decline in oral linguistic transmission have an impact upon the parental language ? 

We wish to offer a critical examination of the role of orality in light of reflection and debates from a sociolinguistic perspective, but one which is suitable also for the interdisciplinary scientific community in order to take, as far as possible, a holistic approach regarding the role of orality in the process of language transmission of the heritage languages or their loss within the household in the context of migration.

 

Bibliography :

 

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