This study investigates language use and code switching (CS) in parliamentary sessions of the People’s Council of Representatives in Aceh, Indonesia. Three recordings of plenary sessions of the...Show moreThis study investigates language use and code switching (CS) in parliamentary sessions of the People’s Council of Representatives in Aceh, Indonesia. Three recordings of plenary sessions of the Council were transcribed and used as data sources for the research. The study used transcriptions to obtain frequency and syntactic constructions and interviews with speakers of Acehnese to obtain social functions and perceived attitudes toward CS. It was found that the use of Acehnese relative to Indonesian and other languages in the parliamentary was 26.5% in terms of word count and 3.3% in terms of continuous speech duration and furthermore could be classified as CS wherein Acehnese served either as Matrix and Embedded Language based on Matrix Language Framework (MLF – Myers-Scotton and Jake, 2009). The CS were mostly intersentential in both direction and extrasentential CS were found only from Indonesian to Acehnese. In addition, the CS mainly functioned as a manner of quotation and interlocutor addressing. This study contributed to a better understanding of language and code switching in politically-motivated settings in Aceh or other multilingual regions in Indonesia. Future research in this area could focus on the intellectual and political factors underlying deliberate code switching.Show less
In this research the English proficiency of two groups of students who attended the same secondary school in the Netherlands are compared. The first group of students followed a monolingual pre...Show moreIn this research the English proficiency of two groups of students who attended the same secondary school in the Netherlands are compared. The first group of students followed a monolingual pre-university programme, while the other group attended a bilingual preuniversity stream. After an explanation about the differences between these two programmes and an exploration of earlier research into pronunciation and vocabulary acquisition, this study examined what the differences/similarities were between these two groups in terms of oral proficiency after five years of secondary education. Twenty students, ten of each programme, were asked to complete two tasks. For the first task they were asked to read out a text, and afterwards their pronunciation of pre-selected vowels and consonants was analyzed with the speech analysis program Praat. The second task required the students to first describe a painting by Breughel in their own words and then to describe five specific scenes on the painting. The results showed that there were slight differences between the oral proficiencies of monolingual and bilingual students and that both groups of students had not acquired a set of characteristics that all of them adhered to in terms of vowel and consonant pronunciation. A lot of variation existed between the two groups, even though the agreement was stronger in the bilingual group. When comparing both groups’ lexicon quantitatively, the bilingual group clearly expressed themselves more extensively in their second language than the monolingual group, but qualitatively speaking the bilingual students did not appear to be familiar with more lower-frequency words than the monolingual students.Show less
This thesis examines to what extent the long midvowels [eː], [oː], and [øː] are diphthongised in L1 Dutch and whether phonetic transfer of these diphthongisation patterns from L1 Dutch to L2 German...Show moreThis thesis examines to what extent the long midvowels [eː], [oː], and [øː] are diphthongised in L1 Dutch and whether phonetic transfer of these diphthongisation patterns from L1 Dutch to L2 German occurs. In order to collect data to answer the research questions, two recorded scripts, one in L1 Dutch and one in L2 German, from 29 participants between 18 and 25 years old are analysed. The script involves 15 words, five per phoneme, in both languages. These phonemes are measured for their vowel duration and the corresponding formant values for F1 and F2 at 25% and 75% of the vowel duration. In doing so, figures are constructed signifying a line of diphthongisation for each phoneme. Additionally, the data are analysed per word and per participant, and are compared to the average results of all participants together. The results suggest that the phonemes [eː], [oː], and [øː] are diphthongised in L1 Dutch and that phonetic transfer occurs as predicted by Flege’s (1988, 1990, 1991, 2007) Speech Learning Model.Show less
Regional Dialect Levelling is a common development in a number of languages whereby supra-local forms are diffused over regionally marked forms (Auer, 1998; Kerswill, 2002; 2003; Kerswill &...Show moreRegional Dialect Levelling is a common development in a number of languages whereby supra-local forms are diffused over regionally marked forms (Auer, 1998; Kerswill, 2002; 2003; Kerswill & Williams, 2002). Basque sociolinguists (Unamuno & Aurrekoetxea, 2013; Zuazo, 1998) have also observed levelling patterns in the language, arguably under the influence of the standard. According to Aurrekoetxea (2006, p. 147), one of the features that seems to be undergoing change towards supra-localisation is the cross-dialectally widespread Low Vowel Assimilation (LVA); however, this phenomenon has received little sociolinguistic attention. Therefore, this study aims to gauge the depth of variation of LVA in the Western Basque town of Lezama in order to determine whether claims of levelling can be substantiated. Through an apparent-time study of two generations of Lezamans, the results reported here do not fully support a levelling interpretation of the feature. Gender-specific patterns of use emerge that corroborate observations that “women deviate less than men from linguistic norms when the deviations are overtly proscribed, but more than men when the deviations are not proscribed” (Labov, 2001, p. 367). Furthermore, consistent with recent studies (Elordieta & Romera, in press; Urtzelai Vicente, 2018), attitudes towards the ingroup are established as a determinant of the language trends in Lezama.Show less
This Perceptual Dialectology study of three dialects spoken in the South of Noord-Brabant in the Netherlands (Roosendaals, Oudenbosch, and Ruchpens) explored to what degree people from these towns...Show moreThis Perceptual Dialectology study of three dialects spoken in the South of Noord-Brabant in the Netherlands (Roosendaals, Oudenbosch, and Ruchpens) explored to what degree people from these towns are aware of the dialect features that make up their dialect, what these dialect features are and if these people are aware of the differences and similarities between their own dialect and that of the other two towns. The participants were thirty dialect speakers who are born, raised and still residential in one of the three studied towns. Interviews were held with these participants in which they were asked about their views on and knowledge about their own dialect and that of the two other towns. From these interviews it has become clear that, although Roosendaals, Oudenbosch and Rucphens have similarities, they do differ from each other on a lexical and a phonetic level. Most importantly, the results suggest that one’s level of sociophonetic awareness of their dialect relates to what degree they are capable of speaking Standard Dutch.Show less
The present study explored the attitudes of secondary school teachers and non-teachers towards different degrees of Dutch-accented English and whether there was a difference in attitudes between...Show moreThe present study explored the attitudes of secondary school teachers and non-teachers towards different degrees of Dutch-accented English and whether there was a difference in attitudes between these groups. In addition to this, it investigated whether there were certain pronunciation features that would lead to a lower grade. This was tested through an online survey consisting of two parts, namely a listening task and an open-ended question. The listening task asked the participants to grade a total of twelve recordings on a scale from 1 to 10 and to motivate their answer as to why they gave a certain grade. The recordings consisted of two native speakers and ten speakers with different degrees of Dutch accentedness. The degree of accentedness was determined by three people who had listened to the recordings beforehand and these recordings were then categorized into three different groups based on the degree of accentedness. These three groups consisted of (1) native speakers/light Dutch-accented English, (2) medium-Dutch accented English, and (3) heavy Dutch-accented English. The survey ended with an open-ended question which asked the participants wat they thought was the most important aspect to be taught when teaching a foreign language. The results showed that teachers graded most of the recordings (77.8%) higher than the non-teachers, though there was only a small difference. Furthermore, the results showed that both the teachers’ and non-teachers’ grades were lower for the medium- and heavy-accented Dutch Englishes than they were for the native speakers/lightly-accented Dutch Englishes. When asked why a certain grade was given, however, pronunciation only came up 25.8% of the time in the teachers’ answers and only 16.4% of the time in the non-teachers’ answers. A similar pattern was found in the open-ended question, where pronunciation as an important aspect of language learning came up 21.4% of the time in the teachers’ answers and 26.8% in the non-teachers’ answers.Show less
Computer-Mediated-Communication is bereft of any intonation markers usually found in face-to-face conversations. As a result, how a sender meant to send out a message versus how their addressee...Show moreComputer-Mediated-Communication is bereft of any intonation markers usually found in face-to-face conversations. As a result, how a sender meant to send out a message versus how their addressee reads it sometimes differ. This can lead to uncooperative and confusing online communication. This paper set out to examine if (and what) effects different punctuation types have on the interpretation of meaning in WhatsApp communication, and whether one’s age or native language influences the perception of these markers. The punctuation types were the exclamation mark, ellipsis, periods, and no punctuation. Unlike previous studies conducted on this topic which focussed only on students, this study was conducted among 123 respondents from a wide variety of ages and countries. Through an online survey, participants were asked for their opinions and thoughts to different types of punctuation used in recurring but otherwise identical messages. Results indicated that different punctuation types elicit strong and differing views, based on what punctuation type is used, and that these types influence their feelings towards the message as well as to the personal state of their interlocutor. The most significant findings were found for ellipsis points and messages lacking any punctuation: ellipses can lead to very negative interpretations in respondents, and a lack of punctuation can lead to respondents feeling sidelined. Interpretations of certain punctuation types are influenced by a reader’s age and native language. Using Yus’ theory of a phatic internet and cyber literacy, this paper posits that the reason respondents assign these meanings to different types of punctuation is to avoid misunderstandings, form identities, and stay on good terms with people in a world in which most daily conversation happens online.Show less
This apparent-time study examines generational phonetic change in the Finland-Swedish community, occurring as a result of increased contact with the Finnish majority language. Finland-Swedish is a...Show moreThis apparent-time study examines generational phonetic change in the Finland-Swedish community, occurring as a result of increased contact with the Finnish majority language. Finland-Swedish is a variety of Swedish that is spoken as a first language by approximately 300,000 people in Finland, while also retaining a status as an official national language alongside Finnish (Hult & Pietikäinen 2014: 4). In the past Finnish and Swedish were largely spoken in different regions and culturally distinct communities. However, lately the Finnish society has become more linguistically mixed, causing the Finnish language to have a larger impact on the lives and language of Finland-Swedish speakers. Using acoustic analysis of formants, the study explores whether Finland-Swedish vowel production in young highly proficient bilingual speakers is undergoing change due to influence from Finnish. The project focuses on the Swedish open-mid front rounded vowel [œ], a more open allophone of [ø] that only occurs before /r/ (Riad 2014: 38; Leinonen 2011: 78). Sample tokens for [ø] and [œ] in different phonological contexts were collected through recordings of photo-elicited interviews from several consecutive generations of bilingual Finland-Swedish speakers. Measuring the first and second formants of the samples, the study examines the phonological differences between the older and younger generations of speakers. The measurements showed that while older-generation late bilingual speakers produced distinct formant values for both allophones, younger native and early bilingual speakers demonstrated more variation in their abilities to differentiate between the allophones in production. Additionally, a survey investigating the perception of [œ] and [ø] in Finland-Swedish suggested that native bilingual Finnish and Finland-Swedish participants were less accurate in matching allophones to target words than monolingual Finland-Swedish participants. The results of both the acoustic analysis and the survey suggest that input from Finnish may affect the perception and production of allophones [œ] and [ø] in the spoken Swedish of native and early bilingual Finland-Swedish speakers.Show less
This paper investigated discourse on the use of the English language in Dutch pop music. An important term in this research was societal treatment. Societal treatment studies deal with the explicit...Show moreThis paper investigated discourse on the use of the English language in Dutch pop music. An important term in this research was societal treatment. Societal treatment studies deal with the explicit manifestations of beliefs, feelings and behavioural intents present in a wide range of communications (Santello 2015). The questions which were researched in this thesis were: What are the language attitudes of the people of the Netherlands towards Dutch and towards English in pop music? Do they have a language preference? Three methods were used to look at the societal treatment of English and Dutch in pop music: content analysis, indirect measurement, and direct measurement (Van Meurs 2010). In the content analysis, Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) was gathered about the use of Dutch and English in pop music from different forums. All this data was categorized into twenty-three different categories. The indirect measurement consists of a questionnaire which focused on the four tendencies which were found in the content analysis. These four tendencies were the connection to the song, the understanding of the song, the thoughts on the lyrics, and the enjoyment of the song. The goal of this questionnaire was to define if there were differences in the treatment of Dutch and English in these tendencies by letting people evaluate different video clips. In all the video clips Dutch artists were present but half of the video clips were sung in Dutch and the other half was sung in English. The direct measurement was the creation of two discussions online which focused on upcoming new Dutch music genres and the language attitudes of the Dutch towards the Dutch language. Overall, the results show that most of the Dutch have a negative language attitude towards their first language and have a language preference for English in pop music.Show less
This dissertation discusses French language policy from an ‘ecology of language’ perspective. By adopting a broad definition of language policy and applying Spolsky’s (2004, 2005) forces of...Show moreThis dissertation discusses French language policy from an ‘ecology of language’ perspective. By adopting a broad definition of language policy and applying Spolsky’s (2004, 2005) forces of language policy, consisting of (1) sociolinguistic situation, (2) national identity, (3) globalisation and the spread of English, and (4) interest in linguistic pluralism, to the case of France, it is argued that instead of approaching this case of language policy as a highly successful example of French standardisation, it is more attentive to the linguistic diversity of France to regard it as a case of languages loss, or even a case of systematic ‘linguicide’.Show less
In a threefold study linking sociolinguistics to the field of second language acquisition, I investigated what values students indexed through their L2 English accent. I related this to their...Show moreIn a threefold study linking sociolinguistics to the field of second language acquisition, I investigated what values students indexed through their L2 English accent. I related this to their identity. Indexicality is a framework that attatches linguistic variables to social meanings (e.g. Eckert, 2008, Trousdale, 2010, p. 48). The social meanings attached to speech are valued unequally across social groups, and therefore, some language is more likely to be heard and respected than others in a construct termed the ‘linguistic marketplace’ by Bourdieu and Boltanski (Eckert, 2000, p. 13). This study involved questionnaires (n=99), interviews (n=4), and investigations into students’ sound files (n=18). The majority of the students (71%) aspired to a British accent, which could be related to findings in the questionnaire: namely that students rated sounding native and intelligent highly. When interviewed, students stated that a British accent, and specifically Received Pronunciation (RP), sounded more intelligent, and had more prestige attached to it. Investigation by Edwards (2016) reveals that the British accent is still considered the default model in the Netherlands. Thus it appears they have appropriated this norm, and thereby maximise the value of their speech on the linguistic marketplace. Moreover, students likely wish to signal their intelligence and expertise by emulating the British ideal. In general, students sounded predominantly British in their sound files (52% on average), though they had 40% Dutch influence on average, and also traces of American influences, like t-flapping and rhoticity. Besides L1 interference this showed students also incorporated aspects of speech which likely had covert prestige for them. In general, students’ accent preferences signal their academic, professional identity, but do not seem to index all aspects of their identity. When applied to the wider L2 acquisition field, this study illustrates identity expression may not be a priority of learners; instead, they may wish to appropriate a most standard and accepted accent.Show less
This paper sets out to investigate Lithuanians’ attitudes towards foreign languages in the light of political, cultural, and historical situation that Lithuania witnessed during the turn from the...Show moreThis paper sets out to investigate Lithuanians’ attitudes towards foreign languages in the light of political, cultural, and historical situation that Lithuania witnessed during the turn from the 20th to the 21st century. The aim of this paper is twofold: 1) to determine what type of identities Lithuanians ascribe to speakers with foreign accents and 2) to establish the motivations behind choosing Lithuanian versus foreign languages in daily life. The research that was carried out in Lithuania consisted of two parts. The first part of the research used attitudinal study and the second part used a questionnaire distributed around Lithuania. These tools were used to assess Lithuanian opinions of six speakers with various accents, and to analyse the rationale for choosing either the mother tongue or a foreign language in different situations. The results showed that the attitudes towards foreign speakers of Lithuanian differ between the capital city and the smaller town chosen for this study, and that the main reason for choosing Lithuanian over foreign languages in daily settings is more often based on the emphasis of national identity. The findings also suggest that while for the respondents in the smaller town chosen for this study, a standard Lithuanian speaker was an ultimate example of a successful person, the respondents in the capital city saw an American speaker of Lithuanian as the most prosperous individual.Show less
This thesis examines spoken academic L2 English. It looks at the spoken language of Dutch university lecturers in their L2 English spoken lectures, against the background of the...Show moreThis thesis examines spoken academic L2 English. It looks at the spoken language of Dutch university lecturers in their L2 English spoken lectures, against the background of the internationalisation of higher education, high ambitions of Dutch universities, and the emergence of the English language as the common academic spoken language, the quality of which receives criticism and is under-researched. The study focuses on the differences in linguistic richness between the L1 Dutch spoken language and the L2 English spoken language of nine Dutch university lecturers, lecturing in the Humanities and in the Social Sciences. Three methods are applied: a corpus analysis focused on the linguistic variety of the L2 English lecture language compared to the linguistic variety of the L1 Dutch lecture language, interviews with the participating lecturers aimed at complementing the corpus analysis data, and an expert analysis focused on the non-L1 English features of the L2 English spoken lecture language. Both quantitative and qualitative data are presented. Special attention is paid to the adjectives and the verbs used, i.e., their variety, frequency of usage, sophistication, and correct or incorrect usage specifically in the L2 English lecture language. The study shows the linguistic complexities of studying L2 English academic lecture language. In the epilogue it is argued that L2 English academic lecture language deserves more attention.Show less
One of the common misconceptions when it comes to teaching a second language to gifted students is that teachers expect gifted students to be better at learning a second language than non-gifted...Show moreOne of the common misconceptions when it comes to teaching a second language to gifted students is that teachers expect gifted students to be better at learning a second language than non-gifted students. Expectations are usually high, and when a student does not live up to these expectations, it causes frustration; not just for the student, but also for the teacher and the parents. This misconception stems from the fact that most gifted students show an extensive knowledge of their L1 (first language) at an early age. In theory, a gifted child should therefore be faster at picking up an L2 (second language) than non-gifted students: Hayes et al (1998, p. 179) states: “there is a strong connection between language ability and learning ability.” So hypothetically, with their advanced thinking skills, their more extensive verbal skills, and with their aptitude for learning, these gifted students should have little trouble with learning a second language. In practice, however, this does not always seem to be the case; gifted students do not automatically apply their abilities in learning second languages. For example, classroom practice shows that gifted students generally have greater difficulties with learning and memorizing vocabulary than non-gifted students. The study described in this thesis has multiple aims. First and foremost it aims to examine if there is a difference in the ways gifted and non-gifted students acquire English as a second language. Secondly it explores how language pedagogy as well as taking learning styles into account could benefit gifted students. This is in turn compared to the current classroom practice at the Rijswijks Lyceum. It should finally lead to the causes of these differences or similarities along with the consequences for gifted students.Show less
The processes involved in second language phonology have been long researched, yet the research is not always easy to apply in real-life teaching situations. Considering the dynamics of learning a...Show moreThe processes involved in second language phonology have been long researched, yet the research is not always easy to apply in real-life teaching situations. Considering the dynamics of learning a second language and respecting the innate processes that are involved in phonology acquisition the method of this thesis steps away from a traditional lengthy formal instruction: participants were given a very short instruction on their pronunciation. The differences before and after instruction were measured both phonetically (in F1 and F2 frequencies) and audibly (survey). One participant is successful at changing his output both phonetically and audibly, while the others are less successful. Their results, however, inform us about learners’ aptitude, the interconnectedness between vowel output and learner proficiency, transfer processes, and draws comparisons with dynamic systems theory and the effect that psychological tension may have on language output.Show less
The current report is an examination of language and identity in the context of Brussels. Brussels is sociolinguistically interesting as an official bilingual city with great diversity in languages...Show moreThe current report is an examination of language and identity in the context of Brussels. Brussels is sociolinguistically interesting as an official bilingual city with great diversity in languages and cultures. Theoretical notions of language attitude, accommodation and social identity are linked in the multilingual context of Brussels. To investigate a possible relation between language and identity, the language choice preferences of speakers of Dutch are mapped, as well as identifications they make on different levels. The link between language choice and identification is examined by investigating three small groups of speakers of Dutch in Brussels. An attitudinal online survey, expert interviews and a rapid and anonymous survey offer data that provide insights in the language, and identifications the speakers make. Qualitative analyses imply that speakers of Dutch in Brussels show a tendency to be flexible towards language switch and being addressed in another language. The Dutch language tends not to be a distinctive feature to the speakers’ identity, but multilingualism and positive traits attributed to multilingualism are part of the identity of the speakers of Dutch in Brussels.Show less
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