Translingual practice as a representation of heritage languages and regional identities in multilingual society

Ding, Seong Lin and Goh, Kim Leng (2024) Translingual practice as a representation of heritage languages and regional identities in multilingual society. Applied Linguistics Review, 15 (6). pp. 2453-2474. ISSN 1868-6303, DOI https://doi.org/10.1515/applirev-2022-0195.

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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1515/applirev-2022-0195

Abstract

By drawing attention to the translingual practices in Malaysian Mandarin (MM), this study uses lexical variations as an analytical lens through which the changes in linguistic dimensions can be viewed from a social perspective. We present translingual practice as a communicative, rather than a pedagogical, resource that has broader applied relevance in multilingual society. Two findings are presented. First, we elaborate on how MM is interwoven with translingual words of various heritage languages (HLs)/dialects and major/powerful languages; second, we examine how translingual words varied from or standardised towards Standard Mandarin (SM) over time, by HL and in place/region. We argue that intersection with competing levelling pressures reflects not only a ``standardisation'' process at schools/in society but can be further interpreted as the decline of local translingual practices and local sounds, suggesting the risk of losing rich ethnic and regional heritage and identities. By giving a voice to marginalised HL speakers, this study goes beyond the description of an unstudied/understudied research site or linguistic phenomenon, implying important aspects of power and inequality and a subtle resistance against dominant policies/discourses. This could be salient for advancing future studies and theories to address efforts in advocating critical language awareness and inclusive policies.

Item Type: Article
Funders: UNSPECIFIED
Uncontrolled Keywords: translingual practice; Malaysian Mandarin; lexical variation; heritage language; regional identity
Subjects: P Language and Literature > P Philology. Linguistics
Divisions: Faculty of Languages and Linguistics
Faculty of Business and Economics
Depositing User: Ms. Juhaida Abd Rahim
Date Deposited: 16 Jan 2025 03:51
Last Modified: 16 Jan 2025 03:51
URI: http://eprints.um.edu.my/id/eprint/47671

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