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Programme: accepted abstracts

Abstract ID: 1009

Part of Session 130: Language in Multilingual Cities (Other abstracts in this session)

Rethinking language and identity among speakers of South Asian languages in Birmingham

Authors: Bäckman, Linda
Submitted by: Bäckman, Linda (Åbo Akademi University, Finland)

Despite its more than 300 languages spoken on an everyday basis, Britain remains one of the most monolingual countries. The English language is often portrayed as having a uniting effect on the population, and viewed as a key element in British national identity. At the same time, languages other than English – and languages such as Bengali, Punjabi and Urdu in particular – have been characterized in politics and the media as problematic and threatening both for social cohesion and the representation of ‘Britishness’. Through recent language legislation, the government has tried to address questions related to immigration and integration, calling for proficiency in the English language in order for immigrants to obtain citizenship and indefinite leave to remain. The state school curriculum puts little value on community languages, which are instead taught in evening and weekend classes in complementary schools by the communities themselves. Still, these languages continue to be spoken in a variety of contexts, and are actively passed on from generation to generation. At the moment, monolingualism and multilingualism appear to exist in parallel, with seemingly little influence on one another. These topics have been addressed in detail among others by Adrian Blackledge, who has argued that today’s discourse around multilingualism can be seen as a way of constructing and reproducing social difference (Blackledge and Creese 2010, Blackledge 2005, Pavlenko & Blackledge (eds) 2004).

In this paper, I will present findings from an ethnographic study conducted in February 2011 among speakers of South Asian languages in Birmingham on the topic of language and identity. The informants came from a range of ages, occupations and language backgrounds, and included first- and second-generation immigrants to Britain. The results suggest an image of multilingualism that differs considerably from the one conveyed by the media and politics. The interviews revealed strong identification with the English language, as well as widespread agreement and conformity with current monolingual ideals. At the same time, the informants also saw other languages as central to their everyday lives, even if in some cases their proficiency in these languages was self-reportedly rather weak. These languages were often connected to ‘roots’ and heritage and to the notion of ‘home’, but also had instrumental value and were used in a range of everyday situations. Moreover, many informants were prepared to invest considerable effort in acquiring and maintaining them. Most importantly, these different elements of identification did not seem to exclude one another, but, for these speakers at least, appeared to be complementary and flexible.