Language Ideologies and the Decision to Learn and Use Catalan in Mallorca: Preliminary Quantitative Results of Immigrated Adults — The Association Specialists
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  3. Language Ideologies and the Decision to Learn and Use Catalan in Mallorca: Preliminary Quantitative Results of Immigrated Adults

Language Ideologies and the Decision to Learn and Use Catalan in Mallorca: Preliminary Quantitative Results of Immigrated Adults (20185)

Catalina Amengual Ripoll 1
  1. School of Applied Language and Intercultural Studies, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland

Spanish and Catalan are the two official languages of the Balearic Islands with unequal societal power relationship. The last Survey on Language Uses in the Balearic Islands (EULIB2014) shows that 81.6% of migrated people use Spanish as their habitual language even if their initial language is not Spanish. Against this backdrop, some language revitalisation policies of the Government of the Balearic Islands have specifically targeted the promotion of Catalan learning and usage among people who migrated to the Balearic Islands. Drawing on previous research about language ideologies (Schieffelin et al., 1998; Woolard, 2016), conceptualised here as positioned and power indexed mental schemes about language, I propose them as a crucial element regarding the decisions of foreign-born adults in learning and using Catalan.

 

Following a critical realist approach (Maxwell, 2012), this paper provides an analysis and interpretation of the preliminary results of a self-response questionnaire distributed among 90 adults born in Morocco, Argentina and Germany who live in Mallorca with some or null knowledge of Catalan. The survey consists of six sections that together with sociodemographic information, include questions regarding the rationale of the decisions to learn and use Catalan in Mallorca, participants’ evaluations regarding Mallorcan sociolinguistic situation and their positioning towards this sociolinguistic situation. The study not only contributes to expanding the knowledge of foreign-born adults in relation to a minoritised language, but also complements previous studies in Catalonia (Massaguer, 2022) and Ireland (Ceallaigh, 2022) by highlighting the relevance of socioeconomic factors with regard to the motivation and ability of accessing, learning and using Catalan in Mallorca.

 

  1. Ceallaigh, B. Ó. (2022). Neoliberalism and language shift: Lessons from the Republic of Ireland Post-2008 (Vol. 115). Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG.
  2. Massaguer, M. (2022). No-catalanoparlants a Catalunya: identitats socials, desigualtats i llengua catalana. [Non-Catalanspeakers in Catalonia: social identities, inequalities and Catalan language]. Doctoral dissertation. Open University of Catalonia.
  3. Maxwell, J. A. (2012). A realist approach for qualitative research. Sage.
  4. [EULIB2014] Melià, J., & Vanrell, M. M. (Coord.) (2014). Enquesta d’usos lingüístics a les Illes Balears 2014. Anàlisi. Govern de les Illes Balears; Generalitat de Catalunya; Universitat de les Illes Balears. [Survey on Language Uses in the Balearic Islands 2014. Analysis].
  5. Schieffelin, B. B., Woolard, K. A., & Kroskrity, P. V. (Eds.). (1998). Language ideologies: Practice and theory (Vol. 16). Oxford University Press.
  6. Woolard, K. A. (2016). Singular and plural: Ideologies of linguistic authority in 21st century Catalonia. Oxford University Press.