John Benjamins Publishing Company
Effects of first language attrition on heritage language input and ultimate attainment
Abstract
This study investigates the spoken performance of UK based adult heritage speakers (HSs) and first generation immigrants (LBs) of Turkish descent regarding the distribution of evidentiality encoded in the past tense system of Turkish. Additionally, we trace the effect of input quality and quantity on the development of the heritage language (HL). The analyses suggest that the ability to differentiate between different evidential structures is unstable in HL grammars. There are no signs of qualitatively modified input available to the HSs through the LBs. This performance is instead linked to the amount of input, which has been found to be insufficient to compensate for the detrimental effects of early bilingualism on the HL. Findings are discussed within the premises of available approaches to heritage language bilingualism.
Abstract
This study investigates the spoken performance of UK based adult heritage speakers (HSs) and first generation immigrants (LBs) of Turkish descent regarding the distribution of evidentiality encoded in the past tense system of Turkish. Additionally, we trace the effect of input quality and quantity on the development of the heritage language (HL). The analyses suggest that the ability to differentiate between different evidential structures is unstable in HL grammars. There are no signs of qualitatively modified input available to the HSs through the LBs. This performance is instead linked to the amount of input, which has been found to be insufficient to compensate for the detrimental effects of early bilingualism on the HL. Findings are discussed within the premises of available approaches to heritage language bilingualism.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Two sides of one coin? 1
- Definiteness in Wenzhounese Chinese in the Netherlands and in China 15
- Effects of first language attrition on heritage language input and ultimate attainment 33
- Not in the mood 71
- Word order variation in heritage languages 99
- Language contact 125
- How do parental input and socio-economic status account for differences within and between the cohorts? 151
- Heritage and non-heritage bilinguals 171
- High sensitivity to conceptual cues in Turkish heritage speakers with dominant German L2 197
- The Frequency Code and gendered attrition and acquisition in the German-English heritage language community in Vancouver, Canada 229
- Does extensive L2 exposure trigger L1 attrition of perfective and durative aspect marking in Mandarin Chinese? 255
- Author Index 271
- Language Index 273
- Subject Index 275
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Two sides of one coin? 1
- Definiteness in Wenzhounese Chinese in the Netherlands and in China 15
- Effects of first language attrition on heritage language input and ultimate attainment 33
- Not in the mood 71
- Word order variation in heritage languages 99
- Language contact 125
- How do parental input and socio-economic status account for differences within and between the cohorts? 151
- Heritage and non-heritage bilinguals 171
- High sensitivity to conceptual cues in Turkish heritage speakers with dominant German L2 197
- The Frequency Code and gendered attrition and acquisition in the German-English heritage language community in Vancouver, Canada 229
- Does extensive L2 exposure trigger L1 attrition of perfective and durative aspect marking in Mandarin Chinese? 255
- Author Index 271
- Language Index 273
- Subject Index 275
