Age-Related Differences in the Code-Switching Behavior of Erzya-Russian Bilinguals

Age-related differences in the code-switching behavior of Erzya-Russian bilinguals

In this paper, I analyze the grammatical aspects of Erzya–Russian code-switching behavior on the basis of oral data. The aim of my research is to investigate how the sociolinguistic background (in this case the age) of the speakers influences the quantity and quality of switches in their speech. I focus on differences in the code-switching behavior of three age groups of Eryza-Russian bilinguals. My analysis is based on a corpus of 15 unstructured and structured interviews, recorded with 5 speakers of each age group. In analyzing code-switching from a grammatical point of view, I use Myers-Scotton’s model (2002) and the categories developed by Lanstyák (2005), which define the role of the two languages participating in code-switching on the basis of the morphosyntactic structure of the CPs. The language that sets the structure of the CP and provides the system morphemes is the matrix (or base) language of the utterance, while the other language is the embedded (or guest) language. Embedded language switches have their grammatical structure formed according to the rules of the Russian language only in embedded language islands. If the code-switched element appears in a phrase which contains elements from both languages then the structure is defined by the base language. Lanstyák differentiates between base-keeping, base-changing and extra-utterance switches, which coincide with the traditional types of intrasentential, intersentential and extrasentential code- switching respectfully. Intrasentential switches are further divided into subtypes (B-, G-, Z-, and M- types), according the language the grammatical marker (mainly affixes in Lanstyák’s system) in a phrase derives from. My preliminary results show that main differences are in the use of base-changing switches and the amount of B- and G-type switches. Besides age-related differences, other sociolinguistic factors (occupation, place of living, gender) also account for this variation. Attitudes towards the interviewer and the speech situation were also crucial.

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