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Language Usage and Identity of Somali Males in America Ali Hassan St St. Cloud State University theRepository at St. Cloud State Culminating Projects in English Department of English 12-2017 "Where Did You Leave the Somali Language?" Language Usage and Identity of Somali Males in America Ali Hassan St. Cloud State University Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.stcloudstate.edu/engl_etds Recommended Citation Hassan, Ali, ""Where Did You Leave the Somali Language?" Language Usage and Identity of Somali Males in America" (2017). Culminating Projects in English. 106. https://repository.stcloudstate.edu/engl_etds/106 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of English at theRepository at St. Cloud State. It has been accepted for inclusion in Culminating Projects in English by an authorized administrator of theRepository at St. Cloud State. For more information, please contact [email protected]. “Where did you leave the Somali Language?” Language usage and identity of Somali Males in America by Ali Hassan A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of St. Cloud State University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in English: Teaching English as a Second Language December, 2017 Thesis Committee: Michael Schwartz, Chairperson Choonkyong Kim Rami Amiri 2 Abstract Research in second language teaching and learning has many aspects to focus on, but this paper will focus on the sociolinguistic issues related to language usage and identity. Language usage is the lens that is used to understand the identity of Somali males in America. Language usage in social contexts gives us the opportunity to learn the multiple identities of Somali males in America. Being multilingual and having multiple identities in America is a constant battle for Somali males in America. They are constantly negotiating identity on a day to day basis. The findings are based on three Somali males in America in their early ‘20s who are all enrolled in a 4-year institution in the Midwest. This study sheds light on the identity of Somali males in America through their language usage. This study finds that language learning is more than a simple linguistic system and signs, but it engages the identity of the learned. Language is the number one factor that makes someone Somali according to these participants. Somali males in America are caught between their American community and Somali community. They are not accepted fully in either community. They are too foreign for many Americans, and too American for their Somali community. The findings of this study hope to educate conscious citizens, policy makers, and educators in an effort to reduce, if not eliminate, stereotyping of Somali males in America. Through the language they use in their social settings, we have seen the many different identities they employ and negotiate in their daily lives. Somali males in America have a foot in each of their communities and are constantly figuring who they are. 3 Acknowledgments In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful I would first like to express thanks to Allah (God) the mighty and majestic, for giving me the strength to complete this thesis. As to what proceeds. I like to acknowledge those individuals who have made the completion of this thesis. First, I would like to thank my thesis advisor and mentor, Dr. Michael Schwartz who has persistently contributed to this thesis and provided me with meaningful advice and suggestions as well as his expertise in writing an effective qualitative study. I thank him for his creative thinking, encouragement, and his generosity with his time and always providing tremendous support when I needed it the most. He believed in me when I had doubts. I would also like to express thanks to Dr. Kim for providing me with her expertise in this field and providing me with valuable resources on this topic and research. Last but not least I like to thank Dr. Robinson for giving me the opportunity to pursue my dream. My greatest thanks goes to the study of the participants who have shared their beautiful stories with me. This thesis would not have been possible without your stories and your courage to share your identity struggles. I want to thank them for granting me their time, patience and, the opportunity to share their lives with me. These three young men showed courage beyond their age and I hope the best for their future endeavors. Lastly, I would like to thank to my family who have provided me with encouragement, love, and remarkable support. This thesis would not have been possible without the presence and support of my beloved mother. Special thanks goes to my mother who always believes that I can achieve anything. I would also like to thank my sisters for always asking me about my project’s progress. And to my friend and colleagues who I cannot mention all of their 4 names but provided me with tremendous resources and encouragement. I leave you all the statement of our beloved messenger Muhamed peace be upon him “whoever doesn’t thank the people doesn’t thank Allah”. Therefore it is incumbent upon me to thank all of you. Again thanks to all of you. 5 Table of Contents Page List of Tables ...................................................................................................................... 7 Chapter I. Introduction ............................................................................................................ 8 II. Literature Review ................................................................................................... 11 Identity .............................................................................................................. 11 Language .......................................................................................................... 17 Research Questions .......................................................................................... 37 III. Methodology ........................................................................................................... 38 Participants ....................................................................................................... 39 Materials ........................................................................................................... 40 Procedures ........................................................................................................ 43 IV. Results .................................................................................................................... 45 Language Log: Participant #1 .......................................................................... 45 Language Log: Participant #2 .......................................................................... 46 Language Log: Participant #3 .......................................................................... 47 Analysis ............................................................................................................ 52 Motivation to Learn Somali and English in America ....................................... 75 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 83 Limitations ........................................................................................................ 87 References .......................................................................................................................... 88 6 Chapter Page Appendices A. Survey ..................................................................................................................... 92 B. Language Log ......................................................................................................... 98 C. Structure Interviews ................................................................................................ 99 D. Language Used for Topics, Locations, and Generations ........................................ 100 E. English, Somali, and Word that are Translatable ................................................... 103 F. IRB Approval ......................................................................................................... 104 7 List of Tables Table Page 1.1 Demographic ............................................................................................................. 40 1.2 Self-reported Language Proficiency .......................................................................... 40 2.1 Language Log: Participant #1 ................................................................................... 45 2.2 Language Log: Participant #2 ................................................................................... 46 2.3 Language Log: Participant #3 ................................................................................... 47 8 Chapter I: Introduction A civil war broke out in Somali in the early 1990s. This full-scale civil war led to the Somali government being overthrown in 1991 by tribal militias. After the civil war, many Somalis fled the country to neighboring countries and any other country they had access to. America accepted many Somali refugees and relocated them in many parts of the country. According to the United States Census of 2010, there are 76, 205 Somali’s living in America. The majority of them live in the following states: Atlanta, GA; Columbus, OH; Seattle, WA; and Minneapolis, MN (Gambino, Trevelyan, & Fitzwater, 2014, p. 1). Currently, there are 17,320 Somali residents in Minnesota. With this emerging population of immigrants comes a social, economic,
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