167

Factors Causing Language Loss Experienced by an American Native Speaker in Multilingual Situation in 1

Saptina Retnawati Universitas Pamulang, Banten, Indonesia Email: [email protected]

Abstract: Bilingualism and multilingualism are common phenomena in language use. Those who are bilinguals or multilingual normally get the language competence because they are living in multilingual area, or in a country which has variety of languages and cultures. Indonesia is one of countries which have this wide diversity in cultures, languages, and religions. Furthermore, Indonesian Ministry of Education created a program called Darmasiswa program which enabled students from abroad to study Bahasa Indonesia and Indonesian cultures. By following this program, those students are learning new language and culture in multilingual situation. One of evidences occurred with a student from America, named Angela who also has multilingual family background. She was exposed to a lot of languages since she was born, and she also studied new languages in Indonesia, as a result she has capability to speak more than two languages. In this kind of situation, the researcher was interested to find out the language loss she might experience during her study. This study aimed to find factors influenced on language loss by her. The approach of this study was qualitative. The researcher applied mixed techniques to obtain data; recording the conversations in natural setting and interview. The analysis was interpretive. The findings of this study found that there were two factors that influenced language loss; internal factors and external factors, which dominated by cultural factor. Also, it happened because of the fact that Bahasa Indonesia is more dominant than her mother tongues.

Keywords: Language Loss, Multilingualism, American Native Speaker.

ELT- Lectura: Jurnal Pendidikan, Vol 5, No 2, August 2018

168

1. INTRODUCTION from two different countries. Since she Bilingualism and multilingualism are was born, she was exposed to many common phenomena in language use. languages as her parents speak different Those who are bilinguals or multilingual language. Moreover, she also studied normally get the language competence Bahasa Indonesia in Darmasiswa because they are living in multilingual program which leads her to study more area, or in a country which has variety of languages during the program. languages and cultures. Indonesia is one According to the Ministry of of countries which have this wide Education, The Darmasiswa program diversity in cultures, languages, and started in 1974 as a part of ASEAN religions. According to the latest survey (Association of South East Asian conducted by the ethnologue community, Nations) initiative, offering students from there are in total 719 languages that are abroad to study Bahasa Indonesia, used in Indonesia. From that huge Indonesian arts, music and crafts. The number of languages, Indonesian participants in this program can choose language (bahasa Indonesia) is used as one of 45 different universities located in the official language, and each province different cities in Indonesia. At the State has its own traditional language which is University of , there were used in daily life especially in informal twenty students from some foreign situation. It is concluded that most countries who joined this scholarship in Indonesians are able to speak at least two the academic year of 2013/2014. They languages; Bahasa Indonesia and their were from Hungary, Scotland, Lithuania, native language in each province. Afghanistan, China,England, Italy, This situation, somehow, are not Russia, Peru, Japan, Germany, Denmark, experienced only by Indonesian people in the United States, Vietnam, Portugal, general, but also some visitors, tourists, Poland, and Thailand. diplomats, or even international students Because the purpose of the program is who live in Indonesia for long period of to spread the Indonesian language, all time. When people come to a new place participants are required to take Bahasa which has different language with his/her Indonesia course. In this course, students mother tongue, they tend to learn that are taught bahasa Indonesia starting from language. Likewise the subject of this the basic level. The course also aimed to study, a student of Darmasiswa program improve students„ skills in who studied Bahasa Indonesia in communicating with Indonesians. Semarang State University. She has lived Therefore, the course material included for almost two years in Indonesia and Indonesian grammar and conversation. It experienced a lot of multilingual is hoped that the students would be able situation. She was born and raised in Los to communicate using Bahasa Indonesia Angeles, California in the United States inside or outside of the classroom both of America and her parents are immigrant with Darmasiswa students and Indonesian

ELT- Lectura: Jurnal Pendidikan, Vol 5, No 2, August 2018

169

native speakers. Since State University of younger generation, who then adopt the Semarang is located in Central , majority language as their home language therefore in this situation, most of and the language of child-rearing, students of this program were exposed to resulting in the ultimate demise of the speak Indonesian and Javanese. In this minority language. context, it can be said that they were in Moreover, in case study of the multilingual situation. Mayan community Mazapa, Garzon Related to multilingualism cases, (1992) also found that “parents were there have been notions or presumptions concerned with their children‟s ability to that people who can speak more than one be successful in the outside world and language tend to experience language believed that teaching the minority loss. Hayne (2010) mentioned that there language would hinder their children‟s are two different levels of language loss; ability to learn Spanish and do well in personal or familial level or the entire school”. Furthermore, she said these language may be completely loss internal factors were more influential than especially when the entire language external factors such as the socio- ceases to be spoken at all. Meanwhile, economic dominance of the majority immigrant communities in the United language speakers, government policies States are one of examples of language that encouraged the assimilation of loss in personal and familial level. This indigenous communities, and the case is in line with the subject of this prohibition of the minority language in research whose parents are immigrant schools. Meanwhile, different from from two different countries. Garzon, Masruddin (2013), conducted a Related to the factors causing study entitled”influenced factors towards language loss, some experts mentioned the language shift phenomenon of that language loss is a result of internal Wotunese”. This study resulted the and external factors. Sasse (1992), for factors influence significantly on example, mentioned that cultural, language shift of Wotunese are age, historical, economic, and political forces mobilization, bilingualism and language are some external factors causing attitude. language loss. Furthermore, he concludes Based on the background of the study and that political forces have an effect on how literature review mentioned above, the a speech community behaves, especially resercher was interested to find out on how political forces foster negative related factors causing her language loss attitudes towards the minority language. during her study in Indonesia, therefore However, he argues that “a key factor in the researcher conduct the research language use is the failure of parents to entitled “Factors Causing Language Loss transmit the language to their children. It Experienced by an American Native is because interrupted transmission leads Speaker in Multilingual Situation in to a lack of proficiency on the part of the Indonesia”.

ELT- Lectura: Jurnal Pendidikan, Vol 5, No 2, August 2018

170

2.METHOD that cause the occurence of language loss by the research subject in this study. The study employed a descriptive Multilingualism and oppression of using qualitative design which concerned on Indonesian language are external factors utterances produced during the that results in code-switching, which is conversations by the American student of then give impact to the loss of language Darmasiswa program with her colleagues that she has learned before (English, or with Indonesian native speakers. I Khmer, Teo Chew, and Spanish). From recorded the conversation in some the interview conducted by the informal occasions. The spoken researcher, it can be concluded that she conversations were then transcribed into experienced the loss of English written form so that I could analyze capability. As English is the minority language loss element from conversation language here, she tends to use in natural setting, and interview. The data Indonesian language more than English to were obtained in several steps; communicate in daily life. She confessed observation, audio recording, and that her English is now gone down and interviews. The triangulation process was that there are some English words that conducted to ensure the reliability of data she can not speak anymore, particularly analysis.The next step was transferring the sophisticated words. She prefer to use the spoken data into the written form. I basic English vocabularies to transcribed the data without changing or communicate with Indonesian native improving them.The guideline of speakers who are able to speak in transcribing the data into written form English, because she follows their ability was used as the standard of transcription. in English. Other results from the interview was After being collected, I analyzed the that she uses more Indonesian tag data based on the factors causing question, in the end of English sentences. language loss. There were two stages in For instance; “You are going to come, analyzing the data, i.e. data identification ya?”. The tag „ya‟ indicates that she and classification and then data follows the Indonesian form of sentence; tabulation. “Kamu akan datang kesini, ya?” In standard English, she might have used 3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION “Are you going to come here?”, but she prefer to use Indonesian form of sentence. The findings of this study indicate that The second factor that cause language there were two factors influenced language loss is oppression of using a certain loss; they were internal factors and external language. As stated by Erin Haynes factors. It is found that subject research (2010) who found that education field in got language loss because Bahasa U.S has a history of suppressing the Indonesia is more dominant than her active use of non-English languages for mother tongues. There are some factors

ELT- Lectura: Jurnal Pendidikan, Vol 5, No 2, August 2018

171

the purpose of promoting assimilation of T : “Aa?” the speakers. It is then related to the aim (Transcription 1, utterance of Darmasiswa program that all the 14) students are expected to communicate with Indonesian language with other (3) T2-12 speakers in daily life. It results in the A : “OK . Because I was trying to habit to speak Bahasa Indonesia more a warung over there that I than other languages. Based on the usually go to, and...” observation and interview, the research T : “Warung, which one?” subject in this study chooses to speak in Indonesian with Indonesian speakers at (Transcription 2, utterance 12) the first time they meet. She said that using Indonesian with the native speakers The Indonesian words „kost‟ of Indonesia is more comfortable, (dormitory), „sedikit‟ (a little bit), and eventough there might be switch to „warung‟ (small restaurant) are inserted English or even Javanese to clarify to English sentences. It means that she something. This, of course, gives impact experienced the loss of English ability to to her ability in using English. Based on express some words like „dormitory‟, „a the data in the transcribed conversations, little bit‟, and „small restaurant.‟ On the I found several examples that she often other hand, she gained the Indonesian inserted Indonesian words to English words „warung‟, „sedikit‟, and „kost‟ and sentence in order to keep the conversation use them more often. with Indonesian speaker flows smoothly. The code switching that are (1) T3-19 performed in the conversations gives T : “Ya..it‟s very nice to stay here, I impact to the loss of her English ability. mean--because...” An example was taken when she chatted A : “But you have to rent it or is it with her co-worker (an American). She like a kost where you just rent said, “This arrangement mirips mas aroom?” Nanang‟s.”She did not realize that she T : “A kost.” used Indonesian word „mirips‟ and she added „s‟ as the singular marker of the (Transcription 3, utterance 19) subject „this arrangement‟. The use of English form of sentence in Indonesian (1) T1-14 word indicates that her English language A : “Ya, so confuse. The ability is somehow loss. preposition – I know that sedikit To sum up, the diagram below explain headache. And then I think the sequences of some language some (inaudible).” phenomena that resulted in language loss by the research subject in this study

ELT- Lectura: Jurnal Pendidikan, Vol 5, No 2, August 2018

172

 Bilingualism and REFERENCES Multilingualism  Oppression to use a Sasse, Hans-Jurgen. 1992. Theory of certain language language death. In Mattias Brenzinger (Ed.), Language Death: Factual and Theoretical Explorations with Special Reference to East Africa, 7 – 30. Language Shift/ Code Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter. Switching Auer, P. 2002. Code-Switching in Conversation: Language, Interaction and Identity.London:Taylor& Francis e- Library. Language Loss

Ariffin, K. and Husin, M. S. 2011. Code- switching and Code-mixing of From the diagram of the sequences English and Bahasa Malaysia in of language loss phenomenon above, it Content-Based Classrooms: can be concluded that she experienced Frequency and Attitudes. The Linguistics Journal, Vol. 5 Issue 1. code-switching as a result of multilingualism setting in Indonesia and Cantone, Katja F. 2007. Code-Switching oppression to use Indonesian language in in Bilingual Children. New York: daily life that finally gives impact to the Springer. loss of English language capabilites that she has learned before. Chloros, P. G. 2009. Code-switching. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Crawford, J. 1996. Stabilizing Indigenous Languages: Seven Hypotheses on Language Loss Causes and Cures.Arizona: Northern Arizona University.

Fitriyani, I.D. 2013. Code Switching

Used by Students in a Speaking Class Activity (The case of the sixth semester students of English Study Program at Dian Nuswantoro University Semarang in the Academic Year of 2012/2013). Thesis. English

ELT- Lectura: Jurnal Pendidikan, Vol 5, No 2, August 2018

173

Language Education Post-graduate Milroy, L. & Muysken. 1995. Program Semarang State Introduction: Code-Switching and University. Bilingualism Research. New York: Cambridge University Guardado, M. 2002. Loss and Press. Maintenance of First Language Retnawati, Saptina & Mujiyanto, Yan. Skills: Case Studies of Hispanic 2015. Code switching used in Families in Vancouver. conversations by an american Thesis.Vancouver: University of student of the darmasiswa British Columbia. program. Journal of Language and Literature Vol. X, No. 1. Gulzar, M. A. 2010. Code-switching: Semarang State University. Awareness about Its Utility in Bilingual Classrooms. Bulletin of Suprihartanta F.P. 2012. Code-switching Education and Research In Science Teachers„ Talk: The December, Vol. 32, No. 2 pp. 23- case of code-switching in the Talk 44. Retrieved 4 October 2013. of the Teachers of Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Gumperz, J. 1982. Discourse Strategies. Mathematics of SMAN 1 Slawi. New York: Cambridge University Thesis. English Language Press. Education Postgraduate Program Semarang State University. Haynes, Erin. 2010. What is Language Loss? Berkeley: University of Syahdan, Syahdan, Destina Kasriyati, California. and Refika Andriani. "Analisis Kesopanan Berbahasa terhadap Kemampuan Tindak Tutur Hidayat, T. 2012. An Analysis of Code Mahasiswa." Lectura: Jurnal Switching Used by Facebookers (a Pendidikan 8.2 (2017). Case Study in a Social Network

Site). Thesis. English Education Wardaugh, R. 1998. An Introduction to Study Program Language and Arts Sociolinguistics. New York: Department of Sekolah Tinggi Brasil Blackwell. Keguruan dan Ilmu Pendidikan

(STKIP) Siliwangi . Retrieved on November, 11 2013. Wardhaugh, R. 2006. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics - Fifth edition.

Hoffmann, C. 1991. An Introduction to Oxford: Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Bilingualism. London: Longman Group UK limited.

Marasigan, E. 1983. Code-Switching and Code-Mixing in Multilingual Societies. Singapore: Richard Clay Pte Ltd.

ELT- Lectura: Jurnal Pendidikan, Vol 5, No 2, August 2018