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Bilingualism Or Trilingualism? Social Versus Linguistic Views: Evidence from the Germanic-Speaking Language Group in South Tyrol (Italy)

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Bilingualism Or Trilingualism? Social Versus Linguistic Views: Evidence from the Germanic-Speaking Language Group in South Tyrol (Italy) Bilingualism or Trilingualism? Social versus linguistic views: Evidence from the Germanic-speaking language group in South Tyrol (Italy) Mara Maya Victoria Leonardi PhD in Bilingualism Bangor University School of Linguistics & English Language September 2016 Supervisors: Dr Marco Tamburelli (1st supervisor) Dr Anouschka Foltz (2nd supervisor) CONTENTS Acknowledgements vii Declaration and Consent ix Summary xii CHAPTER 1 Introduction 1 1.1. Framework of this dissertation and research questions 2 1.2. Importance and contribution of this dissertation 4 CHAPTER 2 South Tyrol 6 2.1. Numbers and facts 6 2.1.1 History and education 9 2.2. A linguistic overview: Diglossia 11 2.3. Diglossia and bilingualism in South Tyrol 13 2.3.1. Linguistic competences in South Tyrol 15 2.3.2. Inner and outer multilingualism in South Tyrol 15 2.3.3. Ferguson’s rubrics applied to South Tyrol (Part I) 16 2.3.3.1. Function or Specialization for H and L 16 2.3.3.1.1. ‘Umgangssprache’ 18 2.3.3.2. Acquisition 20 2.3.3.2.1. Linguistic behaviour 21 2.3.3.3. Standardization 24 2.3.3.4. Literary heritage 25 2.3.3.5. Stability 27 2.3.3.6. Prestige 28 2.4. Interim summary 31 CHAPTER 3 Bilingualism with Diglossia 34 3.1. Social versus linguistic views 35 3.1.1. Bilingualism vs. Diglossia 38 3.1.2. Intelligibility 39 ii 3.1.3. Taxonomic and social-political issues 40 3.1.4. Ferguson’s rubrics applied to South Tyrol (Part II) 42 3.1.4.1. Lexicon 42 3.1.4.1.1. Standard German and South Tyrolean 44 3.1.4.1.2. Standard Italian and ‘Südtirolismen’ 45 3.1.4.2. Phonology 47 3.1.4.3. Grammar 49 3.2. Interim summary 50 3.3. Rationale and outline of the current research 51 3.3.1. Focus of this dissertation 53 3.3.2. Structure of this dissertation 54 3.3.3. Research questions 54 CHAPTER 4 Measuring intelligibility between Standard German and the South Tyrolean variety 56 4.1. Theoretical background of the study 56 4.1.1. Measuring intelligibility 58 4.1.1.1. Extra-linguistic factors 60 4.1.2. Testing intelligibility 61 4.1.2.1. (A)symmetry in intelligibility 61 4.1.2.1.1. Reasons for testing the reverse 62 4.1.3. Purpose of this study 64 4.1.3.1. Research question 64 4.2. Methodology 65 4.2.1. Stimulus material 66 4.2.1.1. Reasons for choosing the SPIN sentence test 67 4.2.2. Stimulus preparation and preparing the recording 68 4.3. Experiment 69 4.3.1. Design: Online survey 69 4.3.2. Background questionnaire 70 4.3.3. Task 70 4.4. Participants 71 4.4.1. Participants’ recruitment 72 4.4.2. Descriptive statistics 73 4.4.2.1. Foreign language proficiency 74 4.4.2.2. Extra-linguistic variables 75 4.4.2.2.1. Contact and familiarity 76 iii 4.4.2.2.2. Attitudes 77 4.5. Analyses 79 4.5.1. Intelligibility score 80 4.5.1.1. Target words 81 4.5.1.1.1. Cognates and non-cognates 82 4.5.2. Intelligibility score and foreign language proficiency 84 4.5.3. Intelligibility score and extra-linguistic variables 84 4.6. Discussion 85 4.6.1. Relevance of study 1 to study 2 88 4.6.2. Interim summary 91 4.7. Conclusion 91 4.7.1. Limitations of the current study and future directions 92 CHAPTER 5 Receptive language comprehension 94 5.1. Theoretical background of the study 94 5.1.1. Empirical research conducted in South Tyrol so far 95 5.1.2. Relevance of study 1 to study 2 96 5.1.3. Purpose of this study 97 5.1.4. Research questions 99 5.2. Methodology 100 5.2.1. Parental questionnaire 100 5.2.1.1. Social environmental factors 102 5.2.1.2. Parental educational level 105 5.2.1.3. Birth order and siblings 106 5.2.1.4. Home literacy activities 107 5.2.1.5. Television viewing 108 5.2.1.6. Attitudes 109 5.2.2. TROG and TROG-D: Test for Reception of Grammar 110 5.2.2.1. Reasons for using this specific test 112 5.2.2.2. Structure of the TROG-D 113 5.2.2.2.1. Scoring 114 5.2.3. Testing procedure and setting in preschools 115 5.3. Participants 116 5.3.1. Geographical target area 116 5.3.1.1. South Tyrol: Lana and Tscherms/Cermes 116 5.3.1.2. Germany: Wendeburg 117 5.3.2. Participant selection 118 iv 5.3.3. Participant recruitment 118 5.3.4. Descriptive statistics: Bavarian home language group 119 5.3.4.1. Parents’ proficiency in German and Italian 120 5.3.4.1.1. Proficiency differences in German and Italian 121 5.3.4.2. Languages spoken at home 122 5.3.4.3. Parental educational level 124 5.3.4.4. Birth order and siblings 126 5.3.4.5. Television input and literacy activities 126 5.3.4.6. Attitudes 128 5.3.5. Descriptive statistics: German home language group 131 5.3.5.1. Languages spoken at home 132 5.3.5.2. Parental educational level 132 5.3.5.3. Birth order and siblings 133 5.3.5.4. Television input and literacy activities 134 5.3.6. German and Bavarian home language group comparison 136 5.4. Analyses 139 5.4.1. Internal and external factors 139 5.4.1.1. Language background and Age group 139 5.4.1.2. Parental educational level 141 5.4.1.3. Birth order and siblings 143 5.4.1.4. Preschool attendance 144 5.4.1.4.1. Selection of participants: Matching the groups 145 5.4.1.4.2. Comparison between children who attended preschool for 11 months or more 146 5.4.1.4.3. Bavarian home language: Preschool attendance and Age 147 5.4.1.5. Television input 147 5.4.1.6. Literacy activities 149 5.4.1.7. Bavarian home language group: Parents’ language proficiency in German 150 5.4.1.8. Bavarian home language group: Attitudes 151 5.4.2. Correlations with internal and external factors 152 5.4.2.1. German home language group: Correlations with internal and external factors 152 5.4.2.2. Bavarian home language group: Correlations with internal and external factors 152 5.5. Discussion 153 5.5.1. Preschoolers’ receptive test scores 154 5.5.1.1. Scaffolding and bilingual education 156 v 5.5.2. Internal and external factors 158 5.5.2.1. Age 158 5.5.2.2. Maternal educational level 159 5.5.2.3. Birth order and siblings 159 5.5.2.4. Preschool attendance 161 5.5.2.4.1. Bavarian home language group: Correlation age and preschool 162 5.5.2.5. Television input and literacy activities 162 5.5.2.6. Bavarian home language: Proficiency in German and usage at home 164 5.5.3. Interim summary 165 5.6. Conclusion 165 5.6.1. Limitations of the current study and future directions 168 CHAPTER 6 Conclusion 170 6.1. Originality and importance of my research 170 6.2. Main findings of this dissertation 172 APPENDICES 176 Appendix A1. Sample letter of invitation. 177 Appendix A2. English Consent Form and Questionnaire. 178 Appendix A3. German Consent Form and Questionnaire. 181 Appendix A4. Original SPIN Sentences in English. 184 Appendix A5. List of 18 stimuli in Standard German and South Tyrolean Bavarian. 185 Appendix A6. List of keywords used in the experiment. 186 Appendix B1. English Consent Form and Questionnaire used in South Tyrol. 187 Appendix B2. German Consent Form and Questionnaire used in South Tyrol. 190 Appendix B3. English Consent Form and Questionnaire used in Germany. 194 Appendix B4. German Consent Form and Questionnaire used in Germany. 197 Appendix B5. Example sentences extracted from the TROG-D (Fox, 2013). 200 Appendix B6. Original Record Form (Fox, 2013): Summary. 202 Appendix B7. Original Record Form (Fox, 2013): German stimuli. 203 REFERENCES 204 vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Anyone who has ever written a dissertation knows that it is not an easy task. Besides planning and discipline, undoubtedly it also requires enthusiasm for the topic and patience. The first people I would like to thank are my supervisors Dr Marco Tamburelli and Dr Anouschka Foltz. The support I have received during this sometimes exhausting, stressful and unknown journey is very much appreciated. Moreover, the much needed input during hard times was granted despite the geographical distance (Wales – South Tyrol) which lay most of the time between us. I am very grateful for the opportunities to attend as well as to participate in national and international conferences1 during the 2nd and 3rd year of my PhD. Such experiences remain unforgettable! I am thankful for the financial support provided by a scholarship from the Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano, Alto Adige/Autonome Provinz Bozen, Südtirol. I would now like to thank those who made the empirical studies of this dissertation possible as well as those who accompanied me throughout my educational studies. First of all, I thank those who participated in the online survey conducted for this dissertation. Although it seems an easy task to find participants willing to complete a survey online, it certainly was not which caused me some sleepless nights already in my 1st year. Secondly, the second empirical study would not have been possible had it not been for the enthusiasm in the preschools in South Tyrol and Germany.
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