Book contents
- Heritage Languages
- Heritage Languages
- Copyright page
- Epigraph
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- 1 What Are Heritage Languages and Why Should We Study Them?
- 2 Experimental and Variationist Research on Heritage Languages
- 3 The Toronto Context
- 4 HLVC Methods and Tools
- 5 Cross-Variety Comparisons
- 6 Cross-Language Comparisons
- 7 Heritage Cantonese
- 8 Indexicality in Heritage Languages
- 9 Working with Heritage Languages in Linguistics Classes
- 10 What Heritage Language Speakers Tell Us about Language Variation and Change
- Bibliography
- Index
8 - Indexicality in Heritage Languages
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 July 2024
- Heritage Languages
- Heritage Languages
- Copyright page
- Epigraph
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- 1 What Are Heritage Languages and Why Should We Study Them?
- 2 Experimental and Variationist Research on Heritage Languages
- 3 The Toronto Context
- 4 HLVC Methods and Tools
- 5 Cross-Variety Comparisons
- 6 Cross-Language Comparisons
- 7 Heritage Cantonese
- 8 Indexicality in Heritage Languages
- 9 Working with Heritage Languages in Linguistics Classes
- 10 What Heritage Language Speakers Tell Us about Language Variation and Change
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
The variables examined in Chapters 5 and 6 show little evidence of being used for identity work. That is, they do not show (consistent) effects of ethnic orientation measures or speaker sex. This chapter explicitly contrasts variables that reflect indexicality (correlation to social factors) in homeland varieties to non-indexical variables. We begin by considering three indexical variables in Italian: (VOT) in unstressed-syllable contexts, (APOCOPE), and (R), illustrating the extent to which indexicality is maintained in the heritage variety. We find increasing use of the more standard variant only in (VOT). Furthermore, we find that younger speakers (both in homeland and heritage) favour the non-standard variant. We then compare the variable (R), the contrast between trill (or tap) and approximant variants, in Italian and Tagalog, where it has indexical value in the homeland varieties, to Russian and Ukrainian, where it does not. Finally, we consider two additional indexical variables: Cantonese denasalization and Korean VOT. We conclude by contrasting the behavior of homeland-indexicals in heritage varieties. The presence of indexical value in homeland varieties does not consistently influence outcomes in the heritage varieties.
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- Heritage LanguagesExtending Variationist Approaches, pp. 192 - 205Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2024