Multilingualism in Urban and Suburban Settings
The Inaugural LASC Annual Roundtable
February 19 & 20, 2009
Archived program and abstracts (pdf)
The Language and Society Centre invites your participation in the Inaugural LASC Annual Roundtable.
More of the world's population now live in urban settings than outside of them (and Australia is one of the most urbanized countries in the world), and more than half of the world's population is also bi- or multilingual. Processes of urbanization, migration and globalization will continue as the 21st century progresses and the trends to urban living and multilingualism are unlikely to be reversed. There are many important questions which can be asked about the intersection of these two trends, and in this workshop we encourage scholars to present research which investigates such questions. We welcome papers on any aspect of the topic of the roundtable, and we hope that one of the outcomes will be a general discussion of issues such as:
- Multilingualism in the context of globalization – are new types of multilingualism arising due to processes of urbanization and globalization, for example as a result of the increasing frequency of intermarriage? Is multilingualism perceived as being advantageous in an urbanized and globalized world, for improved intercultural communication for example?
- The impact of multiple networks on bilingual competence – living in urban settings means that individuals are members of multiple networks, each of which may have different linguistic norms. What then is the effect of involvement in these complex networks on the competence of multilingual individuals in their various languages? How do language-based networks interact with other networks, for example those which are professional, religious, education-related and age-related?
- Different valuations of bilingualism – in many urban settings, there seems to be a distinction between linguistic repertoires which include the dominant language and other highly-valued languages (for example, English in many non-Anglophone communities), and those which include the dominant language and languages from ‘outside’. What are the differences in linguistic practices associated with these two types of multilingualism? Do people and policies distinguish between bilingualism which is valued for its importance in the community and bilingualism which is valued for reasons of prestige or economic advantage?
- Local differences and common themes – the nature of urban living is different in different places and urban communities in Australia are the result of different processes from urban communities in Europe or in Asia. We hope that the discussion at this roundtable will help us to consider questions such as: What impact do these differences have on multilingualism in these different environments? To what extent are there commonalities which can be seen alongside the differences?
This roundtable coincides with the visit of Professor Claudia Riehl to Monash University and the University of Melbourne. Professor Riehl, who is Director of the Centre for Linguistic Diversity and Multilingualism at the University of Cologne, will be a keynote speaker and discussant.