Learning the language of social environment: the case of Hungarian in Vojvodina (Serbia)

Impact of language ideologies on educational choices in intermarriages

“…Importantly, F5 asserted that her husband did not influence the decision about the language of their children's education, as it was hers to make, implying the partner's cultural assimilation or appeasement. However, this reveals the presence of an ideology of monolingual nationalism, which involves the expectation of bilingualism for minority speakers, while majority speakers are not similarly expected to know the languages of their communities (Mandić & Rácz, 2023). Thus, the possibility that her husband could have learned enough Hungarian to become involved in their children's education did not even arise.…”

“…I told him we would solve [this issue]; for now, we have time to decide, and we will see how it goes. (F7, Temerin) M2 from Novi Sad values practical multilingualism aligned with an ideology of polyglot nationalism, emphasising its benefits for education and employment, in line with the European Union's perspective (Romaine, 2013;Mandić and Rácz, 2023). Although his daughter was already studying in Hungarian, M2 reported tension with his (Serbian mother-tongue) wife over enrolling their son in a Hungarian-language class in primary school since she would feel excluded from their daughter's educational journey.…”

“…The ideology of 'polyglot nationalism' or 'lived multilingualism' was prevalent in Vojvodina, as in all (post)Habsburg lands, until the 1950s, allowing for locally oriented reciprocal bi-/multilingualism without conflicting with national identity (Gal, 2011;Schjerve-Rindler and Vetter, 2007;Krel and Mandić, 2016). However, with the rise of monolingual nationalism, this ideology was suppressed, implying that minority speakers should be multilingual while majority speakers are not expected to be (Annamalai, 2003;Mandić and Rácz, 2023).…”

“…Highlighting the usefulness of multilingualism is yet another language ideology, as knowing more languages is perceived to increase one's value in education and work, a perspective also embraced by the European Union (Romaine, 2013;Mandić and Rácz, 2023). For instance, Gábrity (2012) studied how the Hungarian minority express pride in their bilingual or multilingual abilities, acknowledging their daily advantages and practical benefits.…”

Mehrsprachigkeit in deutschsprachigen Kontexten

“…Tatsächlich kann es als mehrsprachiger Habitus oder "gelebte Mehrsprachigkeit" (eng. lived multilingualism) Mitteleuropas und des Donauraums beschrieben werden (Schjerve-Rindler/Vetter 2007), was mehr oder weniger für alle ethnischen und sprachlichen Gemeinschaften sowie für die verschiedenen sozialen Klassen in habsburgischen und posthabsburgischen Ländern gilt(Gal 2011(Gal , 2015Vervaet/Mandić 2022;Mandić/Rácz 2022). Die Praxis der sozialen Mehrsprachigkeit, die in einer relativ offenen und toleranten mehrsprachigen Gesellschaft in Mittel-und Osteuropa entstand, half den Donauschwaben buchstäblich dabei, die sprachliche Mimikry umzusetzen, die sich wiederum auf eine radikale ethnische und religiöse Intoleranz zurückführen lässt, die mit der nationalsozialistischen Ideologie begann.…”