Multilingualism among the elderly Chinese in Singapore: an oral account

Abstract

This study aims to qualitatively document the histories of Singapore’s Chinese multilingual elderly. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven Chinese Singaporeans aged 75 years and above on how and why they acquired the languages they speak and their attitudes towards these linguistic varieties, of which many are declining in usage. Five participants were multilingual and spoke three or more languages fluently; two spoke only two languages and were included for a balanced and holistic perspective. Common themes from the interviews were identified and discussed. One key finding was that communicative necessity and practicality naturally fuelled language learning. Outside of the home, multilingual individuals acquired varieties from conversing with friends, relatives and customers, or as an educational requirement. Language was tied to ethnic belonging, but, generally, pride to speak a linguistic variety was linked to its functional value, not its associated ethnic identity. Unhappiness was expressed at the waning of the Chinese vernaculars and Baba Malay in Singapore today. Such language loss was seen as a sombre, but unavoidable consequence of Singapore’s globalisation and modernisation.

Revisiting the Past to Understand the Present: The Linguistic Ecology of the Singapore Deaf Community and the Historical Evolution of Singapore Sign Language (SgSL)

“…During the entire period of the British colonialism from 1819 to 1961, English was the language of administration in Singapore (Riney, 1998). The sociolinguistic landscape in Singapore has been widely discussed and the following is drawn from Ng and Cavallaro (2019); Ng et al (2021) and Nah, et al (2021). In the 1950s, Singapore designated English, Mandarin, Malay and Tamil as the official languages and implemented English as a lingua franca to encourage social cohesion and racial harmony among the Chinese, Malays and Indians, which were the three main ethnic groups in the country.…”

Translanguaging

“…The complexities of the interactions between the languages, which are revealed in contact-induced change and transfer at all levels of analysis, have been carefully documented (Ng, 2012;Platt, 1980;Zhiming, 2009). It is also important to know that this behaviour is typical of elderly Singaporeans only (Nah et al, 2021;Platt, 1980), which makes the reader wonder how the behaviour described here interacts with cognitive control. Thus, this example is interesting as an example of extreme forms of language contact that can arise in highly complex, multilingual contexts such as those in Singapore, but it is very different from the kinds of translanguaging found elsewhere.…”

Bridging Connectivity Issues in Digital Access and Literacy: Reflections on Empowering Vulnerable Older Adults in Singapore

“…Singapore is a multiethnic country with the lingua franca generally being Malay (Bahasa Melayu Singapura) among the older adults (although now only spoken by an ethnic minority of younger persons in Singapore), and Singapore Standard English among the younger adults and youth [ 17 ]. A significant number of these older adults were not English educated and hence were most comfortable in speaking their dialects (as opposed to Singapore Standard Mandarin or Bahasa Melayu Singapura) [ 18 ]. As with all heterogenous societies, language proved to be a significant barrier for volunteers that had to be overcome; however, before even such language barriers could be overcome, commencing sessions with these older participants involved establishing initial contact, and this proved to be a significant barrier to facilitating digital literacy and access.…”