Young children performing linguistic varieties: comparing classroom and play-time language use in the bidialectal context of Cyprus

Sophocleous, Andry; Isabel, Elena

doi:10.1080/09500782.2020.1736093

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Recent studies have shown, in different contexts, that the Cypriot dialect persists despite attempts to standardise Greek. For example, Sophocleous and Ioannidou (2020) underscore the persistent presence of dialectical features in public education despite efforts to enforce Standard Greek, while Stavrou (2020) also depicts that translanguaging in the Cypriot educational context enables students to expand to actively participate in conversations, construct knowledge effectively and create communicative spaces for personal narratives and additional information sharing. Similarly, research by Pavlou (2004) shows that the dialect is employed in media contexts within the media landscape to convey verbatim utterances, add humour, emphasise points or maintain authenticity, challenging notions of their exclusion from public discourse.…”

Section: Language Ideologies and Nationalism In Cyprusmentioning

confidence: 99%

Affordances and Borderscapes: Language Ideologies, Nationalisms, Generations and Geographies of Resistance in Cyprus

Karayianni,

Christou

2024

Languages

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In this article, we explore the ways language has been used in Cyprus during different historical periods as a means of a dividing power, with the use of Cypriot dialects as a form of resistance and reunification of the island. We situate these translanguaging themes within a context of affective biopolitics that impacts Cypriot generations in shaping their everyday life through borderscapes and nationalisms. More specifically, we first examine how the official languages of the island (Greek and Turkish) have been used in the dominant public sphere(s) of Cyprus to marginalise Cypriot dialects, which, in turn, have been used as an oral means of communication, but also to impose symbolic signifiers of the biopolitics of borders and nationalisms in dividing communities. Secondly, we explore ways in which Cypriot dialects have been used as forms of linguistic resistance to nationalism, offering an alternative collective identity for generations of both communities, even during periods when nationalism was dominant in both communities. The translanguaging exploration centres on a close discourse analysis of one particular radio programme—the ‘Cypriot radio sketch’—that has been very popular among Cypriots since the appearance of radio in Cyprus in 1953. Finally, we analytically and discursively contextualise attempts of revival of the Cypriot dialects by younger generations as communicative forms of resistance to powers of partition, as well as translanguaging pathways to actualise their desire for the reunification of the island. We eclectically draw on a multi-method approach to combine datasets from interviews, media and social media while combining critical discourse analysis to theorise the affordances, borderscapes and affective biopolitics of generational language use within geographies of nationalism and resistance in the borderscapes of a divided Cyprus.

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Section: Language Ideologies and Nationalism In Cyprusmentioning

confidence: 99%

Affordances and Borderscapes: Language Ideologies, Nationalisms, Generations and Geographies of Resistance in Cyprus

Karayianni,

Christou

2024

Languages

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“…However, over the past two decades CG has found its way into domains "in which its presence was perhaps unconceivable in the past" (Fotiou and Ayiomamitou 2021, 3), such as the media, the arts (literature, theatre, cinema) and the linguistic landscape of the island. What is more, in spite of official policies, many studies have demonstrated that CG is also used in all levels of education (pre-primary to tertiary) along with SMG (Tsiplakou 2007;Ioannidou 2009;Sophocleous and Ioannidou, 2020).…”

Section: Setting the Scenementioning

confidence: 99%

A Small Island With Big Differences? Folk Perceptions in the Context of Dialect Levelling and Koineization

Fotiou

Grohmann

2022

Front. Commun.

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This paper presents the results of the first study within a perceptual dialectology framework in the Greek-speaking community in Cyprus. Thirty participants from three age groups of equal size took part in a sociolinguistic interview. As part of the language module component of the interview, they discussed their beliefs about regional variation in Cyprus and completed the so-called ‘draw-a-map task’. All participants were residents of urban areas of Nicosia, the capital of Cyprus. The Greek-speaking community in Cyprus is diglossic: Standard Modern Greek is the High variety, while Cypriot Greek—the mother tongue of Greek Cypriots—is the Low variety. The latter is currently undergoing levelling of marked local basilect features and subvarieties. A quantitative analysis of the maps demonstrates that some areas in Cyprus (mainly in the periphery) have a stronger sociolinguistic salience than others. At the same time, the participants’ own way of speaking is perceived as unmarked, neutral and one that enjoys wider acceptance over other regional dialects. This study also shows a clear preference for characterizing a (presumed) dialect area with linguistic characteristics, rather than with evaluative commentary contra many similar studies in the literature and suggests a number of reasons why this may be so. Overall, this research shows how studies on language perception can inform and complement studies on language production in a given community. The participants drew an average of just four regional areas on their maps and viewed the different cities and their districts, or combinations thereof, as the different regional dialect areas they perceive to exist in Cyprus. It is argued in this paper that the small number of areas drawn and the emphasis on urban sites are consistent with regional dialect levelling. Consistent with regional dialect levelling is also the finding that the participants’ linguistic description of regional variation, while mainly accurate, is superficial and lacks detail. Interestingly, many of the participants also seem to be well aware of regional dialect levelling in their community. Other studies in the literature do not really discuss speakers’ awareness of levelling and this should be further explored in future studies.

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“…This results in a variety of official (formal) and informal (non-formal) languages. (Sophocleous & Loannidou, 2020) expressed that formal variety is used at official events, of course with the choice of words that suit the situation. The language environment is very important for a learner to be successful in learning a new language (second language) .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Teaching of Language Variation Use from Early Children's Acquisition at School

Purba

Resmi

Saputra³

et al. 2022

J. Obs. J. Pendidik. Anak Usia Dini

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The purpose of this study was to look at language variations in early childhood speech at school. The method used in this research was descriptive qualitative. The subjects of this study were early childhood children at one of the Kindergarten school located in the city of Pematangsiantar. Language acquisition is obtained through the language of parents, as well as language in school and in the environment. The variety of languages obtained can be varied, the subjects studied used children as research subjects with different family backgrounds, there was a mixture of Batak Karo and Simalungun tribes, Batak Toba and Batak Karo, Batak Toba with Nias, Javanese with Batak. In early childhood, it is very easy to absorb language and it is easy to imitate the language obtained from parents, the environment and school so that the language used by children can vary. Data collection was carried out using the conversational and observational method of observing. The results obtained are that these five variations appear with various background factors. Dialect variations began to be used along with the development of his age at an early age, so that the acquisition of the language has begun to show its uniqueness.

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Young children performing linguistic varieties: comparing classroom and play-time language use in the bidialectal context of Cyprus

Cited by 4 publications

References 24 publications

Affordances and Borderscapes: Language Ideologies, Nationalisms, Generations and Geographies of Resistance in Cyprus

Affordances and Borderscapes: Language Ideologies, Nationalisms, Generations and Geographies of Resistance in Cyprus

A Small Island With Big Differences? Folk Perceptions in the Context of Dialect Levelling and Koineization

Exploring the Teaching of Language Variation Use from Early Children's Acquisition at School

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