The accelerated rate of migration has seen the emergence of more culturally hybrid families across the globe and raises a number of questions about this new superdiverse generation: Why do some children identify with their heritage culture and language? Why do some reject it?
This study draws 'linguistic life histories' of four participants who come from a trilingual background, comprised of two heritage languages in addition to their own native language. These individuals fit into a ‘hybrid’ category, specifically those fusing concepts of the ‘second generation’ of migrants with Steven Vertovec’s (2007) notions of ‘super-diversity’.
The findings are based on interviews which were conducted using a sensory ethnographic technique and drew on the participant's senses to evoke memories.
Their linguistic life histories walk us through the milestones that have shaped their perceptions about their heritage speech community, their identity and the dominant culture, and demonstrate how these perceptions are reflected in multilingual competence and heritage language use.
By giving an insight into the lived experience of these individuals, the research findings challenge some of the generalised and often idealised concepts of diversity and hybridity in this sociolinguistic context. This is particularly relevant in this Trump/Brexit era as the current reaction against progressive cultural change sends a destructive message to millions of second generation migrants.
The space from which this study is written is precisely the space of hybridity. Zozan Balci is a PhD Candidate at the University of Technology and her research is inspired by her own multicultural and multilingual background. The loss of one of her own heritage languages sparked the research questions and methodology for this study.
