Hakka language was the lingua franca among various Chinese migrations in the 1950s in the Sabah State of Malaysia (Lee, 1965). Language use by the Hakka peoples was profoundly affected during the last century due to British colonialism, the Second World War, the shift of Chinese authority and the establishment of Malaysia. Although the Hakka population continue to remain the majority ethnic group in Sabah Chinese communities, the Hakka language is no longer the most common language used.
This research investigates language shift in a Hakka community in Sabah Malaysia. The paper explores “family language policy” using interview data from 52 Hakka individuals across three generations. Family language policy is defined as the deliberate attempt at practising a particular language within the home domain and among family members (Curdt-Christiansen, 2009) as the choice of family language can be seen as the indicator of language vitality. The ways of thinking in a language or what a language represents, such as ethnic identity, shapes home language practices towards community language shift (King, Lyn, & Logan-Terry, 2008).
Results from this study indicate that there are two different family language policies over and amongst three Hakka generations. The oldest Hakka participants in this study articulated a strong Hakka identity and explicitly were involved in passing down all Hakka traditions to their children whilst their children (now middle-aged parents) did not always practice these traditions or use Hakka language in their homes. The same middle-aged participants spoke Hakka to their parents but many chose Mandarin as family language for their children. Results show that Hakka language in the Hakka community is facing language shift as the language is failing intergenerational transmission (Fishman, 1991).
Hakka language has been maintained in Sabah for more than one hundred years, but is currently being challenged and data indicates that it is potentially under threat for continued survival. Not choosing Hakka as the family language also presented findings indicating language shift in the broader Hakka community. This paper will present and discuss findings from two-generations of Hakka parents in Sabah and the relevant issues facing this language shift today.
