Bilingualism, Code Switching & Code Mixing

Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
Outline
Bilingualism

Code-Switching

Code-mixing

Borrowings

Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
Introduction
In many speech communities, one can see two,
21 or more,
independent languages living side by side.languages
Multilingualism of the Indian
In these communities people
tribes living use more than 1 language
in the north-west
(2 or +): one at home,(between
Amazon anotherColumbia
at work, and a third with
friends or the outsideand world.
Brazil)
All these languages are learned naturally, + Tukano
and the shift
from the one to the other is made without (trade hesitation.
language )

Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
 •The people you are speaking to,
•The social
Paraguay
context
50% •The situation
of the population is bilingual:
Spanish and Guarani
Similar cases can
Guarani be mother
observed all over theofworld, from
Theyis the tongue of 90%
choose to speak Sp or Guarani the
Singapore to Paraguay. population on
depending

People in these
It communities
(city orhave
is the national
Location access to a number
language
countryside)
Spanish is the
of languages—called official
codes—which language
Formality, of may
they the choose
government—used
from in speaking Sex of in
toothers. thegvt business, and
speaker
What determinesthe schools
His/her social
choice of astatus
specific language?
Used in formal
 occasions
Intimacy of and
both conversations
sides
Each of the available languages in a multilingual
with
Typeforeigners
of activity,
situation has a certain function to perform, which is
Topic of the speech event.
different from those of the others.

Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
 This
Biling
There pheno
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This can be meno
is the
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prime
t can rence led to
examp
lead in all the
le of
to aspect study
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interfe s of a of
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ing
Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
Compound vs. Coordinate Bilingualism
Compound Coordinate
Has one semantic Has two semantic
system but two linguistic systems AND two
codes. linguistic codes.

Usually refers to Usually refers to

someone whose two someone whose two
languages are learned at languages are learnt in
the same time, often in distinctively separate
the same context. contexts.
Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
Compound Coordinate

Semantic
Semantic Semantic
System
System 1 System 2

English Spanish
English Spanish
Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
Code-Switching
Code-switching is a term in linguistics referring to
using more than one language or variety in
conversation.
Bilinguals who can speak at least two languages,
have the ability to use elements of both languages
the practice of
when conversing with another bilingual.
alternately using
Code-switching
two languages is the syntactically and
phonologically appropriate use of multiple varieties.
Weinreich (1953) describes bilingualism as
Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
(1) Gofte bud ke she wanted to get revenge. ‘She had
said that she wanted to get revenge.’ (Mahootian, 1993)
(2) Ta carr light green aige be car at him: ‘He has a light
green car.’ (Stenson, 1990)
(3) One algebra question o mark shite: ‘you mark one
algebra question’ (Nishimura, 1991)
(4) Un professeur aDim: a professor excellent (‘an
excellent professor’) (Bentahila and Davies, 1983)

Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
Types of Code Switching

INTER-SENTENTIAL

INTRA-SENTENTIAL

TAG-SWITCHING

Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
Examples
(5) Sometimes I’ll start a sentence in English y termino
en espanol: INTER-SENTENTIAL
‘Sometimes I’ll start a sentence in English
and finish it in Spanish.’ (Poplack, 1980)
(6) I’m shuxi-ing with you. ‘I’m joking with you.’
(Mahootian,INTRA-SENTENTIAL
1993)
INTRA-SENTENTIAL
(7) Your bag is zir-e miz under of table: ‘Your bag is
under the table.’
(8) It was a good performance, nae? ‘It was a good
performance,TAG-SWITCHING
wasn’t it?’

Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat Mentouri University

Constantine
Why do people code-switch?
The topic,
the solidarity with the listener,
the social setting,
all these have been suggested as factors that
motivate people in code-switch. The motivation
may not be conscious.
In some extreme cases, people may not even be
aware they have code-switched.

Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
Although switching has at times been associated
with language attrition, indicative of weakness in
one of the bilingual’s languages, many researchers
believe that code switching is in fact a natural
consequence of competence in more than one
language and that it should not be mistaken for a
language deficit.

Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
Kinds of Code-Switching
SITUATIONAL METAPHORICAL
occurs when the speaker occurs when a change of the
changes the language topic of the discourse
because of the change in requires a change in the
the situation. language used.
Thus, a language used in a
One language is used in
situation which is different
one situation (for example
For instance, a language which fromis the one it is usually used
during ausually
breakfast
used atwith
home theis occasionally
in, because the topic of the
heard in a government
family members) the other office,
because the topic that the conversation is one that is
in a different one (e.g.
participants are in
discussing is associated with the situation
government offices)
associated with home. it is usually used in.
Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
 Went to the
Al-hamdu lillah,
movies with
Hello, Majda. fine. Thank
Selma. Reetik
Code-mixing
How are you?
kunti ma9aana.
Shu akhbarik?
you. Ween
kunti
Kan l-film
There is mabbarih? between
also a kind of rapid switching
fantastic.
codes in the same conversation, even within a
single sentence.

Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
Borrowings
Borrowing usually occurs when the speaker does not know
a suitable equivalent for the borrowed item in the first
language.
The borrowed word is part of the lexicon of the first
language. The borrowed items are almost always single
words—usually, bur not exclusively, nouns— and are
adapted to the first language in their pronunciation,
morphology and grammar. An example of a borrowing into
Arabic is the word ‘baguette' from the French "baguette"
(sandwich) or the word ‘mgripi’ from the French word
"grippe" (influenza, or flu).
Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine
In code-switching, people switch not because they
cannot come up with an item in one of the codes;
they switch codes for important social considerations.
They switch from one code to another completely—in
pronunciation, morphology, grammar and
vocabulary. There is no modification or adaptation to
the rules of the other code.
Scholars assert that borrowings are morphologically
and syntactically integrated into the host language
but code switches are not.
Dr. K. Lakehal-Ayat
Mentouri University Constantine