8 Language Shift and Language Maintenance among Turkmen Speakers

Abstract

This chapter focuses on the Turkmen language and the status of its vi - tality among Turkmen ethnolinguistic minority residing in Golestan province of Iran. The main purpose of this study is to consider the sociolinguistic situation of this variety of Turkmen, following Fishman (1966, 1972) domain analysis by using field-study methods and direct observation. In conducting this research, the demographic factors of gender and age, along with language attitudes have been considered. The sample population consists of 120 Turkmen speakers of the Golestan province. The data collected reveals that family domain has the highest percentage of using Turkmen and there is a significant difference between the use of Turkmen at home and other domains. However, this rate can vary, depending on demographic factors such as age, among others. The subjects have a positive attitude towards their mother tongue in general, and a negative attitude is a rarity in the survey. Regarding the relationship between gender and language maintenance or shift, the findings indicate that the use of Turkmen among women in different domains is not less than men. With respect to age, the data reveals significant difference in the pattern of language use. The language attitude is also influenced by age in some respects.