Connections worth keeping? – Language and sociocultural practices in the imagined future of Polish teenagers in Norway

Abstract

ABSTRACT Language and sociocultural practices in transnational families have attracted considerable scholarly attention over the last decade. Adding to this research, the present article explores the perspectives of two Polish teenage siblings living in Norway on the projected language and sociocultural practices in their future families. The data for this article stem from individual, in-depth qualitative interviews with the two siblings and were collected as part of a larger research project investigating multilingualism among Polish families in Norway. A micro-interactional analysis of the interview excerpts shows that the siblings construct their future families as very different spaces, where different languages and sociocultural practices are of importance and different identity options are available. In the ensuing discussion, the participants’ perspectives are considered in the context of their migration experiences, their belonging to imagined communities and in relation to wider societal discourses.