Language choice and language policies in Filipino-Malaysian families in multilingual Malaysia

Abstract

Personal, social, cultural, economic, and political factors influence the language/s used by family members in the home domain. This study examines how family language policies are planned and developed in Filipino-Malaysian families in Malaysia. The language used at home in such mixed or exogamous marriages is also influenced by the ethnicity of the Malaysian spouse. Exposure outside the home domain where people speak at least two languages also affects language choice and use. An ethnographic method which includes multiple interviews, participants' narratives and observations were used in gathering the data. Thirty Filipino-Malaysian families were the subjects of this study. Communication Accommodation Theory (CAT) is used as the theoretical framework to explain the occurrence of language choice in the home domain and the creation of family language policy. CAT shows how families accommodate each other's language as they seek a lingua franca that binds the family together. The findings of the study would explain the complex phenomenon involved in language choice and the creation of family language policy of Filipino-Malaysian families.