Language Use in Families with Parents of Different Native Languages: An Investigation of Japanese-non-English and Japanese-English Families

Abstract

Cross-native/community language (CNCL) families are defined as those in which the parents have different native languages, one of which is the major language of the community. The present study compares how bilingualism is perceived and how languages are used in two different groups of CNCL families: Japanese-non-English CNCL families and Japanese-English CNCL families. An analysis of the data collected via a questionnaire survey found some differences between the two groups. Regarding perception of bilingualism, it was found that more Japanese-English families than Japanese-non-English families think that bilingualism in their native languages is perceived positively by mainstream Japanese. As a basis for such perceptions, some subjects claim to detect a certain hierarchy of language esteem among mainstream Japanese. In regard to language use among family members, it was found that the non-Japanese parent's native language is less used by children as well as Japanese parents in the Japanese-non-English families than in Japanese-English families. It was also found that while none of the Japanese-English families use languages other than the parental native languages, Japanese-non-English families employ, either exclusively or complementarily, a language not native to either of the parents, especially when the non-Japanese parent is involved.