Abstract
This paper examines the language attitudes of Minangkabau people toward Minangkabau language (MIN) and Indonesian (BI) in West Sumatra, Indonesia. The data were collected in the form of questionnaires, in-depth interviews and participant observation with a sample of 200 Adult respondents in six research areas. This research uses a Likert scale with the categories classified into five alternatives (1 = Strongly Disagree, 2 = Disagree, 3 = Uncertain, 4 = Agree, and 5= strongly agree) and there are some tables analyzed based on yes/no questions, no=0 and yes=1. There are twelve questions on the questionnaire pertaining to the attitudes of adults. The results show that the adult attitudes can be classified into three categories, (1) positive; (2) negative; and (3) ambivalent attitudes. The third category is dominant. The term ‘ambivalent” is used for intermediate results. It is shown that the respondents expressed their feeling in both positive and negative comments in the same utterance when answering the questions related to MIN. For these responses, it is seen that there is a mixed feeling where they use “but” or “although” after expressing their positive feelings thereby countering their first statement. The evidence of the ambivalent and mixed feelings from respondents is shown. This means that Minangkabau people tend to avoid the conflict of having negative opinions; they tend to say what they mean in more indirect ways. On the other side, there is a positive attitude in response to the questions about BI. Majority of respondents have very strong positive attitudes towards BI
Highlights
There are several reasons why the study of language attitudes is important in sociolinguistics, because a positive or negative attitude can influence linguistic behavior in a community
A general attitude can be calculated by comparing the results of adults’ attitudes towards MIN and BI. These findings answer the following three main research questions: 1. What are the attitudes of adults toward Minangkabau language and Indonesian language?
Responses are different to questions about their attitudes to BI, where they have positive attitudes towards this language
Summary
There are several reasons why the study of language attitudes is important in sociolinguistics, because a positive or negative attitude can influence linguistic behavior in a community. There are a variety of feelings and attitudes towards their own language. These may be positive or less positive attitudes. Some examples of positive attitudes are that people are very proud of their own language; they feel that their own language shows their identity and feel that it is the best language to be used in the family or society. On the other hand, there are less positive attitudes towards the native language. Some people or communities feel that their language is not prestigious, and they are shy to speak their native language because it is considered as a low prestige language
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