“What Is Your Primary Language?”: Spatial Considerations of Primary Language Identification in a Multilingual Rural Region

Abstract

In small-scale multilingual societies, an individual uses a large number of languages and usually identifies one of them as the primary language. Although empirically observable, primary language has been significantly underexplored, particularly the spatiality of its identification. It is not clear whether and how place is related to why one language might be seen as being more significant than other languages. This study predicts the primary language used by multilingual individuals in an indigenous rural region of Cameroon based on two types of place: the residence of multilingual individuals and the birthplace of their family members. The research goals are supported by a random forest model using spatial-sociolinguistic data of the region. Results show that primary language can be predicted at a high accuracy. The residence of multilingual individuals and the birthplace of their family members capture the spatiality behind primary language identification. This work adds to the current discussion of the space–language connection and is valuable for maintaining the endangered languages in small-scale rural societies.