Code-switching Patterns Research Articles

A quantitative analysis of age-related differences in Hindi–English code-switching

Aims and objectives: Numerical indices developed by Guzman et al. that helped characterize code-switching (CS) patterns in Spanish–English bilingual corpora, were tested on a Hindi–English bilingual corpus. Two main research questions were addressed: first, how does Hindi–English compare with Spanish–English, and second, are there measurable differences in broad CS patterns between older and younger speakers? Methodology: Television interviews of Hindi movie (Bollywood) personalities were transcribed and coded for Hindi and English lexemes. Bespoke software in Python was used to calculate the required indices, which provided information on variables such as the level of language mixing, switching probability, and the distributions of single-language spans. Further indices, such as mean span length and an approximate ratio of insertions to alternations were also calculated. Data and analysis: The indices calculated for the Hindi–English corpus broadly match those calculated for Spanish–English. Statistically significant differences between the older and younger group were detected for some key indices, with older speakers generally using less English. High levels of intra-group variability may be responsible for some indices not showing statistically significant diachronic change. Conclusions: The Guzman et al. indices suggest that Hindi–English and Spanish–English CS resemble each other in certain ways. There have been broad changes in Hindi–English CS patterns over the last few decades, but there are indications that the CS behaviour of individual speakers might change in different ways. Originality: This is the first study to systematically and quantitatively investigate age-related differences in Hindi–English CS, using naturalistic speech in semi-controlled conditions. Implications: The quantitative indices investigated in this study can be used to compare CS behaviour in different language pairs, and can also help detect diachronic changes in CS patterns.

Code-Switching as a Communicative Strategy among Malay Students Learning Japanese in Malaysia Higher Education Institution

Code-switching is an effective communicative strategy in learning Japanese as a foreign language in Malaysia Higher Education Institution. The tendency in code-switching is a common practice while communicating among the bilingual and multilingual Malaysian society. Furthermore, the setting of Malaysia is a perfect example where code-switching is a common phenomenon among its people, due to its multilingual and diversified cultural communities. This study aims to identify and analyse code-switching as a communicative strategy among ten Malay students who learn the Japanese language as a foreign language at MARA-OISCA Japanese Language Centre in Beranang, Malaysia. The theoretical frameworks adopted in the study used Hymes's internal code-switching and external code-switching framework model to discuss the types of code-switching patterns in analysing the data. The data were collected through pair discussion activities, recorded observation, and interviews. The findings revealed that participants used more internal code-switching compared to external code-switching. The findings also show that among the reasons that prompt Malaysian Japanese language learners in code-switching were four factors that can be resolved as the origin of the occurrence of code-switching, namely the social hierarchy, the relationship between speakers, lack of vocabulary knowledge and clear clarification of intended information. In addition, it was found that most Malaysian Japanese language learners use code-switching frequently and subconsciously.

Functional and sociocultural attitudes of code-switching and its relation to the meaning-making process: The case of dubbing Kim Possible into Arabic

Aims and objectives/purpose/research questions: The aim of this study is to investigate the sociolinguistic functions of code-switching and its relation to the meaning-making process by using the animated series Kim Possible as a case study. Design/methodology/approach: This study employs Muysken’s taxonomy to draw on code-switching patterns in lexico-grammar in relation to human behavior. The study also uses the functional approaches of Muysken and Appel and Gumperz as binary investigatory frameworks to locate interlingual and intralingual code-switching particularities and to elaborate on code-switching functions. Data and analysis: The analysis encompasses 48 episodes. Firstly, we extracted and transcribed code-switching occurrences in light of Muysken’s typology episode-by-episode and categorized them according to their code-switching type (interlingual or intralingual). Secondly, we quantified the occurrences according to their syntactic form to make more systematic claims about code-switching patterns. Next, we triangulated the patterns by examining the context of utterances and extralinguistic factors in the original series vis-à-vis the dubbed version to draw upon information beyond the structure or grammar. Findings/conclusions: The Arabic dubbed version was able to communicate the characters’ cosmopolitan diversity, which correlates with the series’ sense of linguistic modernity and humor. At the same time, the Arabic version was able to portray the extralinguistic reality of Lebanon and its multi-linguistic tapestry. Originality: This research is original because it focuses on Lebanese-Arabic, a dialect seldom discussed in the context of translation. The research also examines language variations in the context of dubbed discourse, where code-switching is integrally pertinent to visual-signs and the cultural background of characters. Significance/implications: The study recognizes the intricacy of code-switching as a reflective phenomenon of social reality and power dynamics; therefore, it contributes in the fields of translation and sociolinguistics.

Code-Switching in Spoken Indian English: A Case Study of Sociopolitical Talk

In India, the prevalence of (Indian) English and code-switching between languages is not new. However, there has been a dearth of research that explores code-switching in Indian English (IE) within the genre of sociopolitical talk in Indian English tv talk shows. The current study is a part of a larger longitudinal study that analyzes code-switching patterns across the previous decade in Indian English tv talk shows and is the first in the series of follow-up studies. This study qualitatively examines an episode of an Indian English tv talk show to determine code-switching (CS) patterns and functions in IE. The study employed linguistic analysis, Meyerhoff’s (2007) accommodation theory, Sacks, Schegloff, and Jeferrson’s (1974) conversation analysis methodology, and a world Englishes framework to discover the forms, functions, and motivations of CS in an English matrix context. Findings confirm Si’s (2010) results that speakers preferred higher number of English alternations and insertions than Hindi code-switches, while Hindi-only turns were relatively few. Functions of analyzed code-switches also indicated intentions to reformulate, repeat, quote, connect with or diverge from other interlocutors, and generate emphasis in discourse. The study concludes with implications for Indian English and avenues for future research.

“Oh, I don’t even know how to say this in Spanish”

AbstractIn the absence of complex and diverse Latinx characters in entertainment media, film and television representations of Latinxs’ culture and language typically embody limiting and harmful stereotypes. However, the highly praised U.S.-based romantic comedy-drama “Jane the Virgin” offers a very different representation. With believable characters and complex linguistic dynamics, the show provides a positive and relatively realistic representation both of Latinxs across generations and of their linguistic repertoires as documented in community studies of Latinx language. Through an analysis of the linguistic practices of Latinx characters in “Jane the Virgin,” including patterns of intergenerational language shift, linguistic accommodation, and codeswitching, it is argued that the show acknowledges and treats as unmarked the linguistic complexity of Latinx families and communities. At the same time, the show oversimplifies this complexity in some ways, creating a representation that may be perceived as authentic despite its divergence from real-world Latinx language use.

Structure Patterns of Code-Switching in English Classroom Discourse

This paper analyses the structure patterns of code-switching quantitatively and qualitatively based on EFL classroom discourse. Through the detailed analysis, the paper finds that there are different structure patterns in which teachers often switch their codes in English classroom. These structure patterns are reflected in different language levels: words and phrases level, clausal and sentence level. The functions of code-switching are determined by those structure patterns that teachers will choose for different purposes in the process of teaching.

The Functions of Code-switching in the Interaction of the Cartoon Characters in Dora the Explorer

This paper investigates code-switching from Standard Arabic into English in six episodes of the TV cartoon series Dora the Explorer. The significance of this study is that it will provide an in-depth understanding of the strategies and structures of code-switching used to address children in order to teach them English. The study addresses two research questions: 1) What are the patterns of code-switching found in the interaction of the cartoon characters in Dora the Explorer? 2) What is the function of code-switching in each pattern? Quantitative analysis was used to analyze the frequency of each pattern of code-switching, while qualitative analysis was used to determine the functions of code-switching. The results show several patterns of code-switching into English: code-switching from Arabic to English without translation; Arabic lexical items followed by an English translation; English lexical items followed by an Arabic translation; translation from Arabic into English in two turns; and metadiscursive code-switching. English lexical items are introduced through code-switching in each episode. English words without translation account for the highest percentage of code-switching. In the code-switching to English, some English units are permanent, while some are context units that depend on the episode topic: these include basic formulaic and non-formulaic expressions. Lexical items for greeting, appreciation, and evaluation are the most frequent pragmatic functions of code-switching. Further research is recommended on code-switching in other TV animated series in other languages to determine the patterns of code-switching and the part of speech that is the focus of switching.

Simulating Code-switching Using a Neural Network Model of Bilingual Sentence Production

Code-switching is the alternation from one language to the other during bilingual speech. We present a novel method of researching this phenomenon using computational cognitive modeling. We trained a neural network of bilingual sentence production to simulate early balanced Spanish–English bilinguals, late speakers of English who have Spanish as a dominant native language, and late speakers of Spanish who have English as a dominant native language. The model produced code-switches even though it was not exposed to code-switched input. The simulations predicted how code-switching patterns differ between early balanced and late non-balanced bilinguals; the balanced bilingual simulation code-switches considerably more frequently, which is in line with what has been observed in human speech production. Additionally, we compared the patterns produced by the simulations with two corpora of spontaneous bilingual speech and identified noticeable commonalities and differences. To our knowledge, this is the first computational cognitive model simulating the code-switched production of non-balanced bilinguals and comparing the simulated production of balanced and non-balanced bilinguals with that of human bilinguals.

Analyzing the Switch Segments and Types of Switch in Indonesian-English Code Switching and Code Mixing Phenomenon of Elite People in Makassar

This research aimed at finding out speech variety used by elite people in Makassar which was the phenomenon of Indonesia–English code switching and code mixing in four aspects namely (1) conversation function and reasons of code switching by the elite people, (2) the switched segments which were frequently used, (3) combination patterns of code switching, and (4) the types of code switching. In this research both qualitative and quantitative methods were applied. The data were obtained through recording for two hours. The population was the elite people in Makassar who were divided into five groups namely doctors, government officials, lawyers, lecturers, and politicians living in Makassar. There were 100 conversation produced by 25 respondents. The result show that the function of code switching which most frequently occurs in conversation tends to play with English popular expressions. In terms of switched segments, the most frequently used are noun phrases, while the most often employed combination is the combination of verbs (VP) and nouns (NP). In relation to type of code switching, intra-clausal is the most frequently used by the elite people in conversation.

Code-switching in online academic discourse

Abstract World Englishes are the product of contact between English and other languages in multilingual habitats through the nativization phase. Yet the actual contexts of code-switching that contribute to the emerging regional variety have scarcely been described. This research focuses on code-switching among bilingual Filipino students, to illuminate this dynamic phase in varietal evolution. Using data from an online academic forum, it analyses the code-switching patterns within and between turns in the discussion, to see how they facilitate or inhibit the mobilization of Tagalog elements into code-mixed English. The data show intense levels of code-switching especially within individual turns. At the change of turns, the sequentiality principle is often set aside, and code-switching often involves Tagalog discourse markers and other function words. These include some elements noted two decades earlier (Bautista 1998) as potential features of evolving Philippine English, which have never been codified. The new data provide empirical evidence of how non-English elements are progressively taken up into World Englishes, in interactive use of English among bi-/multilingual speakers.

Humor and the Creative Use of English Expressions in the Speech of University Students: A Case From Jordan

The present study examines the use of English lexical insertions to create humor by Jordanian university students. The data of the study are collected from spontaneous tape-recorded conversations from 62 participants of both males and females, representing different age groups (from 18–23 years old) and belonging to different specializations (e.g., engineering, pharmacy, mathematics, business, and English). The recorded conversations are qualitatively analyzed applying Auer’s sequential approach to code-switching to attain a local interpretation of lexical insertions for humor effect from English into Jordanian Arabic (JA). The findings of the study reveal that Jordanian university students exploit their bilingual repertoire to create humor by playfully and innovatively switching to English. This is shown to take place by unexpected switching points, a switching that flouts Arabic syntactic constraints, a violation of code-switching constraints, incongruity and incompatibility of translating Arabic culture-bound expressions to English, and imposing Arabic word formation templates to English insertions. Specifically, five patterns of code-switching of humor are found, namely, switching around the interrogative, playful affixation, phonological playfulness, haphazard calquing, and the imposition of Arabic morphological rules on English lexical insertions. The study argues that humorous insertions are in fact a marker of solidarity and an in-group membership. Humorous insertions are also shown not to contribute to the content of the message or the pragmatic meaning. Bilingual university students (of Arabic and English) purposefully make use of an additional linguistic resource to mock certain propositions.

English Influence on Linguistic Landscape of Modern Russian Cities

This paper provides an integral cognitive and language and cultural study of linguistic landscape diversity which is of a particular interest from the viewpoint of multilingualism expansion. The research aims to outline and analyze peculiarities of English influence on the modern urban space of Russian cities. This paper puts forward and confirms the hypothesis that English influence on linguistic landscape of the three modern Russian cities is a regular process in commercial place naming, that it is realized in various ways in different types of ergonyms to meet the demands of customers. Local city space is seen as a complex system from the point of view of language and cultural studies. Local urban naming is analyzed on the material of about 1,000 partially or completely anglicized names of language centers, tourist agencies and book shops of Yekaterinburg, Saint-Petersburg and Chelyabinsk retrieved from official websites. The data analysis has shown the existence of both general tendencies in forming urban commercial place names and realization of regional consciousness in naming. The findings prove that nomination processes in urban naming combine local and global tendencies. One of the main universal tendencies of naming is urban globalization realized in the English influence on the modern linguistic landscape in general and on the urban place names in particular. It is shown that English influence (Anglicization) is realized in glocalization, the coexistence of English and local characteristics of Russian urban place names. Anglicization tendencies and mechanisms include language fashion and creativity. The study reveals patterns of borrowing, codeswitching and language interplay. It is illustrated that blending, transliteration from English into Russian, usage of hybrid words and expressions are characteristic of the analyzed minor place names.

“¿Tú tienes una little pumpkin?” Mixed noun phrases in Spanish-English bilingual children and adults

Objectives: This study investigates the switching of a noun or a determiner in mixed noun phrases, such as “ una little pumpkin,” to test predictions from two theoretical frameworks, the Matrix Language Frame model (MLF) and the Minimalist Approach (MA) and examines whether there is a difference between child and adult code-switching (CS) patterns in order to understand children’s acquisition of grammatical patterns in general. Methodology: All tokens of mixed noun phrases (NPs) were extracted from three bilingual child corpora and one bilingual adult corpus. The finite verb (matrix language) of each utterance was also analyzed to test predictions. Data and analysis: Four hundred sixty-one mixed NPs were extracted from 15 Spanish-English bilingual children and 14 Spanish-English bilingual adults. Findings: Results support both the MLF and the MA since in more than 80% of our data, the language of the determiner matched the language of the finite verb morphology and the language with the most phi features. Originality: This is the first study to compare children’s and adults’ mixed NPs, testing predictions from the MLF and MA theories. It also provides new evidence for the acquisition of CS constraints in early bilingual language development. Implications: This study demonstrates that, like adults, children’s mixed NPs are subject to grammatical constraints. Some examples show that children produce mixed NPs immediately after hearing their caregivers produce the same NP, but in one language only. This supports the conclusion that children’s mixed NP patterns follow generalized constraints and are not item-based imitations of what they hear. Limitations: Future research should more carefully examine the CS patterns of caregivers and members of the community with whom children interact to decipher the role of input. This would help answer the question of how children acquire CS patterns.

Conversational Code Switching

Abstract The mixing of three or more languages in casual conversations, a hallmark of Chinese Malaysian informal speech, expresses a range of sociological and ideological meanings in the ongoing construction of Chinese Malaysian heteroglossic identities. While code-switching patterns sometimes mark different speaker positions, they also express broader language identities and ideologies that transcend individual conversations. This is especially clear when analysing the relative frequency and semantic domains of single lexeme mixing, where English is mostly used for consumer culture, Malay for place names and personal names, and Chinese topolects for expressing emotion. Detailed analysis of 12 adult conversations recorded in natural settings in diverse regions of Malaysia is corroborated by language attitudes expressed in focus groups, Facebook posts, and informal conversations and interviews, revealing the diverse and sometimes contending language ideologies linked to specific languages in the Chinese Malaysian setting.

Language and Neuropsychiatric Disorders: An Analysis of Communication among Trilingual Schizophrenics in Nakuru Level Five Hospital in Nakuru County, Kenya

The main objective of this study was to describe the thought disturbance manifestation in code-switching patterns of trilingual schizophrenics in Nakuru Level Five Hospital. Schizophrenia is a grievous and chronic mental disorder that affects the way a person thinks, behaves and feels. Schizophrenia victims may appear like they have lost touch with reality. Sometimes these patients seem perfectly fine until they talk about what they are really thinking. They may not make sense when they talk. The symptoms can be observed directly in their language, most importantly, disorganized language. Disorganized language is a spoken language that fails to communicate effectively or follow a coherent discourse plan. It is a manifestation of positive formal thought disorder, or it reflects an underlying impairment of verbal thought. The diagnosis of schizophrenia relies entirely on language. A purposive sample of six respondents consisting of three females and three males of diverse age groups was investigated. Using a phenomenological qualitative research design, data was collected, compiled, described and analyzed underpinned by the un-Cartesian Linguistic Theory and the Multilingual Production Model. The main instrument of data collection was Thematic Apperception Test, open-ended interviews, audio recording and observation. Results from this study indicate that trilingual schizophrenics manifest illogical triadic code switch patterns involving mother tongue, Kiswahili and English resulting in a deviant language in code-switching patterns. This study will benefit scholars in linguistics, medical practitioners and the general public.

Code-switching Patterns of Educated and Non-educated Efik-English Bilinguals: A Descriptive Study

This article explores the patterns of intra-sentential code-switching in actual conversational interactions of educated and non-educated Efik-English bilinguals. A non-educated bilingual has limited English language proficiency while the educated bilingual is fluent in English; hence the tendency for switching among the latter category is higher. The study recognizes some social, cultural and situational factors that come to play as code-switching manifests as a communicative strategy amongst these bilinguals. Data for the study were sourced from interviews, metalinguistic conversations and recordings of naturally occurring interactions of educated and non-educated bilinguals. The study is based theoretically on Muysken’s (2000) typology of language mixing which involves the insertion of materials from one language into the structure from the other language and the alternation between structures of the two languages.The article concludes that the non-educated bilingual supplements code-switching as an innovative discourse mechanism while the educated bilingual uses the device as a complementary function which increases the impact of his or her language use and provides continuity for social negotiations in discourse. English serves as the matrix language for the educated bilinguals, and it is the embedded language for the non-educated bilinguals while Efik is the matrix language of the non-educated bilingual, and the embedded language of the educated bilingual. Among these bilinguals, code-switching enhances communication flow and provides a more favorable response to bilingualism.

A Sociolinguistic Study of Code-switching in Khanqeeni Kurdish

The study attempts to investigate the phenomenon of code-switching in conversation between the Kurds bilingual speakers in khanaqeen city from a sociolinguistic perspective. The main aim of this study is to investigate the conversational functions of code-switching performed by bilingual speakers in their daily oral interactions from a sociolinguistic point of view. It is hypothesized that Kurdish people in khanaqeen code-switch from Kurdish to Arabic and vice versa to achieve a number of functions for e.g. quotation, lack of facility, reiteration etc. A model which includes seven functions for analyzing the collected data is adopted. The data that are used are collected by using audio- recording of participant conversation in various domains. The theoretical part includes the functional model which is adopted for investigating the audio -recording data while the practical part includes audio-recording and analyzing the participants' conversation. The findings of this research reveal that code-switching occurs in conversation between the bilingual speakers in the city to serve several sociolinguistic functions or reasons. In addition to these reasons that stand behind code switching, the results of analysis reveal that there are three patterns of code switching: inter-sentential, intra-sentential and tag switching. The results also show that the intra-sentential pattern is used more frequently than other patterns among the bilingual speakers in the city. Finally the analysis of the data confirms the hypothesis adopted in the study.

Code-Switching between Arabic and English in Selected Egyptian Talk Shows: A Sociolinguistic Study

The present study examines Arabic-English Code-Switching as a persuasive strategy in selected Egyptian talk shows. The sample of the current study contains 17 recordings taken from 15 talk shows broadcast on different Egyptian TV channels between August 2014 and December 2017. This study investigates the patterns of Code-Switching that occur within the speech of the participants in the Egyptian talk shows. In addition, it sheds light on the persuasive techniques adopted by the interlocutors. Finally, it examines the sociolinguistic factors that might affect the participants' code-switched utterances. The findings of the study reveal that three main types of Code-Switching are employed in the Egyptian talk shows, namely; intra-sentential, inter-sentential and tag Code-Switching. Intra-sentential Code-Switching is utilized for 363 times with the percentage of 91.9%. Followed by inter-sentential Code-Switching with 20 examples with the percentage of 5.1%. Tag Code-Switching is adopted for 12 times with the percentage of 3%. In addition, the analysis concludes that a variety of persuasive techniques are employed by the participants in the Egyptian talk shows while switching codes. Such strategies include repetition, jargon, narration, analogy, cliche, humor, emotion, intertextuality, evidence, fear, cognitive dissonance and Monroe’s motivated sequence. Finally, the results show that a number of sociolinguistic factors might affect the code-switched utterances of the participants in the Egyptian talk shows. Such variables are; education, occupation, social class, gender, age, religion and ethnicity. Key words: Code-Switching, talk shows, persuasive techniques.

Code Switching by Female Students of Islamic School in Daily Communication: Modern Islamic Boarding School

The multi-ethnic and multi-lingual society of Islamic boarding school students (santri) involves the occurrence of code switching. This research aims to reveal the code switching patterns by female students in daily communication in Islamic school Al-Mukmin Ngruki Islamic Boarding School and Assalaam Islamic Modern Boarding School in Indonesia, and the factors affecting the occurrence of code switching in daily basis communication in Islamic boarding school. The data are derived from the verbal interaction among the female students in Islamic school. Meanwhile, the data are populated by using the techniques of observation, recording, and interview. Further, they are analysed by the use of Hymes, (1996) ethnography method of communication. The result of this study shows that the code switching patterns includes Intersentensial switching, Intrasentensial switching, and Tag switching. However, the dominant pattern of code switching used by female students is Intersentensial switching. It is occupied in order to clarify the sender messages. In the domain of friendship, there are switches on the language of Indonesian, English, Arabic, Javanese, Sundanese, and Malay. The cause of the code switching relates to closeness between the speakers and the partners, prestige, popular terms. Also, it intends to convey the purposes and intentions of the speakers such as confirming information and maintaining cultures.

Are there cognitive benefits of code-switching in bilingual children? A longitudinal study

The current study explored bilingual parent and child code-switching patterns over time. Concurrent and predictive models of code-switching behaviour on executive function outcomes were also examined in a sample of 29 French-English bilinguals at 36 (Wave 1) and 61 (Wave 2) months of age. We investigated whether code-switching typology in a single-language context predicted executive function performance at each wave independently, and whether growth in code-switching frequency across waves predicted executive function performance at Wave 2. At both waves, parents and children participated in two free play sessions (in English and French), followed by a battery of executive function tasks administered in the dominant language. Results indicate more frequent code-switching from the non-dominant to the dominant language in children, and that children code-switch to fill lexical gaps. Results also suggest that less frequent code-switching in a single-language context is associated with better inhibitory control skills during the preschool period.