Language Loyalty in the United States: The Maintenance and Perpetuation of Non-English Mother Tongues by American Ethnic and Religious GroupsThis is a study of the self-maintenance efforts, rationales, and accomplishments of non-English speaking immigrants on American shores. It is not a study of the assimilation of American immigrants and of the resultant formation of the supra-ethnic American nation. The two processes--de-ethnization and Americanization, opposite cultural-linguistic self-maintenance--are equally ubiquitous throughout all of American history. As a nation we have paid infinitely more attention to the Americanization process than to the self-maintenance process. This study represents an all too preliminary attempt to redress this imbalance in attention. At the present time, non-English language skills are recognized as scarce and vital commodities in the conduct of our nation's international relations. Is it possible that we have appreciable but as yet unrecognized resources of these scarce commodities? This is an attempt to explore the current extent and status of culture and language maintenance efforts. Varying approaches, topics, and levels of collaboration and cross-fertilization were encouraged. It is hoped that the report produced leaves the field of inquiry somewhat more organized than when this effort began. |
Contents
Preface | 15 |
The Historical and Social Contexts of an Inquiry into Language Maintenance | 21 |
2 Mother Tongue and Nativity in the American Population | 49 |
Copyright | |
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activities affiliated American Anglification Anglo attitudes become bilingualism broadcasting CALIFORNIA/SANTA CRUZ Catholic Church circulation claimants continued Day Schools de-ethnization domains Eastern English ethnic cultural ethnic groups ethnic mother tongue ethnic organizations ethnic parishes ethnic schools factors Fishman foreign born foreign language Franco-Americans French French language frequently functional German language German-American goals guage Hispanic culture ideological immigrants increase institutions interest Italian Jewish language and culture language maintenance efforts language shift leaders less linguistic Lutheran maintenance and language major membership Missouri Synod mother tongue instruction mother tongue teachers non-English language non-English mother tongues non-ethnic organizational parents particular peasant Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Dutch Pennsylvania German Polish political population positives programs public schools pupils recent relatively religion religious school types social society Southwest Spanish language Spanish speakers Spanish-speaking Table tion Total traditions Ukrainian Ukrainian language United UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA/SANTA urban Yeshiva University Yiddish York