Languaging in Ultima Thule: Multilingualism in the Life of a Sami Boy

In this paper we investigate multilingualism as a phenomenon which pervades different social and cultural levels but is manifested in the everyday life of multilingual individuals. As an illustration, we examine multilingualism from the perspective of a young Sami boy, Ante, and explore how differen...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of multilingualism 2008-05, Vol.5 (2), p.79-99
Main Authors: Pietikäinen, Sari, Alanen, Riikka, Dufva, Hannele, Kalaja, Paula, Leppänen, Sirpa, Pitkänen-Huhta, Anne
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Code Switching (Language)
Finland
Finno Ugric Languages
Foreign Countries
heteroglossia
Language Usage
languaging
Lapland
Multilingualism
multimodality
Rural Areas
Sami
Second Language Learning
Uncommonly Taught Languages
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Summary:In this paper we investigate multilingualism as a phenomenon which pervades different social and cultural levels but is manifested in the everyday life of multilingual individuals. As an illustration, we examine multilingualism from the perspective of a young Sami boy, Ante, and explore how different languages function as a complex - but at times problematic - set of resources for him. To capture the complexity and fluidity in the relationships between various languages in his life, we base our theorising on such concepts as 'linguistic resources', 'heteroglossia' and 'languaging'. With the help of multimodal data we examine how the linguistic resources present in Ante's daily life may provide affordances and set constraints for him. In addition, we study how Ante himself, as a multilingual child, takes issue with the languages in his life. We argue that the multilingualism present in Ante's environment embodies many opportunities and resources, but is also a source of ambiguity. The ways in which Ante moves between languages, makes choices between them and positions himself in relation to them seem to suggest that while languages do position Ante in various ways, he can also choose which language to use and when as part of his active languaging work.
ISSN:1479-0718
1747-7530
DOI:10.1080/14790710802152289