Unbalanced bilingualism: the case of heritage speakers

In the realm of bilingualism there is an extremely wide spectrum of diversity. The present work sets out to describe a particular case of unbalanced bilingualism: that of heritage speakers. The phenomenon of heritage languages is especially complex and fascinating as it is deeply rooted in the linguistic and cultural identity of the speakers. In the following pages I focus on identifying the heritage speaker population through the analysis of their three characterizing factors: early bilingualism, an unbalanced relationship between the two languages, and the dominance of the language of the broader speech community. A crucial topic in the discussion of heritage languages concerns the methodologies employed for their study: the second chapter of this thesis illustrates the principal methodological considerations to factor in when researching heritage languages. Finally, to complete the overview of the heritage speaker experience I focus on child heritage language development by discussing the impact of linguistic and cultural practices in the domestic environment during a child’s upbringing, and the importance of heritage language education.