Prof. Henning Klöter: Vanishing Multilingualism

The Chiang Ching-kuo International Sinological Center at Charles University invites you to a lecture “Vanishing Multilingualism: Language planning and language shift in Taiwan” delivered by Prof Henniga Klötera (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin) on 19 April 2023 at 4–5 pm at CU FA, Celetná 20, room C117.

Abstract:

Taiwan is home to some 20 living languages, most of which are critically endangered due to the massive dominance of Mandarin as the official/national language and the growing importance of English in education. In the first part of my presentation, this decrease in multilingualism will be placed in the context of language planning measures implemented since the 1950s. Special attention will be given to the promotion of Mandarin and the resulting phenomenon of language shift, i.e. the exclusive use of Mandarin by most younger speakers and the interruption of intergenerational language transmission. In the second part of the presentation, I will look at the visible manifestation of different languages in the linguistic landscape of Taipei city. Taking street name signs as an example, I will show that until today, official signage strictly reflects language norms and official standards of the post-1949 period and excludes non-standard linguistic alternatives such as Southern Min or Hakka. The profound ideological shift towards ‘nativisation’ that gathered momentum at the turn of the 21st century has left almost no visible traces on street signage.