Family language policy in multilingual Filipino families in Italy

Abstract

Many heritage speakers in diaspora communities are multilingual individuals, often speaking two or more heritage languages alongside the societal majority language as well as another lingua franca (i.e. English). This paper examines the multilingual practices of 26 Filipino speakers in Italy (15 from the first generation and 11 second generation) in the framework of Family Language Policy. Four main findings emerge from the sociolinguistic interviews: (1) the multilingualism of the first generation is reduced in second generation, with Philippine regional languages seldom transmitted to children; this is reflected in a varied attitude toward these languages; (2) in parent–children interactions the mixing of Filipino and Italian prevails, thus, although Italian is present, Filipino is always maintained, confirming an overall positive attitude; (3) English is never selected as the only language of communication, but rather in combination with Italian or Filipino; (4) in the second generation, the exclusive use of Italian occurs with peers or younger interlocutors (e.g. siblings, partners, children). This study further contributes to our understanding of linguistic choices among multilingual migrants by allowing a comparison with other Filipino diasporic communities in Asia, North America and Australia.