Intergenerational language transmission in predominantly Catalan-speaking areas: the case of foreign-language speaking students in the Berguedà and Terres de l’Ebre regions

Abstract

This article examines intergenerational language transmission based on a sample of secondary school students in two areas of Catalonia where, for the vast majority, Catalan is both the first language and the language used. Based on a questionnaire distributed among immigrant students, the language which parents spoke to each other and the language which the students stated to be their first language were compared in order to determine any evidence of substitution. A comparison was also made between the reported first language and the language of (cultural) identification in order to detect whether transmission could come to cease.

Keywords: intergenerational language transmission, language and migration, Berguedà region, Terres de l’Ebre region, Catalonia.