Identity and language: Korean speaking Korean, Korean-American speaking Korean and English?

Abstract

The identity formation of a diaspora community is complex. The present study examines native language maintenance and ethnic identity of first-, 1.5-, and second-generation Korean-Americans in the United States, through the lenses of various identity construction and sociolinguistic theories. Identity and language are closely linked, and this relationship is bound by social contexts. Both identity and language are viewed as dynamic and mutable. The study also identifies social factors that affect linguistic behaviors and identity formation. The study further provides detailed analysis of the issues relevant to the conflict of identity in a current setting where pluralist ideology is strongly discouraged, as in the case of the United States. The perspective of English as an international language, and its power and influence on the formation of ethnic identity in the United States and Korea, are also addressed.

La formación de identidad de una comunidad diaspórica es compleja. El presente estudio se dedica a examinar el mantenimiento de la lengua nativa y la identidad étnica de la primera, 1.5 y segunda generación de coreano-norteamericanos en los Estados Unidos, considerando las diferentes teorías de la construcción de identidad y sociolingüística. La identidad y la lengua están estrechamente relacionadas, y dicha relación está ligada por los factores sociales que afectan los comportamientos lingüísticos y la formación de identidad. Asimismo, el estudio ofrece un análisis detallado de las cuestiones relacionadas al conflicto de identidad en el contexto actual donde la ideología pluralista es rotundamente rechazada, así como en los Estados Unidos. Se examinan, además, la perspectiva de inglés como una lengua internacional, y su poder e influencia en la formación de identidad en los Estados Unidos y en Corea.

Keywords:

• identity construction
• language shift
• native/heritage language
• Korean
• English
• Korean-American

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Jinny K. Choi is Associate Professor of Spanish and Spanish Linguistics at the University of Texas at Arlington, USA. Her areas of specialization are sociolinguistics and bi/multilingualism. She is currently working on several projects on language and identity in transnational bilingual/trilingual communities in South America and in the United States.

Notes

1. It is important to recognize that these attributes are not coequal and there is a hierarchy. Some of these criteria are more critical than others.

2. Numerous studies in second language acquisition (SLA) and psycholinguistics show the existence of the ‘critical period’ in language learning/acquisition process. It is the sensitive state in early years of life, in which language development occurs easily and successfully. The extent of the critical period is still disputable, even though it is widely accepted from age 5 to puberty. In fact, the exact years of puberty are open to discussion. The critical period may also depend on individuals’ experience and various factors such as amount of language input and exposure, language learning situation (e.g. formal classroom learning vs. informal context learning), and influence of other languages. Many researchers believe that the critical period is up to age 12 or 13. David Singleton (1995) recommends ‘younger, the better in the long run’ in the SLA, although he acknowledges several successful cases of older second-language learners.

3. This study is part of an extensive research project ‘Transnational Migration and (Re)settlement of Asians in the Americas.’ The questionnaires and research tools used in the present study come from another investigation carried out in South America by the same author.

4. The Korean language is the native tongue to first-generation Korean immigrants; to the second generation, Korean is their heritage language for it is the language of heritage and ancestry.

5. Silva (2007) reports that Korean is actually taught in a very limited number of high schools and colleges, mainly where there is a heavy population of Koreans, such as the Pacific Coast (e.g. California, Hawaii, Washington, Oregon) and the Northeast (e.g. New York, New Jersey, Maryland).

6. Filipinos were the only Asian ethnic group not affected by the 1924 National Origins Act because Philippines belonged to the United States since the 1898 Spanish-American War. Nevertheless, severe restrictions were imposed on Filipino immigration in 1934 when Philippines became a commonwealth of the United States. From that year Filipinos were no longer classified as American nationals but as aliens, restricting their admission to America to only 50 per year (Espiritu, 1995, Melendy, 1977, Xie and Goyette 2005).