Plurilingual and pluricultural as the new normal: an examination of language use and identity in the multilingual city of Montreal

Abstract

As plurilingual/multilingual research advances, factors that contribute to or hinder individual’s flexible language use are still underexplored. Questions such as Why do some people identify as plurilingual and pluricultural while others do not? and What factors contribute to high levels of plurilingual and pluricultural competence (PPC)? remain unknown. This article presents results of a mixed methods study with 250 plurilingual participants in the multilingual city of Montreal, Canada. Data was collected through a demographic questionnaire, the Plurilingual and Pluricultural Identity Questionnaire (PPIQ) and the Plurilingual and Pluricultural Competence (PPC) scale. Results show that a vast majority of participants identified as plurilingual and pluricultural, and seven reasons for shaping this identity were found: rich repertoire, lived experiences, awareness of differences and similarities, transculturalism, adaptation and integration, translanguaging, and openness. Moreover, there was a significant difference in PPC scores between Canadian-born participants and participants born outside of Canada, suggesting that speakers of minority languages in Canada have lower PPC scores compared to speakers of Canada’s official languages. These results are significant as they enhance our understanding of language use and identity, suggesting that plurilingualism and pluriculturalism can be the new norm in multilingual contexts but minority languages need further recognition.

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