Browse Items (94 total)
-
French All Around Us: French Language and Francophone Culture in the United States
French is literally everywhere - in our history and values, in our families, and in our neighborhoods and communities, from the croissant or macaron in our local café or bistro to family and place names across the country. These are the stories of French language and Francophone culture in the US, but, even more importantly, the stories of Franco-Americans - ranging from descendants of the earliest French explorers and French-Canadian immigrants to the newest arrivals in the US from throughout the Francophone world. This book is of interest to all of us, whatever our background, as the experience of French language and Francophone culture in the US has similarities to and intersects with the many languages and cultures that have contributed to the American experience -
St. John Valley Bilingual Education Program Records
This collection contains records from attempts to create bilingual education programs (now called immersion programs) in a handful of schools in the St. John Valley, including examples of bilingual schools in Canada and other states following the Bilingual Education Act of 1968. The majority of this collection consists of manuscript documents and booklets. The books in question are paperbound and held together by staples rather than the traditional bound books that many people may think of. Many of the manuscripts are held together by accordion-style covers that have a metal clip holding the pages together. -
The Lost Wor(l)ds of Franco-America
Patrick Lacroix gives a talk on the history, language, and culture of Franco-Americans. -
Conference on the French Language Community in North America
Presentation of conference lectures in support of the creation of CODOFINE - Council for the Development of French in New England - as modeled after Louisiana's CODOFIL. CODOFINE and its organizers' competing orientations toward Franco Americans in New England, as well as their attitudes toward cultural identity, language, and the language-learning process. Concludes with a presentation of conference resolutions and resolved group leaders. Comprised of the following sections: Introduction
The Franco-Americans - In Search of an Invisible Minority
The New Franco-American
French-English Bilingualism and Bilingual Education
Final Conference Session
Comité provisoire pour la formation du Conseil pour le développement du français en Nouvelle-Angleterre
-
Franco-American Language Maintenance Efforts in New England : Realities and Issues
Essay describing the sociology and psychology of Franco Americans in New England as conditions tied to their history in North America. How French language maintenance efforts are involved in articulating and uncomplicating these conditions. The state of different 1970s media (classroom programming, print, radio, television, etc.) by which the French language has been made available in New England. Some thoughts on the state of Franco American culture - popular interest, support, vitality. Featured in a collection of papers from a 1974 Indiana University conference on the Francophones of the Americas. Complete title of the text includes the following: "Actes ducolloque tenu aè l'Université d'Indiana, Bloomington, du 28 au 30 mars 1974."Tags Caribou ME, Community: Customs and Social Life, Connecticut, Demography, Derby VT, Education, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Frenchville ME, Greenville NH, Journalism, Language and Linguistics, Lewiston ME, Maine, Massachusetts, New England, New Hampshire, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Orono ME, Québec, Religion, Rhode Island, St. Agatha ME, St. John River Valley, Vermont -
Research Relevant to the Development of Bilingual Curricula
1967 report on research in the fields of socio- and psycholinguistics. Incorporates data on a study of French Canadian French/English bilingualism in different contexts. Presented at the Annual Conference of Foreign Language Teachers, El Paso, Texas (November 10-11, 1967). -
Basic Conversational French for Health Personnel : A Telecture Program
Franco American language and culture resource guide for healthcare personnel. Glossary of French language terms and phrases, lessons, and an example story of French-English bilingual interaction. Published for a 1979 telecture (long-distance learning) course in nursing, provided by the University of Southern Maine. In addition to course and instructor information, includes the following sections: Historical and Sociological Background (with French in North American timeline) Vocabulary and phrases: Basic Terms; Anatomy; General Hospital Terms and Phrases; Admissions; Physical Therapy; Operating Room; X-Ray; Laboratory Dealing with Feelings -
The Name of DeRose : Translations of French family names into English
Article in the official journal of the Canadian Society for the Study of Names (formerly "Onomastica"). Features scholarship on name transition and translation, with a particular emphasis on these processes as they work through French Canadian names in the state of Vermont. -
The Origins and Development of French-Canadian Family Names
From the author:"Although most French-Canadian surnames bear a strong resemblance to those found in France today, many have undergone various types of orthographical and phonological alterations which make them unique in the French-speaking world. Further contributing to this singularity is the admixture of a substantial number of French names from other countries (Belgium, Switzerland) as well as non-French names from France (Basque Country, Brittany, Alsace-Lorrain) and elsewhere (Germany, Ireland, United States, Spain, etc.) This article is an attempt to provide an account of the origins and development of this amalgam of family names." -
Les noms de famille du Canada français : origines et évolution
De l'introduction: "La grande majorité des noms de famille du Québec à l'heure actuelle sont d'origine française, et on en trouve aussi un grand nombre en Acadie. Hormis les Huguenots qui se sont établis ici et là aux Etats-Unis aux XVIIe et XVIIIe siiècles, c'est à partir de ces deux grandes régions que les noms francophones se sont répandus à travers l'Amérique. Dans la plupart des cas, ils sont les produits des patronymes que portaient les immigrants qui se sont établis en Nouvelle-France au début de la colonie. Au bout de quelque 400 ans, il n'est pas étonnant de retrouver des différences importantes tant au niveau linguistique que distributionnel entre les noms de famille que l'on retrouve en France et ceux du Nouveau Monde. En effet, on peut soutenir que la divergence entre les deux fait de la recherche onomastique en Amérique du nord un domaine tout à fait indépendant qui, étonnamment, n'a reçu que triès peu de considération si on compare tout le temps et l'effort qui ont été consacrés à l'étude généalogique de ces noms." -
La langue française au défi de la diversité, par l'expérience de la minorité : le français, langue régionale de Louisiane
De l'auteur: "Ce texte porte sur la langue française telle qu'elle se parle en Louisiane depuis priès de quatre siiècles. Apriès un bref rappel de ses sources (français hexagonal, créole, acadien, etc), l'auteur s'intéresse aux efforts de revitalisation de la langue française à partir des années 1960. Depuis une cinquantaine d'années, l'école a pris le relais de la famille comme principal lieu de transmission de la langue française, ce qui n'est pas sans représenter un certain nombre de défis en ce qui a trait à la nature du français à enseigner." -
"Parfois le bon mot nous échappe" : Interference Phenomena Among Franco-Americans in Massachusetts
Essay on linguistic phenomena -- "code-switching," "tag-switching," or other culturally indicative lingual breaks -- in Franco-American bilingual speech patterns found in Massachusetts. Includes a discussion of some common speech characteristics of Francophone Canada, as well. -
Some Specimens of a Canadian French Dialect Spoken in Maine
A short explanation of notes taken on the linguistic properties of one Waterville and another Cornville, Maine, Franco-American's French language tendencies in the late nineteenth century. Historical measure of the MLA's concern with Canadian French in America before the turn of the century, and an early dissection of local French by a linguist attracted to the structures and tones common to Central Maine French speech. -
Exploring the Dialect of the Franco-Americans of Manchester, New Hampshire
From the authors: "This research focuses on... the French language's influence on Franco-American English in Manchester, a city in southern New Hampshire....The questions we explore include the following: Does the Franco-American community of Manchester have its own French-influenced dialect on English? What sociolinguistic factors influence this dialect? Do speakers with stronger cultural ties to the Franco-American community produce a more French-sounding English? Can immersion in Franco-American culture have an influence on speakers who are monolingual (in English)?" -
Linguistic Change in Endangered Dialects : The Case of Alternation Between Avoir and être in Vermont French
Linguistic study from the University of Vermont. From Cambridge University Press: "The present study examines the pattern of the variation of the auxiliary avoir and être in the passé composé tense in Vermont French in 22 adult speakers who migrated from Québec or are first-generation Franco-Americans. The purpose of the study is to determine if the process of replacement of être by avoir in progress in Canadian French is also taking place in Vermont and which linguistic and social constraints influence this linguistic change." -
Notes on the Vocabulary of the French-Canadian Dialect Spoken in Brunswick, Maine
An exploration of French language spoken by the descendents of French-Canadian immigrants in Brunswick, Maine. Includes pronunciations and a litany of terms that differ from "standard French." -
Language Attitudes in a French-American Community
From ERIC: "[The text] examines these questions: how do America's ethno-linguistic groups adjust to the bicultural demands made on them? How are speakers of local varieties of French as opposed to other forms viewed by French-Americans? Does participation in a bilingual education program influence children's attitudes?" -
The Structure of the Canadian French Consonant System
Discussion of consonantal traits characteristic of Canadian French, excluding the dialectical traits of the Acadians typically heard in Northern Maine and the Maritime Provinces in Canada. Brief references to French Creole and New England Franco-American French. From the author: "The purpose of this study is to discuss the structure of the consonant system of Canadian French, especially in its more archaic (i.e., less assimilated to the standard language) form, in order to show that a seemingly complex set of allophonic and phonemic developments, of different origins, bear witness to a single tendency toward greater economy of distinctive features in the phonological system." -
L'identité franco-américaine : tendances actuelles dans le sud de la Nouvelle-Angleterre
De Fox, Fortin, Martin, et Stelling: "Le terme «franco-américain» s'emploie pour désigner les immigrants canadiens arrivés au nord-est des États-Unis pendant une période s'étalant de 1840 à 1930. Catholiques et francophones, ils y ont établi des communautés resserrées et un réseau d'institutions religieuses, scolaires et sociales afin de maintenir leur religion, leur langue, et leur mode de vie traditionnel. Cependant, l'évolution rapide qu'a connue ce groupe depuis les soixante derniières années a déclenché un débat sur sa définition : comment les Franco-Américains se caractérisent-ils actuellement? Partagent-ils encore une identité commune? La présente étude cherche à contribuer à la discussion en se servant de témoignages oraux provenant d'entretiens sociolinguistiques réalisés aupriès de 130 habitants de quatre villes: Woonsocket (Rhode Island), Southbridge et Gardner (Massachussetts) et Bristol (Connecticut). Deux analyses quantitatives de ces données nous permettent d'obtenir une vue d'ensemble de la question identitaire. Puis, nous nous penchons sur les particularités de chaque communauté dans une série d'analyses qualitatives. La synthièse de ces différentes analyses nous permet de constater que les quatre communautés connaissent un processus d'assimilation dont le rythme et les caractéristiques diffièrent considérablement d'une communauté à l'autre. Même si un grand nombre d'entre-eux utilisent toujours l'étiquette franco-américaine pour se décrire, les Franco-Américains se limitent désormais à une conception identitaire qui évolue au sein de leur propre communauté sans référence à une culture supra-communautaire." -
Recherches en cours sur le français franco-américain
De Glottopol, la revue de sociolinguistique en ligne: "Jane Smith et Cynthia Fox font le point sur les analyses qu'elles ont déjà produites jusqu'ici, notamment la situation du franco-américain à l'heure actuelle, l'implantation des dialectes franco-canadiens et acadiens et le maintien ou la perte de leurs traits d'origine ; les conséquences linguistiques du contact avec l'anglais et de l'emploi réduit du français ; et enfin le franco-américain à l'intérieur du dynamisme du français nord-américain."Tags Acadians, Acculturation and Assimilation, Berlin NH, Biddeford ME, Bristol CT, Demography, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Gardner MA, Gender and Sexuality, Language and Linguistics, New England, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Southbridge MA, Van Buren ME, Waterville ME, Woonsocket RI -
Franco-American Voices : French in the Northeastern United States Today
From the author: "This paper describes the current situation of Franco-American French. The discussion is based on interviews with 275 speakers from eight communities: Van Buren, Waterville, and Biddeford, Maine, Berlin, New Hampshire, Southbridge and Gardner, Massachusetts, Bristol, Connecticut, and Woonsocket, Rhode Island. Our analysis confirms that French has not been transmitted to the youngest generations and that its domains of use are highly restricted. Nevertheless, the majority of speakers still use the language often (18%) if not daily (44%). Our findings suggest that French still plays a central role in the lives of its speakers despite their decreasing numbers." -
La variation régionale en français franco-américain : les formes verbales à la troisieme personne du pluriel
Du l'auteur: "Cet article présente les résultats d'une étude des formes verbales à la troisiième personne du pluriel dans le français parlé à Gardner, Massachusetts. Nous commençons par un survol historique de cette communauté franco-américaine. Nous passons ensuite à une description de notre méthodologie. Enfin, la quantification des données nous permet de dégager des tendances générales quant à la distribution de ces formes."Tags Berlin NH, Biddeford ME, Bristol CT, Brunswick ME, Cohoes NY, Community: Customs and Social Life, Demography, Emigration and Immigration, Franklin VT, Gardner MA, Greenville NH, Highgate VT, Language and Linguistics, Lewiston ME, Manchester NH, New Brunswick, New England, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Nova Scotia, Québec, Rumford ME, Southbridge MA, Van Buren ME, Waterville ME, Woonsocket RI -
On Maintaining a Francophone Identity in Cohoes, NY
From the author: "One third of the population of Cohoes, New York, is descended from French-Canadians who immigrated to the northeastern United States between 1840 and 1930. Since the end of immigration, the close-knit community centered on the French parish has undergone profound changes and French has ceased to be the language of everyday communication among its members. This paper describes the characteristic behaviors and attitudes which set the remaining Cohoes French speakers off as a group from other minority language communities and help them maintain their francophone identity."Tags Acculturation and Assimilation, Cohoes NY, Community: Customs and Social Life, Demography, Emigration and Immigration, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Hudson River Valley, Language and Linguistics, Mohawk River Valley, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Personal History: Biography and Oral History -
Une communauté franco-américaine dans l'Etat de New York : une étude préliminaire sur le français à Cohoes
Un bref essai sur la persistance au vingtiième siiècle de la langue et la culture francophone à Cohoes, New York. -
Name-Changing Patterns among French Canadians in Waterville, Maine
Brief history of French-Canadian immigration to Waterville, Maine, followed by an exploration of the reasons behind a strong pattern of surname-translation and -changing in the same town. Includes a short list of original surnames and their corresponding anglicizations. -
Where French Is Not A Foreign Language : Franco-Americans and the State and University of Maine
Rise and decline of French language media and academic programs in the US Northeast, as well as the persistence of discrimination against the North American French, with Maine as the primary context for observation. Includes tables of Maine county and town names with their respective percentage of French heritage population.Tags Acculturation and Assimilation, Auburn ME, Bangor ME, Biddeford ME, Education, Emigration and Immigration, Fort Kent ME, France, Language and Linguistics, Lewiston ME, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, New Brunswick, New England, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Nova Scotia, Orono ME, Québec, St. John River Valley, St. Lawrence River Valley, Waterville ME, Woonsocket RI, Worcester MA -
Some Misconceptions about Teaching American Ethnic Children Their Mother Tongue
Essay on language instruction, problems with favoring rote over mother tongue, and some arguments for maintaining linguistic heritages in language education. -
New England French Vocabulary
Brault's essay is an explanation of the results of language tests taken by nine Franco-American French speakers, his evaluation of their levels of vocabulary, and his observations of their speech habits. The overall conclusion of his study partially reads: "The following partial tabulation of a Preliminary Classification Test administered to all nine informants demonstrates the fact that the two levels in the Franco-American phonetic system normally have a lexical correlation. In other words, if a Franco-American at Level 1 (i.e. that level farthest from standard French) succeeds in raising his speech phonetically to Level 2 (i.e. an intermediate level between Level 1 and standard French), his vocabulary will normally reveal a similar degree of switching to modern French." -
Attitudes linguistiques et transfert à l'Anglais dans une communauté franco-américaine non homogiène : le cas de Bristol, Connecticut
De Bagate, Lemery, et Martin: "Dans cet article, nous essayons de décrire le processus de transfert linguistique à Bristol. Nous présentons d'abord un bref historique de cette communauté francophone ainsi que des données démographiques puisées dans plusieurs recensements du United States Census Bureau. Ensuite, nous analysons des commentaires provenant d'une trentaine d'entretiens réalisés aupriès des Franco-Américains de Bristol au cours de l'été 2002 et comparons l'origine, l'appartenance à la premiière, deuxiième ou troisiième génération d'immigrants, le type de mariage (exogame, endogame), l'usage et la transmission de la langue ainsi que les attitudes linguistiques des locuteurs interviewés."Tags Acculturation and Assimilation, Bristol CT, Connecticut, Demography, East Hartford CT, Emigration and Immigration, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Hartford CT, Language and Linguistics, Lewiston ME, Lowell MA, Maine, Massachusetts, Meriden CT, New Britain CT, New Brunswick, New England, New Hampshire, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Rhode Island, Van Buren ME, Vermont, Waterbury CT, Waterville ME, West Hartford CT, Woonsocket RI -
French in Maine
Essay concerning the American Association of Teachers of French (AATF) 1954 conference named, "French in Maine." Tries to address the specific role of French language teachers in Maine given the state's particular linguistic and ethnic characteristics.Tags Acculturation and Assimilation, Biddeford ME, Brunswick ME, Education, Fort Kent ME, Frenchville ME, Grand Isle ME, Labor History, Language and Linguistics, Lewiston ME, Madawaska ME, Maine, New Brunswick, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Journalism, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Nova Scotia, St. John River Valley, Van Buren ME, Waterville ME -
The Teacher of French and the Franco-American Newspaper
Article describing French, French-Canadian, and Franco-American newspapers published in the US and Canada as useful classroom tools for language learning and cultural competency. Discussions of various relevant French-language periodicals, their contents, origins, and distribution. Suggestions for their use with students.Tags Alberta, Berlin NH, California, Canada, Fall River MA, Lewiston ME, Los Angeles CA, Louisiana, Maine, Manitoba, Massachusetts, New Bedford MA, New Brunswick, New England, New Hampshire, New York, Newark NJ, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Education, Nonfiction -- Journalism, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Pittsburgh PA, Québec, Rhode Island, San Francisco CA, Saskatchewan, Worcester MA -
"Speak White" : Language Policy, Immigration, Discourse, and Tactical Authenticity in a French Enclave in New England
Article analyzing the Sentinelle Affair in 1920s Rhode Island as a case study in <i>la survivance</i>, for the role of language politics in spectres of assimilation and white ethnicity in the United States, and as a lens to the political economies that have historically upheld English Only language policy arguments. An expansive reading of Sentinellist responses to American Catholic Church English language policies for parochial schools. How events like the Sentinelle Affair imply what have been historical, multifaceted linguistic realities in education throughout the United States, and in particular in New England French-heritage enclaves of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Argument in favor of Franco American "settlement" in New England as best understood in the discourse of diaspora instead of the "resistance-assimilation" dichotomy that often accompanies discussions of local culture in American immigration. -
Language and Culture : Heritage and Horizons : The 1976 Northeast Conference
Summary description of the twenty-third annual meeting of the Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, held in New York City. The conference's theme relating to the origins and endurance of languages other than English among immigrant groups in the United States, and culminating in three reports: "Origins," "Cultural Pluralism," and "Contributions." Descriptions of conference participants and program content, with emphases on French, Spanish, and German languages. Includes brief descriptions of the work of Normand Dubé, Don Dugas, Guy Dubay, Alain Blanchet, Paul Chassé, Claire Quintal, Nelson Pepin, Joan Young, Roger Paradis, Richard Santerre, Ann Woolfson, Robert Paris, and others. -
Language and Nationalism : Two Integrative Essays
From ERIC: "The extent to which the language planning that has been pursued in many localities and in many periods has been guided by nationalism, that is, by '...the social movements, attitudes, and ideologies which characterize the behavior of nationalities engaged in the struggle to achieve, maintain or enhance their position in the world' (Wirth 1936) is examined in this text. The study familiarizes the reader with the formations and the transformations of nationalism itself, and also examines how and why language commonly comes to be one of the ingredients in nationalist goals and programs..." -
A Translator's Journey : A Retrospective
Personal observations of a Franco American author and psychotherapist on his French-to-English translation of "Body Psychotherapy: History, Concepts, and Methods" by Michael Heller. Confronting the prospect of a translation project; reencountering the "long dormant French language" of his youth; configuring and reacquainting his body to speaking in French. -
The French Fact : Linguistic Challenge, Demographic Reality, Political Distortion
Essay on the realities of bilingualism in Canada, specifically in Québec. Projections for the future of the French language there with respect to human movement, population, and linguistic assimilation to English. Acknowledges the political strength and vocalization of Québec City has impacted ("distorted") actual popular arguments in defense of the French language. -
Teaching Language Varieties for Communication
Article exploring the extent to which non-native speakers of French are able to communicate with native French speakers of Canadian heritage. Presentation of a study conducted in Lowell, Massachusetts with native speakers and non-native French-language students. Discrepancies in vocabulary usage and comprehension among native speakers, as found in the author's study, and some observations on their communication with non-native, student-age speakers of French. -
The Acadian French and their language
Article on the Acadian people of the Canadian Maritimes and the persistence of their French vernacular. The Acadian presence in North America from the 17th century; to various settlements in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia; to the 18th century expulsion, later return, and the settlements that have remained up to the 20th century. Certain French vocabulary and usage that has historically characterized Acadian speech. Introduces the life and historical, linguistic work of Pascal Poirier, scholar and statesman. Discusses the historical and literary work of author Antonine Maillet. A large section dedicated to a discussion of the etymology and usage of certain Acadian French terms. -
Langue et identité dans le Québec du XIXe siiècle : une écriture triangulaire
Une analyse de 44 lettres échangées en 1880 par des membres d'une famille à travers la frontiière entre les États-Unis et Canada - de la ville de Montréal aux mines de Leadville, Colorado. Quelques explications sur les notions de la famille, la religion, la langue, et le travail, telles qu'elles apparaissent dans les lettres étudiées. Une briève analyse de la grammaire et l'usage comme on le voit dans le contexte de chaque lettre. -
French and German : A Comparative Study
Essay presenting data on a study of French, French Canadian, and German immigrants in the United States; French and German language usage therein; and figures corresponding to French and German American language communities. Data on patterns in French and German language instruction in United States schools from the late 19th century to the late 20th. The relationship of the 1968 US Bilingual Education Act to French and German language instruction and usage. Some of the author's predictions for the future of French and German language in the United States. -
Sociolinguistics, Politics, and Language Teaching
Brief article on the integration of linguistic theory, language teaching, and sociolinguistics. Thoughts on some of the political and social implications of dialects, and questions about applying certain linguistic theories to the teaching of language. Compares teaching English in African American communities to teaching French in French Canadian, Franco American communities, and discusses issues surrounding language instruction in what the author calls "non-standard dialect." References to the author's Bowdoin College, Brunswick, Maine, conferences for teachers of French held in the early 1960s. -
A Listener's Guide to Francophones in the Northeast
Linguistic guide to French dialects often heard among French speakers in New England. Essay that traces, in condensed form, the historical evolution of Indo-European language into North American and New England dialects of French. Origins of certain French dialects in New England. Comparisons between North American and European French vocabularies and pronunciations, generally, with certain examples. Linguistic explanation of southern New England dialect common vowel and consonant sounds. Includes list of "northeastern American French usages not heard in Europe" and a short bibliography. Annotations of soundtapes that are included with written material. Designed for workshop use. Divided into the following sections: The Problems The History The Language The Tapes Developed by the Bilingual Education Service Center at the University of Vermont. -
Le français en Nouvelle-Angleterre
Bref essai sur la langue et la démographie franco-américaine dans la Nouvelle-Angleterre dans les années 1970. Comparaisons spécifiques entre les traits de la langue française et ses usages en Nouvelle-Angleterre et au Canada, avec de brièves contextes historiques pour leur développement général. Présenté dans un recueil d'écrits sur les francophones hors de France, et avec un sentiment envers la préservation culturelle et linguistique. Suivie par une briève bibliographie.Composé des sections suivantes: Introduction Configurations spatiales du peuplement de la Nouvelle-Angleterre par les Franco-Américains Les étapes de l'histoire franco-américaine Chiffres relatifs a la population franco-américaine contemporaine Traits communs au français canadien et au français de Nouvelle-Angleterre Traits distinctifs du français de Nouvelle-Angleterre Les perspectivesTags Adams MA, Auburn ME, Berlin NH, Biddeford ME, Boston MA, Cambridge MA, Central Falls RI, Chicopee MA, Connecticut, Demography, Dudley MA, Fall River MA, Fitchburg MA, Haverhill MA, Holyoke MA, Killingly CT, Language and Linguistics, Lawrence MA, Lewiston ME, Lowell MA, Maine, Manchester NH, Marlboro MA, Massachusetts, Nashua NH, New Bedford MA, New England, New Hampshire, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, North Adams MA, Old Town ME, Pawtucket RI, Providence RI, Québec, Rhode Island, Saco ME, Salem MA, Southbridge MA, Spencer MA, Springfield MA, Taunton MA, Vermont, Ware MA, Warwick RI, Waterbury CT, Waterville ME, Webster MA, Woonsocket RI, Worcester MA -
Subtractive Bilingualism: The Case of FrancoAmericans in Maine's St John Valley
Presentation of research on "ethnolinguistic vitality" among French-English bilingual students in the schools of Maine's St. John River Valley. Data supporting the trend there toward "subtractive bilingualism," where the use of one language is preferred at the expense of another. From the author: "The study, carried out in two school districts of the St John Valley in the state of Maine in the Unites States, compares three subgroups of francophones and anglophones on measures of the strength of their network of linguistic contacts in French and English, their communicative and cognitive-academic linguistic proficiency in these languages, their vitality beliefs concerning the francophone and anglophone communities, the strength of their ethnolinguistic identities and their degree of use of French and English in various social domains. The results, which are interpreted within the framework of a macroscopic model of the determinants of additive and subtractive bilingualism, are very conclusive in showing that bilingualism for these Franco-American students is strongly subtractive." -
Franglais, a case of lexical bilingualism
Brief article on instances of "lexical biligualism," with particular emphasis on the measured impact of American English on the French language in France. Attitudes developed in France between 1950 and 1970 toward this linguistic influence, and toward international variations on the French language, and some efforts aimed at managing them during said period. -
The effects of grammatical proscription on morphosyntactic change : Auxiliary variation in Franco-American French
Essay comparing case-study linguistic research on linguistic proscription, French language shift, and linguistic change within Franco American communities in Southbridge, Massachusetts and Woonsocket, Rhode Island. Provides brief historical and linguistic context for each community. Focuses on the usage of the French verbs "avoir" and "être." -
Psychological Approaches to the Study of Language : Part II : On Second-Language Learning and Bilingualism
Essay on certain psychological aspects of language-learning influenced by social contexts. Based on research conducted among students in the bilingual city of Montréal. Includes comparative case studies with Franco American students in Louisiana and Maine. Case studies explore not only students' intellectual capacity, but the impact of one's social orientation toward a non-Anglophone cultural community on one's abilities and attitudes toward learning that community's language - in these cases, French. Comments on new research in second-language development. Presents new findings that compare test scores on cognitive ability in monolingual and bilingual students. Includes the sections, "A Social Psychology of Second-Language Learning" and "A Psychology of Bilingualism." -
Livret du professeur de français franco-américaine : considerations sur certains problemes d'ordre linguistique et pedagogique par quelques-uns des participants de l'Institut Franco-Américain de Bowdoin College
Un petit livre de pensées sur l'enseignment de la langue française aux jeunes gens. Des problièmes, méthodes, et concernes linguistiques et culturelles qui sont nécessaires pour les enseignants à considérer dans la salle de classe, et avec les étudiants franco-américains en particulier. -
False Accents : Embodied Dialects and the Characterization of Ethnicity and Nationality
Exploration of how the dramatic use of accents and dialects in English speech informs and complicates discourse on race and ethnicity. How the function of identity in drama and performance distinguishes between the concepts of race and ethnicity. Some observations on recent contributions to the study of accents and dialects as elements of the fields of both linguistics and performance studies. The relationship of "theatre practices" to "social realities" as evidenced in the performance of a wide-ranging variety of English dialects.Tags Acculturation and Assimilation, African Americans, Arab Americans, Asian Americans, Chinese Americans, Emigration and Immigration, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Filipino Americans, Hispanic Americans, Irish Americans, Italian Americans, Japanese Americans, Korean Americans, Language and Linguistics, Mexican Americans, Native Americans, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Performing Arts -
Acquiring a Slice of Anglo-American Pie : A Portrait of Language Shift in a Franco-American Family
Third chapter in a collection of essays on language ideology as related to issues surrounding the political movement in favor of codifying English the official language of the United States. This essay presents a case-study in the processes and progression of language shift in the home - from French to bilingual to English - as taking place within a large family in a rural Vermont community. Certain impacts of rurality/urbanity, educational institutions, socialization norms, world events involving the United States (eg., wars), and age on the processes of linguistic assimilation. Differences in language abilities, as well as differences of opinions on language usage and legislation, as seen between younger and older siblings. Contains a brief overview of French Canadian immigration to New England.Tags Acculturation and Assimilation, Connecticut, Emigration and Immigration, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Family, Farming and Agriculture, Government and Politics, Language and Linguistics, Mills and Mill Work, New England, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Northeast Kingdom VT, Vermont -
Pronunciation of the French Spoken at Brunswick, Maine
Republication of a 1941 doctoral thesis in linguistics, presented with historical introduction from a University of Virginia scholar. Observations and analyses of the linguistic characteristics of vernacular French in the French Canadian and Franco American community of Brunswick, Maine, in the early twentieth century. Special emphasis on pronunciation and its relationship to the pronunciation of standard French, as measured by the contemporary linguist. -
Le français en contact avec l'anglais : analyse des anglicismes dans le français parlé à Cohoes, New York
Un étude sur la présence de mots anglais dans le parole français d'un communauté franco-américain dans l'état de New York. Des données et chiffres qui correspondent aux tendances linguistiques dans ce communauté. L'influence de la langue anglaise sur un peuple américain qui a le français pour langue maternelle. -
Les attitudes des Franco-Américains de la Nouvelle-Angleterre envers la langue française
Essai sur changements dans les rélations entre les Franco-Américains et la langue francaise, des débuts des enclaves francos et la survivance en Nouvelle-Angleterre jusqu'aux années 1980. Divisé en partie par les sujets qui suivent: écarts générationnels entre 1900, 1950, et le présent; 3 raisons pour préserver la langue française; 3 causes du déclin du français en Nouvelle-Angleterre; l'état ¹¹de la langue française quotidienne pour les Francos aujourd'hui. Suivie par quelques questions de discussion pour considerer les revendications du texte. Also published in the April 1984 issue of FRENCH REVIEW, volume 57, number 5. -
Oral and Nasal Vowel Diphthongization of a New England French Dialect
The study of a linguistic tendency of Franco American French speakers in Manchester, New Hampshire. Comparisons between a local French dialect and what the author terms "Standard French." Calling for an awareness of unique local speech patterns. Contains appendices of the study's informant data, words examined, local pronunciations, and sound comparisons. Also includes nearly 50 diagrams of linguistic phenomena, as well as shadow images - "spectograms" - produced from words pronounced in the local dialect. Republication of Poulin's 1972 thesis of the same title (Ph.D., New York University, School of Education). -
The Social Consequences of Writing Louisiana French
The status of French language in Louisiana over time - diversity, amalgamation, decay, revival, and current modes of expression. How the written French word in the context of Louisiana French language revival has taken on special political and social meaning. The written word as a sight for examining the connections between "social and linguistic change" in Louisiana. From the author: "Studies on language shift often refer to the demise of the ousted variety by detailing various stages of language decay and extinction. Problematic for these accounts are well-documented cases of intervening social phenomena, such as language revival movements, which can alter in some way the stages of decline. French Louisiana's situation illustrates language shift interacting with a strong revival movement. In the wake of the revival and in spite of continued shift, another trend is apparent -- the writing of Louisiana French. Whereas shift clearly represents a stage of language decline, the creation of a written code functions as a key ingredient for language maintenance. A sociolinguistic analysis of these forces reveals the complexity and the conflict involved in the choice of the written word." -
The Politics of Codeswitching and Language Choice
From the author: "Using data from ethnographic studies of the use of French and English in Ontario and Quebec (Canada) in a variety of settings (hospital, factory, school, etc.) over the period 1978-1990, I discuss language choice as a political strategy, especially as a strategy of ethnic mobilisation. More broadly, I argue that codeswitching must be understood in terms of individual communicative repertoires and community speech economies, particularly as these are tied to a political economic analysis of the relationship between the availability and use of linguistic varieties, on the one hand, and the production and distribution of symbolic and material resources on the other." -
Talking Acadian : Communication, Work, and Culture
A case study in intercultural communication, with linguistic and psychological insight into the dynamics of an American Acadian community in Gardner, Massachusetts. Large emphasis on the communal value of work, or how ideas about work are situated in the grammar of Acadian American dialogue. From YBK Publishers: " 'Talking Acadian: Communication, Work and Culture' provides a look into the lives of the French-speaking American Acadians, and particularly those who left eastern Canada to settle in Masschusetts in the 1960s. This book captures their stories about family life and their values, mores and morals. It also traces the ways that they use communication to develop and maintain their culture.What the reader learns is that to talk about Acadians you must talk about work. This group gives us new insights into the world of work - a central feature of living for the Acadians and crucial to their self-definition."Tags Acadians, Community: Customs and Social Life, Criticism and Review, Family, Folklore, France, Gardner MA, Labor History, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Brunswick, New England, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Anthropology, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Nonfiction -- Performance Studies, Nonfiction -- Psychology, Nonfiction -- Social Sciences, Nova Scotia, Personal History: Biography and Oral History, Religion, Salem MA, Sports and Leisure -
A Transcript of Interviews with Franco-Americans
A documentation of results from language tests given to Franco Americans in the late 1950s. Considers local vocabulary and phonetics. From the document's abstract: "The interviews were designed to illustrate the chief features of the French spoken by New England Franco-Americans and to provide useful information for facilitating instruction in standard spoken French of the New England area." ERIC title indicates a resource in two parts. -
Louisiana Francophones : Origins and Evolution since 1673
Changing face of the francophone presence in Louisiana - from French colonial rule beginning in the 17h century, to the Acadian migrations of the 18th century, through Spanish and eventual American rule, and meshed into the assimilative forces of contemporary anglophone America.Tags Acadians, Alabama, Emigration and Immigration, Exploration and Colonization, Farming and Agriculture, Fishing, France, Germany, Government and Politics, Haiti, Ireland, Louisiana, Mississippi River Valley, Mobile AL, New Orleans LA, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- French in North America, Nonfiction -- History -- General, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Spain, United States -
Enquête Géolinguistique
Le titre complet: Enquête Géolinguistique: du vocabulaire, et de la pronunciation de celui-ci, employés dans l'état du Maine pour désigner tout ce qui se rapporte à l'intérieur et à l'extérieur de la maison, d'apriès le questionnaire de MM. Gaston Dulong et Gaston Bergeron de l'Université Laval
Du texte: "La variété de français parlée par les Acadiens (établis dans le nord de l'Etat depuis le XVIIIe siiècle), ainsi que par un grand nombre d'immigrés québécois venus aux Etats-Unis aux XIXe et XXe siiècles et leurs enfants, restait stigmatisée d'une part chez ses locuteurs et d'autre part chez les locuteurs du francais international. Le présent volume donne les resultats d'une enquête lexicale qui constitue le premier effort de sonder les Franco-Américains de tous les coins de l'Etat du Maine sur le lexique de la maison. Il représente en partie le travail de plusieurs décennies et fait partie d'un effort de la part du regretté Robert Rioux de valoriser sa langue natale." -
Language, Ethnicity, and the Schools : Policy Alternatives for Bilingual-Bicultural Education
Polarizing 1970s policy text describing structural aspects of bilingual/bicultural school programs. From ERIC: "This book presents a discussion paper of policy alternatives for bilingual-bicultural education. It also includes two critiques of the paper. Since the enactment of the Bilingual Education Act, the U.S. Office of Education has sponsored programs to help low achieving students with little or no command of English by teaching reading, math, and other subjects in the native language. Although not a failure, this approach does not demonstrate that it makes a difference in terms of student achievement, or acquisition of English...." -
Les anglicismes au Québec : Répertoire classifié
Une discussion sur les anglicismes dans le français de Québec - la grammaire, la syntax, la locution, et la vocabulaire. Pris d'un revue du texte: "La premiière édition du répertoire de Gilles Colpron, 'Les anglicismes au Québec,' est à la fois descriptive et normative. Elle est descriptive parce que l'auteur y recense les anglicismes en usage au Québec et en fait la description. Elle est également normative, car d'entrée de jeu, Gilles Colpron constate qu'il y a du travail à faire dans la lutte contre les anglicismes : « Voilà un dossier assez décourageant », affirme-t-il, apriès avoir présenté l'inventaire des anglicismes de son répertoire." -
Language Loyalty in the United States : The Maintenance and Perpetuation of Non-English Mother Tongues by American Ethnic and Religious Groups
Collection of essays on the linguistics of non-English-speaking immigrants to the United States. The impact of movement on language, the perpetuation of local trends, the transformation of language in transit. The variety of language loyalties in the United States explored through sociological and psychological data, and through the many political and institutional structures set in support of the cultural life of certain American communities. Includes Herve B. Lemaire's "Franco-American Efforts on Behalf of the French Language in New England." Contains the following essays, in order of appearance: The Historical and Social Contexts of an Inquiry into Language Maintenance Efforts Mother Tongue and Nativity in the American Population The Non-English and the Ethnic Group Press, 1910-1960 Foreign Language Broadcasting The Ethnic Group School and Mother Tongue Maintenance Mother Tongue Retentiveness in Ethnic Parishes Organizational and Leadership Interest in Language Maintenance Some Community Dynamics of Language Maintenance German-American Language Maintenance Efforts Franco-American Efforts on Behalf of the French Language in New England Spanish Language and Culture in the Southwest Ukrainian Language Maintenance Efforts in the United States The Process and Problems of Language Maintenance: an Integrative Review Planned Reinforcement of Language Maintenance in the United States; Suggestions for the Conservation of a Neglected National Resource Language Maintenance in a Supra-Ethnic Age: Summary and Conclusions Appendices & Indexes -
Les droits linguistiques des Franco-Américains aux états-Unis
Une histoire légale moderne sur la langue française à la Louisiane, la Nouvelle Angleterre, le Midwest É.U., et des autres états qui contiennent les grandes populations francophones. -
Le français dans le Connecticut
De brièves descriptions de la situation de la langue française dans les écoles et les communautés - et de l'américanisation des canadiens-français - du Connecticut et de la Nouvelle-Angleterre du XIXe siecle à 1919.Tags Acculturation and Assimilation, Clubs and Societies, Community: Customs and Social Life, Connecticut, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Government and Politics, Language and Linguistics, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Education, Nonfiction -- French in North America, Nonfiction -- History -- Local, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Religion -
Le français dans le New-Hampshire
De brièves descriptions de la situation de la langue française dans les écoles et les communautés - et de l'américanisation des canadiens-français - du New Hampshire et de la Nouvelle-Angleterre du XIXe siecle à 1919.Tags Acadians, Acculturation and Assimilation, Boston MA, Clubs and Societies, Connecticut, Education, Government and Politics, Language and Linguistics, Manchester NH, Montréal QC, Nashua NH, New Hampshire, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Education, Nonfiction -- French in North America, Nonfiction -- History -- Local, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Religion, Woonsocket RI -
Mutt Contay Saw : About French (and English) in New England
From the author: "In New England, as elsewhere in the United States, colleges and universities offer degrees in languages, but few make courses in the history of those languages mandatory. Aside from the usual MA theses and Ph.d. dissertations - almost all of them stiffly written attempts to isolate academically 'workable' and degree-granting minutia - there is very little in print for the students of language that attempts to explain how contemporary languages in America have been and continue to be affected by their rubbing of elbows....
'Mutt Contay Saw' is about French and what has happened to it in New England. But it's also about English. It's entirely in English, even the French pronunciations are rendered in English. There's a brief history tracing the development of English." -
French and Francophone : The Challenge of Expanding Horizons
The preface to an issue of Yale French Studies. Part of the text reads: "This volume of Yale French Studies is concerned with the emergence of new relations between 'French' and 'Francophone' in institutions, in pedagogy, and in interpretations of literature and culture." -
The People of Survivance : Franco-Americans in New England
Thesis on late twentieth-century New England Franco American literature and some of its creators - John Dufresne, Dorianne Laux, Steven Riel, Denis Ledoux, Susann Pelletier, Bill Tremblay, David Rivard - couched in a culture-specific analysis of historical identity and psychological debt. How these literary figures and their work at once inform and are informed by regional and familial experiences of ethnicity, language, religion. Close-readings of their work informed by writings of psychoanalysts Jacques Lacan and Julia Kristeva. -
A Study of Item Bias in the Maine Educational Assessment Test
Education study of the cultural validity of standardized testing in Maine. Based on test performances in 1988 and 1989 from samplings of students in St. Agatha, Madawaska, Lewiston, Fort Kent, Van Buren, and Caribou. Analyzes scoring in the areas of reading and math for French bilingual and English-speaking students in these regions. From the author: "Given the consistently lower mean test performance among State of Maine bilingual/English fluent pupils, compared to monolingual English pupils, the results of the Maine Educational Assessment in reading and mathematics were analyzed to determine where there was bias in item structure and format" (1). -
L'identité des Acadiens de la vallée du Saint-Jean
Étude sur l'identité ethnique et sa transformation dans les Acadiens de la vallée de la riviière Saint-Jean au nord de l'état du Maine dans les années 1990; analyse basée sur des recherches historiques et des données locales et multi-générationnelles acquises par un questionnaire distribué à Fort Kent, Madawaska, Ste. Agathe, et Van Buren; information sur la langue, la famille, la géographie, et la conscience ethnique; introduction historique aux Acadiens de l'Amerique du Nord; une copie du questionnaire en annexeTags Acadians, Acculturation and Assimilation, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Family, Fort Kent ME, France, Great Britain, Language and Linguistics, Madawaska ME, Maine, Native Americans, New Brunswick, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Nova Scotia, Religion, St. Agatha ME, St. John River Valley, Travel and Movement, Van Buren ME, Violence -
Some Social Factors Affecting the French Spoken in Lewiston, Maine
Dissertation on the relationship between the French language and Franco American culture in Lewiston, Maine in the twentieth century. Historical background of Maine French speakers. Theories and methods in the study of French in New England as introduction and comparison to the author's own survey research in Lewiston. Contents and results of a linguistic questionnaire given various French speakers in Lewiston. From the author: "Using a broadly based survey of the French spoken in Lewiston, Maine this thesis treats the question of the levels of Franco-American speech. The relationship of language features to social factors is studied by means of a computer-aided analysis of a representative sample of the French-speaking population" (iii, Abstract). -
Religion, Education, and Language as Factors in French Canadian Cultural Survival
Dissertation on the cultural life of French Canada, from the 16th century until the middle 20th, and the specific roles that religion, education, and language have played in its minority preservation in and outside of Quebec. Historical background of the French in Canada. The importance of the Catholic Church, the educational system, family, literature, and government as structures for supporting the three factors observed. According to the author, written to fill a gap in English language scholarship on the history of French Canada.Tags Canada, Community: Customs and Social Life, Education, England, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Exploration and Colonization, Family, Fiction and Literature, France, Government and Politics, Language and Linguistics, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Education, Nonfiction -- History -- Religion, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Québec, Religion, War -
Guidelines for the Teaching of French to Franco-Americans
Dissertation exploring the resources and methods available for teaching the French language to the Franco American native French speaker. Suggestions for materials, activity, and practice in the Franco American's bilingual education setting, including tools for fostering "historical perspective" and an appreciation of "cross-culturalism." Particular attention to the Franco American student, namely one's language behaviors and pronunciations, historical background, and cultural heritage. Provides an overview of the history of New England Franco Americans. Includes a selective bibliography for research on bilingualism. From the author: "A general premise of this dissertation is that the language and cultural assets of the Franco-American student can be organized for meaningful language learning experiences....The result of this dissertation should be guidelines to writing and organizing language teaching materials for Franco-Americans" (1,2).Tags Acculturation and Assimilation, Auburn ME, Berlin NH, Biddeford ME, Boston MA, Bridgeport CT, Brunswick ME, Burlington VT, Cambridge MA, Central Falls RI, Education, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Fall River MA, Hartford CT, Holyoke MA, Language and Linguistics, Lawrence MA, Lewiston ME, Lowell MA, Maine, Manchester NH, Nashua NH, New Bedford MA, New England, New Haven CT, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Education, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Pawtucket RI, Portsmouth NH, Providence RI, Springfield MA, St. John River Valley, Waterville ME, West Warwick RI, Woonsocket RI, Worcester MA -
Phonological Correspondences Between Modern French and the Lewiston-Auburn Dialect of French, and Between the English Spoken in Lewiston-Auburn and the Lewiston-Auburn Dialect of French
Comparison of phonological traits in the English and the French languages spoken in the twin cities of Lewiston and Auburn, Maine. Observations of idiosyncratic French language characteristics in Lewiston. An introductory history of Franco Americans in Lewiston and Auburn, Maine - their European and Canadian backgrounds, and their Maine community establishments. Charts that measure specific linguistic properties of Lewiston-Auburn French speakers. From the introduction: "My goal, in writing this essay, was to make a phonetic transcription of the sounds which bilingual Franco-Americans of Lewiston-Auburn, Maine employ when they speak what they call 'French,' and then to show how these sounds correspond to the sounds of Modern French; and what happens to the sounds of English words when they are borrowed by these people when they are speaking the LA dialect. The analysis is strictly descriptive, and phonetic, and it was carried out only on the word level." (1) -
A Generative Phonological Description of Selected Idiolects of Canadian French in Lewiston, Maine
Certain linguistic descriptions of the French language characteristics heard among Franco Americans in the industrialized New England town of Lewiston, Maine, in the twentieth century. -
French Ethnic Literature and Culture in an American City : Holyoke, Massachusetts
From the author: "This study examines the French literary and cultural life of French Canadians in New England with emphasis on Holyoke, Massachusetts, between 1869 and 1940. At the turn of the century French Canadians became known as Franco-Americans; they tried to maintain their native language and traditions as American citizens in a New England urban industrial setting....Holyoke's history and its unique character are considered in terms of their effects on the French Canadian settlers....We will attempt to examine Holyoke's French cultural and literary life in the framework of French Canadian life in New England through a general consideration of the French Canadian immigration, the role of the parish, the schools, the family, and societies."Tags Community: Customs and Social Life, Education, Emigration and Immigration, Family, Fiction and Literature, Holyoke MA, Journalism, Labor History, Language and Linguistics, Literary Works, Literary Works -- Criticism and History, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- History -- Labor and Social, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Performing Arts, Poetry, Québec, Religion -
A Study of the Survival of Certain Neologisms and 17th Century French Words and Expressions Among Pupils of French-Canadian Descent in the Woonsocket High School, Rhode Island, with a View to Determining Whether or Not This Survival Warrants Remedial Teaching
Thesis that argues a recognition of the persistence of French language from 17th-century France and New France into 20th-century southern New England. As a research piece in the field of education, this study examined the 1930s state of colloquial French among Woonsocket, Rhode Island high school students in order to determine what measures, if any, should be taken in a course of language normalization, and to explore the possibilities and ramifications of a language educator's various approaches to local French vernacular. -
Pronunciation of the French Spoken at Brunswick, Maine
Observations and analyses of the linguistic characteristics of vernacular French in the French Canadian and Franco American community of Brunswick, Maine, in the early twentieth century. Special emphasis on word pronunciation and its relationship to the pronunciation of words in Parisian French, as measured by the contemporary linguist. Republished in book form. -
The Measured Effects on Language Development of Bilinguals and Monolinguals with Varied Pre-First Grade Programs
Analysis of early education programs and their varying effects on monolingual and French/English bilingual students in the state of Maine. How the effectiveness of educational programs can be measured with regard to anglophone, francophone, and bilingual American students. -
The Need for Bilingual Education in the Schools of Vermont
Argument toward implementing a bilingual education program in the public schools of the state of Vermont. Written in the context of the 1968 United States congressional discussions about funding bilingual education in general, and the scope of languages to which congress would propose attention. Uses Vermont as a case study in language demographics. Presents the author's collection of data concerning Vermont language usage, geographic distribution of children with limited English-speaking ability, and other factors pertinent to the federal legislation in question. While the dissertation engages bilingual education as a national phenomenon involving many languages other than English, the specific case of Vermont orientates the author toward the language realities of that state, the bulk of non-English speakers being represented in populations of French-speaking Franco Americans there. Contains an overview of scholarship on bilingualism.Tags Acculturation and Assimilation, Albany VT, Alburg VT, Bakersfield VT, Barnet VT, Barre VT, Barton VT, Bennington VT, Berkshire VT, Brandon VT, Brattleboro VT, Brighton VT, Brownington VT, Burlington VT, Canaan VT, Charleston VT, Charlotte VT, Clarendon VT, Colchester VT, Coventry VT, Demography, Derby VT, Eden VT, Education, Enosburg Falls VT, Essex VT, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Fair Haven VT, Fairfax VT, Ferrisburgh VT, Franklin VT, Georgia VT, Government and Politics, Hanover NH, Hardwick VT, Highgate VT, Holland VT, Hyde Park VT, Irasburg VT, Jay VT, Jericho VT, Language and Linguistics, Lowell VT, Lyndon VT, Manchester VT, Middlebury VT, Middlesex VT, Milton VT, Montgomery VT, Montpelier VT, Morristown VT, New Haven VT, Newbury VT, Newport VT, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Education, Nonfiction -- Government and Politics, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Norton VT, Orange VT, Orleans County VT, Pownal VT, Proctor VT, Putney VT, Richford VT, Richmond VT, Rockingham VT, Rutland VT, Shelburne VT, Sheldon VT, South Burlington VT, Springfield VT, St. Albans VT, St. Johnsbury VT, Stowe VT, Sutton VT, Swanton VT, Troy VT, Vergennes VT, Vermont, Walden VT, West Rutland VT, Westfield VT, Westford VT, Westminster VT, Whiting VT, Williamstown VT, Wilmington VT, Windsor VT, Wolcott VT -
Images of French Language and Culture Outside of France : A Survey of a Franco-American Population in New England
From the author: "In the first part of the dissertation, we analyze the institutions which traditionally favored bilingualism: the family, the parochial school, the Catholic parish, the social environment, the media and other organisms such as mutual benefit societies and social clubs. The second part deals with images of French language and culture. These chapters treat of the non-linguistic make-up of Franco-American culture, the way Franco-Americans perceive their ethnic tongue and their attitudes towards it, and the written and oral French mastery of our population. In the final part of the analysis, we examine how Franco-American ethnic identity is defined by the individuals questioned and their views on the future of French language and culture in New England."Tags Community: Customs and Social Life, Connecticut, Demography, Education, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Family, Journalism, Language and Linguistics, Maine, Massachusetts, New England, New Hampshire, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- French in North America, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Personal History: Biography and Oral History, Religion, Rhode Island, Vermont -
Morphosyntactic Variation and Language Shift in Two Franco-American Communities
From the author: "Although the originally French speaking Franco-American communities of Southbridge, Massachusetts, and Woonsocket, Rhode Island, have much in common historically, language shift toward English has advanced to differing degrees in the two locations. In this dissertation, I explore morphosyntactic variation and the advance of language shift in the two locations using historical documentation, U.S. census figures and sociolinguistic interviews conducted with sixty-nine informants....After comparing and contrasting the sociolinguistic profiles of the two communities, I describe some of the linguistic consequences of the shift from French to English in these traditional Franco-American centers through a quantitative variationist analysis of two morphosyntactic variables. These are auxiliary variation in the passé composé and variation between use of the synthetic and analytic futures. Findings from Southbridge and Woonsocket provide new insight for understanding linguistic change during situations of language decline..."Tags Acadians, Acculturation and Assimilation, Community: Customs and Social Life, Connecticut, Demography, Education, Emigration and Immigration, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Language and Linguistics, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, New England, New Hampshire, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Ontario, Personal History: Biography and Oral History, Québec, Southbridge MA, Vermont, Woonsocket RI -
The Status of French Among Youth in a Bilingual American-Canadian Border Community : The Case of Madawaska, Maine
From Price: "This study examines the status of the French language among young residents of Madawaska, Maine, a US-Canadian border community with a long history of bilingualism and contact with French speakers. This study views language status as having two distinct yet interrelated components: (1) code role, or characteristics associated with the use of a given language or variety, such as attitudes of speakers toward the variety and its use, the proficiency level of speakers, language use patterns, and so forth, and (2) code nature, or the state of the variety in question in terms of syntax, phonology and lexicon. The data, collected by means of four interview tasks, targeted both code role and code nature and sought to determine the general status of French among the younger residents of this community. In addition to the younger subject population, a small adult baseline population was also included in order to compare data across generations, so as to identify not just possible differences in code role, but also in code nature, including the possibility of language loss....The data suggested several trends. First, in terms of code role, young subjects generally reported lower levels of language use, proficiency and exposure to French than did adults. Secondly, not only did high-proficiency young subjects generally report higher scores in these areas than did lower-proficiency subjects, but males tended to score higher than females in this regard. This would suggest that exposure to French, context, language proficiency and gender correlate with language use among this population. Conversely, attitudes do not generally appear to be a salient factor motivating French language use. With regard to code nature, the study found that even the most proficient young speakers demonstrated some important gaps in their grammatical competence, and that the young subject population as a whole exhibited features in their production consistent with language loss. The study concludes that although there are still many individuals with ability in French, the differences between younger and older speakers in terms of both code role and code nature suggest that local French will be lost unless further action is taken to reverse the progress of French language loss among young bilinguals in the community."Tags Acadians, Acculturation and Assimilation, Community: Customs and Social Life, Demography, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, Family, Fort Kent ME, Frenchville ME, Gender and Sexuality, Geography, Language and Linguistics, Madawaska ME, New Brunswick, New England, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Personal History: Biography and Oral History, Québec, St. John River Valley -
La diphtongaison dans le français de Waterville, Maine : une étude sociolinguistique des voyelles orales
De l'auteur: "Le but de la présente étude est de contribuer à l'étude du français franco-américain, et en particulier, de considérer l'influence de certaines variables sociales sur la diphtongaison des voyelles orales. Nous faisons un résumé de l'histoire de l'immigration des Canadiens français à la Nouvelle-Angleterre et à Waterville, et nous faisons aussi un résumé de la littérature sur le français franco-américain, ainsi que sur le phénomiène de la diphtongaison en français québécois..." -
Phonological Variables in a New England French Speech Community
From the author: "The first section of the present study consists of a historical survey of the Franco-American community, examining those factors, such as the existence of a network of bilingual parochial schools, which were significant for language maintenance efforts. It is observed that French/English bilingualism in New England has seriously declined in the last twenty years, and that organized attempts to provide for its survival are now limited primarily to the state of Maine. The second section of this study specifies the lexical, morphological and syntactic characteristics which distinguish New England French (NEF) from Standard French (SF), based on a corpus of written and oral documents of recent origin. The results obtained are compared with those reported in studies of Canadian French, and in earlier studies of NEF. It is shown that no structural innovations have emerged in NEF which are not also attested in Canadian and other popular varieties of French. The influence of English is primarily restricted to the borrowing of words, but the use of anglicisms is often subject to ridicule. Systematic change in NEF tends to be in the direction of convergence with SF. Synchronically, a continuum of speech style is observed, whose lower or informal levels are characterized by features shared with the French of rural Québec, and whose higher or more formal levels are characterized by corresponding features of SF....The third section consists of an analysis of the present state of the phonology of NEF, and is based on a corpus collected in interviews with six informants in Manchester, New Hampshire. Sixteen phonological rules are formulated, defining elements which distinguish NEF from SF. It is shown that some of these features are being lost as NEF incorporates standard elements. Many of these elements which are avoided in formal speech situations by speakers with more exposure to SF, however, tend to occur frequently or predominantly in less formal situations. The sixteen phonological processes are subjected to partial ordering in terms of an implicational scale, according to whether they are more or less resistant to change. It is shown that those processes which entail only superficial (phonetic) differences between NEF and SF are more likely to be retained, while those processes which entail underlying (morphophonemic) differences are more likely to be lost."Tags Acculturation and Assimilation, Brunswick ME, Caribou ME, Education, Fall River MA, Language and Linguistics, Lewiston ME, Louisiana, Lowell MA, Maine, Manchester NH, New Bedford MA, New England, New Hampshire, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Québec, Salem MA, St. John River Valley, Woonsocket RI, Worcester MA -
Linguistic and Cultural Heritage of the Acadians in Maine and New Brunswick
Historical observations of language usage in the St. John River Valley in Maine and New Brunswick, focusing on the social, cultural, and linguistic traits maintained by the area's Acadian population. From the author: "This thesis proposes to show how and why the Acadians, particularly those of the Upper St. John River Valley, speak French with distinctive variations. To do so it will be necessary to present first a geographical outlay of locations involved in the development of the French language as well as the locations involved in the historical events of the Acadian chronicles."Tags Acadians, Canada, Community: Customs and Social Life, Ethnicity and Collective Identity, France, Geography, Language and Linguistics, Madawaska ME, Native Americans, New Brunswick, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- History -- Local, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Nova Scotia, Québec, St. John River Valley -
Teaching Language Varieties for Communication
Article exploring the extent to which non-native speakers of French are able to communicate with native French speakers of Canadian heritage. Presentation of a study conducted in Lowell, Massachusetts with native speakers and non-native French-language students. Discrepancies in vocabulary usage and comprehension among native speakers, as found in the author's study, and some observations on their communication with non-native, student-age speakers of French. -
The French Fact : Linguistic Challenge, Demographic Reality, Political Distortion
Essay on the realities of bilingualism in Canada, specifically in Québec. Projections for the future of the French language there with respect to human movement, population, and linguistic assimilation to English. Acknowledges the political strength and vocalization of Québec City has impacted ("distorted") actual popular arguments in defense of the French language -
A Translator's Journey : A Retrospective
Personal observations of a Franco American author and psychotherapist on his French-to-English translation of "Body Psychotherapy: History, Concepts, and Methods" by Michael Heller. Confronting the prospect of a translation project; re encountering the "long dormant French language" of his youth; configuring and reacquainting his body to speaking in French. -
Language and Nationalism : Two Integrative Essays
From ERIC: "The extent to which the language planning that has been pursued in many localities and in many periods has been guided by nationalism, that is, by '...the social movements, attitudes, and ideologies which characterize the behavior of nationalities engaged in the struggle to achieve, maintain or enhance their position in the world' (Wirth 1936) is examined in this text. The study familiarizes the reader with the formations and the transformations of nationalism itself, and also examines how and why language commonly comes to be one of the ingredients in nationalist goals and programs..." -
Language and Culture : Heritage and Horizons : The 1976 Northeast Conference
Summary description of the twenty-third annual meeting of the Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, held in New York City. The conference's theme relating to the origins and endurance of languages other than English among immigrant groups in the United States, and culminating in three reports: "Origins," "Cultural Pluralism," and "Contributions." Descriptions of conference participants and program content, with emphases on French, Spanish, and German languages. Includes brief descriptions of the work of Normand Dubé, Don Dugas, Guy Dubay, Alain Blanchet, Paul Chassé, Claire Quintal, Nelson Pepin, Joan Young, Roger Paradis, Richard Santerre, Ann Woolfson, Robert Paris, and others. -
"Speak White" : Language Policy, Immigration, Discourse, and Tactical Authenticity in a French Enclave in New England
Article analyzing the Sentinelle Affair in 1920s Rhode Island as a case study in <i>la survivance</i>, for the role of language politics in spectres of assimilation and white ethnicity in the United States, and as a lens to the political economies that have historically upheld English Only language policy arguments. An expansive reading of Sentinellist responses to American Catholic Church English language policies for parochial schools. How events like the Sentinelle Affair imply what have been historical, multifaceted linguistic realities in education throughout the United States, and in particular in New England French-heritage enclaves of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Argument in favor of Franco American "settlement" in New England as best understood in the discourse of diaspora instead of the "resistance-assimilation" dichotomy that often accompanies discussions of local culture in American immigration. -
The Teacher of French and the Franco-American Newspaper
Article describing French, French-Canadian, and Franco-American newspapers published in the US and Canada as useful classroom tools for language learning and cultural competency. Discussions of various relevant French-language periodicals, their contents, origins, and distribution. Suggestions for their use with students.Tags Alberta, Berlin NH, California, Canada, Fall River MA, Lewiston ME, Los Angeles CA, Louisiana, Maine, Manitoba, Massachusetts, New Bedford MA, New Brunswick, New England, New Hampshire, New York, Newark NJ, Nonfiction, Nonfiction -- Education, Nonfiction -- Journalism, Nonfiction -- Language and Linguistics, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Pittsburgh PA, Québec, Rhode Isand, San Francisco CA, Saskatchewan, Worcester MA