Breaking Cultural Boundaries in Linguistic Identity Development

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As much as we are inclined to believe that now, in the age of globalization, when people all over the world are more interconnected than ever, the cultural boundaries are no longer unbreakable, they still represent an impediment in one 's attempt to develop a new linguistic identity. If this was easily overcome by adults under normal circumstances, the very aspect that makes an individual identify with a language would be too shallow and would fail to build a strong and meaningful enough connection to account for a new linguistic identity. There are a few intrinsic elements that define language identity, such as the lexicon, grammar, phonology, syntax. Those are relatively objective and can be assimilated through education and thus, they …show more content…

For instance, the Esperanto community was formed around the idea of a language that transcends cultural boundaries and it is, therefore, less hermetic and eagerer to accept new members. While there is no way to tell how this community will change over time, it might be the shortest path towards a new linguistic identity for an adult that holds the principle of transcending nationality dearly. One final hurdle that occurs is the emotional side – a deep connection to a language cannot build up from pure rationality. It also needs strong, positive sentiments associated to it, such as the start of a better life or a connection with a loved one. To sum up, under normal circumstances, it is very difficult for an adult to develop a strong linguistic identity, as the hurdles set forth by the intrinsic attributes of the language, but also by the culture intertwined with it are hard to overcome. Nonetheless, it is possible to do so given that language acquisition took place earlier in life and the cultural barriers are eroded in one way or another. Early language acquisition is important as near-native mastery is very unlikely otherwise. To fulfill the cultural requirement, one must be able to build an alter ego that respects the cultural norms of the community that speaks that language, which should be easy enough to be attainable, but hard enough to provide a solid and meaningful basis for the

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