澳门的语言运用与澳门青年对不同语言的认同差异

Languages Use in Macao and Linguistic Identities among Macao Youth

澳门通行着多种语言和方言,极为复杂的多语生态和相对封闭的地域环境,为研究语言认同和多语竞争提供了语言社区样本。语言认同是指语言使用者就自身与某种语言或方言之间关系的心理定位。调查显示,语言使用者对不同语言的认同程度和功能定位差异直接影响其语言态度和语言行为。语言认同还跟地域认同和文化认同密切相关。绝大多数澳门青年对粤语的认同度最高。而对其他三种语言的认同度相对较低,且功能明显分化。多数澳门青年认为葡语是官方语言和第二外语,普通话是国家通用语,英语是第一外语。澳门大、中学生对不同语言的不同心理距离,决定了其对不同语言的不同言语态度和不同言语行为,而其在地域认同和文化认同上的表现反过来强化了他们的语言认同差异。

Due to its unique historical background and linguistic diversity, Macao is known as a typical multilingual metropolis, which has earned it the name of 'a live language museum'. Its extremely complicated multilingual ecology and relatively isolated geographical environment make up a rare research sample for the study of linguistic identity and language competition. This paper argues that linguistic identity is the speaker's psychological positioning of the relations between a speaker and a certain language or dialect. A speaker's identifi cation with different languages has a noticeable impact on his or her language attitudes and linguistic performance. Also, linguistic identity is closely associated with regional identity and cultural identity. Among the four languages spoken in Macao, young people tend to mostly identify with Cantonese, which is not only a mother tongue, but also the language for daily communication both in domestic settings and workplaces; it is also an ethnic symbol and an offi cial language. The other three languages receive less cultural and ethnic identifi cation, and their functions are differentiated. Most Macao youths regard Portuguese as an offi cial language and the second foreign language, Putonghua as the national language, whereas English is seen as their fi rst foreign language.