Cross-Linguistic Analysis of Vietnamese and English with Implications for Vietnamese Language Acquisition and Maintenance in the United States

Two overall goals of this paper are a) to provide a linguistic basis for promoting first language maintenance of Vietnamese in a larger United States context and b) to stimulate future research in language acquisition of Vietnamese-English speakers. This paper is divided into three sections. Section 1 discusses previous studies on first language (L1) maintenance among Vietnamese Americans. Section 2 presents a cross-linguistic comparison of Vietnamese and English across speech-sound, word, and grammatical language levels. A cross-linguistic analysis may help educators better understand speaking patterns of Vietnamese American students. Based on this cross-linguistic comparison, Section 3 presents potential bi-directional interactions between Vietnamese and English within an individual speaker. These predictions are intended to provide a framework for future empirical studies related to bilingual development. Sociologists have documented a pattern of shift in relative language dominance from the first language (L1) to the second language (L2) of immigrant populations that occurs within three generations of arrival to the United States (Fishman, 1972; Veltman, 1983). It has been found that the grandchildren of immigrants tend to shift toward English monolingualism and may not be able to speak the language of their grandparents. This three-generation model of language shift was documented among European immigrants of the 19 and early 20 centuries, and continues to occur in contemporary immigrant populations from Latin America and Asia (Alba, Logan, Lutz, & Stults, 2002). Many studies have shown that immigrant children who speak their parents’ language as well as English fluently are more likely to succeed academically than children who become monolingual English speakers (see Schmid, 2001, for review). In a study of high school students from immigrant families, Feliciano (2001) found that bilingual students were less likely to drop out of school than their English-only speaking peers. Rumbaut (1995) and Stanton-Salazar and Dornbusch (1995) found that bilingual students who are fully proficient in both English and another language had better grades and higher academic success than their monolingual English-speaking peers. In addition, maintenance of the immigrant language provides a critical means for transmitting cultural 1 Tang: Cross-Linguistic Analysis of Vietnamese and English with Implicat Published by Purdue e-Pubs, 2007 Tang – Cross-linguistic Analysis of Vietnamese and English 2 values across generations and within one’s ethnic community, which in turn promotes emotional and social balance in children’s self-perception and identity (Kohnert & Derr, 2004; Wong-Fillmore, 1991). One way educators can promote home language maintenance while helping students acquire the majority language (English) is to better understand how languages develop and what factors may facilitate or hinder this process. The purpose of this paper is to establish a linguistic basis for future investigation of language learning patterns in individuals who speak Vietnamese as a first or home language (L1) and learn English (L2) shortly after. A clearer understanding of how children learn two languages may promote L1 maintenance as well as L2 learning among Vietnamese Americans through the creation of appropriate educational materials and resources. This article is divided into three sections. Section one addresses the issue of language maintenance, which is operationally defined as L1 preservation across generations. Previous studies on the language maintenance of Vietnamese Americans as well as social ramifications of L1 use and disuse are presented. The studies emphasize the importance of maintaining L1 while learning L2 to promote strong social identification and overall well-being. Section two presents a cross-linguistic comparison of Vietnamese and English across the language levels of phonology (sound), lexical semantics (word meaning), and morpho-syntax (grammar). This cross-linguistic comparison provides the background for section three, which posits potential bidirectional language interactions between Vietnamese and English within an individual speaker. There has been little to no research on the language characteristics of Vietnamese-English speakers. Predictions of within-speaker cross-linguistic interactions are intended to provide a framework for future empirical studies in the areas of language acquisition and bilingual development of Vietnamese-English bilinguals. Language Maintenance Among Vietnamese Americans