Language Shift and Ethnic Identity: Focus on Malaysian Sindhis

Maya Khemlani David; Liaquat A.  Channa; Syed Abdul Manan; Francisco Dumanig

doi:10.51611/iars.irj.v10i1.2020.92

Authors

Dr. Maya Khemlani David (Ph.D.) University of Malaya
Liaquat A. Channa Balochistan University of I.T, Engineering & Management Sciences (BUITEMS)
Syed Abdul Manan Nazarbayev University, Nursultan (Astana), Kazakhstan
Francisco Dumanig University of Hawaii at Hilo

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51611/iars.irj.v10i1.2020.92

Keywords:

LANGUAGE SHIFT, ETHNIC IDENTITY, MALAYSIAN SINDHIS, COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE

Abstract

This paper focusses on the minority community of the Malaysian Sindhis to show that ethnic and cultural identities can be constructed through means other practices than solely by the heritage languages. The study draws on an open-ended question directed to 79 lady members of the Sindhi community in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The respondents were women aged 50-70 and a friend of a friend helped in obtaining further respondents. This age group was selected as they often met for kitty parties, gambling sessions, and lunch parties. Their one-word responses were recorded and returned to the facilitator helping in data collection. The question was “What do you mean when you say you are a Sindhi?”. Based on the data, we contend that the term ethnicity denotes a subjective sense of community, meaning a shared identity which results in a sense of group solidarity. Identity is rooted in actual cultural practices and experiences.

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Author Biography

Francisco Dumanig, University of Hawaii at Hilo
Dr. Francisco Perlas Dumanig is an Assistant Professor of English at the University of Hawaii at Hilo, Hawaii, USA. He used to be a Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Languages and Linguistics, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and in other universities in the Philippines, Malaysia, the Middle East, and the USA. He has done research on Language and Identity of Economic Migrants, English Language Teaching and Learning (ENL, ESL, and EFL), Language Planning and Language Policy, and Southeast Asian Englishes. His current research focuses on the Family Language Policy of Filipinos in Hawaii, Education and Language in the Philippines, and Caregiver’s Interaction with Elderly Patients in Adult Residential Care Homes. He has published some of his works in peer-reviewed journals, such as Cambridge Language Teaching Journal, Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, World Englishes, Multilingua, Language Policy, and International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism.

Areas of Expertise
- Teaching English as a Second or Foreign Language
- Southeast Asian Englishes
- Discourse Analysis (Language and Identity)
- Language Planning and Language Policy
- Sociolinguistics

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