Andreas Papapavlou

A Review of the Sociolinguistic Aspects of the Greek Cypriot Dialect.

This paper examines various issues related to the current sociolinguistic situation in Cyprus. Cyprus presents, in some ways, a unique situation since language seems to have acquired a central and almost exclusive role in defining the identity of Greek Cypriots. To better understand the current sociolinguistic situation in Cyprus and to comprehend the interplay between language and identity, the linguistic practices of Cypriots described in various studies will be presented and discussed. These studies cover such interrelated issues as: (1) the diglossic situation in Cyprus; (2) language and identity; (3) attitudes towards the dialect; (4) language attitudes and how these can influence language use and language policy; and (5) attitudinal and motivational factors affecting lexical borrowing.

The interplay of language use and language maintenance and the cultural identity of Greek Cypriots in the UK

The Greek Cypriot community living in the UK is one of the largest and most tightly-knit communities in the Greek diaspora. The present study attempts to investigate several linguistic and sociolinguistic issues concerning this community. Questionnaires were completed by 274 Cypriot students between the ages of 12 and 18 attending Greek classes in the Greater London area, eliciting information about their family and ethnic background, language abilities, domains of use for each language, reasons for studying Greek, ethnic identity, perceived differences from Cypriots living in Cyprus, and reasons for wanting to return to the homeland. It is hoped that the results will lead to a better understanding not only of the UK Cypriot community but also of such important linguistic issues as language maintenance, language attitudes, and the role of language in the formation of cultural identity.

Literacy and Language-in-Education Policy in Bidialectal Settings.

The acquisition, fostering and further development of literacy in bilingual situations has been widely studied but similar issues in bidialectal settings where nonstandard and standard languages coexist have not attracted sufficient attention. This is the second of a series of studies investigating the use of nonstandard languages or dialects in the Cyprus educational setting. The first paper (Pavlou & Papapavlou, 2004) examined teachers’ attitudes towards the use of the Greek Cypriot dialect (GCD) in primary education and their own linguistic behaviour inside and outside class. The present paper reviews the current language policy in Cyprus in relation to literacy acquisition and development and (1) investigates primary teachers’ views on the use of GCD and how this usage affects students’ literacy acquisition (i.e. linguistic performance, educational attainment, and psychological welfare), (2) examines how teachers view the adequacy of GCD as a linguistic system, (3) delineates those factors that shaped teachers’ attitudes towards GCD, (4) discusses the relation between dialect use and ethnic identity, and (5) explores teachers’ stance on language policy matters.

Relational Social Deixis and the Linguistic Construction of Identity.

Abstract This study examines language attitudes, member categorisation and social distinctions among Greek-Cypriot tertiary education students in Cyprus. Specifically, focus is placed on the use of deictics by participants to examine attitudes and behaviour as regards use and variation in language. Participants’ attitudinal responses and folk theories are a central part of understanding identity construction and membership categorisation. Data were collected from three focus group interviews in tertiary education to examine language attitudes towards speakers of four broad register levels of the Greek-Cypriot Dialect, to investigate which registers receive the least favourable evaluations and where differentiation becomes an important aspect of evaluators’ group membership, and to explore which factors seem to impact on language comparisons. The results of the study illustrate that students are well aware of their social positioning in society and of the effects of employing less prestigious linguistic variables.