GFAMS And The University Of Cambridge Consolidate Their Partnership
Gibraltarians For A Multilingual Society held discussions with Professor Laura Wright, a renowned historical sociolinguist and member of the Faculty of English at the University of Cambridge, during her recent visit to Gibraltar.
A statement from the GFAMS follows below:
Soon after the setting up of GFAMS, earlier this year, Professor Wright, who shares this organisation’s concerns about the loss of multilingualism among the younger generations of Gibraltarians, joined the association and pledged her support. The Cambridge professor is an expert in the historical evolution of English, and draws parallels between the codeswitching period that Britain went through during the 15th century and the current linguistic situation that exists in Gibraltar.
Professor Wright has already set the wheels in motion for a structured, scientific study of our Gibraltarian language: ‘together with three of my Cambridge colleagues, who are Professors of Phonology, Spanish and Education, I am in the process of setting up an academic research project lasting several years, to study Llanito, analysing its linguistic components - grammar, pronunciation, words and intonation, and how speakers of different ages and backgrounds codeswitch. Our team will not only consider ways in which the social prestige of Llanito can be raised but also study its psychological value: how having a local home language in the highly mobile 21st century confers an advantage, cementing identity wherever Gibraltarians happen to be living.’
GFAMS welcomes and supports this initiative which would be a very necessary first step in restoring the multilingual nature of our society. Over the years this has been eroded and is leading our community towards a monolingual culture. It is also very encouraging to see how over the past months there appears to be an increasing awareness of this issue and applauds initiatives on the part of the Ministry of Culture and Cultural Services, such as the setting up of the Book Council and the inclusion of a Llanito category in the Spring Short Story Competition. The acknowledgement of our languages as a distinctive part of our identity in the recently published consultation paper ‘Safeguarding our Past, Enriching our Future’ by the Ministry for Heritage, is also reassuring, as it guarantees a commitment to promoting and safeguarding such a fundamental aspect of our intangible heritage.
The local association, which is working steadfastly to highlight the importance of preserving Gibraltar’s languages, is confident that this objective is achievable, but also acknowledges that it will require a conscious and determined collective effort by Gibraltarian society as a whole.
