Language contact and multilingualism

2.4.3 Language contact and multilingualism

One of the biggest factors in language shift is language contact, when speakers of two different languages meet. Through language contact, multilingualism increases and the use of certain languages increases over the use of others, occasionally leading to language shift or even death. Considering modes and extent of language contact and multilingualism helps paint a clearer picture of the sociolinguistic condition of a language. There is little contact between Yamphu speakers of the Hedangna region and Yamphu speakers of Dhankuta. Quota sampling was used in gathering the following data. The sampling methodology will be explained in more detail later. Among the Yamphu speakers in Hedangna that we interviewed, 27 of them have been to Rajarani, Dhankuta district. Among the Yamphu we interviewed in Rajarani, only one person out of 17 has been north to Sankhuwasabha district. People in the more remote northern villages do not often travel southward, and people from Dhankuta rarely travel northward to Sankhuwasabha district. Language contact between Yamphu speakers in Matysapokari VDC and people in the areas to the south Dhankuta and Ilam districts is more frequent. Among Yamphu interviewed in Devitar village of Matsyapokari VDC, 57 have been south to Bhedetar VDC. The degree of contact between speakers of Lohorung and the Yamphu varieties is also moderate to high, given the geographic location of Lohorung on the main road to the district headquarters. Yamphu speakers in Hedangna travel frequently through the Lohorung areas in Pangma VDC 80 of respondents have been to Pangma. Conversely, 62 of respondents in Pa ngma have been to Hedangna. From Num VDC southward, contact with speakers of other languages is more frequent due to the presence of a road. A large hydroelectric power project is being built in Num VDC. This project brings numerous speakers of other languages into the area for work, creating an increase in language contact and multilingualism. In the near future, this contact will continue to increase as the project grows. Another avenue of increased language contact and multilingualism is employment. A high number of young people, especially men, work or have worked abroad. While living in a foreign country a person usually needs to use languages other than the mother tongue. In addition to overseas work, many people have also spent time outside of their home area for work in places such as Dharan, Dhankuta or Kathmandu. Living for extended periods of time in more diverse environments leads to an increase in multilingualism. Education systems and the medium of instruction are other key vehicles for language contact and multilingualism. All of the schools we visited in Sankhuwasabha and Dhankuta districts used Nepali as a medium of instruction. This provides a very high degree of contact with and exposure to Nepali for Yamphu-speaking children. In some villages, because the school only goes up to grade five, students in higher grades have to walk to nearby, larger villages. This creates more contact with Nepali speakers in the larger, mixed-ethnicity villages where the schools are located. Two examples of this are Num, where students from Khoktak attend school, and Rajarani bazaar, where students from surrounding wards in Rajarani VDC attend school. We were not able to collect data on what percentage of students study past grade five. In most Yamphu villages, several, if not all of the teachers are of Yamphu ethnicity and are interested in mother tongue education. In the village of Uling, the teachers teach some classes in Yamphu, though they do not have any written curriculum in Yamphu. Access to health services, or lack of them, can also contribute to an increase in language contact. Because health posts are marginally staffed, when people encounter health challenges, they must walk great distances to major population centers or be carried on a stretcher. For the Yamphu people living in Sankhuwasabha, the nearest hospital is in the district headquarters of Khandbari. This is a one to two- day walk from most Yamphu villages. For those living in Bhedetar and Rajarani VDCs, they go to Dhankuta for major health issues. Spending time in Khandbari and Dhankuta would increase a patient’s use of Nepali. 3 Methodology

3.1 Site selection