A professional ideology in the making: Bilingual youngsters interpreting for their communities and the notion of (no) choice.

Claudia V. Angelelli*

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Abstract

    Research on circumstantial bilinguals who become young interpreters for their families and communities contributes to our understanding of the life experiences of individuals who begin to interpret early in their lives. With the exception of early work on young interpreters and recent historical work on translation and interpreting, very little has been written about the lived experiences of interpreters and/or about the development of such exceptional types of bilingualism. When a family of Latino immigrants settles in America and the parents do not speak the societal language, it is often the case that young bilinguals act as language interpreters, brokering communication and advocating for their families' needs. The ways in which these circumstantial bilinguals go about mediating communicative needs reveal much about these youngsters' abilities. While interpreting for their families, young interpreters develop a sense of how to be linguistic advocates between speakers of minority languages and a society that struggles to accommodate the communicative needs of its members. In multilingual and diverse societies, it is imperative that the linguistic talents of young bilinguals be fostered and enhanced.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)94-108
    Number of pages15
    JournalTranslation and Interpreting Studies
    Volume5
    Issue number1
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2010

    Keywords

    • circumstantial bilinguals
    • elective bilinguals
    • linguistic rights
    • bilingual youngsters
    • linguistic advocates
    • societal language
    • linguistic minority
    • power imbalances

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