Communicative situation and code selection: Italian and dialect in a migrant community

Abstract

In this paper, I analyzed code selection and variation in use of dialect and English in four different conversations collected in the Italian community in Bedford (UK). The linguistic variables taken into account in the study are: code selection (Italian vs dialect), use of English, features of the local dialect. The first conversation deals with an interview and the others are spontaneous conversations that one single speaker, Giovanni, has with friends from his own village of origin. All the recordings have in common one speaker, Giovanni, whose linguistic behaviour has been deeply investigated. The results gave evidence that Giovanni prefers dialect with his friends born in Montefalcione and Italian with the interviewer who is not perceived as a member of the Italian community of Bedford. Variation was found also in use of English and in the selection of more conservative variants of the local dialect.