Sviatlana Karpava | University of Cyprus (original) (raw)

Papers by Sviatlana Karpava

Journal of multilingual and multicultural development, Apr 22, 2024

Employing a qualitative approach for data collection and analysis, this research focuses on 50 mu... more Employing a qualitative approach for data collection and analysis, this research focuses on 50 multilingual families, with ten from each country. The study explores the role of English as a third language (L3) in both endogamous and exogamous multilingual families with immigrant and minority backgrounds across Cyprus, Estonia, Germany, Israel, and Sweden. Additionally, it examines the impact of English on family language practices, its effects on Russian as a heritage language, on the majority country language(s), and on (online) education, as well as on (digital) literacy skills. The findings, based on the thematic analysis of in-depth interviews with mothers, highlight the importance of English as an L3 in the context of the majority language and Russian as a heritage language. This emphasises parents’ recognition of English as crucial for their children’s future success and the significance of English education for academic achievement. The study underscores the evolving role of English in multilingual families, by putting emphasis on the need for continued exploration of language practices, proficiency development, and the broader impact on family language policies. We advocate for further investigation into the influence of social and technological factors to enhance understanding of language dynamics in diverse multicultural contexts.

The aim of this paper is to highlight translanguaging practices in the home among bilingual/multi... more The aim of this paper is to highlight translanguaging practices in the home among bilingual/multilingual Russian-speaking children and their parents in Cyprus, Sweden and Estonia. Multilingual families are the focus of our research: 50 in Cyprus, 20 in Estonia and 50 in Sweden. Using parental written question-naires with the focus on general background, socio-economic status and language proficiency, as well as oral semi-structured interviews and ethnographic participant observation, our study attempts to describe how family language policy is managed through translanguaging and literacy activities in multilingual Russian-speaking families in three different cultural and linguistic environments. Our results show both differences and similarities among Russian-speakers in the three countries, not only in their family language practices, but also in their attitudes towards the fluidity of language, language repertoires, translanguaging and Russian-language literacy. Russian-speakers i...

Languages

This study explored the language and literacy practices of multilingual families in Cyprus, Eston... more This study explored the language and literacy practices of multilingual families in Cyprus, Estonia, Germany, Israel, and Sweden during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study focuses on the different roles of family members in language transmission in order to understand whether these practices might have been influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic. We aimed to answer two key research questions: RQ1, whether and how the pandemic conditions affected the heritage language, societal language acquisition, and heritage language literacy learning environments in the five countries examined (Cyprus, Estonia, Germany, Israel, and Sweden); and RQ2, what is the nature of child and parental agency in facilitation of the possible changes in the corresponding five countries? Fifty semi-structured interviews (ten in each country) were conducted. The data highlighted the factors that triggered changes in family language policy during the pandemic and the role of the child’s agency, parents, extended family...

Open Cultural Studies

The linguistic and cultural values of migrants, as well as their attitudes and behaviour, differ ... more The linguistic and cultural values of migrants, as well as their attitudes and behaviour, differ from those of the host society. All resources and values can be characterised as linguistic and cultural capital, which can provide migrants with certain advantages in their new country of settlement. A heritage language (HL) and knowledge about another culture are important components of this linguistic cultural capital. It is crucial for multi-generational families to maintain their HL and transmit the culture of their heritage to help individuals gain a better understanding of their own identity. This study aims to investigate the views, attitudes, and beliefs of second-generation migrants in Cyprus and Sweden in relation to their HL, linguistic and cultural capital, factors affecting HL use, maintenance, and development, as well as their future plans and aspirations regarding HL transmission. Narrative analysis of the semi-structured interviews revealed certain differences and simila...

Journal of Portuguese Linguistics, 2013

The present study investigates the role of first language (L1), in our case Cypriot Greek (CG) or... more The present study investigates the role of first language (L1), in our case Cypriot Greek (CG) or Standard Greek (SG), in the second language (L2) acquisition of English present perfect in terms of form and meaning possibilities. With respect to native speakers of CG in particular, the primary goal is to determine whether transfer from the mother-tongue, in which present perfect has only a resultative reading and simple past a resultative, an existential or a definite reading, influences the acquisition of the English present perfect. It is assumed that L2 acquisition involves establishing connections between the semantic properties/overt markers for each reading and the English present perfect. Diagnostic tests proposed by Agouraki (2006) are employed in this study, based on the (in)compatibility of certain types of adverbial markers with the existential reading and the resultative reading, respectively, as well as on the distinct semantic properties of the two readings. Almost 400 participants took part in this research. The results show that there is a certain effect of L1 on the L2 acquisition of English present perfect by CG-and SG-speaking pupils, which is argued to be mainly due to the different patterns of meanings and forms in CG, SG and English.

International Journal of Multilingualism

Russian Journal of Linguistics, 2021

Translanguaging is seen both as a threat and as an opportunity for minority language development ... more Translanguaging is seen both as a threat and as an opportunity for minority language development and transmission. While the theme of translanguaging has been explored especially in a context of migration, the novelty of this study lies in its investigation of the multiple contexts in which translanguaging is examined. In order to understand the nature of translanguaging, we adopt a novel interdisciplinary approach and view it in all its complexity, including liminal spaces of linguistic landscape. Family language policy affects the home linguistic environment. Our purpose is to investigate language choices by multilingual Russian-speakers in Cyprus, Sweden and Estonia, immigrant and minority settings, and try to understand how they are reflected in the multilingual interaction of the families. Using ethnographic participant observations and oral spontaneous multilingual production, our study attempts to describe how communication is managed through translanguaging practices among m...

Handbook of Research on Multilingual and Multicultural Perspectives on Higher Education and Implications for Teaching

This study investigated the beliefs of future teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) in ... more This study investigated the beliefs of future teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) in Cyprus regarding multilingualism, multiculturalism, and inclusive education. The students, future EFL teachers, were asked to complete questionnaires, to participate in semi-structured interviews, to write online blog entries based on the discussions/materials covered in class on the topic of multilingualism and multiculturalism in EFL classes, and to express their views, perceptions of, and attitudes towards multilingualism and the multilingual landscape in Cyprus, as well as the teaching methods, approaches, and techniques that could be implemented in linguistically and culturally heterogeneous classes. The analysis of the data showed that the future EFL teachers had a positive attitude towards multilingualism, multiculturalism, and inclusive education and that these aspects should be promoted.

Transmitting Minority Languages

This chapter focuses on Russian and its heritage language use, maintenance and transmission in Cy... more This chapter focuses on Russian and its heritage language use, maintenance and transmission in Cyprus (which shares the Eastern Orthodox religion with Russia), in Estonia (part of the USSR until 1991) and Sweden (a somewhat neutral country vis-à-vis the USSR and Russia). Drawing on theoretical issues of family language policy, we investigated multilingual families, consisting of majority language (MajL)-speaking and Russian-speaking members, examining whether Russian is maintained and transferred to the next generation. Under ‘multilingual family’, we include four situations: (1) a Russian speaker and a MajL speaker, (2) a Russian-MajL mixed speaker and a MajL speaker, (3) both parents are Russian-MajL mixed speakers (common in Estonia) and (4) both parents are Russian speakers (more common in Cyprus). Our results show the discrepancies between the desired and valid efforts and choices in Russian-language transmission. We examined how these phenomena occurred and what practical issues and societal factors affected the Russian language in the (home) lives of the families.

Vulnerable Domains for Cross-Linguistic Influence in L2 Acquisition of Greek

The Soft Power of the Russian Language

Vulnerable Domains for Cross-Linguistic Influence in L2 Acquisition of Greek

Modern Greek Dialects and Linguistics Theory, 2012

According to the Semantic Complexity Hypothesis (van Hout, 2008), simple semantic operations are ... more According to the Semantic Complexity Hypothesis (van Hout, 2008), simple semantic operations are acquired early. Perfective aspect on telic predicates, emphasizing completion, is less complex than imperfective aspect on telic predicates, which requires aspect shift. So, for telic predicates, perfective aspect is acquired earlier than imperfective. The present study deals with acquisition of aspect by Russian-Cypriot Greek bilingual children, in both Cypriot Greek and Russian. A total of 22 children participated in the study, split into four age groups (4-, 5-, 6, and 7-year-olds). The materials were comprehension and production tasks on aspect (from COST Action A33), adapted to Cypriot Greek and Russian. The results of the study showed that 4-and 5-years-olds, both in Russian and in Cypriot Greek, have acquired perfective aspect, yet still have problems with imperfective aspect in incomplete situations; the results improve with age 6.

This study investigates linguistic development of bilingual children in Cyprus, specifically with... more This study investigates linguistic development of bilingual children in Cyprus, specifically with respect to object clitic production. Twenty-three Russian–Cypriot Greek (CG) simultaneous bilingual children took part in the study. Greek oral production data, obtained via elicited story-telling (Tsimpli et al. 2007), was recorded, transcribed and analysed in terms of object clitic (non)target production/omission and relevant features such as gender, case, number and person. The analysis of the data showed that the linguistic development of bilingual children is influenced by the quantity and quality of input and their linguistic environment as well as by their mothers’ linguistic profile and background.

Proceedings of International Conferences of Experimental Linguistics

This is a study of morphological agreement in L2 Greek verbal and nominal domains by L1 Russian, ... more This is a study of morphological agreement in L2 Greek verbal and nominal domains by L1 Russian, Bulgarian, and Turkish speakers, with various features such as person, number, gender, and case involved, following Tsimpli et al. 2005. Russian, Bulgarian, and Greek are similar in terms of phi-feature agreement, but different from Turkish. A further distinction will be made for the L2 Greek, between Standard Modern Greek and Cypriot Greek. The analysis of the oral interviews shows that gender, an uninterpretable feature that lacks semantic content (Tsimpli 2004, Franceshina 2001), was the most problematic feature for non-native speakers of Greek, both in the verbal and in the nominal domain. L2 learners either relied on phonological agreement or used the default neuter gender.

Vulnerable Domains for Cross-Linguistic Influence in L2 Acquisition of Greek

ExLing 2015: Proceedings of 6th Tutorial and Research Workshop on Experimental Linguistics

Πeρίληψη Η πιλοτική έρeυνα που παρουσιάζeται eδώ eξeτάζeι την παραγωγή και κατανόηση αφηγηματικού... more Πeρίληψη Η πιλοτική έρeυνα που παρουσιάζeται eδώ eξeτάζeι την παραγωγή και κατανόηση αφηγηματικού λόγου σe 23 παιδιά, δίγλωσσα στην Ρωσική και την Κυπριακή, ηλικίας από 3 μέχρι 11 χρονών. Τα δίγλωσσα παιδιά eίχαν τα ίδια αποτeλέσματα και στις δυο γλώσσeς και σημeίωσαν καλύτeρη eπίδοση στην eπαναφήγηση παρά στην πρωτότυπη παραγωγή αφηγηματικού λόγου. Η σύγκριση των δίγλωσσων παιδιών μe τα μονόγλωσσα παιδιά μe την Eλληνική ως μητρική γλώσσα και τα μονόγλωσσα παιδιά μe την Ρωσική ως μητρική γλώσσα δeίχνeι ότι τα μονόγλωσσα παιδιά υπeρέχουν κυρίως σe ότι αφορά την δομή της ιστορίας και τους όρους που eκφράζουν την eσωτeρική κατάσταση.

Journal of multilingual and multicultural development, Apr 22, 2024

Languages

Open Cultural Studies

Journal of Portuguese Linguistics, 2013

International Journal of Multilingualism

Russian Journal of Linguistics, 2021

Handbook of Research on Multilingual and Multicultural Perspectives on Higher Education and Implications for Teaching

Transmitting Minority Languages

Vulnerable Domains for Cross-Linguistic Influence in L2 Acquisition of Greek

The Soft Power of the Russian Language

Vulnerable Domains for Cross-Linguistic Influence in L2 Acquisition of Greek

Modern Greek Dialects and Linguistics Theory, 2012

Proceedings of International Conferences of Experimental Linguistics

Vulnerable Domains for Cross-Linguistic Influence in L2 Acquisition of Greek

ExLing 2015: Proceedings of 6th Tutorial and Research Workshop on Experimental Linguistics

Transmitting Minority Languages, 2022

EFL IJ, 2024

Call for Papers September 2024 special issue of EFL International Journal Multilingualism, Multi... more Call for Papers September 2024 special issue of EFL International Journal
Multilingualism, Multiculturalism and English Language Education:
New Challenges, Needs and Opportunities