Moroccan Immigrants in Granada, Spain: Negotiating language, culture, and identity

Abstract

Analyzing multilingual situations from a sociolinguistic perspective has traditionally involved characterizing where, when, and how languages are used, utilizing constructs that characterize language use as stable and domain-specific, which references static social categories or bounded ethnolinguistic identities. These long-standing constructs in sociolinguistics are unable to account for language use within the complex social realities of Moroccans in Spain. In addition, current conceptualizations of identity foreground the central role of language in the relationship between the individual and the social such that language can be used to construct a sense of self. Questions remain regarding how subject positions may be negotiated through language use in a context where individuals' (like Moroccans') subjectivities and language practices are highly contested and surveilled. Furthermore, it is unclear to what extent speakers' own subject position and language practices are contingent upon processes of differentiation (i.e. broader ideological frameworks). To address these issues, I examine the relationship between the sociopolitical realities of the Moroccan community in Granada, Spain and the role of language use, identity negotiation, and language attitudes and ideologies in Moroccan immigrants' participation in Spanish society using a linguistic ethnographic approach to language which maintains that language and the social world are mutually shaping. The data include 95 hours of recordings from sociolinguistic interviews which elicited narratives and small stories, 55 questionnaires, and 77 observation and reflection entries that were collected from 30 first and 28 second generation members of the Moroccan community as well as eight interviews over the course of ten months with six focal participants. First, in regard to the language practices of Moroccans in Granada, the findings show that these practices are relational or social as opposed to a-temporal and structural. The social relationship itself thus plays an important role in the way speakers negotiate their language practices. While first generation speakers tend to use Dārīža more frequently and second generation speakers use Spanish, both groups used features from both Dārīža and Spanish more overall. In addition, speakers from both groups used features from French (for first generation speakers) and English (for second generation speakers). Speakers from both groups employed code-switched practices more frequently than any one language alone. However, the surveys were unable to account for such fluid language practices, thus demonstrating the importance of employing qualitative methods like observations, in addition to quantitative methods like surveys. Furthermore, the linguistic practices that do not fit into the idea of strict functional or domain separation point to a need to examine the relational and interpersonal aspects of language use. By placing the individual at the center for understanding larger social processes of language use, the approach taken in the current study transcends the micro- and macro- level distinctions that characterize sociolinguistic research. The findings presented here serve as a catalyst for re-examining other traditional constructs in sociolinguistics that are based on macro- and micro- distinctions of linguistic phenomena. Second, in an analysis of social identities as constructed in small stories, the findings demonstrate how first and second generation speakers are able to leverage fluid language practices to negotiate their positions as members of various communities. While Moroccan identity continues to be highly contested within Spanish society, first and second generation Moroccans utilize their multilingual repertoires to align themselves with specific identities and positions in sophisticated ways. These positions facilitated access to social spaces where Moroccans may have been denied entry. For example, speakers' multicultural positions helped them to access job opportunities that had been previously out of reach. Throughout this analysis, I argue that small stories should be treated as rich sites for understanding social identity constructions like narratives. Third, while the language practices can be characterized as fluid and dynamic, Moroccans hold diglossic and monoglossic views of their language practices. However, pluralist ideologies, which valued multilingual practices, were also present and were often in tension with monoglossic ideologies, which require speakers to engage in monolingual language practices in certain settings, despite their multilingual repertoires. The scope of influence of these ideological frameworks is limited as Moroccans' fluid language practices frequently challenged their monoglossic and diglossic perspectives. This finding serves as a caution against directly linking language ideologies and attitudes with language practices as they may only be one aspect that affects speakers' language choices. This study provides the first comprehensive study of language practices among Moroccans in Spain outside of educational institutions. The current work contributes to the sociolinguistic literature on multilingualism and social identities in migrant communities by challenging and refining long-standing traditional constructs in sociolinguistics, namely, structural approaches in characterizing multilingual language use. In this work, I argue for characterizations of multilingual practices that transcend micro- and macro- level distinctions. Finally, the findings from this work have implications for European and Spanish policymakers in the areas of education, community relations, international affairs, and public opinion. As the governments at each level seek to address the needs of individuals and groups, they must take into account that identities are not static and bounded categories that determine an individual's success, or lack thereof, in their participation in society. Moroccans demonstrate that it is precisely the contested linguistic practices and identity positions which allow them to successfully participate in a Spanish and global society.