Course Details

If you are a bilingual person or plan to raise your children as bilingual, this class is for you.

The class will offer several perspectives on bilingualism: from personal to global, from linguistic structure of code-switching to neurological features of the bilingual brain. We will look at how bilingual children acquire two languages, consider the experiences of bilingual adults, and study bilingualism as a societal phenomenon (diglossia and language choice, language policies, language and national identity, linguistic minorities, etc.) Where possible, we will pay special attention to Slavic languages (language policies in Slovakia and Poland, the language situation in Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia, dialects of Slovenia, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, as arguements for bilingualism within one language, etc.) You do not need to be a Slavist to take this course, as most readings are general and you can choose any language(s) to work on.