Maltese and English no longer form part of the entry requirements at Junior College. What does this say about students' grasp of these two official languages?
The state of the Maltese language is a perennially hot topic in Malta. People get pigeonholed according to whether they favour English over Maltese, whether they mix the two languages and, perhaps most controversially, which language they use with their children. Maureen Saguna reports.
For a country that bemoans the deterioration of the Maltese language, the number of those who claim it is their first language is staggering. According to a recent survey carried out by the National Statistics Office, 97% of Maltese citizens between the ages of 18 and 80 consider Maltese to be their first language. Another surprising result is that 75% claim to speak to their children only in Maltese, while only 5% use exclusively English to communicate with them.
Desiree’Ann Bonello is one of the 75%. She has two daughters aged 11 and 14, whom she raised speaking Maltese, relying on their schools to teach them English. Her children are now fluent in both languages and never had issues with either language. “I don’t mind people preferring to use English, but it bothers me when a Maltese person cannot speak Maltese,” she admits.
“Nowadays, a lot of children cannot speak our language because they are only spoken to in English, and I feel that it is leading to the deterioration of the Maltese language.”Her children’s homework had also caused Desiree’Ann to raise an eyebrow at times. “It’s very frustrating to see words like nisslajsja instead of inqatta’, for example,” she says.
“English is important to know, but not at the expense of Maltese. We should be proud that such a small island has its own language and we need to teach our children to love it from a young age. ”Although parents like Desriee’Ann might come across as purists, their concern is genuine. However, Dr Michael Spagnol, senior lecturer and Head of the Maltese Department at the University of Malta, is not that worried.
“As linguists, we often come across these concerns, and not just with Maltese. We have even come across manuscripts from the 18th century where the writer complains about the state of the Maltese language.
The reality is that borrowing words does not weaken a language,” he explains, adding that Maltese has always been influenced by other languages. “These days, it is mostly influenced by English, but Maltese is full of words, like furketta, sikkina, and mejda, which were adopted from Italian, Sicilian, and Arabic.”
For some, using English at home is a deliberate decision. Julia*, who has two children aged three and four, grew up speaking both languages while her husband grew up speaking Maltese. “We chose English as the children’s first language because it is more important for their future,” she says.
“If they choose to live abroad as adults, English will take them further than Maltese would. While we want them to know both languages, we know that they will pick up Maltese from school, from reading, and from their extended family.
”Much like Julia, Ylenia, mum to a three-year-old boy and a one-year-old girl, speaks to her children mostly in English. While Ylenia’s son attends a private school where English is the predominant language, her daughter goes to a nursery where English and Maltese are given equal importance. At the tender age of 22 months, she knows the numbers in Maltese, something Ylenia did not teach her.
“I am very happy that they are teaching her Maltese alongside English,” shares Ylenia. “It’s very important to me that my children also know how to speak the Maltese language well. I believe it is valuable, not only for whichever profession they will take up, but also as a way to integrate in the community.
”Some parents, however, don’t have the luxury — or added stress — of choosing between languages. Laura Bonnici, who grew up in England, is mum to five-year-old Adam.
“Speaking Maltese at home is the best way to ensure they grow up knowing the language well.”
She moved to Malta to learn Maltese, her own mother’s first language and, over a decade later, is still struggling with it. “It’s still proving to be the trickiest language I’ve ever tried to learn,” she confesses.
“However, my husband’s first language is Maltese, and Adam attends the local state primary school, which means that he is at least getting exposed to fluent Maltese there. Apart from the fact that being bilingual is a valuable skill in itself, for us it is very important that he can communicate comfortably with both sides of his family.
”When asked about parents using only English with their children, trusting that they will learn Maltese at school, Dr Spagnol expresses some concern. “It’s a very complex matter,” he says. “Speaking Maltese at home is the best way to ensure they grow up knowing the language well.
Although not impossible, the likelihood of children learning Maltese fluently outside the family home is slim. Nowadays, children are bombarded with English through things like films and video games, and many students they mix with at school are foreign, so they get little opportunity to hear or speak Maltese outside the home.
”Dr Spagnol’s words struck a chord with me. I raised all three of my children, aged 16, 10, and 6, speaking English. They all understand Maltese, with the eldest being fluent and the younger ones getting more comfortable with it as they grow.
My motivations were the same as Julia’s, even though I grew up speaking Maltese myself. I want all of them to be fluent in both languages but, much like other parents, left the teaching of Maltese to their schools. While things are, more or less, working out as I thought they would, I now realise that my decision can sometimes complicate my children’s lives. My eldest is now old enough to offer some hindsight.
“I have been teased since I was in primary school,” she shares, assuring me it does not bother her anymore. When I ask her if she regrets being English-speaking, she confesses to feeling self-conscious when speaking Maltese to others who are much more fluent than her. “I don’t regret it because being fluent in English helps a lot, but I sometimes find it hard to understand some Maltese expressions, and other times I jumble up my words if I feel self-conscious.
”Nobody seems to have a clear answer as to which language should be given more importance at home. However, what is clear is that we are lucky to be bilingual, a fact we should not take for granted. As Dr Spagnol says, “these languages are gifts, and it would be a pity if we restricted ourselves to just one language, especially with our children.”
This story was first published in Sunday Circle, a Times of Malta publication. Read full online edition here: http://sundaycircle.tom-mag.com/41/index.html#issue/19