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Bilingualism in Younger Generation of Greek Orthodox Community in Istanbul: The Language Use of Greek and Turkish Languages in Greek Minority Educational Institutions

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Handbook of Research and Practice in Heritage Language Education

Part of the book series: Springer International Handbooks of Education ((SIHE))

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Abstract

The Greek Orthodox community is an indigenous minority with long-standing historical existence in Istanbul. However, heavy emigration to Greece, combined with pressures and restrictions applied historically to the community, raises concerns as to the survival of the Greek language of the bilingual community, which remains, nowadays, approximately, only 2500 people, in over 18 million population of such a huge city like Istanbul. According to the study held, in the beginning of the 2000s (Komondouros and McEntee-Atalianis, J Multiling Multicult Dev 28(5):365–384, 2007), the Greek language had such a symbolic value in the eyes of the Greek Orthodox community that even gained space in the practical needs covered by the Turkish language. However, during this decade, things have changed to the detriment of the Greek language. It is observed that young men and women feel the need to use Turkish. This proves that the attitude of the minority, against the Turkish language, has been changing from generation to generation. It is supposed that the extending use of Turkish will limit the use of Greek.

This chapter focuses on the current sociolinguistic situation of the Greek Orthodox minority in Istanbul, in order to predict to the maximum possible extent the linguistic behavior of the new generation of the members of the Greek-speaking minority of Istanbul, based on the observation of the use of the two languages (Greek and Turkish) by informants aged 10–18. The chapter reports findings related to a questionnaire study conducted in Istanbul, in the academic period 2013–2014.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Turkish Studies and Modern Asian Studies, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens, Kaplanon 6 Rd, Athens, 10680, Greece

    Maria (Rika) Rompopoulou

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  1. Maria (Rika) Rompopoulou
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Correspondence to Maria (Rika) Rompopoulou .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. OISE/University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

    Peter Pericles Trifonas

  2. CERES/University of Toronto Munk School of Global Affairs, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

    Themistoklis Aravossitas

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Rompopoulou, M. (2016). Bilingualism in Younger Generation of Greek Orthodox Community in Istanbul: The Language Use of Greek and Turkish Languages in Greek Minority Educational Institutions. In: Trifonas, P., Aravossitas, T. (eds) Handbook of Research and Practice in Heritage Language Education. Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-38893-9_30-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-38893-9_30-1

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