Before she started school in the U.S.,Mita,daughter of immigrant parents of Indian origin,used to speak only her home language of Hindi fluently.She then learned to speak English in school and attained fluency in both Hindi and English.However,as she grew older,she started to feel ashamed of her roots and gave up speaking Hindi altogether.This phenomenon is called:
A) subjective bilingualism.
B) relapsed bilingualism.
C) subtractive bilingualism.
D) retractive bilingualism.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Subtractive bilingualism refers to the situation where a person loses their L1 (first language) as they acquire their L2 (second language). This is common among immigrant children who feel pressure to assimilate to the dominant culture and language of their new country. In Mita's case, she gave up speaking Hindi altogether and only spoke English, which means she experienced subtractive bilingualism. The other options do not fit with her situation. Subjective bilingualism refers to an individual's perception of their own language proficiency, and has no mention of losing one's L1. Relapsed and retractive bilingualism are not commonly used terms in bilingualism research.

Before She Started School in the U