ABSTRACT
For various language contact situations where a minority language is involved it has been proposed that speakers of a second generation of immigrants may lose their ability to use the first language (L1) differentially. Differentially in this respect often means according to the situational demands and habits of the first generation (cf. Lavandera, 1984; Jönsson-Korhola, 1989: 196, 200). A similar loss of productive skills in stylistic differentiation has been noticed occurring within autochthonic minorities which are subject to the pressure of a language shift (e.g. Dressler and Wodak-Leodolter, 1977; Dorian, 1978:603; Gal, 1984; Mougeon et al., 1985; Appel and Muysken, 1987:45; Silva-Corvalán, 1991; Tandefelt, 1992:160). This may be seen as a normal result of the functional differentiation of the two languages of a speaker generation that has increased its bilingual ability compared to their parents, at the same time as they have become more deeply integrated into the surrounding majority society. The stylistic spectrum of a monolingual corresponds to the bilingual’s choice from the linguistic means of two languages, with their respective style potentials. The bilingual community has at its disposal the maximum span of the two languages. Most bilingual speakers, however, only need to use some of the stylistic properties of L1 habitually and some others of the second (L2), majority language. The use of only some of the stylistic properties and their use in a manner which deviates from the norm, is often understood by the monolingual speech community not only as different, but also as indicative of a lack of competence in the appropriate norms.
