First Language Attrition as a Function of Age at Onset of Bilingualism: First Language Attainment of Turkish–English Bilinguals in the United Kingdom

• Published in: Language learning Vol. 69; no. 1; pp. 106 - 142
• Main Authors: Karayayla, Tuğba, Schmid, Monika S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken Wiley-Blackwell 01-03-2019; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: Accentuation; Age; Age Differences; Age effects; Age of onset; attrition; Bilingualism; British English; Comparative Analysis; Control Groups; critical period; English (Second Language); entrenchment; first language; Foreign Countries; Immigrants; Language attrition; Language Proficiency; Language Skill Attrition; Monolingualism; Native Language; Native language acquisition; Native Speakers; Pronunciation; Role; Second Language Learning; Turkish; Turkish immigrants; Turkish language; United Kingdom; United Kingdom > UK
• ISSN: 0023-8333; 1467-9922
• DOI: 10.1111/lang.12316

This investigation aimed to provide insights into the controversial debate on the role that age at onset of bilingualism plays in human language capacity with a focus on what it entails for first language (L1) attrition. L1 performance of Turkish immigrants (n = 57) in the United Kingdom with age at onset ranging between 7 and 34 years was compared to that of Turkish monolingual controls (n = 29) across two linguistic properties: structural complexity and accent. Findings generally showed that although the immigrants achieved nativelike proficiency with respect to the overall structural complexity of their L1, this was not the case for accent as those with an earlier age of onset were less likely to sound like native Turkish speakers. We discuss these findings in relation to two competing theoretical models of age effects and suggest that attrition data need to be better accommodated within these models.
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