Heritage Okinawan language and Japanese Okinawan: A comparative analysis of discourse structure and communication strategies

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 23520466
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Linguistics
• Research Institution: University of the Ryukyus
• Principal Investigator: MIYAHIRA Katsuyuki 琉球大学, 法文学部, 教授 (10264467)
• Research Collaborator: Petrucci Peter R. マシー大学, 人文社会科学部, 上級講師
• Project Period (FY): 2011-04-28 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 継承沖縄語 / 相互行為助詞 / モダリティ / 言語景観 / 言語イデオロギー

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study addressed some issues of discourse organization and sociocultural utilities of heritage Okinawan language and Okinawa-substrate Japanese, a contact language between Japanese and Okinawan. It discovered some unique features of an utterance-final modality marker, “shiyoo ne.” It also identified sequential positions and respective functions of interactional particles, sa, yo, and wake in Okinawan talk-in-interaction.
Sociolinguistic analyses of Okinawan terms and expressions used in Okinawan diasporas led to a finding of a transnational network of Okinawans and Okinawans-at-heart, otherwise known as “digital Okinawa,” which has been recognized to play a significant role in promoting heritage language learning. Likewise, the analyses of linguistic landscape and commodification of Okinawan language revealed competing language attitudes and language ideologies that are now pervasive in local Okinawan communities.

Free Research Field

談話研究