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Article published In: Asia-Pacific Language Variation
Vol. 10:1 (2024) ► pp.40–66

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Transplanted Brazilian Portuguese in Japan

Mobility, contact, and koiné formation among Latin American immigrants

ORCiD logo with link | The University of Tokyo
 | Kanda University of International Studies
 | Kobe Shoin Women’s University
Published online: 8 August 2024
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/aplv.21004.mat
Abstract
This paper explores an emerging Brazilian Portuguese koiné spoken among Brazilian-dominant Latin American immigrants in Japan’s Greater Tokyo Area. It examines Strong-R (onset /r/) realizations by 79 speakers in the context of dialect and language contact within the diasporic setting. The results highlight (a) levelling and focussing towards [h] as a result of koineization and (b) early stages of the adoption of [ɸ], a xenolectal feature, resulting from contact with Japanese. The external and internal motivations for change towards [h] are identified as local and supralocal levelling and drift. The transition to [ɸ], and its linguistic and social embedding, are discussed in terms of acquisition order, the structure of the Japanese kana syllabary, and speakers’ social networks. The conclusion emphasizes the importance for koiné genesis of input dialects, ongoing language change in the homeland, the social meaning of variants in both pre- and post-contact societies, and speakers’ social networks and mobilities.
Abstract (Japanese)
本稿は，首都圏郊外の南米人移民コミュニティにおいてコイネーとして形成しつつあるブラジルポルトガル語変種に関する探索的研究である．新天地で方言/言語接触の状況下にある79名から収録したStrong-R (頭子音 /r/) の語彙発話の音声変異を話者情報や言語環境に基づいて分析し，(a)コイネー化の帰結として[h]へ平準化が起こり，収束していること，(b)日本語との接触により外来言語要素[ɸ]が採用され始めたことを示した．[h]への変化の言語内動機は偏流(drift)，言語外動機は調査地(local)および国内の複数の移民コミュニティ(supralocal)における方言接触との関連性を論じた．[ɸ]への推移に関しては習得順，[ɸ]の言語体系/社会構造への埋め込み(embedding)に関しては日本語の仮名の構造，話者の社会的ネットワークという観点から議論した．コイネー形成の理解には，移植された方言，祖国で進行中の言語変化，祖国/新天地における変異形の社会的意味の可変性，話者の社会的ネットワークとモビリティを精査する必要があろう．
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Latin American immigrants in Japan
  • 3.Strong-R in Brazilian Portuguese: Diachrony, synchrony, and indexical meanings
  • 4.Methodology
    • 4.1Data and participants
    • 4.2Social and linguistic factors
    • 4.3Analytical procedures
  • 5.Results
    • 5.1Distribution of Strong-R variants in Jōsō and their origin in Brazil
    • 5.2Statistical modelling I: Predictors of advancing form in Portuguese in Japan
    • 5.3Statistical modelling II: Effects of dialect background and mobility within Japan
    • 5.4A mixed approach to the emergence of an innovative form in Japanese Portuguese
  • 6.Discussion and conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
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