Language and identity : the case of Silesian

Abstract

Bilingualism has long been observed in Silesia, a part of Poland which lies on the border between three cultures and languages: Polish, Czech and German. Some linguists consider Silesian one of the Polish dialects, others think it should be treated as a separate language. During the communist times the inhabitants of Upper Silesia were discouraged from using the local dialect at school or in public institutions. The situation has changed a lot since 1989 with the promotion of regional studies. Short characteristics of Silesian will be presented in the fi rst part of the paper. The main part of the project presents the results of a questionnaire which focuses on young people’s attitudes towards Silesian. The respondents (100 Polish students of English philology) fall into two groups – half of them identify themselves with the region and the other half do not. How many respondents speak Silesian? Where do they use it and how do they evaluate it? What is the linguistic stereotype of a person living in Upper Silesia? These are just a few questions that suggest themselves in the context of the study.