Becoming Multilingual

What does it mean to live as a bilingual or multilingual person? How is this experience manifested in the United States? Despite once proclaiming itself as a "nation of immigrants" (USCIS removed this phrase from their description five years ago) and having a history built upon the immigrants who either voluntarily or forcibly came to this country, the nation has operated in a manner that silenced many of the immigrants' language, and thus, their culture.

This week, I interviewed several students and a faculty member about their experiences being bilingual or multilingual in this country, where most multilingual individuals are often also multicultural. A defense of one's cultural roots often comes in the form of perfecting English, while reminding themselves of the family's language. Both have to happen. One must perfect English, or else it becomes easy to be judged according to prejudice against their background, but losing one’s family's language often also means disconnection from home. This disconnection can be as immediate as not being able to speak with your grandparents or communicate in regions containing your family's history. We hope this article will show you not only the benefits a person can reap for being multilingual, which we focus on most of the time, but also the life path the person went through to become a multilingual individual. We also hope you ponder what values we should instill in our communities to refrain from demeaning an individual's language or culture.

Please give us a brief introduction about yourself, and what languages you speak.

Brandon: I'm Brandon Alvarez (junior, biochemistry and business administration), and I speak English and Spanish.

Beaula: My name is Beaula Mangundah (freshman, MLS). The languages that I speak are English, Afrikaans, and Shona.

Dr. Sciarabba: My name is Davide Sciarabba, and I am a religion professor. I speak Italian since I was born and raised in Italy. I studied English in middle school and then learned French when I moved to France, where I met my wife. While I was learning French, I learned Spanish with my wife's family.

Kristina: My name is Kristina Kasap (senior, biology). I'm from Russia, although I've been in the U.S. for the past six years. I speak Russian, English, and some Ukrainian. Both Russian and Ukrainian language are similar enough for me to talk to someone who is Ukrainian in Russian, and understand them when they reply to me in Ukrainian.

How did you end up picking up those languages?

Brandon: It was natural for me. I grew up with two immigrant parents and attended a predominantly Hispanic school, so I think both languages came naturally to me.

Beaula: Shona is my mother tongue. My parents spoke it in the house, so I understand most of the detail. Speaking is tricky, but I can string a few words together if I need to. I picked up English, which I see as my first language, in my society, since I lived in the diaspora in Namibia that mainly spoke English. I picked up my third language in school, which required students to study a second language, which in my case was Afrikaans. That's how I became a trilingual person.

Kristina: Russian is my native language, and I picked up English since it has always been a dream of mine to study here in the U.S. I learned Ukrainian through my church members, and it came naturally since I spent so much time with them.

What purpose does each language serve, or what culture do you associate with each language?

Brandon: Spanish gives me a feeling of home mainly because of my grandparents and parents. It reminds me of moments sitting around the family table, eating and joking with my grandparents, or visiting relatives in the Dominican Republic or Mexico. Spanish lets me communicate with people I love and don't get to see frequently. English is more for social aspects and academics, and I also feel more confident in English since I grew up here, and attended English-speaking schools.

Beaula: I find the purpose or culture through different ways I use each language to connect. English is used to communicate with basically everyone, especially within academia. But when it comes to my mother tongue or Afrikaans, I find myself connecting with a distinct group of people that understand the word, jokes, proverbs, and the history of the language.

Dr. Sciarabba: When I was a teenager, I started learning English at school. I studied French for academic purposes, since I needed to understand and talk in French while finishing my theology studies in France. I learned Spanish with my wife's family, which helped me better understand her and her family's culture. My time in France taught me not only French, but that there existed a world beyond my country. It forced me to create a new mindset since it was my first time being in a different culture and facing challenges as a foreigner. It was a humbling experience that helped me relate and serve the needs of the immigrant members at my church while working as a pastor in Italy. And I think that it is the most vital aspect of learning multiple languages; you can relate with people you probably could not before. I call it building bridges.

Kristina: Well, Russian is my root, and I take pride in it. Actually, my current goal is not to forget Russian, so I sometimes force myself to write in Russian on a piece of paper to maintain my memory. English is obviously for education, but also for my daily and social life since I speak English while living here. I don’t really have a specific purpose for Ukrainian in my life, but I love the fact that I can understand and have conversations with people in my church using their native language.

Do you see your personality, tone, or character changing when you switch between languages?

Brandon: 100%. My voice goes higher when I speak Spanish. I feel on the tip of my toes when I speak it and more relaxed when I talk in English. I think it's partly because I'm more comfortable with English.

Beaula: I don't think I switch my personality, but I think my character as a whole was changing in the process of learning a new language, since I was adapting to the culture that uses that language.

Dr. Sciarabba: I never paid attention to my tone, but I realized that in my daughter. She has an assertive tone when speaking English, but a softer tone when she speaks in Italian or Spanish.

Kristina: Yes, and I was thinking about this the other day. It's crazy how much I change tones, facial expressions, and emotions when I speak Russian and when I speak English; it's like two completely different individuals! For example, I become really loud when I talk in Russian but much softer when I speak in English. I think these differences arise because you adopt the culture as you learn the language.

Do you feel comfortable about the fact that you speak two or more languages? Were there any moments you felt like you had to hide them? Let us know your general experience of being a multilingual person growing up, before coming to Andrews, or during your time at Andrews.

Brandon: I don’t think I felt like I had to hide them, but I think it depends on the environment. In a predominantly white setting, it doesn't help that you're speaking in Spanish, because it can make some people focus only on the fact that you are Hispanic. In those situations, my name, which is a pretty white-passing name, helps, since people would think I'm white most of the time. But then, if I go to places like Mexico, I have to prove that I'm Hispanic or Spanish-speaking, so that I'm not viewed as Brandon, but as Brándòn. Contrasting settings, but it's the same in both situations that I try to avoid people viewing me as foreign. I definitely feel appreciated being bilingual or multilingual at Andrews. I feel more culturally understood, and I think part of that comes from Andrews actively finding the beauty in the cultures present on campus.

Beaula: I don't feel the need to hide it, and I take pride in myself for being different. I don't think I had any bad experiences in the Andrews community about being multilingual. But I sometimes wanted to throw this ability away when I was younger. When you're learning the language, people notice you're different by your accent. Since I did not have a pure African accent, one kid told me I sounded like a white person. Struggles like that in my journey of becoming multilingual or finding a place where I fit in, have not always been easy.

Dr. Sciarabba: I feel fortunate and blessed to speak four languages since I can communicate with many people. It's enriching to get to know more people and their cultures; this ability has been one of my biggest assets since coming to Andrews. I believe that speaking different languages is part of what diversity means. Diversity is not limited to ethnicity and gender but also to culture and language. I identify myself as a European with a Mediterranean culture. I think we have to see and acknowledge the diversity of languages and cultures within each of us to be able to welcome one another. To me, speaking other people’s languages is to appreciate their diversity.

Kristina: Not really, because it means I can reach out and communicate with more people, so I never felt bad about being multilingual. I did feel a little uncomfortable revealing my nationality when the war started. Still, I can’t do anything about it but accept that it is my country committing such a horrible thing.

Lastly, to tie everything up together, could you share with me what it means to be bilingual or multilingual to you personally?

Brandon: I think being bilingual expands my opportunities. It can give you an upper hand because you open yourself to a whole set of populations, especially on mission trips. You can do things like translating for doctors who don't speak Spanish for patients who only speak Spanish.

Beaula: Being multilingual is an opportunity to appreciate what is out there. Learning Afrikaans was one of the most challenging experiences since it was not something I learned naturally, but was forced onto me. But I later learned to see the value in my ability, and how it changed my perspective in the process of learning how to understand the different feelings words, jokes, and phrases evoke, which are forms of language that translation can not fully convey.

Dr. Sciarabba: Being multilingual has helped me grow and become more open-minded. I think learning languages forces you to think beyond your comfort zone and appreciate other cultures. When I speak a foreign language I feel vulnerable, but at the same time happy to address the needs of my neighbor.  

Kristina: I think it means being committed to learning. You have to continue to learn throughout your life; it doesn't end in high school or college. Being multilingual is my commitment to learning to communicate with more people and their cultures, because there are always some cultural aspects you will never understand until you learn the language.