Linguistic dominance is a social process that occurs when specific languages are given higher importance because they carry a higher socioeconomic status than others. In effect, the 'higher' status of these languages is derived from the socioeconomic status of their speakers and their economy. This phenomenon leads to unequal distribution of power based on language and is used to subjugate or marginalize a particular group. It is known to have been historically used to segregate social classes and propagate economic inequality. . It is often seen in countries with large immigrant populations, where minority languages are given less importance due to their speakers being considered as belonging to a lower social class.
For example, Singapore is the home and workplace to more than 200,000 Filipinos. In fact, it was estimated in 2020 that around 93,800 of the total 1.77 million deployed workers who often work in the domestic or service industry were Filipinos. As a product of categorizing them as "lower class", the Filipino language faces a similar fate. This is evidenced by the lack of choice or option to study and learn the Filipino language in almost all Singaporean public and private schools. In contrast, in languages such as Spanish & French, representatives of the western world are offered in most international schools, although there is little to no Hispanic or French population in Singapore. Hence, these languages are placed on a higher pedestal. Therefore, labelling Filipinos as "the help" also implies a lower social class for the Filipino language.
The economic status of an economy plays a significant role in determining the social status of its language, as can be seen by comparing the economies of Spain and the Philippines. Spain is an economically advanced nation with a GDP of 1.43 trillion USD, while the Philippines is classified as a developing nation with a GDP of 394.1 billion USD. This difference in wealth impacts the overall development of the respective economies and further influences the size of the tourism industry in the two countries. The infrastructure in the Philippines is not well developed, making it challenging to facilitate tourists with airports, docks, and hotels. This lack of infrastructure, coupled with the fact that many people are unfamiliar with the language and customs of the Philippines, leads to a lower rate of tourism in the Philippines than in countries like Spain and France. In contrast, Spain is a major tourist destination due to its developed economy, ease of travel, cultural attractions and language. The comparison between Spain and the Philippines clearly illustrates how the economic status of a country can influence a nation's social class and, in effect, the linguistic dominance of the languages of these two countries. Having not experienced the culture
and customs of the Philippines, many do not care to appreciate Filipino as a language, as compared to Spanish or French, which belong to developed countries with higher tourism, as reflected by the tourism statistics of Spain and France. This difference in wealth has caused a significant disparity in the social and political standing of the two countries. While language is only a means to communicate and has nothing to do with the social status of an economy, it can be seen that as a part of the social construct, people begin to attach a higher value to languages of economies with higher socioeconomic status. Conversely, over a period of time, such assignment of value to certain languages tends to give more social power to the people who use or know these languages. As such, this comparison makes it clear that economic status plays a vital role in determining the social status of the language.
Linguistic dominance is not a new phenomenon. This has been happening for centuries and can be seen in the examples of France and Spain in the 1900s. By colonizing other countries, these countries imposed their language onto the resident population, destroying their local culture in the process. This created a market for power difference and gave the imposed languages, such as French and Spanish, a widespread effect. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the implications of linguistic dominance in today's context in order to prevent the continuation of this damaging cycle.
Overall, linguistic dominance is a complex phenomenon influenced by various social, political, and economic factors. It is ultimately determined by the status of a particular social group, which can lead to speakers of that social group having a higher or lower social status. This demonstrates the importance of language in shaping social hierarchies and the need to recognize and respect the languages of all social groups.
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