Language learning, polylanguaging and speaker perspectives

Abstract

This article brings data typical of SLA research and sociolinguistic theorisation together by dis-cussing data from Swiss German university students learning Danish. In some cases, the stu-dents signal investment in and alignment with hybrid language use, but in others the students “polylanguage” from a form-analytic point of view, while the context suggests they orient to an idea of “pure” Danish. In these cases, their hybrid linguistic productions are more likely to be explained by their status as language learners. These observations point to the need for consid-ering repertoire restrictions and learner ambitions in current sociolinguistic conceptualisations of linguistic hybridity.