Minority Language Parenting and Family Language Policy

The language acquisition practices of parents and their child(ren) within a family language policy is essential to the maintenance of indigenous, heritage, and less commonly taught (minority) languages. Prefaced by a comprehensive exploration of existing literature, this study explores the language habits of 27 Yoruba parents resident in Ile-Ife, Nigeria with children aged 7-13. It sought to discover whether parents knew about family language policy and their utilization (or not) of it. Findings revealed most parents as unaware of the method and therefore not explicitly practicing any language policy within their home. In addition, despite a positive attitude to their minority language as a language of identity, most parents facilitated their children being monolingual in English, the language of social and economic mobility. The study concluded that parents and children are major stakeholders in language revitalization and maintenance and must maintain a family language policy that facilitates the growth of the minority language(s).