U of Aruba: Home languages and higher education

I spoke at the University of Aruba at their “Home Languages & Higher Education” symposium (19-20 Sep 2018). My talk was on the Power Language Index and an assessment of the language dynamics in Aruba, where the island operates seamlessly in four languages (Dutch, English, Papiamento and Spanish). Papiamento is the majority language and along with Dutch is an official language of the island. However, only Dutch has status in official/government interactions and schooling is almost universally in Dutch. Given its geography, Spanish is also widely known/spoken. English is the dominant language for tourism and is globally powerful. Applying a modified version of the Power Language Index to the language scene in Aruba we arrive at a language hierarchy with English at the top, even though it has no status on the island.

The presentation can be found: here.