The normal thing is that when a person learns a foreign language, they do so through their mother tongue, which has also frequently been called L1. The L1 is that linguistic system that people acquire during their childhood and serves as an intermediary when it comes to domesticating an unknown language that little by little will take root in their mind.
Many will wonder if we can forget our mother tongue when we have been living for many years in a foreign country where a different language is spoken and we have stopped using our native language.
In this article We will explain if you can forget your mother tongue And in that case how could such a complex phenomenon occur.
When learning a foreign language, it is normal for us to do so from our mother tongue, this being the linguistic system that we have acquired during our stage of development, the intermediary when it comes to domesticating a new language. We begin by translating the unknown words into our language, until the new language progressively takes root in our minds We will get used to the pronunciation and sounds, until we begin to use this new language directly, without needing our mother tongue.
Once you have managed to speak the new language automatically and directly, without the need to use your own native language as a reference to speak the foreign language fluently, it is worth asking yourself if, when you have been accustomed to using the new language for a long time, On a day-to-day basis, one can forget one’s mother tongue. The short answer is that yes you can, but in part, not completely; However, this is not the most common and must be qualified.
As a general rule, the mother tongue is never forgotten, but there are quite exceptional cases in which faculties can be lost regarding the correct use of the mother tongue. Therefore, linguistic erosion may occur when some faculties are lost to use the mother tongue fluently due to lack of use of it, but it will not be completely lost, the first symptom being the difficulty in finding the exact words, producing quite frequently the phenomenon known as “having the word on the tip of the tongue.”
In some research related to bilingualism and learning new languages, it has been found that when a person learns a foreign language, or even more, several linguistic systems can be active simultaneously in their brain, fundamentally one for each language learned. . However, in these cases, the mother tongue and the other languages that have been learned later could interfere with each other which would explain one of the reasons why the mother tongue can be forgotten.
Subtractive bilingualism
There is a concept called “subtractive bilingualism” that is related to forgetting or erosion of the mother tongue, which is why it is worth highlighting in this article, since it explains a case in which the mother tongue can be forgotten, at least in terms of fluency and correct use of it; This phenomenon occurs when the person is in the development stage (childhood) and has only been using their mother tongue for a few years.
Subtractive bilingualism is a phenomenon that has been widely studied and consists of the fact that the mother tongue can be forgotten when a child ends up replacing it with a new language because in the new place where he or she resides there is an obligation to learn a new language. language for various reasons, because it is the language of the community and/or when the mother tongue is little valued in the new environment in which one lives
Therefore, subtractive bilingualism is a phenomenon that can occur when a child who is in the stage of development and learning lives in a territory in which he or she must develop two languages independently (e.g., on the one hand They must speak their mother tongue at home with their family and at school they must use the language of the country to which they have emigrated).
Causes why you can forget your mother tongue
There are various reasons why one can forget the mother tongue in terms of the ability to speak it completely fluently, so below we will explain the ones that occur most frequently, it should be noted that they are quite exceptional cases, since most of the People do not want to lose their origins and often use their native language quite frequently to communicate with family and friends from the country of origin.
1. An increasing command of a foreign language (L2)
When a person has been living in a foreign country for many years, it is normal for them to have developed an increasingly greater command of the language spoken in that country (L2) and their exposure to their native language has been significantly reduced (L1), so this is one of the main reasons why you can forget your mother tongue in terms of fluency to speak it, since it is not common for it to be completely forgotten.
However, forgetfulness may begin to arise that prevents speaking the mother tongue fluently. These forgetfulness can be detected when building the vocabulary of the mother tongue, which is the part of the mother tongue that most tends to erode; However, knowledge of structure (grammar) and sound (phonology) is usually maintained.
In this case, the mother tongue (L1) can be forgotten when the linguistic system of the foreign language (L2) is frequently used and for a long time, when living abroad; while the native language, if not used, could little by little be forgotten, until a moment in which the brain finds it difficult to remember it or, at least, it would have difficulties when remembering some aspects of the mother tongue.
This It usually occurs in those cases in which a person does not usually communicate with people from their country of origin who also reside in the same foreign country in their native language nor has he returned to his native country, so he has hardly put his mother tongue into practice.
2. Contact with the mother tongue
Another reason why the mother tongue can be forgotten in terms of fluency in speaking it is in those cases in which a person who lives abroad interacts mainly with the natives of that country, so You will begin to consolidate the use of the language of that country (L2) and little by little you will forget various aspects of your own language (vocabulary, grammar, etc.) so that you would forget your own language.
On the other hand, in those cases in which people living abroad interact quite frequently with other people from the same country who also reside in that foreign country, they will frequently use both languages, so it would be quite difficult for them to you can forget your native language.
The same occurs in those cases where a person who resides in a foreign country usually uses his or her native language to communicate with family members with whom he or she resides in that country (spouse or partner, children, etc.) or when visiting or communicating frequently. with relatives who reside in the country of origin, so they tend to regularly use both languages (L1 and L2), so the mother tongue cannot be forgotten.
3. The attitude towards the mother tongue and towards the new language
Another reason why the mother tongue can be forgotten, which may be the most radical case and in which greater forgetting of the native language occurs, is the case of those people who have gone into exile in other countries for various reasons. (e.g. political reasons, wars, etc.) so that his native country generates bad memories
Therefore, these bad experiences could lead to a negative attitude towards their native language and, therefore, they will have a great motivation to integrate as quickly as possible in the new country in which they reside and to do so they will try to use the new language exclusively, leaving one side their native language.
An example of this process is the testimonies of people who emigrated when the Second World War happened and had to adapt to a new country, adopting its customs and learning its language. In these cases, the mother tongue can be forgotten due to war trauma.
Conclusion
After having seen some examples that demonstrate when the mother tongue can be forgotten in terms of fluency when it is used, we can know that these cases are quite exceptional, since the majority of people who reside in a foreign country, although They may come to use their mother tongue (L1) less frequently than the new language they have learned in the country in which they reside (L2), they do not usually stop using their mother tongue to communicate with family members who continue to reside in their native country.
It may also be the case that they use their language of origin frequently to speak with cohabitants (relatives or roommates who are from the same country of origin) or to speak with other compatriots who reside in the same foreign country. Therefore, forgetting the mother tongue is an exception, since in most cases the native language can coexist without difficulty with the new language. Even in those cases in which a person masters more than two languages, it is not common for him to forget his native language, so he could speak them all fluently.
