Linguistic oblivion: The case of Judeo-Spanish
Küçük Resim Yok
Tarih
2016
Yazarlar
Dergi Başlığı
Dergi ISSN
Cilt Başlığı
Yayıncı
İstanbul Bilgi Üniversitesi
Erişim Hakkı
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
Özet
Bu tez Türkiye Yahudileri tarafından konuşulan ve yok olmakta olan Ladino (Yahudi İspanyolcası) dilinin günlük bir iletişim aracından daha sembolik bir zemine doğru değişimini etnografik bir açıdan inceliyor. Çalışmamda İstanbul Sefarad Yahudileri'nin Ladino'dan Türkçe ve Fransızca'ya geçişi (language shift) ile beraber bu değişimde etkili olmuş/olmakta olan kültürel, sosyal ve politik deneyimleri araştırıken, Ladino'nun yok olma sürecinin duygulanımsal (affect) yönüne ve bu süreçte etki eden dil ideolojilerine özellikle dikkat çekiyorum. Dilbilimsel bir perspektifle odağına dillerin yok oluşuna pratik önlemler alan "tehlike altındaki diller" literatürüne eleştirel bir yaklaşımla, dillerin tehlike altına girmesinde etkili olmuş olan sosyal, tarihi ve politik koşulları anlamanın önemini savunuyorum. Sefarad cemaatinin Ladino'nun yitimine karşı duygusal tepkilerini incelerken Türkiye Cumhuriyeti'nin ulusalcı-asimilasyoncu dil politikaları gibi yapısal faktörlerin öznellikler üzerindeki etkilerini inceliyorum. Temel olarak dil yitimine karşı duygulanımsal tepkilerin daha geniş politik konfigürasyon ve ideolojilere işaret ettiğini savunuyorum. Analizimde dil yitimine tepkiler üzerinden gelişen 1) ortak bir geçmiş ve kültür olarak Sefaradların İspanya'daki tarihine ve dolayısıyla Ladino'ya karşı güçlü bir bağlılık; ve 2) Daha global dini bir kimliğin ve İbranice'nin öneminin altını çizenler arasında temel bir ayrıma işaret ediyorum. Bu ayrım bağlamında Ladino, Fransızca, Türkçe ve İbranice dillerinin İstanbul Yahudileri tarafından nasıl zamansallıklar (temporality) içinde tahayyül edildiğine dair bir inceleme sunuyorum. Ladino'nun ya da İbranice'nin yerinin Yahudi kimliği ve tarihindeki önemini savunan bu iki görüşün daha geniş bir çerçevede zamansallık politikalarına olduğu kadar farklı zaman ve tarih anlayışlarına işaret ettiğini öne sürüyorum. Son olarak, dil, toplumsal sınıf ve kimlik arasındaki indeksikal bağıntıları inceliyorum. Dil yitiminde dil hiyerarşilerinin etkisine bakarken, dilsel yeteneklerin ve dil kullanımının sosyo-ekonomik ve sınıfsal referans noktaları olarak işleyişlerine odaklanıyorum. ANAHTAR KELİMELER: tehlike altındaki diller, dil ölümü, dil ideolojileri, kimlik,Sefarad Yahudileri, duygulanım (affect), zamasallık, kronopolitika (chronopolitics)
This thesis explores the decline of Ladino (Judeo-Spanish) spoken by the Turkish Jewry and its transformation from a daily communication device to a more symbolic asset through an ethnographic study. Examining the shift of language use among the Istanbulite Sephardic Jewry from Ladino to Turkish and French along with the accompanying cultural, social and political experiences, my thesis pays particular attention to Ladino's current uses, the affective dimensions of its decline and the language ideologies that enact in its decline. Providing a critical perspective to the literature of endangered languages from a linguistic perspective which focuses on practical measures to prevent the extinction of languages, I argue that it is imperative to understand the social, historical and political conditions that operate in the endangerment of languages. Investigating the Sephardic community's emotive responses to the loss of Ladino, I focus on the impact of structural factors such as nationalist assimilationist language policies of the Turkish Republic. I basically argue that these affective responses to language loss have certain patterns that reference wider political configurations and ideologies. In such framework, my analysis suggests that there is a fundamental divide within the Sephardic community of Istanbul, between 1) those who feel a strong attachment to Iberian history along with Ladino, as a shared past and culture; and 2) those who emphasize the importance of Hebrew and a more global religious identity. In such divide, I provide an inquiry into the temporalities within which languages of Ladino, French, Turkish and Hebrew, are imagined by Istanbulite Jews. I propose that the divide between those who favor Ladino and those who emphasize the importance of Hebrew speak to a wider framework of temporal politics that define Jewish history and identity, as well as distinct understandings of time and history. Finally, I study the indexical links between language, class and identity. To understand the impact of language hierarchies in the decline of the language, I focalize on how language skills and language use serve as reference points in socio-economic and class terms. Keywords: endangered languages, language death, language ideologies, identity,Sephardic Jews, affect, temporalities, chronopolitics, class
This thesis explores the decline of Ladino (Judeo-Spanish) spoken by the Turkish Jewry and its transformation from a daily communication device to a more symbolic asset through an ethnographic study. Examining the shift of language use among the Istanbulite Sephardic Jewry from Ladino to Turkish and French along with the accompanying cultural, social and political experiences, my thesis pays particular attention to Ladino's current uses, the affective dimensions of its decline and the language ideologies that enact in its decline. Providing a critical perspective to the literature of endangered languages from a linguistic perspective which focuses on practical measures to prevent the extinction of languages, I argue that it is imperative to understand the social, historical and political conditions that operate in the endangerment of languages. Investigating the Sephardic community's emotive responses to the loss of Ladino, I focus on the impact of structural factors such as nationalist assimilationist language policies of the Turkish Republic. I basically argue that these affective responses to language loss have certain patterns that reference wider political configurations and ideologies. In such framework, my analysis suggests that there is a fundamental divide within the Sephardic community of Istanbul, between 1) those who feel a strong attachment to Iberian history along with Ladino, as a shared past and culture; and 2) those who emphasize the importance of Hebrew and a more global religious identity. In such divide, I provide an inquiry into the temporalities within which languages of Ladino, French, Turkish and Hebrew, are imagined by Istanbulite Jews. I propose that the divide between those who favor Ladino and those who emphasize the importance of Hebrew speak to a wider framework of temporal politics that define Jewish history and identity, as well as distinct understandings of time and history. Finally, I study the indexical links between language, class and identity. To understand the impact of language hierarchies in the decline of the language, I focalize on how language skills and language use serve as reference points in socio-economic and class terms. Keywords: endangered languages, language death, language ideologies, identity,Sephardic Jews, affect, temporalities, chronopolitics, class
