"Bits", "Chunks" and "Channel-switching": Perceptions of Cantonese-English code-switching

Abstract

© 2016 by the Journal of Chinese Linguistics. All rights reserved. This paper compares the code-switching (CS) practices and perceptions of three groups of Cantonese-English bilinguals with different social backgrounds: (1) university-educated Hong Kong locals, (2) second-generation migrants in English-speaking countries and (3) Hong Kong students who have spent a significant amount of time in English-speaking countries at school and/or university. The results show that far from agreeing on what constitutes a normal CS style, each of these groups has different normative perceptual contours, and distinct CS practices. This finding is shown to be significant within the social context of the Hong Kong speech community, which has reabsorbed a great deal of the Cantonese-English speaking diaspora in recent years. The consequences of this reabsorption are also shown to be important for our current models of CS variation.