About A Tale in Two Tongues

A third of Leiden’s inhabitants has a migration background (i.e., they themselves, or at least one of their parents were born outside of the Netherlands, https://allecijfers.nl/gemeente/leiden/#migratie).

Although Leiden is thus a linguistically diverse city, this diversity is not necessarily prominently represented. Dutch is the primary language of communication and English is used where it is deemed necessary for informational purposes, but other languages don’t really seem to receive much attention. By organising events that showcase the language and culture of the many languages that are spoken in Leiden, we want to show citizens of Leiden that their city is much richer linguistically than they might have thought.

​

Sharing experiences, asking questions

​

In our events, we aim to share relevant research results on multilingualism and multilingual development. We know that multilingual families make conscious and unconscious decisions about the status and use of the multiple languages that are at their disposal, both in the home and outside. Our events will bring people together and offer a platform to ask questions regarding social interactions within and outside their language community and educational issues. Parents and other care-givers may be uncertain about which language they should use when interacting with the child and about the desirability of becoming literate in the home language as well as in Dutch. They may also have concerns about the child’s future employability prospects if a language other than Dutch is spoken in the home. By providing information on multilingualism and multilingual development and by opening the floor to discuss concerns, we aim to enhance knowledge on this topic and provide parents with the means to make informed decisions on issues of this nature.