Motivation for Amharic-English code-switching practice: evidence from radio talk show

Abstract

This paper aims at investigating the reasons Amharic-English bilingual speakers switch to English in Amharic speech. Descriptive with qualitative approach was designed to achieve its objective. Radio talk show programs were purposefully selected to collect data from three radio stations: Fana, Voice of America and Deutsche Welle Radio (Amharic service). The data were transcribed phonetically and analyzed thematically. This paper presents detailed evidence to show the reasons and functions of Amharic-English code-switching among bilinguals and what triggers them to switch to English in their Amharic utterances. The analyses of data offered a window through which we observed the underlying discursive functions of Amharic-English code-switching in radio talk show. These encompass a wide range of functions as a device for quoting, repeating, emphasizing and clarifying position. It also functions as a distance strategy and a mechanism for filling a lexical or pragmatic gap. The results of the study revealed that Amharic-English code-switching can serve as a strategic tool to avoid communication breakdown. Moreover, the study provides many cases in which bilingual speakers consciously/unconsciously employed switching to English in their Amharic speeches. Hence, it was possible to conclude that code-switching behaviour cannot always be an sign of linguistic deficiency but rather a strategic tool for successful communication. In conclusion, code-switching can be motivated mainly by sociolinguistic, psycholinguistic or contextual factors.