Family Language Policy and Identity Formation among Migrant Pashto Community in the Multilingual Context of Lahore

Family Language Policy and Identity Formation among Migrant Pashto Community in the Multilingual Context of Lahore | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Family Language Policy and Identity Formation among Migrant Pashto Community in the Multilingual Context of Lahore Amina Khalid, Arshad Ali Khan, Brian D Josaph This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6686660/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 10 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study examines the family language policy of the migrant Pashto community in multilingual settings in Lahore, Pakistan. Many languages including English, Pashto, Punjabi, and Urdu are in contact with one another in Lahore. Following the Language Policy Framework of Spolsky ( 2004 ) and using a questionnaire to collect data and a quantitative assessment of the results, we investigate the language ecology, language ideology, and language planning adopted by families of the migrant Pashto community to construct their identity in these varied language contact situations. The research population was selected through purposive sampling, yielding two groups: one adolescent and one adult including both males and females. The findings show that Pashto is the desired language of communication among the migrant Pashto families in Lahore. However, their selection of language outside their home domains depends on the situations and interlocutors. For them, Urdu and English are the languages of utility, social mobility, and opportunity. Pashto is maintained at home and in the Pashto community with intervention by the parents and the community. We conclude that multilingualism is a linguistic practice and a resource through which migrant Pashto speakers construct and negotiate their identities, temporary and enduring ones. Humanities/History Humanities/Language and linguistics family language policy migrant identity multilingualism Pashto Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 1. Introduction 1.1 Language and Identity Language plays a powerful role in identity formation for an individual. Language is the vehicle through which people negotiate themselves and which affords them access to powerful and dominant social networks that give them a chance to speak (Norton, 2016 ). Identity as constructed through language is the expression of a desire for membership, recognition, safety, and security (Norton, 2000 ) As discussed in Mei ( 2021 ), linguistic identity is enclosed in cultural, social, and ethnic identities, which is why it is imperative in multilingual situations to investigate speakers’ attitudes toward each language in certain contexts of usage if the purpose is to identify what generates a group of speakers’ feelings or attitudes concerning the languages of their lives (Gaw, 2009 ). According to the view of social science, identity is a kind of process that is negotiated, and socially constructed. The negotiation of identity by an individual creates conflict and tension for them (Block, 2006 ; Tajfel, 1978 ; Kanno, 2003 ). Actually, identity formation is a lengthy and complex process that operates not only through people’s thoughts, actions, and negotiations but also through their intentions and decisions regarding time, place, and person. Their language preservation is one of the basic conditions for their identity sustainment, whereas language shift and change on their part would lead to a conversion of their identity (Nguyen, 2018 ). Many factors play important role in language and identity conservation and transformation, among which are language attitude, understanding of the value of another language, motivation, the need to maintain identity, and personal, and thus their familial, language policy. 1.2 Family Language Policy Decisions about language use as implemented at the familial level, what we refer to here as “family language policy”, is a crucial part of language management in immigrant settings (Yağmur, van de Vijver, 2022 ). Many related concepts such as language maintenance (Fishman 1991 ), language ideologies, family language use and parent-child interaction have highlighted the role of family in language policy. In 2004, Spolsky introduced the first comprehensive theoretical framework of language policy, which is based on three interrelated components: language practices, language beliefs and language management. A substantial amount of literature has been published on Spolsky’s theory of language policy, focusing on such topics as: heritage language exposure (Leung and Uchikoshi, 2012 ), the role of parents’ language choice (Duursma et al. 2007 ), linguistic patterns (De Houwer, 2007 ) and self-reported language proficiencies (Kenji and D’Andrea, 1992 ). The role of family and home domain cannot be denied regarding native language maintenance. There is a multifaceted connection between the language attitude of parents, how they manage the use of language in daily life, and the knowledge of children related to their first language vocabulary. A study done by Schwartz ( 2008 ) explored the different aspects of family policy which were concerned with the conservation of the first language of Russian-Jewish second generation speakers in Israel by applying Spolsky’s ( 2004 ) language policy model. It was concluded that there was variation in bilingual children’s first language vocabulary knowledge due to underlying components that were connected with the language policy of the families. Those factors included the teaching of children to read in their first language, children’s constructive approach toward their first language preservation, and the language practices of their parents. This research also emphasized the essential role of a community-based education system in the relevant minority languages among second-generation immigrants. Consequently, it seems that mutual efforts of family members and community activists are needed to avert a wholesale L1-to-L2 shift. According to Chowdhury and Rojas-Lizana ( 2021 ), the study of family language policy has occurred as a substantial realm for multilingual development, language preservation and cultural endurance. They explored family language policy employed by the Bangladeshi migrants in South East Queensland. In their study, the data was collected through interviews. The study highlights that the family language policies are generally related to the subtleties of language use within a family and the factors associated with them. Their research identifies different components of Spolsky’s ( 2004 , 2009)) model of language policy. The aim of the research was to highlight the phenomenon of intergenerational language transmission among the migrant community in a diverse Australian context. The data was gathered from 19 adult participants who had children. The data analysis was based on the thematic analysis method of Braun & Clarke (2006) to identify, analyze, and report the themes within the data. The findings of the study showed that the Bangla language was spoken, in the Australian context, mostly in different spheres of home between parents and children and between spouses. The participants reported that their children got exposure to the English language from a very early age because of being brought up entirely in Australia. Although Bangla was used at homes, the children used to interact in English at schools because it was the sole medium of instruction in their institutions. The parents shared that they communicated with their children only in Bangla and not in English until they joined schools and that was why the children spoke Bangla fluently. Generally, the participants thought they were able to develop their children’s speaking skills in Bangla successfully. Bangla and English co-existed in their language use in family and in social domains and this mediation made their identity integrated. Most of the research participants verystrongly wanted to conserve Bangla while interacting within their families. They considered bilingualism to be important for their children, yet they gave them liberty in their language choices. Curdt-Christiansen ( 2013 ) stated that family language policy research not only enlightens us about processes of language preservation and language shift but also highlights the interplay between home and public spheres. It emphasizes that on one hand the families must negotiate between the realities of social and political pressures and public education needs and on the other hand the desire for cultural devotion and linguistic endurance. In another study, Gu and Han (2020) explored the situation among migrant mothers in Hong Kong who maintained their family language together with their family members. Their efforts are based on their experiences in varied domains of home, school, workplace, and community. The data was collected through interviews with 10 mothers of South Asian backgrounds. The research participants shared that mostly heritage languages were used in their homes, although Cantonese and English were used occasionally among the children. They used Cantonese while interacting with the teachers of their children or while shopping in markets. The participants also shared that they have little knowledge of Chinese and English except for three of them who were from Pakistan and Indonesia. The interviews revealed that language policies at home were shaped by their links with their home country and their experiences within their local community, workplace, and society. Heritage languages were primarily acquired by their children through home study and use rather than other formal means and they were used as main family languages consistently. When the family members had experiences in other contexts, for example, in schools and workplaces, the use of English and Chinese became active. While the mothers were exposed to the wider society and involved in varied professions, they adjusted their family language policy consequently. The findings suggested that their family language planning and policy were influenced by language practices at schools and in other social contexts, since the home domains do not exist in isolation from other social contexts. Family language policy is concerned with how family members perceive social structures and adjust in the face of social changes, and the following impact of these perceptions on their language ideology and practices. These perceptions influence their decisions about how to strengthen their social, cultural and economic standing and thus they shape their family language policy (Curdt-Christiansen, 2009 ). 2. The Present Study The current study explores the family language policy of immigrant Pashtun community in the multilingual context of Lahore, the second largest city in Pakistan with over 6,000,000 inhabitants. We investigate how the immigrant Pashtun families in Lahore construct their identities through their family language policy in the multilingual environment. 2.1 Immigrant Pashto community in Lahore After 1947, the development of industries and infrastructure projects in the large cities of Pakistan such as Rawalpindi, Karachi, and Lahore attracted migrant Pashtun labor and as a result, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has attained the highest rate of emigration among all the provinces of Pakistan (Mehmood et al., 2009 ). Other causes of internal migration include the poorly irrigation in many areas and the low rainfall in the regions of Afghanistan and Northwest Pakistan which have compelled laborers to depart their villages for seasonal labor and minor trade (Weinreich, 2009 ). The South Asian Migration Report (2017) draws attention to these causes of internal migration in Pakistan and their effects. It states that there is an imbalance of development between rural and urban areas of the country and moreover that there is a marked difference between and within provinces regarding healthcare and educational facilities, as well as employment opportunities. Wage rates are higher in urban areas and diversification in the labor market is paralleled by the rise in internal migration, both interprovincial and rural-to-urban. Furthermore, other reasons of internal migration include the war against terrorism in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and the poor situation regarding law and order in KP, where almost 3.2% of people were forced to leave their homes. The Pashtuns belong to the regions of KP, FATA, and Afghanistan, and their heritage language is Pashto. Pashto belongs to the East Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian language family It is closely related to other Iranian languages such as Persian, Kurdish, and Balochi, less closely related to Indo-Aryan languages such as Urdu, Punjabi, and Sindhi, and more distantly connected to other Indo-European languages (David, 2014 ). Pashto is the second largest Iranian language after Persian. About 15% of Pakistanis speak Pashto as a first language and this is the second most widely spoken language after Punjabi in Pakistan. Pashto, like Punjabi, is split between two countries. It is the dominant language in southern Afghanistan, while most Pashtuns live in Pakistan. 2.2 Profile of Lahore District Lahore is a city rich in history and tradition. It has experienced three significant eras in its more recent history: c the Mughal empire (1524 to 1752), the British colonial rule (1849–1947), and now the modern period (since 1947) as a major city of Pakistan. With each new era in history came new designs and developments which have all added and enriched the fabric of this busy, bustling city. The historic city of Lahore has been the center of influence in the region for centuries. As the provincial capital of Punjab and Pakistan's most populous province, it maintains its importance. In recent years, the Lahore District has seen many infrastructural development projects, including a modern mass-transit system and an efficient network of roads. It has many state-of-the-art shopping facilities due to the construction of many malls that are up to international standards. The Lahore district comprises five administrative units known as tehsils : Cantonment, City, Model Town, Raiwind, and Shalimar according to the administration division done by the Government of Punjab (2008). As a metropolitan city, Lahore appeals to people from different parts of the country who seek varied livelihood opportunities and other amenities of life in this city. As compared to the other areas of Pakistan, Lahore has a better law and order situation, so people find it better and safer place to live and earn. This in-migration has made Lahore thoroughly multilingual. The languages spoken in Lahore include Punjabi, Urdu, Pashto, etc. (Appendix I). Urdu is the national language of Pakistan and is usually used as a lingua franca in Lahore while English has official status and is used in all official documentation. In Lahore, most educational institutions use Urdu and English as the medium of instruction, so these two languages have a great impact on the students’ linguistic repertoire. Most of the population speaks Punjabi locally. As Lahore is a metropolitan city, the people of varied ethnicities such as Pashto, Sindhi, Saraiki, Balochi, Kashmiri, etc., are settled here according to the census done by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, Government of Pakistan (2017), (see Fig. 2.1 ). In the multilingual settings of Lahore, Urdu is used as a lingua franca when people of different ethnicities communicate with each other. In the multilingual context of Lahore, when members of the younger generation of the migrant Pashto community leave their home environment, they start to interact in varied situations and settings in which the language of the majority used to communicate with others is either Punjabi or Urdu in Lahore. When young Pashto speakers attend educational institutions in which the medium of instruction is Urdu or English, their first language is relegated to more limited contexts, mainly those of interactions in the home. These changes in relative input and changes in the young Pashto speakers’ actual use of their first language result in the reduction of instances in which they hear their L1 so the prospects of using their language also decline. These formats consequently have an influence not only on their L1 skills but also on their identity formation, mainly in the settings of other dominant languages such as Urdu, Punjabi, English, etc. The reason is that the decrease in L1 exposure, use, and input hinders the development and progress of skills in L1 as well as the preservation and continuity of acquired skills, and it also leads to issues of identity formation given that language and identity cannot be separated. 2.3 Research Question The research question motivating this study can be formulated thus: What are the family language policies employed by the immigrant Pashtun families to construct their identity in the multilingual context of Lahore? 2.4 Theoretical Framework Spolsky’s ( 2004 , 2009) notion of language policy of three dynamically interrelated elements: language practices, language beliefs, and language management (see Section 3.11.3). Spolsky’s ( 2004 ) notion of language practices explains the conscious and unconscious language behavior of the speakers, and their regular, habitual, and observable language actions. This concerns what the speakers do with language in varied contexts such as in their community, in their family domains, outside their home domains, etc. In this way, language practices are genuine and effective reflections of language policies as they make available linguistic input and language acquisition models for the new generations. The notion of language ideologies presented by Spolsky ( 2004 ) posits that there are deeply rooted beliefs and assumptions about the suitable and apt language choices and practices in social, educational, and family contexts. Spolsky ( 2004 ) claimed that certain languages, language varieties, and linguistic features are given different values and prestige. As a result, speakers consciously adopt particular linguistic codes, language practices, and policies as rationalized and justifiable efforts. Such kinds of language ideologies or beliefs are motivated by family history of language use and include broader social, cultural, educational, and economic contexts. In the current study, the Pashto speakers showed different attitudes toward Pashto, Urdu, English, and Punjabi. Most of them have a positive attitude toward Pashto being their mother tongue while at the same time they declared Urdu and English as languages of utility and opportunity (Fig. 2.1 ). Spolsky ( 2004 ) has stated that the language policy is structured by the language ideologies that are based on the beliefs and attitudes towards a language. Language practices are related to the ways how people use their language to create their image and construct their relationships with others. They form their social identities, and their language choices are acts of identity for them. Through various kinds of language management, people make efforts to modify and change their practices. Spolsky’s ( 2004 ) concept of language management deals with the categorical and thoughtful efforts made by the communities, families, or institutions regarding the modification of language practices, beliefs, and language policy mechanisms. Research on family language policy has mostly emphasized the ways in which the families manage their language practices. The ideologies of parents are influential in shaping family language policies and practices (Curdt-Christiansen 2009 , 2016 ; Curdt-Christiansen & Wang 2018 ). In addition to that, the ever-changing socio-economic and socio-political factors in varied social domains play an instrumental role in affecting language practices (Curdt-Christiansen, 2013 ; Fogle & King, 2013 ). 3 Methodology 3.1 Research Site The focus of the research was the metropolitan city of Lahore because it attracts people from other areas of Pakistan for a variety of life amenities and earning opportunities. This makes the city linguistically heterogeneous, so it was an eminently suitable venue in which to fulfill the goals of the current study. The data was collected from the five tehsils of Lahore district: Lahore city, Model Town, Cantonment, Raiwind, and Shalimar. 3.2 Participants The research participants were based on two groups from the migrant Pashto speech community, categorized according to their age groups — adolescents and adults — and covering both male and female. See tables 3.4 and 3.5 for details. 3.2.1 Ethical Considerations This research was conducted in adherence to ethical standards outlined by the University of Management and Technology, Lahore. Prior to data collection, all procedures involving human participants were reviewed and approved by the Departmental Research Committee on June 8, 2022. Although formal written exemption from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) was not required under institutional policy for non-invasive social research, ethical clearance was obtained in accordance with departmental norms and guidelines. Informed Consent Procedure Informed consent was obtained from all participants in two phases, with full compliance to confidentiality and voluntariness principles. The consent process was tailored according to the age of the participants and took place as follows: For Adolescent Participants ( Table 3.1 ) Date(s) of Consent : Between July 1st and July 15th, 2022 Means of Consent : Written informed consent was obtained from parents or legal guardians of participants aged 10–17. Additionally, verbal assent was taken from the adolescents themselves after explaining the purpose and scope of the study in accessible terms in Pashto and Urdu. Setting : Community centers and informal educational spaces in Lahore. Participants : 30 adolescents (11 females, 19 males) aged 10–19 years. For Adult Participants ( Table 3.2 ) Date(s) of Consent : Between August 1st and August 20th, 2022 Means of Consent : Written informed consent was obtained directly from all adult participants prior to questionnaire administration. The research objectives, voluntary nature of participation, and anonymity of responses were clearly explained. Setting : Local community meetings and household visits in the Lahore district. Participants : 50 adults (13 females, 37 males) aged 20–57 years. All participants were assured that their participation was entirely voluntary and that they could withdraw at any point without any repercussions. Pseudonyms were used in the transcription and analysis to maintain confidentiality. The research strictly adhered to the ethical principles of respect for persons, beneficence, and justice, as outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki and institutional research policies. Table 3.1 Data collection from Adolescents via a Questionnaire Sr. No. of participants Gender Age range Education Languages Area & duration of stay in Lahore 1 11 F 10–19 years educated Pashto, Urdu, English, Lahore district, 6–11 years 2 19 M 10–19 years educated Pashto, Urdu, English, Punjabi Lahore district, 7–13 years Table 3.2 Data collection from Adults via a Questionnaire Sr. No. of participants Gender Age range Education Languages Area & duration of stay in Lahore 1 13 F 20–49 years educated Pashto, Urdu, English, Punjabi Lahore district, 7–13 2 37 M 20–57 years educated Pashto, Urdu, English, Punjabi Lahore district, 6–18 years 3.3Research Tool For the data collection, a questionnaire was designed which contained instructions, demographic information, questions or ‘items’, and possible answers (Schleef, 2014, pp. 43–45). There were 8 close-ended questions included in the questionnaire, each with the option of four possible answers. The rating scale was designed based on words or phrases rather than numbers. The questions were based on the concepts of language practices, beliefs, and management. All the questions (items) were grounded in Spolsky’s (2004) theoretical framework of Family Language Policy. The reliability of the questionnaire was checked through the reliability scale of SPSS as shown in figure (3.1). According to Krippenorff (2011), the Cronbach’s Alpha value of less than .60 is not acceptable, .70 is acceptable and .80 is good. And for the internal reliability of the instrument, Cronbach’s Alpha was calculated, and the coefficient reliability was found to be 0.87 with 8 highly acceptable questions. 3.4 Questionnaire Data Collection Protocol The sociolinguistic questionnaire was designed to get information regarding the participants’ language practices, language beliefs, and language management. The questionnaire data was gathered in many ways. It was distributed by approaching individuals on the spot. The available participants were requested to inform the other people in their circle (network) about our study so that the data collection could be extended. The researcher and the research assistants (RAs) asked other people in their own social circle to fill out the questionnaire. The same questionnaire was designed using a Google form and the links were sent to the required participants through email messages and WhatsApp. The researcher and the RAs were present when questionnaires were completed face-to-face. Their presence made the filling in of the questionnaires go smoothly because whenever any participants needed help in understanding the questions, they could be facilitated on the spot. The questions were explained to the participants in detail to avoid any ambiguity if there was any. The RAs even used their native language Pashto to elaborate on the ideas given in the questionnaire to the research participants. The details of the adolescent and adult participants who gave the responses to the questionnaire activity have been provided in Tables 3.1 and 3.2 respectively. 4. Findings We offer in this section a statistical analysis of the data collected through the research questionnaire. The data has been examined through SPSS. The purpose was to probe the language practices, language beliefs, and language policies adopted by the migrant Pashto community in the multilingual settings of Lahore. According to Spolsky’s ( 2004 ) tri-partite model of language policy, these three are the major components by which speakers construct identity. 4.1 Language Ecology Table (4.1) is based on the statistical analysis of the first question of the questionnaire distributed among the migrant Pashto adolescents and adults equally. The purpose was to identify the relevant language practices of the research participants with their family members. The majority of the current research respondents indicated that they use Pashto for communication in their family settings. For example, 66.6% of the Pashto adolescents reported this phenomenon while 88% of the adults agreed with it. Their second choice of interaction is Urdu, which is used by most adolescents 26.9% as compared to the adults 6.6%. English and Punjabi are not given any noticeable importance during family conversations according to the findings. Table (4.1) shows the Chi-square calculated value of (13.47), which was found to be greater than the critical table value 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 ( p = .045). It is statistically significant that the adolescent and the adults prefer the Pashto language when they interact with their family members, but the views of the adults are higher as compared to that of the adolescents. However, both prefer Pashto as compared to other languages such as Urdu, English, and Punjabi in their family talk. It also shows that the response rate of adults is higher than that of adolescents. Table 4.1 Language of Interaction with family members Respondent Pashto Urdu English Punjabi N χ 2 Adolescent 019 (66.6%) 008 (26.9%) 002 (05.9%) 001 (01.3%) 30 13.47 Adult 046 (88.1%) 002 (06.6%) 002 (06.0%) 000 (00.0%) 50 Total 65 10 4 0 80 χ 2 chi square table value at 0.05 = 09.48, p = .045 < 0.05 (sig), df = 4 Table (4.2) gives information about the statistical analysis of the second question of the questionnaire. The aim was to discover the choice of language by the research participants when they interact with their colleagues or peers. The majority of the respondents replied that they use Urdu for communication with their colleagues or peers. For example, 65.5% of the adolescents as opposed to 51.5% of the adults showed the trend of using Urdu. The percentage of English use was almost the same among both groups of respondents: 8.4% of the adolescents use Pashto while 22.3% of the adults use the same language when they interact with their colleagues or peers. It shows that the use of Pashto is higher among the adults compared to the adolescents in that conversational situation. Punjabi is the least common language of communication according to the findings. Table (4.2) shows the Chi-square calculated value of (17.89), which was found to be greater than the critical table value 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 ( p = .035). It is statistically significant that the adolescents and the adults both use the Urdu language while they interact with their colleagues or peers. It also shows that the response rate of adults is higher than that of adolescents. Table 4.2 Language of Interaction with colleagues/peers Respondent Pashto Urdu English Punjabi N χ 2 Adolescent 003 (08.4%) 018 (65.5%) 006 (18.4%) 003 (08.4%) 30 17.89 Adult 009 (22.3%) 030 (51.5%) 006 (18.6%) 005 (08.3%) 50 Total 12 48 12 8 80 χ 2 chi square table value at 0.05 = 09.48, p = .035 < 0.05 (sig), df = 4 Table (4.3) displays the results of the statistical analysis of the third question of the research questionnaire. The objective of the question was to explore the use of language by migrant Pashto adolescents and adults during interaction with their friends or neighbors. Both groups revealed that they use Urdu to a high degree in such situations:89.3% of the adolescents while 84.5% of the adult research participants showed this trend. Punjabi is used instead of Urdu by the research participants when they converse with their friends or neighbors. However, the percentage is low: 9.0% of adolescents as opposed to 9.3% of adults use Punjabi in these contexts. The use of Pashto is very low as only 2.4% of adolescents and 5.3% of adults use it. As far as English are concerned, its use is negligible, only approximately 1.6%. Table (4.3) illustrates the Chi-square calculated value of (15.76), which was found to be greater than the critical table value of 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 ( p = .003). It is statistically significant that adolescents and adults prefer the Urdu language when they interact with their friends or neighbors. It is also obvious that the response rate of the adults is higher than that of the adolescents. Table 4.3 Language of Interaction with friends/neighbors Respondent Pashto Urdu English Punjabi N χ 2 Adolescent 002 (02.4%) 024 (89.3%) 000 (00.0%) 004 (09.0%) 30 15.76 Adult 04 (05.3%) 038 (84.5%) 001 (01.6%) 006 (09.3%) 50 Total 6 62 1 10 80 χ 2 chi square table value at 0.05 = 09.48, p = .003 < 0.05 (sig), df = 4 n = 80 4.2 Language Ideology Table (4.4) indicates the results of the statistical analysis of question four of the research questionnaire which was distributed equally among both groups of the research participants. The response rate of the adults is higher than that of the adolescents. Question four was designed to ascertain the views of the migrant Pashto speakers regarding the usefulness of the languages given in the scale as the possible answers. The results showed that Urdu is the most useful language for both groups of research participants. 78.6% of the adolescents while 52.6% of the adults confirmed these findings. Pashto was second as 15.3% of the adolescents and 18.2% of the adults supported its usefulness. Only 4.4% of the adolescents and 9.6% of the adults supported the use of English. According to the research participants, Punjabi was the least useful for them. Table (4.4) illustrates the Chi-square calculated value of (14.29), which was found to be greater than the critical table value of 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 ( p = .031). It is statistically significant that adolescents and adults consider Urdu to be the most useful language. Table 4.4 The most useful language in the multilingual settings of Lahore Respondent Pashto Urdu English Punjabi N χ 2 Adolescent 008 (15.3%) 018 (78.6%) 003 (04.4%) 001 (02.4%) 30 14.29 Adult 010 (18.2%) 032 (52.6%) 006 (09.6%) 002 (03.3%) 50 Total 18 50 9 3 80 χ 2 chi square table value at 0.05 = 09.48, p = .031 < 0.05 (sig), df = 4 n = 80 Table (4.5) shows the results of the statistical analysis of question five of the research questionnaire. The question aimed to know the value of the languages such as Pashto, Urdu, English, and Punjabi in the lives of the migrant Pashto speakers in Lahore. Their attitudes towards the given languages revealed that most of them chose to give up Punjabi. For example, 93.5% of the adolescents and 91.5% of the adults preferred Pashto. Almost all of the research participants do not want to leave their native language Pashto. Table (4.5) gives the Chi-square calculated value of (15.67), which was found to be greater than the critical table value 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 ( p = .001). It is statistically significant that the adolescents and the adults both could sacrifice Punjabi as compared to other languages. The response rate of the adults is higher as compared to the adolescents. Table 4.5 The least useful language in the multilingual context of Lahore Respondent Pashto Urdu English Punjabi N χ 2 Adolescent 001 (01.4%) 002 (02.4%) 003 (03.4%) 024 (93.5%) 30 15.67 Adult 000 (00.0%) 003 (04.5%) 005 (4.7%) 042 (91.5%) 50 Total 1 5 8 66 80 χ 2 chi square table value at 0.05 = 09.48, p = .001 < 0.05 (sig), df = 4 n = 80 Table (4.6) demonstrates the results of the statistical analysis of question six of the research questionnaire. The purpose of the question was to know the language beliefs of the migrant Pashto speakers. A total of 79.8% of the adolescents and 90.7% of the adult respondents believed that Pashto should be taught to the Pashtun future generations. English was given the second preference for the new generations by 14.5% of the adolescent as opposed to 8.7% of the adult respondents. Urdu was not given much importance in this regard as only 6.4% of the adolescents and 1.3% of the adults showed any interest in that language. No one was in favor of teaching Punjabi to the Pashtun future generations. Table (4.6) illustrates the Chi-square calculated value of (19.23), which was found to be greater than the critical table value 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 ( p = .021). It is statistically significant that both adolescents and adults were in favor of teaching particularly the Pashto language to the next generations. The response rate of the adults was higher as compared to the adolescents. Table 4.6 The preferred L1 for Pashtun future generations Respondent Pashto Urdu English Punjabi N χ 2 Adolescent 014 (79.8%) 005 (06.4%) 0011 (14.5%) 000 (00.0%) 30 19.23 Adult 043 (90.7%) 002 (01.3%) 005 (08.7%) 000 (00.0%) 50 Total 57 7 16 0 80 χ 2 chi square table value at 0.05 = 09.48, p = .021 < 0.05 (sig), df = 4, n = 80 4.3 Language Planning Table (4.7) illustrates the results of the statistical analysis of question seven of the research questionnaire. The question aimed at eliciting information from the research participants concerning the impact of language policies of their workplaces or friends on their language habits or beliefs. Most of the respondents said that they were affected by the stated language policies. In all, 86.5% of the adolescent respondents and 87.2% of the adult respondents stated that their language practices and beliefs were influenced to a great extent by the policies set by others. Moreover, 9.8% of adolescents and 11.2% of adults chose the option of ‘somewhat’ — also a positive response — from the scale of possible answers. Very few of the respondents said that they did not feel any impact of the language policies applied by others. Table (4.7) exhibits the Chi-square calculated value od (11.39), which was found to be greater than the critical table value 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 ( p = .025). It is statistically significant that adolescents and adults are under the influence of the language policies set by their workplaces, institutions, or friends. The response rate of the adults was higher than that of the adolescents. Table 4.7 The influence of language policy of workplace/institutions/friends Respondent To a great extent Somewhat Very little Not at all N χ 2 Adolescent 020 (86.5%) 008 (9.8%) 001 (02.4%) 001 (02.0%) 30 11.39 Adult 038 (87.2%) 010 (11.2%) 002 (02.3%) 000 (00.0%) 50 Total 58 18 3 1 80 χ 2 chi square table value at 0.05 = 09.48, p = .025 < 0.05 (sig), df = 4, n = 80 Table (4.8) shows the results of the statistical analysis of question eight of the research questionnaire. The main purpose of the question was to investigate the impact of the language policies of the Pashto families and the Pashto community in Lahore on the language customs, traditions, attitudes, or beliefs of the research participants. All in all, 90.4% of the adolescent respondents and 91.3% of the adult respondents reported that they were influenced by the policies to a great extent. The option ‘somewhat’ — a positive response as well — was opted doe by 6.3% of adolescents and 6.2% of adults. Table (4.8) displays the Chi-square calculated value of (19.11), which was found to be greater than the critical table value 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 ( p = .002). It is statistically significant that the two groups of the respondents, both the adolescents and the adults, choose to follow the language policies of their families and community. The response rate of the adults was higher in comparison to the adolescents. Table 4.8 The influence of language policy of the Pashtun family/ community Respondent To a great extent Somewhat Very little Not at all N χ 2 Adolescent 017 (90.4%) 009 (06.3%) 002 (02.0%) 002 (02.0%) 30 19.11 Adult 039 (91.3%) 08 (06.2%) 002 (02.0%) 001 (01.2%) 50 Total 56 17 4 3 80 χ 2 chi square table value at 0.05 = 09.48, p = .002 < 0.05 (sig), df = 4, n = 80 5. Discussion and Conclusion The present study takes its insight from three components of Spolsky’s ( 2004 ) model of language policy, namely language ecology, language ideology, and language planning, in order to investigate the language policy of the migrant Pashto community in the multilingual context of Lahore. The data was collected through a questionnaire from migrant Pashto adult and adolescent speakers, both male and female. At first, the study highlighted the language practices of Lahore’s migrant Pashto community. The findings reveal that most of the research participants use Pashto — 80% of the adults versus 66.6% of the adolescents — in their family domains through their robust family language policies. They want to preserve their ethno-linguistic identity through persistent Pashto language use in the context of their family interactions. They are found to be determined to retain their native language as they struggle to transmit the language to the next generation as a symbol of their ethnicity and identity in case of Pashto adolescents. Clyne and Kipp ( 2006 ) recognized home as a place for inter-generational language transmission. It can be noted that the migrant Pashto community prefers Pashto in their home domains and has positive attitudes toward their native language. Their second choice of communication within the family sphere is Urdu, which is used far more by adolescents (26.9%) as compared to the adults (6.6%). The reason for this difference is that the adolescents use Urdu in their academic settings, so they bring that outsid language into their home domains. Their choice of language outside their home is Urdu and English mostly when they interact with their colleagues and peers. Urdu is used by 65.5% of the adolescents as opposed to 51.5% of the adults. English is also used with almost the same percentages. They speak these languages for the purpose of integration in society and to ensure success in life as Urdu and English are the official medium of communication in institutions and organizations within Lahore. This result shows that they understand the constructive role of Urdu and English in their socialization and overall progress in life. They want to identify themselves as a functional part of the society through their language choices. Spolsky (2007, p.3) viewed these practices as ‘the observable behaviors and choices’ and ‘real policy’ and highlighted their relevance to ‘sociolinguistic ecology’ based on the functions of the language and the domains where it is used. The participants also showed the trend of using Urdu with their friends and neighbors with 89.3% of adolescents and 84.5% of adults using Urdu. Very few, only around 9% of the research participants, indicated the use of Punjabi in these situations. Urdu is used as a lingua franca across Pakistan, so it is convenient for Pashto speakers to use Urdu when they interact with other communities. It enables them to understand the cultural norm of the host society and to communicate successfully. Inasmuch as they are a part of the multilingual society, it is imperative for them to adjust in order to reap the social benefits. However, according to them, the preferred L1 for Pashtun future generations should be Pashto. This was stated by 79.8% of the adolescents and 90.7% of the adult respondents. Holmes (2013) claimed that if migrant community members are not aware of the preservation of their native language, it might cause the loss of their native language in future generations. However, this is not the case with this Pashto migrant community. They seem very conscious about the maintenance of their native language in Lahore’s multilingual context. Their responses show that they want to transmit their language to their children as a sign of their ethnicity. Family plays an essential role in inter-generational language transfer and language maintenance. Fishman ( 1991 ) confirmed this in regard to threatened languages and stressed the role and responsibility of family in inter-generational language transfer concerning language conservation and change. The family and home domains are found to be substantial factors in language preservation because these are the places where high rate of ethnic language use can be observed (Clyne & Kipp, 1999; Pauwels, 2016 ). The language policies of migrant Pashto speakers’ workplaces and institutions have an influence on their language practices and beliefs. For example, 86.5% of the adolescent respondents versus 87.2% of the adult respondents confirmed this as fact. When they stay outside their home domains, they must use the languages of their institutions and workplaces to have opportunities for education and social mobility. During daily interactions, they shift their language choices toward other languages such as English, Urdu, etc. and this reduces their access to and use of their native language. However, the importance of these languages cannot be denied in the multilingual environment, particularly, for getting good jobs and education. Fishman ( 2007 ) stated the importance of English as it is broadly accepted as a dominant language in public domains. On the other hand, the ethnic languages are restricted only to the close social groups of family members and friends. If migrants want their children to become bilingual and wish them to maintain their cultural and national identity simultaneously, they need to encourage and support their children to learn and use their native language at home regularly. The Pashto migrant speakers also are influenced bythe language policy of their families and the Pashtun community since 90.4% of the adolescent participants and 91.3% of the adult participants showed the same trend. It can be observed that the migrant Pashto community consciously or unconsciously tries to preserve their native language through intervention by parents and the Pashto community. Lanza and Svendsen (2007) confirmed that the language ideologies of a family play a decisive role in parents’ decisions to sustain robust language policy in their family. The language practices of families are in accordance with their ideologies. It can be concluded that through their language practices and language management as informed by their language beliefs, the migrant Pashto speakers take their identity as a process in which both preservation of their ethnic identity and alignment of mainstream identity are active. The findings also suggest that linguistic interactions should be researched from progressive micro and macro perspectives because changes in the social environments can influence the identity orientations of the speakers. Declarations Funding details There is no relevant funding for any of the authors to report on. Disclosure of interest The authors report that there are no competing interests to declare. Consent statement Though without the same sort of human subject research controls (institutional review committees and the like) that are familiar in western countries, Pakistan, the country in which the data for this study was collected, does have norms for the ethical treatment of human subjects. The authors confirm that they adhered to local guidelines for ethical human subject research in Pakistan, and further confirm that all participants (or their parent or legal guardian) gave informed verbal consent regarding participation in the research. Ethical Approval This research was conducted as part of a doctoral dissertation at [University Name]. The study involved non-interventional, qualitative interviews with adult participants and posed minimal risk. Therefore, full institutional ethics board review was not mandated at the time. However, the study received ethical clearance from the Departmental Research Committee in accordance with university guidelines and prevailing national research ethics policies. Written confirmation from the departmental committee, stating that full ethics board approval was not required, is included in the cover letter submitted with this manuscript. Ethical Approval Statement This research study, titled “Family Language Policy and Identity Formation among Migrant Pashto Community in the Multilingual Context of Lahore” (Manuscript ID: 6aa0fc54-5713-45fd-b13e-25c1c64b5acc v1.1), was formally approved through the internal academic review process at the University of Management and Technology (UMT), Lahore. The proposal was reviewed and endorsed by the Departmental Research Committee and the Board of Advanced Studies and Research (BASR) on June 8, 2022. In accordance with UMT policy, individual ethical approval numbers are not issued. However, all research involving human participants is subject to mandatory institutional oversight. Data collection involved community-based questionnaire administration in Lahore, using purposive and snowball sampling techniques. All participants received clear information about the study’s purpose and voluntarily consented to participate. The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and institutional ethical standards. Supporting approval documentation is available upon request. Ethical Considerations The research followed ethical guidelines for studies involving human participants as outlined by UMT. All data collection procedures were approved prior to implementation and complied with confidentiality and informed consent requirements. Informed Consent Procedure Consent was obtained in two phases: Adolescents (ages 10–19) Consent Dates: July 1–15, 2022 Procedure: Written consent from parents/guardians; verbal assent from adolescents in Pashto and Urdu Location: Community centers and informal educational settings in Lahore Participants: 30 (11 females, 19 males) Adults (ages 20–57) Consent Dates: August 1–20, 2022 Procedure: Written informed consent obtained directly prior to questionnaire distribution Location: Community meetings and household visits in Lahore Participants: 50 (13 females, 37 males) All participants were informed of their right to withdraw at any time without consequence. Pseudonyms were used during transcription and analysis to ensure anonymity. The study upheld the principles of respect for persons, beneficence, and justice throughout. References Block, D. (2006). Identity in applied linguistics. In T. Omoniyi & G. White (Eds.), The sociolinguistics of identity (pp. 34–49). Continuum. Chowdhury, F. Y.& Rojas-Lizana, S. (2021). Family language policies among Bangladeshi migrants in southeast Queensland Australia. International Multilingual Research Journal, 15 (2), 178-193. Clyne, M., & Kipp, S. (2006). Australia’s community languages. International Journal of the Sociology of Language, 180, 7–21. Curdt-Christiansen, X.L. (2009). Invisible and visible language planning: ideological factors in the family language policy of Chinese immigrant families in Quebec. Language Policy, 8 (4), 351–375. Curdt-Christiansen, X. L. (2013). Family language policy: Sociopolitical reality versus linguistic continuity. Language Policy, 12 (1), 1–6. Curdt-Christiansen, X.-L. (2016) Conflicting language ideologies and contradictory language practices in Singaporean bilingual families. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 37 (7), 694–709. Curdt-Christiansen, X. L., & Wang, W. (2018). Parents as agents of multilingual education: Family language planning in China. Language, Culture and Curriculum, 31 (3), 235–254. David, A. (2014). A descriptive grammar of Pashto and its dialects . Mouton de Gruyter . De Houwer, A. (2007). Parental language input patterns and children’s bilingual use. Applied Psycholinguistics 28 (3), 411–424. Duursma, E., Romero-Contreras, S., Szuber, A., Proctor, P., Snow, C., August, D., and M. Calderón. (2007). The role of home literacy and language environment on bilinguals’ English and Spanish vocabulary development. Applied Psycholinguistics 28 (1), 171–190. Fishman, J. A. (1991). Reversing language shift: Theoretical and empirical foundations of assistance to threatened languages . Journal of Linguistic Anthropology , 4 (1), 97–98. Fishman, J. A. (2007). What do you lose when you lose your language? In G. Cantoni (Ed.), Stabilizing indigenous languages . Revised edition (pp. 71–81). Center for Excellence in Education, Northern Arizona University. Fogle, L. W., & King, K. A. (2013). Child agency and language policy in transnational families. Issues in Applied Linguistics, 19 , 1–25. Gaw, N. (2009). “ We have a language problem here:” Linguistic identity in East Africa . [Unpublished B.A thesis]. Swarthmore College. Gu. M., & Han. Y. (2021). Exploring family language policy and planning among ethnic minority families in Hong Kong: Through a sociohistorical and processed lens. Current Issues in Language Planning, 22 (4), 466-486. Kanno, Y. (2003). Negotiating bilingual and bicultural identities: Japanese returnees betwixt two worlds. Routledge. Kenji, H., & D. D’Andrea. 1992. Some properties of bilingual maintenance and loss in Mexican background high-school students. Applied Linguistics, 13 (1), 72–99. Lahore Division Government of the Punjab. (n.d.). Division Profile. https://lahoredivision.punjab.gov.pk/divisionatglance_profile . Leung, G., & Y. Uchikoshi. (2012). Relationships among language ideologies, family language policies, and children’s language achievement: A look at Cantonese-English bilinguals in the U.S. Bilingual Research Journal 35 , 294–313. Mehmood et al. (2009). Social adjustment of Pathan migrants and their assimilation with Punjabies in Lahore [Unpublished Master’s Thesis]. Punjab University. Mei, C. (2021): Hong Kong English and linguistic identity of Hong Kongers. Asian Englishes, 24 (1), 50–82. Norton, B. & Toohey, K. (2002). Identity and language learning. In R. B. Kaplan (Ed.), The Oxford handbook of applied linguistics (pp. 115–123). Oxford University Press. Norton, B. (2016). Identity and language learning: Back to the future. TESOL Quarterly, 50 (2), 475–479. Norton, B. (2000). Identity and language learning: Gender, ethnicity and educational change . Pearson Education. Nguyen, T. (2018): Bilingual identity of ethnic minority students: Insights from Vietnam, International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, 24 (1), 91–106. Pakistan Bureau of Statistics Government of Pakistan. (n.d.). Final Results of Census-2017. https://www.pbs.gov.pk/node/3374 . Pauwels, A. (2016). Identifying and understanding trends and patterns in the dynamics of language maintenance and shift. Introduction to Part III of Language Maintenance and Shift (pp. 81–82). Cambridge University Press. Rajan, I. (2017). South Asian migration report 2017: Recruitment, remittances and reintegration. Routledge. Schwartz, M. (2008). Exploring the relationship between family language policy and heritage language knowledge among second generation Russian–Jewish immigrants in Israel. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 2 (5): 400–418. Spolsky, B. (2004). Language policy. Cambridge University Press. Tajfel, H. (1978). Social Categorization, Social Identity and Social Comparison. Chapter 3 of Differentiation between social groups: Studies in the social psychology of intergroup relations (pp. 61-76). Academic Press. Weinreich, M. (2009). Pashtun migrants in the northern areas of Pakistan . Oxford University Press. Yağmur, K., & van de Vijver, F. J. R. (2022). Language maintenance and family language policy. Chapter 7 of Multidisciplinary perspectives on acculturation in Turkish immigrants , 85–107. Springer. Appendix Appendix I is not available with this version. Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6686660","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":486629429,"identity":"301ee8f3-936f-48db-8ab5-a6e18b6bdddd","order_by":0,"name":"Amina Khalid","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"University of Management and Technology","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Amina","middleName":"","lastName":"Khalid","suffix":""},{"id":486629430,"identity":"f124d1ae-00a7-4113-af63-64b8dc07065e","order_by":1,"name":"Arshad Ali Khan","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"University of Management and Technology","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Arshad","middleName":"Ali","lastName":"Khan","suffix":""},{"id":486629431,"identity":"21d465a3-9334-4919-9a41-513b83b72b88","order_by":2,"name":"Brian D Josaph","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAAvUlEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBACxgYIwcMP4TMTr0VGsoFYLTB9NgYHiNXC3N7+8HHhDgYe4+PtzyQYKqwTGwha0HPG2HjmGQYeszNnzCQYzqQToWVGDps0bxtQy40cNgnGtsPEaEl//hukxXhG+jMJxn9EaUkwYwZpMZBIMJNgbCBGC9Av0jPbJHgkzpwxtkg4lm5MUIshMMQ+F7bZ2PMDGTc+1FjLEtbSAI4LCQgvgZByEJBnID7GR8EoGAWjYKQCAFE1OQK/Y0bhAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC","orcid":"","institution":"The Ohio State University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Brian","middleName":"D","lastName":"Josaph","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-05-17 11:23:15","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6686660/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6686660/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":87163026,"identity":"e687c5f6-4b6c-433f-92b2-d47951a1580f","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-07-21 05:35:58","extension":"png","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":235520,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePopulation Census (2017) of Lahore by Mother Tongue Final Results of Census-2017. Adapted from Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, Government of Pakistan. Retrieved August 9, 2021, from https://www.pbs.gov.pk/content/final-results-census-2017-0\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"1.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6686660/v1/58ad790439ab77baac53913c.png"},{"id":87163750,"identity":"8245fc42-d876-42fe-a612-123163b518df","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-07-21 05:43:58","extension":"png","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":4493,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eThe reliability of the questionnaire was checked through the reliability scale of SPSS.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"fig.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6686660/v1/f8da4fb5b160facef70678c3.png"},{"id":87164064,"identity":"480d9c25-ad1a-41a9-9fe8-244150e2a543","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-07-21 05:51:59","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1446838,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6686660/v1/fddd49de-836b-45c0-a240-f384e2c85151.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Family Language Policy and Identity Formation among Migrant Pashto Community in the Multilingual Context of Lahore","fulltext":[{"header":"1. Introduction","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec2\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003e1.1 Language and Identity\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eLanguage plays a powerful role in identity formation for an individual. Language is the vehicle through which people negotiate themselves and which affords them access to powerful and dominant social networks that give them a chance to speak (Norton, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR23\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e). Identity as constructed through language is the expression of a desire for membership, recognition, safety, and security (Norton, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR24\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2000\u003c/span\u003e)\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs discussed in Mei (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e), linguistic identity is enclosed in cultural, social, and ethnic identities, which is why it is imperative in multilingual situations to investigate speakers\u0026rsquo; attitudes toward each language in certain contexts of usage if the purpose is to identify what generates a group of speakers\u0026rsquo; feelings or attitudes concerning the languages of their lives (Gaw, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR14\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e). According to the view of social science, identity is a kind of process that is negotiated, and socially constructed. The negotiation of identity by an individual creates conflict and tension for them (Block, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e; Tajfel, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1978\u003c/span\u003e; Kanno, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2003\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eActually, identity formation is a lengthy and complex process that operates not only through people\u0026rsquo;s thoughts, actions, and negotiations but also through their intentions and decisions regarding time, place, and person. Their language preservation is one of the basic conditions for their identity sustainment, whereas language shift and change on their part would lead to a conversion of their identity (Nguyen, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). Many factors play important role in language and identity conservation and transformation, among which are language attitude, understanding of the value of another language, motivation, the need to maintain identity, and personal, and thus their familial, language policy.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec3\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003e1.2 Family Language Policy\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eDecisions about language use as implemented at the familial level, what we refer to here as \u0026ldquo;family language policy\u0026rdquo;, is a crucial part of language management in immigrant settings (Yağmur, van de Vijver, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR33\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2022\u003c/span\u003e). Many related concepts such as language maintenance (Fishman \u003cspan citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1991\u003c/span\u003e), language ideologies, family language use and parent-child interaction have highlighted the role of family in language policy.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn 2004, Spolsky introduced the first comprehensive theoretical framework of language policy, which is based on three interrelated components: language practices, language beliefs and language management. A substantial amount of literature has been published on Spolsky\u0026rsquo;s theory of language policy, focusing on such topics as: heritage language exposure (Leung and Uchikoshi, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e), the role of parents\u0026rsquo; language choice (Duursma et al. \u003cspan citationid=\"CR10\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e), linguistic patterns (De Houwer, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e) and self-reported language proficiencies (Kenji and D\u0026rsquo;Andrea, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR17\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1992\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe role of family and home domain cannot be denied regarding native language maintenance. There is a multifaceted connection between the language attitude of parents, how they manage the use of language in daily life, and the knowledge of children related to their first language vocabulary. A study done by Schwartz (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2008\u003c/span\u003e) explored the different aspects of family policy which were concerned with the conservation of the first language of Russian-Jewish second generation speakers in Israel by applying Spolsky\u0026rsquo;s (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e) language policy model. It was concluded that there was variation in bilingual children\u0026rsquo;s first language vocabulary knowledge due to underlying components that were connected with the language policy of the families. Those factors included the teaching of children to read in their first language, children\u0026rsquo;s constructive approach toward their first language preservation, and the language practices of their parents. This research also emphasized the essential role of a community-based education system in the relevant minority languages among second-generation immigrants. Consequently, it seems that mutual efforts of family members and community activists are needed to avert a wholesale L1-to-L2 shift.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAccording to Chowdhury and Rojas-Lizana (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR2\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e), the study of family language policy has occurred as a substantial realm for multilingual development, language preservation and cultural endurance. They explored family language policy employed by the Bangladeshi migrants in South East Queensland. In their study, the data was collected through interviews. The study highlights that the family language policies are generally related to the subtleties of language use within a family and the factors associated with them. Their research identifies different components of Spolsky\u0026rsquo;s (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e, 2009)) model of language policy. The aim of the research was to highlight the phenomenon of intergenerational language transmission among the migrant community in a diverse Australian context.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe data was gathered from 19 adult participants who had children. The data analysis was based on the thematic analysis method of Braun \u0026amp; Clarke (2006) to identify, analyze, and report the themes within the data. The findings of the study showed that the Bangla language was spoken, in the Australian context, mostly in different spheres of home between parents and children and between spouses. The participants reported that their children got exposure to the English language from a very early age because of being brought up entirely in Australia. Although Bangla was used at homes, the children used to interact in English at schools because it was the sole medium of instruction in their institutions. The parents shared that they communicated with their children only in Bangla and not in English until they joined schools and that was why the children spoke Bangla fluently. Generally, the participants thought they were able to develop their children\u0026rsquo;s speaking skills in Bangla successfully. Bangla and English co-existed in their language use in family and in social domains and this mediation made their identity integrated. Most of the research participants verystrongly wanted to conserve Bangla while interacting within their families. They considered bilingualism to be important for their children, yet they gave them liberty in their language choices.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCurdt-Christiansen (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR5\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e) stated that family language policy research not only enlightens us about processes of language preservation and language shift but also highlights the interplay between home and public spheres. It emphasizes that on one hand the families must negotiate between the realities of social and political pressures and public education needs and on the other hand the desire for cultural devotion and linguistic endurance.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn another study, Gu and Han (2020) explored the situation among migrant mothers in Hong Kong who maintained their family language together with their family members. Their efforts are based on their experiences in varied domains of home, school, workplace, and community. The data was collected through interviews with 10 mothers of South Asian backgrounds. The research participants shared that mostly heritage languages were used in their homes, although Cantonese and English were used occasionally among the children. They used Cantonese while interacting with the teachers of their children or while shopping in markets. The participants also shared that they have little knowledge of Chinese and English except for three of them who were from Pakistan and Indonesia. The interviews revealed that language policies at home were shaped by their links with their home country and their experiences within their local community, workplace, and society. Heritage languages were primarily acquired by their children through home study and use rather than other formal means and they were used as main family languages consistently. When the family members had experiences in other contexts, for example, in schools and workplaces, the use of English and Chinese became active. While the mothers were exposed to the wider society and involved in varied professions, they adjusted their family language policy consequently. The findings suggested that their family language planning and policy were influenced by language practices at schools and in other social contexts, since the home domains do not exist in isolation from other social contexts.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFamily language policy is concerned with how family members perceive social structures and adjust in the face of social changes, and the following impact of these perceptions on their language ideology and practices. These perceptions influence their decisions about how to strengthen their social, cultural and economic standing and thus they shape their family language policy (Curdt-Christiansen, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR4\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"2. The Present Study","content":"\u003cp\u003eThe current study explores the family language policy of immigrant Pashtun community in the multilingual context of Lahore, the second largest city in Pakistan with over 6,000,000 inhabitants. We investigate how the immigrant Pashtun families in Lahore construct their identities through their family language policy in the multilingual environment.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec5\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003e2.1 Immigrant Pashto community in Lahore\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eAfter 1947, the development of industries and infrastructure projects in the large cities of Pakistan such as Rawalpindi, Karachi, and Lahore attracted migrant Pashtun labor and as a result, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) has attained the highest rate of emigration among all the provinces of Pakistan (Mehmood et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e). Other causes of internal migration include the poorly irrigation in many areas and the low rainfall in the regions of Afghanistan and Northwest Pakistan which have compelled laborers to depart their villages for seasonal labor and minor trade (Weinreich, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR32\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe South Asian Migration Report (2017) draws attention to these causes of internal migration in Pakistan and their effects. It states that there is an imbalance of development between rural and urban areas of the country and moreover that there is a marked difference between and within provinces regarding healthcare and educational facilities, as well as employment opportunities.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWage rates are higher in urban areas and diversification in the labor market is paralleled by the rise in internal migration, both interprovincial and rural-to-urban. Furthermore, other reasons of internal migration include the war against terrorism in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and the poor situation regarding law and order in KP, where almost 3.2% of people were forced to leave their homes.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Pashtuns belong to the regions of KP, FATA, and Afghanistan, and their heritage language is Pashto. Pashto belongs to the East Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian language family It is closely related to other Iranian languages such as Persian, Kurdish, and Balochi, less closely related to Indo-Aryan languages such as Urdu, Punjabi, and Sindhi, and more distantly connected to other Indo-European languages (David, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e). Pashto is the second largest Iranian language after Persian. About 15% of Pakistanis speak Pashto as a first language and this is the second most widely spoken language after Punjabi in Pakistan. Pashto, like Punjabi, is split between two countries. It is the dominant language in southern Afghanistan, while most Pashtuns live in Pakistan.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec6\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003e2.2 Profile of Lahore District\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eLahore is a city rich in history and tradition. It has experienced three significant eras in its more recent history: c the Mughal empire (1524 to 1752), the British colonial rule (1849\u0026ndash;1947), and now the modern period (since 1947) as a major city of Pakistan. With each new era in history came new designs and developments which have all added and enriched the fabric of this busy, bustling city.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe historic city of Lahore has been the center of influence in the region for centuries. As the provincial capital of Punjab and Pakistan's most populous province, it maintains its importance. In recent years, the Lahore District has seen many infrastructural development projects, including a modern mass-transit system and an efficient network of roads. It has many state-of-the-art shopping facilities due to the construction of many malls that are up to international standards.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Lahore district comprises five administrative units known as \u003cem\u003etehsils\u003c/em\u003e: Cantonment, City, Model Town, Raiwind, and Shalimar according to the administration division done by the Government of Punjab (2008). As a metropolitan city, Lahore appeals to people from different parts of the country who seek varied livelihood opportunities and other amenities of life in this city. As compared to the other areas of Pakistan, Lahore has a better law and order situation, so people find it better and safer place to live and earn. This in-migration has made Lahore thoroughly multilingual.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe languages spoken in Lahore include Punjabi, Urdu, Pashto, etc. (Appendix I). Urdu is the national language of Pakistan and is usually used as a lingua franca in Lahore while English has official status and is used in all official documentation. In Lahore, most educational institutions use Urdu and English as the medium of instruction, so these two languages have a great impact on the students\u0026rsquo; linguistic repertoire. Most of the population speaks Punjabi locally. As Lahore is a metropolitan city, the people of varied ethnicities such as Pashto, Sindhi, Saraiki, Balochi, Kashmiri, etc., are settled here according to the census done by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, Government of Pakistan (2017), (see Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2.1\u003c/span\u003e). In the multilingual settings of Lahore, Urdu is used as a lingua franca when people of different ethnicities communicate with each other.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the multilingual context of Lahore, when members of the younger generation of the migrant Pashto community leave their home environment, they start to interact in varied situations and settings in which the language of the majority used to communicate with others is either Punjabi or Urdu in Lahore. When young Pashto speakers attend educational institutions in which the medium of instruction is Urdu or English, their first language is relegated to more limited contexts, mainly those of interactions in the home.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThese changes in relative input and changes in the young Pashto speakers\u0026rsquo; actual use of their first language result in the reduction of instances in which they hear their L1 so the prospects of using their language also decline. These formats consequently have an influence not only on their L1 skills but also on their identity formation, mainly in the settings of other dominant languages such as Urdu, Punjabi, English, etc. The reason is that the decrease in L1 exposure, use, and input hinders the development and progress of skills in L1 as well as the preservation and continuity of acquired skills, and it also leads to issues of identity formation given that language and identity cannot be separated.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"Sec7\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\n \u003ch2\u003e2.3 Research Question\u003c/h2\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eThe research question motivating this study can be formulated thus: What are the family language policies employed by the immigrant Pashtun families to construct their identity in the multilingual context of Lahore?\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"Sec8\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\n \u003ch2\u003e2.4 Theoretical Framework\u003c/h2\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eSpolsky\u0026rsquo;s (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e, 2009) notion of language policy of three dynamically interrelated elements: language practices, language beliefs, and language management (see Section 3.11.3). Spolsky\u0026rsquo;s (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e) notion of language practices explains the conscious and unconscious language behavior of the speakers, and their regular, habitual, and observable language actions. This concerns what the speakers do with language in varied contexts such as in their community, in their family domains, outside their home domains, etc. In this way, language practices are genuine and effective reflections of language policies as they make available linguistic input and language acquisition models for the new generations.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eThe notion of language ideologies presented by Spolsky (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e) posits that there are deeply rooted beliefs and assumptions about the suitable and apt language choices and practices in social, educational, and family contexts. Spolsky (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e) claimed that certain languages, language varieties, and linguistic features are given different values and prestige. As a result, speakers consciously adopt particular linguistic codes, language practices, and policies as rationalized and justifiable efforts. Such kinds of language ideologies or beliefs are motivated by family history of language use and include broader social, cultural, educational, and economic contexts.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eIn the current study, the Pashto speakers showed different attitudes toward Pashto, Urdu, English, and Punjabi. Most of them have a positive attitude toward Pashto being their mother tongue while at the same time they declared Urdu and English as languages of utility and opportunity (Fig. \u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2.1\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eSpolsky (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e) has stated that the language policy is structured by the language ideologies that are based on the beliefs and attitudes towards a language. Language practices are related to the ways how people use their language to create their image and construct their relationships with others. They form their social identities, and their language choices are acts of identity for them.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eThrough various kinds of language management, people make efforts to modify and change their practices. Spolsky\u0026rsquo;s (\u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e) concept of language management deals with the categorical and thoughtful efforts made by the communities, families, or institutions regarding the modification of language practices, beliefs, and language policy mechanisms.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eResearch on family language policy has mostly emphasized the ways in which the families manage their language practices. The ideologies of parents are influential in shaping family language policies and practices (Curdt-Christiansen \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e; Curdt-Christiansen \u0026amp; Wang \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). In addition to that, the ever-changing socio-economic and socio-political factors in varied social domains play an instrumental role in affecting language practices (Curdt-Christiansen, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e; Fogle \u0026amp; King, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"3 Methodology","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec10\"\u003e\n \u003ch2\u003e3.1 Research Site\u003c/h2\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eThe focus of the research was the metropolitan city of Lahore because it attracts people from other areas of Pakistan for a variety of life amenities and earning opportunities. This makes the city linguistically heterogeneous, so it was an eminently suitable venue in which to fulfill the goals of the current study. The data was collected from the five tehsils of Lahore district: Lahore city, Model Town, Cantonment, Raiwind, and Shalimar.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"Sec11\"\u003e\n \u003ch2\u003e3.2 Participants\u003c/h2\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eThe research participants were based on two groups from the migrant Pashto speech community, categorized according to their age groups — adolescents and adults — and covering both male and female. See tables 3.4 and 3.5 for details.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cdiv id=\"Sec12\"\u003e\n \u003ch2\u003e3.2.1 Ethical Considerations\u003c/h2\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eThis research was conducted in adherence to ethical standards outlined by the University of Management and Technology, Lahore. Prior to data collection, all procedures involving human participants were reviewed and approved by the Departmental Research Committee on June 8, 2022. Although formal written exemption from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) was not required under institutional policy for non-invasive social research, ethical clearance was obtained in accordance with departmental norms and guidelines.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eInformed Consent\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProcedure\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eInformed consent was obtained from all participants in two phases, with full compliance to confidentiality and voluntariness principles. The consent process was tailored according to the age of the participants and took place as follows:\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor Adolescent Participants (\u003c/strong\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;3.1\u003cstrong\u003e)\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cul\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDate(s) of Consent\u003c/strong\u003e: Between July 1st and July 15th, 2022\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMeans of Consent\u003c/strong\u003e: Written informed consent was obtained from parents or legal guardians of participants aged 10–17. Additionally, verbal assent was taken from the adolescents themselves after explaining the purpose and scope of the study in accessible terms in Pashto and Urdu.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSetting\u003c/strong\u003e: Community centers and informal educational spaces in Lahore.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eParticipants\u003c/strong\u003e: 30 adolescents (11 females, 19 males) aged 10–19 years.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/li\u003e\n \u003c/ul\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor Adult Participants (\u003c/strong\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;3.2\u003cstrong\u003e)\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cul\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDate(s) of Consent\u003c/strong\u003e: Between August 1st and August 20th, 2022\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMeans of Consent\u003c/strong\u003e: Written informed consent was obtained directly from all adult participants prior to questionnaire administration. The research objectives, voluntary nature of participation, and anonymity of responses were clearly explained.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSetting\u003c/strong\u003e: Local community meetings and household visits in the Lahore district.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eParticipants\u003c/strong\u003e: 50 adults (13 females, 37 males) aged 20–57 years.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/li\u003e\n \u003c/ul\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eAll participants were assured that their participation was entirely voluntary and that they could withdraw at any point without any repercussions. Pseudonyms were used in the transcription and analysis to maintain confidentiality.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eThe research strictly adhered to the ethical principles of respect for persons, beneficence, and justice, as outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki and institutional research policies.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cdiv\u003e\n \u003ctable id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e\n \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\n \u003cdiv\u003eTable 3.1\u003c/div\u003e\n \u003cdiv\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eData collection from Adolescents via a Questionnaire\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/div\u003e\n \u003c/caption\u003e\n \u003cthead\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eSr.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eNo. of participants\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eGender\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eAge range\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eEducation\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eLanguages\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eArea \u0026amp; duration of stay in Lahore\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003c/thead\u003e\n \u003ctbody\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"char\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e11\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eF\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e10–19 years\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eeducated\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003ePashto, Urdu, English,\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eLahore district, 6–11 years\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e2\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"char\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e19\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eM\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e10–19 years\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eeducated\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003ePashto, Urdu, English, Punjabi\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eLahore district, 7–13 years\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003c/tbody\u003e\n \u003c/table\u003e\n \u003c/div\u003e\n \u003cdiv\u003e\n \u003ctable id=\"Tab2\" border=\"1\"\u003e\n \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\n \u003cdiv\u003eTable 3.2\u003c/div\u003e\n \u003cdiv\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eData collection from Adults via a Questionnaire\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/div\u003e\n \u003c/caption\u003e\n \u003cthead\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eSr.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eNo. of participants\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eGender\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eAge range\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eEducation\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eLanguages\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eArea \u0026amp; duration of stay in Lahore\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/th\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003c/thead\u003e\n \u003ctbody\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"char\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e13\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eF\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e20–49 years\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eeducated\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003ePashto, Urdu, English, Punjabi\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eLahore district, 7–13\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003ctr\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e2\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e37\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eM\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003e20–57 years\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eeducated\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003ePashto, Urdu, English, Punjabi\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eLahore district, 6–18 years\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003c/td\u003e\n \u003c/tr\u003e\n \u003c/tbody\u003e\n \u003c/table\u003e\n \u003c/div\u003e\n \u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"Sec13\"\u003e\n \u003ch2\u003e3.3Research Tool\u003c/h2\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eFor the data collection, a questionnaire was designed which contained instructions, demographic information, questions or ‘items’, and possible answers (Schleef, 2014, pp. 43–45). There were 8 close-ended questions included in the questionnaire, each with the option of four possible answers. The rating scale was designed based on words or phrases rather than numbers.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eThe questions were based on the concepts of language practices, beliefs, and management. All the questions (items) were grounded in Spolsky’s (2004) theoretical framework of Family Language Policy.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eThe reliability of the questionnaire was checked through the reliability scale of SPSS as shown in figure (3.1). According to Krippenorff (2011), the Cronbach’s Alpha value of less than .60 is not acceptable, .70 is acceptable and .80 is good. And for the internal reliability of the instrument, Cronbach’s Alpha was calculated, and the coefficient reliability was found to be 0.87 with 8 highly acceptable questions.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"Sec14\"\u003e\n \u003ch2\u003e3.4 Questionnaire Data Collection Protocol\u003c/h2\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eThe sociolinguistic questionnaire was designed to get information regarding the participants’ language practices, language beliefs, and language management. The questionnaire data was gathered in many ways. It was distributed by approaching individuals on the spot. The available participants were requested to inform the other people in their circle (network) about our study so that the data collection could be extended. The researcher and the research assistants (RAs) asked other people in their own social circle to fill out the questionnaire. The same questionnaire was designed using a Google form and the links were sent to the required participants through email messages and WhatsApp.\u003c/p\u003e\n \u003cp\u003eThe researcher and the RAs were present when questionnaires were completed face-to-face. Their presence made the filling in of the questionnaires go smoothly because whenever any participants needed help in understanding the questions, they could be facilitated on the spot. The questions were explained to the participants in detail to avoid any ambiguity if there was any. The RAs even used their native language Pashto to elaborate on the ideas given in the questionnaire to the research participants. The details of the adolescent and adult participants who gave the responses to the questionnaire activity have been provided in Tables 3.1 and 3.2 respectively.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"4. Findings","content":"\u003cp\u003eWe offer in this section a statistical analysis of the data collected through the research questionnaire. The data has been examined through SPSS. The purpose was to probe the language practices, language beliefs, and language policies adopted by the migrant Pashto community in the multilingual settings of Lahore. According to Spolsky\u0026rsquo;s (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e) tri-partite model of language policy, these three are the major components by which speakers construct identity.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec16\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003e4.1 Language Ecology\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.1) is based on the statistical analysis of the first question of the questionnaire distributed among the migrant Pashto adolescents and adults equally. The purpose was to identify the relevant language practices of the research participants with their family members. The majority of the current research respondents indicated that they use Pashto for communication in their family settings. For example, 66.6% of the Pashto adolescents reported this phenomenon while 88% of the adults agreed with it. Their second choice of interaction is Urdu, which is used by most adolescents 26.9% as compared to the adults 6.6%. English and Punjabi are not given any noticeable importance during family conversations according to the findings.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.1) shows the Chi-square calculated value of (13.47), which was found to be greater than the critical table value 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 (\u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.045).\u003c/em\u003e It is statistically significant that the adolescent and the adults prefer the Pashto language when they interact with their family members, but the views of the adults are higher as compared to that of the adolescents. However, both prefer Pashto as compared to other languages such as Urdu, English, and Punjabi in their family talk. It also shows that the response rate of adults is higher than that of adolescents.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab3\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4.1\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLanguage of Interaction with family members\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRespondent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePashto\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eUrdu\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eEnglish\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePunjabi\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eN\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eχ 2\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/thead\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdolescent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e019\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(66.6%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e008\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(26.9%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e002\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(05.9%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e001\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(01.3%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e13.47\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdult\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e046\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(88.1%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e002\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(06.6%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e002\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(06.0%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e000\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(00.0%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eTotal\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e65\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e10\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e80\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003ctfoot\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"7\"\u003eχ \u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e chi square table value at 0.05\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;09.48, \u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.045\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05 (sig), df\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tfoot\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.2) gives information about the statistical analysis of the second question of the questionnaire. The aim was to discover the choice of language by the research participants when they interact with their colleagues or peers. The majority of the respondents replied that they use Urdu for communication with their colleagues or peers. For example, 65.5% of the adolescents as opposed to 51.5% of the adults showed the trend of using Urdu. The percentage of English use was almost the same among both groups of respondents: 8.4% of the adolescents use Pashto while 22.3% of the adults use the same language when they interact with their colleagues or peers. It shows that the use of Pashto is higher among the adults compared to the adolescents in that conversational situation. Punjabi is the least common language of communication according to the findings.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.2) shows the Chi-square calculated value of (17.89), which was found to be greater than the critical table value 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 (\u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.035).\u003c/em\u003e It is statistically significant that the adolescents and the adults both use the Urdu language while they interact with their colleagues or peers. It also shows that the response rate of adults is higher than that of adolescents.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab4\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4.2\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLanguage of Interaction with colleagues/peers\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRespondent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePashto\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eUrdu\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eEnglish\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePunjabi\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eN\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eχ 2\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/thead\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdolescent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e003\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(08.4%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e018\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(65.5%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e006\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(18.4%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e003\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(08.4%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e17.89\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdult\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e009\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(22.3%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e030\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(51.5%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e006\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(18.6%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e005\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(08.3%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eTotal\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e12\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e48\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e12\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e80\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003ctfoot\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"7\"\u003eχ \u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e chi square table value at 0.05\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;09.48, \u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.035\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05 (sig), df\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tfoot\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.3) displays the results of the statistical analysis of the third question of the research questionnaire. The objective of the question was to explore the use of language by migrant Pashto adolescents and adults during interaction with their friends or neighbors. Both groups revealed that they use Urdu to a high degree in such situations:89.3% of the adolescents while 84.5% of the adult research participants showed this trend. Punjabi is used instead of Urdu by the research participants when they converse with their friends or neighbors. However, the percentage is low: 9.0% of adolescents as opposed to 9.3% of adults use Punjabi in these contexts. The use of Pashto is very low as only 2.4% of adolescents and 5.3% of adults use it. As far as English are concerned, its use is negligible, only approximately 1.6%.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.3) illustrates the Chi-square calculated value of (15.76), which was found to be greater than the critical table value of 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 (\u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.003).\u003c/em\u003e It is statistically significant that adolescents and adults prefer the Urdu language when they interact with their friends or neighbors. It is also obvious that the response rate of the adults is higher than that of the adolescents.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab5\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4.3\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eLanguage of Interaction with friends/neighbors\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRespondent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePashto\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eUrdu\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eEnglish\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePunjabi\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eN\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eχ 2\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/thead\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdolescent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e002\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(02.4%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e024\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(89.3%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e000\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(00.0%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e004\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(09.0%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e15.76\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdult\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e04\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(05.3%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e038\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(84.5%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e001\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(01.6%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e006\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(09.3%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eTotal\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e62\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e10\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e80\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003ctfoot\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"7\"\u003eχ \u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e chi square table value at 0.05\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;09.48, \u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.003\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05 (sig), df\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4 n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;80\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tfoot\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec17\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003e4.2 Language Ideology\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.4) indicates the results of the statistical analysis of question four of the research questionnaire which was distributed equally among both groups of the research participants. The response rate of the adults is higher than that of the adolescents. Question four was designed to ascertain the views of the migrant Pashto speakers regarding the usefulness of the languages given in the scale as the possible answers. The results showed that Urdu is the most useful language for both groups of research participants. 78.6% of the adolescents while 52.6% of the adults confirmed these findings. Pashto was second as 15.3% of the adolescents and 18.2% of the adults supported its usefulness. Only 4.4% of the adolescents and 9.6% of the adults supported the use of English. According to the research participants, Punjabi was the least useful for them.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.4) illustrates the Chi-square calculated value of (14.29), which was found to be greater than the critical table value of 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 (\u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.031).\u003c/em\u003e It is statistically significant that adolescents and adults consider Urdu to be the most useful language.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab6\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4.4\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe most useful language in the multilingual settings of Lahore\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRespondent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePashto\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eUrdu\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eEnglish\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePunjabi\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eN\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eχ 2\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/thead\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdolescent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e008\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(15.3%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e018\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(78.6%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e003\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(04.4%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e001\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(02.4%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e14.29\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdult\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e010\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(18.2%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e032\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(52.6%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e006\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(09.6%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e002\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(03.3%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eTotal\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e18\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e9\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e3\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e80\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003ctfoot\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"7\"\u003eχ \u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e chi square table value at 0.05\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;09.48, \u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.031\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05 (sig), df\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4 n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;80\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tfoot\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.5) shows the results of the statistical analysis of question five of the research questionnaire. The question aimed to know the value of the languages such as Pashto, Urdu, English, and Punjabi in the lives of the migrant Pashto speakers in Lahore. Their attitudes towards the given languages revealed that most of them chose to give up Punjabi. For example, 93.5% of the adolescents and 91.5% of the adults preferred Pashto. Almost all of the research participants do not want to leave their native language Pashto.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.5) gives the Chi-square calculated value of (15.67), which was found to be greater than the critical table value 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 (\u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.001).\u003c/em\u003e It is statistically significant that the adolescents and the adults both could sacrifice Punjabi as compared to other languages. The response rate of the adults is higher as compared to the adolescents.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab7\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4.5\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe least useful language in the multilingual context of Lahore\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRespondent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePashto\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eUrdu\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eEnglish\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePunjabi\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eN\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eχ 2\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/thead\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdolescent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e001\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(01.4%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e002\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(02.4%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e003\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(03.4%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e024\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(93.5%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e15.67\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdult\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e000\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(00.0%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e003\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(04.5%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e005\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(4.7%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e042\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(91.5%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eTotal\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e66\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e80\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003ctfoot\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"7\"\u003eχ \u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e chi square table value at 0.05\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;09.48, \u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.001\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05 (sig), df\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4 n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;80\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tfoot\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.6) demonstrates the results of the statistical analysis of question six of the research questionnaire. The purpose of the question was to know the language beliefs of the migrant Pashto speakers. A total of 79.8% of the adolescents and 90.7% of the adult respondents believed that Pashto should be taught to the Pashtun future generations. English was given the second preference for the new generations by 14.5% of the adolescent as opposed to 8.7% of the adult respondents. Urdu was not given much importance in this regard as only 6.4% of the adolescents and 1.3% of the adults showed any interest in that language. No one was in favor of teaching Punjabi to the Pashtun future generations.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.6) illustrates the Chi-square calculated value of (19.23), which was found to be greater than the critical table value 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 (\u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.021).\u003c/em\u003e It is statistically significant that both adolescents and adults were in favor of teaching particularly the Pashto language to the next generations. The response rate of the adults was higher as compared to the adolescents.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab8\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4.6\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe preferred L1 for Pashtun future generations\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRespondent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePashto\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eUrdu\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eEnglish\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePunjabi\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eN\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eχ 2\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/thead\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdolescent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e014\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(79.8%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e005\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(06.4%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0011\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(14.5%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e000\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(00.0%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e19.23\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdult\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e043\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(90.7%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e002\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(01.3%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e005\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(08.7%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e000\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(00.0%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eTotal\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e57\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e7\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e80\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003ctfoot\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"7\"\u003eχ \u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e chi square table value at 0.05\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;09.48, \u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.021\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05 (sig), df\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4, n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;80\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tfoot\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec18\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003e4.3 Language Planning\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.7) illustrates the results of the statistical analysis of question seven of the research questionnaire. The question aimed at eliciting information from the research participants concerning the impact of language policies of their workplaces or friends on their language habits or beliefs. Most of the respondents said that they were affected by the stated language policies. In all, 86.5% of the adolescent respondents and 87.2% of the adult respondents stated that their language practices and beliefs were influenced to a great extent by the policies set by others. Moreover, 9.8% of adolescents and 11.2% of adults chose the option of \u0026lsquo;somewhat\u0026rsquo; \u0026mdash; also a positive response \u0026mdash; from the scale of possible answers. Very few of the respondents said that they did not feel any impact of the language policies applied by others.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.7) exhibits the Chi-square calculated value od (11.39), which was found to be greater than the critical table value 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 (\u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.025).\u003c/em\u003e It is statistically significant that adolescents and adults are under the influence of the language policies set by their workplaces, institutions, or friends. The response rate of the adults was higher than that of the adolescents.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab9\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4.7\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe influence of language policy of workplace/institutions/friends\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRespondent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eTo a great extent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eSomewhat\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eVery little\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNot at all\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eN\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eχ 2\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/thead\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdolescent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e020\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(86.5%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e008\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(9.8%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e001\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(02.4%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e001\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(02.0%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e11.39\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdult\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e038\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(87.2%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e010\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(11.2%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e002\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(02.3%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e000\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(00.0%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eTotal\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e58\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e18\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e3\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e80\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003ctfoot\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"7\"\u003eχ \u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e chi square table value at 0.05\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;09.48, \u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.025\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05 (sig), df\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4, n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;80\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tfoot\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.8) shows the results of the statistical analysis of question eight of the research questionnaire. The main purpose of the question was to investigate the impact of the language policies of the Pashto families and the Pashto community in Lahore on the language customs, traditions, attitudes, or beliefs of the research participants. All in all, 90.4% of the adolescent respondents and 91.3% of the adult respondents reported that they were influenced by the policies to a great extent. The option \u0026lsquo;somewhat\u0026rsquo; \u0026mdash; a positive response as well \u0026mdash; was opted doe by 6.3% of adolescents and 6.2% of adults.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;(4.8) displays the Chi-square calculated value of (19.11), which was found to be greater than the critical table value 09.48 at the significance level of 0.05 (\u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.002).\u003c/em\u003e It is statistically significant that the two groups of the respondents, both the adolescents and the adults, choose to follow the language policies of their families and community. The response rate of the adults was higher in comparison to the adolescents.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab10\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4.8\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe influence of language policy of the Pashtun family/ community\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRespondent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eTo a great extent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eSomewhat\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eVery little\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNot at all\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eN\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eχ 2\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/thead\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdolescent\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e017\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(90.4%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e009\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(06.3%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e002\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(02.0%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e002\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(02.0%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e19.11\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdult\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e039\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(91.3%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e08\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(06.2%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e002\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(02.0%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e001\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(01.2%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eTotal\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e56\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e17\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e3\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e80\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003ctfoot\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"7\"\u003eχ \u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e chi square table value at 0.05\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;09.48, \u003cem\u003ep\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;.002\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05 (sig), df\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4, n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;80\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tfoot\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"5. Discussion and Conclusion","content":"\u003cp\u003eThe present study takes its insight from three components of Spolsky\u0026rsquo;s (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e) model of language policy, namely language ecology, language ideology, and language planning, in order to investigate the language policy of the migrant Pashto community in the multilingual context of Lahore. The data was collected through a questionnaire from migrant Pashto adult and adolescent speakers, both male and female.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAt first, the study highlighted the language practices of Lahore\u0026rsquo;s migrant Pashto community. The findings reveal that most of the research participants use Pashto \u0026mdash; 80% of the adults versus 66.6% of the adolescents \u0026mdash; in their family domains through their robust family language policies. They want to preserve their ethno-linguistic identity through persistent Pashto language use in the context of their family interactions. They are found to be determined to retain their native language as they struggle to transmit the language to the next generation as a symbol of their ethnicity and identity in case of Pashto adolescents. Clyne and Kipp (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e) recognized home as a place for inter-generational language transmission. It can be noted that the migrant Pashto community prefers Pashto in their home domains and has positive attitudes toward their native language. Their second choice of communication within the family sphere is Urdu, which is used far more by adolescents (26.9%) as compared to the adults (6.6%). The reason for this difference is that the adolescents use Urdu in their academic settings, so they bring that outsid language into their home domains.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTheir choice of language outside their home is Urdu and English mostly when they interact with their colleagues and peers. Urdu is used by 65.5% of the adolescents as opposed to 51.5% of the adults. English is also used with almost the same percentages. They speak these languages for the purpose of integration in society and to ensure success in life as Urdu and English are the official medium of communication in institutions and organizations within Lahore. This result shows that they understand the constructive role of Urdu and English in their socialization and overall progress in life. They want to identify themselves as a functional part of the society through their language choices. Spolsky (2007, p.3) viewed these practices as \u0026lsquo;the observable behaviors and choices\u0026rsquo; and \u0026lsquo;real policy\u0026rsquo; and highlighted their relevance to \u0026lsquo;sociolinguistic ecology\u0026rsquo; based on the functions of the language and the domains where it is used.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe participants also showed the trend of using Urdu with their friends and neighbors with 89.3% of adolescents and 84.5% of adults using Urdu. Very few, only around 9% of the research participants, indicated the use of Punjabi in these situations. Urdu is used as a lingua franca across Pakistan, so it is convenient for Pashto speakers to use Urdu when they interact with other communities. It enables them to understand the cultural norm of the host society and to communicate successfully. Inasmuch as they are a part of the multilingual society, it is imperative for them to adjust in order to reap the social benefits.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHowever, according to them, the preferred L1 for Pashtun future generations should be Pashto. This was stated by 79.8% of the adolescents and 90.7% of the adult respondents. Holmes (2013) claimed that if migrant community members are not aware of the preservation of their native language, it might cause the loss of their native language in future generations. However, this is not the case with this Pashto migrant community. They seem very conscious about the maintenance of their native language in Lahore\u0026rsquo;s multilingual context. Their responses show that they want to transmit their language to their children as a sign of their ethnicity. Family plays an essential role in inter-generational language transfer and language maintenance. Fishman (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1991\u003c/span\u003e) confirmed this in regard to threatened languages and stressed the role and responsibility of family in inter-generational language transfer concerning language conservation and change. The family and home domains are found to be substantial factors in language preservation because these are the places where high rate of ethnic language use can be observed (Clyne \u0026amp; Kipp, 1999; Pauwels, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR27\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe language policies of migrant Pashto speakers\u0026rsquo; workplaces and institutions have an influence on their language practices and beliefs. For example, 86.5% of the adolescent respondents versus 87.2% of the adult respondents confirmed this as fact. When they stay outside their home domains, they must use the languages of their institutions and workplaces to have opportunities for education and social mobility. During daily interactions, they shift their language choices toward other languages such as English, Urdu, etc. and this reduces their access to and use of their native language. However, the importance of these languages cannot be denied in the multilingual environment, particularly, for getting good jobs and education. Fishman (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e) stated the importance of English as it is broadly accepted as a dominant language in public domains. On the other hand, the ethnic languages are restricted only to the close social groups of family members and friends. If migrants want their children to become bilingual and wish them to maintain their cultural and national identity simultaneously, they need to encourage and support their children to learn and use their native language at home regularly.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Pashto migrant speakers also are influenced bythe language policy of their families and the Pashtun community since 90.4% of the adolescent participants and 91.3% of the adult participants showed the same trend. It can be observed that the migrant Pashto community consciously or unconsciously tries to preserve their native language through intervention by parents and the Pashto community. Lanza and Svendsen (2007) confirmed that the language ideologies of a family play a decisive role in parents\u0026rsquo; decisions to sustain robust language policy in their family. The language practices of families are in accordance with their ideologies.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt can be concluded that through their language practices and language management as informed by their language beliefs, the migrant Pashto speakers take their identity as a process in which both preservation of their ethnic identity and alignment of mainstream identity are active. The findings also suggest that linguistic interactions should be researched from progressive micro and macro perspectives because changes in the social environments can influence the identity orientations of the speakers.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Declarations","content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFunding details\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThere is no relevant funding for any of the authors to report on.\u003cstrong\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDisclosure of interest\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe authors report that there are no competing interests to declare.\u003cstrong\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConsent statement\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThough without the same sort of human subject research controls (institutional review committees and the like) that are familiar in western countries, Pakistan, the country in which the data for this study was collected, does have norms for the ethical treatment of human subjects. The authors confirm that they adhered to local guidelines for ethical human subject research in Pakistan, and further confirm that all participants (or their parent or legal guardian) gave informed verbal consent regarding participation in the research.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eEthical Approval\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis research was conducted as part of a doctoral dissertation at [University Name]. The study involved non-interventional, qualitative interviews with adult participants and posed minimal risk. Therefore, full institutional ethics board review was not mandated at the time. However, the study received ethical clearance from the Departmental Research Committee in accordance with university guidelines and prevailing national research ethics policies. Written confirmation from the departmental committee, stating that full ethics board approval was not required, is included in the cover letter submitted with this manuscript.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEthical Approval Statement\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis research study, titled \u003cem\u003e\u0026ldquo;Family Language Policy and Identity Formation among Migrant Pashto Community in the Multilingual Context of Lahore\u0026rdquo;\u003c/em\u003e (Manuscript ID: 6aa0fc54-5713-45fd-b13e-25c1c64b5acc v1.1), was formally approved through the internal academic review process at the University of Management and Technology (UMT), Lahore. The proposal was reviewed and endorsed by the Departmental Research Committee and the Board of Advanced Studies and Research (BASR) on June 8, 2022.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn accordance with UMT policy, individual ethical approval numbers are not issued. However, all research involving human participants is subject to mandatory institutional oversight. Data collection involved community-based questionnaire administration in Lahore, using purposive and snowball sampling techniques. All participants received clear information about the study\u0026rsquo;s purpose and voluntarily consented to participate. The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and institutional ethical standards. Supporting approval documentation is available upon request.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEthical Considerations\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe research followed ethical guidelines for studies involving human participants as outlined by UMT. All data collection procedures were approved prior to implementation and complied with confidentiality and informed consent requirements.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eInformed Consent Procedure\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/h4\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eConsent was obtained in two phases:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAdolescents (ages 10\u0026ndash;19)\u003c/strong\u003e\n \u003col\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConsent Dates:\u003c/strong\u003e July 1\u0026ndash;15, 2022\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProcedure:\u003c/strong\u003e Written consent from parents/guardians; verbal assent from adolescents in Pashto and Urdu\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLocation:\u003c/strong\u003e Community centers and informal educational settings in Lahore\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eParticipants:\u003c/strong\u003e 30 (11 females, 19 males)\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003c/ol\u003e\n \u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAdults (ages 20\u0026ndash;57)\u003c/strong\u003e\n \u003col\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConsent Dates:\u003c/strong\u003e August 1\u0026ndash;20, 2022\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProcedure:\u003c/strong\u003e Written informed consent obtained directly prior to questionnaire distribution\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLocation:\u003c/strong\u003e Community meetings and household visits in Lahore\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eParticipants:\u003c/strong\u003e 50 (13 females, 37 males)\u003c/li\u003e\n \u003c/ol\u003e\n \u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAll participants were informed of their right to withdraw at any time without consequence. Pseudonyms were used during transcription and analysis to ensure anonymity. The study upheld the principles of respect for persons, beneficence, and justice throughout.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBlock, D. (2006). Identity in applied linguistics. In T. Omoniyi \u0026amp; G. White (Eds.), \u003cem\u003eThe sociolinguistics of identity\u003c/em\u003e (pp. 34\u0026ndash;49). Continuum.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eChowdhury, F. Y.\u0026amp; Rojas-Lizana, S. (2021). Family language policies among Bangladeshi migrants in southeast Queensland Australia. \u003cem\u003eInternational Multilingual Research Journal, 15\u003c/em\u003e(2), 178-193. \u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eClyne, M., \u0026amp; Kipp, S. (2006). Australia\u0026rsquo;s community languages. \u003cem\u003eInternational Journal of the Sociology of Language, 180, \u003c/em\u003e7\u0026ndash;21. \u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCurdt-Christiansen, X.L. (2009). 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(n.d.). \u003cem\u003eFinal Results of Census-2017. \u003c/em\u003ehttps://www.pbs.gov.pk/node/3374\u003cu\u003e.\u003c/u\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePauwels, A. (2016). Identifying and understanding trends and patterns in the dynamics of language maintenance and shift. Introduction to Part III of \u003cem\u003eLanguage Maintenance and Shift\u003c/em\u003e (pp. 81\u0026ndash;82). Cambridge University Press.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eRajan, I. (2017). \u003cem\u003eSouth Asian migration report 2017: Recruitment, remittances and reintegration.\u003c/em\u003e Routledge.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSchwartz, M. (2008). Exploring the relationship between family language policy and heritage language knowledge among second generation Russian\u0026ndash;Jewish immigrants in Israel. \u003cem\u003eJournal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 2\u003c/em\u003e(5): 400\u0026ndash;418. \u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSpolsky, B. (2004). \u003cem\u003eLanguage policy.\u003c/em\u003e Cambridge University Press.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTajfel, H. (1978). Social Categorization, Social Identity and Social Comparison. Chapter 3 of \u003cem\u003eDifferentiation between social groups: Studies in the social psychology of intergroup relations\u003c/em\u003e (pp. 61-76). Academic Press.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWeinreich, M. (2009). \u003cem\u003ePashtun migrants in the northern areas of Pakistan\u003c/em\u003e. Oxford University Press.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eYağmur, K., \u0026amp; van de Vijver, F. J. R. (2022). Language maintenance and family language policy. Chapter 7 of \u003cem\u003eMultidisciplinary perspectives on acculturation in Turkish immigrants\u003c/em\u003e, 85\u0026ndash;107. Springer. \u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e"},{"header":"Appendix","content":"\u003cp\u003eAppendix I is not available with this version.\u003c/p\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"humanities-and-social-sciences-communications","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"palcomms","sideBox":"Learn more about [Humanities \u0026 Social Sciences Communications](http://www.nature.com/palcomms/)","snPcode":"41599","submissionUrl":"https://submission.springernature.com/new-submission/41599/3","title":"Humanities and Social Sciences Communications","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Nature AJ","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"family language policy, migrant, identity, multilingualism, Pashto","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6686660/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6686660/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis study examines the family language policy of the migrant Pashto community in multilingual settings in Lahore, Pakistan. Many languages including English, Pashto, Punjabi, and Urdu are in contact with one another in Lahore. Following the Language Policy Framework of Spolsky (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2004\u003c/span\u003e) and using a questionnaire to collect data and a quantitative assessment of the results, we investigate the language ecology, language ideology, and language planning adopted by families of the migrant Pashto community to construct their identity in these varied language contact situations. The research population was selected through purposive sampling, yielding two groups: one adolescent and one adult including both males and females. The findings show that Pashto is the desired language of communication among the migrant Pashto families in Lahore. However, their selection of language outside their home domains depends on the situations and interlocutors. For them, Urdu and English are the languages of utility, social mobility, and opportunity. Pashto is maintained at home and in the Pashto community with intervention by the parents and the community. We conclude that multilingualism is a linguistic practice and a resource through which migrant Pashto speakers construct and negotiate their identities, temporary and enduring ones.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Family Language Policy and Identity Formation among Migrant Pashto Community in the Multilingual Context of Lahore","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-07-21 05:35:54","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6686660/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"decision","content":"Revision requested","date":"2025-09-15T18:24:29+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-07-27T17:58:23+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2025-07-26T11:25:15+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"34379857289423531254031389070965303204","date":"2025-07-18T17:43:02+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"109064410182770518414344880306031147510","date":"2025-07-16T11:47:56+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2025-07-16T11:15:06+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvited","content":"","date":"2025-06-21T06:40:28+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2025-06-06T07:47:33+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2025-06-06T07:47:12+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Humanities and Social Sciences Communications","date":"2025-05-17T11:20:56+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"humanities-and-social-sciences-communications","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"palcomms","sideBox":"Learn more about [Humanities \u0026 Social Sciences Communications](http://www.nature.com/palcomms/)","snPcode":"41599","submissionUrl":"https://submission.springernature.com/new-submission/41599/3","title":"Humanities and Social Sciences Communications","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Nature AJ","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"ba20f2f8-11c8-438a-9885-2b2ddc448205","owner":[],"postedDate":"July 21st, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"under-review","subjectAreas":[{"id":51661612,"name":"Humanities/History"},{"id":51661613,"name":"Humanities/Language and linguistics"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-04-28T02:09:03+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-07-21 05:35:54","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-6686660","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-6686660","identity":"rs-6686660","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}