The Effects of Parents' Socialization Using Languages Other Than Their Indigenous Language: A Case Study of the Saraiki Language Shift

In Pakistan, most of the population is multilingual owing to their ethnolinguistic identities. However, Urdu and English are used as contact languages and considered more prestigious than indigenous languages. The present study focuses on the Saraiki language shift due to the parents' inclination to use Urdu and English while socializing with their children. The present study used a purposive sampling technique to select ten parents with Saraiki ethnolinguistic identity from Multan city. Following the mixed-method approach, the data were collected through questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. The thematic analysis was attempted in the light of the 'taxonomic model' by Karan (2008), to identify the motivational factors involved in the Saraiki language shift. The findings exhibit that the parents do not use Saraiki language while communicating with their children. The study recommends sensitizing the parents by organizing various linguistic literacy programmes to reverse the process of the Saraiki language shift.