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29 October 2014
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About this interview
FriendsFour multilingual Sheffield friends, talk about their languages coming together.

Interviewees:
Nasreen Begum-Kaggwa, Miriam Abdulla, Mona Salem, Selwa Habbibi,

Click on names to find out more about the participants.

Relationship of interviewees: Friends

Where: Sheffield, South Yorkshire

Language of interview: English
About this interview
Voice clip 1
A very lively and humourous exchange between two friends about madness, moodiness and who in the friendship displays those characteristics. They are particularly animated to the word 'insane' and the contributors' colourful complexed accents come to the fore.



Voice clip 2
Language and modifications to English and Arabic - spoken by the two friends and which is a bit of a code for them - is revealed by the group. It demonstrates how language develops as well as similarities between languages. The main speakers have at least one Yemeni parent. An interesting dynamic is added when the speaker who knows classical Arabic questioningly and humourously challenges the modifications.



More clips from this interview

Nasreen Begum-Kaggwa, Not given
An experience of assumption about the speaker's inability to use English purely on the basis of her appearance told with humourous effect.

Miriam Abdulla, Worker with an asylum & refugee assistance agency
Miriam's northern accent is changed straight away when she drops into a Scouse way of talking.

Mona Salem, Education Worker
Mona reveals how she finds the Arabic language occasionally more descriptive when she talks in English.
Interview's notes

Long description of interview: Most of the group are professionals, one is a full-time mother. One member of the group was quite pivitol as she is the common friend of the other three but they all know each other. It was a very relaxed session and seemed enjoyed by all, particularly because the friends made new discoveries about each other.

Recorded by: Jennifer Vernon-Edwards, Radio Sheffield

Date of interview: 2004/11/25


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