Attempts to describe language competition and extinction in a mathematical way have enjoyed increased popularity recently. In this paper I review recent modeling approaches and, based on these findings, propose a model of reaction-diffusion type. I analyze the dynamics of interactions of a population with two monolingual groups and a group that is bilingual in these two languages. The results show that demographic factors, such as population growth or population dispersal, play an important role in the competition dynamic. Furthermore, I consider the impact of two strategies for language maintenance: adjusting the status of the endangered language and adjusting the availability of monolingual and bilingual educational resources.
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1 April 2009
Demography and Language Competition
Anne Kandler
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Human Biology
Vol. 81 • No. 3
April 2009
Vol. 81 • No. 3
April 2009
AGENT-BASED MODELS
LANGUAGE COMPETITION
LANGUAGE EXTINCTION
LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE
POPULATION DISPERSAL
POPULATION GROWTH
REACTION-DISPERSAL COMPETITION MODEL