Code‐switching between Mandarin and English

Abstract

ABSTRACT: A data‐based study of the code‐switching (CS) patterns of bilingual speakers of Mandarin and English was conducted. The purpose is to discover the interrelationship between form and function in bilingual CS discourse with reference to topics and interlocutors. The informants of this study consist of 12 officers of the Mandarin College Fellowship of the Chinese Lutheran church of Honolulu. A 1‐hour audio‐taped recording of the officer's meeting held in March 1990 is the source for the present study. Both structural and functional analyses were conducted to examine the data. The results show that certain syntactic forms are utilized to express certain functions in CS discourse and the participation of interlocutors in a discussion played a very important role in establishing the base language of the discussion. This study also incorporated the ethnographic and communicative approaches to gain a fuller understanding of what factors influence bilingual CS behaviors.