Philippine Englishes-in-Motion

The Case of Filipino Migrants in Japan

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This Element proposes the concept of Philippine Englishes-in-motion as an alternative approach to understanding Philippine Englishes. It situates this proposition within the concerns of mobility, labor migration, multilingualism, and transnationalism. Drawing on analyses of self-recorded conversations by 18 Filipino migrants in Japan, along with other empirical data, this Element illuminates the processes of linguistic selection, as Filipino migrants selectively draw from, adapt, or reject specific features within the multilingual pool they share with others. It also examines the social positions that Filipino migrants navigate as they use their linguistic resources across various spaces within Japanese society, as well as the extra-territorial and intra-territorial factors that facilitate the entry and diffusion of Philippine Englishes in Japan. This Element concludes by suggesting avenues of inquiry concerning identity, linguistic variation, education and language acquisition, and more.