This paper has strived to study the factors involved in the maintenance or shift of local languages in Iran. From among these factors, ‘language attitudes’ and ‘language choice’ have been discussed, for these two interrelated factors, due to thei
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This paper has strived to study the factors involved in the maintenance or shift of local languages in Iran. From among these factors, ‘language attitudes’ and ‘language choice’ have been discussed, for these two interrelated factors, due to their flexibility nature, seem to be the direct side-effects of the other involved factors. In other words, speakers’ positive or negative attitudes toward their native language and consequently choosing or not choosing their language in needed situations depend on the orientation of the factors involved in the maintenance or shift of that language. Hence, in the present paper, language attitudes and language choice have been separately discussed and following the language choice discussion, the phenomena of language maintenance and shift have been raised. In the following, some of the studies conducted in the field of local languages’ maintenance and shift, both in and out of Iran, have been cited considering the involvement of language attitudes, language choice, and the other involved factors. In the final section, following the conclusion attained from the discussions in the previous sections, the gradual process of the loss of local languages in Iran due to the involvement of some factors and specifically the involvement of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) Corporation and Ministry of Education has been warned.
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