What is the Difference between a Native Speaker and a Heritage Language Speaker?
People are often confused by the difference between the terms native speaker and heritage speaker. In fact, some schools mislabel classes for heritage speakers as classes for native speakers and misidentify native speakers as heritage speakers. There are important and distinct difference between the two terms.
A native speakers has learned a language from their parents. The language is also the language of the country or society where they have lived and work for the dominant period of their life. They are very comfortable in written, spoken, and receptive aspects of the language. They have received their academic instruction in this language as well. An example of a native speaker of Spanish follows. Juan is a college student who was born and raised in Peru, attended school in Spanish and communicated with friends in Spanish, and comes to the United States for school. Juan is a native speaker of Spanish.
A heritage speaker has also learned a language from their family. However, the language learned at home differs from the primary language of the country or society where they have lived most of their lives. A heritage speaker has received most of their education in a language other than what is spoken in the home. An example of a heritage speaker follows.
Isabelle is a student who has grown up in the Untied States, was educated in English, speaks English with friends, is very comfortable with English, yet speaks Spanish at home. Isabelle is a heritage speaker of Spanish. The language she speaks with her family is not the dominant language of the region in which she lives. Her interaction with Spanish is mostly of an auditory and expressive nature and her Spanish reading and writing skills may be less well developed as they have not received academic instruction in the language.
A quick review of the differences in the definitions of native and heritage speaker shows how distinct the terms are. Understanding the differences can be key in interpreting research int he field or finding the right resources for native and heritage speakers.
