Which term describes the loss of L1 as L2 proficiency increases?

Which term describes the loss of L1 as L2 proficiency increases?

• A. Linguistic assimilation
• B. L1 attrition
• C. Code-switching
• D. Interlanguage

Answer: (A)

L1 attrition is the phenomenon described here. As someone becomes more proficient in the second language and uses it more often, the first language may fade from active use and recall. This happens because daily routines, education, work, and social interactions tilt toward the second language, giving less practice and exposure to the first language. Over time, this reduced use can lead to weaker vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation in the first language, a process that’s well documented in bilingual and immigrant language communities. This isn’t about mixing languages or switching back and forth in a single conversation. Code-switching describes alternating between languages during discourse, not a loss of proficiency in the first language. Interlanguage refers to the learner’s evolving, intermediate system that blends features of both languages as they learn, not the gradual erosion of the first language. Linguistic assimilation can involve adopting features from another language or culture, but it’s a broader social concept and doesn’t specifically capture the decline of the first language due to growing second-language dominance.

L1 attrition is the phenomenon described here. As someone becomes more proficient in the second language and uses it more often, the first language may fade from active use and recall. This happens because daily routines, education, work, and social interactions tilt toward the second language, giving less practice and exposure to the first language. Over time, this reduced use can lead to weaker vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation in the first language, a process that’s well documented in bilingual and immigrant language communities.

This isn’t about mixing languages or switching back and forth in a single conversation. Code-switching describes alternating between languages during discourse, not a loss of proficiency in the first language. Interlanguage refers to the learner’s evolving, intermediate system that blends features of both languages as they learn, not the gradual erosion of the first language. Linguistic assimilation can involve adopting features from another language or culture, but it’s a broader social concept and doesn’t specifically capture the decline of the first language due to growing second-language dominance.