Ⅰnterview・インタビュー Natalie Zee
Did you know? More people speak one or more languages in the world compared to just one language. In the 2010 US census, 21% of Americans age 5 year and older spoke a language other than English at home. This series aims to highlight bilingual and multilingual people in our communities.
知ってました？世界では一つ以上の言語を喋れる人のほうが多いのです！アメリカでも２０１０の人口統計データによると五歳以上のアメリカ人で家庭で英語以外の言語を喋る人は全国の人口の２１％いるそうです。このシリーズで色んな形のバリンガル・マルチリンガルを紹介して、どんな形であれ、ポジティブなことであることを伝えたいです。
1. WHAT'S YOUR NAME ・名前は？
Natalie Zorilla
2. WHERE WERE YOU BORN・出身地は？
New York City, NY USA
3. WHAT IS YOUR FIRST LANGUAGE? WHAT IS YOUR SECOND LANGUAGE? AT WHICH TIME DID YOU START SPEAKING YOUR FIRST AND SECOND LANGUAGE?・第１言語は？第2言語は？習った順番は？
My first language is English. My second language is Spanish. I started speaking both languages from birth.
第1言語は英語で、第2言語はスペイン語。家では両方喋ってました。
4. WHAT LANGUAGES DID YOUR PARENTS/SIBLINGS/FAMILY MEMBERS SPEAK? 親、兄弟、家族はどの言語を話しますか？
My father spoke to me predominately in Spanish and I would reply to him in Spanish. However, as I got older (late elementary/junior high school) he asked me to speak to him in English because he wanted to improve his receptive and expressive language skills in English. I fulfilled his wishes during that time period and used both languages when conversing with him. Now into adulthood, I speak to him in 50% English and 50%Spanish. My mother would code switch through out my childhood between English and Spanish about 50% of the time in each language and I currently speak to her mainly in English.
When I was younger I remember playing with my younger sister and conversing with her mainly in English. We are about two years apart and reflecting back on that time I think it’s so interesting because my sister preferred speaking in English even though she was exposed to both like me growing up. I guess I noticed that as a child and spoke to her primarily in English because that’s what she was comfortable with speaking.
Throughout my childhood my grandmother would always babysit my sister and I and spoke to us in Spanish 100% of the time since that is her native language. When she would take care of us we would still be exposed to both languages because we would watch telenovelas/cartoons in Spanish and English. Now to bond with my grandmother even more when I see her, I choose to watch telenovelas with her and we have the funniest and most engaging conversations in Spanish weekly. I’m so grateful for the bond we share and she has played a key role in helping me maintain my Spanish skill set.
お父さんとはほとんどスペイン語で話していました。でも私が小学校の高学年・中学校を始めたぐらいのころに、お父さんとも英語を喋り始めました。お父さんは、自分の英語力のスキルアップのために、英語でも話してほしい、と私にリクエストをしました。今はお父さんと英語、スペイン語を５０％使いながら話をします。
お母さんはスペイン語と英語を喋れて、場に応じて（コード・スウィチング）どちらかを選んで喋ってました、今はお母さんとはほとんど英語で喋ります。
私は2歳離れた妹とは英語で話します。妹の場合、同じ環境で育ったのに、英語のほうが楽みたいなので、小さい頃から彼女とは英語でしか話しませんでした。
子供の頃私の祖母はよく私と妹のベビーシッター役を引き受けてくれていました。祖母の母国語はスペイン語なので、１００％スペイン語で話していました。でも、テレビは英語とスペイン語の番組を見ていたので、祖母の家でも英語と触れ合う機会もありました。今でも毎週祖母と会っていて、そのたびテレノベラ（スペイン語のドラマ）を一緒に見て、楽しい話をいっぱいします。祖母との関係は私のスペイン語の能力を保ち続ける糧となっていて、とても感謝しています。
5. DID YOU SPEND TIME IN ANOTHER COUNTRY (SUMMER BREAKS IN JAPAN FOR EXAMPLE)? 違う国で夏休みや定期的に違う国にいきました？
Yes! I spent summer breaks in the Dominican Republic through out my childhood. It was wonderful being fully immersed in the culture and being able to speak Spanish while hearing it constantly on the island among family and friends.
はい！子供の頃、夏休みはドミニカ共和国で過ごしました。文化のイマ―ジョン、スペイン語をずっと喋って、島の家族と友達から常にスペイン語を聞くことはすごくいい経験でした。
6. HOW WELL DO YOU SPEAK/UNDERSTAND/READ/WRITE YOUR LANGUAGES? 第1言語、第２言語のスキルレベルは？
I understand, speak, read and write my primary language (English) very well. My Spanish counterpart I would say is a little tricky. Since being bilingual is dynamic and ever changing based on level of exposure. Currently, I would say that I speak/understand it very well. However, reading and writing it can be challenging depending on the level of the content. I would say I can read and write in Spanish at the upper elementary/lower high school grade level.
第1言語の英語は聞き取り、喋り、読み、書きは問題ありません。バイリンガリズムはダイナミックで、言語力は言語環境によって変わります。第2言語のスペイン語は聞き取り、喋りには自信あります。読み、書きは内容の難しさによっては難しかったりします。読み、書きのレベルは場合によって小学校高学年ー高校（初期）ぐらいですかね。
7. HOW MUCH SCHOOL DID YOU DO? IN WHAT LANGUAGE? DO YOU USE YOUR SECOND/THIRD LANGUAGE AT WORK?学校ではどの言語で習いました？第2、3言語は仕事で使いますか？
I completed my graduate school studies in English. I was only exposed to Spanish in the home setting. Yes, I do use my Spanish at work when speaking to the parents of my students over the phone/in person to discuss their progress in the school setting.
大学院まで英語で済ませました。スペイン語は家でしか習っていません。スペイン語は仕事でよく使います。学校で言語療法士と働いているので、生徒の進歩報告を家族にするときに使います。
8. WERE THERE TIMES THAT IT WAS HARD BEING MULTILINGUAL/MULTICULTURAL? マルチリンガルとして育って、大変なことはありますか？
Yes ! There have been many times that it has been difficult being multilingual/multicultural. There have been moments throughout my childhood and adulthood where I’ve felt like I didn’t belong in certain social circles because of how I looked or the fact that I sounded different than the rest of the group. I’ve even experienced this feeling in the professional setting. I remember the day like it was yesterday. I was fresh out of graduate school completing my clinical fellowship year. It was a sunny and warm spring morning, school was almost out and I was excited to finish the year by graduating one of my preschoolers from speech! It is one of the most rewarding feelings in the world to see a child progress so much so that he/she no longer requires speech services. I was to attend a meeting with the district, parents and my speech supervisor. Prior to that day, I had spoken to the parents on a frequent basis sharing their child’s progress throughout the school year. They were aware that I wanted to discontinue services and were onboard (or so I thought) yet when the day of the meeting came, the father (whom had always spoken to me in Spanish), interrupted me while I was mid sentence explaining how much his child had progressed in speech, stating his language skills in both Spanish and English ( all while attempting to use speech & language terminologies in Spanish) and said to me in ENGLISH “okay, now I’d like to hear it from her”, pointing to my supervisor. It hurt and made me feel small, and incompetent not only in my knowledge of speech and language pathology but also in my knowledge of my second language of Spanish. I’ll never forget that moment or how it made me feel.
As I get older and continue to learn about race, diversity, injustices, and languages, I realize that my voice and what I have to say shouldn’t be dismissed or devalued simply because of how I look or speak, or the ‘accent’ I have when I speak Spanish. We all have accents and that is OKAY. We all have different levels of education, different cultural experiences and varying amounts of exposures to languages and that is OKAY. It is very important to be mindful and aware of these truths.
はい。マルチリンガル・マルチ文化であることで大変だった経験はあります。子供の頃、そしていまだにグループの人と外見が違ったり、話し方が違ったりしたせいで疎外感を感じたりします。実は社会人になったあとでもこのような経験はありました。大学院を卒業したばかりで、臨床研修と働いていた時のことです。天候がとてもいい春の朝で、プレスクールの園児を言語療法のクラスから卒業することにとても喜んでいました。リハビリ士として、子供が進歩をして言語療法のサポートが必要じゃなくなるのはとてもうれしく感じるのです。進歩経過のミーティングを親、アドバイザーの言語療法士、市の特別支援課の担当としました。私は担当言語療法士そのミーティングの前にその園児の親と何回も会話をしていました。ミーティング当日、経過報告をスペイン語でしていた私に対して、園児の父親が英語で「わかった、けど彼女から聞きたい」と私のアドバイザー言語療法士を指さして言いました。私はその時自分の言語療法士としての知識、第2言語の能力が足りなく感じてしまい、とても傷ついてしまいました。あの気持ちは今後、忘れないと思います。
人種、多様性、言語学とマイノリティーが受ける不公平な対応などを勉強をして、今は自分の言いたい事やか考えを主張することがとても大事だと習いました。アクセントがあっても、別にいいと思います。みんな違う学力レベル、文化の影響、言語環境・経験がありのは当たり前だと思います。このことをしっかりと認識して行動するのが大事だと思います。
9. WHAT MESSAGE WOULD YOU HAVE TO YOUR FELLOW BILINGUAL/MULTILINGUAL PEEPS OR PARENTS THAT ARE RAISING BILINGUAL CHILDREN? バイリンガル・マルチリンガルの人たち、またはバイリンガル・マルチリンガル児の親に対してのメッセージはありますか？
I would tell my fellow bilingual/multilingual peeps to keep learning, growing and flourishing in all of the languages you know. Language is a beautiful yet complex system, that if continuously nourished can lead to more voices being heard in a clear and concise manner. Communication is of utmost importance in the world. It’s how we engage and interact with others, forming bonds, memories and building relationships. Whether it’s through non verbal or verbal communication, it is important for everyone’s voice to be heard no matter what language you speak.
To parents, I advise them to speak to their children in their primary language and if that is a language other than English, and they go to a predominantly English speaking school, that is okay ! Being bilingual/multilingual is a good thing and does not harm your child, but in fact, helps your child excel in school and in life overall. I would also suggest to parents to expose their children to different cultures, communities and languages. We all have a place here on earth and all of our voices matter, no matter how big or small that voice may be ️
バイリンガル・マルチリンガルの仲間には知っている言語を習い続けて成長すること。言語はとても繊細で美しいものだと思います、上手く使えることによって、色んな人の意見がもっと細かく、適切に伝えられると思います。コミュニケーションはとても大事で、言語を通して人と対話したり、絆・思い出を作ったりします。言語障害があり、上手く話せない人でも、その人の声は大事だと思います。
親御さんには、自分が一番得意な言語で子供と話してください。お子さんが学校や社会で英語をならい始めても大丈夫です！バイリンガル・マルチリンガルであることは子供に悪影響は与えません。逆に、学業にも役に立ち、人生的にもいいと思います。あと、子供たちを違う文化、社会グループ、言語に触れ合う機会を作ってあげてください。みんなこの世界でちゃんと場所が他の意見も大事だということを教えてあげてください。
10. How can people connect with you on social media？SNSとかしてますか？
Sure ! I created a new IG recently to connect with more SLPs/Yogi’s my IG handle is @theslpyogi. People can also connect with me via Facebook at Natalie Zee.
