Why Shift? Focus on Sabah and Sarawak
Why Shift? Focus on Sabah and Sarawak

Summary/Abstract: In West Malaysia, three racial groups namely Malay, Chinese and Indian form the bulk of the Malaysian population and their languages are widely used. However, in East Malaysia, there also exist many other ethnic groups. Their languages and dialects are being threatened by dominant languages which have become the lingua franca in the urban communities of Sabah and Sarawak. This paper reviews studies conducted by both local and foreign researchers on language shift and maintenance in East Malaysia and discusses the reasons for language shift in minority communities.

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