Language contact
Language contact and change as a result usually takes place between minority and majority languages. It is the field of research connected with code switching and code mixing. The studies investigate the elements one language get completely integrated in elements of the other one (complete switch) and partially (partial switch).
The greatest contact between two languages happens when one of them is the language of majority and another one of minority. One possible result is the appearance of certain varieties between majority and minority languages. In the long run, minority languages may pass away over the time whereas majority language may acquire ethnic varieties. These differences are studied at all existing levels including vocabulary, morphology, phonetics and discourse correspondingly.
Another possible consequence of contact between majority and minority languages is language loss. If language shift is grounded on the redistribution of language diversities, language loss is associated with erosion and reduction of mastered linguistic skills at the level of an individual.
The most essential part of investigation on language contact and language change is development of bilingualism (multilingualism). A great deal of children master two or more languages at a certain level. The whole question of bilingual development of focuses on structural and temporal determinants that play an important role in the process of transfer from one language to the other. Basically, it is the question of linguistic analysis, typological difference between of them and degree of input children receive while picking up other (non-mother-tongue) languages.
