There are approximately 55,000 Bengali speakers in Ontario, including Toronto, pictured here.
Written by Rebecca Schmor
Bengali, also known as Bangla, is the official language of Bangladesh. Bengali is the seventh most spoken language in the world (284 million speakers), and approximately 55,000 Ontario residents speak Bengali as a first language according to the 2021 Canadian Census. Written in the Bangla alphabet (বাংলা বর্ণমালা), the Bengali language carries the traditions and stories of an ever-growing number of Canadian families. Here, two families from Bangladesh share their stories of maintaining Bengali as a heritage language in Ontario.
Can you tell us a bit about your family?
Sanzana: My son, Shehzhad, is 21 months old and he was born in Canada. My husband and I are very happy that Shehzhad has picked up Bangla from both of us. He went to Bangladesh with us when he was 4 months old, and my parents also came to visit us here in Canada, so he has had a lot of exposure to the language from our family members. We speak using Bangla all the time with friends and over digital platforms. During video calls with our family members, Shehzhad has picked up many phrases in Bangla.
Dilruba: My family and I moved to Canada in 2014, leaving behind the familiar embrace of Bangladesh. My twin sons, now 17, and my third son, 11, were born in Bangladesh, while my youngest, just 7 years old, was born here in Canada. One of the most heartwarming moments of motherhood was hearing my boys’ first word in Bangla, “maa” (mother), a sound so simple yet profound, brimming with love and connection. All my sons still call me “maa” and their father “baba.” My twins’ favorite Bangla word is “mishti” (sweets), as they share a deep love for traditional Bengali treats like rosogolla and sandesh.
Why is it important for you to pass on Bangla to your children?
Sanzana: It is very important for me that my son has a good command over Bangla because growing up, I really enjoyed reading Bangla literature, and I have lots of favourite novels and books that I want to pass on to Shehzhad and I want us to discuss this favourite Bangla literature.
Dilruba: Passing on the Bangla language to my children is more than a matter of communication; it is a way of keeping our heritage alive in a new land. Through this language, they bridge the miles between us and their grandparents in Bangladesh, accessing not only their family’s stories but also the essence of our cultural identity.
What challenges and successes have your family experienced in maintaining the Bengali language and culture in Ontario?
Sanzana: I was really worried when I gave birth to Shehzhad in Canada because I was wondering whether or not he was going to speak my language, so I’m very happy that Shehzhad has good fluency in Bangla. It is not always very easy because here in Canada he goes out to daycare and sometimes they say “well, he has some words” so I find it very challenging because they don’t understand what he’s saying, and I want him to be fully understood by people around him so there is no miscommunication or he never feels isolated. But Shehzhad is always smiling when he hears people speaking in Bangla on the TV. When we went to visit The Danforth — a multicultural neighbourhood in Toronto — a couple of weeks ago, he was really excited because he could hear people speaking Bangla. His face lit up because he could understand what people were saying around him and he’s feeling included in the conversation, which is not the case in English all the time. But now that he goes to daycare, when he knows the word in English he will say it in English as well, for instance, “moja/মোজা, sock” — he will say both words to say sock in English and Bangla.
Dilruba: The journey of maintaining Bengali language and culture in Ontario has been both challenging and rewarding. The dominance of English in schools and social settings often makes Bangla seem secondary, but we strive to keep it alive in our daily lives. At home, we speak Bangla, read enchanting Bengali storybooks, and share bedtime tales from folklore, such as the magical adventures of Thakurmar Jhuli. Festivals like Pohela Boishakh (Bengali New Year) fill our home with the vibrant colours, music, and aromas of our traditions, while frequent trips to Bangladesh immerse my children in the language, festivities, and unparalleled warmth of Bengali hospitality. Watching Bengali movies, especially detective stories, has become a cherished family tradition that keeps us engaged with the language and storytelling traditions. Similarly, cheering for Bangladesh during cricket matches strengthens our connection to our roots. By sharing Bengali language and culture with the next generation, I hope to instill in them a sense of pride and belonging that transcends borders and generations.
As Sanzana and Dilruba show, heritage language learning is a complex and deeply meaningful journey that connects families and lives across physical and cultural borders.
Heritage Language Learning: Guide for Multilingual Families
Activity Description
In this activity, learners create a guide with tips for maintaining heritage languages in multilingual families. This activity is designed for intermediate or advanced language learners at the high school level but can be adapted to other language levels or contexts. Possible adaptations include changing the target language, inviting learners to choose their own heritage language, or modifying the format of the final task. For example, instead of a written guide, learners could create a voice message or text message.
Activity Steps
A family friend from Bangladesh is having a baby and wants to pass on their heritage language, Bengali, to their child. Since you have experience as a language learner, your family friend has asked you for some tips for language learning in a multilingual family.
- With your group members, conduct some research on raising multilingual children. You may want to explore the pros and cons of different family language strategies (e.g., the “one parent, one language” method), possible literacy practices (e.g., reading bilingual books), or myths about child bilingualism (e.g., speaking more than one language can delay language development). You can also draw on your own experiences, ask your classmates to share their experiences, or draw inspiration from Sanzana and Dilruba’s interview responses in the post above.
- Together, decide which tips are the most useful to share with your family friend. Once you have reached a decision, create a guide for maintaining heritage languages in multilingual families in a format of your choice (e.g., a list, a video, a voice message, a text message, etc.).
- Before finalizing your guide, get some feedback. You can ask your teacher, classmates from other groups, multilingual family members and friends, and/or an AI chatbot. Consider developing some questions or criteria before asking for feedback (e.g., is the guide useful, clear, complete, etc.). Make sure to incorporate the feedback to improve your final guide.
Activity Commentary
This activity brings awareness to the importance of heritage language learning, enabling students to discover and promote research-informed multilingual practices. An exploration of multilingual family practices can help counter the long-lasting myths and biases that have contributed to language loss in countless Canadian communities.
The potential to draw on students’ personal or family experiences in this activity also helps validate the linguistic and cultural diversity present in Canadian classrooms, encouraging a plurilingual approach to language education that values all languages and cultures.
