Mother Tongue

Mother Tongue was made on Gadigal land, and we pay our respects to their elder’s past, present and emerging.

So you’ve probably heard this: to speak a language is to take on a world.

But for Bernadette Nguyen, that is easier said than done.

As we’re about to hear, Bernadette’s mother speaks fluent Vietnamese. Bernadette’s fluency is not quite there, something she now regrets.

Between interviews with her mother, a Korean waiter and a Wiradjuri women, we’ll get a sense of being multilingual in Australia – and the power of language to bridge culture between generations.

Produced by Bernadette Nguyen for FBi Radio in Sydney.

Music was by Jerome Blaze and Gemma Navarette

Supervising Production by Celeste Macintosh