Analysing resumptives in French spoken by Jordanian tour guides

This study investigates the usage of resumptive elements (REs) in the spontaneous French of Jordanian Arabic-bilingual tour guides. We suggest that the grammatical resumption system of their first language (L1), Jordanian Arabic, will considerably affect their second language (L2) French syntax, characterised as an “intrusive resumption" language where REs are mostly ungrammatical. We looked at real-life audio recordings from guided tours and found that people preferred subject REs (like ils and elle ) over object REs. Subject pronouns constituted 90% of all REs used by Jordanian guides. In a similar sample of native French speakers, they represented 81%. This overproduction is seen as a direct transfer from Arabic, where resumption is an essential syntactic approach. The results suggest that REs serve as a compensatory mechanism to alleviate processing demands and surmount obstacles associated with the French gap strategy in real-time speech production. These findings clarify the connection between L1 transfer and bilingual syntax, providing insights into the adaptation of L2 learners in professional environments. The findings have importance for language teaching, demonstrating that students who speak a language similar to their own need specific education on how to employ native-like syntactic mechanisms. • The study investigates the syntax of French used by Jordanian tour guides. • Participants produced subject resumptive elements more frequently than object resumptive elements. • Jordanian tour guides use resumptive elements as a compensatory strategy shaped by Arabic and English. • The results provide insights into the interplay of linguistic interference and bilingual syntax.