en.m.wikipedia.org
Third culture kids (
TCK) are individuals who are (or were as children) raised in a
culture other than their parents' or the culture of their country of nationality, and also live in a different environment during a significant part of their
child development years.
[1] They typically are exposed to a greater volume and variety of cultural influences than those who grow up in one particular cultural setting.
[2] The term applies to both adults and children, as the term "kid" refers to an individual's formative or developmental years. However, for clarification, sometimes the term
adult third culture kid (
ATCK) is used.
TCKs move between cultures before they have had the opportunity to fully develop their personal and cultural
identity.
[3] The first culture of such individuals refers to the culture of the country from which the parents originated, the second culture refers to the culture in which the family currently resides, and although not widely agreed upon by the TCK community, some sources refer to the third culture as the amalgamation of these two cultures.
[4][5][6]
In the early 21st century, the number of
bilingual children in the world was about the same as the number of
monolingual children.
[7] TCKs are often exposed to a second (or third, fourth, etc.) language while living in their host culture, being physically exposed to the environment where the native language is used in practical aspects of life. "TCKs learn some languages in schools abroad and some in their homes or in the marketplaces of a foreign land. ... Some pick up languages from the nannies in the home or from playmates in the neighborhood" (Bell-Villada et al. 23). This
language immersion is why TCKs are often bilingual, and sometimes even multilingual.
[1]
