This study documents early lexical expression in children whose language input in the home was predominantly Maltese, accompanied by regular exposure to English lexical mixing. Bilingualism and language contact were also present at the societal level. The study attempts to determine whether the children’s pattern of vocabulary growth corresponded to a monolingual or bilingual mode of development.

The expressive vocabularies of 60 children aged 1;0 to 2;6 years were measured using caregiver reports and language sampling.

Expressive scores representing total vocabulary, Maltese and English words as well as translation equivalents were derived from the language samples and caregiver-completed vocabulary checklists.

Both Maltese and English words were identified in the children’s expressive vocabularies. Higher translation equivalent proportions were reported across daily settings than were sampled. Participants seemed to introduce new equivalents for words previously used in one language according to the needs of the communicative context. These findings demonstrate a basic level of bilingualism in the participants and suggest selective use of equivalents in response to environmental demands. The latter would imply the presence of a double lexical system, indicating a more refined bilingual status, although insufficient contextual evidence made this a tentative proposition. Fragmented exposure to English appeared unable to support the participants’ bilingual development beyond the lexical domain.

While documenting lexical development in children exposed to a distinctive language-learning context that is as yet under-researched, this study adds to the limited evidence on lexical expression in young children exposed to substantial lexical mixing in their input.

These findings highlight the development of bilingual proficiency as a process that spreads across linguistic levels in accordance with input variables. They also suggest that Maltese children’s bilingual lexicons may have the potential to kick-start their sequential bilingual development once systematic exposure to integral English is introduced through schooling.