Interethnic families constitute intimate cultural spaces where identities, values, and everyday practices are continuously formed and negotiated. In the Indonesian context, families with parents from different ethnic backgrounds offer a distinctive lens for understanding language not merely as a tool of communication, but as a lived cultural practice that shapes identity. While existing studies on language and identity have largely focused on institutional, educational, or public domains, limited attention has been given to everyday language practices within interethnic family life as a formative cultural space. This paper addresses this gap by examining how language operates within Indonesian interethnic homes and contributes to the formation of identity. Rather than approaching language as a skill to be taught or assessed, this study positions language as an experiential and relational practice embedded in daily family interactions. Bahasa Indonesia functions as a shared medium through which family members navigate cultural differences, express care, convey values, and negotiate belonging. Through everyday conversations, advice, humor, and moments of disagreement, language becomes a site where cultural meanings from different traditions intersect and are continuously reinterpreted. Using a qualitative, humanities-oriented approach, this paper draws on reflective narratives of individuals raised in Indonesian interethnic families. The analysis demonstrates that identity is not inherited as a fixed cultural category but emerges through ongoing interaction and lived experience within the family. By reframing the home as a central cultural site, this study contributes to arts and humanities discourse by highlighting language.

Authors:
Angga Ahmad Hasim, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia (UPI), Indonesia
Dadang S. Anshori, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Indonesia
Nuri Annisa, Universitas Langlanbuana, Indonesia
Tofan Stofiana, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia, Indonesia

About the Presenter(s)
Angga Ahmad Hasim is a lecturer at IAIN Laa Roiba, Bogor. His interests include language education, academic writing, and humanistic–spiritual pedagogy. He is currently pursuing a PhD in Indonesian Language Education at UPI (BIB).

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