Who is native speaker?

[viet_ghat]

Who is `native speaker'?

What is the meaning of this native speaker?

[boothling]

Native speaker = a person who has spoken a language from a very early age.

Example:

I grew up in England. I started to speak English when I was a child. I am a native speaker of English.

Your native language is acquired from your parents and the people around you. You are better at speaking your native language than any other language.

[Casiopea]

Additionally, the term native can be misleading. It is quite possible that the first language learned is no longer a speaker's dominant language. Young immigrant children, whose families have moved to a new linguistic environment may lose, in part or in totality, the language they first acquired.

In such cases, competence, function, as well as origin are taken into consideration:

Origin: the language(s) one learned first (the language(s) in which one has established the first long-lasting verbal contacts).
Competence: the language(s) one knows best.
Function: the language(s) one uses most.

Source