Languages in East Africa: Policies, practices and perspectives
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/sols.v10i3.27401Keywords:
English, Kiswahili, local languages, triglossia, hegemony, endangermentAbstract
The study provides an account of the prevailing linguistic situation in the three traditional countries of the East African Community (Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda), since they have more or less the same colonial and postcolonial history as well as being territorially coterminous with each other – a landmark phenomenon that has a bearing on the dynamics of the postcolonial linguistic landscape in these countries. The study examines the circumstances that underlie the triglossic linguistic situation in these countries, i.e. a situation where there are three languages with distinct but complementary functions (namely English, Kiswahili and languages of intra-ethnic communication). While some of the dimensions of the linguistic situation are similar in the three countries, others are different. Entangled in the quagmire of vacillating decisions on language policies, East Africa has had to grapple with the question of language choice for some time. The study examines the language policies that promote or relegate, at varying degrees, the languages of the three countries. Generally, while Kenya and Uganda are making considerable strides in promoting languages other than English and Kiswahili, Tanzania, on the other hand, has stuck to its guns in relation to stifling the development of such languages.References
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Barasa, S. (2015) Ala! Kumbe? ‘Oh my! Is it so?’: Multilingualism controversies in East Africa. In D. Smakman and P. Heinrich (eds) Globalizing sociolinguistics: Challenging and expanding theory 39–53. New York: Routledge.
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Childs, T. (2014) Beyond the ancestral code. Language Documentation & Conservation 8: 168–191.
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Daily News. Retrieved on 16 November 2015. http://dailynews.co.tz/.
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Githiora, C. (2002) Sheng: Peer language, Swahili dialect or emerging Creole? Journal of African Studies 15(2):159–181. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369681022000042637.
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Kloss, H. (1967) Abstand languages and ausbau languages. Anthropological Linguistics 9(7): 29–41.
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Mazrui, A. A. and Mazrui, A. M. (1995) Swahili state and society: The political economy of an African language. Nairobi: East African Educational Publishers Ltd.
Mendel, K. (2004) Regional languages in France: The case of Breton. LOS Working Papers in Linguistics 4: 65–75.
Ministry of Education and Vocational Training, Tanzania (2010) Education sector development programme: Secondary education development programme II. Retrieved on 25 April 2015 from: http://planipolis.iiep.unesco.org/upload/Tanzania%20UR/Tanzania_SEDP_2010_2015.pdf.
Mollin, S. (2007) New variety or learner English? Criteria for variety status and the case of Euro-English. English World-Wide 28(2): 167–185.
Muaka, L. (2011) Language perceptions and identity among Kenyan speakers. In G. E. Bokamba, R. K. Shosted and B. T. Ayalew (eds) Selected Proceedings of the 40th Annual Conference of African Linguistics 217–230. Sommerville, MA: Cascadilla Proceedings Project.
Myers-Scotton, C. (1982) The linguistic situation and language policy in Eastern Africa. In R. B. Kaplan (ed.) Annual Review of Applied Linguistics 8–20. Rowley, Mass: Newbury House.
Nabea, W. (2009) Language policy in Kenya: Negotiation with hegemony. The Journal of Pan African Studies 3(1):121–137.
Nakayiza, J. (2016) The sociolinguistic situation of English in Uganda: A case of language attitudes and language choice. In C. Meierkord, B. Isingoma and S. Namyalo (eds) Ugandan English: Its sociolinguistics, structure and use in a globalizing post-protectorate. Amsterdam and Philadelphia: John Benjamins. https://doi.org/10.1075/veaw.g59.04nak.
Namyalo, S. (2015) Linguistic strategies in Luyaaye: Word play and conscious language manipulation. In N. Nassensntein and A. Hollington (eds) Youth language practices in Africa and beyond 313–344. Berlin: de Gruyter.
The New Vision. Retrieved on 25 August 2015 from: http://www.newvision.co.ug/.
Njoki, M. (2015) Kenyans troll Pastor Ng’ang’a for bad English. Nairobi News. Retrieved on 11 October 2015 from: www.nairobinews.co.ke /kenyans-troll-pastor-nganga-for-bad-english/
OALD (Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary) (2005) (7th ed.). London: Oxford University Press.
OED (Oxford English Dictionary) (2009) CD-ROM Version 4.0. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Ogechi, N. O. (2003) On language rights in Kenya. Nordic Journal of African Studies 12(3):277–295.
Okello, B. (2002) A history of East Africa. Kampala: Fountain Publishers.
Pattanayak, D. P. (2003) Language issues in literacy and basic education: The case of India. In S. Ouane (ed.) Towards a multilingual culture of education 129–138. Paris: UNESCO Institute of Education.
Petzell, M. (2012) The linguistic situation in Tanzania. Moderna Språk 106(1): 136–144.
Roehl, K. (1930) The linguistic situation in East Africa. Journal of the International African Institute 3(2):191–202. https://doi.org/10.2307/1155798.
Rosendal, T. (2010) Linguistic landshapes: A comparison of of?cial and nonof?cial language management in Rwanda and Uganda, focusing on the position of African languages. PhD dissertation, University of Gothenburg.
Sa, E. (2007) Language policy for education and development in Tanzania. Retrieved on 11 November 2015 from: www.swarthmore.edu/socsci/Linguistics/Papers/2007/sa_eleuthera.pdf.
Schmied, J. (2006) East African Englishes. In B. Kachru., Y. Kachru and C. Nelson (eds) The Handbook of World Englishes 188–202. Oxford: Blackwell. https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470757598.ch12.
Schneider, W. E. (2007) Postcolonial English: Varieties around the world. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511618901.
Scribes (2010) Journal for the Advancement of Journalism 3, 2. Media Council of Tanzania. Retrieved on 6 March 2013 from: www.mct.or.tz.
Simango, S. R. (2006) East Africa. In U. Ammon, N. Dittmar, K. Mattheier and P. Trudgill (eds) Sociolinguistics: An International Handbook of the Science of Language and Society. Volume 3 1964–1971. Berlin. Mouton de Gruyter.
Simensen, A. M. (2010) English in Scandinavia: A success story. In R. Andrews and J. Hoffman (eds) The Routledge International Handbook of English: Language and Literacy 472–483. London and New York: Routledge.
Standard Digital. Retrieved on 26 March 2013 from http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/.
The Constitution of Kenya (2010) Retrieved on 25 March 2013 from: http://www.kenyaembassy.com/pdfs/The%20Constitution%20 of%20Kenya.pdf.
The Monitor. Retrieved on 16 November 2015 from: http://www.monitor.co.ug/.
The Star. Retrieved on 20 November 2015 from: http://www.the-star.co.ke/.
Tembe, J. and Norton, B. (2008) Promoting local languages in Ugandan primary schools: The community as stakeholders. The Canadian Modern Language Review 61(1): 33–60. https://doi.org/10.3138/cmlr.65.1.33.
Trudgill, P. (1992) Ausbau sociolinguistics and the perception of language status in contemporary Europe. International Journal of Applied Linguistics 2(2): 167–177. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1473-4192.1992.tb00031.x.
Trudgill, P. (2003) The uniformitarian principle and ausbau sociolinguistics of mediaeval Bergen. Norsk Linguistisk Tidskrift 2: 216–220.
Uganda Bureau of Statistics (2015) National population and housing census 2014: provisional results. Retrieved on 26 April 2015 from: http://www.ubos.org/online?les/uploads/ubos/NPHC/NPHC%202014%20PROVISIONAL%20RESULTS%20REPORT.pdf.
University of Dodoma Website. Retrieved on 24 November 2015 from: www.udom.ac.tz.
UNPO (Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization) (2015) France to ratify European charter on regional and minority languages? Retrieved on 30 October 2015 from: www.unpo.org/article/18299.
Xinhua News (2015) Kenya to introduce Chinese language into school curriculum. Retrieved on 25 September 2015 from: www.news.xinhuanet.com/enlish/2015-04/21/c13417120.htm.
Youtube. Retrieved on 15 November 2015 from: www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbvRjMl4Kn0.
Ammon, U. (1989) Towards a descriptive framework for the status/function (social position) of a language within a country. In U. Ammon (ed.) Status and function of languages and language varieties 21–106. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Barasa, S. (2015) Ala! Kumbe? ‘Oh my! Is it so?’: Multilingualism controversies in East Africa. In D. Smakman and P. Heinrich (eds) Globalizing sociolinguistics: Challenging and expanding theory 39–53. New York: Routledge.
Bernsten, I. (1998) Runyakitara: Uganda’s new language. Journal of Multilingual Development 19(2):93–107. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434639808666345.
Bokamba, G. E. (2011) Ukolonia in African language policies and practices. In G. E. Bokamba, R. K. Shosted and B. T. Ayalew (eds) Selected Proceedings of the 40th Annual Conference on African Linguistics 146–167. Somerville, MA: Cascadilla Proceedings Project.
Buregeya, A. (2006) Grammatical features of Kenyan English and the extent of their acceptability. English World-Wide 27(2): 199–216. https://doi.org/10.1075/eww.27.2.05bur.
Childs, T. (2014) Beyond the ancestral code. Language Documentation & Conservation 8: 168–191.
Crystal, D. (2003) English as a Global Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511486999.
Daily News. Retrieved on 16 November 2015. http://dailynews.co.tz/.
Fasold, W. R. (1984) The Sociolinguistics of Society. Oxford: Blackwell.
Fasold, W. R. (2005) Making languages. In J. Cohen, K. T. McAlister, K. Rolstand and J. MacSwan (eds) Proceedings of the 4th International Symposium on Bilingualism 697–702. Somerville, MA: Cascadilla Press.
Fisher, A. E. C. (2000) Assessing the state of Ugandan English. English Today 16:57–61. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266078400011470.
Githiora, C. (2002) Sheng: Peer language, Swahili dialect or emerging Creole? Journal of African Studies 15(2):159–181. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369681022000042637.
Indede, F. N. (2012) Employment opportunities for African language and literature experts in Kenyan employment sectors. International Journal of Management Sciences and Business Research 1(7):1–19.
Isingoma, B. (2013) Innovative pragmatic codes in Ugandan English: A relevance-theoretic account. Argumentum 9: 19–31.
Isingoma, B. (2014) Lexical and grammatical features of Ugandan English. English Today 30 (2): 51–56. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266078414000133.
Kabananukye, I. B. K. and Kwagala, D. (2007) Culture, minorities and linguistic rights in Uganda: A case of the Batwa and the Ik. Working Paper No. 11, Kampala: Human Rights and Peace Centre (HURIPEC).
Kasuka, B. (2012) Godfrey Mwakikagile – Tanzanian Writer: African Writers and their Countries. Dar es Salaam: New African Press.
Kautzsch, A. (2014) English in Germany: Spreading bilingualism, retreating exonormative and incipient nativization. In S. Buschfeld, T. Hoffmann, M. Huber and A. Kautzsch (eds) The evolution of Englishes: The dynamic model and beyond 203–227. Amsterdam and Philadelphia: John Benjamins.
Kloss, H. (1967) Abstand languages and ausbau languages. Anthropological Linguistics 9(7): 29–41.
Ladefoged, P., Glick, R. and Criper, C. (1972) Language in Uganda. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Legère, K. (2002) The ‘languages of Tanzania’ project: Background, resources and perspectives. Africa & Asia 2:163–186.
Lewis, P., Simons, F. G. and Fenning, D. C. (eds) (2015) Ethnologue: Languages of the World: Seventeenth edition. Dallas, Texas: SIL International. Online version. Retrieved on 24 November 2014 from: http://www.ethnologue.com/.
Lugongo, B. (2015) Bye Std VII exams, English; karibu Kiswahili in studies. The Citizen 14 February 2015. Retrieved on 25 April 2015 from: http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/News/national/Bye-Std-VII-exams–English–Karibu-Kiswahili-in-studies/-/1840392/2623428/-/2krj4x/-/index.html.
Mazrui, A. M. and Mazrui, A. A. (1993) Dominant languages in a plural society: English and Kiswahili in postcolonial East Africa. Political Science Review 14:275–292. https://doi.org/10.1177/019251219301400305.
Mazrui, A. A. and Mazrui, A. M. (1995) Swahili state and society: The political economy of an African language. Nairobi: East African Educational Publishers Ltd.
Mendel, K. (2004) Regional languages in France: The case of Breton. LOS Working Papers in Linguistics 4: 65–75.
Ministry of Education and Vocational Training, Tanzania (2010) Education sector development programme: Secondary education development programme II. Retrieved on 25 April 2015 from: http://planipolis.iiep.unesco.org/upload/Tanzania%20UR/Tanzania_SEDP_2010_2015.pdf.
Mollin, S. (2007) New variety or learner English? Criteria for variety status and the case of Euro-English. English World-Wide 28(2): 167–185.
Muaka, L. (2011) Language perceptions and identity among Kenyan speakers. In G. E. Bokamba, R. K. Shosted and B. T. Ayalew (eds) Selected Proceedings of the 40th Annual Conference of African Linguistics 217–230. Sommerville, MA: Cascadilla Proceedings Project.
Myers-Scotton, C. (1982) The linguistic situation and language policy in Eastern Africa. In R. B. Kaplan (ed.) Annual Review of Applied Linguistics 8–20. Rowley, Mass: Newbury House.
Nabea, W. (2009) Language policy in Kenya: Negotiation with hegemony. The Journal of Pan African Studies 3(1):121–137.
Nakayiza, J. (2016) The sociolinguistic situation of English in Uganda: A case of language attitudes and language choice. In C. Meierkord, B. Isingoma and S. Namyalo (eds) Ugandan English: Its sociolinguistics, structure and use in a globalizing post-protectorate. Amsterdam and Philadelphia: John Benjamins. https://doi.org/10.1075/veaw.g59.04nak.
Namyalo, S. (2015) Linguistic strategies in Luyaaye: Word play and conscious language manipulation. In N. Nassensntein and A. Hollington (eds) Youth language practices in Africa and beyond 313–344. Berlin: de Gruyter.
The New Vision. Retrieved on 25 August 2015 from: http://www.newvision.co.ug/.
Njoki, M. (2015) Kenyans troll Pastor Ng’ang’a for bad English. Nairobi News. Retrieved on 11 October 2015 from: www.nairobinews.co.ke /kenyans-troll-pastor-nganga-for-bad-english/
OALD (Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary) (2005) (7th ed.). London: Oxford University Press.
OED (Oxford English Dictionary) (2009) CD-ROM Version 4.0. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Ogechi, N. O. (2003) On language rights in Kenya. Nordic Journal of African Studies 12(3):277–295.
Okello, B. (2002) A history of East Africa. Kampala: Fountain Publishers.
Pattanayak, D. P. (2003) Language issues in literacy and basic education: The case of India. In S. Ouane (ed.) Towards a multilingual culture of education 129–138. Paris: UNESCO Institute of Education.
Petzell, M. (2012) The linguistic situation in Tanzania. Moderna Språk 106(1): 136–144.
Roehl, K. (1930) The linguistic situation in East Africa. Journal of the International African Institute 3(2):191–202. https://doi.org/10.2307/1155798.
Rosendal, T. (2010) Linguistic landshapes: A comparison of of?cial and nonof?cial language management in Rwanda and Uganda, focusing on the position of African languages. PhD dissertation, University of Gothenburg.
Sa, E. (2007) Language policy for education and development in Tanzania. Retrieved on 11 November 2015 from: www.swarthmore.edu/socsci/Linguistics/Papers/2007/sa_eleuthera.pdf.
Schmied, J. (2006) East African Englishes. In B. Kachru., Y. Kachru and C. Nelson (eds) The Handbook of World Englishes 188–202. Oxford: Blackwell. https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470757598.ch12.
Schneider, W. E. (2007) Postcolonial English: Varieties around the world. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511618901.
Scribes (2010) Journal for the Advancement of Journalism 3, 2. Media Council of Tanzania. Retrieved on 6 March 2013 from: www.mct.or.tz.
Simango, S. R. (2006) East Africa. In U. Ammon, N. Dittmar, K. Mattheier and P. Trudgill (eds) Sociolinguistics: An International Handbook of the Science of Language and Society. Volume 3 1964–1971. Berlin. Mouton de Gruyter.
Simensen, A. M. (2010) English in Scandinavia: A success story. In R. Andrews and J. Hoffman (eds) The Routledge International Handbook of English: Language and Literacy 472–483. London and New York: Routledge.
Standard Digital. Retrieved on 26 March 2013 from http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/.
The Constitution of Kenya (2010) Retrieved on 25 March 2013 from: http://www.kenyaembassy.com/pdfs/The%20Constitution%20 of%20Kenya.pdf.
The Monitor. Retrieved on 16 November 2015 from: http://www.monitor.co.ug/.
The Star. Retrieved on 20 November 2015 from: http://www.the-star.co.ke/.
Tembe, J. and Norton, B. (2008) Promoting local languages in Ugandan primary schools: The community as stakeholders. The Canadian Modern Language Review 61(1): 33–60. https://doi.org/10.3138/cmlr.65.1.33.
Trudgill, P. (1992) Ausbau sociolinguistics and the perception of language status in contemporary Europe. International Journal of Applied Linguistics 2(2): 167–177. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1473-4192.1992.tb00031.x.
Trudgill, P. (2003) The uniformitarian principle and ausbau sociolinguistics of mediaeval Bergen. Norsk Linguistisk Tidskrift 2: 216–220.
Uganda Bureau of Statistics (2015) National population and housing census 2014: provisional results. Retrieved on 26 April 2015 from: http://www.ubos.org/online?les/uploads/ubos/NPHC/NPHC%202014%20PROVISIONAL%20RESULTS%20REPORT.pdf.
University of Dodoma Website. Retrieved on 24 November 2015 from: www.udom.ac.tz.
UNPO (Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization) (2015) France to ratify European charter on regional and minority languages? Retrieved on 30 October 2015 from: www.unpo.org/article/18299.
Xinhua News (2015) Kenya to introduce Chinese language into school curriculum. Retrieved on 25 September 2015 from: www.news.xinhuanet.com/enlish/2015-04/21/c13417120.htm.
Youtube. Retrieved on 15 November 2015 from: www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbvRjMl4Kn0.
Published
2017-01-20
Issue
Section
Articles
How to Cite
Isingoma, B. (2017). Languages in East Africa: Policies, practices and perspectives. Sociolinguistic Studies, 10(3), 433-454. https://doi.org/10.1558/sols.v10i3.27401
