Description
Book SynopsisLanguage in Contemporary African Cultures and Societies examines language in contemporary Africa by positioning language at the center of interrelationships between individuals, society, and culture. Because of how language permeates every aspect of human existence within each society, this book has assembled contributions by researchers and scholars who focus on different topics within African languages and cultures. By presenting African languages as resources and subject and subject of the study, this book discusses Africa's multilingualism, language policy, preservation, and their uses in development, security, liberation, and identity formation in the diaspora. Based on empirical research and analysis of texts, this book takes a closer look at the continent and the diaspora by situating African languages, cultures, and literatures at the center, and shows how African languages are used in the liberation, transfer of knowledge, and promotion of literacy among Africans globally. It
Trade ReviewLanguage in Contemporary African Cultures and Societies provides great insights into the richness of the African continent in regards to its indigenous languages. The authors of the book highlight different aspects connected to African languages and literature on the African continent and in the diaspora. They discuss in detail the importance of African languages for communication, collaboration, development, and empowerment. They also delve into areas of research in acquisition of multiple languages and documentation of oral literature. It is a great contribution to the field of African languages and literature. -- Alwiya S. Omar, Indiana University - Bloomington
This edited volume, some of which written by key players in the field of African languages and linguistics, brings to the forefront the importance of African languages in the economic development of Africa. The role of language in Islamic extremist narratives and counter-narratives and the continuing acquisition of multiple languages by African adults, challenging the popular Critical Period Hypothesis, are some of the significant and timely contributions of the book to the field of linguistics at large. The editors of the book must be commended for bringing new insights, charting a new territory for research and teaching, and more importantly, for recognizing the critical importance of African languages in various areas in Africa and in the African diaspora. -- Fallou Ngom, Boston University
Language in Contemporary African Cultures and Societies is a collection of original chapters dealing with the social dynamics of African languages and literatures studied, analyzed and commented through multidisciplinary lenses. It diverts the reader’s attention from usual discussions on the adaptation to useful monolingualism as a must for formal education. Instead, it launches a debate on functional multilingualism, first as a hard reality that many African countries live in, especially in urban areas, and mostly as prized assets towards a sustained development of the continent. The highlighted viewpoints are multifaceted in approach and polyphonic in their multidisciplinary engagement. The analyses relate to areas such as linguistics, language acquisition, discursive analysis, futuristic projection, gender interrogations, enacted language policies, literary analysis, film analysis … The book stands as a conversion of views that see African languages as powerful assets for Africa’s and the diaspora’s development and identity consolidation. Rather than attempting to consecrate prestigious monolingualism, encouraging and preserving functional multilingualism, the prime assets for self-valorization, means ‘unlocking language forts’ in order to foster and enhance social empowerment. This is a new vista that Muaka and Lisanza offer us over the landscape of African languages and literatures! -- Kasongo M. Kapanga, University of Richmond
Table of ContentsChapter One: The Role of Language in the Kenya Violent Extremism Narrative and Counter-narrative Mohamed Mwamzandi Chapter Two: Multiple Language Acquisition in Africa and its Theoretical Implications Eyamba Bokamba Chapter Three: Promoting and Maintaining Kenyan Indigenous Languages Martha Michieka Chapter Four: The Role of HBCUs in the Transfer and Maintenance of African Languages and Cultures Timothy Ajany Chapter Five: The Influence of Writing on Oral Traditionsː The Case of Nyangbo James Essegbey Chapter Six: Language Empowerment for Socio-Cultural and Economic Development in Africa Akinloye Ojo Chapter Seven: The Role of African Languages in Regional Development: Examples from East Africa Leonard Muaka Chapter Eight: The No Language Left Behind Approach to the African Language Question: The Case of Cameroon and Nigeria Yuka Constantine Chapter Nine: Alienation: The African Immigrants’ Experience in Adiche’s The Thing Around Your Neck and Bulawayo’s We Need New Names Gabriel Ayoola Chapter Ten: The Voice of Liberation in Kilio cha Haki and God's Bits of Wood Esther Lisanza Chapter Eleven: African Female Writers and the Concept of Liberation: Writings from Nigeria and Namibia James Etim Chapter Twelve: Motherhood and Feminism in Margaret Ogola’s novel, The River and the Source Anne Rotich Chapter Thirteen: The Pursuit of Selfhood in Selected Swahili Female Bildungsromane Rose Lugano Chapter Fourteen: Ode to the Wanderlust Muchiri Ng’ang’a
