Language Decline And Death In Africa

by Frieda Parker

Overview

Once extremely rich in cultures and languages, Africa is experiencing the loss of indigenous languages at an alarming rate. Batibo (African linguistics, U. of Botswana) examines the connections among the languages of Africa with each other, with specific cultures and ethnicities, and with the concept of their continuance as a source of cultural wealth. He shows how minority languages contribute to the linguistic complexity of Africa, their role in national development, and their abuse as a national resource. He shows how and why minority languages are declining, how contact with other languages contribute to their eradication, and how Africa must maintain and empower minority languages if it is to maintain its identity. Distributed in the US by UTP Distribution. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781853598098
Publisher:	Multilingual Matters Ltd.
Publication date:	06/01/2005
Series:	Multilingual Matters Series , #132
Pages:	192
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.30(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Dr. Herman M. Batibo is Professor of African Linguistics at the University of Botswana, Southern Africa. He was born in Mwanza, Tanzania, in 1947. He obtained his PhD at the University of La Sorbonne, Paris, in 1977. His other major publications include Le kesukuma: phonologie et morphologie ([1977] 1985), La Tanzanie: L’ujamaa face aux réalités (edited with Denis Martin, 1989), The Role of Language in the Discovery of Cultural History (1996), The State of Khoesan Languages in Botswana (edited with J. Tsonope, 2000), Botswana: The Future of the Minority Languages (edited with Birgit Smieja, 2000). Professor Batibo is currently the President of the Standing Committee of the World Congress of African Linguistics.

Table of Contents

Preface

1: The languages of Africa; 2: Patterns of language use in Africa; 3: African languages as a resource; 4: The minority languages of Africa; 5: The endangered languages of Africa; 6: Language shift and death in Africa; 7: Language maintenance; 8: Language empowerment measures

References/ Index/ Appendix

Editorial Reviews

This is an excellent introduction to the topic of endangered languages in Africa.

Linguist List 16.3542 - Mike Cahill