Vernacularization, globalization, and language economics in non-English-speaking countries in Africa
Vernacularization, globalization, and language economics in non-English-speaking countries in Africa
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非洲非英语国家的白话化、全球化和语言经济学
DOI：
10.1075/lplp.34.1.01kam
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发表时间：
2010
影响因子：
0.6
通讯作者：
Nkonko M Kamwangamalu
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Nkonko M Kamwangamalu
对非洲语言政策的研究探讨了殖民语言政策对制定和执行旨在本土化的后殖民语言政策的影响，本土化的定义是在教育等高等领域使用非洲土著语言。然而，迄今为止似乎很少有人注意到全球化通过英语媒介不仅对英语国家而且对非洲大陆非英语国家的本地化产生的影响。本文从语言经济学领域的最新理论发展的角度探讨了语言经济学的问题，语言经济学是一个研究领域，其重点是语言和经济变量相互影响的理论和实证方式。它认为，英语向非洲这些历史上非英语国家的传播是对旨在促进本地化的主要象征性语言政策的第二个挑战，第一个是其他西方语言（如法语，葡萄牙语，西班牙语）。本文借鉴语言经济学，认为土著语言的前景将继续黯淡，尤其是在全球化时代，除非这些语言被视为一种商品，而不是文化保护的象征，并且与一些相关。几十年来一直是西方语言的优势和物质利益。抵制，并成功的案例研究，白话化告知语言经济学在世界各地的支持，为促进非洲的土著语言在教育中提出的论点。
Research into language policy in Africa has addressed the impact of colonial language policies on efforts to formulate and implement post-colonial language policies aimed at vernacularization, defined as the use of indigenous African languages in higher domains such as education. What seems to have received very little attention to date, however, is the effect of globalization, through the medium of English, on vernacularization not only in Anglophone but also in non-English-speaking countries in the African continent. Focusing on the latter territories, this paper explores this issue from the perspective of recent theoretical developments in the field of language economics, an area of study whose focus is on the theoretical and empirical ways in which linguistic and economic variables influence one another. It argues that the spread of English to these historically non-English-speaking territories in Africa represents the second challenge to largely symbolic language policies aimed at promoting vernacularization, the first one being other western languages (e.g. French, Portuguese, Spanish). Drawing on language economics, the paper argues that the prospects for the indigenous languages will continue to be bleak, especially in the era of globalization, unless these languages are viewed as a commodity rather than as a token for cultural preservation, and are associated with some of the advantages and material gains that have for decades been the preserve of western languages. Resistance against, and successful case studies of, vernacularization informed by language economics in various parts of the world are presented in support of the proposed argument for the promotion of Africa’s indigenous languages in education.