The University of Dodoma University of Dodoma Institutional Repository http://repository.udom.ac.tz
Humanities Master Dissertations
2018 An assessment of lexical change in Matengo: The case of Mbinga district
Kapinga, Vermund S.
The University of Dodoma
Kapinga, V. S. (2018). An assessment of lexical change in Matengo: The case of Mbinga district (Master's dissertations). The University of Dodoma, Dodoma. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12661/868 Downloaded from UDOM Institutional Repository at The University of Dodoma, an open access institutional repository. AN ASSESSMENT OF LEXICAL CHANGE IN
MATENGO: THE CASE OF MBINGA DISTRICT
VERMUND S. KAPINGA
MASTER OF ARTS IN LINGUISTICS
THE UNIVERSITY OF DODOMA
OCTOBER, 2018 AN ASSESSMENT OF LEXICAL CHANGE IN MATENGO: THE
CASE OF MBINGA DISTRICT
BY
VERMUND S. KAPINGA
A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF
THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS
IN LINGUISTICS
THE UNIVERSITY OF DODOMA
OCTOBER, 2018 DECLARATION
AND
COPYRIGHT
I, Vermund S. Kapinga, declare that this dissertation is my own original work and that it has not been presented and will not be presented to any other university for a similar or any other degree award.
Signature……………………
No part of this dissertation may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission of the author or the University of Dodoma. If transformed for publication in any other format shall be acknowledged that, this work has been submitted for degree award at the University of Dodoma”.
i CERTIFICATION
The undersigned certifies that she has read and hereby recommends for acceptance by the University of Dodoma, a dissertation entitled: “An Assessment of Lexical
Change in Matengo: the Case of Mbinga District “in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Linguistics of the University of
Dodoma.
………………………
DR. MAGASHI, S.
(SUPERVISOR)
Date: …………………………..
ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Praise is to Jesus Christ, the Almighty, for the immeasurable spirit given me that I have been able to accomplish this dissertation. This dissertation would not have been possible without the salient contributions from different people to whom I deeply dare to express my heartfelt gratitude. I would like to express my deep inner most gratitude firstly and foremost to Dr. Magashi, S., my supervisor, for her guidance, helpful comments, cooperation, time, kindness and tireless support throughout my study. I strongly appreciate her support.
Secondly, my sincere gratitude should go to all lecturers in the department of foreign languages and literature: Prof. Lackshmannan, Dr. Sebonde, R., Dr. Biseko, J., Dr.
Chrispina, Dr. Selestino, Dr. Stanslav and Dr. Sane.
Thirdly, I greatly give thanks to Mr. Sadiki Nombo for being a good link to other respondents who allowed me to collect data for my study. I sincerely acknowledge the cooperation of my respondents from Mbinga district. They have really provided vital information to this study.
Fourthly, special thanks should go to my fellow M.A. linguistic students as well as my college mates: Mr. Faustin Bayo, Mr. Andrew Mapunda, Mr. Kristofa Mwageni,
Kibwana Khatima, Mr. Mathias Katto, Gerald Soi and others for their comments and suggestions which have been useful in this work.
Lastly, my thanks should go to my family, my close friend Athanas Ndunguru, my lovely wife Wema Komba and my lovely children Mercy, Rodrick, Alice and
Amelia for their faith, encouragement, patience and love. With their support, all my goals are possible.
iii DEDICATION
This dissertation is dedicated to my father Mr. Selestin Kapinga (Kasapwenda) and my mother Solana Milinga (Maipasa) for their parental care, endless love to me and tolerance they have shown in the journey of my studies. May Almighty God bless them.
iv ABSTRACT
This study aimed at investigating Matengo lexical change in Mbinga district. It was guided by three specific objectives namely: to explore the extent of Matengo lexical change; to examine the linguistic factors for Matengo lexical change and to determine non-linguistic factors contributing to Matengo lexical change in Mbinga district. The study used assimilation theory centring on the ideas of Gordon (1964) as one of the sociologists. Gordon devised the theory into seven stages which are: acculturation where newcomers adopt a language, structural, civic, identification, attitude reception, behaviour reception and marital assimilation. However, in this study only acculturation stage has been discussed. The study involved 60 informants: 10 informants were involved in interviews, 44 were involved in filling in questionnaires and 6 were involved in sociolinguistic interviews. The data of the study were therefore collected through sociolinguistic interviews, interviews and questionnaires. The data collected were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively.
The findings of the study revealed that Kiswahili and other languages are greatly replacing most of the Matengo vocabularies that were formerly used by ancestors.
The study also revealed the linguistic and non- linguistics factors that influence change in Matengo lexical items. Therefore, the study recommends policy intervention in order to attract people to keep on writing Ethnic Community
Languages (ECLs) because they contain some values that are helpful to the target community. Additionally, Matengo community should build the habit to preserve original Matengo lexical items. Furthermore, parents are recommended to retain the values of the language for the identity and local socialization.
v TABLE OF CONTENTS
DECLARATION AND COPYRIGHT ...... i CERTIFICATION ...... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ...... iii DEDICATION ...... iv ABSTRACT ...... v TABLE OF CONTENTS ...... vi LIST OF TABLES ...... xi LIST OF FIGURES ...... xiii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ...... xiv
CHAPTER ONE ...... 1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY ...... 1 1.1 Introduction ...... 1 1.2 An Overview of the Study...... 1 1.3 Statement of the Problem ...... 3 1.4 Objectives of the Study ...... 4 1.4.1 Specific Objectives...... 4 1.4.2 Research Questions ...... 5 1.5 Significance of the Study ...... 5 1.6 Scope of the Study ...... 5 1.7 Definition of Key Terms ...... 6 1.8 Chapter Summary...... 8
CHAPTER TWO ...... 9 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND LITERATURE REVIEW ...... 9 2.1 Introduction ...... 9 2.2 Theoretical Framework ...... 9 2.3 Literature Review ...... 10 2.3.1 The Extent of Lexical Change (Empirical Aspects) ...... 10 2.3.2 Linguistic Factors for Lexical Change ...... 13 2.3.2.1 The Influence of Lexical Borrowing ...... 13 2.3.2.2 Linguistic Prestige ...... 14
vi 2.3.2.3 Word Dimension ...... 15 2.3.2.4 Lexical Competition ...... 15 2.3.2.5 Phonological Factors ...... 15 2.3.3 Non-linguistic Factors for Lexical Change ...... 16 2.3.3.1 Age ...... 16 2.3.3.2 The Influence of Marriage ...... 16 2.3.3.3 Education...... 17 2.3.3.4 Influence of Technology ...... 17 2.3.3.5 Sex Influence ...... 17 2.3.3.6 The Contribution of Immigrants ...... 18 2.3.3.7 The Influence of Mass Media or Institutions ...... 18 2.4 Research Gap ...... 18 2.5 Chapter Summary...... 19
CHAPTER THREE ...... 20 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ...... 20 3.1 Introduction ...... 20 3.2 Research Approach ...... 20 3.2.1 Qualitative Research Approach...... 20 3.2.1 Quantitative Research Approach...... 21 3.3 Research Design ...... 21 3.4 Location of the Study ...... 22 3.5 Target Population ...... 22 3.6 Sample Size ...... 22 3.7 Sampling Techniques ...... 23 3.7.1 Purposive Sampling ...... 23 3.7.2 Random Sampling ...... 24 3.8 Methods of Data Collection ...... 24 3.8.1 Sociolinguistic Interview ...... 24 3.8.2 Interview ...... 25 3.8.3 Questionnaires ...... 25 3.9 Data Analysis Techniques ...... 26 3.9.1 Interview Guiding Questions ...... 26
vii 3.9.2 Questionnaire Guiding Questions ...... 27 3.9.3 Data Analysis and Presentation ...... 28 3.10 Research Ethics ...... 28 3.11 Pilot Study ...... 29 3.12 Validity and Reliability of the Findings ...... 29 3.12.1 Validity ...... 29 3.11.2 Reliability ...... 30 3.13 Chapter Summary...... 30
CHAPTER FOUR ...... 31 PRESENTATION OF THE FINDINGS ...... 31 4.1 Introduction ...... 31 4.2 Respondents‟ Background Information ...... 32 4.2.1 Respondents‟ Demographic Information ...... 32 4.2.1.1 Respondents‟ Age Group and Gender ...... 32 4.2.1.2 Respondents‟ Occupation...... 33 4.2.1.3 Respondents‟ Education Level ...... 34 4.2.2 Other Respondents‟ Background Information ...... 35 4.3 The Extent of Matengo Lexical Change ...... 35 4.3.1 Matengo Lexical Change in General...... 36 4.3.1.1 Lexical Replacement in Matengo Language ...... 37 4.3.1.2 Lexical Loss in Matengo Language ...... 38 4.3.1.3 Lexical Maintenance in Matengo ...... 39 4.3.2 Matengo Lexical Change in Different Domains ...... 41 4.3.2.1 Matengo Lexical Change in Home Domain...... 41 4.3.2.2 Matengo Lexical Change in the Farming Domain ...... 45 4.3.2.3 Matengo Lexical Change in Livestock Keeping ...... 48 4.3.2.4 Matengo Lexical Change in Commercial Domain...... 51 4.4 Linguistic Factors for Matengo Lexical Change ...... 55 4.4.1 The Nature of Matengo Language ...... 55 4.4.1.1 Phonological Factors ...... 56 4.4.1.2 Morphological Factor ...... 57 4.4.1.3 Semantic Change ...... 59
viii 4.4.1.4 The Influence of Language Contact ...... 62 4.5 Non-linguistic Factors for Matengo Lexical Change ...... 63 4.5.1 Decline of Intergenerational Transmission of Matengo Language ...... 64 4.5.2 The Influence of Intermarriage ...... 65 4.5.3 Decline of Socialization Gap among the Youths and Elders ...... 66 4.5.4 The Influence of Education ...... 67 4.5.5 The Influence of Science and Technology ...... 68 4.5.6 The Influence of Migration ...... 69 4.6 Reflection of the Findings to the Theoretical Framework ...... 70 4.7 Summary of the General Lexical Items Collected in this Study ...... 71 4.8 Chapter Summary...... 73
CHAPTER FIVE ...... 74 DISCUSSION OF RESULTS ...... 74 5.1 Introduction ...... 74 5.2 The Extent of Matengo Lexical Change ...... 74 5.2.1 Matengo Lexical Change in General...... 75 5.2.1.1 Lexical Replacement in Matengo Language ...... 75 5.2.1.2 Lexical Loss in Matengo Language ...... 77 5.2.1.3 Lexical Maintenance in Matengo Language ...... 78 5.2.2 Matengo Lexical Change in Different Domains ...... 78 5.2.2.1 Matengo Lexical Change in Home Domain...... 79 5.2.2.2 Matengo Lexical Change in the Farming Domain ...... 84 5.2.2.3 Matengo Lexical Change in Livestock Keeping ...... 88 5.2.2.4 Matengo Lexical Change in Commercial Domain...... 91 5.3 Linguistic Factors for Matengo Lexical Change ...... 95 5.3.1 The Nature of Matengo Language and Lexical Change ...... 95 5.3.1.1 Phonological Factors ...... 96 5.3.1.2 Morphological Factors ...... 97 5.3.1.3 Semantic Change ...... 98 5.3.2 The Influence of Language Contact ...... 100 5.4 Non-linguistic Factors for Matengo Lexical Change ...... 102 5.4.1 Decline of Intergenerational Transmission ...... 102
ix 5.4.2 The Influence of Intermarriage ...... 103 5.4.3 Decline of Socialization Gap among the Youths and Elders ...... 104 5.4.4 The Influence of Education ...... 105 5.4.5 Advancements of Science and Technology ...... 106 5.4.6 The Influence of Migration ...... 108 5.5 Chapter Summary...... 109
CHAPTER SIX ...... 111 SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ...... 111 6.1 Introduction ...... 111 6.2 Summary ...... 111 6.3 Conclusion ...... 112 6.4 Recommendations ...... 113 6.4.1 General Recommendations ...... 113 6.4.2 Recommendations for Further Studies ...... 114 REFERENCES ...... 115 APPENDICES ...... 120
x LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Sampling Technique and Sample Size that was Used in this Study .... 23 Table 2: Respondents‟ Age Group and Gender ...... 32 Table 3: Respondents‟ Occupation ...... 33 Table 4.1: Matengo Lexical Replacement ...... 38 Table 4.2: The List of Lexical Loss in Matengo ...... 39 Table 4.3: Lexical Maintenance in Matengo Language ...... 40 Table 4.4: Lexical Replacement Used alongside Original Matengo Lexical Items Expressing Family Relations ...... 42 Table 4.5: Lexical Replacement Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical Items Expressing Clothing in Home Domain ...... 43 Table 4.6: Lexical Replacement Used alongside Original Matengo Lexical Items Expressing Attire in Home Domain ...... 44 Table 4.7: Matengo Lexical Loss at Home Domain ...... 45 Table 4.8: Lexical Replacements Used in alongside Matengo Lexical Items in the Farming Domain ...... 46 Table 4.9: Lexical Replacement Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical Items in the Farming Domain ...... 47 Table 4.10: Matengo Lexical Loss in the Farming Domain ...... 48 Table 4.11: Lexical Replacement Used together with Original Matengo Lexical Items in Livestock Keeping Domain ...... 49 Table 4. 12: Replacements Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical Items in Livestock Keeping Domain ...... 50 Table 4.13 : Lexical Loss in Livestock Keeping Domain ...... 51 Table 4.14: Lexical Replacement Used together with Original Matengo Lexical ..... Items in Commercial Domain 53 Table 4.15: Lexical Replacements Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical Items in Commercial Domain ...... 54 Table 4.16: Matengo Lexical Loss in Commercial Domain ...... 55 Table 4.17: Lexical Items Clipped Due to their Morphological Length...... 58 Table 4.18: Lexical Items which have changed due to Meaning Expansion in Matengo Language ...... 60
xi Table 4.19: Lexical Items which have Changed due to Semantic Reduction in Matengo Language ...... 61 Table 4.20: Lexical Items Borrowed to Replace the Original Matengo lexical Items ...... 63 Table 4.21: Lexical Items Changed due to Advancement of Science and Technology ...... 69 Table 4.22: The Overview on Frequencies of Lexical Items Changed, Maintained or Lost in Matengo Language ...... 72
xii LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Respondents‟ Education Level ...... 34 Figure 2: Frequency of Lexical Change in Word List ...... 36 Figure 3: Frequencies of the Respondents‟ Responses on None-linguistic Factors ...... 64
xiii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
Adj Adjective
Adv Adverb
ECLs Ethnic Community Languages
FL Foreign Language
HLVC The Heritage Language Variation and Change in Toronto Project
L1 Language One
MUVI Muunganisho Ujasiriamali Vijijini
N Noun
TAAP Tanzania Agriculture Productivity Program
V Verb
xiv CHAPTER ONE
BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
1.1 Introduction
This section describes an overview of the study where it highlights lexical change from its earliest attested form to its present-day form and their causes. It also presents the statement of the problem by showing the extent to which Matengo language has undergone lexical change, objectives of the study, research questions, significance of the study, scope of the study and definition of the key terms used in the study.
1.2 An Overview of the Study
The history of Matengo language is closely intertwined with the history of the
Matengo people themselves. It is difficult to discuss Matengo language lexical change without discussing how language contact has influenced lexical change in the language. Thomason and Kaufman (1988) claim that the lexicon is the most unpredictable part of language and the most likely to undergo changes due to high influence of language contact situation. This is to say, language contact plays a big role in influencing language change specifically in its lexical form because it is the area which experiences high pressure of usage as it covers the highest percentage of daily communication.
Contact is a cause of any linguistic change that would have been less likely to occur outside a particular contact situation (Thomason, 2001). It is often noted that through contact, first, lexical structures are borrowed; then, under long-term cultural pressure, structural features may also be borrowed (Van Coetsem, 1988). Language contact has historically taken place in large part under circumstances of social
1 inequality resulting from wars, conquest, colonialism, slavery, poverty and migration. Language contact has in some times and places been short-lived, with language loss and assimilation whereas other historical situations have produced relative long-term stability and acceptance by the bi-or multilingual population. The extent of contact casting change can contrast in the development of a language. The period of contact, its intensity and duration and the social setting are all factors which need to be weighed up carefully. Most languages have been influenced at one time or another by contact, resulting in varying degrees of transfer of features from one to the other or/and language shift (Khumalo, 2001). Rosendal and Mapunda
(2014) have also revealed this aspect in Ngoni language by showing how Kiswahili has greatly affected Ngoni lexical items. They reinforce by stating that Ngoni has interacted for long with Swahili, which is the most prestigious language and dominant lingua franca in Tanzania. They also argue that this language contact situation affects Ngoni which frequently borrows terms from Swahili, both for concepts which are new to the Ngoni speakers, but also terms which replace existing
Ngoni vocabulary. According to Weinreich (1953), the influence of language contact, borrowed words and old terms normally do not exist side by side with the same meaning without specialization. Later, this situation results into meaning broadening or narrowing.
Therefore, the aspect of language contact has been viewed into different interface as it weakens many ethnic languages. After all, the endangerment of language always goes hand in hand with contact with one or more dominant languages that threaten the continuing survival of the minority language or indeed in many cases leads to its death. According to Hickey (2005), the standard wisdom has traditionally been that the language with more status influences that with less, i.e. borrowing is from the 2 superstrate by the substrate. Rosendal and Mapunda (2014) argue that the extensive additive borrowing attested Ngoni language confirms that lexico-semantic changes are directly related to changes in life style. This is highly influenced by the factor of language prestige that diminishes the meaning of the former or old lexical item in favour of the new vocabulary.
Due to this aspect, different studies have been done to address the situation. For example, Khumalo (2014) suggests that, the possibility must be there for words created as the result of contact by terminographers to be standardized by way of including them in dictionaries to accommodate the existing language. The Heritage
Language Variation and Change in Toronto Project (HLVC) as cited in Nagy (2009) also addresses the situation by developing a multilingual corpus of naturally occurring speech in lesser-studied languages. Basing on such a situation, the researcher examined lexical change in Matengo language spoken in Mbinga District across locales (homeland vs. transplanted area), and across speakers of different age groups, sex, place and education levels.
1.3 Statement of the Problem
The change that is frequently affecting a living language can be easily observed in the aspect of lexis. Taha (2012) asserts that, changes may take a variety of forms including lexical loss with or without replacement of already existing indigenous items. This entire process can be attracted due to the effects of language contact. The lexical items from other languages, Kiswahili being one, threaten the disappearance of Matengo language and can later lead to loss in its history of existence. Marten and
Petzell (2016) comment that through widespread use and its prevalent role in
3 education for the last four decades, knowledge of Swahili in Tanzania often as a second language, has become near-universal.
However, in addressing the problem few studies, although not merely in lexical change have been conducted in Matengo. For example, Yoneda (2010) who studied on “Swahilization of Ethnic Languages in Tanzania” states that, loanwords from
Swahili and their equivalents in Matengo are both used without differentiation: the one that dominates is always the loanword. As a result, the original Matengo words are naturally fading away. For example, a word kuboola, which meant „to teach‟, has now been replaced by kupundisa which has been borrowed from Swahili word
„kufundisha‟. She cements that; swahilization is leading to an impoverishment of these languages, a state of language decay that will eventually lead to language shift, which in turn can cause language death. Due to this factor, the researcher decided to take the topic of lexical change into ground because it is one of the areas which can lead to the language endangerment and hence death, and if the study would not be conducted then the language would be in danger to disappear in the history of languages.
1.4 Objectives of the Study
The general objective of this study was to assess lexical change in Matengo language.
1.4.1 Specific Objectives
In order to make an assessment of lexical change in Matengo language, the following specific objectives were used:
i. To explore the extent to which Matengo lexical items have undergone
change.
4 ii. To examine the linguistic factors contributing to Matengo lexical change
in Mbinga district.
iii. To examine non-linguistic factors behind Matengo lexical change in
Mbinga District.
1.4.2 Research Questions
The study was guided by the following questions:
i. To what extent have Matengo lexical items experienced change in
Mbinga District?
ii. What are the linguistic factors contributing to Matengo lexical change in
Mbinga District?
iii. What are the non-linguistic factors behind Matengo lexical change?
1.5 Significance of the Study
This study is expected to be profitable to linguists on the history of Matengo language specifically in lexical items. It will also help the native speakers of
Matengo language in maintaining the quality of their language by preserving the original lexical items and its survival for the sake of the next generation. It will further contribute to the efforts of linguists who play hard in making records of
African ethnic languages Matengo language being included. Lastly, the study will serve as a scholarly reference and a starting point to other researchers interested in the area of lexical change.
1.6 Scope of the Study
This study was carried out in Ruvuma region in Mbinga District. Mbinga District is located to the Northeast of Lake Nyasa. The District is characterized by steep mountains and rolling hills ranging from 600-2000 meters from the sea level (Kato,
5 2001). Mbinga District covers an area of 11,396 square kilometres and about 18 percent of the land area of the Ruvuma Region. According to the 2002 Tanzania
National Census, the population of Mbinga District is 404,799. The district comprises four ethnic groups namely the Matengo, the Ngoni, the Manda and Nyasa.
The Matengo constitutes 60% of the population with a population density of 34 people/km² as per as 2002 census. Lewis (2009) states that, there are roughly
160,000 speakers of Matengo, making it one of the ethnic languages with a moderate sized speaking population in Tanzania. According to Guthrie (1971) classification of languages, Matengo is classified as N10. In this study, the researcher‟s focus areas were in the villages of Maguu (Hagati valley) and Litembo villages (Hagati highlands). This is the place which Matengo people (the largely dominant tribe) live.
The researcher selected this area because it is where the history of Matengo people relies, and it is located in the village compared to other areas of Mbinga District.
1.7 Definition of Key Terms
In this section, the definition of the key terms used are provided so as to make clear understanding on their meaning and what the researcher intended to do. a) Lexical Change
Bullock and Tarbio (2009) designate lexical change as the process whereby the use of words or morphemes from loaning language becomes firmly established as imitative usage and/or permutations in the receiving language vocabulary. Lexical change involves one or more features of a morpheme or words and can chain with or substitute by those of its corresponding in the other language.
6 In this study, lexical change is used to mean the demise of lexical items with the passage of time as well as the addition and incorporation of new vocabulary into the lexicon. b) Lexical or Word Loss
Koopman (1994) states that, lexical loss occurs if a new object which stimulated the acceptance of that lexical item disappears and its substitute also fades out. For many years since 1990‟s, Matengo language has been experiencing changes in lexis
(vocabulary), and this has been appropriately supported by Yoneda (2010) as cited in Kulwa (2016) who gives a particular case on how Matengo language has lost most of its words especially to young people due to the influence of Kiswahili.
Therefore, in this study lexical or word loss is used to refer to the state where a lexical item takes total replacement to the proto lexical item. c) Lexical Replacement
Kulwa (2016) states that lexical replacement is the process by which a given word
„A‟ which is commonly used to express a certain meaning „X‟ stops to express this meaning while at the time another word „B‟ which was formerly used to express a meaning „Y‟ is now used to express the meaning „Z‟.
In this study, lexical replacement is used to refer to a situation when a new lexical item becomes dominant, and it replaces the proto lexical item alongside or switches to another meaning. d) Lexical Maintenance
According to Fink (2005) as cited in Kulwa (2016), lexical maintenance is a process when some items are preserved despite the cultural pressure they encounter. He
7 gives this statement by supplying it with a historical commentary that formerly contributed to the languages of Shelta, Anglo-roman that were vanished and only definite lexical items have persisted.
Therefore, in this context lexical maintenance is used to mean those lexical items that have maintained their natural form of usage.
1.8 Chapter Summary This chapter has described the general overview of the study where it has highlighted lexical change from the earliest form to its present form. It has also described the statement of the problem, objectives of the study, research questions basing on the objectives, significance of the study, scope of the study and definition of the key terms. The following chapter will be devoted to theoretical framework and literature review.
8 CHAPTER TWO
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Introduction
This chapter reviews literature and describes the theoretical framework which positioned the study. It clearly shows what is already done in the field (the issue under study) and what is not yet to be done. The section also shows the research knowledge gap which this study intended to fill.
2.2 Theoretical Framework
This study used Assimilation Theory as a centre of ideas. The theory was developed by American sociologists in the 1820s and 1920s.This model is a representation of how assimilation has and should occur. Their main ideas developed in regards of the immigrants in America with general views that assimilation takes three basic generations to develop fully. These are immigrants, children of immigrants and grandchildren of immigrants.
The theory has been revised by many theorists. The very fascinating ideas under this theory are the ideas of Gordon (1964). Gordon devised the theory on seven stages of assimilation which are: acculturation where newcomers adopt language, dress and daily customs of the host society (including values and norms), structural assimilation, marital assimilation, identification assimilation, attitude reception assimilation, behaviour reception assimilation and civic assimilation.
Basing on acculturation, many ethnic languages are affected with borrowings resulting from language contact with neighbouring tribes. These effects can be seen at multiple levels in both the original (native) and newly adopted (host) language. In
9 some instances, acculturation results in the adoption of another country's language which is then modified over time to become a new distinct language.
The theory of Assimilation was deemed suitable to this study as it intended to explore how substitutions from other languages are nativised to appear like Matengo lexical items. The suitability of the theory was taken into consideration because of the influence of neighbouring ethnic languages like Kingoni and Kiswahili.
Therefore, in account of all the issues raised in favour of this theory, it was a guide for the researcher to undertake an exploration of lexical change in Matengo language.
2.3 Literature Review
In this part, the study was based on the concept of lexical change in general. The analysis was based on the view of the extent of lexical change; the linguistic and non-linguistic factors that influence lexical change in both theoretical and empirical aspects.
2.3.1 The Extent of Lexical Change (Empirical Aspects)
This section reviewed different studies on lexical change so as to depict what researchers revealed. Since the essence of research is to contribute to the body of knowledge, the literature is certainly an excellent starting point (Levy & Ellis,
2006). One cannot contribute to the body of knowledge without being familiar with the existing body of knowledge first. This part reviewed literature basing on the context of Tanzania.
Leopards (2007) as cited in Aman (2010) conducted a study to examine lexical change in Kibena and states that Kiswahili has largely influenced Kibena which has led to the emergence of Kimaswitule, as a variety of Kibena. Various words have 10 changed. For example, a word tembele which meant „place of prayer‟ has now changed to kukanisa to mean „church‟. In his research, the author argues that due to the influence of Swahili language, there is a new creation of words which are neither
Bena nor Swahili, a situation that has resulted to the creation of Kimaswitule as one of the Bena dialects spoken in Njombe district.
Kiango (2005) as cited in Aman (2010) addresses the issue of lexical change in
Kibondei. In his study on Swahilization of the coastal Bantu languages, he found that many Swahili words exist in the lexicon of Kibondei. There is a list of Kibondei words which are not in daily usage and are being substituted by loanwords from
Kiswahili. He argues for example that, a word woki is replaced by asali “honey”. He insists that there are many words, mostly nouns in Kibondei lexicon which have undergone change.
Swila (2000) examined lexical change in Chindali. The findings of her study revealed that only 30% of the total words that informants attempted were maintained from their proto language, but the rest were borrowed. More interestingly, it was found that, those words which were previously borrowed from English into Chindali are being replaced by Kiswahili words. According to her, the replacements are phonologically and morphologically assimilated into the system of Chindali. She argues that, there are also Kiswahili lexical items which are replacing even the basic vocabulary such as umbimbi from Kiswahili item bibi “grandmother”. According to her, most nouns exposed to the study experienced lexical change due to Kiswahili influence.
Rubanza (1979) using interviews carried out a research on the relationship between
Kiswahili and Kihaya and found that, there are many words which come into Kihaya
11 from Swahili. According to him, he calls the situation „borrowing lexical innovation‟. He states that, lexical borrowing falls under three types. Firstly, established lexical items such as daktari and omuhospitali “hospital”; secondly, being recognized such as kwetegemea “depend” and finally, not yet known in
Kihaya like kuchochea “to inspire” where most of the words which undergo change are nouns, verbs and connectors. With this fact, the investigation shows that there is blemish to many indigenous languages to get lost or endangered. In most cases,
Tanzanian local languages are greatly influenced by Swahili, a dominant language to most Tanzanians especially the young generation.
Rozendal and Mapunda (2014) examined lexical borrowing from Swahili in Ngoni language in Songea District. The survey aimed to address the question: “is the
Tanzanian Ngoni language threatened?”They assert that, among the Tanzanian languages, Ngoni has interacted for long with Kiswahili which is more prestigious and a dominant lingua franca in Tanzania. The trend of the elicited data revealed that, the Ngoni term njwili “hair” is now being replaced by its Swahili cognate nywele “hair” as a general term for all kinds of hair. However, a semantic shift is taking place. The earlier distinction by using mayunju “hair” for uncared, long or not properly cared hair, and njwili for short traditional-style hair seems to be disappearing.
Mochiwa (1979) studied the impact of Kiswahili on Ethnic Community Languages in Handeni district focusing on Kizigua. His findings show that 75% of the lexical items were maintained and only 25% of the lexical items were replaced. He also discovered that the most affected items are nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs and
12 coordinators. The major goal was to point out linguistic interference as the outcome of bilingualism in Handen District especially to young generation.
Kulwa (2016) made an assessment on Zinza lexical change in Kome Island. He used three techniques which are introspection, elicitation and semi-structured interviews where he examined the extent to which Zinza language has undergone lexical change. His study involved four villages involving sixty respondents from these villages. The finding of his study revealed that, Zinza has been heavily affected by lexical change. For example, emamba “lungfish” is replaced by kamongo and the item igwanda which means shirt is used alongside with eshati.
2.3.2 Linguistic Factors for Lexical Change
Words used in a language are always subjected to change over time since words are dynamic as they keep on changing day and night (De Saussure, 1916 as cited in
Ruimy et al. 2003). The major linguistic factors for lexical change include the influence of lexical borrowing, word length, linguistic prestige, phonology and lexical competition. Many scholars have discussed linguistic factors as stated above to be the factors that lead to the lexical change: Koopman (1994), Gorlach (2007),
Martin (2007) and Broadwell (1993), and they have categorized them in terms of morphological, phonological and semantic modification.
2.3.2.1 The Influence of Lexical Borrowing
The terms loanword, borrowing and adoptive are used interchangeably. According to Mesthrie et al. (2000), borrowing is a technical term used to incorporate items from one language into another. By differentiating, borrowed words become part of the borrowing language.
13 Gorlach (2007) pinpoints three basic reasons that activate speakers of a language to borrow lexical items from another language. These reasons include gap of vocabulary in the borrowing language, inadequate lexis and language status. a) Gap of Vocabulary in the Borrowing Language
The native speakers may encounter new terminologies that do not exist in the language. In this case they are forced to borrow words to suit themselves in the new objects, concepts and activities. Sote (2011) as cited by Rosendal and Mapunda
(2014) states that, most of the nouns identified in Shimalila had no counterparts.
Borrowing has enhanced different semantic arena of Shimalila, such as in terminologies like itelevisheni from televisheni (television) and ikanhawa from kahawa (coffee). b) Inadequate Lexis
In case the speaker‟s language is insufficient, they can borrow them from other languages (Gorlach, 2007). For example, Kraal (2005) gives an example of traditional healer in Chimakonde is called mmite‟ela, but they have borrowed a word dakitaali directly from Swahili word daktari “medical doctor”. Although there are dissimilarities of these two words mnite‟ela and dakitaali, Chimakonde does not have the substitute to refer a medical doctor.
2.3.2.2 Linguistic Prestige
This occurs when a certain speaker borrows some vocabularies from a prestigious language. According to Trask (1999) as cited in Kulwa (2016), speakers of less prestigious languages are often eager to show off their command of a more prestigious language by introducing some of its vocabularies in their own speech.
For example, speakers of Chindali have a borrowed word bhabu (grandfather) from
14 Kiswahili babu while the native word sekulu for grandfather still exists in Chindali lexicon (Swilla, 2000).
2.3.2.3 Word Dimension
According to Martine (2007), the need to shorten common words is a type of attrition: a linguistic phenomenon known as Zipf‟s law. Zipf showed that common words tend to be shorter than uncommon ones. For example, “refrigerator” becomes
„fridge‟, „telephone‟ becomes „phone‟ and „aeroplane‟ becomes „plane‟. A lexical shift is noticeably visible with word length. With personal names, it is easy to identify important linguistic word on the subject that is not origin and carries a high degree of linguistic credibility.
2.3.2.4 Lexical Competition
Competition between words is driven by pressure both within speech community and within individuals. Lexical invention is typically marked by a period in which innovation spreads and different words strive. If the new borrowed word wins, it replaces the existing word in the lexicon (Martine, 2007).
Pagel et al (2007) claim that as much as 50% of the difference in the rate of lexical change can be traced to word frequency: words that are used frequently are likely to change than those which are not often used.
2.3.2.5 Phonological Factors
In cases where an originally phonological regularity comes to be replaced by morphological ones, it may be the case that transformation comes to be the only marker of the category involved rather than simply an attendant property associated with an overt suffix. Broadwell (1993) cited in Kulwa (2016) states that while
German grund/grϋnde „father‟ displays umlaut in the plural in association with an 15 overt suffix /-ə/, the umlaut transformation itself is the only marker of plurality in the other words such as vater/văter „father‟.
2.3.3 Non-linguistic Factors for Lexical Change
It has been noted that non-linguistic factors like age, marriage, education, attitude, technology, mass media, sex and immigrants play a great role in lexical change.
Milroy (1985) in his study on linguistic change, social networks and speaker‟s innovation found that, among the working class, workers tend to use the vernacular norms and thus covert prestige to show solidarity. Other scholars under this category are Labov (1992), Nagy (2010), Barber (1993) and Trudgill (1986) who in common have explained non-linguistic to be one of the factors causes lexical change of languages.
2.3.3.1 Age
Habib (2005) argues that the older generation use different forms of language than the younger people who have been born and raised in the city or have moved to the city at a very young age. With age factor, the language alters new forms which can later influence lexical change in a target language. Most of the researchers reveal that age is one of the factors that can influence lexical change specifically in village areas.
2.3.3.2 The Influence of Marriage
Intermarriage is also one of the factors which influence language change. According to Stephen (2012), some Sukuma have been forced to use Kiswahili after they have married the partners of different tribes: the situation that makes large part of home conversation to be conducted in Swahili to facilitate communication with their
16 children. He cements that, their children are less or not familiar with Sukuma lexicon.
2.3.3.3 Education
According to Nagy (2010), literacy and orthography are among the aspects of lexical change. The influence of the written form has clearly been demonstrated in the case of adaptation, the spelling pronunciation sfoʃin in the Middle Dutch as well as in the case of integration of the ps-sequence. The existence has influenced new forms of lexical items that did not exist. Therefore, speakers of the lowest social level seem to be more familiar with types of words related to rural environment than those with higher status.
2.3.3.4 Influence of Technology
Barber (1993) argues that, new scientific discoveries and the advance of knowledge generally can lead to lexical transformation. Myers-Scotton (2006) also states that, in German for example when the telephone was invented, they called it fernprecher but today they call it telephone although they still refer fernprecher for long call.
2.3.3.5 Sex Influence
The relationship between sexes has also been an influence of language change. In the old ages, men were considered innovators of language change and introducers of new words to the lexicon (Jespersen, 1992). Haeri (1996) points out that where the newer and more recent forms emerge as variants of the older forms, women use this non-standard form more than men do. Since women talk to children more than the men do, they affect linguistic development of their children, and hence, the acceptance of the high-status language forms.
17 2.3.3.6 The Contribution of Immigrants
Myers- Scotton (2006) argues that, under the British colonialism in Kenya, for expatriates living there, an English word journey became safari. Today safari is well used by any tourist. The reason for usage may be just to cultivate a sense of awareness of the local culture. Chambers (2001) argues that, when a common second language is learned by immigrants or virtue of the introduction of a new language to a resident population, they often find themselves introducing second language lexical items into conversation with the fellow bilinguals in their original first language.
2.3.3.7 The Influence of Mass Media or Institutions
Across sociolinguistics, media influence on language seems to be limited to specific features especially lexicon, discourse and pragmatics which are also available for over comment (Milroy and Milroy (1999). Myers- Scotton (2006) argues that, when
Turkey became independent of the Ottoman Dynasty in the 1920s under the umbrella of language reformation, there were establishment of Turkish society for purification of the language which replaced the Arabic words with Turkish base words. Due to this situation a number of Arabic words were replaced with their
Western equivalents hence language society lost its semi-official status.
2.4 Research Gap
The literature reviewed revealed that linguistic factors such as phonology, morphology and semantics, and non-linguistic factors such as language contact, status, competition, intermarriages and others are the accelerating factors for lexical change especially to ethnic languages. Moreover, from the above discussion, literature revealed that language contact is one of the leading factors for lexical
18 change. It is through this contact that many languages especially ethnic languages face great pressure from the prestigious languages, a situation that forces them to fall under borrowing, shift and replacement. Hardly, however, arguments were put forward in favour of a language itself undergoing lexical change to be the source of lexical change of its own lexical items. Therefore, this knowledge from literature review made this study come up with new standpoint about language change specifically in Matengo language which examined the extent to which this language has undergone change basing on linguistic and non-linguistic factors that influence lexical change.
2.5 Chapter Summary
This chapter presented the theoretical framework which guided the study. It also reviewed various literatures as presented by other scholars on lexical change. Lastly, the chapter focused on identifying the research gap. The next chapter describes research methodology.
19 CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.1 Introduction
This section presents the research methodology that was used in collecting data for this study. It covers the research approach, research design, location of the study, target population, sampling techniques and sample size. It also describes data analysis techniques, research ethics and pilot study. Furthermore, the chapter illustrates data collection methods and procedures, and it determines validity and reliability of the study.
3.2 Research Approach
The selection of a research approach is usually based on the nature of the research problem, the researcher‟s personal experiences and the audience for the study
(Parahoo, 2003). Both qualitative and quantitative approaches were used in the study.
3.2.1 Qualitative Research Approach
This is a type of scientific research which consists of an investigation used to understand a given research problem or topic from the perspectives of the local population it involves (Denzin & Linconlin, 2000). The qualitative research approach was considered appropriate to this study because it gave room for the participants to express their views, experiences, feelings and ideas on Matengo lexical change. The data were particularly needed to assess opinions and feelings on the extent of Matengo lexical change, linguistic and non-linguistics factors for
Matengo lexical change. Therefore, it is an important approach for this study as it provides fundamental answers to the set of fundamental research questions. The
20 social phenomenon normally can be understood better through the social friendly approaches including studying such phenomenon in the right natural context.
3.2.1 Quantitative Research Approach
According to Kothari (2004), quantitative approach, as the name implies, is numerical in nature, and depending on the type of data, they can be analyzed using various mathematical and statistical procedures. This helps to understand better the degree or magnitudes of respondents‟ agreement or disagreement and, therefore, it facilitates interpretation of the studied behaviour (Mtahabwa, 2007). Quantitative research approach was also deemed suitable for assessing speakers‟ attitudes towards their language and language use across different domains.
3.3 Research Design
Research design implies research planning (Wiid & Diggines, 2009). A research design is the framework or plan used for a study. It details the procedures necessary for obtaining the information needed to structure or solve the problem. Burns and
Bush (2010) explain that the different types of research can be classified within three broad categories: exploratory research designs where the collection of information is in an unstructured and informal manner, descriptive research designs which address the “who, what, when, where and how” questions of a study and causal
(experimental) research designs which answer the question “why?” (Malhotra,
2010). The mixed research design was employed where the researcher used exploratory, descriptive and survey to obtain natural data because the study covered different places and different people some of whom are literate and others illiterate.
21 3.4 Location of the Study
The quality of information to be generated by the study is determined by selection of the area where the data are to be obtained (Kothari, 2004). For that case, Hagati valley and highlands were purposely selected because these are the places in which the language is spoken.
3.5 Target Population
A population is conceptualized as the total collection of elements about which we wish to make some inferences where a sample consists of some of the elements in a population we wish to make conclusions about the entire population (Babbie, 2008).
The target population of this study was all Matengo native speakers from Mbinga district. However, due to the limited time and resources, a sample was selected.
3.6 Sample Size
The sample of 60 respondents was selected of which the selection considered the indigenous as it has been explained in the scope. Thirty (30) respondents were selected from Matengo of Hagati valley and thirty (30) from Hagati highlands, adhering on the naturalness of the speaker from the study area. This was done in order to ensure the originality of data that suited the focus of the study. In adhering to age factor, elders of 60 and above were consulted to give data on lexical loss, lexical replacement and non-linguistic factors for lexical change. Mid age group of
35 – 59 were consulted on assumption that they have the balance of the past and the present factors while young were consulted in regards of science and technological advancement they encounter with.
22 Table 1: Sampling Technique and Sample Size that was Used in this Study
Age of the Sample Sampling technique Percentage Respondents 18 – 34 10 Random 33.3% 10 purposive 35 – 59 10 Purposive 33.3% 10 Random 60+ 10 Purposive 33.3% 10 Random Total 60 100%
3.7 Sampling Techniques
The researcher used two sampling techniques namely purposive and random sampling to obtain sample that satisfied the requirements of the specific objectives.
3.7.1 Purposive Sampling
Purposive sampling is referred to the judgment of sample elements regarded to be typical or representative and are chosen from the population (Cohen, et al 2008).
Purposive sampling was used to select Mbinga district to be the specific area in
Ruvuma region for this research to take place. Purposive sampling was also used to select Kipapa and Litembo wards among the wards that makeup Mbinga District.
Similarly, the four villages Kitumbi, Kipapa, kindimba and Mbuji were selected using purposive sampling. The selection observed the naturalness of the informants because the purpose was to obtain the natural data from the natives in which 30 informants were involved and among them 20 were young and mid age group (five from each village) and 10 were elders (minimum 2 informants were selected from each village). This sampling technique was applied basing on gender, age and status.
23 3.7.2 Random Sampling
Random sampling from a finite population refers to that method of sample selection which gives each possible sample combination an equal probability of being picked up and each item in the entire population has an equal chance of being included in the sample (Kothari 2004). In this study, random sampling was used to select 20 informants from young and mid age group (five from each village) and 10 elders
(minimum of 2 respondents from each village) in order to provide lexical items to represent the entire targeted population for the study.
3.8 Methods of Data Collection
This study employed three methods of data collection. These are sociolinguistic interviews, interviews and questionnaire. These were used in order to maintain the reliability and validity of the data to be collected because the study involved different people from different places and age groups.
3.8.1 Sociolinguistic Interview
In this technique, the target was six (6) individuals from a socially stratified random sample consisting of male and female speakers from two age groups and three social classes (education, occupation and income). The sociolinguistic interview aimed at eliciting linguistic data in different speech contexts. It comprised an informal part
(consisting of free conversations) for eliciting vernacular or local use. For example, the researcher initiated a topic that involved 4 men and 2 girls by posing question about sports and games as it raised the attention of the people. The researcher also posed distressing life events that helped in arriving at the desired more natural vernacular speaking mode of which the researcher identified the linguistic factors of lexical change. Tape recorder and note book were used to record and note the
24 conversations respectively. Thus, the conversations were later retrieved in order to get the targeted data. Furthermore, these data were interpreted qualitatively by providing detailed explanation about the findings obtained from sociolinguistic interviews.
3.8.2 Interview
An interview is an exchange of views between two or more people on a topic of mutual interest basically of human interaction for knowledge production and emphasizes on the research data (Kvale, 1996). Both open and closed ended questions were used to get a complete and detailed understanding of the issue. Under this view, 10 informants were consulted where 6 elders were involved in interview to examine the words which now days are no longer in use and 4 were mid age group and young who also provided the vocabularies which are commonly used and whether they have been borrowed or not. The list of lexical items considered to have changed and those that are in the process to change were grouped depending on the category they belong, they were later interpreted qualitatively by providing detailed explanation about the findings obtained from the semi structured interview. The semi-structured interview was used because it allowed flexibility of sequence in discussion as Cohen et al. (2008) argue.
3.8.3 Questionnaires
Kothari (2004) states that a questionnaire consists of a number of questions printed or typed in a definite order on a form or set of forms. In this study, questionnaire was constructed and 44 informants were consulted to fill the questionnaires provided to them. Seven questions were administered in which question one was designed to exploit personal information that were analyzed quantitatively through computer
25 using Microsoft Excel. The other six questions were constructed to collect data about Matengo lexical change.
The questionnaire was suitable to both literates and illiterates. The questionnaires were used to gather personal information, attitudes and lexical changes in different selected domains. For literate, the researcher distributed the questionnaires to the respondents so that they read and understood the questions and wrote down their responses in the space provided in the questionnaire. For non-literate, the researcher read the questions for them and wrote down the answers provided.
3.9 Data Analysis Techniques
In order to get data that abide to the specific objectives, the researcher used interview guiding questions and questionnaires (see appendices I, II and III). The following is the interpretation on how every tool was used and how analysis was conducted.
3.9.1 Interview Guiding Questions
The interview guiding questions were of two types: semi- structured interview and sociolinguistic interview guiding questions. The semi-structured interview guiding questions were based on the four domains which are home, farming, livestock keeping and commercial domain of which the first domain had two 2 questions and the other three domains had three questions each. Also three questions were specifically to collect data concerning language contact. The questions were simple and were constructed considering the nature of the informants as many of them are village dwellers (see appendix I).
The guiding questions on sociolinguistic interview comprised 4 questions basing on the four linguistic branches which are phonology, morphology, syntax and 26 semantics. The questions covered the issues of pronunciation, word formation, word categorization and word meaning in relation to lexical change in Matengo language
(see appendix III).
Audio recorder was used to record interview oral responses and natural data specifically that of pronunciation during sociolinguistic interview. Using this tool was helpful since the researcher was able to record and use much of the information given because the recorded information could be replayed to listen whenever needed. Notebook and pens were used to write down responses during interviews.
They were also useful in recording information during data analysis and data organization. Since the collected data from these two techniques were conversational in nature, data analysis from sociolinguistic interview was fingered by transcribing them and establishing the theme in the form of statements and the data from interviews were grouped depending on the category they belong for presentation.
The descriptions and justifications were given basing on the research objectives by ensuring that the research questions are answered to meet the goal of the study.
3.9.2 Questionnaire Guiding Questions
Questionnaire guiding questions had a total of seven questions. Question one was used to gather demographic information and the other questions were used to examine the attitudes and lexical changes in different selected domains in Matengo language and lastly the linguistic and non-linguistic data for language change (see appendix II).
27 3.9.3 Data Analysis and Presentation
Data from each method (interview and questionnaires) were grouped basing on the contents, research objectives and questions. The data required were analyzed and presented both qualitatively and quantitatively using explanation and computer respectively. To enrich and justify the explanation, direct quotations from the informants were presented. Information from interview was combined with that from questionnaires in order to cross check and complete the objectives and research questions.
3.10 Research Ethics
Ethics has been defined as a matter of principled sensitivity to the rights of others, and that while truth is good: respect for human dignity is better (Cavan, 1977).
Before leaving for data collection in the field, the researcher inquired a permission letter from the Director of Postgraduate Studies of Dodoma University that was addressed to the Executive Director, Mbinga district. The Ward Officers also authorized the study to be conducted in their respective wards and villages.
The permit consent allowed the researcher to go for the data collection process. In this study, the data storage, tapes and transcripts were not labelled in the way that would compromise anonymity and confidentiality of the data provided by the participants. Before data collection, participants were informed about the purpose of the study, how the data could be used and the way participants would participate.
The researcher assured secrecy of the information that was provided with their desire and readiness to be recorded. Also participants‟ freedom to participate was observed to involve or withdraw from the interview session.
28 Moreover, during the analysis and presentation of data, the participants were given artificial names so as to respond to anonymity and confidentiality of the participants.
Anonymity and confidentiality of participants is central to ethical practice in social research whereby researchers‟ aim to ensure participants that efforts are made to ensure the collected data cannot be traced back to them by concealing their identities in presentations, analysis and reports (Wiles and Crow, 2018).
3.11 Pilot Study
A pilot study was essential for the researcher to measure the applicability, usefulness and relevance of the research design, research tools and methods for data collection.
The pilot study was conducted in Kipapa village, Mbinga district. It used 5 female and 5 males of different age groups in order to assess the validity and reliability of the research tools. The tools were then adjusted accordingly.
3.12 Validity and Reliability of the Findings
Validity and reliability are important concepts in research. Validity and reliability were considered in this study in order to check the consistency and correctness of the information received from the respondents.
3.12.1 Validity
Gliner and Morgan (2000) define validity as the extent to which a test measures what it is supposed to measure. This implies that, validity is the accuracy of the measurement. Validity determines whether the research measures what it intends to measure or how truthful the research results are.
In this study, validity was insured by combining these: the study used three methods of data collection which are interview, sociolinguistic interview and questionnaire.
These methods helped to ensure the credibility of the data gathered since the 29 weaknesses inherent in one method or source of data was the offset by the strengths of the other.
3.11.2 Reliability
Reliability is the degree to which an assessment tool(s) produces stable and consistent results. It addresses the overall consistency of the research measures
(Gliner and Morgan, 2000). Also, according to Creswell (2003), reliability entails the consistency of the results in different time and by different researchers.
To insure reliability of the findings, the instruments such as questionnaire were pretested before the study. The data were collected from different age groups like elders and youths. People from different social groups including educated, farmers and businessmen were involved to ensure accuracy.
3.13 Chapter Summary
This chapter presented the research methodology that was used in collection of data. The study used mixed research approaches namely: qualitative and quantitative approach. Sociolinguistic interviews, semi-structured interview and questionnaire were outlined as the data collection methods. The chapter also highlighted the location of the study, sampling techniques, sample size, target population, data analysis techniques, research ethics, validity and reliability of the study. The next chapter will deal with presentation of the findings.
30 CHAPTER FOUR
PRESENTATION OF THE FINDINGS
4.1 Introduction
This chapter covers presentation and analysis of data. The chapter is organized according to the three objectives that guided the study. The objectives were to explore the extent to which the Matengo lexical items have undergone numerous changes, to examine the linguistic factors contributing to Matengo lexical change at
Mbinga district and to describe non-linguistic factors behind Matengo lexical change. The study was carried in rural areas using sociolinguistic interviews, semi- structured interviews and questionnaires. The study focused on the informants who were in the age of 18 – 34, 35 – 59 and 60 +. The qualitative data obtained were analyzed descriptively and the quantitative data were analyzed using Microsoft
Excel programme.
The study was carried out in Maguu (Hagati valley) and Litembo (Hagati highland).
It is commonly understood that the Livingstone Mountains that separate the
Wahagati from Valley and those of highland has been one among the factors that minimizes the contact between them. According to Msanjila (1999), distance minimizes language contact and thus enables respective community to maintain the
ECL. This means that, the situation enables the respective community to diminish the force of lexical change. However, this is opposite in Matengo because the aspect that was expected to solve the problem of language change has been a factor that accelerates it.
31 4.2 Respondents’ Background Information
This study employed a total of 60 informants. Among them, 44 respondents were involved in questionnaires, 6 respondents were involved in social linguistic interviews and 10 respondents were involved in semi-structured interviews.
4.2.1 Respondents’ Demographic Information
The first part in the questionnaire required the informants to fill their demographic information such as age group, gender, occupation and education levels. Such information is presented below:
4.2.1.1 Respondents’ Age Group and Gender
Age group and gender of the respondents who filled questionnaire are presented in
Table 2 below:
Table 2: Respondents’ Age Group and Gender
Age Male Female Total N % N % n % 18 – 34 5 23 8 36 13 30 35 – 59 13 59 10 46 23 52 60 + 4 18 4 18 8 18 Total 22 100 22 100 44 100
Source: Field Data (2018)
Table 2 above indicates that 13 respondents (30%) were in the age group of 18 and
34 years. Additionally, 23 informants (52%) were in the age group of 35 – 59 years while 8 participants (18%) ranged between the age group of 60 and above years.
Based on the data presented in Table 02, the selected age groups represent people of different age groups within the community under the study such as young, the middle age group and old age group. This helped to increase the validity of data. 32 The data in Table 02 also show the distribution of the respondents based on gender.
The statistics reveal that 5 (23%) respondents are males while 8 (36%) are females in the age group of 18 and 34 years old. Moreover, the data depict that 13 informants
(59%) are males whereas 10 (46%) are females in the group aged 35 – 59 years old.
Furthermore, the Table indicates that 4 (18%) participants are males whereby 8
(18%) are females in the age group of 60 + years old.
4.2.1.2 Respondents’ Occupation
The respondents who attempted the questionnaires were grouped as farmers, businessmen, civil servants and students.
Table 3: Respondents’ Occupation
Gender Farmers Civil servants Business men Students Total N % N % N % N % N Male 18 51 01 20 02 100 01 50 22 Female 17 49 04 80 00 00 01 50 22 Total 35 100 05 100 02 100 02 100 44
Source: Field Data (2018)
The statistics in Table 03 show respondents‟ occupations according to gender. The data depict that 18 (51%) male respondents and 17 (49%) female respondents were farmers. The data also reveals that 02 (50%) male informants and 00 (00%) females were businessmen. Moreover, the statistics in Table 03 indicates that 01 (20%) male participant and 04 (80%) females were civil servants. Furthermore, the statistics also reveal that 01(50%) male respondent and 01 (50%) female respondent were students. Therefore, people from different occupations in the community concerned were included in the Table 03 about respondents‟ occupations. This helped to increase the validity of the findings. 33 4.2.1.3 Respondents’ Education Level
The respondents indicated different levels of education such primary, secondary, certificate and University as depicted in Figure 1:
Figure 1: Respondents’ Education Level
Education Level 16 16 14
12 10 10 18 - 34 7 8 35 - 59 6 4 60 + 3 4 2 2 1 1 0 Primary Secondary Certificate University
Source: Field Data (2018)
The data in Figure 1 show respondents‟ education levels according to informants‟ age group and gender. The statistics reveals that 04 male respondents (12%) and 06 females (18%) attended primary education in the age group of 18 and 34 years old.
In the same age group, 01 male informant (20%) attended secondary education.
Moreover, 02 female participants (33%) had certificate education in the group aged
18-34 years old. The data in Graph 01 also indicate that 09 male respondents (27%) and 07 females 22% attained primary education level in the group of 35 and 59 years old. In the same age group, 03 male informants (60%) attended secondary education.
In the same age group, 01 male informant (17%) and 03 female respondents (50%) attended certificate education.
34 Furthermore, the statistics in Figure 01 show that 03 male participants (09%) and 04 females (12%) attained primary education in the age group of 60 + years old.
Additionally, 01 female informant (20%) attended secondary education. However, none of the participants in the Graph 01 attended the university education level.
4.2.2 Other Respondents’ Background Information
The study also involved 10 informants in interview. The interviewees were selected from four villages, which are Kipapa, Kitumbi, Mbuji and Kindimba. Among them,
2 interviewees were in the age group of 18 to 34 years, 2 interviewees were in the age range of 35 – 59 years and 6 interviewees were in the age of 64+ years. The interviewees were given fictitious names in order to abide to the code of conducts. In this view, participants were assured of anonymity for their names. Therefore, the names used in this study are not real names of participants instead letters were used to present the informants conversation.
The last group was of six 6 informants who were involved in a sociolinguistic interviews. The researcher exposed them to some key topics to discuss and all were from Kitumbi village, and they were in different age groups and gender. To ensure anonymity, artificial names were also used to make presentation of their conversations.
4.3 The Extent of Matengo Lexical Change
The first objective of the study was to explore the extent to which Matengo lexical items have undergone change. The methods of data collection were questionnaire that were applied to 44 sampled informants and the semi-structured interviews that were specifically to the 10 elders. The data for both methods are presented as follows:
35 4.3.1 Matengo Lexical Change in General
Lexical items which carry notions are expressed in different objects in the language.
It is through such items where language users share common understanding in conversations. Linguistically, the term is more vital when it comes to the point of lexical change. The researcher administered a list of 14 words to the informants that demanded each respondent to state if the vocabularies are still existing or not. This was done without considering the specific domain of language use. Instead, they provided their data basing on general overview from all domains. The summary of the findings is presented in the Figure 2:
Figure 2: Frequency of Lexical Change in Word List
Frequency of Lexical Change in Word List 45 40 95.5% 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 4.5% Yes No
The Figure 2 above show that out of 44 informants who attempted the questionnaires, 42 (95.5%) indicated that these lexical items have changed and 2
(4.5%) said the items have not changed.
These data were confirmed by 8 (80%) people out of 10 who were involved in semi- structured interview by accepting that, the lexical items in Matengo language have changed.
36 In addition, the informants were requested to make an addition of the words which they thought that have undergone change basing on their experiences. A total of 63 lexical were collected. Out of these lexical items 18 (28.6%) were considered to be replaced or lost. Whereas, 14 (22.2%) were reported to be maintained in general including in some important environments of language use such as home, church, mosques, schools, markets, farms and industries. These items were grouped together basing on their categories as follows:
4.3.1.1 Lexical Replacement in Matengo Language
Under this context, it is strange to find people using borrowed lexical items from other languages while, in actual sense, the speech community already has its own inventory. The researcher asked the respondents‟ opinions, and it was revealed that there is a number of words which are replaced by the new words from other languages. The findings show that nouns are the most replaced words compared to other categories of words such as verbs, adjectives and adverbs. The results show that 18 lexical items were collected. Out of these items, 10 (55.6%) items have been replaced of which 8 (44.5%) items are nouns while 2 (11.1%) are verbs. The Table
4.1 presents the findings on lexical replacement as follows:
37 Table 4.1: Matengo Lexical Replacement
S/N Original Item Replacement Source Gloss 1 Ligwanda Ingobu (N) Ingobu Cloth (Kimanda) 2. Ling‟oi Likondoo (N) Kondoo (Swahili) Sheep 3. Lisulubali Lisuluwali (N) Suruwali Trouser (Swahili) 4 Kolaboi Chibatali (N) Kibatari (Swahili) small oil lamp 5 Nhasa Kaka (N) Kaka (Swahili) Brother 6 Ndombu Dada (N) Dada (Swahili) Sister 7 Kuhotola Kutobola (V) Kutoboa to bore (Swahili) 8 Kupaaha Kukosela (V) Kukosea (Swahili) to be wrong 9 Ntonda Inzala (N) Injala (Kingoni) Hunger 10 Hekutuka Upipu (N) Uvivu (Kiswahili) Laziness
Source: Field Data (2018)
4.3.1.2 Lexical Loss in Matengo Language
All human languages are productive in the sense that, their speakers are able to produce new words and phrases to fulfil the demand of communication (Pole, 1999).
Although language produces new lexical items, others get lost. The results indicate that out of 20 lexical items that were collected, 8 (40%) lexical items have been ignored to be used in ordinary conversation. Among these items, 6 (30%) are nouns,
1(5%) is adjective and 1 (5%) lexical item is verb. To clear the doubt, the researcher made an interview by involving 6 elders basing on their experiences to mention the lexical items that are hardly used or they have totally been lost at the expense of technological changes or language contact. The researcher compiled the list for presentation as it is shown in Table 4.2:
38 Table 4.2: The List of Lexical Loss in Matengo
S/N Lexical Item Description Current item Description 1. Chimbwitila To become more Kunenapana To become more (Adj) fat fat 2. Chipongweni The traditional Beseni Basin (N) basket made of grass 3. Jegaja (V) To say something Pwaga To say something 4. Ndendi (N) Traditional bark Ingobu Clothes clothes 5. Chihulu (N) A big traditional Undundu Modern clay pot clay pot 6 Komisi (N) A traditional cup Chikombi A modern cup made up of iron made from any sheets materials eg. Iron sheets, plastic etc. 7 Lwala (N) A special stone Litoli A motor made of used instead of woods motor to pound millet 8 Luhaji (N) A traditional pot Bakuli A bowl that was used instead of a bowl
Source: Field Data (2018)
4.3.1.3 Lexical Maintenance in Matengo
Lexical maintenance occurs when the original lexical items become rigid to adopt changes. This process happens when such type of lexical items are frequently used or have dominated for a long time in communication within that society. Regardless of the fact that Matengo language has many replacements in its lexical circulation, some lexical items have maintained their original form of usage. The researcher
39 requested the respondents to mention the lexical items that have been maintained despite the pressures that have influenced changes to some lexical items. The findings revealed that, out of 25 collected lexical items, 14 (56%) lexical items were revealed to have been maintained and all of them are nouns. The table 4.3 shows the list of these items.
Table 4.3: Lexical Maintenance in Matengo Language
S/N Lexical Item Gloss Semantic Arena 1 Mwaitwabali (N) A greeting commonly offered by Greetings old people to their neighbours. Nzumuka (N) A greeting used during the morning or people who haven‟t met for a long time. Mwanjelo (N) A greeting used when those people meet for the second time in a day. 2 Chi/ku-golu (N) Leg Body parts Chi/Ku-boku (N) Hand Imbulu (N) Nose Likutu (N) Ear Liho (N) Eye 3 Mbomba (N) Female Gender Mwanalomi (N) Male Reference 4 Kamwali (N) A female person who is ready /in Maturation the process of getting married. category Nkombu (N) A male person who is ready to marry. Mbujamundu (N) An old female person Hokomundu (N) An old male person
Source: Field Data (2018)
40 4.3.2 Matengo Lexical Change in Different Domains
The informants under domains of language use were requested to mention randomly the list of lexical items that have changed as a way to confirm the problem. Using semi-structured interview and questionnaire, the focus was centred on specific domains of language use. This was done in order to determine the extent of lexical change in different domains of language use. These domains include home, farming, livestock keeping and commercial domain. In each domain, the informants were requested to mention the lexical items that have been replaced and those which have been lost. The results revealed that out of 169 lexical items that were collected, 95
(56.2%) lexical items have been replaced or lost as presented below:
4.3.2.1 Matengo Lexical Change in Home Domain
The researcher paid attention to this domain because language is primarily used in home domain. The respondents were subjected to home environment in different spheres such as family relations, domestic utensils, clothing and shelter. The respondents were required to mention the lexical items that have been replaced or lost. A total of 51 lexical items were collected. The result revealed that 27 (52.9%) have been changed. The researcher compiled these lexical items and presents them basing on their category as it has been shown below: a) Lexical Replacement Used alongside Original Matengo Lexical Items
Expressing Family Relations in the Home Domain
It is common to find a certain community having a new way when expressing their family relations. Some of these relations are blood related and others are a bit far related. Through semi-structured interview and questionnaire, the study revealed that out of 15 lexical items that were collected, 7 (46.7%) lexical items which are nouns
41 have partially been replaced, and they are used alongside with original Matengo lexical items stating family relations. The results are presented in the Table 4.4 below:
Table 4.4: Lexical Replacement Used alongside Original Matengo Lexical
Items Expressing Family Relations
S/N Original Matengo Replacement Source Language Gloss Lexical Items 1. Hengo Atate Tate (Nyasa) Father 2. Nyongolo Amabo Mawo (Ngoni) Mother 3. Nhibinimundo Binamumundu Binamu (Kiswahili) Cousin 4 Mwipumundu Mjombamundu Mjomba (Kiswahili) Uncle 4. Mbeli Kaka nkolongu Kaka mkulungu Elder (Nyasa) brother 5. Nnung‟una Kaka nsoku Kaka nchoku (Nyasa) Young brother 6. Ndombu Dada Dada (Kiswahili) Sister 7. Nhasa Kaka Kaka (Kiswahili) Brother
Source: Field Data (2018) b) Lexical Replacement Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical
Items Expressing Clothing in the Home Domain
Attire is labelled differently depending on the category and sub-category they belong. In Matengo, foreign lexical items replaced some attire. With the help of semi-structured interviews and questionnaires, the findings revealed that, out of 10 lexical items that were collected related to clothing, 4 (40%) were reported to have been replaced completely. The list of these items is presented in the Table 4.5 as follows:
42 Table 4.5: Lexical Replacement Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical Items Expressing Clothing in Home Domain S/N Original Meaning Replacement Meaning Gloss item 1. Milendi Bark clothes Ingobu Modern Clothes used by clothes. ancestors. 2. Libushuti A heavy coat Gukoti Any upper Jacket worn during coat worn extreme cold. whether for fashion or not 3. Kadangilishi A tighten Sulubali Any trouser Trouser trouser bought from the shop not a used type of clothes 4 Lisambali A clipper Ndala Any clipper Clipper made of animal skins
Source: Field Data (2018) c) Lexical Replacement Used alongside Original Matengo Lexical Items
Expressing Attire in Home Domain
Centring on this subfield, the researcher collected lexical items which are commonly used along with original Matengo lexical items. The researcher found that there are fundamental cases of borrowing in Matengo covering clothing in home domain. Out of 15 original lexical items covering this aspect, 10 (66.7%) lexical items (which are nouns) were reported to be used along with replacement. The data are presented in
Table 4.6:
43 Table 4.6: Lexical Replacement Used alongside Original Matengo Lexical Items
Expressing Attire in Home Domain
S/N Original Matengo lexical Replacement Gloss/Description items 1. Likoti Lishati Shirt 2. Njeng‟enda Ibangili Bangles 3. Ndolosa Helena Earing 4. Lupeta Lupandi Apiece of lady‟s cotton wrap 5. Fulana Tisheti T-shirt 6. Ndula Sukusumenu Football shoes 7. Litelamusi Lilemimba Bailer 8. Ndangati Chitanda A traditional bed made of poles 9. Mandusa Litandiku Mattress made of grass 10 Mbali Sahane A traditional plate made of local un-corrugated iron materials
Source: Field Data (2018) d) Matengo Lexical Loss in Home Domain
Apart from lexical replacement in Matengo language, the researcher explored the possibility of existence of lexical items that have been lost in this domain. Semi- structured interview and questionnaire were used to explore the lexical items that are lost in the home domain. Out of 11 lexical items collected under this sub section, 6
(54.5%) of the lexical items were reported to have been lost and all are nouns. The researcher compiled them for presentation as it can be shown in the Table 4.7:
44 Table 4.7: Matengo Lexical Loss at Home Domain
S/N Lexical Items Description 1. Lijamanda Traditional object made of bamboo strings that were specifically for carrying cassava/flour during ceremony. 2. Komisi A big cup used to drink water that was made using un- corrugated iron materials. 3. Chilochi Traditional object that was made using grass used for drinking traditional alcohol. 4. Chineku/ A grass object specifically used to carry flour in a Kiheneku burial ceremony. 5. Ching‟olakatee A wooden object used to lock the door inside the room 6. Chikorogu A big cray pot that was used for fermenting local alcohol
Source: Field Data (2018)
4.3.2.2 Matengo Lexical Change in the Farming Domain
With guided questions, the respondents were asked to provide lexical items that have been replaced or lost in the field of farming. The findings revealed that out of 34 lexical items, 20 (58.8%) lexical items have changed. The researcher compiled and presents the findings as follows: a) Lexical Replacement Used alongside Original Matengo Lexical Items in the
Farming Domain
Farming domain is one of the domains that have been influenced with lexical change. Through semi-structured interview and questionnaire, the researcher collected the lexical items that have replaced original Matengo lexical items in the farming domain. The findings revealed that out of 10 collected items, 5 (50%)
45 Matengo lexical items in farming activities have been replaced with the new vocabularies. The researcher compiled these items as shown in the Table 4.8 below:
Table 4.8: Lexical Replacements Used in alongside Matengo Lexical Items in
the Farming Domain
S/N Original Replacement Source of Gloss Matengo Replacement Lexical item 1. Kuchesa Kufyeeka Kufyeka (Swahili) To slash 2. Makaba/Ilasi Mbapata Mbatata (Swahili) Irish potatoes 3. Likombo Lijela Liyela (Ngoni) Hoe 4. Lipengu Lishoka Shoka (Swahili) Axe 5. Mbopu Njese Nyengu (Kimpoto) A traditional tool used to cut grass/ bush
Source: Field Data (2018) b) Lexical Replacement Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical
Items in the Farming Domain
In this subfield, the researcher inquired lexical items that have been replaced through borrowing. The researcher used semi-structured interview and questionnaire and the results revealed that out of 17 lexical items, there are 7 (41.2%) loanwords which have absolutely replaced original Matengo lexical items in farming domain and all of them are nouns. Examples of these lexical items are presented in Table 4.9:
46 Table 4.9: Lexical Replacement Used in the Absence of Original Matengo
Lexical Items in the Farming Domain
S/N Replacement Source Original Matengo Gloss Language Lexical Items 1 Malabi Malabi Mahoja Groundnuts (Kinyasa) 2. Manogamasi Manoga Malanda Very sweet fruits (Ngoni) with hard crust and purple colour when ripe. 3. Ndipu Ndipu (Ngoni) Ndemee Non-terrace farming 4. Milaba Miraba Mitombee Terracing (Swahili) 5. Ngondi Ngondi (Ngoni) Ingobo Beans found in the bush 6. Bwoga Uyoga Nhombanandela Mushroom 7. Njegeli Njegere Ndambai Peas (Kiswahili)
Source: Field Data (2018) c) Matengo Lexical Loss in the Farming Domain
Having explored the list of lexical items that have been substituted, the researcher went further to determine the possibility of having lexical items which have been lost in the farming domain. To access such lexical items, the researcher employed semi-structured interview and questionnaire among Matengo speakers. The findings revealed that, out of 17 collected lexical items 8 (47.1%) items are no longer used in speech. These items are presented in Table 4.10:
47 Table 4.10: Matengo Lexical Loss in the Farming Domain Aspect Lexical Item Modern Description Involved concept Potato variety Mbapata ya Mbapata ya Sweet potato with yellow winu lishe crust and red outside. Mbapata ihuu Sweet potato whose crust and Mbapata yenei cover is white. Bananas Kahenza Katoli A type of banana whose tree is very short. Gamatengu Matochi genei A type of banana when ripe its crust becomes yellow. Chimbembetu Kasukari A type of banana which is very sweet compared to others. Cassava Gomee Mahimu A cassava which is sour. Cassava affected with a Mangunguta Magonzu certain kind of disease. A type of cassava which is Malepli Edisa very bitter and not suitable for cooking.
Source: Field Data (2018)
4.3.2.3 Matengo Lexical Change in Livestock Keeping
Livestock keeping is one of the activities carried out in Mbinga. The types of animals that are kept in big numbers are cattle, goats and sheep. Since 1990s, pigs are also kept in low percentage. The number of people who engage in animal husbandry is about 40 percent of the whole Matengo population. Many of them engage in animal keeping for consumption and money to sustain their daily lives as well get school fees for their children. The researcher was interested to know the lexical items that have been replaced with prior ideas that pastoralists are somehow rigid to change. The findings revealed a total of 40 Matengo lexical items and out of 48 these lexical items, 20 (50%) lexical items have changed. These items are presented below basing on their categories. a) Lexical Replacement Used together with Original Matengo Lexical Items in
Livestock Keeping Domain
This study discovered a number of lexical items borrowed from other languages that are currently used along with Matengo original lexical items. These languages include Swahili, Ngoni and Nyasa. Specifically, out of the 11 lexical items collected covering replacement from this domain, 7 (63.6%) lexical items were reported to be used together with the original lexical items. Among these items, 5 (45.4%) are nouns while 2 (18.2%) are verbs. The lexical items sampled to express such notion are presented in Table 4.11:
Table 4.11: Lexical Replacement Used together with Original Matengo Lexical
Items in Livestock Keeping Domain
S/N Original Replacement Source Gloss Matengo Item 1. Kulima Kusunga Kuchunga (Kiswahili) To graze animals 2. Kulongule Kubadilisa kubadilisha To change (Kiswahili) pasturing area 3. Ling‟oi Likondoo Kondoo (Kiswahili) Sheep 4. Chinou Inyama Nyama (Kiswahili) Meat 5. Mbunyali Pusi Pusi (Ngoni) Cat 6. Janakabwa Jimbwa Jibwa (Kinyasa) Dog 7. Lukongu Luhumba Luhumba (Kimanda) Flavorless
Source: Field Data (2018)
49 b) Replacements Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical Items in
Livestock Keeping Domain
By using semi structured interview and questionnaire, the researcher was interested to know the presence of replacements used in the absence of Matengo original lexical items. The data revealed that out of 14 lexical items that were collected, 5
(35.7%) lexical items are used in the absence of lexical items that were formerly known to speakers. Out of these lexical items, 3 (21.4%) are nouns and 2 (14.3%) are verbs as it is shown in Table 4.12 below:
Table 4. 12: Replacements Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical
Items in Livestock Keeping Domain
S/N Original Replacements Source Gloss Matengo Item 1 Koma Sinza (V) Chinja (Kiswahili) Slaughter 2 Lindoto Umutu (N) Umutu (Ngoni ) Head 3 Lusemba Undabu (N) Undabu (Matengo) Skin 4 Libeji Chisisi (N) Zizi (Kiswahili) Cowshed 5 Kusasu Kuhonza (V) Kuonja (Kiswahili) To taste
Source: Field Data (2018) c) Matengo Lexical Loss in Livestock Keeping Domain
By using semi-structured interview and questionnaire, the researcher collected lexical items related to lexical loss in livestock keeping domain. The respondents were asked to give the lexical items that they consider to have completely disappeared in Matengo language, and they do not have any existing lexical item that can express such kind of concept. In this aspect, it was revealed that out of 15 lexical items that were collected, 8 (53.3%) lexical items (which are nouns) do not exist any longer. These items are presented in Table 4.13: 50 Table 4.13 : Lexical Loss in Livestock Keeping Domain
S/N Lexical Item Lexical item in use Description 1. Junumela Njeli A red cow or goat 2. Juhundi Kijivu A gray cow or goat 3. Jichimbulimbuli Jangamanyelu A cow which has no horn 4. Limbele Ling‟ondoo A name given to a sheep that is big, fat and black in colour. 5. Maswea Masuja Meat which is left after being roasted to filter cooking oil from pigs. 6. Mangonza Mangosi A roasted skin of pig for food. 7. Nchombi Lipambani A mouse resembling rat that is used for food 8. Chibobo Chihalufu A smell produced by an aged he got.
Source: Field Work (2018)
4.3.2.4 Matengo Lexical Change in Commercial Domain
Like other activities, business is always regarded to be an important activity in some societies. In Matengo society, the basic commercial product is coffee, which is picked once a year especially in June and July and sold in October and November.
Other commodities are animals like cows, goats and pigs. These enable them to get money to afford school fees for their children and sustain their daily lives. Although
Matengo society is rarely engaging in trading activities, it has contacts with neighbouring societies who visit the area for trading purposes and for permanent settlements. Because of its specialty, commercial aspect has a great influence on people‟s contact because it involves more than one tribe when selling and buying process is taking place. It is this truth that necessitated special attention to assessment of lexical change in this domain. 51 In regard to this domain of language use, lexical change was revealed as it has been to other domains. The researcher interviewed 4 respondents, one from each village, who are specialized to this domain. This was done in order to obtain natural data as far as lexical items related to commercial domain is concerned. The findings show that 18 lexical items were avoided; instead, the replacements were used in place of original lexical items. The researcher compiled the list of such lexical items as presented in the following subsections: a) Lexical Replacement used together with Original Matengo Lexical Items in
Commercial Domain
Using semi-structured interviews and questionnaire, the researcher found that there were native lexical items in Matengo language used together with replacements expressing the same idea. Out of 12 lexical items that were collected, 8 (66.7%) lexical items were assured by respondents to have their counterparts from other languages, whereby, 5 (41.7%) lexical items are noun and 3 (25%) are verbs. The collected list is shown in Table 4.14 as follows:
52 Table 4.14: Lexical Replacement Used together with Original Matengo Lexical
Items in Commercial Domain
S/N Original Item Replacement Source Description 1. Kulomba Kuheme Kuhemea To buy (Kiswahili) 2. Kulombesa Kuhemalesa Kuhemea To sell (Kiswahili) 3. Magoma Masomba Masomba Money given in (Matengo) exchange of coffee before it has ripened. 4. Lupija Pesa Fedha (Kiswahili) Money 5. Jabei Junduka Yadukani An expensive cloth (Kiswahili) 6. Ntombu Gwilombi Malombi (Kingoni) Traditional alcohol made of maize 7, Chipasu Gwamajabu Mayabu (Kinyasa) Traditional alcohol made of cassava 8. Ipolomba Wanzuchi Wanzuki Honey beer (Kiswahili)
Source: Field Data (2018) b) Lexical Replacements Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical
Items in Commercial Domain
In the past time, the commercial activities were operating in Matengo land using
Matengo language, but currently the situation has changed due to contact with outsiders. There are many original Matengo lexical items which are not in use as their concepts are expressed using foreign lexical items. Because of this aspect, the researcher was interested to collect information related to this domain which has totally been replaced in Matengo lexical items. In this aspect 10 lexical items were collected. Out of these lexical items 4 (40%) original Matengo items were reported 53 to have been totally replaced by borrowed lexical items, and among them, 3 (30%) are nouns and 1 (10%) is an adverb. The collected items in this part are presented in
Table 4.15:
Table 4.15: Lexical Replacements Used in the Absence of Original Matengo
Lexical Items in Commercial Domain
Original Item Replacement Source Description Ungangu Mpeli Mpili (Ngoni) Poor Kusa Machimbu Machimbo (Ngoni) Harvesting period Kulangu Behi Bei (Kiswahili) Cost Kulisoku Kumnada Mnadani (Kiswahili) To the market
Source: Field Work (2018) c) Matengo Lexical Loss in Commercial Domain
Lexical loss is a situation in which certain words are no longer used in a particular speech community, and there is no replacement for the extinct items (Ruimy, 2003) cited from Saussure 1916). Lexical loss has been observed differently in different language families of the world. With the use of semi-structured interview and questionnaire, the researcher explored lexical items that have been lost under this domain, and it was revealed that, 6 (50%) out of 12 collected lexical items have been lost and all are nouns. These lexical items are presented in Table 4.16:
54 Table 4.16: Matengo Lexical Loss in Commercial Domain
S/N Lexical Item Description 1. Kindandali A four legged basket made from bamboo poles used for fermenting local alcohol 2. Sumuni One shilling 3. Sendi Tanzanian cent 4. Ubembi Price negotiation 5. Chikapu Ten shillings 6. Linjengalima Coin
Source: Field Data (2018)
Generally, the findings under this objective revealed that there is a good number of lexical items that have changed (those under replacements and lost). The lexical items noted to experience this situation in Matengo language are nouns, verbs and adjectives. The approach used to capture these findings was to have a survey of several lexical items subjected to changes, and it was discovered that, Matengo lexical change in Mbinga district is high.
4.4 Linguistic Factors for Matengo Lexical Change
The second objective was to examine the linguistic factors responsible for Matengo lexical change. To determine the factors, the researcher employed two methods of data collection: sociolinguistic interview and semi-structured interview. A total of 45 lexical items were collected under this aspect. Out of these items, 22 (48.9%) were revealed to have been changed. The responses were presented basing on their category as follows:
4.4.1 The Nature of Matengo Language
Through sociolinguistic interview, the researcher examined the nature of Matengo language (phonology and lexical specification) and semi-structured interview 55 (morphology and semantics) to assess whether they have contributed to the lexical change. Before drawing the conclusion, the researcher drew hypothesis and tested it with data so as to make justification adhering on the objective.
4.4.1.1 Phonological Factors
The researcher investigated the possibility of phonological influences in association with Matengo lexical change. Through sociolinguistic interview, the researcher initiated the topic on sports and games. The topic was on who will become the winner of the trophy of Vodacom premier league in 2018”. Under this view, the researcher concentrated much on the production of sounds that the informants produced and hence the findings revealed that it is true that there are phonological factors which have influenced lexical change in Matengo language. The data that was obtained are presented basing on the talks of the informants by artificial names.
This is done in order to maintain code of conduct as it was agreed that their real names would not appear in this part of presentation. The researcher used alphabets to represent their names. The phonological differences are presented as follows:
Informant A: Yanga kabeti ngiti jubia nsindi gwenga, kwayo mbanganya mpaka ndendee kwele “Young African will again become the winner of the trophy; therefore, you might wait a lot”.
Informant C: Ahhaaah, mbaka tulendee kweli eheeeh! “Ah! We will wait a lot!”
Informant A: Kwani hoti miaka jilee mpaka sajenu nkula pe kwamihu. Chila mo ndendalali ngiti mpola pabwaka pena “how many years now have you been waiting and only observing? However patient you are, you will end up getting nothing”.
56 Informants E: Ngiti jujukua Simba likombi le lye lya hengo bako? Aji mbanji ntumba chinuno “Do you think Simba will win the trophy of your father? You better keep quiet”.
Informant C: Aheng’o baku! “Your father!”.
Informant B: Mbisani le pabwaka? “Are you arguing with nothing?”
Informant A: Lakin natu ngati imbwajichi yanga nshindi! Mwaka gwa nne mfululizu “but as I have said Yanga is the winner of the trophy! The fourth year consecutively”
4.4.1.2 Morphological Factor
Morphologically, a word may contain an element which can stand on its own (root).
It may be made up of more than one root (compound word) or it may be built with one or more elements that cannot stand by themselves (Pole, 1999). The researcher was interested to examine this aspect using semi-structured interview in order to know if the morphological structure of Matengo language has something to do with change of its lexicon. In this aspect, 15 lexical items were collected. Out of these items, 7 (46.7%) were reported to have been clipped due to their morphological length. The researcher compiled the list collected and presents them in Table 4.17 below:
57 Table 4.17: Lexical Items Clipped Due to their Morphological Length.
S/N Original Item Current Item in Use Word class Gloss 1. Binamumundu Binamu N Cousin 2. Undombumundu Undombu N Sister 3. Kinzepinzepi Kinzepi N A torn cloth 4. Kingandanganda Kinganda N Full of mud 5. Kulumbalila Kulumba N To stress on something 6. Kanakandabi Kandabi N Riddles 7. Namwahituhabali Habali N Greetings
Source: Field Data (2018)
The researcher went far to inquire the reasons of clipping those words presented in
Table 4.17 and the reasons were given. Consider the sampled expressions given by the respondents in favour of the clipped items.
Informant C: Manenu ganji hasa bana ba henu masoba apungusa sabu gajuku mda kugalogo je “the current generation shortens the words because they consume time to pronounce”.
Informant A: Maneno marefu yanapunguzwa kwa sababu ya uvivu wa kuyatamuka hasa vijana wa leo “Many long words are shortened because of the disturbances as they take time to pronounce especially to the young generation”.
Informant H: Maneno mengine yanakatishwa kwa sababu ya ladha pindi yanapotamkwa “Other words are clipped because of the taste during pronunciation”.
The quotations presented above show the justification as to why most lexical items especially names are shortened.
58 4.4.1.3 Semantic Change
Communication among language users is driven by the meaning it conveys. It is the ideas that guide the feedback or understanding of the message conveyed or displayed by the speaker. This is a linguistic branch which is used to share information among language users of the same language. In order for communication to take place in any community, there must be common understanding of the meaning displayed. By using semi- structured interview, the researcher was interested to know the role of semantics in lexical change. The main focus was on meaning extension and meaning reduction. a) Meaning Extension
Through semi-structured interview, the respondents were exposed to the scenario of theoretical information regarding how the name of an object is transformed from the previous to the new one following the addition of meaning. Having understood such information, they were requested to provide a list of lexical items that have changed due to the meaning extension in Matengo language. The findings of the study revealed that, out of 9 collected lexical items, 5 (55.5%) items have been subjected to change, and among them, 4 (44.4%) are nouns and 1 (11.1%) is verb. The sampled lexical items that were collected under this sub-section are presented in the
Table 4: 18 as follows:
59 Table 4.18: Lexical Items which have changed due to Meaning Expansion in
Matengo Language
S/N Original Original Meaning Replacement Current Meaning Lexical Item 1. Kanonga A small basket of Chinzatu A basket of 20 litres 10 litres which is and above which is made of bamboo. made of bamboo. 2. Litanga A door made of Ndyangu/ Any door made of grass or ribs. Mwangu any materials like wood, glass and steel. 3 Kulondo Diagnosis done by Kupema Diagnosis of one‟s Traditional healer health to both traditional healer and hospital. 4. Ndangu A special hummer Nyondu A hummer used in that was used to carpentry. make bark clothes 5. Pasengu A meeting place Pabala Any open space for that was special for meeting. a certain clan
Source: Field Data (2018)
The informants were further asked to comment on how meaning extension leads to the introduction of new lexical items. Some of the constructions to justify the notion are presented below:
Informant A: Swala linakuja kwamba iwapo maana itaongezwa kwenye kitu flani basi huleta vitu viwili tofauti “the issue is that if the meaning is added to something, then it will result to two different things”.
60 Informant D: Tunatofautisha maana ya kitu kwa lengo la kuepuka mkanganyiko “We differentiate the meaning of something to avoid ambiguity”.
Informant E: Ili kitu kilete maana lazima kiwe na maana inayotambulika “In order for something to bring sense, it should have its specific meaning”. b) Meaning Reduction
Through semi-structured interview, the researcher exposed the informants in the notion of meaning narrowing of the lexical items. Being knowledgeable with such information, they were asked to provide a list of lexical items that have changed due to meaning reduction of which the original Matengo words which had multiple meanings have now changed to single meaning. The findings revealed that due to semantic reduction, 4 (40%) out of 10 collected lexical items (which are nouns) have been subjected to changes, and they have been replaced by new lexical items basing on new meaning attached to them. The data to confirm the above notion has been sampled and presented in Table 4.19:
Table 4.19: Lexical Items which have Changed due to Semantic Reduction in Matengo Language S/N Original Item Original Meaning Replacement Current meaning 1. Mihambu All songs Nyembu Religious or mourning songs. 2. Nkongu All types of trees Umiti Only artificial tree (mast) 3. Mpamba All types of knives Chisu A knife with plastic or steel handle. 4. Hindu All things Yombu Kitchen utensils
Source: Field Data (2018)
61 The informants were further asked to comment on how meaning reduction leads to the implantation of new lexical items. Some of the responses to justify the notion are presented below:
Informant B: Henu masoba bandu kuepukana nu usumbufu nyongo apala ulahise “the current generations do not like difficulties to grasp the meaning of something. Instead, they prefer much simple lexical items”.
Informant D: Kutokana na maneno mengi ya Kimatengo kupungua kimaana, basi husabisha kusaulika kabisa “Most of the Matengo lexical items become totally abandoned because of the meaning reduction”.
4.4.1.4 The Influence of Language Contact
Language contact was noted to be a major cause of lexical change in Matengo. The findings of this study revealed that borrowing has greatly influenced lexical replacement in Matengo language. The original Matengo lexical items are endangered as they are waved away in regular language use by foreign lexical items conveying the same concepts. The results show that, out of 11 collected lexical items, 6 (54.5%) lexical items have been replaced and all of them are verbs.
However, there are some few cases where the borrowed lexical items have counterparts as shown in the Table 4.20 below:
62 Table 4.20: Lexical Items Borrowed to Replace the Original Matengo lexical Items S/N Original item Borrowed item Donor language Gloss 1. Kuhagula Kusagula (V) Kuchagua (Swahili) To choose 2. Kupendache Kutega (V) Kutega (Swahili) To trap 3. Kulondoka Kulopoka (V) Kuropoka (Swahili) To blather 4. Kuhonje Kusumbi (V) Kuchumbia (Swahili) To engage 5 Kulandi Kuhelasee (V) Kuelezea (Swahili) To explain 6 Kuloka Kusokota (V) Kusokota (Swahili) To twist
Source: Field Data (2018)
4.5 Non-linguistic Factors for Matengo Lexical Change
The third objective of the study intended to describe non-linguistic factors contributing to Matengo lexical change. It was presented in section 2.2.3 that the non- linguistic factors include age, education, attitude, the role of technology, gender/sex, intermarriage, migration and the influence of mass media. By using questionnaire, 44 respondents were asked to give their opinions regarding non- linguistic factors on lexical change. The findings of the study on the opinions of non-linguistic factors suggested that the decline of intergenerational transmission, intermarriages, education, decline of socialization gap, development of science and technology and migration are the factors for the lexical change of Matengo language. The frequencies of the respondents‟ responses basing on these factors are presented in Figure 3 as follows:
63 Figure 3: Frequencies of the Respondents’ Responses on None-linguistic Factors
Frequences of the Respondents' Responses on Non- Lingustic Factors
42 29 25 13 12 6
The data in the Figure 03 indicates that 13 (29.5%) respondents indicated intergenerational as one of the factors, 12 (27.3%) respondents indicated intermarriages, 6 (13.6%) respondents indicated socialization, 42 (95.5%) indicated education, 29 (65.9%) respondents indicated science and technology and 25 (56.8%) respondents indicated migration as non-linguistic factors for lexical change in
Matengo.
4.5.1 Decline of Intergenerational Transmission of Matengo Language
Intergenerational transmission of the language has been one of the important factors for language growth. If the language is limited to some groups of the people especially elders, then, we say the language is at the absolute stage of language death because it will lack new speakers such as young people to develop. The researcher used questionnaire to ask the opinions of the respondents if it is true that the decline of intergenerational transmission of the Matengo language has caused lexical change. From the Figure 03, the results show that, 13 (29.5%) respondents out of 44 noted this as one of the factors of lexical change in Matengo language. To
64 rationalize the results, 7 (70%) informants out of 10 who were interviewed said true to this factor. The findings were presented by noting some of the informants‟ responses conversations as follows:
Informant A: Henu masoba akivijana binji ngasealonje samatengo nyongo siswahili “Nowadays, most of the youths speak Kiswahili rather than Kimatengo”.
Informant B: Chitendu sukwa bola bana kulonje chiswahili safanya bagamanya maneno gachimatengu “The habit of exposing children to Swahili language makes them fail to understand Matengo lexical items”.
Informant C: Wazazi wa Kimatengo wanapenda sana kuwafundisha watoto wao lugha ya kiswahili na kutopenda kuongea lugha ya Kimatengo. Kitendo ambacho kinahatarisha kabisa lugha yetu “Currently most of the Matengo parents tend to teach their children Kiswahili language rather than Kimatengo. This situation threatens our language”.
4.5.2 The Influence of Intermarriage
Family is a basic unit of language; it is the base from which the language develops.
This is because parents share ideas, feelings, knowledge and habits with their children from now and then. The results in Figure 03 show that, 12 (27.3%) out of
44 informants indicated intermarriages as one of the factors that lead to the lexical change of Matengo language. To justify the results the researcher also interviewed
10 respondents. Out of them, 8 (80%) respondents said that, intermarriages have caused lexical change in Matengo. The researcher noted some of their conversation and presents them as follows:
Informant 1: Nagutogulichi na mundu jwanga kuchimanya samatengu gumanya henu hapa ngakuwesa kulonje samatengo “if
65 you have married to a non- Matengo speaker, it is impossible then to hold communication in Matengo language”.
Informant 2: Na echi hichi chipindi namu naunzukuwini mwanga kulonje luga jimu, mmanya bana lasima kulonje chiswahili “when it comes a time that you have married to a person whom you don‟t share the language, the children will naturally be forced to speak Kiswahili”.
4.5.3 Decline of Socialization Gap among the Youths and Elders
Language is a vehicle of communication and a tool that makes people to understand each other. It enables socialization among people through which they can share different opinions, feelings, attitudes and knowledge. The results from the Figure 03 show that, 6 (13.6%) informants out of 44 informants indicated decline of socialization gap among the youths and elders as one of the factors that cause lexical change in Matengo language. The researcher also used semi- structured interview to ask the opinions of the respondents to justify the factor. A total of 6 respondents said that the decline of socialization gap among the youths and elders has influenced
Matengo lexical change. Some of the responses from interviews are presented as follows:
Informant 1: Siku hizi kumekuwa na kasumba ya baadhi yetu sisi wazazi kutopenda kushirikiana na watoto wetu hivyo kufanya watoto wasijue kabisa baadhi ya misamiati ya lugha yetu “Now days it has been a tendency for parents not to socialize with our children. This situation limits them to have enough knowledge of some Matengo lexical items”.
Informant 4: Pasamani twakabi nichiyobi sukusimulani ihomu, ambapu henu masoba ngakuba, sela chijangatia kutamani pamu “In the old age we had a culture of telling myths, the culture which
66 nowadays has disappeared. This behaviour helped us to sit together with our children”.
4.5.4 The Influence of Education
Following the Tanzanian cultural policy in education of 1997, Kiswahili is used in primary schools and English in secondary schools and in higher learning institutions.
However, there is no room for the ethnic languages to be used in education both in teaching and learning process. As a result, there are no materials for language education and literacy in ethnic community languages (ECLs). The researcher used questionnaire to ask if education is one of the factors that cause Matengo lexical change. The results from Figure 03 reveals that, 42 (95.5%) respondents indicated education as one of the biggest factors that have contributed to lexical change of
Matengo, and only 2 (4.5%) denied. By using interviews, the researcher also asked
10 informants to justify if it is true where, out of them, 6 (60%) agreed that it is true that education has caused Matengo lexical change. The sampled responses provided by respondents are presented as follows:
Informant A: Imezoeleka kwamba vijana wengi wakishapata elimu siku hizi na hasa ukizingatia mashuleni zaidi wanafundishwa kwa lugha ya Kiswahili huwa hawaongei tena Kimatengo “It is common to most of the youths after getting formal education nowadays considering that while in schools the learning and teaching language is Kiswahili, they abide to Kiswahili and abandon their native language”.
Informant H: Bana ba henu masoba nyongo kulonjee je chiswahili hasa asomi haba, ndo maana samatengu henu ngase chikuba nu nhingamiko “The children of the current generation are much speaking Kiswahili especially those educated. That is why Matengo language is less regarded”.
67 4.5.5 The Influence of Science and Technology
By using semi-structured interview and questionnaire, the researcher examined how the influence of science and technology has contributed to Matengo lexical change.
The findings revealed 29 (65.9%) out of 44 respondents indicated influence of science and technology as one of the factors. To verify the result, 5 (50%) respondents who were interviewed confirmed true to the factor. The researcher asked them to provide examples of the lexical items subjected to change because of science and technology. A total of 16 lexical items were collected. Out of these items, 08 (50%) were revealed to have been replaced due to this factor and all of them are nouns. The collected lexical items are presented in Table 4.21:
68 Table 4.21: Lexical Items Changed due to Advancement of Science and Technology
S/N Item Under Description Item Under Descriptions Old Modern Technology Technology 1. Matipwali Hard blocks made Maboloku Hard blocks made of clay soil of cement and sand 2. Lukobu Wooden Spoon Chijiku Steel spoon 3. Pisi A four litres steel Dumla A four litres object plastic object 4. Luaji A very small clay Bakuli A plastic bowl pot used as a bowl 5. Sela An artificial candle Nshumaa A candle made of nectar 6. Mbokotu A special stone Mwihi A wooden pestle that was used to used with mortar grind tobacco for grinding 7. Sing‟anga Anyone to describe Dakitali A doctor human health. 8. Luhigu A traditional tool Chibiliti A match box used to lit fire
Source: Field Data (2018)
4.5.6 The Influence of Migration
The development of towns and trading centres is one of the factors which have greatly contributed to the penetration of other neighbouring languages in Matengo.
The researcher used the questionnaire and semi-structured interview to inquire the respondents to provide their opinions if it is true that the influence of migration has caused lexical change in Matengo language. The results from Figure 03 revealed that, 25 (56.8%) respondents out of 44 indicated migration as one of the factors. To 69 rationalise the findings, semi-structured interview was used to 10 informants to verify the factor, 8 (80%) respondents said that it is true. The researcher quoted some of the informants‟ conversations and presents them for justification as follows:
Informant C: Ajaku henu masoba twe kone ahikani bandu ngababo, abena, akinga, angone tena mpaka bukudasalam. Boti haba nakanopi je ahika kataputa hela, gwabona atotwi ingobu, yangachichiche, yaani na hindu henji.Kwahiyu henu lasima tulonjila nabu lugha jichiswahili “That in nowadays there are many people who come to our land such as Bena, Kinga, Ngoni and sometimes people from Dar es salaam. They all come for trading activities, and they carry clothes and other commodities to sell. This situation forces Matengo people to use a language which is understood to them especially Kiswahili”.
Informant H: Kiukweli kutokana na mazingira ya umatengo kwa sasa, vijana wengi wanalazimika kuhama kwenda maeneo mengine kwa lengo la kutafta maeneo ya makazi. Lakini baadae wanaporudi unakuta maongezi yao yameshaathiriwa na lugha zingine “Currently due to the shortage of land in Matengo, many youths are forced to move in search of land to settle. But later when they come back, they find they have been affected with other languages”.
Informant G: Ukizingatia hali halisi ya kimaisha kwa sasa, watu wengi wanalazimika kuondoka kwenda kutafta vibarua kama vile kujenga, kulima mashamba, kazi za ndani n.k. Hivyo, kuwafanya wasahau lugha yao na kuongea lugha ya kiswahili “Basing on the real situation of the current life, many people move to various areas in search of jobs like building, cultivation, domestic works and others. This makes them to abandon their native language and speak Kiswahili”.
4.6 Reflection of the Findings to the Theoretical Framework
The theoretical framework called assimilation theory guided the study. According to
Bloomfield (1932) and Haugen (1950), assimilation theory holds that, speakers of 70 the borrowing language always employ certain predictable strategies to language change and structure of the loan word to fit the system of their own language. For example, Matengo has words for distinct actions, “sweeping” and “wiping,” but there is general term meaning “to clean”. Instead, they use the loanword kusapisa
“to clean” which has been borrowed from the Swahili word kusafisha. Another example is “to curse”. To cast a curse is a common action in Matengo society, and there are many kinds of curses according to purpose, situation, etc. For example, kundiga “striking curse”, kundoga “bewitching curse”, milengu and kuntega
“ailment curse” are all words relating to curses. So, in Matengo, distinct verbs are used when a person wants to describe “casting a curse,” depending on the type of the curse intended. While these distinct verbs are still used today, the Swahili loanword kutega is becoming popular as a general term, “to cast a curse” (Yoneda, 2010). In
Matengo, lexical change is central in assimilation theory and has been largely realized by many informants.
4.7 Summary of the General Lexical Items Collected in this Study
The number of responses obtained from both the questionnaire and the interviews indicates that there is lexical change in Matengo language. The collected lexical items were grouped basing on their class categories as presented in the Table 4.22:
71 Table 4.22: The Overview on Frequencies of Lexical Items Changed,
Maintained or Lost in Matengo Language
Aspect No. of Collected and No. of Replacement or Lost Items Maintained Items Basing on word Class No. of No of Nouns Verbs Adjectives Adverbs Collected Maintained Items Items Lexical Change 63 45 14 3 1 in General Lexical Change 169 81 75 11 1 1 in Specific Domain Linguistic 45 23 15 7 Factor Non-Linguistic 16 8 8 0 Factor Total 293 157 112 21 2 1
Source: Field Data (2018)
Table 4.22 displays the absolute overall number of lexical items collected for this study. The findings from this table indicate that a total of 293 of lexical items were collected. Out of these items, 157 (53.6%) were revealed to have been maintained while 136 (46.4%) lexical items were revealed to have been replaced or lost. Also the results show that out of 136 items that were revealed to have changed, 112
(38.2%) items are nouns, 21 (7.2%) are verbs, 02 (0.7%) are adjectives while 01
(0.3%) is an adverb.
Generally, it is clear that the subject of lexical change in Matengo language is at stake. The circumstance is hampered by a number of factors. Although the literature has revealed that there are many factors that are common across locale and outside
72 the locale, no study that has focused on identifying the problem of Matengo lexical change in regards to neighbouring languages rather than Kiswahili.
Regarding to the language itself, the results were surprising as they revealed to find the lexical items which have undergone change due to the nature of the language itself. This was justified by the responses from the informants who reported education and technological changes to be the push factors for Matengo lexical change. A word class which is highly subjected to change is noun. The approach used to capture these findings was survey of several lexical items subjected to change and it was discovered that, Matengo lexical change in Mbinga district is high.
4.8 Chapter Summary
The chapter included two main sections which are the demographic characteristics of the participants and presentation of themes and their sub-themes resulted from diverse ideas, views, experiences and understanding of the participants. The themes and sub-themes were based on perceptions of informants, in which the findings displayed a good number of original Matengo lexical items which have been replaced and those which have been lost. The chapter also presented the data by examining the linguistic and non-linguistic factors responsible for Matengo lexical change. Regarding the linguistic and non-linguistic factors, several factors both internal and external were described and revealed to have effect on Matengo lexical change. The chapter was finalized by presenting data reflecting the theory used in the study. The next chapter will present the discussion of the results.
73 CHAPTER FIVE
DISCUSSION OF RESULTS
5.1 Introduction
This chapter discusses the findings from the study. It is organized according to the three objectives that guided the study. The first part discusses results on the extent to which Matengo lexical items have undergone changes both in general and specific domains of language use. The second part presents the discussion on linguistic factors contributing to Matengo lexical change, and the third part presents the discussion on non-linguistic factors behind Matengo language lexical change in
Mbinga District. The last part describes the chapter summary.
5.2 The Extent of Matengo Lexical Change
The notion of lexical change is fundamentally important to ethnic languages. The discussion under this objective is based on two methods of data collection which are questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. A total of 54 sampled informants were involved, who are elders, mid age group and young. Among them, 44 informants were involved in filling in questionnaires whereas 10 informants were involved in semi-structured interviews. The results presented in Figure 02 have shown that, 42 (95.5%) out of 44 who attempted questionnaires said Matengo lexical items have changed. In addition, 8 (80%) out of 10 informants who were interviewed reported that there are lexical items which have undergone change in
Matengo language. A total of 232 lexical items were compiled under this objective.
Out of these lexical items, 99 (42.7%) were found to have been replaced or lost. The discussion of the findings is presented as follows:
74 5.2.1 Matengo Lexical Change in General
In this sub-section, the researcher intended to inquire whether Matengo lexical items which were provided are still existing or not. This was done without considering the specific domain of language use. Instead, they provided their data basing on general overview from all domains. In this aspect, the researcher‟s target was on the lexical items which were considered to have been replaced, lost and maintained in general.
A total number of 63 lexical items were assembled for confirmation. Out of these lexical items, 45 (71.4%) were revealed to have been maintained while 18 (28.6%) lexical items were revealed to have been replaced or lost. These items were grouped together basing on their categories of word class which is subjected to changes.
5.2.1.1 Lexical Replacement in Matengo Language
In this sub-section, the researcher intended to examine the lexical items which have been replaced by the borrowed of lexical items from the neighbouring languages.
Basing on the data presented in the Table 4.1, the findings show that, out of 18 collected lexical items, 11 (55.6%) lexical items were found to have been replaced. whereby, 9 (81.8%) of these items are nouns while 2 (18.2%) are verbs. Therefore, the results show that noun class is more subjected to replacement than other word classes. This is because the Matengo people are not using original Matengo lexical items but they have borrowed lexical items from other languages such as Kiswahili,
Kingoni and Kimanda. Many lexical items have been replaced and some have even been lost in favour of Kiswahili. For example, the lexical items ling‟oi which has been replaced by likondoo “sheep” borrowed from kondoo “sheep” and the term lisulubali “trouser” which has been replaced by lisuluwali assimilated from a word suruwali “trouser”. Similarly, the item ndombu “sister” has been replaced by dada from a word dada “sister” and kupaaha “to be wrong” has been replaced by 75 kukosela from a word kukosea “to be wrong”. All these lexical items have been borrowed from Kiswahili, and they are used as part of Matengo lexical items. The item, ingobu “cloth” is also borrowed from Manda word ngobu “cloth” and the lexical item inzala “hunger” has been borrowed from Nyasa word injala “hunger”.
Furthermore, the findings have revealed that Matengo people are mobile compared to other neighbouring communities because they are experiencing shortage of land.
Many Matengo speakers are mobile in search for land as well as money to support their daily lives. A person who has stayed for a long time with other neighbouring tribes becomes affected with the mother tongue of the hosting area and forgets the rules of his native language. Therefore, when this person comes back, he imparts some lexical items that do not belong to his native language, a situation that will gradually affect his native language. If the Matengo will continue to adopt changes of their lexical items in regard of other lexical items from the languages of their neighbours then there is a danger of this replacement to extend in a manner of endangering other word categories which are currently maintained.
Many of the lexical items that were revealed to have been more affected under this study are nouns. This is in agreement with the findings by Mochiwa (1979) who reports that the items which are highly affected are nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs. Kiswahili as lingua franca in Tanzania has had much influence of such kind of changes. This situation also concurs with the findings by Yoneda (2010) who reports that, Matengo people are highly adopting the culture of other languages particularly Kiswahili.
76 5.2.1.2 Lexical Loss in Matengo Language
In this part, the researcher intended to know the Matengo lexical items which have been lost. The results in Table 4.2 show that, out of 20 lexical items that were collected, 08 (40%) lexical items have been ignored to be used or they are rarely heard in ordinary conversation. Among these items, 6 (30%) are nouns, 1(5%) is an adjective and 1(5%) is verb. The findings from the 6 elders interviewed have revealed that, some words have been replaced by modern objects as a result of science and technology. For example, the noun chipongweni was a traditional an object made up of grass which was used on as a basin. Its use has now disappeared in Matengo language. Other vocabularies have been neglected by the current generation especially youths as they prefer using borrowed lexical items from
Kiswahili and other neighbouring languages. For example, the noun luhaji “bowl” has been replaced by bakuli being assimilated from Swahili word bakuli “bowl”, and the term komisi “a traditional cup” has been totally replaced by the item chikombi which has been assimilated from a Swahili word kikombe “cup”. Similarly, the item chimbwitila “to become more fat” has now been totally replaced by kunenapana assimilated from a Swahili word kunenepa “to become fat”, and the item jegaja
“say” has also been totally replaced by pwaga assimilated from a Manda word upwaga “say”. These findings concur with the findings of De Saussure (1916) as cited in Ruimy et al. (2003) who consider lexical loss as a situation when a speaker ceases to use a particular word that carried concept of a certain object which is no longer existing or used. This situation threatens the language as it can affect other lexical items and later loss the language originality.
77 5.2.1.3 Lexical Maintenance in Matengo Language
With regard to lexical maintenance, the researcher was interested to know the
Matengo lexical items which have maintained their originality. The findings presented in Table 4.3 reveal that, 14 (56%) lexical items out of 25 collected items have been maintained and all of them are nouns. The data collected by interviews revealed that, the traditional ways of greetings, naming body parts, gender reference and maturation categorization have preserved their traditional terms. For example, greetings items such as nzumuka “morning greetings” and mwanjelo “greetings offered after first meeting in a day” are maintained. Gender reference items like mbomba “female” and mwanalomi “male”, and other words which have been maintained are in the arena of maturation category such as kamwali “engaged woman” and nkombu “engaged man”. Furthermore, the items expressing body parts including chigolu “leg”, imbulu “nose” and liho “eye” are also reluctant to undergo change.
The results on lexical maintenance relates with the findings by Hospelmath (2009) who reports that, the lexical concepts that are believed to be the most unaffected to replacement refers to basic and universal elements of human experiences. Also the findings correspond with the findings of Thomason & Kaufman (1988) who report that, the basic vocabulary which is highly or frequently used results into strong resistant to change.
5.2.2 Matengo Lexical Change in Different Domains
The informants under domains of language use were requested to mention randomly the list of lexical items that have changed as a way to confirm the problem. The researcher‟s focus was to specific domains of language use. This was done in order
78 to determine the extent of lexical change in different domains of language use.
These domains include home, farming, livestock keeping and commercial domain.
In each domain, the informants were requested to mention lexical items that have been replaced or lost. A total of 169 lexical items were collected and out of these items, 95 (56.2%) Matengo lexical items were revealed to have been replaced or lost. These lexical items are grouped basing on their specific domains as follows:
5.2.2.1 Matengo Lexical Change in Home Domain
The researcher paid attention to this domain because the language is primarily used in home domain. The respondents were exposed to home environment in different spheres such as family relations, domestic utensils, clothing and shelters. In these areas, the respondents were required to give lexical items that have been replaced and which have been lost. A total of 27 (52.9%) lexical items out of 51 collected were shown to have been replaced or lost. These items are discussed in their specific categories as follows: a) Lexical Replacement Used together with Original Matengo Lexical
Items Expressing Family Relations at Home
Basing on the data presented in Table 4.4 in this study, it is revealed that the basic items that were used to express how one is related to the other in Matengo society were reported to have been replaced significantly although some few Matengo speakers still use the original Matengo. The findings of this study revealed 15 lexical items and out these items, 7 (46.7%) lexical items expressing family relations have been replaced by lexical items from neighbouring languages like Kiswahili, Kingoni and Kinyasa. For example, the item nhibinimundo “uncle” has been replaced by mjombamundu being influenced by swahili word mjomba “uncle” and nhasa
79 “brother” has been replaced by kaka from a Swahili word kaka “brother”. Other items in this aspect were replaced or lost because of the influence of neighbouring languages like Kingoni and Kinyasa. The item like nyongolo “mother” has been replaced by amabo from Ngoni word amawo “mother” and nnung‟una has been replaced by kakansoku from Nyasa word kakanjoku “young brother”. These findings concur with the report by Leopards (2007) who claims that Kiswahili has greatly influenced changes in Kibena leading to an emergence of Kimaswitule as a variety of Kibena. Therefore, this implies that with time, most of Matengo lexical items will be lost and replaced with new words from other languages. This is because the young generation prefers much using the borrowed words although some people specifically for elders still use the original Matengo in expressing relation. b) Lexical Replacement Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical
Items Expressing Attire in Home
The presented data in Table 4.5 show that the original Matengo lexical items are substituted with other lexical items because of having differences in the aspect of material, colour, terminology and shape. The results revealed that out of 10 collected items, 4 (40%) Matengo lexical items have been lost. For example, ligwanda “which was used to refer to bark clothes worn in the ancient time has now been completely replaced by ingobu “clothes” borrowed from a Manda word ngobu “clothes”. Also the item libushuti “a heavy coat worn during cold” has now been totally replaced by gukoti “coat” borrowed from Kiswahili word koti “coat”. The items referring to clothes as presented above have been replaced because during the ancient time the item was only used to refer one type of cloth which is bark clothes which do not exist any longer. There was no other vocabulary regarded to differentiate names of such kind of clothes as it has been nowadays. Today, this term has been replaced by 80 ingobu “clothes” being categorized basing on the types of clothes made with a new technology. This replacement has been influenced by Kiswahili. The adoption of foreign lexical items has followed the system of Matengo language. These findings agree with the findings by Rubanza (1979) who reports that, many lexical items have changed their equivalents in contemporary Haya language. There has been modification of the loanwords to make suitable to the natural form of Matengo language. For example, lisulubali from Swahili word suruwali “trouser” has received a prefix li- to make the word appropriate adhering to the rules of the original Matengo lexical items. This is a common integration in morphology but less in phonology. These findings also agree with the findings of Myers-Scotton (2006) in essence that, there is addition of prefixes to the borrowed lexical item so as to accommodate the fundamental features of the language. c) Lexical Replacement Used alongside Original Matengo Lexical Items
Expressing Attire in Home
The findings in Table 4.6 revealed that there are reduplicative items referring to the same item. This situation has led to the formation of synonymous lexical items.
These synonyms have been caused by the contact with the neighbouring languages which are Kiswahili, Ngoni, Kingoni and Kinyasa. It was revealed that, out 15 lexical items that were collected, 10 (66.7%) lexical items are used alongside with original Matengo items and all of them are nouns. For example, njeng‟enda a concept used to represent „bangles‟ is used along with ibangili. For this case, the
Matengo people have adopted a new lexical ibangili only because of the influence of
Swahili word bangili “bangles”, the language which is currently dominant especially to the young generation. Other lexical items found to have been used together with the original Matengo in this aspect are; ndolosa “earring” which is used together 81 with helena borrowed from Kiswahili word heleni “earring” and the item fulana “T- shirt” which is used alongside with tisheti from the Swahili word t-sheti “T-shirt”.
Some of the informants went far by saying that if this habit will exist long, then there is possibility of original lexical loss in Matengo language.
Regarding to the domestic utensils in home domain, it was found that some of the objects for domestic use specifically for dish serving are now called differently as they were called in the ancient time. For example, the lexical item mbali “the earlier plate locally made using iron sheets with no quality” is called sahane nowadays.
However, the replacement has no variation in terms of structure and function. The
Matengo adopted the lexical item of a new object in the influence of Kiswahili and inventory of new technology that has modified its appearance.
The items expressing shelter in home domain have been substituted particularly mattress and bed. For example, the item mandusa “mattress made of cotton bale filled with bananas grass” has been replaced by litandiku from the Swahili word tandiko “mattress”. A word ndangati “traditional bed made of poles” that was used to reflect the concept of bed is called chitanda which is borrowed from Swahili word kitanda “bed”. These native objects are different in terms of materials, how they are made and their structure although they perform similar functions.
The results tally with the findings by Zantella (1997 who reports about the speakers living in New York City that, they have borrowed many words from English and they have modified them to appear like Spanish original words. This is likely to appear in Matengo language as it has accommodated lexical counterparts to do with attire. This accommodation has led to the creation of repetitive forms referring to the same thing despite minor variations pointed out. With time when this current
82 generation will disappear, the new generation will regard this replacement as part of
Matengo lexical items hence forgetting the original ones. d) Matengo Lexical Loss in Home Domain
The results in Table 4.7 show that, traditional domestic utensils for dish serving and magnificence articles are not available. It was found that out of 11 items, 6 (54.5) lexical items have been lost. For example, the item lijamanda “ the traditional object made from bamboo strings and used to carry cassava and flour during ceremonies does not exist any longer because it has been replaced by modern dishes, basins and plastic bags. Other objects which are chilochi “an object made of grass that was used for alcohol drinking” and chikorogu “a big cray pot that was used for fermenting alcohol” also do not exist any longer. The lexical items that were used in expressing the home utensils are disappearing day to day and new names are replacing them.
This means that modern objects have replaced the items that were used to refer the traditional domestic utensils.
The study also found several traditional ways of life in different aspects specifically in burial ceremonies, wedding ceremonies and birth ceremonies that are traditionally known as matola. Such life style was the system of living exercised by some ancient people from Matengo society in which many objects as presented in this aspect were used during these ceremonies for alcohol drinking or alcohol making and others were used to carry cassava and maize or flour.
The results of this study relate to the findings by Sands et al. (2007) who report that there has been a significant loss of terms related to traditional ways of life in N/uu language. This is because the lost items were used to express everyday items of the
83 ancient. These items are disappearing after the introduction of the modern objects that has embedded to replace the traditional life style.
5.2.2.2 Matengo Lexical Change in the Farming Domain
Farming domain is one of the important areas the researcher paid attention because it was believed to be the sector that engages a variety of people as a communal unity in agricultural activities. It is also the sector that involves community from the family level especially in farming activity like coffee farms. In this aspect, the researcher was interested to explore the lexical items that have undergone replacement or loss in the field of farming. The results from the findings revealed 18
(58.8%) lexical items out of 34 have been replaced or lost. The results are discussed below: a) Lexical Replacement Used alongside Original Matengo Lexical Items in the
Farming Domain
The findings presented in the Table 4.8 show that lexical change in farming domain covers much on crops and the instruments used in cultivation processes. The findings revealed that, 5 (50%) items out of 10 lexical items are used alongside with the original Matengo lexical items. For example, the item kuchesa “to slash” is used alongside with kufyeka a borrowed lexical item from Swahili word kufyeka “to slash”. The item lipengu is also used alongside with lishoka “axe” a borrowed lexical item from Swahili word shoka “axe”. Similarly, the item likombo “hoe” is used alongside with lijela assimilated from Ngoni word lijela “hoe” and the item makaba “irish potatoes” is used alongside with mbapata being assimilated from a
Swahili word mbatata “irish potatoes”. These lexical items in farming domain are used alongside with original Matengo because of the technological modification and
84 status of the language as most of the people prefer much using the foreign items as a sign of prestige. The arguments from the conversation with parents revealed that most of the young people prefer using the borrowed words which are referred to as modern Matengo because they are mobile. Although the original lexical items are used along with the borrowed items from the neighbouring languages, the most preferred items are the borrowed ones. What makes the difference across individuals is their needs and desires to learn different modern agricultural methods. The findings concur with the findings by Leopard (2007) who reports that, the replacements found in Kimaswitule dialect reveal that, Kiswahili has greatly influenced Kibena. This influence has led to the emergence of Kimaswitule as a new variety of Kibena. The current findings concur with Leopard in essence that
Kiswahili has been the source of this replacement. However, the situation is a bit different from Matengo in the aspect of new formation of dialect as it is in Kibena.
The replacement in Matengo language under this domain of language is affected by not only Kiswahili but also by other neighbouring ethnic languages such as Kingoni,
Kinyasa and Kimanda. This situation also agrees with the report by Truscott &
Sharwood (2004) who give a remarkable note that the more frequently a word is used, the more accessible a word becomes. Following this aspect, there is high possibility for Matengo original lexical items to disappear absolutely from the history of languages because of less frequency use, and thus losing the sense of accessibility in the Matengo lexicon. b) Lexical Replacement Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical
Items in the Farming Domain
The results depicted from Table 4.9 reveal that there is lexical change in farming domain. The original names for specified crops are replaced by new items from 85 other languages. It was found that 7 (41.2%) out of 17 collected Matengo lexical items have been replaced, and they are used in the absence of the original Matengo lexical items. For example, the lexical item ndemee “non- terracing farming” has been replaced by a word ndipu which is originated from Swahili word tifua (non- terracing). Likewise, the item mahoja “groundnuts” has also been replaced by the item malabi “groundnuts” borrowed from Nyasa malavi “groundnuts”. Other items are mitombe which has been replaced by milaba originated from Swahili word miraba “terracing” and it was spread when Matengo people started cultivating maize after intermingling with Ngoni during Ngoni migration. Furthermore, the item ingobo “the vegetables found in the forest and their leaves are like beans”, nhombanandela “the mushrooms germinating along a certain pathway”, and the item, ndambai “peas” were not highly favoured in Matengo society. That is why their lexical items are not used in ordinary communication.
The findings are parallel with the findings by Poplack and Sankoff (1984) who recognized common characteristics of borrowing and among numerous characteristics is that, borrowing replaces words of a particular language. Therefore, loanwords from neighbouring languages which refer to crops have replaced almost
41.2% of the Matengo language. Despite such replacement, these borrowed items have largely retained initial prefix morphologically similar to the original items except few of them with prefix nde- in nde-mee, i-in i-ngobo and ndi- in its counterpart word ndi-pu where there is variation of initials. c) Matengo Lexical Loss in Farming Domain
Considering the field data presented in Table 4.10, it has been revealed that, lexical loss in the farming domain covers much of the crop varieties such as sweet potatoes,
86 cassava and banana plants. The results revealed that, 8 (47.1%) out of 17 lexical items have been lost. These lexical items got lost due to a number of reasons such as inability of producing more harvest, being affected with various diseases such as mangunguta “a diseased cassava” and the coming of new seeds that replaced the traditional seeds. For example, a lexical item malepli a type of cassava disappeared when new seeds came into existence such as edisa. Those new seeds were brought by MUVI (Muunganisho Ujasiriamali Vijijini) and TAAP (Tanzania Agriculture
Productivity Program) the groups which inspires people to engage in a modern way of agriculture. Other words are specifically depicted in types of banana such as gamatengu “a type of banana when ripe its crust becomes yellow” have been replaced by matochi genei assimilated from Nyasa phrase matoki ga benei “local banana” and the item chimbembetu “a sweetest banana” have been totally replaced by kasukari from Kiswahili. But when the researcher asked the reasons for these words to demise, most of the informants reported that, the young people nowadays are less participating in agricultural activities. Therefore, it becomes difficult for them to become conversant with lexical items referring to crops.
The results disagree with the findings by Koopman (1994) who reports that, lexical loss occurs if a new object which stimulated the acceptance of that lexical item disappears and its substitute also fades out. That is to say, the Matengo lexical items do not disappear abruptly without necessity. However, some items are considered less important, for example, malepli a lexical item which has been replaced by the item edisa is a crop which is considered less important and edisa has come more considerable for making drinks like local alcohol made of cassava known as chipasu as presented in Table 4.14.
87 5.2.2.3 Matengo Lexical Change in Livestock Keeping
In this field of livestock keeping, the researcher was interested to know the lexical items which have been replaced with pre-determination that the pastoralists are rigid to adopt change despite the language pressure they might encounter. The results show that 20 (50%) out of 40 Matengo collected items have been replaced or lost as presented in 4.2.2.3. a) Lexical Replacement Used together with Original Matengo Lexical Items in
Livestock Keeping Domain
Table 4.11 shows common nouns for domestic animals like cows, sheep, dogs and cats and pasturing which are affected by replacement. The findings revealed that 7
(63.6%) out of 11 Matengo collected lexical items have their counterparts. For example, the item kulongule “to change pasturing area” is used alongside with kubadilisa assimilated from Swahili word kubadilisha “to change”; “mbunyali “cat” is used together with pusi a borrowed lexical item from Ngoni pusi “cat” and the item ling‟oi is used together with likondoo an assimilated from Kiswahili kondoo
“sheep”. The findings from 8 informants pointed out that, this redundant is due to intermingling and migration of people from other areas especially the neighbouring tribes. This is different from the previous days where the Matengo speakers were the only herdsmen who were responsible for keeping animals. Another reason is that the current generation demises the use of original Matengo lexical items in favour of the borrowed items. They find difficulty in pronouncing those terms because they are long compared to borrowed ones. The current findings concurs with the findings by
Pole (1999) who reports that, some vocabularies may be made of more than one root
(compound word) or it may be built with one or more elements that cannot stand by themselves and becomes difficult to make its utterances. For example, the item 88 janakabwa “a dog” is complex to pronounce compared to jimbwa a borrowed word from Kinyasa “jibwa”. Since there is rapid growth of replacements used together with the original Matengo lexical items, this suggests that with time, the Matengo will definitely assimilate these replacements to authorize them to be part of their language. b) Replacements Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical Items in
Livestock Keeping Domain
In this subsection, the researcher intended to explore loan lexical items which are used in the absence of original Matengo items. From the data presented in the Table
4.12 the results show that, out of 14 lexical items, 5 (35.7%) lexical items are used in the absence of original Matengo. For example, the item kukoma “to slaughter” is replaced by kusinza, a lexical item which has been borrowed from Kiswahili word kuchinja “to slaughter”, and the item lindoto “head” has been replaced by umutu borrowed from ngoni word umuto “head”. The reason is that, the people who are engaging in animal husbandry are mobile in realization that they always travel far with their animals in search of pastures and water. Under these circumstances, most of the pastoralists find themselves in a pressure of being in contact with neighbouring tribes. Because of this, they are forced to find a common language so that they can understand each other during their conversations. Other items have also been replaced in the factor of technology and modern way of living. For example, the term libeji “cowshed” has been replaced by chisisi assimilated word from
Kiswahili zizi “animal shed” resulted from modern way of keeping animals using enclosure system unlike travelling far with them in search of pastures. Furthermore, the item lusemba “skin” has been completely replaced by undabu, a lexical item rooted in Matengo language implying skin of an animal. This item was replaced due 89 to the fact that, it was more used in making drums of traditional Ngoma such as
Mganda (played by men) and Chioda (played by women). These drums were not easily destroyed however hard they were beaten. Therefore, they assimilated the item undabu a word which originated as a register resembling it with a stubborn person to express its strangeness. However, if it happened the drum has burst then the action was associated with the concept of bad omen in which something bad would happen. These findings are not in line with the findings by Tarbo (2009) who argues that lexical change is influenced by replacement or equivalent from other languages. This is due to the fact that there are some words which have been replaced by other Matengo lexical items unlike in the early domains like home and farming that seems to be replaced due to contact of languages. c) Matengo Lexical Loss in Livestock Keeping Domain
In this part, the researcher was interested to know if there are words which have been lost under the field of animal keeping. Basing on the data presented in Table
4.13, it was found that 8 (53.3%) out of 15 Matengo collected items have been lost and most of them are nouns. For example, the item junumela “a red cow or goat” has been totally replaced by a lexical item njeli “red animal”, and the item juhundi “a gray cow or goat” has been replaced by jikijivu “a gray animal”. Similary, the term jichimbulimbuli “a cow which has no horn” has been replaced by the item jangamanyelu “an animal without horn”, and the item mangonza “a roasted skin of pig for food” has been replaced by the item mangosi “a roasted skin of pig”. The results from the informants revealed that there are some words which have disappeared due to time factor. This is because the proper nouns for animals basing on smell, colour and skin do not exist any longer because the number of animals being kept has been reduced. The current generation is hardly involving in animal 90 business like pigs, cows and goats. This means people still remember the lexical items but because they are not used in conversation, hence, they become lost.
To some extent, the current study concurs with the findings by Lewick (1974) who reports that camels were evidently common in the Northern Nigeria, yet speakers today only have indistinct ideas about the appearance of camels itself. This is because camels are not in that place. The Matengo understand in mind that cows in
Matengo are named in colour although currently they never exercise such kind of naming with its lexical items because they are not common in conversation.
Therefore, the notion in these current results resembles with Nigerians who are living in the Northern part of Nigeria who remember the term “camel” but practically camels do not exist in their place at present. Since such animals do not exist, the lexical items used to refer to such concepts are gradually disappearing due to the fact that they are not practically put into communication.
5.2.2.4 Matengo Lexical Change in Commercial Domain
The findings from the 6 respondents in commercial domain show that 18 (52.9%) out of 34 original lexical items from Matengo are avoided to be used. Instead, the replacements are used in place of original lexical items. Lexical loss was reported to have cropped up in this domain. The list of these lexical items is presented in the sub-sections below: a) Lexical Replacement Used together with Original Matengo Lexical Items in
Commercial Domain
The data in Table 4:14 show that 8 (66.7%) out of 12 lexical items are used together with the original Matengo lexical items. This is to say, other lexical items from different languages surrounding Matengo area cause redundant to native words. For
91 example, the item kulomba “to buy” is used together with the item kuheme assimilated from a Swahili word kuhemea “to buy”. Interestingly there are some words which are from the same Matengo language for example, original Matengo lexical items magoma “money given in exchange of coffee before harvesting” is used together with masomba a word generated from the same Matengo lexical items which define the same thing. This is a modern Matengo lexical item which has come due to the changes of time and technology in general. Other lexical items which have counterparts are derived from drinks such as ntombu “traditional alcohol made of maize” is used together with the item gwilombi a lexical item assimilated from
Ngoni word malombi “maize”. The item chipasu which denotes traditional alcohol made of cassava is also used together with gwamajabu a lexical item assimilated from Nyasa word mayavu “cassava”. Similarly, the item ipolomba “honey beer” is now used along with the item wanzuchi a borrowed word from Kiswahili wanzuki
“honey beer”. The reason behind is due to contact between Wahagati from Valley and those from highlands. Other words like lupija which is used to mean “money” is used together with pesa assimilated from Kiswahili word fedha “money”, and the item kusasu “to taste” is used together with kuchachu assimilated from Kiswahili word chachu “taste”. It was also reported that, previously, commercial activities were carried out by only one speech community that is Matengo. There was no any expectation of replacements to occur from other languages. When the commercial activities started operating with outsiders from different parts surrounding Matengo land, the situation changed and there was importation of new products from other tribes. This caused replacement of original Matengo lexical items. These replacements have been modified to suit the morphological structure of the host language.
92 b) Lexical Replacements Used in the Absence of Original Matengo Lexical
items in Commercial Domain
In this subsection, the researcher explored the lexical items that are used in the absence of original Matengo but they still exist. The data presented in the Table 4.15 revealed that 4 (40%) out 10 lexical items have been replaced and they are not commonly used in ordinary conversation. For example, the lexical items like kusa
“harvesting period” have been replaced by machimbu a borrowed from Ngoni word machimbu “harvesting period” and kulangu “increase of price” have been replaced by a Swahili loanword bei “cost”. Similarly, the item kulisoku “to the market” has been replaced kumnada a loanword from Kiswahili mnadani “to the market”. The item came into existence in replace of original Matengo lexical when their coffee successfully got a good market in the 1990s during the free market era. Due to language contact, the Matengo demise their original language at the expense of loanwords.
In Matengo language, the complete replacement is caused by Bantu languages such as Kiswahili or other neighbouring languages. The lexical items from these languages have become more popular especially to young generation. The popularity has made language users frequently use the borrowed lexical items. Due to this aspect, users have grown to the extent that it affects many Matengo speakers. Even the elders have greatly accepted consciously or subconsciously the use of the replacements. In some cases, the original Matengo lexical items are replaced due to the difficulties which are found in pronunciation. For example, the original Matengo lexical item ungangu “poverty” has been replaced with mpeli from Ngoni item mpili
“poverty” because it is simple to pronounce.
93 The current findings concur with the findings by Myers-Scotton (2006) who reports that, borrowing of words from another language is observed to have influence in a hosting language when it has a long and wide contact. This is true in Matengo language because it has a long contact with neighbouring languages like Kiswahili and Kingoni, and they have caused change in morphology. c) Matengo Lexical Loss in Commercial Domain
The findings presented in the Table 4.16 revealed that 6 Matengo lexical items have been lost and one of the major reasons which were reported by the 4 interviewees is that, modernization has influenced lexical changes in Matengo. For example, the item kindandali “a four legged basket used for local alcohol fermentation” has been replaced by plastic tanks because of technology as well as modern ways of making alcohol and sumuni “one shilling” has been replaced due to the fact that, there is no longer usage of one shilling in the young generation. In addition, sendi “Tanzanian cent” has disappeared because these were currencies that were used during colonial era and because they do not exist any longer then, the concepts of this object have also disappeared. The replaced words are rarely used since the items that were used to express such concepts have been replaced by new items resulted from new technology. Another item is ubembi which denotes a common lexical item used for asking fairness of something especially reduction of price, but it is no longer in place because of changes in technology and life style.
The results concur with the findings by De Saussure (1916) cited in Ruimy (2003) who reports that words are lost when the speakers cease to use them or new words enter the lexicon when new concepts arise, be it that they are borrowed from other languages or created from native materials using different morphological processes.
94 The findings also agree with the findings by Batibo (2005) who argues that lexical loss is one of the most obvious characteristics of a dying language. This is because
Matengo language is in the position of losing its original lexical items in favour of the borrowed lexical items from neighbouring languages especially Kiswahili.
Generally, it has been revealed from the first objective that there is a good number of lexical items that have changed (those under replacements and lost). The lexical items noted to experience this situation in Matengo language are nouns, verbs and adjectives.
5.3 Linguistic Factors for Matengo Lexical Change
The second objective was to examine the linguistic factors responsible for Matengo lexical change. From this objective, the researcher presents the discussions of the results from sociolinguistic interview and semi-structured interview which involved
16 informants, whereby, 10 informants were involved in semi-structured interview and the rest were involved in Sociolinguistic interview. Most of the informants revealed that, the linguistic factors such as phonology, morphology and semantics causes lexical change in Matengo language. The results revealed that out of 45 collected items, 22 (48.9%) items were revealed to have been changed. The discussion has been made basing on the sub-section as it appears below:
5.3.1 The Nature of Matengo Language and Lexical Change
Through sociolinguistic the researcher cross-examined the Matengo language basing on phonology and lexical specification and semi structured interview based on morphology and semantics to assess whether they have contributed to Matengo lexical change.
95 5.3.1.1 Phonological Factors
In this sub-section, it was found that Matengo were not able to produce the same word in the same way. In the conversation presented in 4.3.1.1, it was revealed that the lexical item for father has been pronounced differently by different informants.
For example, the word hengo which means “father” pronounced by the informant E does not resemble with word aheng‟o produced by informant C who has included a sound /ŋ/ although they provide the same meaning. In addition, it was revealed in the conversation with informants who were responding that the word hengo is easy to pronounce than aheng‟o which need more power to pronounce. Furthermore, the word ngati and ngiti have the same meaning “let us” but the pronunciation difficulties in the word ngiti causes pronunciation differences, and later this will result into formation of a new lexical item. Basing on the data presented in Table 4.4 of this study, it was revealed that, the item hengo “father” is used alongside with a lexical item atate being assimilated from Nyasa loanword tate “father”, although in this part the pronunciation of the lexical hengo does not sound like aheng‟o in which a prefix a- has been added to the root and a sound /ŋ/. Therefore, if the tendency continues the lexical item aheng‟o will result into a new vocabulary or disappear in the language.
These findings concur with the findings by Bowen (2008) who reports that speakers of tone languages will often produce list intonation or citation tone when asked to speak words in isolation. This means that, speakers of these languages use the same form with the same intonation.
96 5.3.1.2 Morphological Factors
Considering the data presented in the Table 4.17, it was found that the traditional names given to people in Matengo were not originally used. This means the
Matengo names experience reduction or deletion of some components prevailing in the construction of the word. This reduction is done at the initial or at the final position of the word or both sides. For example, out of the 15 items collected, 7
(46.7%) lexical items were revealed to be clipped in the initial position like in kandabi “riddles” from kanakandabi and habali “greetings” from namwahituhabali.
The items binamu “cousin” from binamumundu and undombu “sister” from undombumundu are also clipped. Other words are kinzepi “a torn cloth” from kinzepinzepi and kinganda “full of mud” from kingandanganda. The results also revealed that 2 (9%) of the items had both sides reduction yielding a form lumba “to emphasize” from chilumbalilu. The findings of this study concur with the findings by Martine (2007) who reports that, lexical replacement increases as a function of word length. This occurs in essence that most of the Matengo lexical items have been clipped to produce new lexical items, and most of these items are common names compared to uncommon. This is because personal names in any speech community are shared commonly in daily conversation. This is also revealed in
Matengo language where it was found to have short forms of names which have been clipped. Morphologically, word length in Matengo has predisposed speakers of this language to clip most of the lexical items made up of five and above syllables.
In the process of interviews, the researcher was interested to know why they prefer clipping. Most of the conversation exposed that, clipping is done in order to reduce difficulties in making pronunciation of such items when used in conversation.
Furthermore, in those clipped forms, some do not have repetition of vowels that
97 mark long vowel in this language just like in their full version. Following this mechanism of simplifying the use of these lexical items, there is a possibility of the next generation to have no idea of whether such items had their complete equivalents. When these clipped items will be firmly established, it will be difficult to trace back the meaning prevailed in such names. This will have been killed the traditional knowledge embedded in such clipped names as they will be meaningless.
5.3.1.3 Semantic Change
The discussion in this sub-section covers in the areas of meaning extension and reduction. The findings of the interviews revealed that, out of 19 collected items, 9
(47.4%) lexical items have been changed due to meaning extension and meaning reduction. The discussion based on their specific categories is described as follows: a) Meaning Extension
With respect to the data presented in Table 4.18, the findings have revealed that, 5
(55.5%) out of 9 collected lexical items have been changed due to meaning expansion. The newly established lexical items are not equal in terms of meaning.
The meaning that the original lexical items hold has been extended. Just because of the meaning extension, some of the lexical items that were used in the past do not exist any longer. For example, the term ndangu “a hammer used to pound bark clothes” does not exist any longer. Instead, the lexical item has been replaced by nyondu which its usage has been extended in such a way that it covers all activities done in carpentry and other activities like shoemaking. That is to say, the items that were used in the past have been abandoned and new forms came into being. Other lexical items are kanonga “a small basket of 10 litres which is made of bamboo strings” has now been replaced by chinzatu “a basket of 20 litres made of bamboo
98 strings” and the item kulondo “witchcraft rituals” has now been replaced by kupema
“referring to any health diagnosis done by either a doctor or a traditional healer”.
With comments that were made by informants under this sub-section, it signifies that
Matengo people change the way of referring to some lexical items conveying a particular meaning. This implies that when they add the meaning to a word, the new meaning definitely dominates the conversation and they abandon the original lexical item to avoid confusion between the two concepts.
The findings of this study agree with the findings by Martine (2007) who argues that, lexical change occurs when a new name comes to be attached to a sense or a new sense to a new name. In Matengo language, the new lexical items have caused creation of newly established names known as substitutes. The findings also agree with the findings by Weireich (1953) who reports that borrowed words and old terms normally do not exist side by side with the meaning without specialization that is broadening or narrowing. This is due to the fact that, when we borrow lexical items resembling to the concept carried by the earlier object, the new object will be named differently from what we had in original Matengo language. There is an addition of the meaning to the earlier objects caused by the invention of new lexical items within the language under study. This is because the addition of meaning to the items is done within native language itself to produce newly words resulted from the meaning pressure. This is an indication that borrowing from other languages becomes the option where necessary. b) Meaning Reduction
The results from Table 4.19 show that some of the lexical items change due to meaning reduction. This is due to the fact that the words which undergo change in
99 meaning in this language become totally abandoned at the expense of new words.
The findings revealed that out of 10 Matengo lexical items, 4 (40%) have been changed in the influence of semantic reduction and all these are nouns. For example, mihambu which formerly implied all songs has now been replaced by nyembu the item which only refers to religious and mourning songs. Also the item nkongu was formerly used to mean “any type of tree” but nowadays the word has changed to umiti “only for artificial trees”. Other words are: mpamba “all types of knives” has now been changed to chisu “a knife with plastic or steel handle” and the item hindu
“all utensils” has now changed to yombu “kitchen utensils only”. This situation causes the disappearance of the original lexical items which have wide meanings.
This means that the new Matengo lexical items become a replacement of original lexical items due to the looseness of meaning and lack of prestige in its usage.
The findings in this sub-section tally with the findings by Akidah (2013) who reports about semantic narrowing in Kiswahili for the words borrowed from Arabic, a situation that has caused terms to acquire new meaning. This is true in Matengo language because the new originated sense has instigated creation of newly established names known as replacements. Basing on the comments provided by the informants under this section, it was revealed that, with meaning reduction the newly formed words become more dominant in common conversation of Matengo language.
5.3.2 The Influence of Language Contact
Matengo language has abundant loan items under this aspect which function as replacements in this language. The findings in Table 4.20 have revealed that, out of
12 lexical items which were collected, 6 (40%) have been completely replaced by
100 neighbouring languages. For example, the item kuhonje “to engage” has been replaced by kusumbi being assimilated from Swahili item kuchumbia, and the term kuhagula “to sort out” has been replaced by the item kusagula borrowed from
Kiswahili item kuchagua “to sort out”.
In this aspect, Matengo lexical items appear to be more vulnerable as many lexical items were found to be borrowed from the neighbouring languages. People‟s contact is one of the reasons. Due to contact, Matengo speakers are found to use Matengo and Kiswahili altogether in their daily lives. Young people and youths mostly speak
Kiswahili in some environments especially those which involve more than one tribe while elders use both Kiswahili and Matengo language.
As other languages do, when a word is borrowed, some modification is applied to suit the features of the borrowing language. The common strategies that were noted to integrate lexical items from other languages in Matengo includes pre-fixation and omission of prefixes attached to the verb from the donor language. It was noted that the contact between Kiswahili and Kimatengo was intensified when Kiswahili was given a higher national status than other ethnic languages in the country. The findings of this study agree with the findings by Thomason and Kaufman (1988) who argue that the lexicon is the most unpredictable part of language, and the most likely to undergo change due to high influence of language contact situation. This is to say, language contact plays a big role in influencing language change specifically in its lexical form because it is the area which experiences high pressure of usage as it covers the highest percentage of daily communication. Similarly, the findings tally with the findings by Rosendal and Mapunda (2014) who revealed the same aspect in
Ngoni language by showing how Kiswahili has greatly affected Ngoni lexical items.
101 They also argue that this language contact situation affects Ngoni which frequently borrows terms from Swahili.
5.4 Non-linguistic Factors for Matengo Lexical Change
The third objective of the study intended to determine non-linguistic factors contributing to Matengo lexical change. The researcher used questionnaire which involved 44 respondents by asking them to give their opinions regarding non - linguistic factors for lexical change. The findings revealed that decline of intergenerational transmission of Matengo language, intermarriages, education, decline of socialization gap, development of science and technology and migration are the factors for the lexical change of Matengo language as it has been shown in
Figure 03. The findings were justified by involving 10 interviewees as it is discussed below:
5.4.1 Decline of Intergenerational Transmission
Basing on the conversation presented in sub section 4.4.1 under this study, the researcher intended to know if the decline of intergenerational transmission of
Matengo language has contributed to lexical change. The researcher used questionnaire to explore the opinions of the respondents if it is true that the decline of intergenerational transmission of the Matengo language has caused lexical change. The results from the Figure 03 reveal that, 13 (29.5%) respondents out of 44 noted this as one of the factors for lexical change in Matengo language. To rationalize the results, 7 (70%) informants out of 10 who were interviewed also said true to this factor. Most of the Matengo children use Kiswahili as their first language and they have ignored their native (ethnic language). In regards to the language function, the Matengo lexical items carry the culture and community identity.
102 Having a large number of children who speak Kiswahili, then the expectation is that, after few years to come, the language will disappear because it will have no speakers. This means that, the Matengo will have got lost in the history of languages.
The findings also revealed that, there is a tendency for parents to transmit Kiswahili to their children as their first language. Wonderful enough, even the parents who do not know how to speak Kiswahili properly wish their children to become Kiswahili speakers. They teach their children even broken Kiswahili whereas the parents who are conversant to it, the language becomes the mother tongue to the children. The findings of this study tally with the findings by Trask (1999) as cited in Kulwa
(2016) who argues that, speakers of less prestigious languages are often eager to show off their command of a more prestigious language by introducing some of its vocabularies in their own speech. This situation has influenced most of the Matengo speakers to use Kiswahili as their first language and abandon their ethnic language.
5.4.2 The Influence of Intermarriage
Basing on the data presented in section 4.4.2, the researcher was interested to know if the influence of intermarriage has caused Matengo lexical change. The results from Figure 03 reveals that 12 (27.3%) out of 44 informants who attempted the questionnaire indicated intermarriages as one of the factors influencing Matengo lexical change. The findings were supported by the 8 informants who were interviewed. The evidence from the interviews show that Matengo lexical items are not passed to the young generation because of intermarriages. It has been a tendency for the married couple of different languages to use the lingua franca to make mutual/ common understanding among them. It was reported that, previously, the
103 Matengo were not allowed to marry from different tribes: the situation that made stability of their language. The findings also revealed that during the ancient times,
Matengo families were able to maintain their language because the marriage was within the same community. However, nowadays marriage has crossed the borders.
This situation forces parents to find a common language to enable them to communicate with their children. Children learn none of their parents‟ language. In this case, it was revealed that parents are forced to use Swahili to make the communication possible in the family conversation. With time, the children will become more conversant with the foreign lexical items, and ignoring the languages of their parents. These findings concur with the findings by Stephen (2012) who reports that, Sukuma have been forced to use Kiswahili after they have married the partners of different tribes: the situation that makes the large part of home conversation to be conducted in Swahili to facilitate the communication with their children as it is in Matengo society. Their children are less or not familiar with
Matengo lexicon.
5.4.3 Decline of Socialization Gap among the Youths and Elders
In this part, the researcher intended to describe how the decline of socialization gap among the youths and elders has contributed to the Matengo lexical change. The results from Figure 03 show that 6 (13.6%) out of 44 who attempted questionnaire indicated socialization gap as one of the factors causing Matengo lexical change.
The findings were justified by 6 respondents who were interviewed. The findings revealed that the parents who are the base for the language growth and development are not socializing with the young generation. This means that the stock of vocabulary that the elders have is not shared to the young people. This situation puts the Matengo language in danger as it is commonly known to elders only. Drawing 104 the inference from the conversation put forward by informants centring on non- linguistic factor, the findings revealed that, the decline of socialization gap has influenced the youths to use whatever the lexical items which are available to them.
This condition has created lexical change in Matengo language. The findings of this study agrees with the findings by Haeri (1996) who points out that the newer and more recent forms emerge as variants of the older forms. This is to say, linguistic development of children and the acceptance of the high-status language forms depends on the efforts build by their parents.
5.4.4 The Influence of Education
In this aspect, the intention was to know if the influence of education has caused lexical change in Matengo language. The results from Figure 03 indicate that 42
(95.5%) out of 44 respondents who attempted questionnaire agreed that it is true that the influence of education has contributed much to Matengo lexical change. This was supported by 6 (60%) out of 10 informants who were interviewed. Adhering to the information given in sub-section 4.4.5, it is evident that, when the Matengo become educated they demise their native language in favour of Kiswahili, the language they have been using in their education process. Therefore, Kiswahili is the language which has been recommended for use in most of official business in
Tanzania. In addition, it is the medium of instruction in all public primary schools and some private schools, and it is a subject in secondary and tertiary education.
It was reported that Matengo is not used in teaching and learning process, and there are no materials for teaching the language. However, in rare cases pre-primary pupils are being instructed by using Matengo for those who could not understand
Kiswahili very well. Following this situation, Matengo language has not been
105 documented. The findings of this study concurs with the findings by Batibo (2005) who reports that most of African ethnic languages are facing scarce of documents and some languages have totally not been documented, described or codified. A systematic description and codification would empower African ethnic languages for public use: preserve them for future generation as well to give them more status for communication processes.
The findings also concur with the findings by Lugere (2006) who reports that the complete exclusion of L1 from education contributes to language change or decline.
The development of L1 among the children who have learned it since their childhood is brought to an end after entering school. Therefore, it is found that when the Matengo are more exposed to formal education, changes in the lexical items are witnessed. These educational beneficiaries find themselves abandoning the original
Matengo lexical items. Furthermore, the findings of the current study tally with the findings by Myers-Scotton (2006), who reports that, scholars replace English words in High Tamil.
5.4.5 Advancements of Science and Technology
In this subsection, the researchers‟ desire was to know if the advancement of science and technology has contributed to Matengo lexical change. The results from Figure
03 show that 29 (65.9%) out of 44 informants who were involved in questionnaire indicated science and technological advancement as one of the factors that influence
Matengo lexical change. These findings were justified by 5 (50%) out of 10 respondents who were interviewed provided the example of those lexical items. The results from Table 4.21 revealed that, 8 (50%) out of 16 Matengo collected lexical items have changed due to the advancement of science and technology. For
106 example, the lexical items such as luaji “a clay pot” that was used as a bowl has now been replaced by bakuli a borrowed word from Kiswahili bakuli “bowl”; the item sela “an artificial candle made of nectar” has now been replaced by nshumaa “a candle” assimilated from Swahili word mshumaa “a candle” and lukobu “wooden spoon” has been replaced by chijiku “steel spoon” assimilated from Kiswahili kijiko
“spoon”. The term mbokotu “a special stone that was used to grind tobacco” has also now been replaced by mwihi “a wooden pestle used with mortal for grinding” assimilated from Swahili word mwichi “pestle” and luhigu “a traditional tool used to lit fire” has been replaced by chibiliti “a match box” assimilated from Swahili item kibiriti “a match box”.
Basing on the findings, the results show that, science and technology have played a significant role in the development of human kind. Through development of science and technology, people have devoted themselves day and night so as to construct new instruments that ought to simplify their daily lives. These instruments/objects are made using high and advanced technology depending on the technology of the specific society. The objects which result from the advancement of the technology are named using the language of the specific area of manufacturing for communication purpose. The findings agree with the findings by Strom (2009) who reports that, the new areas that continuously emerge in today‟s global life require new vocabulary and ways of expressing things from the language. If these challenges of modernity are not addressed, then that society becomes increasingly stigmatized. The findings revealed that Matengo have ceased using native lexical items in naming objects manufactured under modern technology. These objects have similarities in terms of function with those objects made under traditional technology. It seems that the discovery of new products is automatically invented 107 with a new name from foreign language (FL). These changes occur due to the variation of objects made from different technology.
5.4.6 The Influence of Migration
In this sub-section, the researcher intended to determine how migration influences
Matengo lexical change. The results from Figure 03 show that 25 (56.8%) respondents out of 44 indicated migration as one of the factors which cause lexical change. To rationalise the findings, 10 informants were interviewed. Out of them, 8
(80%) said that it is true that migration influence Matengo lexical change. It was narrated that in the old times, Matengo were the only people who occupied the
Matengo areas. This helped them to maintain their native language by adhering to the rules and structure of original lexical items. Therefore, the tendency of migration from their homestead to other areas like trading centres, mining and low concentrated areas in search of land have greatly contributed to lexical change in
Matengo language. This is evidenced with growth of towns such as Kipapa, Maguu,
Chamani, Litembo and Nyoni as it leads to influx of outsiders who visit the Matengo land for trading activities.
Basing on the data provided during interviews as appears in sub-section 4.4.5, it could be stated that initiating the use of whatever lexical items among the immigrants or neighbours has gradually motivated replacement of original Matengo lexical items. However, these movements are done willingly or forcefully because in some occasions, it may happen due to some geographical calamities such as drought, floods and storms. It was also witnessed that the presence of newcomers, specifically, in town centres has influenced lexical change in Matengo language.
108 Since the immigrants are not conversant with Matengo lexical items, they opt for any lexical items of their own when trying to learn this language.
Furthermore, the findings revealed that, the change of Matengo lifestyle has made most of them to move to other areas including Kitai, Mpitimbi-Mbwambwasi,
Songea, Machimbo and Namtumbo in search of areas for settlements and cultivation. Other people migrate in search of jobs like constructing buildings, working as labourers in farms and brick making so as they can get money to sustain their daily lives. This movement has been caused by over cultivation a situation that has resulted to poor production. In this movement, Matengo meet people from other ethnic groups who do not understand Matengo language. In this case, other languages are used especially Kiswahili (a lingua franca). Later when Matengo people come back to their motherland, they speak Modern Matengo which is affected with other languages, a situation that diminishes the usage of original
Matengo language.
This current study corresponds with the findings by Sarrwatt (2013) who reports that
Gorowa people migrated from their mother areas to others because they feared colonial officers who captured them for schooling and government work.
Furthermore, there was immigration of other people in Gorowa in search of food and opportunities. But when the condition settled they found themselves being affected with the language of the hosting community.
5.5 Chapter Summary
This chapter has discussed the results based on the objectives of the study. The discussion was centred on the extent to which Matengo language have undergone lexical changes as the first objective. The findings revealed that there are lexical
109 items which have been replaced or lost. The chapter has also presented the discussion on both linguistic and non-linguistic factors for Matengo lexical change.
The next chapter describes the summary, conclusion and recommendations.
110 CHAPTER SIX
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
6.1 Introduction
This chapter summarizes the findings, provides a conclusion and recommendations for the study. It is divided into four sections namely introduction, summary of the findings, conclusion and recommendations.
6.2 Summary
The study was based on the assessment of Matengo lexical change in Mbinga
District. The study was guided by three specific objectives: to explore the extent to which Matengo lexical items have undergone numerous changes, to examine the linguistic factors contributing to Matengo lexical change in Mbinga district and to describe non-linguistic factors behind Matengo language lexical change in Mbinga
District.
The data were obtained from four villages namely Kitumbi, Kipapa, Kindimba and
Mbuji. A total of sixty respondents were included. The researcher used sociolinguistic interviews, interviews and questionnaire as techniques of data collection.
The findings of the study revealed that, several lexical items in Matengo language have changed. This is proved due to the existence of many lexical items of Matengo language lost and being replaced in many domains of language use which are home, farming, livestock keeping and commercial domains. In contrast with what was presented in literature review, the study revealed that there are lexical items which have changed due to the influence of Matengo language itself. This is due to fact that the tendency of Matengo to have high tone, extension and reduction of word
111 meaning, lexical specification, science and technological changes and morphological modification at a word level, are the catalytic agents for lexical change in Matengo lexicon.
In addition, it was found that the borrowed items have their corresponding items in
Matengo. This situation has created the production of lexical items which are less important in this speech community. Hall (1964) makes an argument that when words are borrowed, they are usually adopted to the structure of the accommodating language. Also according to Yoneda (2010), loanwords from Swahili and their equivalents in Matengo are both used without differentiation: the one that dominates is always the loanword. As a result, the original Matengo words are naturally fading away.
In terms of the third objective, the study found several non- linguistic factors for
Matengo lexical change. These include decline of intergenerational transmission, intermarriage, education, decline of socialization gap, development of science and technology and the influence of migration.
6.3 Conclusion
This study has shown that, lexical change in Matengo is not only realized in home domain, but also in farming, livestock keeping and commercial domain as discussed in chapter five. From the findings, it was revealed that, Kiswahili words are introduced in Matengo by the educational beneficiaries at the expense of Matengo lexical items, the process that, Yoneda (2010) called “swahilization”. This is because the use of lexical items signifies one being educated in the context that uneducated person is the one who knows Matengo language only.
112 Apart from Swahili, the influence was also seen from other languages especially the neighbouring languages including Ngoni, Nyasa and Manda. Another area assessed was the lexical loss which revealed that, many lexical items of Matengo language have got lost. Furthermore, the data presented exposed that in all the four domains that were taken into account, home domain was reported to have a large list of items that have been lost. The major reasons were based on the changes that have taken place in the field of science and technology as well as in education. As some of the informants commented that, nowadays the life styles have changed to the extent that most of the equipments that are used nowadays did not previously exist.
Therefore, this study is very significant on the ground that it provides a complete picture of how lexical items have changed in various domains where Matengo is used. Hence, the findings of this study revealed that lexical change in Matengo is very high. With these factors, the Matengo language is in danger to get lost on the history.
6.4 Recommendations
The existence of several replacements in Matengo in different domains of language use is not healthier to this language. Deliberate measures should be taken to rescue the situation. There would be policy that attracts people to keep on writing the
Tanzanian vernaculars because they contain some advantageous values helpful to the target community.
6.4.1 General Recommendations
The study has revealed that through borrowing, Matengo lexical items are endangered as they are fluttered away in regular language use by the borrowed languages expressing the same meaning or concept. Matengo community should
113 build a habit of using the original Matengo lexical items as a way to reserve its originality.
It has been found that the current generation is more exposed to Kiswahili than
Matengo language. Many youths alienate themselves whenever the people are making speech using Matengo language. This implies that, these youths are totally or partially know how to speak and understand Matengo language.
Parents are recommended to retain the values of the language for identity and local socialization. This will guarantee intergenerational language transmission.
Non-native sparkers especially immigrants, should value the status of the language.
This will avoid introduction of new terms basing on the immigrant‟s preference lexical items in Matengo just because they disvalue the language. The elders should instil culture of passing Matengo language to the young generation so as they can become familiar with the language and use it in communication.
6.4.2 Recommendations for Further Studies
Since the study covered only one aspect of language change which is lexical, the study recommends further studies to be carried in other aspects as well such as phonology, syntax and morphology which also have been subjected to change.
Additionally, the study recommends further studies of the same sort to be carried thoroughly to examine the decline of lexical specification among the language users in Mbinga district so as to maintain unique practice of this speech community.
Furthermore, the study recommends further studies to be carried out to examine why nouns are more subjected to change compared to other groups of words like verbs, adverbs and adjectives.
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119 APPENDICES
My name is KAPINGA, Vermund Selestin, a student of Dodoma University pursuing Master of Arts in Linguistics; I would like to inform you that, the purpose of this questionnaire is to collect information for my research on lexical change. Your response will be anonymous and confidential, and the information that you will provide will be used for the purpose of this study only. With delight use your perception and honestly give your genuine information.
Appendix I: SEMI STRUCTURED INTERVIEW GUIDE
Taking into account of several domains such as home, farming, livestock keeping and business kindly spare a few minutes and give your cooperation.
Home
Regarding the following clues (clothes, domestic utensils, shelter, family relation)
a) By using the clues provided, what are the lexical items that have changed?
b) In such lexical items, are there any replacements for these items?
Farming
a) What are the Matengo lexical items that were used in farming but currently are not used?
b) Is there any replacement for such items?
Livestock Keeping
a) What are the Matengo lexical items that were used in livestock keeping, but they are currently not used?
b) Are there replacements for such items?
Commercial Domain
a) What are the Matengo lexical items that were used in commercial grounds, but they are currently not used?
b) Are there replacements for such items? 120 Language Contact
1. What are the borrowed lexical items that are used in Matengo?
2. Is this borrowing influenced by shortage of lexical items in Matengo?
121 Appendix II: Questionnaire
Full name of the interviewer ......
Answer the following questions by putting a tick in an appropriate box and give explanations where required.
1. Preliminary Information
a) Please indicate your age group
18 – 34 35 – 59 60+
b) Your place of residence......
c) Sex......
d) Occupation......
e) The highest level of education you have completed......
2. Is it true that the following Matengo lexical items have undergone change?
Proto Lexical Current item Use Lexical Item Current item in Use Item ligwanda ndombu komisi kuhotola ling'oi kupaaha lisulubai kutonda kolaboi kuhekatuchi Nhasa chimbwiti uhagu chinzepi
a) Yes/no...... b) If the answer is yes, write their replacements besides the proto lexical item in the table above.
3. Are there any Matengo lexical items that have been maintained? 122 a) Yes/ No...... b) If the answer is yes, mention these lexical items...... 4. What are Matengo lexical items that have been lost? ...... 5. What are the other Matengo lexical items that have changed leaving aside the mentioned ones?...... 6. Does education cause lexical change? a) Yes/No...... b) If the answer is yes, explain how education causes lexical change...... ……………………………………………………………………………...... 7. In your opinion, what causes lexical change?......
123 Appendix III: Socialinguistic Interview Areas to elicit linguistic data cover Matengo phonology, morphology, lexical specification and semantics
Matengo phonology
General hypothesis
Matengo phonology influences changes of lexical items
Morphology
Matengo morphological words support changes of lexical items
Lexical specification
Because of the existence of other lexical items, the Matengo have discarded
its lexical items specialized to married women.
Semantic
Meaning extension or reduction causes lexical changes in Matengo language.
124 Appendix IV: Introduction Letter from University of Dodoma
125