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Chapter One the Research Question CHAPTER ONE THE RESEARCH QUESTION 1.1 INTRODUCTION It is estimated that approximately twenty languages around the world become extinct every year. And this, according to Prof Rusandre Hendrikse, Department of Linguistics at Unisa, (interview, 3 February 2004), is a conservative estimate if one takes into consideration the wide range of communication that takes place through dialects (see also Mail & Guardian, 14 August 2003). In their work, Vanishing Voices, Nettle and Romaine (2002:111) use a poem, written in 1916, to illustrate how fast languages are disappearing: Languages die like rivers. Words wrapped around your tongue today and broken to the shape of thought between your teeth and lips speaking now and today shall be faded hieroglyphics ten thousands years from now. South Africa’s indigenous languages are not immune to this phenomenon, they will soon no longer be heard if the speakers continue to expect the government and statutory bodies, like the Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB), to maintain and safeguard these languages. The reasons for the extinction of languages, or language death, range from civil wars, self-genocide by a speech community, language shift, and the appeal of the so-called modern languages to younger speakers. However, the main cause of extinction can be found in globalisation and the pressure exercised on mother-tongue speakers of dominant languages, such as English. Increasing numbers of indigenous language speakers adopt the dominant language or employ code-switching every day. The possible extinction of the indigenous languages of South Africa will mean the disappearance of a rich element of the country’s indigenous culture. Our children’s 1 children will not be able to communicate with their ancestors nor, for example, will they be able to follow the language of traditional healers during a consultation. It is against this background that I seek to understand why a language with universal appeal, such as English, can be viewed as an impediment to the existence of less developed languages, especially in South Africa. This study will examine the premise that the co-existence of English and the indigenous languages will hasten the disappearance of these languages. As matters stand at the moment, English dominates indigenous languages like Xitsonga. The fear remains that this dominance will continue until the indigenous languages are no longer spoken or written. Masinge (1997) and Painter (2004) both believe that English, as the language of power in South Africa, is one of the main causes of stagnation of indigenous languages. The universality of a single language is undesirable, because if all people on earth were to only speak English or Chinese, for example, the richness of diversity would cease and the world would be the poorer for it. 1.2 LITERARY WORKS BY OTHER RESEARCHERS A thorough study of the relevant literature in sociolinguistics has also been undertaken, while interviews have provided the first-hand information. Sociolinguistic texts, dissertations, language journals and newspaper articles were used as secondary sources for the relevant background knowledge. It should be acknowledged that although research in sociolinguistics has been undertaken, very few of these projects studied the impact of English supremacy over South African indigenous languages, particularly Xitsonga. In this section, I shall briefly discuss the various literary works that stimulated my interest in this subject: 2 1.2.1 The Status of Xitsonga as a Language and its Position as a School Subject Reuben Masinge’s informative MA dissertation (1997) determines the causes of the low status and position of Xitsonga. He points out that this low status reflects the way in which the language as a school subject is held in poor esteem. By paying attention to language planning, the status and attitudes of its speakers and Xitsonga as a school subject, the dissertation successfully investigates the reasons for the negative attitudes to Xitsonga by both teachers and pupils, and formulates suggestions to remedy the situation. The dissertation argues that the negative attitude towards Xitsonga by the mother tongue-speakers has a bearing on the performance of the learners in Xitsonga. The study formulates proposals for the more effective teaching of Xitsonga at schools and to establish ways and means to restore the love for Xitsonga as a language amongst its people in general. Masinge is a retired education specialist, who has written on the status of Xitsonga in education. His involvement with language teaching goes back to 1966 when he was a newly employed teacher. He later became the principal of a school (1976), a schools’ inspector (1980), an inspector of education and, later, a chief education specialist until his retirement in 2002. 1.2.2 The Language Policy of South Africa: What do People Say? In 2003 David Elias Mutasa took a hard look at the issue of the shaky relationship between indigenous languages and English, in his doctoral thesis, “Language Policy of South Africa, What do People Say?”. The thesis highlights the perceptions and attitudes of indigenous language speakers towards the (newly) adopted eleven- official-language policy. He answered the question ‘What do people say?’ by gathering information from the general public and other stakeholders, who often cannot influence language issues on a national scale. Through this research study, Mutasa addresses the importance of tuition in the mother-tongue for Africans, and highlights possibilities in implementation of language policy and the use of indigenous languages in major domains like education, trade, business and government. 3 Mutasa is a fine linguist with a passion for languages and has been attached to the University of South Africa since 1989. 1.2.3 Language and Power Norman Fairclough’s groundbreaking text, Language and Power (1989), shows how language affects the maintenance and changing of power relations in contemporary society. It focuses on the connections between language use and the unequal positions of power, particularly in modern Britain. This work highlights and helps correct a widespread underestimation of the significance of language in the production, maintenance and change of social relationships and power. The study succeeds in explaining the existing conventions as an outcome of power relations and power struggle. Fairclough believes that language is important enough to merit the attention of every citizen; indeed no person who is interested in the relationship of power in modern society can afford to ignore language. Fairclough explains how the analysis of language can reveal the processes referred to above, how people can become more aware of them and suggests strategies to resist and change these processes. The book is accessible to readers with no previous exposure to this field. Fairclough is an Emeritus Professorial Fellow with the Institute for Advanced Studies in Management and Social Science at Lancaster University in the United Kingdom. 1.2.4 Studies in the Theory of Ideology Thompson’s seminal work, Studies in the Theory of Ideology (1984), is a collection of essays written between 1979 and 1984. This work assesses outstanding contemporary contributions, limitations and innovations in the study of ideology. These essays interrogate topics such as language functions, power, discourse and interpretations. On the whole, the work introduces the reader to a rich and varied field of research in sociolinguistic studies. In this work, Thompson discusses the link 4 between language and power, and shows that language can be used as a means of power production. Thompson is a Cambridge University sociologist and author of several critical works in the field of human sciences. 1.2.5 Linguistic Imperialism Linguistic Imperialism (1992), by Robert Phillipson, a Professor of English in Copenhagen, Denmark, is designed to explore the English language as a contemporary phenomenon – a language with wide communication appeal. It analyses how and why English became dominant. Phillipson examines the spread of English from an historical viewpoint and how the language was used as an instrument of foreign policy by major English speaking countries. He covers problems such as the stigmatisation of the African languages and argues that the English speaking countries of the West use English to suppress the people of the former colonies (including South Africa). Phillipson identifies complex hegemonic processes that, he asserts, continue to sustain the pre-eminence of English in the world today. Phillipson discusses “linguicism”, a term coined to describe the processes by which endangered languages become extinct or lose their local eminence as a direct result of the rising and competing prominence of English linguicism in disparate global contexts. Topics discussed in this work include the role English plays in the Third World countries, the reasons why other languages have not prospered, and the manner in which the position of English has been strengthened. 5 1.2.6 Overview of Literary Works by Other Researchers The abovementioned scholars, Masinge, Mutasa, Fairclough, Phillipson and Thompson, wrote extensively about the sociolinguistic discourse, albeit from different angles. Masinge and Mutasa identified the English language as one of the major obstacles in the development and growth of indigenous languages. Yet they fail to point out the main reason for this. It is my premise that English is used by its speakers to suppress other languages
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