Fanakalo As a Trade Language in Kwazulu-Natal
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FANAKALO AS A TRADE LANGUAGE IN KWAZULU-NATAL by Heidi Newby -Rose Thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree MPhil in Intercultural Communication at the University of Stellenbosch Supervisor: Dr. Kate Huddlestone Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Department of General Linguistics December 2011 i Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za DECLARATION By submitting this thesis electronically, I declare that the entirety of the work contained therein is my own, original work, that I am the sole author thereof (save to the extent explicitly otherwise stated), that reproduction and publication thereof by Stellenbosch University will not infringe any third party rights and that I have not previously in its entirety or in part submitted it for obtaining any qualification. Heidi Newby-Rose November 2011 Copyright © 2011 Stellenbosch University All rights reserved i Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za ABSTRACT This study investigates the use of the pidgin Fanakalo as a trade language in rural KwaZulu-Natal: its birth under certain historical circumstances; its spread; its apparent growth, post-1990, as new immigrants continue to enter the country and acquire and use Fanakalo out of expediency; and the reasons why Fanakalo continues to thrive in certain contexts. It focuses specifically on similarities between the relations between Gujarati traders and their customers in the 19th century and the relations that exist between Gujarati and Pakistani traders and their Zulu- speaking customers today. Data was collected primarily through semi-structured interviews with nine Gujarati traders – two born in South Africa and the others recent immigrants – five Pakistani traders and ten Zulu speakers, of which two were employees of traders while the others were customers. The results of the data analysis suggest the principles of expediency and non-intimacy may provide a space where Fanakalo can continue to flourish. Pidgins are a neglected element in the study of intercultural communication and the study endeavours to provide pointers for further research in this field. ii Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za OPSOMMING Hierdie studie ondersoek die gebruik van die kontaktaal Fanakalo as ‘n handelstaal in nie-stedelike KwaZulu-Natal: die ontstaan daarvan onder sekere historiese omstandighede; die verspreiding daarvan; die waarskynlike groei daarvan, na 1990 met die arrivering van nuwe immigrante wat Fanakalo aanleer en gebruik uit gerief; en die redes waarom Fanakalo voortbestaan en floreer in sekere kontekste. Die spesifieke fokus is die soortgelyke verhoudinge tussen Gujarati-handelaars en hulle klante in die negentiende eeu, en tussen Gujarati- en Pakistani-handelaars en hulle Zoeloesprekende klante vandag. Inligting is hoofsaaklik deur semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude ingewin met nege Gujarati-handelaars – twee in Suid-Afrika gebore en die ander onlangse immigrante – vyf Pakistani-handelaars en tien Zoeloesprekendes, waarvan twee werknemers van handelaars en agt klante was. ‘n Analise van die gegewens dui daarop dat die beginsels van gerief of doelmatigheid, en ongemeensaamheid ‘n ruimte mag skep waarin Fanakalo sal voortbestaan. Die studie van kontaktale behoort meer aandag te geniet in die veld van interkulturele kommunikasie, en hierdie tesis poog om ‘n bydrae daartoe te lewer. iii Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS In order to transform half-formed suspicions, based on years of observation of a woolly and possibly controversial subject, into a coherent thesis that hopefully contributes to understanding of the various issues involved, the help, often under time pressure, of the following people was invaluable and I would like to thank: Dudu Mpanza, for assisting with field work. Mrs and Miss Patel for their insight into and assistance with the Gujarati community. The interviewees, some of them known to me for a long time, for their tolerance in the face of a sudden invasion into their private and commercial lives. Friends who put me up and assisted with logistics in KZN. Nkosingiphile Nene for assisting with the transcriptions of Zulu interviews. My husband Andrew and daughter Mila for putting up with stress, silences and strange mutterings. Dr Kate Huddlestone for helping to shape my wild thoughts into something presentable. This thesis is dedicated to the memory of my mother Cora Rose (14/12/1941-30/08/2007) who would have been so proud. “Die oft kuenstliche Unterscheidung in linguistische and ausserlinguistische Faktoren, die sich kontaklinguistisch nicht aufrecht erhalten laesst, da beide Sichtweisen in vielen Faellen interdependentiell miteinander verbunden sind, wird zugunsten einer Gesamtbetrachtung aufgegeben” (Nelde 1990: v) The often artificial separation of linguistic and extra-linguistic factors, which is not viable in contact linguistics, as both points of view are inextricably entwined in many cases, is dropped here in favour of an overall assessment (translation mine). iv Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION .......................................................................................................................................... i ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................................. ii OPSOMMING ............................................................................................................................................iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...................................................................................................................... iv CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................ 1 1.1. The focus of the study .......................................................................................................... 1 1.2. A historical and current sociolinguistic context and rationale for the study . 5 1.3. Research questions ............................................................................................................... 7 1.4. Methodology and an outline of the thesis ................................................................. 10 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................................. 12 2.1. Fanakalo: a sociological description ............................................................................ 12 2.2. Fanakalo on the mines ...................................................................................................... 16 2.3. Fanakalo in KZN history: light on its origins and crystallisation ..................... 18 2.4. Brief history of Indians in KZN, with specific reference to the Gujarati community ............................................................................................................................. 21 2.5. The situation in KZN today as it relates to history: renewed influx from the Indian subcontinent ........................................................................................................... 24 2.6. How do language, people and situation affect one another in a contact situation? ................................................................................................................................ 28 2.7. Concluding remarks ........................................................................................................... 34 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY ......................................................................................................... 36 3.1. The research instrument .................................................................................................. 36 3.2. Methodological issues ....................................................................................................... 37 3.3. The data collection process ............................................................................................. 39 v Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za CHAPTER 4: DATA PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS and DISCUSSION ................................... 43 4. 1. Interviews with traders .................................................................................................... 43 4.2. Interviews with Zulu speakers ...................................................................................... 57 4.3. Other sources of data ......................................................................................................... 64 4.4. Discussion of the data ....................................................................................................... 67 4.5. Answering the research question/s ............................................................................ 70 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND SUMMARY .............................................................................. 74 BIBLIOGRAPHY ..................................................................................................................................... 78 APPENDIX A: Questionnaires .......................................................................................................... 83 APPENDIX B: Interview Transcriptions ...................................................................................... 84 vi Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1. The focus of the study 20 years ago Rajend Mesthrie (1989:216) asserted