LECTURE ONE

ENG 205: SOCIOLINGUISTICS

Definitions;

➢ Sociolinguistics is a branch of linguistics that studies all aspects of the relationships between language and society. ➢ Sociolinguistics studies such matters such as the linguistics identity of social groups, social attitudes to language, standard and non-standard forms of a language, the patterns and needs of national language use, social varieties and levels of language, the social basis of multilingualism and bilingualism, etc. ➢ It is the study of language as it affects and is affected by social relations. It examines a broad range of concerns like dialect, idiolect, accent, bilingualism, multilingualism and levels of diction in light of social distinction among people. ➢ Sociolinguistics is the study of the sociological aspects of language. It attempts to isolate the linguistic features used in particular situations that mark the various social relationships among the participants and the significant elements of the situations. Factors influencing the choice of sounds, vocabulary and grammatical elements may include; age, gender, education, religion, ethnic identity, occupation and peer group identification. ➢ Sociolinguistics is descriptive study of the effect of any and all aspects of society including cultural norms expectations and context of the way language is used and the effect of language use in the society. It differs from sociology of language in that the focus of sociolinguistics Is, the effect of the society on the language. Sociology of language focuses on the language’s effect on the society.

Perspective of sociolinguistics: macro-linguistics and micro-linguistics

a) Micro-sociolinguistics explores the way in which society influences the speaker’s idiolect, that is the specific language of a person and how people communicate with different social variables or factors. b) Macro-sociolinguistics focuses more on society as a whole with reference to language. It studies what societies do with their languages ie the attitudes and attachments that accounts for the functional distribution of speech forms in society, language shift, language maintenance and replacement as well as the interaction of the speech communities. ❖ According to Nabor (1970), this area of study (macro-linguistics) deals with large scale social factors and their mutual interactions with languages and dialects. ❖ Coulmas (1997) says that micro-linguistics investigates how social structure influences the way people talk and how language varieties and patterns of use correlates with social attributes such as social class, sex and age.

Interaction of language and society

▪ Language is one of the most powerful emblems of social behavior. It is the study of the relationship between language and society with the goal of bringing a better understanding of the structure of language and how languages functions in communities that bring out the interaction between language and societies. Society cannot be created until a group of people has some values in common. These values require a language to articulate them. ▪ It is language that brings people together and keeps them together. ▪ Language always precedes society eg in a political discussion group, the people come together because they already have or want to learn a political language.

There are several possible relationships between language and society

i. The age grading phenomenon whereby young children speak differently from older children and in turn children speak differently from mature adults. ii. Regional, social or ethnic origin. iii. Gender or sex influences the way language is used in the society. LECTURE TWO

CONCEPT OF SPEECH COMMUNITY

❖ A speech community is a concept that describes a more or less discrete group of people in a unique and mutually accepted way among themselves. This is sometimes referred to as *speech bund*. ❖ Members of a speech community will always develop slang or jargon to serve the group’s special priorities and purposes. ❖ Speech communities can be members of a profession with a specialized jargon, distinct social groups like high school students, football fans or even tight knit groups like family and friends. Types of speech community 1. Soft shelled speech communities 2. Hard shelled speech communities ▪ An informal typology of speech community as soft shelled versus hard shelled may be distinguished on the basis of the strength of the boundary that is maintained by language. ▪ The soft hard communities have stronger boundary allowing minimal interaction between members and those outside. This provides maximum maintenance of language and culture. ▪ A speech community speaking a language in more limited distribution will more likely to be hard shelled because relatively few people outside the community learn to use it eg Italian. ▪ The soft-shelled community has a weaker boundary and allows interaction between members and those outside. ▪ Speech community which primarily use one of the world languages eg English are more likely to be soft shelled because it will be known as a second language by many others, consequently, the interaction across the boundary will be relatively easy in both directions.

LANGUAGE VARIATIONS

➢ Language variation focuses on how language varies in different context. Context refers to things like ethnicity, social class, gender, age, geography etc. ➢ A study of language variation is concerned with social constrains determining language in its contextual environment. ➢ Study of language variation is an important part of sociolinguistics to an extent that it requires reference to social factors such as ;

1. Accent • This refers to the phonological variation ie variations in pronunciation therefore if we talk about a southern accent we are talking about a generalized property of English pronunciation in the southern part of US. Accent is a part of dialectal variation.

2. Idiolect • It is individual’s use or choice of language. The choices may be the use of statement instead of questions. It is also manifested in a person’s accent, vocabulary. 3 .Dialect • It is the collection of attributes (phonetic, phonological, lexical, syntactic, morphological, pragmatic and semantic that makes one group of speakers of the same language. • Therefore, dialect usually differs from all linguistic levels. it is the product of individual’s geographical and class origin. 4.Sociolect • These are language varieties that are used by particular social strata. Language varies according to social distribution as well as geographical distribution. 5.Jargon • It is a set of vocabulary items used by members of a particular profession ie their technical terms.

6.Diaglossia

• It’s a situation in which two varieties of a language are allocated higher and lower or formal and informal status. A diaglossic situation in a society has two codes which show two functions. Those situations in which the language will be used are called domains.

A typical diaglossic distribution of Kiswahili ➢ High variety of Kiswahili is used in speech in parliament, news broadcast, summon in church. ➢ Low variety of Kiswahili is used in personal letters, lectures, instructions to waiter etc. ➢ Generally, the high variety is used for literary purposes ie used in education and those who cannot master it are socially marginalized. ➢ It is also used for official or formal use in church, school, parliament, political, newspapers and editorials. ➢ It has features like; • it is prestigious in that it carries with it a prestige of a great tradition of religion. • It is more stable being protected from change by its association of written text and by an education system • It’s normally associated with power • It is likely to be used over a wide region and thus can serve some fine purpose. ➢ Low variety is used for informal conversation and daily use eg, in home situations, giving instructions to those of lower class and cartoons. Features • The grammar is simpler. • It is more localized and shows dialectal variation. • It is a marker of membership of a peer/ethnic group. LECTURE THREE CODE SWITCHING AND CODE MIXING

The term code can be used to refer to a language or a dialect in a general sense.

Code switching.

➢ Hymes (1972) defines code switching as the alternative use of two or more languages, varieties of two language or even speech styles. ➢ Bokamba(1989) says code switching is the mixing of words, phrases and sentences from two distinct grammatical sub systems across sentence boundaries within the same speech event. ➢ Code switching is not a display of deficiency in language knowledge. Instead, it is a phenomenon through which its users express a range of meanings. ➢ By code switching which occurs mostly in conversation, the choice of speech alerts the participants of the interaction of context and social dimension within which the conversation is taking place. ➢ Gumperz (1982) says that code switching is the juxtaposition within the same speech exchange of passages of speech belonging to two different grammatical systems or subsystems

Code mixing

➢ Bukamba (1989) views code mixing as the embedding of various linguistic units eg affexes (bound morphemes, words, phrases and clauses) in a sentence eg utado? ➢ Pfaff (1983) says it’s a random alteration of two languages within a sentence. This language behavior is governed by linguistic and socio-linguistic factors. It occurs in a sentence made of elements of languages A and B. ➢ It is usually the infusion of single words or items from one language say A into the language B construction. Types of code switching i. Inter-sentential; o This occurs outside the sentence or the clause level, ie at sentence or clause boundaries. o It is sometimes called extra-sentential switching. o In this case a clause or sentence is in one language or another. Eg, the strike has been called off lakini hatujasoma (A-B) ii. Intra-sentential o This code switching occurs within a single sentence/clause, eg, you promised to come, mbona you did not? (A-B-A) o The shift is done in the middle of a sentence and often happens within one sentence or even one phrase. iii. Tag switching/ tag switches o This is a switching of a tag, phrase or a word or both from say language B to language A o It involves the insertion of a tag in one language into an utterance that is entirely in the other language o It involves an exclamation, a tag or a parenthetical in another language than the rest of the sentence. o The tags serve as an emblem of a bilingual character in an otherwise monolingual sentence. Eg we haven’t met in a long time jameni! LECTURE FOUR BILINGUALISM, MULTILINGUALISM AND MONOLINGUALISM a) Monolingualism is the use of only one language by the speaker. b) Bilingualism is the alternate use of two languages. - Bloomfield defines bilingualism as a native like control of two languages.

Types of bilingualism

There are six types in terms of how the concept of a language is registered in the individual’s brain. They include;

1) Compound bilingualism - Here an individual learns two languages in the same environment so that she or he acquires one notion with two verbal expressions. This is whereby words or phrases in different languages have the same concepts. Eg, French- English bilinguals, these two terms pantaloon and trousers refer to the same thing. - The speaker is usually fluent in both languages. - It occurs in children whose both parents are bilinguals and they speak to the child in both languages indiscriminately therefore the child will grow up to speak both languages effortlessly. - In compound bilingualism the person learns the two languages in the same context where they are used concurrently so that there is a fused representation of the languages in the brain. In this way compound bilingualism is additive in nature. 2) Coordinate bilingualism - Here the two languages are acquired in different contexts eg home and school so that the words of the two languages belongs to separate and independent systems. - This means that the bilingual speaker has different associations for words from both languages which mean the same thing. - The first language is usually more dominant than the other and as a result it is used to aid with the interpretation of the second language. - In coordinate, a person learns the languages in separate environments therefore words of the two languages are kept separate with each word having its own specific meaning. - This may also be referred to as subtractive bilingualism - One situation in which a child may develop coordinate bilingualism is when the two parents have different mother tongues and each parent speaks his or her own mother tongue to the child. In response, the child construct two separate linguistic systems and can handle each of them easily. - It can also occur when young children who have already mastered their mother tongue are adopted by parents who speak a different language. 3) Subordinate bilingualism - This is where the linguistic element of one of the speakers languages are only available through elements of other speaker language. The individual will try to describe words in their weaker language through words in their stronger language. - Simultaneous versus successive bilingualism - This refers to a specific time when a second language is introduced to a person. - If the two languages are introduced to a child from the beginning of life then bilingualism is simultaneous. On the other hand, if the child learns one language first then the other, bilingualism in this case is successive.

-Additive versus subtractive

- These types of bilingualism stress the sociocultural aspect of learning two languages. If a child is allowed to develop a certain language he is learning in a community where both languages and cultures are valued then the child is most likely to develop additive bilingualism. In this sense, the second language and culture are added to the first language and culture and both L1 and L2 complement and enrich each other. - Subtractive bilingualism means that the child learns L2 at the expense of L1 in which case, the learning of L2 deletes or subtract L1. - Additive bilingualism results in the acquisition of both mother tongues an L2 skills while subtractive bilingualism result in the loss of mother tongue skills while paying greater attention to learning and using the L2. 4) Balanced bilingualism - Here the bilingual person is equally proficient in the two languages across a range of situations. - However, practically speaking its quite rare to have a bilingual with an equal proficiency in L1 and L2. - The term practically refers to a bilingual who is slightly more proficient in one language than the other. - It also means that the bilingual competence in the two languages is compatible with his or her age in the sense that a bilingual child is described as linguistically competent in the two languages with regard to his or her age range. 5) Dominant bilingualism - This type of bilingualism refers to the idea that the bilingual person is more proficient in one language than the other. - This indicates that the dominant language is to be used in the wider range of situations than the other language. 6) Semi-lingualism - This refers to the idea that the bilingual person usually has a low proficiency levels in both languages. This low proficiency level is caused by the fact that the linguistic systems of both languages is not fully developed. - Non native language (NNL) and native language (NL) are not that much developed and that the bilingual person is unable to figure out the complexity of each of these two linguistic systems. - Semi-lingualism simply means that the child is not yet linguistically mature and that much more exposure and use of both the NNL and NL are required in order to allow the child to move to the stage of balanced bilingualism.

Causes of bilingualism/ determinants of the need for bilingualism

At both the individual and societal levels, the need for bilingualism might variously arise from the following reasons;

3. Migration - The movement of people from one country to another is one of the strongest causes of bilingualism. When immigrants arrive in another country speaking their native language, they add their NL to the language situation in the host country. This fosters bilingualism or multilingualism. - At the same time they learn the language of the host country rendering themselves into bilinguals who usually communicate with each other in their NL and with the citizens of the host country in the language of their country. 4. Education and culture. - One of the reasons people learn/ acquire foreign language is the need for another language that helps them in the field of education and culture for example if an Arabic- monolingual person wants to study/know the culture of English-speaking country, that person will have to learn English first. - The educational bilingualism is enhanced by books and other audio-visual and written materials that are produced in a limited number of world languages. These forces students to be proficient in one of these languages. - As Mackey (1967) explains that in many countries around the world, to be educated means to be a bilingual. 5. Boarder areas - Every country has geographical boundaries that are often shared by other country (es). The usual situation in boarder areas especially if there is a dialect contact between citizens from two neighboring countries is a creation of a group of bilingual people from both countries. In the location near boarder areas, it is possible to find people who are citizens of one country but they are members of a socio-cultural groups based in the other. 6. Religion - Religion may be tied to a specific language and the spread of the religion will make its new followers learn the language of that religion thus enhancing bilingualism. For example, a lot of Muslim inhabitants from non-Arabic speaking countries such as Iran, India, Pakistan and turkey have become bilinguals in their native language as well as classical Arabic because they had to learn Arabic as a religion related language. - Therefore, nearly all Muslims living in non-Arabic speaking countries are to some degree considered as bilinguals. - Muslims consider the language of their sacred scriptures pure and holy. As such, clerics in such religions have to learn the language in which the sacred books were originally written. 7. The historical factors - Historical events such as conquest and colonialism influenced all spheres of life. There is evident in most African countries where colonial masters bequeathed their language as the official languages in a multilingual sub-Saharan Africa. 8. Public/international relations. - Whereas some countries have adopted African languages along European ones for communication purposes, others have maintained those of their colonial masters which must be taught in schools. - Nigeria for instance has Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo as well as English to facilitate personal relationship within the country. Similarly, relations between countries have also demanded of diplomats, politician traders etc a mastery of languages for wider communication (LWC) - This has necessitated the elaboration of many language teaching programs within countries. - In Kenya for example, programs exist for the teaching of English, French, German and Chinese for international relations.

Benefits of multilingualism

Benefits of bilingualism can be grouped into four major categories;

i. Personal ii. Cognitive iii. Academic iv. Societal 1. Personal

The personal benefit of bilingualism is embodied into important points;

I. The bilingual person has an access to two different languages and cultures and hence more people and resources. This definitely enriches the life experience of the bilingual person simply because he or she will be more able to communicate with more people than the monolingual person. II. When the bilingual parents are from two different languages and cultures, knowing a language of each parent will give the bilingual child a sense of identity and belonging towards both parents and members of extended family. 2. Cognitive

The cognitive benefits of bilingualism are represented in these two points;

I. Bilingualism in children fosters metalinguistic awareness. That is, children using two languages understand that one idea can be expressed in different ways. This provides young children with an insight into the construction and function of language. The metalinguistic awareness is an important element in the development of children intellectual abilities because when children shift from one language to another, they compare the two languages and this helps them to see how landuage as a communication system really works. This enhances analytical and creative thinking on the part of young children. II. Researchers and educators have suggested that bilinguals are more sensitive to non- verbal communication such as facial expressions, gestures and tone of voice 3. Academic I. Young children who received foreign language instruction outperformed their monolingual peers who did not receive any language teaching. II. Researchers on bilingualism conclude that learning a foreign language at a very young age can clearly benefit children’s reading abilities. 4. Societal I. We live in the age of globalization where the whole world is just like a small village. To make this globalization possible, people should be able to speak other languages other than their native ones. II. Bilingual people in a society are the ones who connected better to the international market therefore; bilingual knowledge is a strong asset to the society.

Multilingualism

- This is the use of two or more languages either by an individual speaker or by a community of speakers. - Multilingual speakers out numbers monolingual speakers’ population. - The generic term for a multilingual person is polyglot. - A multilingual person in a broad definition is one who can communicate in more than one language, be it actively through speaking, writing or signing or passively through listening, reading or perceiving. - Multilingual speakers have acquired and maintained at least one language during childhood, the other languages are acquired through formal education or contact with other languages.

LECTURE FIVE

Language/ speech repertoires

This refers to the total number of languages an individual is competent in. by extension, communities have their own repertoires. That is to say within a community, several languages could be in use in their daily transactions.

Example

Town/ city repertoires

Nairobi Kiswahili, English, African languages, code switching

Kisii Kiswahili, English, ekegusi, code switching

Thika Kiswahili, English, gikuyu, kamba, code switching

Kampala Kiswahili, English, luganda, Ugandan African languages

Social networks

▪ An individual’s social network can be defined as the aggregate of relationships contracted with others. ▪ Social network studies/ examine the different structures and properties of relationships and their effect on social behavior and in our case linguistic behavior. ▪ In socio-linguistics, networks reflect individual’s freedom of association. ▪ Networks are not inherited like social classes and therefore an individual may belong to as many social classes as possible within and without a speech community. ▪ The number of connections an individual makes is referred to as density. ▪ In a network a node represents a speaker. A node will then connect with another node. ▪ The lines connecting nodes are known as plex hence there are multiplex connections or uni-plex connections between nodes. ▪ A multiplex network represents a person or an individual who is tied to others in a variety of ways such as church/mosque, football, school, office or extended family.

Application to sociolinguistics

▪ Social networks are useful during research on language within a community. A researcher would usually seek out multiplex individuals in order to access as many community members as possible. ▪ The selection of these multiplex individuals enables the researchers to reach more community members as more information gathering becomes possible in this approach.

LANGUAGE DOMAINS

▪ Domain is an area of human activity in which one particular speech variety or a combination of several varieties is regularly used. Domains are social constructs each unique in itself and it is assumed that each domain has a suitable language form. ▪ A useful way of classifying social situations is to analyze them into three defining characteristics ie place, role relationship and topic. Together these make up a set of topical domains eg home. In this case home is the place. The role relationships associated with home include family members. Topics around home domain include activities of the family, news about the family and family meals.

LECTURE SIX

7. VARIABLES IN LANGUAGE BEHAVIOUR AND LINGUISTIC VARIATIONS

There are several factors that determine linguistic behavior in a society/ community.

I. Language and age. - There are several different types of age-based variations one may see within a population. They are vernaculars of a subgroup with membership typically characterized by a specific age range, age graded variation and indication of linguistic change in progress. - One example of a subgroup vernacular is the speech of street youth. Just as the street children dress differently from the ‘norm’ they also come up with their own language. The reasons for this are the following; i. To enhance their own cultural identity. ii. To identify with each other. iii. To exclude others. iv. To invoke feelings of fear and admiration from the outside world. - Strictly speaking, not all individuals of a particular age bracket within the community belong to such subgroups. II. Language and gender - Although gender is normally used as a synonym for sex, the latter concept may generally be understood to be a biological attribute of individuals. - Gender is a social construct which does not map onto apparent biological sex. - According to Milroy and Gordon, (2003) gender is a relevant social category when interpreting language use. For instance, men tend to be more verbally aggressive in conversing. They frequently use threats, profanities, yelling and name calling. - Labov (1982) has observed that in careful speech, women use fewer stigmatized forms than men and that they are more sensitive than men to the prestige pattern. Women on average deviate less from the prestige/ standard language than men. - Numerous sociolinguistic studies done on gender all agree that women concidering other variables such as age, education and social class produce average linguistic forms which are closer to those of the standard language or have higher prestige than those produced by men.

III. Socio-economic class - Class and occupation are among the most important linguistic markers found in society. - Class and language variety are related. Members of a working class tend to speak less standard while the lower, middle, and upper middle class will in turn speak closer to the standard. This is because not only class but class aspiration is important.

IV. Class aspiration - Labov (1960) has shown that social aspiration influence speech patterns. This is also true of class aspiration. In the process of wishing to be associated with a certain class (usually upper class or middle class), people who are moving in that direction socioeconomically will adjust their speech patterns to sound like them. However not being native upper-class speakers, they often hyper correct themselves which involves over correcting their speech to the point of introducing new errors. V. Covert prestige. - It is generally assumed that non standard language is low prestige language. However, in certain groups such as traditional working class neighborhoods, standard language can be considered undesirable in many contexts. This is because working class dialect is a powerful input marker especially for non-mobile individuals. Therefore, the use of non standard varieties expresses neighborhood pride, group and class solidarity.

LECTURE 7

WHY PEOPLE SWITCH BETWEEN LANGUAGES

- Switching can be said to have the following functions according to Jackson (1960) and Halliday (1964); I. Referential function. - Switching can serve the referential function because it often involves lack of language in one language or lack of facility in that language. In addition, a specific word from one of the languages involved maybe semantically more appropriate for a given concept hence, all topics related to switching may be thought of serving the referential function of language. II. Directive function - This function involves the hearer directly. - The directive function excludes certain persons present from the potion of a conversation. - This function also can include a person more by his or her language. III. The expressive function

Speakers emphasize a mixed identity through the use of two languages in the same discourse.

IV. The phatic function/ metaphorical switching - Often, switching serves to indicate a change in tone of a conversation. This is common for example with the stand-up comedians who would tell the whole joke in a standard variety but bring the punch line in a vernacular type of speech eg an urban dialect.

V. Metalinguistic function - This function comes into play when it is used to comment directly or indirectly on the languages involved. One example of this function is when speakers switch between different codes to impress the other participants with a show of linguistic skills. Many of these can be found in the public domain with or among performers, markets’ sales people and film directors.

SPEECH STYLES

- A style refers to the variation in formality in language use. - It refers to variations within registers that can present individual choices along social dimensions. - Style therefore is closely connected to the formality and use of appropriate grammar and pronunciation - Teenagers for example are believed to have a specific register and style that they use to show solidarity to their group and probably to bar unwanted participants. They take shorter urns when talking and speak a little bit faster than adults. - Teenagers can as well use covert prestige by using a language further from standard variety to show solidarity. - Overt prestige on the other hand is used when the speaker is trying to assimilate in his or her new environment by trying to speak as closely as possible to the new group. - The five speech styles according to a model by Joos(1961) I. Intimate style - It involves a great deal of shared knowledge and background in private conversation between equals. - Intimate means non public. It mostly occurs between partners in pillow talk. - In this style, intonation is more important than wording than grammar. II. Casual talk - This is typical of informal speech between peers. It includes ellipsis ie omission of certin grammatical element and slang between peers - It is common between in-group friends and acquaintances.

In this style, interruptions are common.

III. The consultative style - This is the norm for informal conversation between strangers. - Slang and ellipsis might not be used to the extent that they are used in casual speech with a friend. - Informal markers of a rapport such as mmmh, you know, ehe are common. - It is a two-way participation in which background information is provided and prior knowledge is not assumed. - Interruptions are allowed. IV. The formal style - It is determined more by the setting than the persons interacting. The language is associated with technical vocabulary, one-way participation i.e. no interruptions. It includes introduction between strangers. V. The frozen style - This is a hyper-formal style designed to discourage friendly relation between participants. - It is the name that has been given to things like public notices which have a certain recognizable structure whenever they occur. E.g. pay at the counter! - They are printed and unchanging.

LECTURE EIGHT

LANGUAGE SHIFT/ LANGUAGE ENDANGERMENT/ LANGUAGEDEATH

Language shift

- It is particularly a common phenomenon in bilingual and multilingual societies. - Language shift is the process by which a speech community in a contact situation (one consisting of bilingual speakers) gradually stops using one of its two languages in favor of the other. - The causal factors of language shift are generally considered to be social ie speaker’s attitude towards a language and domains of a language. - The eventually favored language is almost without exception that of the majority/ dominant linguistic group. - In most counties, this has tended to mean the language of the current or former colonial power. If the disfavored language is one that has as its last speakers the members of a community in question, then the language faces endangerment and eventually language death.

The causes/ reasons for language shift

1. Language ideology and attitudes - This is the value assigned to the language by the speakers themselves. It can promote or prevent language shift. - The subjective attitudes of a speech community towards its own and other languages are paramount in predicting language shift. - There must be a desire to speak the language either as a marker of community identity or to retain the communicative usefulness in the community. - Loyalty towards use of a language is paramount in promoting language maintenance. 2. Historical factors - This is the impact of colonialization. English was originally imposed on a number of countries and has successfully displaced/replaced some of the indigenous languages of these countries. 3. intermarriages - Intermarriage can be a negative influence in the retention of the mother tongue of the parents. 4. Migration - Migration, either voluntary or forced is a cause of language shift. When members of a community migrate, the remaining community shrinks in size and therefore they are less likely to be able to maintain their language. 5. English as a language of opportunity - The choice of a language reflects the working of the market. English language promised financial security in that you can get high level job if you know English language. - It is also the language of financial activities. - Language shift in the minority group is inevitable when their language is seen as one which does not help the speakers to improve their social economy and social mobility. Therefore, the minority group will shift to the dominant language. 6. National education policy - The desire to build a nation by a people has contributed to language shift in several countries. This is because the sub-ethnic languages are not given attention at all in education policies drawn up by the government. 7. Political centralization - Through their choice of standard languages for administration and education, political centralization may cause language shift. 8. Mass media - From the newspapers to television and radio, mass media can encourage the acquisition of and identification with the majority language.

Language death

- A language dies when nobody speaks it anymore and it has never been written down or recorded on tape. Even if it is documented and it has no fluent speakers or someone to speak it to, one will not talk of it as a living language. - A language is said to be dead if there is only one speaker left with no member of the younger generation interested in learning. - Language which are no longer being learnt as a mother tongue by children are said to be moribund i.e. it lacks intergenerational transmission and are therefore endangered.

Various degree of endangerment- UNESCO (2011)

Degree of endangerment inter-generational language transition

Safe The language is spoken by all generations Vulnerable Most children speak the language but maybe restricted to certain domains eg homes. Definitely endangered Children no longer learn the language as their mother tongue in the home

Severely endangered Spoken by grandparents and older generations while the parent generation may understand it but doesn’t speak it to children or among themselves

Critically endangered When the youngest speakers are grandparents and older generation and they speak the language partially and infrequently. Extinct There are no speakers left. Causes of language endangerment

- The causes of language endangerment overlap or occur together and the dividing lines can be difficult to distinguish. They include. i. Economic factors - For example, rural poverty leads to migration to cities. If the local economy improves, tourism may bring speakers of majority of languages ii. Political factors - Education policies may ignore or exclude local languages, lack of recognition or political representation bans on the use of minority languages in public life all can cause language endangerment. iii. Historical factors - For example; colonialization, boundary disputes the rise of one group and their language variety to political and cultural dominant. iv. Attitudinal factors - Minority languages become associated with poverty, illiteracy and hardship while the dominant language is associated with progress. LECTURE NINE

LANGUAGE STANDARDIZATION

- Standard means recognized as correct or acceptable. A standard language is a variety that in different ways is recognized as correct and acceptable than other varieties. - In many ways, a standard variety is an equally appropriate variation. One dialect is chosen/ selected over others by fixing its grammar, spelling, and even pronunciation as standard. - A standard language is a supra-dialectal norm adopted for use as a medium of wider communication. - Standard languages are as a result of direct and deliberate intervention by the society. - A standard language has the following prototypical properties i. A standard language becomes the language of school, legal system, media administration or organized religion. ii. It is the variety defined in dictionaries, grammars and usage guider. iii. It is the variety regarded as correct and socially acceptable than other varieties. iv. It assumes authority in the linguistic repertoires. v. Standard languages are deliberately created and learnt. vi. It is used as a written language. Only standard languages have a stable written form, which is what is generally taught in schools. vii. It enjoys greater prestige than dialects and non-standard varieties. Non standard varieties are associated with uneducated. - The purpose is to create uniformity and to remove variation, which creates confusion in a society. - The process of transforming a dialect into a standard form is called standardization. - When a language is standardized, it acquires higher prestige than other dialects, thereafter; the standard form is regarded as a language while other forms remain as dialect. Standard language is used at two levels;

1. Restricted code; when speakers use a dialect in a confined environment. 2. Elaborated code; when they communicate with speakers of different dialect it is called elaborated.

Process of language standardization

A typical standard language passes through four main stages which are;

1. Selection 2. Codification 3. Elaboration of function 4. Acceptance. 1. selection

- A decision has to be made on the dialect to be standardized. - The variety must be chosen out of a group of competing varieties as the one to be developed into a standard form. - The decision is of one great importance because those who speak this variety of language will automatically gain prestige as a variety does.

There are several criteria to be used in the selection;

i. it should be the variety of a dialect used in an important political or commercial sector e.g. The English spoken in London or Arabic spoken in Mecca. ii. It is a dialect that is spoken by majority group. A dialect that has spread beyond its boarder. A dialect that combines peculiar aspects from different dialects and blends them into one. 2. codification - A standard variety is written down/codified so that it is in the same way fixed as standard. - Once a variety has been codified, it is possible for members of a community to learn and use the correct forms that they believe will give them social advancement.

An agency comes up to do the following;

i. create a formal orthography to be used as norm in writing ii. Spell out grammatical uses by writing dictionaries and other tools of grammar. - The agency has to be paramount because of the dynamic nature of a language. Example of such agencies are; French Academy (1635), Institute of Kiswahili Research (1964) in the University of Daresalaam. 3. Elaboration of function - This entails expanding the use of a language. - A standard norm must be capable of being used in a wide forum e.g., in administration, parliament, judiciary, education, literature etc. - As a result, a wider vocabulary for the variety needs to be developed and new linguistic items added so that the variety can be used in all the domains. 4. acceptance - The variety must be accepted as the standard variety by the group of society concerned. It will then spread to other groups. - Once accepted, a standard language serves as a strong unifying force for the state. - It becomes a symbol of independence.

Differences between a language and a dialect

1. size - a language is bigger, i.e., it has more speakers than a dialect since a language is considered to be a sum. - Dialects are thus considered as sub-categories of a language. For example, English language has varieties such as Cockney, Yorkshire English Australian English as dialects of English language. 2. Prestige - Language is more prestigious than a dialect. - A dialect is popularly considered to be sub-standard or low form of a language. LECTURE TEN

NATIONAL AND OFFICIAL LANGUAGE

- National language is one used as a unifying means of communication by citizens of a country. Individual groups may have their respective languages for use in restricted environment but a national language enables the speakers of different languages to communicate across ethno linguistic boundaries. - Official language is a language in purely formal and official domains such as schools and other institutions of learning, judicial proceedings, parliamentary debates, diplomatic communication etc.

Language policy

- A language policy is a decision made by the state on the learning and the development of a language. Decisions have to be made concerning the languages to be used for the purpose of national unity. Different countries use different approaches such as; i. There are those countries that favour the implementation of indigenous languages for use in official places and functions for example Arabic in Kuwait and Swahili in Tanzania. In these cases, the indigenous language is also a language of wider communication (LWC) with high prestige value inside and outside the native context. These are called endoglossic countries /policies. ii. There are countries that implement foreign languages for official use. Frequently they are a former colonial language for example English in Kenya, French in Mali, Burundi and Senegal. These are called exoglossic policies.

Advantages of exoglossic policies i. It helps policy makers to avoid the socio-political problems emanating from influence of one mother tongue in multilingual nations. If one mother tongue is chosen, speakers of others will complain of being discriminated against. ii. It enables citizens to be able to communicate internationally in political, cultural, scientific, social and technological issues. iii. Materials developed in the imported language can be used by different groups. iv. Imported languages are normally highly developed and therefore the adopting countries will not spend too much in developing these languages. Language development is an expensive exercise especially when a language is to be developed to acquire official status.

Disadvantages i. The languages can only be acquired via a formal education. It therefore excludes citizens who do not have formal education. ii. It results into class differentiation. Only the elites in class will benefit socially and economically. iii. It can lead to cultural alienation. iv. Such a policy contributes to language shift. This is because such a policy reinforces the power of the foreign language for example English language diminishes the value of the local languages. In such an atmosphere, language renewal and efforts to reverse language shift becomes very difficult.

LECTURE ELEVEN

LANGUAGE PLANNING AND POLICY IN KENYA

- The history of language policy and planning dates back to the establishment of colonial rule in Kenya. - Kenyan language policy has been modified several times by different committees set up to look into it. - Because missionaries were the first people to introduce formal education in Kenya, they were the first to deal with language planning. - The colonialists also had a say in language planning as they felt that their sentiment should be taken into account being the rulers of the time. Later on, other African participants also felt that they also had to have a say in English planning and policy. The united missionary conference of 1904 was the first to have a say in language planning and policy. This group was dominated by missionaries from the coast therefore the favored Swahili over English. They argued that English should not replace coastal languages. - In 1919. The commission of education in East Africa changed their mind in favoring English. - In 1924, the Phelps Stone Foundation suggested that Swahili and other local languages be used as a medium of instruction in Kenyan schools. The commission also recommended that English be taught only in higher grades where it was possible to get capable teachers. - In 1924, the E.A commission introduced local languages as a medium of instruction at elementary stages. English was introduced at upper levels. In secondary schools however, the commission suggested that English should be used as a medium of instruction. - In 1927, the advisory committee of the colonial office noted that English was the principle means of economic development. They therefore said that English should be used in schools as a medium of instruction but the committee of governors of Uganda, Kenya and Tanganyika argued that it was impossible to make English a medium of instruction. - In 1928, The Hilton Young Commission also the commission of closer union of the independences of east and central Africa became interested in the political situations in the area. They agreed with the decisions of the governors to introduce English as a medium of instruction. They argued that English would bring East Africa together under one common language. - Their recommendation was that Swahili be taught as a linguafranca but with gradual change in English. - In 1937, the commission of higher education in East Africa suggested that children should start to learn English not later than the third year of their schooling. As a result of this advisory the committee of education colonies recommended for emphasis on teaching of vernaculars with English which replaced Swahili. This took place in 1942. - In 1941, the education department annual report calls for the teaching of English in lower classes in primary school. It recommended that the teaching of English should begin as early as possible. In this area therefore, Asians started teaching in std. one and it only became a medium of instruction in std 5. This decision created a lasting impact on the language policy after independence.

Language policy in post independent Kenya. - At independence, English was declared as official language whereas Swahili became a national language. All government businesses were to be transacted in English. - The practice of introducing language policy changes through commissions remained and therefore as number of education commissions were appointed many of which touched on the language policy.

1. The Ominde Comission of 1964 - This commission recommended the need for two languages to be taught in schools ie English and Swahili. - English was to be used as a medium of instruction while Swahili would be a compulsory subject but not examinable - The report indicated that vernacular languages were essential for oral communication and therefore the first few years of education saw the vernaculars being used. The commission argued that Swahili is important for national identification - The commission gave the following as advantages of using English as a medium of instruction. i. The English medium made possible a systematic development of language study and literacy which should be difficult in vernaculars. ii. Quicker progress is possible in all subjects when English is used. iii. The foundations laid on the first three years provide a solid basis for all subsequent studies. iv. The difficult transition from a vernacular to an English medium is avoided. v. The resulting linguistic equipment is expected to be much more satisfactory and would improve the quality of post primary education. 2. Wamalwa report (1972) - This report revolves around the use of English, Swahili and vernaculars as well as well as international communication particularly the use of French in Germany. - This commission recognized the use of German and French especially in areas of tourism and international trade. - The commission was charged with the study of reviewing the Kenyan government human resource training policies and recommending any necessary changes. - The committee suggested that strong emphasis should be placed on program teaching foreign languages like German and French. - These languages were to be taught at Kenyatta university and the university of Nairobi. 3. The Gachathi report - It recommended that people be taught the language of their catchment area for the first three years. - It also recommended that English should be taught as a subject from standard one and be the medium of instruction from standard four. - Swahili was also to be taught as a subject but it would be examined only in secondary schools and university. 4. Mackay report (1981) - It brought about the 8-4-4 system and examinable subjects in primary and secondary schools. - Swahili was given prominence and this enabled the setting up of the departments of Swahili and African languages in the university. - English was to be taught and examined in primary and secondary schools. It also emphasized that English be the medium of instruction from standard four to all other levels of learning. - The report also said that for entry to any university one had to pass English.

Why English has gained prominence in Kenya. I. Many Kenyans consider speaking English as prestigious. II. Speaking good English means access to better job markets. III. Many Kenyan’s wanted to speak English because they were denied the opportunity by the colonialists and therefore speaking of English was viewed as being at the same level with the Europeans. IV. The availability of material, resources and manpower has made it possible for the subject to be taught in schools. V. It is accepted because it has no ethnic connotations. VI. There has been support from international bodies such as the British council in providing materials and resources. VII. It is the official language in Kenya. VIII. It is the language of international communications and trade.