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Chapter 1. Introduction 1 Chapter 1. Introduction Once an English-speaking population was established in South Africa in the 19 th century, new unique dialects of English began to emerge in the colony, particularly in the Eastern Cape, as a result of dialect levelling and contact with indigenous groups and the L1 Dutch speaking population already present in the country (Lanham 1996). Recognition of South African English as a variety in its own right came only later in the next century. South African English, however, is not a homogenous dialect; there are many different strata present under this designation, which have been recognised and identified in terms of geographic location and social factors such as first language, ethnicity, social class and gender (Hooper 1944a; Lanham 1964, 1966, 1967b, 1978b, 1982, 1990, 1996; Bughwan 1970; Lanham & MacDonald 1979; Barnes 1986; Lass 1987b, 1995; Wood 1987; McCormick 1989; Chick 1991; Mesthrie 1992, 1993a; Branford 1994; Douglas 1994; Buthelezi 1995; Dagut 1995; Van Rooy 1995; Wade 1995, 1997; Gough 1996; Malan 1996; Smit 1996a, 1996b; Görlach 1998c; Van der Walt 2000; Van Rooy & Van Huyssteen 2000; de Klerk & Gough 2002; Van der Walt & Van Rooy 2002; Wissing 2002). English has taken different social roles throughout South Africa’s turbulent history and has presented many faces – as a language of oppression, a language of opportunity, a language of separation or exclusivity, and also as a language of unification. From any chosen theoretical perspective, the presence of English has always been a point of contention in South Africa, a combination of both threat and promise (Mawasha 1984; Alexander 1990, 2000; de Kadt 1993, 1993b; de Klerk & Bosch 1993, 1994; Mesthrie & McCormick 1993; Schmied 1995; Wade 1995, 1997; de Klerk 1996b, 2000; Granville et al. 1997; Kamwangamalu 1997, 2001, 2002a, 2002b, 2003; Silva 1998; Madiba 1999; Chick & McKay 2001). Much of the earlier documentation provided by linguists investigating South African English shows that the dialects that have been a focal point in research were those spoken by whites, regardless of whether they were L1 English- or Afrikaans-speakers. In other words, the research has revolved around 2 “white” varieties of South African English. Other known L1 English-speaking groups, such as the Coloured 1 and Indian populations (especially after the 1950s), were not taken into consideration for investigation at all. This coincided with the view expressed in the political system in South Africa at the time – other “dialects” were inferior, substandard, and perhaps deemed unworthy of investigation, just like the designated races of the people who used them. It is not, however, denied that these varieties exist. Researchers have carved the spectrum of varieties into five main groups: English-speaking South African English, Afrikaans English, Coloured English, South African Indian English and Black South African English (Barnes 1986; Bughwan 1970; Lanham 1978; Mesthrie 1992, 1995b, 1997; Mesthrie & McCormick 1993; Wade 1995, 1997; Gough 1996; Watermeyer 1996; Wright 1996; Van den Heever & Wissing 2000; Van Rooy 2000; de Klerk & Gough 2002; Wissing 2002) – all designations that are still used in the present day. One clearly notes that these categorisations are suspiciously based on the race classifications made during the apartheid era, with partial focus on L1 and partial focus on ethnic group. This thesis will put two of these varieties, English-speaking South African English and Black South African English, into question. It will propose that these varieties, as such, no longer hold, i.e., one is no longer able to determine a variety on the basis of ethnicity alone. It will be argued that with the dissolution of the apartheid system, particularly the changing structures within the educational system of the country, the current varieties of English spoken in South Africa require a new system and recategorisation, with educational background being one of the social factors that should be emphasised. It will also be shown that the descriptive phonetic and phonological literature available on South African varieties is no longer accurate, as the variables characteristic of the dialects have merged or disappeared, or dialects have gained new variants. Eight vowel variables, noted in the literature as indicative of social distinctions on the basis of ethnic background, have been selected for this study. The variants of these variables are identified based on data 1 The designation “Coloured” has been used to denote people of mixed descent, usually of Khoisan, black, Malay and/or white origin; it was used as a racial classification during apartheid. According to a dictionary of South African English (Branford 1978: 47), a Coloured is “as defined by our Population Registration Act … everybody who is neither white nor African.” Although some people find this term offensive, it is still widely used. 3 taken from black and white students attending the University of the Witwatersrand. The variants are correlated against each other using the multivariate technique known as Principal Components Analysis, revealing new sociolects. Scholars have also noted the powerful social role English has assumed in post-apartheid South Africa, suggesting a shift in favour of English among L2 speakers (Smit 1995; Alexander 1990; de Kadt 1993; de Klerk 1996b; Kamwangamalu 2001, 2002a, 2003). This hypothesis has been tested in this thesis by means of a domain analysis of black South Africans in terms of language choice in three domains: home/family, school and university. The results show, as mentioned earlier, that the factor of educational background, and with it, a more intense contact with English in the formative years, have in fact pushed English into the more familial domains of L2 English speakers. Yet, there is some resistance against English in areas such as townships, which would suggest a more diglossic situation for some speakers rather than a shift, the latter being the state of affairs in more suburban areas.2 In addition, the language attitudes of these speakers are briefly explored and discussed in §8.3 of this thesis. These attitudes coincide with those shown in previous studies that have been conducted on attitudes towards English vis-à-vis other languages spoken in South Africa. The speakers express positive attitudes towards English in that it is a language of opportunity and economic advancement. At the same time, the negative attitudes conveyed reflect a fear of loss of culture and ethnic identity. These attitudes, formed in an individual’s social network, along with the educational practices that have institutionalised the use of English, local policies and other structures such as the media, have been reshaping South African English in terms of its sociolects and use in societal domains. One aim of this thesis is to provide insight into what it means to a black or white South African to speak English in a South African society, and how this ever-changing relationship is reflected in the metamorphosis of social and linguistic variables. 2 A “township”, in South African terms, is an (often underdeveloped) urban residential area that, under apartheid, was reserved for non-whites (black Africans, Coloureds and Indians) who lived near or worked in areas that were designated "white-only" (Township (South Africa) n.d.). Suburbs are recognised as more affluent (primarily white) areas near cities. 4 The following chapter, Chapter 2, serves as a general orientation for the reader to understand where English finds itself in relation to other languages spoken in the country in terms of numbers and demographics. Statistical information is given on a national, provincial and local level as well as a brief description of the language policies that have been laid down on fundamental levels, i.e., in the South African Constitution, and also those set for the educational domain. The chapter will also introduce language attitude studies previously conducted in South Africa in order to explicate the underlying forces that may influence the varieties and usage of English spoken in the country. Chapter 3, Issues in Methodology, is an account of the development of sociolinguistic studies from their beginnings in traditional dialectology and their applicability to South African dialectology. The problems of choosing appropriate social and linguistic variables for a study are discussed, as the approach to a sociolinguistic study is just as vital as the analysis. This section will justify why the linguistic variables that have been chosen are deemed significant for this study and will also show why the manner in which they have been indexed is a suitable system for an effective analysis. Social class, a social variable often employed in this field of research, is critiqued and rejected as a viable factor due to the fact that it is extremely composite and difficult to define. Chapter 4, The Social History of South Africa and the Social Variables Chosen for this Study , is a combination of the social history of South Africa and a description of social variables that have been selected for analysis. The historical information is intended as a guide to understanding the development of the social structures in South Africa today. This, in conjunction with the account of the history of education in South Africa, makes it clear why the social variables of educational background and ethnicity would bring about significant discrepancies in linguistic behaviour. Gender, a social variable that has been considered in sociological studies since the early 20 th century (Mesthrie et al. 2000: 216), is discussed as well. Chapter 5, The Linguistic Variables Chosen for this Study, provides a detailed literature review of the documentation available concerning the five abovementioned varieties of South African English, from 1928 to the present day. 5 Specifically, the variables of English-speaking South African English and Black South African English are summarised and compared for analysis. A new set of variants, used in this thesis, is presented with a justification of why they were chosen, and a description of the techniques used to determine them.
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