Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:
https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/13071
Title: | The Conundrums of Language Policy and Politics in South Africa and Zimbabwe | Contributor(s): | Ndhlovu, Finex (author) | Publication Date: | 2008 | DOI: | 10.1080/07268600701877499 | Handle Link: | https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/13071 | Abstract: | This article reflects on and reinterprets South Africa's documented human rights-inspired language policy and Zimbabwe's assimilation-tolerance approach to language use. The overall intention is to expose and discuss the intolerant, undemocratic and homogenizing ideologies underpinning language policy in the two neighbouring southern African countries. The article spotlights the ceremonial 'official language' status of South Africa's nine African languages and the 'national language' status of the Ndebele language in Zimbabwe. It is argued that contrary to rosy policy enunciations, actual patterns of language use and discursive practices of ruling political elites confer higher functional status to English and Afrikaans in South Africa and English and Shona in Zimbabwe. Therefore, as well as being firmly located and resident in political statements of the ruling elites, language policy ideologies are also hidden in the fissures and faultlines of official documents. The article concludes that the documented language policies of South Africa and Zimbabwe epitomize lofty ideals that are not consonant with actual patterns of language use mediated and legitimized by hegemonic discourses of ruling politicians. | Publication Type: | Journal Article | Source of Publication: | Australian Journal of Linguistics, 28(1), p. 59-80 | Publisher: | Routledge | Place of Publication: | Australia | ISSN: | 1469-2996 0726-8602 |
Fields of Research (FoR) 2008: | 200405 Language in Culture and Society (Sociolinguistics) 200209 Multicultural, Intercultural and Cross-cultural Studies |
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2008: | 970120 Expanding Knowledge in Language, Communication and Culture | Peer Reviewed: | Yes | HERDC Category Description: | C1 Refereed Article in a Scholarly Journal |
---|---|
Appears in Collections: | Journal Article School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences |
Files in This Item:
File | Description | Size | Format |
---|
SCOPUSTM
Citations
28
checked on Apr 6, 2024
Page view(s)
1,070
checked on Mar 7, 2023
Items in Research UNE are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.