Neville
Alexander
University of Cape Town
South
Africa
Sunday,
August 24
Evolving African Approaches to the
Management of Linguistic Diversity
Abstract:
Africa is one of
the linguistically most diverse zones of the world. Taken as a whole, it is
also the poorest part of the world. Given the relationship between literacy levels
and economic development, one of the decisive questions for the continent is
how to manage the multilingualism of African societies without undermining or
even negating the possibility of economic growth and development.
In this address, I shall
focus on the work of the African Academy of Languages (ACALAN) as well as that
of signify cant government and non-government initiatives to treat linguistic
diversity as a resource rather than as a problem. The address will consider
questions of definition, standardization and harmonization of varieties as well
as the promotion of vehicular, cross-border languages
in different sub-regions
of the continent. It will also describe in some detail the work in progress
with respect to the core programmes of ACALAN and consider the possibility of
joint approaches and projects with other parts of the world, such as the
European Union, the Council of Europe and initiatives in the Americas and Asia
in the context of the global hegemony of the English language.
The address will analyse South Africa’s relatively
recent and acknowledged innovativeness with respect to language planning and
policy development, as well as the numerous challenges it faces in attempting
to realize the policies in practice.
In conclusion, the debate about the
usefulness, or not, of language planning as a professional practice will be
problematised and the dangers of over-elaboration, on the one hand, and
planning naivety, on the other hand, reconsidered.
See recording of the keynote