The Power of Babel: Language & Governance in the African Experience
- ISBN-10
- 0852558082
- ISBN-13
- 9780852558089
- Series
- The Power of Babel
- Category
- Language Arts & Disciplines / Linguistics / General
- Pages
- 228
- Language
- English
- Published
- 1998
- Publisher
- J. Currey
- Authors
- Alamin M. Mazrui, Ali AlʼAmin Mazrui, Alamin Mazrui
Description
Linguists estimate that there are currently nearly 2,000 languages in Africa, a staggering figure that is belied by the relatively few national languages. While African national politics, economics, and law are all conducted primarily in the colonial languages, the cultural life of the majority of citizens is conducted in a bewildering Babel of local and regional dialects, making language itself the center of debates over multiculturalism, gender studies, and social theory. In "The Power of Babel," the noted Africanist scholar Ali Mazrui and linguist Alamin Mazrui explore this vast territory of African language.
"The Power of Babel" is one of the first comprehensive studies of the complex linguistic constellations of Africa. It draws on Ali Mazrui's earlier work in its examination of the "triple heritage" of African culture, in which indigenous, Islamic, and Western traditions compete for influence. In bringing the idea of the triple heritage to language, the Mazruis unravel issues of power, culture, and modernity as they are embedded in African linguistic life.
The first section of the book takes a global perspective, exploring such issues as the Eurocentrism of much linguistic scholarship on Africa; part two takes an African perspective on a variety of issues from the linguistically disadvantaged position of women in Africa to the relation of language policy and democratic development; the third section presents a set of regional studies, centering on the Swahili language's exemplification of the triple heritage."The Power of Babel" unites empirical information with theories of nationalism and pluralism-among others-to offer the richest contextual account of African languages to date.
Get the book
Other editions
Similar books
-
芝加哥大学论文写作指南
By （美）凯特·L·杜拉宾在大学里撰写研究报告、本科硕士论文、博士论文的学生们现在正生活在一个充满电子技术的世界里，这在1937年是不可想象的——那一年，学术论文负责人凯特·L·杜拉宾首先汇编了 ...
-
Emerging Technologies in Hazardous Waste Management V
By Daniel William Tedder, American Chemical Society. Division of Industrial and Engineering ChemistryReimann , G. A .; Grandy , J. D .; Eddy , T. L .; Anderson , G. L. In Nuclear and Hazardous Waste Management Spectrum '92 ( Proc . ) ; American Nuclear Society , Inc. , La Grange Park , IL , 1992 ; Vol . 2 , pp . 1083-1088 . 3 .
-
The Press and the Presidency: From George Washington to Ronald Reagan
By John William Tebbel, Sarah Miles Watts... 223-24 Bayard , Thomas F. , 289 Blair , Montgomery , 206 Beach , Moses Y. , 125-26 Blessing , Tim H. , 256 Beech ... Karl A. , 432 Boynton , Charles , 335 Bickham , W. D. , 235 Bradford , John , 46 Biddle , Nicholas , 87 Bradford ...
-
The Collected Works of L.S. Vygotsky: Volume 1: Problems of General Psychology, Including the Volume Thinking and Speech
By L.S. VygotskyAs Thompson has pointed out, we commonly use words, expressions, and constructions in written expositions that would seem artificial in oral speech. Gri- boedov's phrase, "and you speak as you write," refers to the comic transfer of the ...
-
From Latin to Spanish: Historical phonology and morphology of the Spanish language
By Paul M. LloydBaldi , Philip and Ronald N. Werth , eds . 1978. Readings in historical phonology : Chapters in the theory of sound ... Cahiers Ferdinand de Saussure 13.18–33 . and Row . Christie , William M. , Jr. , FROM MEDIEVAL TO MODERN SPANISH 371.
-
Reading Culture: Contexts for Critical Reading and Writing
By Diana George, John TrimburTested GOLD MEDAL WINNER only a few and proved Jowett training will bring WEEKS AGO ! " you new men and women Yriends , new popularity everywhere you go . ALL XO ! I don't care how skinny or llabSPORTS by you are , I'll make you OVER by ...
-
Emerging Technologies in Hazardous Waste Management IV
By Daniel William TedderA stock solution of PCP was prepared at an elevated pH of 11 with 1 N NaOH to increase the solubility of PCP in the aqueous phase . For the partial chemical oxidation pretreatment by Fenton's Reagent , the ferrous sulfate solution ...
-
Content-based Second Language Instruction
By Donna Brinton, Marguerite Ann Snow, Marjorie Bingham WescheMadsen , H. , & Bowen , J. D. ( 1978 ) . Adaptation in language teaching . New York : Newbury House . Stevick , E. W. ( 1972 ) . Evaluating and adapting language materials . In H. B. Allen & R. N. Campbell ( Eds . ) , Teaching English ...
-
The History of Hypolitus, Earl of Douglas. with the Secret History of Macbeth, King of Scotland. to Which Is Added,...
By Madame D' AulnoyIn its determination to preserve the century of revolution, Gale initiated a revolution of its own: digitization of epic proportions to preserve these invaluable works in the largest archive of its kind.
-
Hypolitus Earl of Douglas. Containing Some Memoirs of the Court of Scotland; With the Secret History of Mack-Beth King of...
By Madame D' AulnoyIn its determination to preserve the century of revolution, Gale initiated a revolution of its own: digitization of epic proportions to preserve these invaluable works in the largest archive of its kind.