Since COVID-19 closed schools in March 2020, international development experts, politicians, and celebrities across the globe have raised alarm about the pandemic's impacts on girls' education, particularly in Africa. These warnings, which link school closures with untimely pregnancy and marriage, reflect belief in the multiplicative power of…

This paper discusses the contributions to this special issue in the context of the African Renaissance and the subsequent need to re-define educational development from a multilingual, multicultural and pan-African perspective. Each contribution offers a different angle to the discussion: a critique of Arabization in Morocco, with questions about…

This article gives an overview of dictionaries of African sign languages that have been published to date most of which have not been widely distributed. After an introduction into the field of sign language lexicography and a discussion of some of the obstacles that authors of sign language dictionaries face in general, I will show problems…

Linguists use the concept of "diglossia" to describe any sociolinguistic situation where a low-prestige dialect coexists with a high-prestige one and these dialects are used in different social spheres. Recent observations on Reunion Island have challenged this view because people mix French and Creole extensively in the same utterance…

This is a reflection on certain aspects of sociolinguistic and linguistic problems of French in West Africa, particularly in Senegal and the Ivory Coast. The sociolinguistic section discusses the role French has played in Africa and still plays vis-a-vis African languages and English. Conditions in which French is used and attitudes both of…

Describes interferences from the phonologic system of Arabic in the French spoken by Arabs, using data recorded in the works of French authors from the Maghreb region. The analysis focuses on instances of interference concerning the perception and production of vowels, consonants, and syllables. (MES)

Argues that proverbs play an important role in the continuing development and survival of Africans and African descendants throughout the diaspora. Analyzes research of proverb studies conducted in Africa, the Caribbean, Pittsburgh, and Detroit. Provides recommendations for further research. (KH)

As global migrations of both teachers and students have increased, so has the need to re-learn English in response to local parlances. Thus, the use of formal and informal language styles, the masking of accents, and the understanding of the differential use of certain specific words, expressions, and the like become critical for teachers and…

Analyzes linguists' interpretation and application of a theory suggesting that a learner's perceived appropriateness of linguistic data was related to its use and evaluation by exploring the presence and use of English in African nations. The multidialect nature of the world necessitates a multidialect teaching of any language. (CB)

The macro-dimension of code switching is examined as observed in a sociolect of Swahili used by academic staff from the University of Dar es Salaam. It is argued that the specific sociohistoric background of Tanzanian society accounts for the social valency of Campus Kiswahili. (Author/LB)

Six essays on native language instruction in Africa are presented. "Why Teach in an African Language?" examines the rationale and advantages of teaching in African mother tongues, and "Why Teach an African Language as a School Subject" discusses the need for such instruction. "Do African Languages Have Sufficient Potential…

This issue dealing with language discusses language and social structure, social progress and sociolinguistics, oral and literate traditions, Portuguese Creole dialects in West Africa, a framework for describing how languages spread, socio-cultural conflict and bilingual education, linguistic variation in one-language societies, the language…

This is an annotated bibliography of basic tools of access for the study of the uncommonly taught languages of Sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of eight fascicles which constitute a revision of "A Provisional Survey of Materials for the Study of the Neglected Languages" (CAL 1969). The emphasis is on materials for the adult learner whose…

The materials status report for Lingala, a lingua franca spoken in central Africa, is one of a series intended to provide the nonspecialist with a picture of the availability and quality of texts for teaching various languages to English speakers. The report consists of: (1) a brief narrative description of Lingala, the areas where it is spoken,…

The materials status report for the Berber languages, minority languages spoken in northern Africa, is one of a series intended to provide the nonspecialist with a picture of the availability and quality of texts for teaching various languages to English speakers. The report consists of: (1) a brief narrative description of the Berber language,…