Mohsen A Hamisa

Language Planning and Policy

Language Planning“All conscious efforts that aim at changing the linguistic

behavior of a speech community. It can include anything ‘from proposing a new word to a new language”

“Language Planning is a body of ideas, laws and regulations(language policy), change rules, beliefs, and practices intended to a achieve a planned change( or to stop change from happening) in the language use in one or more communities”Language policy “refers to the more general linguistic, political and social

goals underlying the actual language planning process”

Language and Planning

corpus planning “those aspects of language planning which are primarily

linguistic and hence internal to language”. Some of these aspects related to language are: 1) orthographic innovation, including design,

harmonization, change of script, and spelling reform;2) pronunciation; 3) changes in language structure; 4) vocabulary expansion; 5) simplification of registers; 6) style, and 7) the preparation of language material (Bamgbose 1989)

DIMENSIONS OF LANGUAGE PLANNING

1. Unstandardized oral language, 2. Partly standardised or

unstandardised written language. 3. Young standard language, 4. Archaic standard language, 5. Mature modern standard

language,

Types of standardization

Status Planning “refer to all efforts undertaken to change the use and function of a language (or language variety ) within a given society. “concerns itself with the conscious choice of the variety(ies) that will become the official language(s) of the state, the medium of its institutions, and the means for interaction between state and citizens.”

1. Official 2. Provincial 3. Wider communication 4. International 5. Capital 6. Group7. Educational 8. School subject9. Literary 10. Religious11. Mass mediaWork place

Functions a language can occupy in Society.

3. Prestige Planning“ Is directed towards creating a favorable

psychological background which is crucial for the long-term success of language planning activities”

4. Acquisition Planning “ All efforts that aim to spread and promote

the learning of a language”

Another two Dimensions

1 . Selection.2. Codification. a. graphisation ( logographic, syllabic, or

alphabetic) b. grammatication. c. lexicalisation. 3. Implementation. “ Marketing Techniques by the government” 4. Elaboration.(modernisation)

THE PROCESS OF LANGUAGE PLANNING

1. Identification of the problem and fact-finding. Specification of goals (development of a language policy). Production of possible solutions, cost-benefit analysis of the

alternative solutions and rational choice of one solution (decision-making stage).

Implementation of the solution. Evaluation of the solution, that is, comparing predicted and actual

outcomes. What is your mother tongue?My father's home language was Swazi, and my mother's home language was Tswana. But as I grew up in a Zulu-speaking area we used mainly Zulu and Swazi at home. But from my mother's side I also learned Tswana well. In my high school I came into contact with lots of Sotho and Tswana students, so I can speak these two languages well. And of course I know English and Afrikaans. With my friends I also use Tsotsitaal.

The Rational Choice Model

Rational Choice assumption

Advantages of Cost-benefit analysis 1. forces the language planner to specify goals. 2. identify problems. 3. clarify consequences. 4. provides an extra peace of information that can

be taken into account for the decision making process.

Difficult to Apply for two reasons:- 1. the long timeframe of many language-planning

decisions. 2. benefits of language planning are not calculable

in monetary terms.

Cost-benefit analysis (CBA)

The instrumental approach(Linguistic engineering).

The sociolinguistic approach.

Acceptability

Language Planning and non-linguistic goals.

“Chinese characters are probably the most difficult script in the world. ... I believe that the strength and prosperity of the country depends upon the physical sciences which can grow and flourish only if all people – men and ' women, old and young – are eager to learn and sensible. To them to be eager to learn and sensible depends upon the phonetization of the script ... it depends upon having a simple script that is easy to learn and write. As a result, this will save more than ten years time. If all that time is applied to the study of mathematics, physical sciences, chemistry and other practical studies, how can there be any fear that our country will not be rich and strong,”

LANGUAGE PLANNING, POWER AND IDEOLOGY

Language assimilation Language pluralism Vernacularisation Internationalization

Ideologies that underlie the development of language policies

NorwayUnder the Danish Domination , The Danish

language was the language of Norway. By the time of independence There were

three spoken languages in Norway:- 1. educated urban classes used a variety

of Danish. 2. Artisans and working-class used rural

dialects. 3. The farming community used 100%

Norwegian dialect.

Two Case studies:

Revolutionary by the dialectologist Ivan Aasen.(Landsmal) Reformist by the schoolteacher Knud Knudson. (Riksmal) In 1885, the Norwegian parliament recognised both languages. In 1929 The names of the two varities were changedLandsmal became Nynorsk “New Norwegian”, and Riksmal

became Bokmal “Book Language” In the twentieth century, the idea of fusing the two verities

emerged and was conducted by the government in the shape of reforming.

The fusing procedures: 1. gradually incorporate more Nynorsk forms into Bokmal. 2. To replace the archaic dialectal forms in Nynorsk with the

more modern forms found in contemporary dialects. The emerged standard from the fusion was named “Folkemalet”

Proposals for a national language in Norway after independence.

In 1981, a new official reform of Bokmal resulted in the acceptance of most conservative non-Nynorsk forms back into Bokmal.

After the second world war Nynorsk was described as a minority language.

Sami Languages in norway. There are three different Sami languages

spoken by 30,000 Sami.In 1990, The Norwegian Parliament

recognized it and gave it equal rights with the Norwegian language.

In Sampi area all law regulations, official announcements have to be in Sami language.

Minority languages in Norway.

More than twenty languages are spoken throughout the country. Nguni (Ndebele, Swati, Xhosa, Zulu) Sotho (Pedi, South Sotho, Tswana)Tsonga and Vendaformer official languages English and Afrikaanssix European immigrant languages (Dutch,

German, Greek, Italian, Portuguese and French),

Five Indian languages (Tamil, Hindi-Bhojpuri, Telugu, Gujarati and Urdu)

South Africa

English and Afrikaans were the official languages.

The other indigenous languages had regional co official status.

African National Congress (ANC) adopted English.

Then (ANC) adopted a pluralist approach. Neville Alexander proposed creating Nguni,

(based on Ndebele, Swazi, Xhosa, and Zulu) and a standard Sotho (based on Pedi, south sotho, and south Tswana)

During the apartheid era (I948-94)

1. The official languages of the Republic are Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda, Xitsonga, Afrikaans, English, isiNdebele, isiXhosa and isiZulu.

2 . Recognising the historically diminished use and status of the indigenous languages of our people, the state must take practical and positive measures to elevate the status and advance the use of these languages

4The Pan South African Language Board must – a. promote and create conditions for the development and use of i. all official languages; ii. the Khoi, Nama and San languages; and iii. sign language. promote and ensure respect for languages, including German, Greek,

Gujarati, Hindi, Portuguese, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, and others commonly used by communities in South Africa, and Arabic, Hebrew, Sanskrit and others used for religious purposes. (Constitution of South Africa, 1996)

Constitutional multilingualism

In spite of The Curriculum Framework for General and Further Education and Training and the Curriculum 2005 promotion of multilingualism in curriculum and multilingual skills in schools, schools were single-medium and taught additional languages only as a second language.

Financially and practically schools were not able to fulfill the multilingual provisions.

The parents views were in odds with the multilingual provisions.

The emerged problems from the multilingual provisions

In courts level the constitution states:“ Every accused has a right to a fair trial which includes the right to be tried in a language that the accused person understands, or if that is not practicable, to have the proceedings interpreted in that language”

The emerged problems from the multilingual provisions

(b) The prosecutor read out the following charge.Prosecutor (English): The charge against the

accused is that he contravened section 2b of act 41 of 1971 read with section 10(3) in that on [date] at or near Warwick avenue in the district of Durban he had wrongfully and unlawfully in his possession a prohibited dependence-producing substance to wit a small quantity of dagga (marijuana).

How do you plead?Interpreter (Zulu): Do you find yourself guilty?Accused (Zulu): I do have a case against me.Interpreter (English): I plead guilty.

Example of court communication in South Africa