Language Politics in Sri Lanka: Linguistic Purism, Cultural Pluralism and Identity

Abstract

This study, based partly on archival research, tackles a number of interrelated issues regarding the sociolinguistic dynamics of language politics in Sri Lanka from the colonial era to the present. In colonial Ceylon, such politics initially manifested as resistance against foreign elements, but later evolved into internal conflicts when majoritarian Sinhala-focused linguistic purism movements appropriated Sinhala as a national identity marker. The resulting civil war until 2009 indicated that misguided prospects of linguistic purism in the name of ethnic nationalism have been a costly mistake for this small state, threatening to tear the nation apart. Regarding more recent issues of language planning and policy reforms, which also concern the place of English, the focus turns specifically to the rapid digitalisation of communication and related impacts of global virtual language environments. These substantially reduce the significance of any specific language or local vernacular, while individual and group identity is strengthened through inclusive use of linguistic registers within multilingual digital spaces.