Language MattersPub Date : 2023-11-20DOI: 10.1080/10228195.2023.2274578
Madoda Cekiso, Yanga Majola, Thenjiwe Meyiwa
{"title":"Challenges Facing Mpondo Learners in Learning Standard Xhosa: Teachers’ Perspectives","authors":"Madoda Cekiso, Yanga Majola, Thenjiwe Meyiwa","doi":"10.1080/10228195.2023.2274578","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10228195.2023.2274578","url":null,"abstract":"Granting equal opportunities to non-standard and standard language learners is unfair practice, since these two language groups are expected to achieve the same outcomes at the end of their school ...","PeriodicalId":43882,"journal":{"name":"Language Matters","volume":"6 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-11-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138508284","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Language MattersPub Date : 2023-05-04DOI: 10.1080/10228195.2023.2251714
Samuel Issah, Hasiyatu Abubakari, Samuel Atintono, Sandow Atibiri
{"title":"Exploring Euphemisms as Taboo Avoidance Strategies in the Mabia Languages","authors":"Samuel Issah, Hasiyatu Abubakari, Samuel Atintono, Sandow Atibiri","doi":"10.1080/10228195.2023.2251714","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10228195.2023.2251714","url":null,"abstract":"AbstractThis article investigates the use of euphemisms in mitigating prohibited expressions in three Mabia (Gur) languages: Dagbani, Farefare (also known as Gurenε) and Kusaal. In the daily interactions of the Mabia people, they avoid using certain expressions, which are unmentionable in most contexts. These include the expressions for snakes and snakebite, sexual intercourse and genitalia, and death. The mention of the explicit terms for these expressions is face-threatening in Mabia society and can incur various forms of negative social consequences. Thus, instead of using these taboo expressions, speakers employ euphemisms as taboo-avoidance strategies; these euphemistic expressions oil social cohesion and indicate speakers’ communicative competence. The data used in this study were mainly gathered from primary sources. However, we augmented some of the primary data of Dagbani with some secondary sources drawn from N. A. Salifu's (2012) PhD thesis. We employ politeness theory and ethnography of communication as analytical lenses.Keywords: Mabia languagessocial cohesionface-threatening actspositive faceunmentionablepoliteness","PeriodicalId":43882,"journal":{"name":"Language Matters","volume":"47 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-05-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135010895","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Language MattersPub Date : 2023-05-04DOI: 10.1080/10228195.2023.2243545
Ganiu Bamgbose, Erhuvwu Akpomerha
{"title":"An Analysis of Selected Supreme Court Rulings on Human Rights Violation in Nigeria","authors":"Ganiu Bamgbose, Erhuvwu Akpomerha","doi":"10.1080/10228195.2023.2243545","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10228195.2023.2243545","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Communication gaps between members of the legal profession and people outside the profession still leave a lot to be explained. This study investigates the technicality of written legal documents by studying 10 Nigerian Supreme Court rulings, specifically the outcome of cases of human rights violations by the Nigerian military regime. Nine purposively selected excerpts were analysed using generic structure potential elements. The analysis generated nine elements, five of which are obligatory and the other four optional. The obligatory elements are Review of Lower Court Proceedings, Reproduction of Issues, Reference to Authorities, Application of Authorities, and Final Verdict. The optional elements are Review of Facts, Reproduction of Pleadings, Analysis of Evidence, and Analysis of Argument. This study concludes that generic structure potential is a useful theory for demystifying complex texts.","PeriodicalId":43882,"journal":{"name":"Language Matters","volume":" ","pages":"3 - 20"},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-05-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44356433","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Language MattersPub Date : 2023-05-04DOI: 10.1080/10228195.2023.2212140
Ayo Osisanwo, Richard Akano
{"title":"Ideological Stances in Yoruba Nation Secessionist Discourse in Nigerian Virtual Communities","authors":"Ayo Osisanwo, Richard Akano","doi":"10.1080/10228195.2023.2212140","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10228195.2023.2212140","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This study examined the Yoruba nation secessionist agitation from the viewpoint of stance and ideology in its discursive engagement on three popular Nigerian virtual communities: Nairaland, Gistmania, and Naijaloaded. Data were subjected to the theoretical and analytical paradigms of appraisal framework and critical discourse analysis. Two voices were identified in the study: the anti-Yoruba nation and the pro-Yoruba nation voices. The anti-Yoruba nation voice projected three ideologies: reformist, conservativist, and pessimist, while the pro-Yoruba nation voice projected separatist and arbitrationist ideologies. These ideological constructs were indexed by overlapping instances of appraisal subsystems and discursive strategies of perspectivisation, nomination, negative evaluative attribution, depersonalising metaphors, intensification, and intertextuality. Most participants suppressed antithetical stances to project an authorial ideological stance on the secessionist movement. Given the divisive nature of the secessionist stance, inflammatory and aggressive expressions as dominant discursive patterns are inimical to the efforts to promote inter-ethnic harmony, patriotism, and national integration.","PeriodicalId":43882,"journal":{"name":"Language Matters","volume":"54 1","pages":"104 - 121"},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-05-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45412773","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Language MattersPub Date : 2023-05-04DOI: 10.1080/10228195.2023.2229533
G. Uwen
{"title":"Objection Overruled: Language Dynamics and Power Relations in Courtroom Interactions","authors":"G. Uwen","doi":"10.1080/10228195.2023.2229533","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10228195.2023.2229533","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This article adopts a qualitative approach to examine language dynamics and power relations in interactions among participants in High Court proceedings in Calabar, southern Nigeria. The study utilises insights from speech act theory and the theory of language and power to account for the way in which institutional linguistic choices depict social roles, conveyed through speech acts that enact unequal power relations in the courtroom context. Data were generated during a year of fieldwork, through observation, note taking, and reading of legal proceedings in law chambers. The findings show the patterned linguistic peculiarities that characterise the interactions between participants (judges, counsel, litigants, witnesses, interpreters, and audiences) in the courtroom setting. The interactions instantiate a structured discourse pattern that appropriates discourse roles, discourse control, turn-taking, and talk domination as power devices. These discourse practices index asymmetry in power relations between participants and situate the courtroom as a site with institutionalised idiosyncrasies for power rehearsal.","PeriodicalId":43882,"journal":{"name":"Language Matters","volume":"54 1","pages":"21 - 41"},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-05-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41711195","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Language MattersPub Date : 2023-05-04DOI: 10.1080/10228195.2023.2252203
Omotosho Melefa, Ogechukwu Anyaogu
{"title":"Relational Work Strategies in Seller–Buyer Haggling Exchanges in Markets of Port Harcourt, Nigeria","authors":"Omotosho Melefa, Ogechukwu Anyaogu","doi":"10.1080/10228195.2023.2252203","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10228195.2023.2252203","url":null,"abstract":"AbstractThis study examines the relational work strategies that are deployed for the maintenance of social harmony, cooperation, and social equilibrium and how these are (mis)handled such that they result in breakdown in haggling exchanges between buyers and sellers in five purposively selected open markets selected from Port Harcourt city, Nigeria. Fifty-six exchanges (between five and twenty taken from each of the markets) involving two or more sellers/buyers in an encounter were recorded using an Android 7.0 phone. The exchanges were analysed with Locher and Watts’s theoretical perspective on relational work. The data showed that polite, impolite, and non-polite strategies were used by the sellers/buyers to achieve conviviality and favourable negotiation outcomes. Some of the strategies clearly contained face-threats, others were aimed at blatant face damage, and some were deployed for face-saving. The study established that no utterance is inherently “polite” or “impolite” without consideration of its context.Keywords: buyer–sellerhaggling exchangespolitic expressionPort Harcourt marketspragmatic behaviourrelational work","PeriodicalId":43882,"journal":{"name":"Language Matters","volume":"17 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-05-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135011079","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Language MattersPub Date : 2023-05-04DOI: 10.1080/10228195.2023.2221834
J. Kirsten
{"title":"Pictures of Language: Language Metaphors in a Recent Language Policy Framework","authors":"J. Kirsten","doi":"10.1080/10228195.2023.2221834","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10228195.2023.2221834","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Metaphors in policies can have a significant effect on how ideas are conceptualised and concepts are framed. By investigating the metaphors in a specific recent language policy framework, insights into the conceptualisation of language and related concepts can be provided. After identifying all the relevant metaphors, they were categorised into themes and the themes were described with some illustrative examples. The most prominent metaphor theme in the policy is HUMAN, where languages are portrayed as humans. Languages are also depicted as having bodies (EMBODIMENT), and as being physical entities (PHYSICAL) and plants (NATURE). Terminology as money (FINANCIAL) also features. The implications of these metaphors are discussed in the conclusion.","PeriodicalId":43882,"journal":{"name":"Language Matters","volume":"54 1","pages":"86 - 103"},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-05-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45002921","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Language MattersPub Date : 2023-01-02DOI: 10.1080/10228195.2023.2197252
Victor Adedayo
{"title":"Grounding Mechanisms in Selected Interviews of President Muhammadu Buhari","authors":"Victor Adedayo","doi":"10.1080/10228195.2023.2197252","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10228195.2023.2197252","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Presidential interviews carry significant socio-political weight. Despite this, there is a dearth of research on Nigerian political interviews from the vantage of common ground. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the grounding techniques in two interviews of President Muhammadu Buhari and identify the pragmatic relevance of these strategies in accessing, building, and maintaining common ground. Using the theory of grounding as a theoretical basis, the top-down analysis revealed that the interviewer and interviewee utilised three main grounding techniques: alternative descriptions, referential instalments, and instalments. These three techniques were established by the use of proper nouns, appositives, relative clauses, and brief explanations. The study also demonstrated that the techniques (i) help to institute contexts to enable interlocutors and their audience to infer meaning appropriately, and (ii) indicate presuppositions and implicatures. The study concludes that grounding is a joint activity through which communication sails smoothly.","PeriodicalId":43882,"journal":{"name":"Language Matters","volume":"54 1","pages":"40 - 60"},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43067859","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Language MattersPub Date : 2023-01-02DOI: 10.1080/10228195.2022.2147579
Marita Jordaan, J. Nel
{"title":"Material Evaluation of Communicative Competence in a Setswana Beginner Language Learning Course","authors":"Marita Jordaan, J. Nel","doi":"10.1080/10228195.2022.2147579","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10228195.2022.2147579","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This study investigated the possible facilitation of communicative competence development in adult beginner learners of Setswana in a set of self-access course materials. The overarching aim was to evaluate this set of self-access course materials to determine whether, and how, it facilitated the successful development of everyday communicative competence. Following a material evaluation procedure, a mixed method of data evaluation was used, including qualitative and quantitative data. New criteria were created to evaluate the set of self-access course materials. Results suggest that successful communicative competence development in Setswana is only possible if the self-access set of course materials is tailored to emphasise communication within varying social and cultural contexts. This can be accomplished by focusing on both form and function, while equipping learners with the necessary strategies to combat any external factors that might inhibit their language development.","PeriodicalId":43882,"journal":{"name":"Language Matters","volume":"54 1","pages":"121 - 148"},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41631599","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Language MattersPub Date : 2023-01-02DOI: 10.1080/10228195.2023.2202923
Y. Majola, M. Cekiso
{"title":"Foundation Phase Teachers’ Experiences with Teaching Xhosa Home Language to Baca-Speaking Learners in Umzimkhulu","authors":"Y. Majola, M. Cekiso","doi":"10.1080/10228195.2023.2202923","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10228195.2023.2202923","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Native speakers’ learning of dialects is often hampered where a standard language is used. Most learners in Umzimkhulu are members of the Baca people, who use Baca as a home language. Baca is regarded as a dialect of Xhosa, which is the only subject for learners to choose as a home language. The study investigated teachers’ experiences in teaching Xhosa as a home language to Baca-speaking learners from Umzimkhulu. Semi-structured interviews were administered to eight Foundation Phase Xhosa teachers who were purposively selected from three schools. A qualitative case study design was used. The theoretical framework for the study was sociocultural theory, and content analysis was used to analyse the data. The findings showed that learners’ conceptualisation of and expression in Xhosa was not up to standard. The authors propose that the government revisit the issue of learners who speak dialects but have to take standard languages as a home language in schools.","PeriodicalId":43882,"journal":{"name":"Language Matters","volume":"54 1","pages":"102 - 120"},"PeriodicalIF":0.5,"publicationDate":"2023-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44381834","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}