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The Globalized World Languages: The Case of Kiswahili
Lioba Moshi
166-175 (complete pdf)
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Globalization is a worldwide phenomenon that continues to influence not only the world economies but also the world languages and cultures. This paper will examine the status of Kiswahili as a possible global language, considering that it has already achieved a regional status. The discussion will also focus on the potential functions of Kiswahili if it attains a global language status, namely its ability to be an economic and diplomatic bridge between Africa and the rest of the world without imposing its own diverse culture on other societies, an aspect that will be evaluated by comparing Kiswahili with English, whose global status and functional power is often viewed as controversial.



Published in:
Selected Proceedings of the 36th Annual Conference on African Linguistics: Shifting the Center of Africanism in Language Politics and Economic Globalization
edited by Olaoba F. Arasanyin and Michael A. Pemberton

Table of contents

ISBN 978-1-57473-414-0 library binding
vii + 220 pages
publication date: 2006
published by Cascadilla Proceedings Project, Somerville, MA, USA

Printed edition: $250.00



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