Tomasz Kamusella & Finex Ndhlovu 
The Social and Political History of Southern Africa’s Languages [PDF ebook] 

This book is the first to offer an interdisciplinary and comprehensive reference work on the often-marginalised languages of southern Africa. The authors analyse a range of different concepts and questions, including language and sociality, social and political history, multilingual government, and educational policies. In doing so, they present significant original research, ensuring that the work will remain a key reference point for the subject. This ambitious and wide-ranging edited collection will appeal to students and scholars of southern African languages, sociolinguistics, history and politics.

Table of Content

– Chapter 1. Introduction: Linguistic and Cultural Imperialism, Alas; Tomasz Kamusella & Finex Ndhlovu.- Chapter 2. Afrikaans; Johanita Kirsten.- Chapter 3. Bemba; Joseph M. Mwansa.- Chapter 4. Chiikuhane; Ndana Ndana and Andy Chebanne.- Chapter 5. English in Southern Africa; Finex Ndhlovu and Liqhwa P. Siziba.- Chapter 6. Fanakalo; Ellen Hurst.- Chapter 7. Isi Ndebele; Langa Khumalo.- Chapter 8. Kalanga; Andy Chebanne, Joyce T. Mathanwane and Rose Letsholo-Tafila.- Chapter 9. Khoekhoegowab (Nama/Damara); Wilfrid H.G. Haacke.- Chapter 10. Khoisan Languages of Botswana; Andy Chebanne and Budzani Mogara.- Chapter 11. Nambya; Maxwell Kadenge.- Chapter 12. Setswana; Thapelo Otlogetswe and Andy Chebanne.- Chapter 13. Shekgalagari Language of Botswana; Kemmonye C. Monaka.- Chapter 14. Shiyeyi; Ndana Ndana and Andy Chebanne.- Chapter 15. Shona; Maxwell Kadenge.- Chapter 16. Tjebirwa; Andy Chebanne and Kemmonye C. Monaka.- Chapter 17. Tjhetswapong; Kemmonye C. Monaka and Andy Chebanne.- Chapter18. Tsotsitaal; Ellen Hurst.- Chapter 19. Xitsonga in South Africa; Ximbani E. Mabaso.- Chapter 20. Yiddish; Veronica Belling.- Chapter 20. Zimbabwean Sign Language; Maxwell Kadenge and Martin Musengi.- Conclusion: Challenging Intellectual Colonialism; Finex Ndhlovu and Tomasz Kamusella

About the author

​Tomasz Kamusella is Reader at the University of St Andrews, UK. He specializes in language politics and nationalism and has published widely on the topic, including
The Palgrave Handbook of Slavic Languages, Identities and Borders (Palgrave Macmillan, 2016). 




Finex Ndhlovu is Associate Professor at the University of New England, Australia. His research specialisms include contemporary linguistic and sociocultural theories of language, identity and sociality in relation to African diaspora communities. His most recent major publication is
Becoming an African Diaspora in Australia (Palgrave Macmillan, 2014).