By Eyamba G. Bokamba
Abstract:
How particular languages emerge as de facto or de jure linguae francae is a key issue of debate and analysis in many multilingual contexts worldwide, not least in Africa, which is home to a great many competing intra- and inter-state languages in rural and urban communities. This paper discusses the status and functions of Lingala, which has now attained the level of a supranational language in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). In this context, it is argued that the rise of Lingala may largely be explained with reference to its function as a distinguishing index of congolité (being a Congolese), as opposed to being a Rwandan or an ‘occupier’ in the DRC.
Introduction:
One of the most fascinating aspects of multilingualism in the world is the competition for discursive spaces between the co-existing languages. Quite frequently one of the languages emerges as the lingua franca de facto or de jure (Greenberg, 1965; Whiteley, 1969; Samarin, 1985; Sesep, 1986; Mc Laughlin, 2009; Bokamba, 2009). While the phenomenon is well known from the perspective of language diffusion and how the latter facilitates language policy legislation, it is unclear how a language in competition arises spontaneously to become a supranational one. Even when language spread factors are clearly identified (e.g., use in trade, proselytization, communication in armed forces, and nation building or appeal to nationalism), it is indeterminate which one(s) of these is the driving force for the ascent of a language in competition. Is it nationalism alone or a conjunction of two or more socio-cultural factors?
Fishman (1972), referencing several works dating as far back as antiquity, seems to address this question, but focuses on language planning as a central component of nation building. He argues in this respect for the primacy of nationalism as characterized by patriotism and the existence of a shared great tradition. He maintains that the optimal choice of such a language results from the cultivation of nationalism by the elite based on the recognition of a shared great culture that serves as a unifying symbol and source of pride. This is a reiterated perspective from an earlier paper (Fishman 1971: 30, 39) in which he offered a typology of language policy decisions enacted in developing countries based on the language ecology (e.g., absence of “an over-arching sociocultural past”, “as usable past” existence of such a shared great tradition, or the existence of “competing multiplicity” of great traditions). While there exists a large body of research on language planning that includes cases of linguae francae that had previously emerged spontaneously as such (cf., e.g., Whiteley, 1969 on Kiswahili; Benrabah, 2007 on Berber; Boukous, 2007 on Amazigh; and Skattum, 2008 on Bambara), that on spontaneous emergence of a (supra-) national language is scant. Consequently, we continue to be under-informed concerning this aspect of language vitality. Stable multilingualism in Africa offers an immense potential to conduct research that can begin to fill this gap.
Specifically, Africa, as one of the most multilingual continents, is replete with competing intra- and inter-state languages in rural and urban communities. The rise of some of these languages to linguae francae statuses in certain domains (e.g., regional trade, mining industries, marketplaces, popular music) has been studied at least since the late 1960s, with some of them chronicled for the Sub-Saharan region in Heine (1970). In contrast, the research on the spontaneous national or supranational ascent remains scant. The present study is an attempt to contribute to this area of research as a case study of a well-established and studied lingua franca, viz., Lingala, which has recently attained the level of a supranational language. Its main thrust is to argue that this rise, which is contemporaneous, results primarily from nationalism as a distinguishing index of congolité or being a Congolese, contra being a Rwandan or an “occupier” in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The data for the study are drawn mainly from a random sampling of video clips and audio postings that were made before, during, and after the country’s presidential and parliamentary elections held on December 30, 2018. These data are supplemented by observations of discursive practices in Congolese communities’ worship services in the U.S.A and Europe.
