The issue of the L1 is fluid in many African societies. Comment on this in relation to a multilingual community like The Gambia.

Essay by shakatomsonUniversity, Bachelor'sA-, July 2007

download word file, 7 pages 4.5

Name: Thomas Kojo Quayson

Mat Nr: 2031164

Topic: The issue of the L1 is fluid in many African societies. Comment on this in relation to a multilingual community like The Gambia.

Course: SOCIOLINGUISTICS

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH

UNIVERSITY OF THE GAMBIA�

INTRODUCTION

In this paper, I shall look at various issues concerning the L1 in multilingual societies such as the Gambia. I shall begin by examining key concepts relating to the subject matter at hand, and then go on in detail about the subject itself before finally looking at the merits and demits of the matter. The subject is important as a part of the continuing debate over language issues in many Third World Countries. The Gambia like other Third World Countries is a nation in which many different local languages are spoken. However, the official language is a foreign language, English which was inherited as part of its colonial heritage.

The multiplicity and diverse nature of languages in countries such as The Gambia have often been cited by many development experts as impediments to development.

However, though the multiplicity and diversity of languages in Africa and elsewhere does have disadvantages and does sometimes pose a problem to development especially when it comes to such important issues as choosing a language for official use, there are also some important benefits as we shall see later on in this essay.

KEY CONCEPTS

Before going any further, we should first of all establish an understanding of some of the elements that I would be discussing. The first of these is the concept of fluidity. The word fluid as used in this sense means something that is not fixed, is liable to change at any given time or lacks consistency. Thus when we say that the L1 is fluid, we are simply saying...