ABSTRACT
In this chapter, we focus on the historical and contemporary role of English in “anglophone” Africa.1 We use this term circumspectly because it emphasizes the connection between language and place-what Canut (2002) refers to as territorialization. The connections between language and place implicit in terms such as anglophone, lusophone, francophone are rendered difficult to maintain because of people’s constant movement across different geographical regions. The complexity of using local categories arises not only because of the inconsistencies in the ways the terms are used within the same local communities. In addition, even when the same community uses the term consistently, it may be interpreted radically differently by educated and non-educated speakers. The place of English in Africa, particularly in what is known as anglophone Africa, has been shaped over centuries by historical, social, and political forces. Unlike other parts of the world in which English usage and English-language teaching are relatively recent linguistic phenomena, Africa has a long history of contact with and usage of the English language. Unquestionably, Christian institutions played a significant role in establishing English as a language of prestige in British colonial Africa. Today, however, attitudes and uses of English are mediated by far more influential institutional forces of state, society, and economics. In this chapter, we analyze the role that institutions such as Christianity and colonial governments have played in shaping and determining the prestige of English in anglophone Africa. The role of these institutions was also in part shaped by African demands for education in English, which continues to partially determine the status of English in popular imagination in Africa. We also comment on the ethical and moral dilemmas of language planning research, which advocates an expanded use of African languages in contexts in which there is a strong pro-English educational orientation both from parents and students (Ferguson, 2003).
