ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the spread of English at the grassroots, outside the academic, business and political elites of societies, in two former British protectorates: Maldives and Uganda. It looks at uses of English among citizens from lower social class backgrounds and with low or no formal education levels and, thus, departs from most traditional research in the World Englishes paradigm, which has predominantly been based on findings from upper-middle-class individuals.
Starting out from an outline of the present-day grassroots uses of English in the two countries and examples of such practices, the chapter considers explanatory factors for this: it outlines the social histories of English in the two countries and discusses how the socio-economic status of the nations and their citizens, the countries’ major economic sectors, language and education policies but also demographic factors and migration constrain the spread of English at the grassroots. It concludes by considering the limitations to such spread, particularly through the lack of free education and affordable Internet access, and addresses the urban-rural divide in both countries.
