The Zairian Language Policy and Its Effect on the Literatures in National Languages
Contenu
Type de document
article de périodique
Titre
The Zairian Language Policy and Its Effect on the Literatures in National Languages Voir tous les contenus avec cette valeur
Revue/Ouvrage
Journal of Black Studies
Volume-no
Vol. 34, n°2
Auteurs/Editeurs scientifiques
Mputubwele, Makim M.
Nombre de pages
21
Date de publication
nov. 2003
Pagination
272-292
Mot-clés
Langue
ang
ISBN/ISSN
0021-9347
Localisation géographique
République démocratique du Congo
Résumé
The existence of hundreds of languages in the Democratic Republic of Congo has rendered the language policy a very critical issue from the time this huge territory became a private possession of the Belgian King Leopold II, through its colonization by Belgium and to today. Each administration responded to this question in a different way. The interest in local languages was instrumental in the emergence of four national linguae francae, namely, Kikongo, Lingala, Swahili, and Tshiluba. After the country's independence, a presidential ordinance made French the official language, and this situation has remained unchanged. The prominence of French nega-tively affected the growth of literature in national languages, especially during the postcolonial era. The timid evolution the literature in national languages experienced previously and during the first few years after Congo's independence was finally stopped when President Mobutu banned missionaries' periodicals, the only major outlet for writings in national languages.