East Africa as a Literary and Linguistic Contact Zone—Some First Reflections on it as from the Southern Pacific

Authors

  • Robert James Smith Southern Cross University
  • J. S. Ryan University of New England

Abstract

The overall East African literary landscape is dominated by oral literature, and the two cited languages, English and Swahili, must stand out. Today their most dynamic contact zones are located in Kenya and Tanzania. Swahili studies and Anglophone African literary studies have long dominated the formal study of literature in East Africa, and are now extending into two new contact languages, Sheng and Engsh, and the literature emerging from these language masses. Prominent features are code-switching, issues of translation, and the mix of narrative and public health knowledge on the topic of HIV/AIDS. This article surveys these issues, with one eye to the South Pacific parallel, and amongst the cultural lament finds much wry humour expressed.

Author Biographies

Robert James Smith, Southern Cross University

School of Education, Southern Cross University, Lismore,
New South Wales, 2480.

J. S. Ryan, University of New England

School of Arts, University of New England, Armidale, New
South Wales 2351.

Downloads

Published

2015-11-06

Issue

Vol. 30 (2015): Outreach to surrounding countries and the commemorating of centennials

Section

International and Comparative Studies

License

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Copyright of items in their Australian Folklore format, and any associated fees (e.g.CAL), remains the property of the Association. This includes making articles freely available on the journal's website. 
  2. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g. in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
  3. Authors are welcome to archive their pre-print and post-print pdf copies of their articles under the SHERPA RoMEO 'Green' copyright classification.
  4. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g. publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.