Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-rcrh6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-03T20:20:30.305Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The status of pidgin English in the Cameroonian Tower of Babel

An overview of the linguistic landscape of Cameroon which calls for the recognition of Cameroonian pidgin English as an official language

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 December 2017

Peter Wuteh Vakunta
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

The choice of an official language in a linguistically pluralistic society often poses thorny problems, not least of which is that concerning perceived threats to the linguistic rights of minority language communities. This article discusses the importance of Cameroonian pidgin English (CPE) in relation to the two imperial languages inherited from colonial masters – English and French. I will contend that for the purpose of socio-political integration and national unity in Cameroon, it is incumbent upon policy-makers and language planners to choose pidgin English as one of the official languages in the country. CPE is a national lingua franca spoken by the rich and poor, men and women, educated and uneducated, young and old. Being one of the most widely spoken languages in the country, having met the communicative needs of Cameroonians for more than 500 years, and being a language that carries the identity and ecology of Cameroon, pidgin English has the potential to be promoted to the status of an official language and made to serve as a compromise medium for socio-political integration in an ethnically pluralistic nation such as Cameroon.

Type
Research Article
Information
English Today , Volume 34 , Issue 1 , March 2018 , pp. 20 - 25
Check for updates
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2017 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Anchimbe, A. E. 2006. Cameroon English: Authenticity, Ecology and Evolution. Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang.Google Scholar
Awa, P. S. 1984. Sunday Lectionary in Pidgin English. Rome: Vatican Polyglot Press.Google Scholar
Ayafor, I. M. 2005. ‘Official Bilingualism in Cameroon: Instrumental or Integrative Policy.’ In Cohel, J. (ed.), Proceedings of the 4th International Symposium on Bilingualism. Massachusetts: Cascadilla Proceedings Project, pp. 123–142.Google Scholar
Ayafor, M. 2004. ‘Cameroon pidgin English (Kamtok): Morphology and syntax.’ In Kortmann, B. (ed.), A Handbook of Varieties of English. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, pp. 909–928.Google Scholar
Baetens, H. 1982. Bilingualism: Basic Principles. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.Google Scholar
Bobda, S. 2004. ‘Linguistic apartheid: English language policy in Africa.’ English Today, 20(1), 19–26.Google Scholar
Echu, G. 2003. Influence of Cameroon Pidgin English on the Linguistic and Cultural Development of the French Language. Online at <https://www.google.com/#q=+Influence+of+cameroon+pidgin+english+on+the+linguistic+and+cutlural+development+of+the+french+language> (Accessed March 17, 2003).+(Accessed+March+17,+2003).>Google Scholar
Echu, G. 2005. The Language Question in Cameroon. Online at <http://www.linguistik-online.com/18_04/echu.html> (Accessed July 23, 2005).+(Accessed+July+23,+2005).>Google Scholar
Ethnologue., E. 2002. ‘Influence of Cameroon pidgin English on the linguistic and cultural development of the French language.’ Online at <https://www.indiana.edu/~iulcwp/wp/article/view/03-03> (Accessed February 5, 2003).+(Accessed+February+5,+2003).>Google Scholar
Fonlon, B. 1969. ‘The Language Question in Cameroon.’ Abbia, 22, 5–40.Google Scholar
Kachru, B. B. 1986. The Academy of English: The Spread, Function and Models of Non-Native Englishes. Oxford: Pergamon Press.Google Scholar
Kouega, P. 2008. A Dictionary of Cameroon Pidgin English Usage. Muenchen: LINCOM EUROPA.Google Scholar
Lemke, D. 2001. Man No Be God: Bush Doctor in Cameroon. San Jose: Writers Club Press.Google Scholar
Mbangwana, P. 1983. ‘The scope and role of pidgin English in Cameroon.’ In Koening, E. L., Chia, E. & Povey, J. (eds.), A Sociolinguistic Profile of Urban Centers in Cameroon. California: Cross-Road Press, pp. 79–92.Google Scholar
Mufwene, S. S. 2001. The Ecology of Language Evolution. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Neba, A. N., Chibaka, E. F. & Atindogbé, G. G. 2006. ‘Cameroon pidgin English as a tool for empowerment and national development.’ African Studies Monographs, 27(2), 39–61.Google Scholar
Ngefac, A. 2008. Social Differentiation in Cameroon English: Evidence from Sociolinguistic Fieldwork. New York: Peter Lang.Google Scholar
Ngefac, A. 2012. ‘From skin colour mutilation to tongue rejection: Cameroonians’ attitudes towards their local tongues.’ In Echu, G. & Ebongue, A. (eds.), Fifty Years of Official Language Bilingualism in Cameroon (1961–2011). Paris: L'Harmattan, pp. 163–180.Google Scholar
Ngome, M. 1986. Kamtok (Cameroon Pidgin English) Orthography. Unpublished Manuscript. Yaoundé: University of Yaoundé.Google Scholar
Nyamnjoh, F. 2007. Stories from Abakwa. Bamenda, Langaa.Google Scholar
Republic of Cameroon. 1996. Constitution of the Republic of Cameroon. Yaounde: Groupe Mauger.Google Scholar
Rosendal, T. 2008. Multilingual Cameroon: Policy, Practice, Problems and Solutions. Gothenburg: University of Gothenburg Press.Google Scholar
Sala, B. M. 2009. ‘Writing in Cameroon pidgin English: Begging the question.’ English Today, 25(2), 11–17 Google Scholar
Schneider, G. D. 1966. West African Pidgin English: A Descriptive Linguistic Analysis with Texts and Glossary from the Cameroon Area. Ohio: Hartford Seminary Foundation.Google Scholar
Schneider, W. E. 2007. Postcolonial English: Varieties around the World. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Tadadjeu, M. 1985. ‘For a policy of Cameroonian linguistic integration: Extensive trilingualism.’ In MINCOM (ed.), The Cultural Identity of Cameroon, Yaoundé: MINCOM, pp. 178–192.Google Scholar
Todd, L. 1979. Some Day Been Day: West African Pidgin Folktales. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul.Google Scholar
Todd, L. 1991. Talk Pidgin: A Structured Course in West African Pidgin English. Leeds: Tortoise Books.Google Scholar
Vakunta, P. W. 2001. African Time and Pidgin Verses. Pretoria: Duplico.Google Scholar
Vakunta, P. W. 2008. Majunga Tok Poems in Pidgin English. Bamenda: Langaa.Google Scholar
Vakunta, P. W. 2015a. Tori Shweet for Cameroon Pidgin English. Bamenda: Langaa.Google Scholar
Vakunta, P. W. 2015b. Poems from Abakwa in Cameroon Pidgin English. Bamenda: Langaa.Google Scholar