Publisher's Synopsis
This is a guide to language and society in South Africa. As the authors demonstrate, the South African context offers a treasure trove of data and examples for linguistic and sociolinguistic study. The title surveys the most important language groupings in the region in terms of pre-colonial and colonial history;contact between the different language varieties, leading to language loss, pidginization, creolization and new mixed varieties;language and public policy issues associated with the transition to a post-apartheid society and its eleven official languages. It details the history of indigenous languages, the impact of European languages upon them, and of transformations to the European languages themselves.
