The Languages of Urban Africa

The Languages of Urban Africa consists of a series of case studies, framed by introductory and concluding chapters, which address four main themes. The first is the history of African urban languages. The second set of case studies focuses on theoretical issues in the study of African urban languages, exploring the outcomes of intense multilingualism and also the ways in which urban dwellers form their speech communities. The volume then moves on to explore the relationship between language and identity in the urban setting. The final two case studies in the volume address the evolution of urban languages in Africa. This rich set of case studies includes languages and speech communities in ten geographically diverse African urban centres, covering almost all regions of the continent. Half involve Francophone cities, the other half, Anglophone. The case studies are framed by an introductory chapter by the editor and also a concluding chapter by distinguished linguist Salikoko Mufwene. His chapter shows us what the study of urban African languages can tell us about language and about African societies in general.

Fiona McLaughlin is an Associate Professor of African Languages and Linguistics at the University of Florida, USA.