Minorization and the process of (de)minoritization

The case of Kali'na in French Guiana

Bibliographic Data

ID4178750
AuthorsIsabelle Léglise (0000-0002-2415-4173), Sophie Alby (0000-0001-7796-376X)
Year2006
Volume2006
Issue182
Publication date2006-01-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of the Sociology of Language (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0165-2516 • E-ISSN: 1613-3668
PublisherWalter de Gruyter GmbH (PUBLISHER • DE)
DOI10.1515/ijsl.2006.069
OpenAlexW2144647490
LanguageEN
Citations received8
References cited5

This article examines the case of Kali'na, a minority indigenous language of French Guiana, from the point of view of descriptive categories available in the literature (namely dominated language, minoritized language, endangered language). These terms are discussed, favoring more dynamic categories which focus on processes (minoritization/deminoritization). The article uses both micro- and macrosociolinguistic levels of analysis. At the macro level, indicators are proposed to gauge the minorization of Kali'na as it occurs on the scale of Guiana as a whole, by observing attitudes towards Kali'na language and culture, particularly as expressed in the media and in epilinguistic comments made by speakers. At the local level, we explore the effects of the recognition by the State of a Kali'na township and their influence on language minoritization in the village and more generally at the level of the linguistic community. We also attempt to determine to what extent, as far as interactions are concerned, alternations and code switching between Kali'na and French might constitute indicators of the process of minoritization or deminoritization or of language death currently underway

Indigenous · Kali · Linguistics · Local language · Physics · Sociology · African Studies and Ethnography · Computer Science · Linguistic and Sociocultural Studies · Mathematics · Migration, Identity, and Health

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