African Englishes and Multilingualism for the Transformative Development of Postcolonial Africa

Aloysius Ngefac is Professor of English Language and Linguistics at the University of Yaoundé I, Cameroon. He is the founder and general coordinator of TRANG (Transformative Research and Networking Group). He has published several books related to his research interests in sociolinguistics, world Englishes, postcolonial pragmatics, creolistics, transformative research, and transformative development.Gratien Atindogbe is Professor of African Linguistics at the University of Buea, Cameroon. He obtained his PhD from the University of Bayreuth, Germany. His research includes phonology, language planning, language acquisition and sociolinguistics. Paul Zang Zang is Professor of French linguistics at the University of Yaoundé I, Cameroon. He has published widely on the contribution of linguistics to the emergence of nation-states in Africa. He is coordinator of the Ifacam projects (Inventory of lexical particularities of French in Cameroon) and one of the pioneers of studies on spoken French in Cameroon.Thorsten Brato is Professor of English Language and Linguistics at the University of Regensburg and the University of Bayreuth, Germany. His research interests include structural nativization in Ghanaian English, phonological acquisition of English as a second language in Cameroon, diachronic World Englishes, and English in West Africa.Jakob R. E. Leimgruber is Professor of English Language and Linguistics at the University of Regensburg, Germany. His research interests include world Englishes, language planning and policy, sociolinguistics, and phonetics.

This groundbreaking volume invites readers to rethink development in postcolonial Africa through fresh, interdisciplinary perspectives. By centering African voices, languages, and realities, it challenges outdated models and proposes a bold, inclusive vision for the continent’s transformation. Highlighting the power of multilingualism and Africanized Englishes, the book is essential reading for scholars, policymakers, and anyone committed to decolonizing knowledge and advancing sustainable, culturally grounded development in Africa.

• Editors’ preface Aloysius Ngefac, Paul Zang Zang, Thorsten Brato and Jakob R. E. LeimgruberPart One: Introduction and a transformative development visionIntroduction Aloysius Ngefac, Paul Zang Zang, Thorsten Brato and Jakob R. E. LeimgruberA case for a transformative vision in the development agenda of postcolonial Africa: A Focus on colonial languages, indigenized varieties, and indigenous mother tonguesAloysius NgefacPart Two: African Englishes and the transformative development of postcolonial AfricaAfrican Englishes – towards endonormativity?Edgar W. SchneiderThe Africanization of English as a significant step towards the transformative development of postcolonial AfricaAloysius NgefacExploring the evolution of African Englishes through diachronic corporaThorsten Brato The Indigenization and appropriation of the English language in medical discourse in a post-colonial setting: the case of L1 features in doctor-patient HIV/AIDS consultations in some clinics in South AfricaDiana B. Njweipi-Kongor Complex modification in a postcolonial contact language: The case of Cameroon PidginBonaventure M. SalaThe stress behaviour of words from romance languages in a postcolonial English: the case of Cameroon English Clement KouamCameroon English accent as the model for the Cameroonian classroom: Challenges, prospects and policy implicationsPatrick Rodrigue Belibi EnamaThe ‘Doctor’ title: Assessing its elastic usage in postcolonial CameroonJude T. BerinyuyPart Three: Multilingualism and the Transformative Development of Postcolonial AfricaMultilingualisms, identities and policies in Singapore: Lessons for the transformative development of postcolonial Africa?Jakob R. E. LeimgruberFrom independence to linguistic partnership for the development of AfricaPaul Zang ZangLinguistic preferences in a postcolonial multilingual setting: The case of CameroonWenslus AsonguNotes on Contributors Index