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[1] Chapter One Reversing Babeli : English in Anglophone Cameroon Anglophone Cameroon literature is written primarily in English, although there are over ninety ethnic languages in the region. Just like the literature, the identity of individuals in this region has crystallized around English because of their minority status within a dominantly Francophone Cameroon. On the map of Africa, Cameroon is a triangular country situated on the west coast. It is bordered by Chad on the north, Nigeria on the west, Central African Republic to the east, and Gabon and Congo to the south. On the continent, it is the only country with exoglossic bilingualism: French and English are the official languages, although there are over 240 indigenous languages in the entire nation. As a result, Cameroon is made up of two distinct linguistic regions: the French region, which covers four-fifths of the territory, and the English-speaking region, which covers the rest. The country is divided into ten administrative provinces: Center, North, Far North, East, South, Littoral, West, Adamawa, North West, and South West. According to the 2007 CIA World factbook there are 18,060,382 people in Cameroon. English-speaking Cameroonians make up 20 percent of this number and geographically occupy the North West and South West provinces. The English-speaking region has had different names. It was referred to as Southern Cameroons during the British Mandate and Trusteeship period, 1919-1961; West Cameroon during the Federal period, 1961-1972; and now, in the present “Republic of Cameroon”, it is often referred to as “Anglophone Cameroon.” In a way these changing appellations reflect the changing status of English in the region. Although there is a relative paucity of scholarship on Anglophone Cameroon, a number of scholars (Loreto Todd 1982; Chumbow 1980; Simo Bobda 1994; Han-Georg Wolf 1997, 2000; Krieger 1991, Koenig et al. 1983) have examined English in Cameroon. For the most part, their analysis have dwelt on the varieties of English spoken in Cameroon, language use, the effect of bilingualism, and the sociological influences on English phonology in the country. This chapter, however, sets out to show the historical and social place of English in Cameroon and how it has come to be a marker of identity for Anglophone Cameroon. [2] Based on this identity, there is a drive for Anglophones to produce and disseminate literature in English. Such a move obviously goes against the grain of the continuing debate among African writersthat in order for African literature to thrive, it needs to be produced in indigenous languages. In his book Decolonising the Mind, Ngugi Wa Thiongo, the chief proponent for African languages, holds that African writers should write in African languages, thereby giving something back to the African languages instead of stealing from them to enhance the English language. Ngugi contends that African writers writing in European languages are continuing the process of mental colonization wrought by imperialism, which is why Ngugi himself has not written his fiction or essays in English since 1986. To support the claim of African languages, participants at a conference titled “Against all Odds: African Languages and Literatures in the 21st century” held in Eritrea on 7-11 January 2000, drew up the Asmara declaration. Among other things, the declaration holds that "African languages must take on the duty, responsibility and the challenges of speaking for the continent” (Asmara Declaration), and calls on the use of translation to open up a dialogue among African languages. The conference participants hoped that the declaration would spur African writers to make the switch from European languages to African languages in their writings. Yet in Anglophone Cameroon there is a need to uphold the English language, and Anglophones talk of a dire need for the increase of literature in that language. In order to understand the quest for the production and visibility for Cameroon literature in English, one needs to understand how English became implanted in Cameroon and what it has come to connote in present times. English Language in Cameroon 1800-1919 British traders introduced English to Cameroon about 1800, and the language was quickly pidginized by the natives along the coast (Delancey 8). Between 1850 to 1884 the British controlled the coastal regions of Cameroon, and the coastal chiefs actually requested the British government to annex the country formally (Todd 6). However, the formal teaching of English through the establishment of a school is credited to Joseph Merrick, a Jamaican [3.145.191.22] Project MUSE (2024-04-25 00:58 GMT...

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