African Diaspora Vernacular Traditions and the Dilemma of Identity

The literature of Africa and the African Diaspora often employs vernacular elements derived from the Africanization of European languages. These linguistic variations, commonly considered languages in their own right, are identified as creole, patois, pidgin, and, in the United States, Ebonics or Black English. In the anglophone context, Africanized English has been a highly regarded literary element found in the works of celebrated creative writers. Vernacular is an authenticating element in literature of the Diaspora, yet there is a clear discrepancy between its negation on a social-political level and its valorization by literary artists and linguists. The move to erase Africanized linguistic elements in the social sphere suggests an underlying dilemma of identity.