The Conceptual Evolution in Linguistics: implications for the study of Kaaps

Abstract

As an academic discipline, Linguistics - the scientific study of language - is associatedwith a range of concepts. Students of Linguistics are traditionally introduced to theseconcepts in their first year of study, and everything that follows builds on knowledgeof these concepts. But language, as Blommaert (2011) notes, is the most visible signof social change. Currently, much critical thinking is said to be philosophical outflowsof a late or post-modern era, characterized by an intensification of three characteristicsthat have been part of human history for some time: globalization, migration andthe dominant position of English, accompanied by the growth of new hybridlanguages in urban spaces. In terms of the ongoing vitality of other languages and theinfluence of a number of dominant language ideologies (Weber and Horner 2012),these three characteristics have sparked discourses of endangerment, revitalization,commodification and carnivalisation (Duchêne en Heller, 2007; Heller, 2010). At thesame time, there has been a steady evolution in our understanding of many linguisticconcepts, particularly those emanating from particular language ideologies andhierarchical political powers. This paper addresses this issue and its implications forthe study and treatment of the colloquial variety of Afrikaans known as Kaaps. Thecontents of the paper have been slightly modified from the original Afrikaans versionwhich appeared in Kaaps in Fokus.