Towards an alternative take on language activism: A South African case study

Abstract

It has been claimed that language activism could serve as a barometer of the general social condition of the (civically defined) South African nation (Du Plessis 2006, 89). The argument in this article is that language activism in the country continues to be what it always has been (here and elsewhere): a barometer of ethno-linguistic vitality/mobilised ethnicity/ethnic nationalism. Proceeding from the premise that activism implies the endorsement of a political philosophy/ideology, I demonstrate how the views held by prominent white Afrikaans language activists are essentially nationalist views. The challenge facing these activists, I argue, is to defend their positions with explicit reference to existing philosophical/ideological paradigms other than liberalism (for their appeals tend to be illiberal). The scholarly focus, in turn, should shift from describing and prescribing language activism to providing an explanation for the phenomenon.

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