Khoemana and the Griqua: Identity at the Heart of Phonological Attrition

Abstract

The Griqua form part of the indigenous Khoesan groups of South Africa. There are currently less than 30 speakers of Khoemana, the Khoe language spoken by the Griqua and Korana within South Africa. Many of the remaining Khoemana speakers have attrited language, particularly in their lexicon and phonology. This paper attempts to address a number of issues related to the Khoemana language. There is new evidence suggesting that what has been historically viewed as three different languages, Cape Khoe, Korana, and Griqua, all form part of the same dialect group. Furthermore, clicks, which are a socially marked feature of the language, show distinct signs of phonological attrition. These two ideas are tied together through sociolinguistic identity. The current research elaborates on previous research on click loss and attrition, suggesting that sociocultural considerations and identity issues may have a surprisingly large effect on attrition of the phonology of a language, and have further caused confusion on language terminology.

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