FACTOID # 17: Senior gentlemen might consider a trip to Russia, where there are two women over 65 for every man.
 
 Home   Encyclopedia   Statistics   Countries A-Z   Flags   Maps   Education   Forum   FAQ   About 
 
WHAT'S NEW
RECENT ARTICLES
More Recent Articles »
 

SEARCH ALL

FACTS & STATISTICS    Advanced view

Search encyclopedia, statistics and forums:

 

 

(* = Graphable)

 

 


Encyclopedia > Malawian English

Malawian English is the English language as spoken in Malawi. English and Chichewa language are the country's two official languages. The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Chichewa (Chicheŵa in Malawian English) is one of the two official national languages of the Republic of Malawi, the other being English. ... An official language is a language that is given a unique legal status in the countries, states, and other territories. ...


English was introduced into Malawi towards the end of the 19th century, due to the influence of British explorers, missionaries, the arrival of the African Lakes Corporation, and colonial administrators present since the establishment in the 1890s of the British Central Africa Protectorate. The seventy years of British colonial rule that followed the Scramble for Africa, set the groundwork for English to grow into the area's dominant and most socially prestigious language. Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... The African Lakes Corporation plc (ALC) is a British company which operates businesses in Africa. ... The 1890s were sometimes referred to as the Mauve Decade, because William Henry Perkins aniline dye allowed the widespread use of that colour in fashion, and also as the Gay Nineties, under the then-current usage of the word gay which referred simply to merriment and frivolity, with no... The British Central Africa Protectorate existed in the area of present-day Malawi between 1891 and 1907. ... The term New Imperialism refers to the colonial expansion adopted by Europes powers and, later, Japan and the United States, during the late 19th and early 20th centuries; approximately from the Franco-Prussian War to World War I (c. ... Cecil Rhodes: Cape-Cairo railway project. ...


Since Malawian independence the dominance of English has continued:

  • official government records are written in English,
  • parliament conducts its deliberations in English,
  • the laws of Malawi are written in English,
  • progression into secondary and higher education requires certification of competence in English,
  • nearly all Malawian newspapers are published in English (though some include small Chichewa supplements),
  • English remains the language of commerce in the country.

This remains true despite a large majority of Malawians speaking Chichewa and the small number of English speakers outside urban centers. Also, in Malawian government schools, students are taught in Chichewa, and learn English as a second language from about age 10. But in international schools in Malawi (like Saint Andrew's International High School in Blantyre) which follow the British curriculum, English is the language students are taught in, and do not learn Chichewa at all, as it is regarded as a useless language. The Government of Malawi has been a multi-party democracy since 1994. ... Secondary education - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The University of Cambridge is an institute of higher learning. ... Blantyre is the largest city in Malawi and the capital of the countrys Southern Region as well as the Blantyre District. ...


English words are even replacing their equivalents in other Malawi languages. One study of a corpus of Chichewa discourse captured over a ten-year period found that references to numbers greater than 3 were exclusively in English, at least in urban areas. Malawian English has a slight tinge of non-lingustic expressions that are still used, such as "eesh!", an exclamation meaning "oh my!" In linguistics, a corpus (plural corpora) or text corpus is a large and structured set of texts (now usually electronically stored and processed). ...


External links and sources

  • 'My Madam is Fine': The Adaptation of English Loans in Chichewa, from Vol. 21 No. 6 of the Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development
  • Malawi's Ministry of Information and Tourism
  • Malawi SDNP and UNDP Malawi, supported by the United Nations Development Programme
  • University of Malawi website, including admission requirements
  • Mzuzu University

  Results from FactBites:
 
Australian English - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (2230 words)
Australian English (AuE) is the form of the English language used in Australia.
Australian English began to diverge from British English soon after the foundation of the Colony of New South Wales (NSW) in 1788.
The so-called "Americanisation" of Australian English — signified by the borrowing of words, terms, and usages from North American English — began during the goldrushes, and was accelerated by a massive influx of United States military personnel during World War II.
  More results at FactBites »


 

COMMENTARY     


Share your thoughts, questions and commentary here
Your name
Your comments
Please enter the 5-letter protection code

Want to know more?
Search encyclopedia, statistics and forums:

 


Lesson Plans | Student Area | Student FAQ | Reviews | Press Releases |  Feeds | Contact
The Wikipedia article included on this page is licensed under the GFDL.
Images may be subject to relevant owners' copyright.
All other elements are (c) copyright NationMaster.com 2003-5. All Rights Reserved.
Usage implies agreement with terms.