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Mancuveni, Melania. "Urbanisation, Shona culture and Zimbabwean literature." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/10782.
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This thesis examines the impact of urbanisation on Zimbabwean culture, particularly the Shona culture as it is represented in Zimbabwean literature. My main argument in this thesis is that Zimbabwean literature suggests that urbanisation is harmful and destructive to the Shona culture and the way of life of the Shona people.
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Musiyiwa, Mickias. "The narrativization of post-2000 Zimbabwe in the Shona popular song-genre : an appraisal approach." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/80237.
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Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2013.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The study explores the post-2000 popular song genre (expressed in Shona) in order to analyze its rhetorical potential in its appropriation as a medium for the construction and contestation of meanings concerning land, history and selected (political, social and religious) identities. The goal is to discover how the turbulent post-2000 period in Zimbabwe is narrativized through the lyrics of popular songs. The rationale to focus on popular songs in the context of this period was my observation of the uniquely high level of appropriation of the popular song in the Zimbabwean public sphere by political parties and the ordinary people to communicate various discourses (of their interest). The period surpasses by far the pre-2000 era in its rate of output of songs. Old songs were revived and new ones composed while new musical genres emerged and existing ones thrived. I also noted in previous researches gaps in both theoretical and coverage of the analyses of popular songs in Zimbabwe. There is little in terms of linguistically-rooted approaches while analyses are largely limited to politically-inspired songs. I therefore, besides the politically-oriented songs, also explore socially and religiously-oriented songs. I adopt a multi-perspective approach combining APPRAISAL, genre, “small stories/voices” and the “rediscovery of the ordinary” frameworks to study the rhetorical property and capacity (to communicate) of the popular song. I employ the APPRAISAL theory to deal with the songs’ language of evaluation in terms of the authorial stances and ideological positions singers adopt. I utilize the genre theory in making a typology of the various popular song texts on the basis of their communicative properties (which determine their rhetorical purposes). I employ the remaining theories to classify the songs into three clusters (‘grand narrative songs’; ‘small stories/voices songs’ and ‘songs of ordinary life’) based the sources of their ideological concerns. In pursuit of the connection between the songs’ language and its communicative effects, I note in chapters two, four, five and six, the high level of intertextuality the post-2000 popular song has assumed. I argue that the unique intertextuality can be explained in relation to the high demands being placed on the language of the song texts by composers and singers in a context in which the state and opposition are pitted in an intense competition for the “power to mean”. The state appropriates the popular song to demonize and delegitimate the opposition at the same time legitimating its hegemony, based on patriotic discourses derived from chimurenga (nationalist) grand narrative values. On the other hand, the opposition manipulates the popular song to legitimate its struggle for change through counter-state discourses exposing Zanu-PF’s political vices and debasing its power. The ordinary people also appropriate the popular song in their struggle to resolve issues of personal concern in their attempt to give meaning to their lives. It is therefore the study’s main thesis that the popular song in post-2000 Zimbabwe narrativizes the period in unique ways as illustrated through the manipulation of its rhetorical potential to construct meanings concerning land, history and identities.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die studie het die populêreliedjiegenre (in Shona uitgedruk) ná 2000 verken om die retoriese potensiaal by die aanwending as ʼn medium vir die konstruksie en omstredenheid van betekenisse rakende grond, geskiedenis en geselekteerde (politieke, maatskaplike en godsdienstige) identiteite te ontleed. Die doel was om vas te stel hoe die turbulente tydperk ná 2000 in Zimbabwe deur die lirieke van populêre liedjies aangebied word. Die rasionaal om op populêre liedjies teen die agtergrond van hierdie tydperk te fokus was my waarneming van die buitengewoon hoë vlak van aanwending van die populêre liedjie in die Zimbabwiese openbare sfeer deur politieke partye en gewone mense om verskillende diskoerse (tot eie voordeel) te kommunikeer. Die tydperk oortref verreweg die tydperk voor 2000 wat betref die spoed waarteen liedjies verskyn. Ou liedjies is opgediep en nuwes is gekomponeer terwyl nuwe musiekgenres na vore gekom en bestaandes floreer het. Ek het ook leemtes in vorige navorsing opgemerk, beide ten opsigte van die teoretiese ontledings van populêre liedjies in Zimbabwe en die dekking daarvan. Daar bestaan min inligting ten opsigte van linguisties-begronde benaderings terwyl ontledings hoofsaaklik beperk is tot polities-geïnspireerde liedjies. Ek het dus, afgesien van die polities-georiënteerde liedjies, ook liedjies wat sosiaal en godsdienstig geïnspireer is, ondersoek. Ek het ʼn multiperspektiefbenadering ingeneem en raamwerke met betrekking tot WAARDEBEPALING, genre, “klein stories/stemme” en die “herontdekking van die gewone” gekombineer om die retoriese eienskap en kapasiteit (om te kommunikeer) van die populêre liedjie te bestudeer. Ek het die teorie van WAARDEBEPALING aangewend ten einde aan die liedjies se evalueringstaal ten opsigte van die standpunte wat die skrywers inneem en ideologiese posisies van die sangers aandag te gee. Ek het die genreteorie gebruik om ʼn tipologie van die verskillende populêre liedjietekste op grond van hulle kommunikatiewe eienskappe (wat hulle retoriese doelwitte bepaal) op te stel. Ek het die oorblywende teorieë gebruik om die liedjies in drie groepe te klassifiseer (‘meesternarratief-liedjies’, ‘liedjies oor klein stories/stemme’ en ‘liedjies oor die gewone lewe’) gebaseer op die bronne van hulle ideologiese besorgdhede. In ʼn soeke na die skakeling tussen die taal van die liedjies en die kommunikatiewe effekte daarvan, wys ek in hoofstukke twee, vier, vyf en ses op die hoë vlak van intertekstualiteit wat die populêre liedjie ná 2000 aangeneem het. Ek voer aan dat die unieke intertekstualiteit verklaar kan word in verhouding met die hoë eise wat deur komponiste en sangers aan die taal van die liedjies se tekste gestel word in ʼn konteks waarin die staat en opposisie in konflik verkeer in ʼn intense wedywering om die “mag om te beteken”. Die staat eien hulle die populêre liedjie toe ten einde die opposisie te demoniseer en te delegitimeer en terselfdertyd sy hegemonie te legitimeer, gebaseer op patriotiese diskoerse afgelei van chimurenga (nasionalistiese) waardes van die meesternarratief. Aan die ander kant, die opposisie manipuleer die populêre liedjie om sy stryd om verandering te legitimeer deur diskoerse te weerlê en so Zanu-PF se politieke gebreke aan die kaak te stel en sy mag te verminder. Jan Alleman en sy maat eien hulle ook die populêre liedjie toe in hulle stryd om kwessies van persoonlike kommer uit die weg te ruim in hulle poging om betekenis aan hulle lewens te gee. Dit is dus hierdie studie se hoofhipotese dat die populêre liedjie in Zimbabwe ná 2000 die tydperk op unieke wyses beskryf soos geïllustreer deur die manipulasie van die retoriese potensiaal daarvan om betekenisse rakende grond, geskiedenis en identiteite te konstrueer.
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Makoni, Sinfree. "Variability in the interlanguage of Shona learners of English : a study into the effects of planning time and linguistic context on interlanguage performance." Thesis, University of Edinburgh, 1990. http://hdl.handle.net/1842/8166.
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The study has two main aims. The first is theoretical and the second methodological. Theoretically, the study seeks to investigate the nature and extent of variation in interlanguage with the aim of identifying and assessing the extent to which factors such as discourse mode (e.g. narrative vs descriptive) and linguistic context are likely to result in variable interlanguage performance. Methodologically, the study seeks to highlight the problems of eliciting valid interlanguage data using the concept of planning as is currently formulated by Ochs (1979) and Ellis (1987). Although interlanguage performance may be shown to be variable it still remains important to assess how widespread variation is in interlanguage, because variation is likely to shed much more light on interlanguage development and use, if it is demonstrated that it is neither restricted to specific structural areas nor typical of learners at particular stages of interlanguage development. With this in mind this study investigates the performance of second language learners at three different levels of proficiency in two linguistic areas - spatial and directional prepositions and the 3rd person singular. Variation in interlanguage has been attributed to a large number of factors some of which are enumerated below - discourse mode, varying planning conditions, topic, setting, interlocutor, linguistic context etc.
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Siziba, Gugulethu. "Language and the politics of identity in South Africa : the case of Zimbabwean (Shona and Ndebele speaking) migrants in Johannesburg." Thesis, Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/95464.
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Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2013.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Discourses about identity framed in terms of questions about autochthons and the Other are on the ascendance in the contemporary socio-political and cultural milieu. Migration, by virtue of its transgression of national boundaries and bounded communities, stands as a contentious site with respect to the politics of identity. South Africa is one case in point, where migrants – particularly those of African origin – have been at the centre of a storm of Otherization, which climaxed in the May 2008 attacks (now widely termed ‗xenophobic attacks‘). ―Amakwerekwere”, as African migrants in South Africa are derogatively referred to, face exclusionary tendencies from various fronts in South Africa. Using language as an entry point, this thesis investigates how Zimbabwean migrants – who by virtue of a multifaceted crisis in their country have a marked presence in South Africa – experience and navigate the politics of identity in Johannesburg. Through a multi-sited ethnography, relying on the triangulation of participant observation and interviews, the thesis focuses on Ndebele and Shona speaking migrants in five neighbourhoods. Framing the analysis within an eclectic theoretical apparatus that hinges on Bourdieu‘s economy of social practice, it is argued that each neighbourhood is a social universe of struggle that is inscribed with its own internal logic and relational matrix of recognition, and each ascertains what constitutes a legitimate language and by extension legitimate identity. This relational matrix is undergirded by a specific distributional and evaluative structure with corresponding symbolic, economic and socio-cultural capitals (embodied practices) that constitute the requisite entry fees and currency for belonging, as well as the negative capitals that attract designations of the strange and the Other. Zimbabwean migrants‘ experiences as the Other in South Africa take on diverse and differentiated forms. It was observed how experiences of Otherness and being the Other are neither homogenous nor static across the different social universes that make up Johannesburg; rather they are fluid and shifting and occur along an elastic continuum. Consequently the responses of migrants are also based on a reading of – and response to – the various scripts of existence in these different social universes.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Diskoerse oor identiteit, uitgedruk in terme van vrae oor autochthons en die Ander, is aan die toeneem in die huidige sosio-politieke en kulturele milieu. Migrasie, wat met die oortreding van nasionale grense en begrensde gemeenskappe geassosieer word, is 'n omstrede terrein met betrekking tot die politiek van identiteit. Suid-Afrika is 'n goeie voorbeeld hiervan, waar migrante – veral dié van Afrika-oorsprong – in die middel van 'n storm van Anderisering beland het. Hierdie situasie het 'n hoogtepunt bereik in die Mei 2008-aanvalle – nou algemeen bekend as "xenofobiese geweld." "Amakwerekwere", soos Afrika-migrante in Suid-Afrika neerhalend beskryf word, word vanuit verskeie oorde in Suid-Afrika gekonfronteer met uitsluitingstendense. Die tesis gebruik taal as beginpunt vir 'n ondersoek oor hoe Zimbabwiese migrante – wat as 'n gevolg van 'n veelsydige krisis in hul land 'n merkbare teenwoordigheid in Suid-Afrika het – die politiek van identiteit in Johannesburg ervaar en navigeer. Deur middel van 'n multi-terrein etnografie, wat staatmaak op die triangulering van etnografiese waarneming en onderhoude, word Ndebele- en Sjonasprekende migrante in vyf woonbuurte ondersoek. Gebaseer op 'n eklektiese teoretiese apparaat, hoofsaaklik gewortel in Bourdieu se ekonomie van sosiale praktyk, word voorgestel dat elke woonbuurt 'n sosiale universum van stryd is waarop 'n eie interne logika en verhoudingsmatriks van herkenning ingeskryf is, en dat elkeen sy eie legitieme taal en by implikasie, eie legitieme identiteit het. Hierdie verhoudingsmatriks word ondervang deur 'n spesifieke verspreidings- en evalueringstruktuur met ooreenstemmende simboliese-, ekonomiese-, en kulturele-kapitaal (beliggaamde praktyke), wat dien as 'n soort inskrywingsfooi of geldeenheid vir insluiting, sowel as die negatiewe kapitaal wat toeskrywings van andersheid en die Ander aantrek. Zimbabwiese migrante se ervarings as die Ander in Suid-Afrika neem verskillende vorme aan. Daar is waargeneem hoedat ervarings van Andersheid in die verskillende sosiale kontekste van Johannesburg nie homogeen of staties is nie, maar eerder vloeibaar en skuiwend op 'n elastiese kontinuum. As 'n gevolg is die gedrag van migrante ook gebaseer op 'n lesing van – en reaksie op – die verskeie spelreëls van hierdie verskillende sosiale omgewings.
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Mugore, Masawi Maireva Faustina. "Language learning and teaching in Zimbabwe : English as the sole language of instruction in schools : a study of students' use of English in Zimbabwe, their indigenous languages (Shona and Ndebele), and the schools' methods of instruction in secondary school classrooms." Thesis, McGill University, 1995. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=29090.
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This study focuses on the use of English as the sole medium of instruction in Zimbabwean schools and the effect of such a policy on the educational achievement of students, particularly in secondary schools. The role of Shona and Ndebele, two other Zimbabwean official languages, in schooling is also examined.Some of the findings reveal a learning and teaching environment that prevents strategies from addressing linguistic, social and cultural development with a coherent workable vision in the English classroom.
Because English is the working language of government, business, and industry in Zimbabwe, an English-only policy seems to be a practical means to prepare students for higher education and the workforce. The growing status of English as an international lingua franca provides additional support for such a policy.
This study reveals the need to rethink the imposition of an English-only policy. The findings indicate that current teaching approaches/methods and materials do not entirely support language development in English, largely because they do not take into account the economic, social, and linguistic situations of the students.
The study supports and calls for a multifaceted approach to the way language is currently taught in Zimbabwe, and sees this as one way secondary schools can produce, through the medium of English instruction, students and teachers who can adapt to rapid change, and relate to people from diverse socio-cultural and linguistic backgrounds.
The study emphasizes the integration and expectations of people's views on language and education, as heard and expressed by many respondents. This is considered central to any meaningful effort towards linguistic competence, a challenging but stimulating learning environment, and better communication among students and teachers.
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Chihota-Charamba, Audrey. "An analysis of how Zimbabwean female audiences decode meaning from the Shona-language radio programme Nguva Yevanhukadzi (Time for Women) against the background of their lived experiences." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1011750.
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This study investigates the Zimbabwean women listeners of a gender-focused radio programme Nguva yevanhukadzi (Time for Women) to find out what meanings they take from the programme. Located within the broad theoretical framework of cultural studies and drawing on audience reception theories, the study focuses on the ways in which Shona-speaking women bring their understandings of their social roles, derived from their lived socio-cultural experiences of patriarchy, to their decoding of the text. The study was set in Harare’s high-density suburb of Mbare and used the qualitative research methods of individual and focus group interviews. The study was conducted against the backdrop of the signing of the Global Political Agreement (GPA) of September 2008, which ended the impasse among the warring political parties, ZANU PF, MDC-T and MDC and introduced a new era of collectively tackling socio-economic development, including redressing gender disparities through women’s empowerment. This study examines the factors shaping the audiences’ readings of the programme and seeks to establish whether the mass media has determining power on its audience in the reception of messages or if the audiences (women) have interpretive freedom. Using Hall’s (1980) Encoding/ Decoding model, the study examines the factors that influence the audiences’ choice in making preferred, negotiated or oppositional readings and the arguments they advance in line with those readings. While the interviews revealed that most of the female listeners “negotiated” the dominant encoded meanings, seeking their relevance to their varied situations and contexts (O’ Sullivan et al. 1994:152; Ang 1990: 159), of interest is the manner in which the women dealt with the discourse of patriarchy within the context of promoting women empowerment. The contestation between women empowerment and addressing patriarchy reflected the subverted notions of maintaining the status quo, while applauding the women’s commitment and ability to interrogate the practicality of issues under discussion and drawing lessons relevant to their day to day lives prior to making the preferred reading. As such, the study revealed that preferred readings are not always automated, but can be a result of intense interrogation among media audiences.
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makondo, Davison. "The effects of the language of instruction on the perfomance of the Tsonga (Shangani) speaking grade seven pupils in Zimbabwe." Thesis, University of Limpopo (Turfloop Campus), 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10386/1153.
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Thesis (Ph.D. (Educational Psychology)) --University of Limpopo, 2012This research project was an endeavor to investigate the effects of the languages of instruction (English and Shona), to teach Tsonga (Shangani) speaking children in Chiredzi district of Zimbabwe. Because of the nature of the study, a mixed method design was used where both qualitative and quantitative methods were adopted to study the performance of the Tsonga (Shangani) minority language speaking learners in five purposively sampled schools. 222 learners participated in the study. The main aim of the study was to investigate the effect of the language instruction in teaching Tsonga (Shangani) speaking Grade Seven children in Environmental Science. In fact, the researcher was interested in finding out whether teaching learners in a foreign language was a bridge or barrier to learning. In this case, the research did not only look at the effect of using English for instructional purposes, but also investigated how other major or dominant indigenous languages which are used for instructional purposes affect the performance of minority language speaking children in Chiredzi district of Zimbabwe. Data for this study were collected using lesson observation, document analysis, the questionnaire and a knowledge test. In this case, fifteen lessons were observed. Fifteen Tsonga (Shangani) speaking Grade Seven learners per school were purposively selected and taught in Tsonga (Shangani) only and the other fifteen Shona speaking Grade Seven children per school were also purposively selected and taught the same topic in Shona, and a third group of fifteen Grade Seven learners per school, were randomly selected and taught in English only. A knowledge test was given to each group thereafter. Children from each language condition were allowed to answer questions in their home languages, except for the third group which was taught in English. This group answered the questions in English with the restricted use of Shona. Each of the test results from the knowledge tests were analysed using a One Way Anova of Variance (ANOVA) and conclusions drawn. The results from other data collection instruments were analysed using qualitative methods like narrative discussions of data. A sample of five learners per school had their exercise books analysed. Data were presented in tables. The results from the knowledge tests given showed a significant difference in the mean marks obtained from the three groups (the Shangani, Shona and English group). The result showed that language has a significant influence on the performance of learners since the p – value was 0.000. This implies that the performance of learners between the three groups is significantly different. On the basis of these observations, the Null hypothesis was rejected. The same picture was also shown in document analysis and in the questionnaires. Consequently, conclusions were drawn and recommendations made.
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Masowa, Angeline. "Gender and humour; Complexities of women's image politics in Shona humourous narratives." Doctoral thesis, University of Cape Town, 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/25340.
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Humour represents an ideal site for understanding how everyday social dynamics influence ideology and the social structure (Sue & Golash-Boza, 2013:4). This research is an examination of how gender is expressed in Shona humour. Particular emphasis is paid to how women are presented in Shona humorous narratives. Though 'what a person does in a jest is usually not accorded the same weight of responsibility as what he does seriously, humour provides a means to test the openness, accessibility, and riskiness of sensitive issues' (Lang & Lee, 2010:47). This study examines how women in particular, are reflected in Shona humour. Humour provides a 'safe' climate for expressing 'system-justifying' beliefs, (Ford et al. 2013), and this study is an exploration of the Shona beliefs about women and the reinforcement of gender norms as expressed in Shona humour. The study derives impetus from the fact that while images of women have been studied in literary and lexicographic works in Shona in particular, aspects of humour and how it presents women remain largely under-studied, as humour studies as a discipline, despite its long history the world over, is still at its infancy in Zimbabwe. From a corpus of jokes that were circulated on the social media, particularly Facebook and WhatsApp, the study examines how women are presented in Shona humour. The research made use of the Superiority Theory of humour, Incongruity and Feminism to argue that Shona humour expresses oppressive and unjust gender relations. While the humorous Shona narratives demonstrate a complex portrayal of women, generally, Shona humour expresses, ratifies and reinforces repressive norms and restrictive stereotypes about women. Women are presented as immoral, malicious and intellectually, socially and emotionally inferior to men. The study therefore argues that humour facilitates the process of promoting gender stereotypes as well as fostering gender discrimination in Shona.
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Knobloch, Nina. "A Micro-Typological Study of Shina : A Hindu Kush Language Cluster." Thesis, Stockholms universitet, Avdelningen för allmän språkvetenskap, 2019. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-169818.
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In this thesis, 9 Indo-Aryan languages which have previously been classified as Shina languages were analyzed. A cognate analysis of basic vocabulary was conducted, in order to explore the relatedness of the languages. Furthermore, a selection of phonological, morphological, syntactic, and lexical features was analyzed, in order to explore areal patterns among the languages. The data mainly consisted of first-hand data, which has been collected for the project ”Language contact and relatedness in the Hindu Kush region”, but even previous descriptions of the languages were used. The results primarily confirmed hypotheses about the relatedness of the Shina languages, and showed interesting areal patterns.The data also suggested that the Shina languages share many typical features with other Hindu Kush Indo-Aryan languages, such as SOV word order, the use of postpositions, sex based grammatical gender, and moderately complex to complex syllable structures. Other features, such as aspiration, retroflexion, and case alignment in noun phrases showed more variation and could certainly be relevant for future studies on these languages.I den här uppsatsen har 9 indoariska språk som tidigare har klassificerats som shinaspråk analyserats. För att undersöka hur språken är besläktade med varandra har en kognatanalys av det grundläggande ordförrådet genomförts. Dessutom har ett urval fonologiska, morfologiska, syntaktiska, och lexikaladrag analyserats, i syfte att undersöka areala mönster hos språken. Datan för undersökningen bestod huvudsakligen av förstahandsdata, som har samlats in för projektet “Språkkontakt och släktskap i Hindukushregionen”, men även tidigare beskrivningar av språken har används. Resultaten bekräftade mestadels hypoteser om hur shinaspråken är besläktade med varandra, och visade intressanta areala mönster. Det visade sig att shinaspråken delar många drag med andra indoariska språk i Hindukushregionen, såsom SOV ordföljd, användning av postpositioner, grammatisk genus baserat på biologisk kön, och medelkomplexa till komplexa stavelsestrukturer. Andra drag, exempelvis aspiration, retroflexion,och kasuskongruens i nominalfraser, visade större variation och skulle kunna vara relevanta för framtida studier av dessa språk.
Language Contact and Relatedness in the Hindu Kush Region, Swedish Research Council (VR 421-2014-631)
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Böhmer-Bauer, Kunigunde. "Great Zimbabwe : eine ethnologische Untersuchung /." Köln : R. Köppe, 2000. http://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb37629678j.
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Gambahaya, Zifikile. "An analysis of the social vision of post-independence Zimbabwean writers with special reference to Shona and Ndebele poetry." Doctoral thesis, University of Cape Town, 1998. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/9678.
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Includes bibliographical references.This dissertation analyses creative trends in Shona and Ndebele poetry published after the attainment of political independence in 1980. The research tries to establish the close link between poems in the two national languages and post-independence Zimbabwean history in order to examine the link between creative writing and nationalism, which is the context in which creativity takes place, an attempt is made to outline major trends in nationalist history vis-a-vis colonialism. Having set the background for analysis, the research focuses on texts that are published in the context of the apparent cultural renaissance that is ushered by the apparent victory of African nationalism over colonialism. The texts are analysed in the context of the dialectic of nationalism and colonialism.
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Svärd, Erik. "Discourse Markers in Dardic Languages : Palula ba and ta in a comparative perspective." Thesis, Stockholms universitet, Avdelningen för allmän språkvetenskap, 2014. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-105704.
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The present study investigates discourse markers in Dardic languages (Indo-Aryan; Pakistan), focusing on the discourse markers ba and ta in Palula in comparison with other languages of the region, particularly Dameli in which two markers with the same form and similar functions have been observed. The results showed that Palula ba functions as a topic-marker, in addition to other functions, whereas ta only signals subsequence, except in an adversative construction ta... ba. In Dameli, both ba and ta function as topic-markers, in addition to other functions such as ta marking subsequence, and the ta... ba construction functions similarly to Palula. Interestingly, Kalasha and Gawri showed some similarities, as both have a topic-marker surfacing as ta and tä respectively, which can be used in the adversative constructions ta... o and tä... i respectively, both of which have another marker as the second element. No other language in the sample was found to have a construction similar to the ta... ba construction nor a marker similar in form and function to ba, but all have a subsequence marker resembling ta. These results indicated that the Palula markers ba and ta are part of an areal phenomenon encompassing at least the Chitral, Panjkora and Swat valleys, where Palula originally only had the Shina subsequence marker and later adapted the Dameli system into the language.Denna studie undersöker diskursmarkörer i dardiska språk (indoariska; Pakistan) med fokus på diskursmarkörer ba och ta i palula i jämförelse med andra språk i regionen, i synnerhet dameli i vilket två markörer med samma form och liknande funktion har observerats. Resultaten visade att palula ba fungerar som topikmarkör, tillsammans med andra funktioner, medan ta enbart signalerar subsekvens, förutom i den adversativa konstruktionen ta... ba. I dameli fungerar både ba och ta som topikmarkörer, tillsammans med andra funktioner så som att ta markerar subsekvens, och konstruktionen ta... ba fungerar i likhet med palula. Av intresse är att kalasha och gawri uppvisade en del likheter, så som att båda har topikmarkörer i form av respektive ta och tä, vilka kan användas i språkens respektive adversativa konstruktioner ta... o och tä... i, varav båda använder en annan markör för det andra elementet. Inget annat språk i urvalet observerades ha en konstruktion lik ta... ba eller en markör lik ba i form och funktion, men alla har en subsekvensmarkör lik ta. Dessa resultat indikerar att palulas markörer ba och ta är en del av ett arealt fenomen som innefattar åtminstone dalgångarna Chitral, Panjkora och Swat, och att palula ursprungligen enbart hade shinas subsekvensmarkör och därefter integrerade damelis system in i språket.
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Knobloch, Nina. "A grammar sketch of Sauji : An Indo-Aryan language of Afghanistan." Thesis, Stockholms universitet, Avdelningen för allmän språkvetenskap, 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-182519.
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This study presents selected features in the phonology and grammar of Sauji, an Indo-Aryan language spoken in a village in the Kunar province in north-eastern Afghanistan. Sauji belongs to a cluster of (western) Shina languages - a subgroup of the Hindukush Indo-Aryan languages, which are spoken in large parts of northernmost Pakistan, north-eastern Afghanistan, and the disputed Kashmir region. As many languages in the Hindukush region, Sauji is largely underdescribed, hence the aim of this study was to provide a grammar sketch of the language, based on materials from field trips to the region. The results were compared to the closest related languages, to put the language into a broader context. Sauji is generally very similar to its closest linguistic relative, Palula, but also shows clear influence of Gawarbati, another Indo-Aryan language, on its phonology, lexicon, and some grammatical features.Denna studie presenterar ett urval av fonologiska och grammatiska drag i sauji, ett indoariskt språk som talas i en by i Kunarprovinsen i nordöstra Afghanistan. Sauji tillhör ett kluster av shinaspråk, som är en undergrupp av de hindukush-indoariska språken som talas i stora delar av nordligaste Pakistan, nord-östra Afghanistan och det omstridda Kashmirområdet. I likhet med många av språken i denna region är sauji knapphändigt beskrivet och därför är målet med den här studien att bidra med en grammatikskiss. Studien är baserat på data som har samlats in under fältarbete i regionen. Resultaten jämfördes med de närmast besläktade språken för att undersöka språket i en bredare kontext. Sauji är i stora drag väldigt likt palula, det närmast besläktade språket, men det har också visat sig att fonologin, lexikonet och även vissa grammatiska drag har påverkats mycket av gawarbati, ett annat indoariskt språk som talas i omgivningen.
Language Contact and Relatedness in the Hindu Kush Region, Swedish Research Council (VR 421-2014-631)
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Liljegren, Henrik. "Towards a grammatical description of Palula : An Indo-Aryan language of the Hindu Kush." Doctoral thesis, kostenfrei, 2008. http://www.diva-portal.org/su/abstract.xsql?dbid=7511.
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Rönnqvist, Hanna. "From left to right and back again : The distribution of dependent clauses in the Hindukush." Thesis, Stockholms universitet, Avdelningen för allmän språkvetenskap, 2014. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:su:diva-109490.
Full textAbstract:
In complex clause constructions, the dependent clause can either precede or succeed the main clause. In a study on a selection of Indo-Aryan languages spoken on the Indian subcontinent (Hook 1987), a gradual transition between pre- and postposing languages was found, when moving from the southeast to the northwest in the area. In their relative vicinity in the Hindukush area, a sub-group of Indo-Aryan languages are spoken, commonly known by the tentative term “Dardic”. These languages are said to mainly have the dependent clause preceding the main clause (left-branching), and that this feature is shared by the neighbouring languages. This would mean a breach with the continuum described by Hook. In the present comparative study on the Dardic languages spoken in northern Pakistan, complex clauses of adverbial and complement types were studied in an attempt to confirm this proposition. The languages were found to have two competing branching structures where the indigenous, dominating left-branching structure possibly is being challenged by an imported right branching pattern, especially in complement clauses, possibly due to Persian or Urdu influence. A similar transition between more left-branching languages towards languages with a higher degree of right branching structures were found when moving from east to west in the geographical area studied.I underordnande satskonstruktioner kan bisatsen antingen föregå eller följa på huvudsatsen. I en studie på ett urval indoariska språk som talas på den indiska subkontinenten (Hook 1987) fann man en gradvis skiftning mellan språk med bisatsen till vänster om huvudsatsen (vänsterställda), via språk som tillät båda placeringar av bisatsen, till språk som enbart hade bisatsen till höger om huvudsatsen (högerställda). Detta när man rörde sig från sydöstra Indien i riktning mot nordväst. I Hindukush-området, inte allt för långt ifrån denna region, talas en undergrupp av indoariska språk som länge gått under den provisoriska termen ”dardiska” språk. Om dessa språk har det hävdats att de har bisatsen till vänster om huvudsatsen, ett drag som också ska delas med närliggande språk i området. Om detta stämmer skulle det innebära en brytning av det kontinuum Hook beskrev. I denna jämförande studie på några indo-ariska språk som talas i norra Pakistan studerades underordnade adverbiala och nominala bisatser i ett försök att utreda om dessa verkligen är vänsterställda. Språken befanns ha två konkurrerande placeringsmönster där en inhemsk och starkt dominerande vänsterställd struktur eventuellt håller på att utmanas av en importerad högerställd struktur, särskilt i nominala objektsatser, som möjligen kommit in i språken via inflytande från persiska eller urdu. Ett kontinuum liknande Hooks mellan språk med primärt vänsterställda bisatser till språk med en allt högre andel högerställda bisatser hittades i en rörelse från öst till väst i området.
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Mhute, Isaac. "The Shona subject relation." Thesis, 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/4840.
Full textAbstract:
This study delves into the syntactic notion of subject relation in Shona with the aim of characterizing and defining it. This is done through analysing data collected from two of the Shona speaking provinces in Zimbabwe, namely, Harare and Masvingo. The data collection procedures involved the tape recording of oral interviews as well as doing selective listening to different speeches. The data were then analysed using the projection principle, noun phrase movement transformational rule as well as the selectional principles established for the subject relation in the other well researched natural languages. The research found out that there is no one single rule that can be used to determine the subject of every possible Shona sentence. One has to make use of all the seven selectional principles established in the well-researched natural languages. The research managed to assess the applicability of the selectional rules in different sentences. The rules were then ranked according to their reliability in determining the subjects of each of the various Shona sentences. It also came to light that the Shona subject relation has a number of sub-categories as a result of the various selectional rules involved in determining them. These were also ranked in a hierarchy of importance as they apply in the language. For instance, whilst some are assigned to their host words at the deep structure or underlying level of syntax, some are assigned at the surface structure level and can be shifted easily. It also emerged that the freedom of the subject relation in the language varies with the sub-category of the relation. It came to light as well that in Shona both noun phrases (NPs) and non-NPs are assigned the subject role.African Languages
D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)
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Sibanda, Cathrine Ruvimbo. "A constraint-based approach to child language acquisition of Shona morphosyntax." Thesis, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/19655.
Full textAbstract:
This study falls under the broad area of child language acquisition with specific focus on Shona morphosyntax. The understanding that knowledge of the nature of child language contributes to the sustainability of language acquisition matters forms the basis of the investigation. A qualitative approach is followed in the study, specifically focusing on the constraints on the development of inflectional morphemes (IMs) in the acquisition of nouns and verbs in child Shona. The study investigates the development of child Shona inflectional morphology and how morphology interacts with syntax. The constraints that operate in the acquisition of Shona are identified. The study refers to linguistic theories for an account of the development of child Shona morphosyntax. The study is based on the understanding that knowledge of the nature of child language contributes to the sustainability of language acquisition matters. The data used in this study is collected from four Shona speaking children. The ages of the children range from two years (2; 0) to three years and two months (3; 2). Two female and two male children participated in this study. The primary method of data collection used in this study is the naturalistic method, while elicitation is used to elicit plural formation. The results indicate that child Shona morphosyntax is characterized by omission of the various inflectional morphemes on nouns and verbs, while the lexical morphemes are retained. The child Shona IM is phonologically different from the adult Shona IM. This is because the children are constrained and hence use simplification strategies in order to try to be faithful to the input grammar. The noun and verb IMs are produced in the form of a reduced syllable, because the children dropped the consonant in the IM syllable and retained the vowel. The study reveals that the development of child Shona morphosyntax is based on pivotal constituencies of the sentence. These pivots are the nouns and verbs that are used by the children. The study identifies constraints that operate on the process of child Shona development as phonological, morphological, semantic, visibility and frequency constraints. The finding that is arrived at through this study is that syntax is in place before morphology.African Languages
D. Litt. et Phil.
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Rwafa, Urther. "Language censorship in selected Zimbabwean films in Shona and English." Thesis, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/9486.
Full textAbstract:
The aim of this study was to explore language censorship in Zimbabwean films in Shona and English.
The study concentrated on the themes of politics, culture and economic in the genre of the
documentary, feature and short film genres. It was demonstrated that the Zimbabwean laws enabled
authorities to impose censorship strategies that ranged from banning, restriction, persecution of
filmmakers, withdrawal of films from circulation, and threats of withdrawal of permits of film
retailers. These visible, direct and banal forms of censorship have forced some filmmakers to flee the
country. Most of the filmmakers who have remained in the country have been forced to deal with
themes that appear harmless to the state. This state induced form of self-censorship on the filmmakers
has resulted in the production of uncritical, and unreflective films whose staple diet were embedded in
cultural stereotypes. The study argued that language is a signifying practice that cannot be interpreted
in a single direction. Thus, despite these realities of film censorship some filmmakers deliberately
encoded or used verbal and visual film language that generated surplus meanings with which the films
could be re-read in ways that reveal new linguistic strategies to evade and challenge both the
restrictive censorship laws as well as criticise the undemocratic political culture that has taken root in
Zimbabwe. The study used eclectic theories such as Marxism, audience-reception approach, critical
legal theories and language theories to analyse the films. The explanatory capacity of these theories
helped to reveal the contradictory ways in which the desire to impose restrictions on film meanings
was constantly undermined in the innovative language of the films.African Languages
D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)
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Mazuruse, Mickson. "A critical appraisal of the harmonisation of Shona-Nyai cross-border varieties in Zimbabwe and Mozambique." Thesis, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/18689.
Full textAbstract:
The study sought to explore possibilities of harmonising Shona-Nyai cross-border varieties in Zimbabwe and Mozambique. Emerging from the responses were problems of attitudes, ignorance of what the harmonisation project entails and the different levels of development among the varieties to be harmonised. Participants believed that the challenges they faced could be resolved and they proposed some intervention strategies. Results from the questionnaire, the interview and documents analysed affirmed the generally held view that, the future of Shona-Nyai as a language and culture is securely in the hands of the speakers’ initiatives. The argument of the study has been that, the success of such a harmonisation project depends on the presence of favourable and conducive political and economic conditions through enabling language engineering activities.
Information collected from the questionnaires was mainly presented in tables and information from interviews and document analysis was presented qualitatively in words. The language as a right and the language as resource orientations of language planning guided this study. The intention was to show that the preservation of linguistic diversity is important in the maintenance of group and individual identity and harmonisation should further this cause. Findings from this thesis indicate that for a successful harmonisation project to take place there is need for research in the documentation of underdeveloped Shona-Nyai varieties so that they have some presence in the education domain. The study recommends that people’s mindsets must be changed by packaging the harmonisation project in a way which they understand and appreciate. A holistic approach in solving the language problem can be achieved through a mixed approach of language policy formulation.African Languages
D. Litt. et Phil. (African languages)
20
Chivhanga, Ester. "The diglossic relationship between Shona and English languages in Zimbabwean secondary schools." Diss., 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/1943.
Full textAbstract:
The research highlights the problems of the diglossic relationship between Shona and English in the teaching-learning situation in Zimbabwe secondary schools. It focuses on how English as a high variety language adversely affects the performance of learners writing 'O' level Shona examinations in secondary schools. The research also confirms that teachers and learners of Shona in Zimbabwean secondary schools have a negative attitude towards Shona.
Finally, the use of English in the teaching of Shona, the less hours allocated to Shona, the low esteem of Shona vis-à-vis the dominance of English and the association of English with social mobility impact on the attitude of students towards Shona as a subject. This linguistic attitude coupled with orthographic problems causes low passes in Shona at 'O' level. Hence, one proposes, language awareness campaigns and the use of Shona in the teaching of practical criticism and grammar.African Languages
M.A. (African Languages)
21
Makondo, Livingstone. "An investigation in anthroponyms of the Shona society." Thesis, 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/3045.
Full textAbstract:
Given names, amongst the Shona people, are an occurrence of language use for specific purposes. This multidisciplinary ethnographic 1890-2006 study explores how insights from pragmatics, semiotics, semantics, among others, can be used to glean the intended and implied meaning(s) of various first names. Six sources namely, twenty seven NADA sources (1931-1977), one hundred and twenty five Shona novels and plays (1957-1998), four newspapers (2005), thirty one graduation booklets (1987-2006), five hundred questionnaires and two hundred and fifty semi-structured interviews were used to gather ten thousand personal names predominantly from seven Shona speaking provinces of Zimbabwe. The study recognizes current dominant given name categories and established eleven broad factors behind the use of given names. It went on to identify twenty-four broad based theme-oriented categories, envisaged naming trends and name categories. Furthermore, popular Shona male and female first names, interesting personal names and those people have reservations with have been recognized. The variety and nature of names Shona people prefer and their favoured address forms were also noted. The study reckons that Shona first names came as a result of unparallel anthroponomastic and linguistic innovation exuded by the Shona people in their bid to tame their reality. The study uses an anthroponym-pragma-semio-semantic decompositional theory, approximation model, contextualized implicature, maxims of brevity and tactfulness as the best approaches for explaining the varied meanings personal names embody. The study argues that it has made significant contributions to the body of knowledge in disciplines such as semantics, semiotics, pragmatics, anthropology, linguistics, sociology, history, geography, religion, education, philology, morphology and syntax, among others.African Languages
D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)
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Nyaungwa, Oscar. "Exploring the feasibility of using Shona as a medium of instruction in teaching science in Zimbabwe." Thesis, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/13149.
Full textAbstract:
The study explores the feasibility of using Shona as a medium of instruction in teaching Science in Zimbabwe. Although English has been the language of instruction since the advent of colonialism it has not been able to deliver for no tangible scientific and /or technological development has been seen in Zimbabwe. The research assumes that it is possible to achieve technical and scientific development in Zimbabwe using indigenous languages like Shona. It therefore seeks to find out if Shona can be effectively used to replace English as a language of instruction in the teaching of Science, achieving sound mastery of the subject in the process. In this research two grade four classes at Denzva School are studied. The classes are of the same size and academic potential. Their composition was systematical established after consulting the classes performance in the end of year grade three examinations. One group (the experimental class) is taught Science in Shona while the other group is taught Science in English. The two classes receive instruction in their usual classrooms and from one teacher, the researcher. In order to check mastery of content, the subjects write lessons and the researcher reviews tests in which individual pupil performance in the tests was recorded. The results of the two classes’ performance are compared and commented upon. It is then deduced if Shona is effective and better than English as a language of instruction. Further the prevailing language policy in schools and government departments as well as the attitudes of parents and teachers are investigated through the use of questionnaires and interviews. Views gathered are commented upon and general recommendations made.African Languages
D.Litt.et. Phil. (African Languages)
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Machakanja, Isaac. "Conceptual metaphors in English and Shona: a cross-linguistic and cross-cultural study." Thesis, 2006. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/905.
Full textAbstract:
The study is a comparative analysis of conceptual metaphors in English and Shona. The objectives of this study were: to compare the metaphorical expressions of English and Shona in the same or similar domains in order to establish on the one hand whether there are similarities and/or differences cross-linguistically and cross-culturally in the metaphorical construal of reality between these two languages and on the other hand, to establish what the underlying motivation is for the similarities and the differences between these two unrelated languages. The thesis also explores the reasons for the similarities in terms of particular assumptions underlying conceptual metaphors, that is, embodiment and ecological motivations.Linguistics
D. Litt. et Phil. (Linguistics)
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Mambambo, John. "The language, identity and intercultural communication of the Shona living among Xhosa communities in Cape Town." Thesis, 2020. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/27460.
Full textAbstract:
Bibliography: leaves 253-298This study examines the language, identity and intercultural communication dynamics in the Xhosa communities of Cape Town where some immigrant Shona speakers dwell. Language is a complex and nuanced repertoire of culture and the choice of language constitutes part of an individual’s identity construction. Owing to these identity dynamics, the Shona speakers resident among the Xhosa communities find themselves entangled in the politics of belonging and identity that define the Shona-Xhosa immigrant landscape in Cape Town. The Shona speakers engaging in intercultural communication in Xhosa communities are confronted with language and cultural hurdles. Orbe’s Co-cultural Theory among others was central to the unpacking of the intricacies of culture and the Xhosa hegemony. Results show that Shona people speak Xhosa for social acceptance and to secure economic benefits. Nevertheless, this seems not to offer them profound indulgence with the Xhosa culture. Even if they comprehend the culture, their Shona cultural identity hampers their full admission into the Xhosa culture. This lack of cultural acceptance leaves the Shona speakers alienated from both Xhosa and Shona cultures. In that regard, Shona speakers among Xhosa communities in Cape Town live a fluid life in which relentless cultural change is the only constant. This transitory life promotes intercultural concession in the personal layer of self, leading to the emergence of a hybrid multicultural self-concept. The study thus contributes towards scholarship by revealing that the differences in individual linguistic circumstances in the process of intercultural negotiation appear to produce different levels of acquisition of the Xhosa culture and Xhosa by the Shona speakers. This is corroborated by the fact that Shona speakers who could not speak English learnt Xhosa faster than those who could speak English. This study argues that the maintenance of the Shona language by its speakers in Xhosa communities is as much their duty, as it is their right. Ultimately, the study posits that ethnocentrism stifles the intercultural communication process and leads to tiffs in multicultural communities
Linguistics and Modern Languages
D. Phil. (Languages, Linguistics and Literature)
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Nyika, Nicholus. "A case study of civil society organisations' initiatives for the development and promotion of linguistic human rights in Zimbabwe (1980-2004)." Thesis, 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10539/5797.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis considers the initiatives of civil society organizations involved in efforts to
revitalize the endoglossic minority languages in Zimbabwe in the period following the
attainment of political independence in 1980. The study sought to understand how
particular organs of civil society in Zimbabwe, such as the Catholic Commission for
Justice and Peace in Zimbabwe, Silveira House, Save the Children Fund (United
Kingdom), and the African Languages Research Institute, have contributed to the
development and promotion of linguistic human rights in Zimbabwe. These civil society
organizations have worked with grassroots organizations formed by speakers of the
endoglossic minority languages, such as the Tonga Language and Cultural Organization
and the Zimbabwe Indigenous Languages Promotion Association. This thesis traces the
initiatives undertaken by these organs of civil society through the formation of
collaborative networks involving the various actors who collectively mobilized for the
linguistic human rights of minority language groups in Zimbabwe.
A qualitative approach to research was adopted for this study. Data was collected through
qualitative interviews with key informants as well as through documentary materials that
were collected from the identified organizations involved in the minority language
revitalization project in Zimbabwe. Drawing on analytic frameworks of language
revitalization efforts advanced by Fishman (1991, 2001), Crystal (2000), Skutnabb-
Kangas (2000) and Adegbija (1997), I argue that the minority language revitalization
efforts in Zimbabwe targeted two main domains of language use; education and the
media. I further identify three main strategies that were adopted in advocating for an
increased presence of the minority languages in these domains.
The first strategy involved what Fishman calls the search for “ideological consensus” and
“prior value consensus”. This strategy involved efforts by the language activists to
mobilize the grassroots members of the minority language-speaking community to
assume an ideological orientation whereby the minority languages were viewed as a
resource and a right, and to actively participate in developing and promoting their
languages. The second strategy arose from the focus on the state’s language ideology as
constituting the basis on which the marginalization of their languages was legitimated.
This second strategy, identified as an ideological or politically-oriented language
revitalization strategy, involved instituting measures that challenged the state’s language
policy as the manifestation of an exclusionary and linguicist state language ideology. The
third strategy, identified as a language-based and technically-oriented language
revitalization strategy involved initiatives geared towards corpus development of the
minority endoglossic languages.
This thesis concludes that these language revitalization initiatives were successful
because as a result of these initiatives, the Government of Zimbabwe made concessions
that gave the minority language groups a bigger stake in their targeted domains: the
Ministry of Information and Publicity set up a radio station broadcasting exclusively in
the minority languages, and the Ministry of Education, Sport and Culture put in place
new provisions on the learning and teaching of minority languages which allowed for the
teaching of minority languages up to Grade 7 by 2005, with room for annual progression
to secondary school level.
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Mambambo, John. ""Blessed with a curse?" linguistic constraints on the code-switching of bilingual Shona-Xhosa speakers in Cape Town." Diss., 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/22183.
Full textAbstract:
Completely couched in and steered by the qualitative research method, this study examines the linguistic constraints on the code-switching of the bilingual Shona-Xhosa speakers in Cape Town. The views of the key research participants obtained through participant observation, interviews and questionnaires were heavily relied on. The motivations for the code-switching of the bilingual Shona-Xhosa speakers in Cape Town were explored in this study, including the Shona-Xhosa interlink. Myers-Scotton‟s Markedness theory was scrutinized to discern the assorted social variables motivating the bilingual speakers to code-switch in Cape Town while the Matrix Language Frame Model was used to determine that Shona is the base language and isiXhosa is the embedded language in the Shona-Xhosa code-switching in Cape Town. Diverse linguistic constraints were examined in the context of the Shona-Xhosa code-switching and their universality was disputed. Similarities between Shona and Xhosa were unearthed and the researcher recommends that further Shona-Xhosa studies be pursued.African Languages
M.A. (African Languages)
27
Gumbo, Lettiah. "Term creation : an analysis of the strategies used in some selected Shona specialised terms dictionaries." Thesis, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/21015.
Full textAbstract:
This study is in the area of terminology activities in Zimbabwe and it analyses the term
creation used in the following selected specialised terms dictionaries: Duramazwi Reurapi
Neutano (Dictionary of Biomedical Terms), Duramazwi Remimhanzi (Dictionary of Shona
Musical Terms), and Duramazwi Redudziramutauro NeUvaranomwe (Dictionary of Shona
Linguistic and Literature Terms). The study specifically analyses and explores how
terminographers together with health, music, language and literature specialists made use of
their term creation skills and strategies in the creation of new specialised terms for the field of
music, health and linguistics. In addition, this research takes into account the impact of
factors such as culture, socio- economic, etymological purity, attitudes of the target users,
language policy, as well as availability of resourceson term creation. Hence, term creation is
an exercise that involves many aspects and interlinked factors.
This research advances the argument that while some term creation strategies (compounding,
coining and derivation) can be adequate and appropriate, however, at times; they are some
which result in created terms that are rather cumbersome, vague, artificial, and difficult to
master and remember. In addition, this study found out that some term creation strategies
(semantic expansion and loan translations) are unproductive; that means they do not add any
value on the Shona language vocabulary. Moreover, the borrowing term creation strategy was
analysed on the basis of whether it is promoting and elevating the Shona language or is it
undermining its value and vitality. This study emphasises the need for a collaborative
approach to term creation, with terminologists, linguists, subject area specialists and target
language users during the different phases of word formation processes for the collective
ownership of the created term and their acceptability to the target users. This study highlights
that, through good term creation strategies the Shona Language can significantly contribute to the promotion and development of Shona language in Zimbabwe. Overally, the
research yields a substantial amount of information in the terminological formation processes
as well as the identification of factors that can be used to improve term creation strategies in
order to develop indigenous languages for use in all spheres of life.The major contribution of
this study is the identification and highlighting of the major strength and weaknesses of term
creation strategies as a way of developing indigenous languages. The useful findings in this
study will benefit the indigenous language development and language policy planners and
terminologists in Zimbabwe and other African languages in similar situations.
The significant amount of information about term creation that was used in the analysis of
term creation in the three dictionaries was solicited from questionnaires and interviews that
were carried out with linguists, the specialised dictionary compilers, music students, medical
students and high school students doing Shona language and literature subject in Zimbabwe.
More information on the term creation was done through content analysis of the three
specialised dictionaries and the present researcher’s own experiences as a former Shona high
school teacher, linguist and above all as a Shona language speaker.African Languages
D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)
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Madlome, Steyn Khesani. "Nkanelo wa mitlhontlho ya swa ririmi na swin'wana swa ndhavuko eka vuhundzuluxi bya xichangana xa le Zimbabwe." Thesis, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/11602/719.
Full textAbstract:
PhD (Xitsonga)Ehansi ka Senthara ya M. E. R. Mathivha ya Tindzimi ta Afrika, Vutshila na Ndhavuko
Ndzavisiso lowu wu wela ehansi ka dyondzo ya swa vuhundzuluxi leyi nga tlhelaka yi vuriwaka leswaku i xiyenge xa swa ririmi ni ndhavuko. Ndzavisiso lowu wu boxa no kanela mitlhontlho leyi ku hlanganiwaka na yona eka vuhundzuluxi lebyi khumbaka Xichangana eZimbabwe. Ndzavisiso lowu wu xopaxopa mitlhontlho leyi eka swiyimo swo hambanahambana swa xilingwistiki leswi katsaka mipfumawulo ya marito, swivumbeko swa marito, vulongoloxamarito na tinhlamuselo ta wona. Ndzavisiso lowu wu tlhela wu xopaxopa mitlhontlho ya vuhundzuluxi leyi khumbaka swa ndhavuko. Eka swa ndhavuko ku langutiwa swivuriso, swivulavulelo, switekatekisani/mitshayilo, swivongo na swithopo. Ndzavisiso lowu wu wela eka xivumbeko xa nhlawulo naswona ku tirhisiwa tindlela to hlengeleta mahungu ta nhlokohliso wa swivutiso ni ntlhatlho wa vundzeni. Tithiyori leti tirhisiweke i ta xilingwistiki ni ya matirhiselo leti khumbaka timhaka ta mindhavuko. Nsusumeto wo endla ndzavisiso wa muxaka lowu wu kongomisa eka Xichangana xa Zimbabwe i ku vona leswaku matsalwa manyingi ya hundzuluxeriwa eka tindzimi leti hluvukeke khale ta Xixona na Xindhevele, kasi tindzimi to fana na Xichangana na tin’wana leti a ti vuriwa ta vavulavuri va nhlayo yintsongo ti karhi ti honisiwa. Ndzavisiso lowu wu kumile leswaku ku na mitlhontlho ya swa ririmi leyi ku hlanganiwaka na yona eka swiyimo swa fonoloji, mofoloji, vulongoloxamarito na semantiki loko ku hundzuluxiwa switsariwa exikarhi ka Xichangana na Xinghezi. Xivangelonkulu xa mhaka leyi i ku hambana ka swivumbeko swa vuvulavuri bya tindzimi, ngopfungopfu eka mofoloji ni vulongoloxamarito. Ndzavisiso lowu wu kumile nakambe leswaku mitlhontlho yin’wana yi tisiwa hi timhaka ta matsalelo laha vahundzuluxi va tirhisaka matsalelo yo hambana ya Xichangana. Hi tlhelo ra swa ndhavuko, ndzavisiso lowu wu kumile leswaku ku na mitlhontlho loko swi fika eka ku hundzuluxela swivuriso, swivulavulelo, switekatekisani/mitshayilo, swivongo n swithopo. Eka xiyenge lexi ku kumekile leswaku ku na marito ya ndhavuko lama nga hundzuluxekiki ku ya eka Xinghezi. Leswi swi vangiwa hi ku hambana ka mindhavuko exikarhi ka Xichangana na Xinghezi.
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Dube, Shumirai. "The form and communicative impact of Shona advertisements: a discourse analytical approach." Diss., 2008. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/1897.
Full textAbstract:
This study sought to investigate and to record any recurring patterns in the form and communicative impact of Shona advertisements. Motivation to carry out the study came from a realisation of a growing interest in using the Shona language for advertising and the fact that very few studies have been done on Shona advertisements. For methodology, examples of Shona advertisements were qualitatively analysed using some communications and discourse analysis approaches of the speech act theory and text linguistics. A structured interview with advertising agencies randomly selected and a questionnaire on the impact of advertisements were also used. The findings of the research included that Shona was used in advertisements in order to reach out to the majority of the Zimbabwean population. In addition, Shona was also found to have been developed enough to handle formal issues like advertisements. This finding further shows that Shona advertisements reflect an instance of diglossia leakage from Shona L(ow) to Shona H(igh). Another finding is that Shona advertisements reflect some characteristics of the Shona speech community in form. These include code-switching, slang and word- division problems. An innovation in code-switching noted in some Shona advertisements is the use of three languages, namely, English, Shona and Ndebele in one advertisement. It was also established that everything about the elements of Shona advertisements communicate. For instance, the message may be visual, tactile and olfactory. It also emerged that the Shona commercial advertisements had a presenting and a hidden agenda at the same time. To achieve this the advertisements used persuasive techniques such as advertising claims, cultural hooks and personalities as spokespersons. It was also noted that most readers of advertisements do not interpret them up to the hidden persuaders but end with the direct meaning. On the other hand the Shona advertisements that gave information such as health issues have no hidden agenda. One recommendation made is that advertisements be read and studied to raise the level of awareness about the persuasive techniques used in order to distinguish between misleading advertising and those that give useful information. Some recommendations were made for future research such as carrying out similar studies of informal Shona advertisements, advertisements by n'angas/inyangas (traditional healers), prophets and political campaigns.African Languages
M.A. (African Languages)
30
Chimbarange, Advice. "An analysis of gendered metaphors in selected Zimbabwean Shona songs." Thesis, 2019. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/26532.
Full textAbstract:
This qualitative study analyses gendered metaphors in selected Zimbabwean Shona songs. The study explores how musicians deploy gendered metaphors to propagate, reinforce or challenge gender views and positions held in the Zimbabwean contemporary society. The corpus of data comprised Shona popular songs released between 1988 and 2018 and down loaded from You-tube. The songs were transcribed, translated into English and metaphors identified and interpreted using a combination of the Pragglejaz Group (2007), Steen (2007) and Charteris-Black (2004) metaphor identification methods. Charteris-Black’s (2004) Critical Metaphor Analysis was adopted as the key theory and method of analysis. The analysis drew support from Lazar's (2007) Feminist Critical Discourse Analysis, Foucault (1980) and Butler's (1990) ideas on discourse and gender. The findings reveal that Zimbabwean musicians singing in Shona discursively use gendered metaphors to construct, reinforce or challenge views and positions on gender. While the metaphors describe and evaluate men and women positively and negatively for ideological purposes, the metaphors largely marginalise women more than men. The metaphors therefore, have the effect of legitimising and naturalising male dominance in the Zimbabwean society. However, the same musicians occasionally utilise metaphor discoursal power to resist, challenge and control the dominance. Metaphors become a conduit through which topical contemporary gender issues, norms and values, gender views and positions are highlighted and debated. Two contesting ideologies were noted: one ideology emphasised that women are inferior to men and men should tolerate them for their weaknesses and the second projected women as men’s equals and that men and women roles complement each other. It is the conclusion of this study that gendered metaphors in Shona song lyrics allow musicians to discursively and for ideological purposes reinforce, contest and negotiate various gender perspectives making metaphors a powerful tool for shaping views on gender. Therefore the research, recommends that stakeholders recognise and promote the critical role played by language on inculcating gender perceptions in such domains as music, to come up with language programmes that promote gender parity and equality in society.Linguistics and Modern Languages
Ph. D. (Languages, Linguistics and Literature)
31
Madlome, Steyn Khesani. "Mpimanyiso wa vuvulavuri bya Xitsonga/Xichangana xa le Afrika-Dzonga na xa le Zimbabwe." Diss., 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/11602/1047.
Full text
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Mangeya, Hugh. "Sociologuistic analysis of graffiri written in Shona and English found in selected urban areas of Zimbabwe." Thesis, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/18670.
Full textAbstract:
Various researches across the world have established that graffiti writing is a universal social practice. The actual occurrence or manifestation of graffiti is however far from being universal cross-culturally. It varies based on a wide array of social variables. This research therefore set out to interrogate the occurrence of graffiti writing as a unique social practice in Zimbabwean urban areas. Three Zimbabwean urban areas (Harare, Chitungwiza and Gweru) were specifically sampled for the collection of graffiti inscriptions on various surfaces which included toilet walls, durawalls as well as road signs. Graffiti data collected from the various surfaces was complemented by reader feedback contributions from The Herald and Newsday. Focus group discussions provided a third tier of data aimed at establishing participants’ multiple reactions towards the practice of graffiti. Analysis of data was done based on three
significant sections of participants’ attitudes towards graffiti, urban street protest graffiti as well as educational graffiti collected from various toilet surfaces in urban areas. Participants’ attitudes towards graffiti revealed varied reactions towards the practice of graffiti. The reactions were partly influenced by the participants’ ages as well as levels of education and maturity. Age and maturity proved to be predictors of the extent to which participants were willing to be pragmatic in so far as the appreciation of graffiti writing is concerned. Older and more experienced and mature participants were thus willing to look past the ‘deviant’ nature of graffiti writing to consider the various pressures that force writers to take to the wall. Urban street protest graffiti is a term coined in this research to capture the unique type of graffiti that is written on various surfaces along streets in urban areas. This highly textual graffiti is drastically different from the post-graffiti commonly found in Western urban cities and is aptly referred to as street art. Urban street protest mainly manifested itself in Zimbabwean urban areas in two main themes of protest inscriptions directed towards the operations of Zimbabwe’s electrical energy supplier (commonly referred to by its former name of the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority - ZESA) as well as through political inscriptions. Political inscriptions expose a high degree of nuances that have not been hitherto discussed in literature on political graffiti inscriptions. The research analysed how graffiti writing can be employed for both pro-hegemonic and anti-hegemonic purposes. Inscriptions in high schools and tertiary institutions highlighted a differential construction of discourse on
a gendered basis. Inscriptions in female toilets indicated a tendency of graffiti writers to
perpetuate dominant educational, health, traditional and religious discourses which assert male dominance. The inscriptions show a major preoccupation with restricting or policing of female sexuality by fellow students mainly through the discursive usages of social corrective Shona labels such as hure (prostitute) and gaba ([big] tin). These are labels that are virtually absent in graffiti inscriptions in male toilets which is suggestive of a situation whereby female inscriptions are conservative. A consequence of such conservatism in inscriptions in female toilets is that no new sexualities are reconstructed and negotiated through discourses in discursive spaces provided by the inherently private nature of toilets in general. Thus, cultural and religious normative expectations are regarded as still weighing heavily on female high school writers in the construction and negotiation of sexuality and gendered behaviours, attitudes, norms and values through discourses constructed through graffiti. In contrast, male inscriptions highlight a major subversion of dominant discourses on abstinence and responsible sexual behaviours and attitudes. Corrective social labels such as ngochani (gay
person) are mainly employed to pressure males into indulging and engaging in heterosexual behaviours. Discourses constructed through graffiti inscriptions in male toilets also demonstrate how sexuality is constructed through debate on the appropriateness of marginalised sexualities such as masturbation and homosexuality.African Languages
D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)
33
Penzura, Crymore. "The African philosophical conception of personal naming among the Shona speaking people of Zimbabwe." Thesis, 2021. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/27843.
Full textAbstract:
Text in English with summaries in English, Shona and isiXhosaBibliography: leaves 140-144
Personal names carry significant meaning in African cultures. The research critically argues that among the Shona speaking people of Zimbabwe, given names are not just mere tags or labels but carry and convey a significant message to the family or society of the named person. The message is often descriptive of the person named or their family. It describes the circumstances around the birth of the named or the conditions of their parents or their country and or their environment. The research further shows that names derived from socio-cultural experiences may have a plurality of meanings and also that they may be used to predict or explain something about the person named, including their parents or environment. Philosophically then, to name is to confirm, or to negate, and to confer something to the person named or to describe the circumstances of their birth.
Mazita edungamunhu ane chirevo mutsika nemagariro evanhu vemuAfrica. Donzvo retsvakurudzo ino rinotaura nezvevanhu verudzi rweChiShona munyika yeZimbabwe, richiti mazita anopihwa vana haangova mazita chete, asi anetsanangudzo yakakosha zvikuru kumhuri kana kuti munzvimbo yaberekerwa munhu wacho, kana kuti kumuridzi wezita racho. Tsananguro yacho inotaura nezvemuridzi wezita kana kuti kumhuri yaaberekerwa. Tsananguro yacho inotsanangudza mamiriro enguva yaberekwa munhu wacho kana kuti tsika nemagariro evabereki vake kana mamiriro emunyika yaaberekwa kana kuti munzvimbo yaaberekerwa. Tsvakurudzo ino inoenderera mberi ichitaura kuti mazita evanhu anobva mutsika memagariro evanhu anoreva zvinhu zvakawanda nekuti dzimwe nguva anoshandiswa kutaura zvichauya kana kutsanangura nezvemuridzi wezita kana vabereki vake, dzimwe dzenguva nzvimbo yavanogara. Saka fungidziro inoti, kupa zita kubvumirana kana kupikisana, kana kuti kugadza chigaro pamunhu kana kuti katsanangudza mamiriro akaita nguva yaaberekwa.
gama lomntu linentsingiselo enzulu kwiinkcubeko zama-Afrika. Uphando lubonisa ngokucacileyo ukuba phakathi kwabantu baseZimbabwe abantetho isisiShona, igama alinikwayo umntu asinto nje yokuphawula, koko ngumyalezo obalulekileyo omalunga nosapho okanye uluntu lwalowo uthiywa igama. Lo myalezo ula ngokuchaza ngalowo uthiywayo okanye usapho lwakhe. Kuchazwa iimeko ezingqonge ukuzalwa kwakhe okanye imeko yabazali bakhe, isizwe sakhe okanye indalo ebangqongileyo. Uphando lubonakalisa ukuba amagama asekelwe kumava enkcubeko nezentlalo anganeentsingiselo eziliqela. Ngaphaya koko, la magma asenokusetyeniziselwa ukuqikelela okanye ukucacisa okuthile malunga nalo uthiywayo, abazali bakhe okanye indalo ebangqongileyo. Ngokwefilosofi ke ngoko, ukuthiya igama kukungqina okanye kukuphikisa, kukubethelela inyaniso ethile ngomntu othiywa igama, ikwakukuchaza iimeko zokuzalwa kwakhe.
Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology
M. Phil. (Philosophy)
34
Mujakachi, Mercy Precious. "Language use in the representation of former Zimbabwean Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's marriage saga in Zimbwabwean newspapers: The case of the Herald and the Daily News." Diss., 2017. http://hdl.handle.net/11602/682.
Full textAbstract:
MA (English)Department of English
The study analysed the language used by The Herald and Daily News journalists to report on the marriage conflict between the former Prime Minister Morgan Richard Tsvangirai of Zimbabwe and Ms Locardia Karimatsenga. The Herald is a state-owned newspaper and Daily News is a privately-owned newspaper. An analysis of the marriage conflict enabled readers, in a magnified way, to see how ideological differences between the public and private media in Zimbabwe are represented. The study examined the similarities and/or differences in the manner in which the marriage conflict was represented in both papers. The study also examined the language used in the headlines, established the sources used and evaluated the ideological stances of the two newspapers. The study utilised the case study design. The researcher only focused on articles which were published during the month when the former Prime Minister married Ms Elizabeth Macheka in September 2012. It was also the month when the media published many articles about the marriage saga. Seventeen articles were analysed, eleven from The Herald and six from the Daily News. Framing and Representation theories were deemed appropriate to analyse the articles. Critical Discourse Analysis and semiotic analysis were used to analyse the selected articles and visuals which accompanied them. The findings of the study revealed that The Herald reports tended to be biased against the Prime Minister, while the Daily News was more objective in its use of language.
35
Grand, Nesbeth. "Art and globalisation : the place of intangible heritage in a globalising environment." Thesis, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/12065.
Full textAbstract:
The thesis has investigated the place of Zimbabwean indigenous intangible heritage in a globalising environment. It used the Shona language and intangible heritage situation as a case study. It argued that Zimbabwean intangible heritage is continually being eroded by the agents of globalisation and that the only way of safeguarding it from extinction is through the preservation of Zimbabwean indigenous languages. The thesis has come to this conclusion after having established that there is an intimate and inseparable bond between language and its intangible values so much that it is not possible to talk of one devoid of the other. The relationship has been seen to be symbiotic. The Shona language has been established to embody, express and to be a carrier of all the intangible heritage of its speakers into the future by re-living them in the people’s daily life while these intangible values have been seen to conserve the language through their continued practice by the people. The research has also established that Zimbabwean intangible heritage marginalisation has roots in colonialism, dating as far back as the early Christian missionary days. The Shona intangible heritage has also been seen to be still of value despite the global threats as evidenced by the people’s continued re-living of it through language. The thesis has also noted that the Zimbabwean Ministry of Education, Sport and Culture is still using out-dated colonial language policies that still further the ascendancy of English and the intangible values it stands for while indigenous languages and values are marginalised in the education system, in government and in industry thereby worsening their predicament in the global environment. The current socio-economic and political developments in the country and some Shona novelists in Shona and in English are also culprits in this whole process as they continue to demonise and infantilise Zimbabwean intangible heritage. The thesis has therefore asserted that Zimbabwean intangible heritage is most likely to be eroded from the face of the earth if no measures are taken to safeguard it from extinction. It has therefore wound up by arguing that the survival of Zimbabwean intangible heritage lies in the survival of Zimbabwean indigenous languages through which it continues to be practised and felt by its people. The thesis has therefore recommended that the Zimbabwean government adopt sound language policies that safeguard the survival of Zimbabwean indigenous languages to enable the indigenous intangible heritage of the people to survive as well as the two are intricately related.African Languages
D. Litt. et. Phil.(African Languages)
36
Grand, Nesbeth. "Art and globalisation : the place of intangible heritage in a globalized environment." Thesis, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/12065.
Full textAbstract:
The thesis has investigated the place of Zimbabwean indigenous intangible heritage in a globalising environment. It used the Shona language and intangible heritage situation as a case study. It argued that Zimbabwean intangible heritage is continually being eroded by the agents of globalisation and that the only way of safeguarding it from extinction is through the preservation of Zimbabwean indigenous languages. The thesis has come to this conclusion after having established that there is an intimate and inseparable bond between language and its intangible values so much that it is not possible to talk of one devoid of the other. The relationship has been seen to be symbiotic. The Shona language has been established to embody, express and to be a carrier of all the intangible heritage of its speakers into the future by re-living them in the people’s daily life while these intangible values have been seen to conserve the language through their continued practice by the people. The research has also established that Zimbabwean intangible heritage marginalisation has roots in colonialism, dating as far back as the early Christian missionary days. The Shona intangible heritage has also been seen to be still of value despite the global threats as evidenced by the people’s continued re-living of it through language. The thesis has also noted that the Zimbabwean Ministry of Education, Sport and Culture is still using out-dated colonial language policies that still further the ascendancy of English and the intangible values it stands for while indigenous languages and values are marginalised in the education system, in government and in industry thereby worsening their predicament in the global environment. The current socio-economic and political developments in the country and some Shona novelists in Shona and in English are also culprits in this whole process as they continue to demonise and infantilise Zimbabwean intangible heritage. The thesis has therefore asserted that Zimbabwean intangible heritage is most likely to be eroded from the face of the earth if no measures are taken to safeguard it from extinction. It has therefore wound up by arguing that the survival of Zimbabwean intangible heritage lies in the survival of Zimbabwean indigenous languages through which it continues to be practised and felt by its people. The thesis has therefore recommended that the Zimbabwean government adopt sound language policies that safeguard the survival of Zimbabwean indigenous languages to enable the indigenous intangible heritage of the people to survive as well as the two are intricately related.African Languages
(D.Litt.et.Phil.(African Languages))
37
Chivhanga, Ester. "The use of Chishona as a medium of instruction in the teaching of mathematics in primary schools." Thesis, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/6565.
Full textAbstract:
The study sought to explore possibilities of using ChiShona as a medium of instruction in the teaching of Mathematics in primary schools. The aim was to compare the use of English as a medium of instruction with ChiShona as medium of instruction in the teaching and learning of Mathematics to Grade 4 class. The other objective was to examine the people’s attitudes towards the use of mother tongue instruction in the teaching and learning of Mathematics in Zimbabwe primary schools.
A practical teaching experiment was used to investigate the feasibility of using ChiShona as medium of instruction in the teaching and learning of Mathematics to Grade 4 class. In addition a descriptive survey research design which used questionnaires and interviews as data collection methods was employed for its usefulness in exploratory studies. A total of 750 people participated in the research and these were 40 Grade 4 learners (used for teaching experiment) 260 teachers/lecturers, 250 parents and 200 college/university learners. Data gathered was subjected to both quantitative and qualitative analysis resulting in data triangulation for validation. Major findings of the research indicated that the use of ChiShona as a medium of instruction in the teaching of Mathematics to primary school children is possible and that the use of the mother tongue instruction (ChiShona) impacted positively in the teaching of Mathematics to Grade 4 learners. The use of ChiShona as a medium of instruction in teaching Mathematics was effective and comparatively the learners who used ChiShona performed better than those who used English as a medium of instruction. However the research further concluded that people preferred that English remain the only medium of instruction from primary up to university level as English offers them better opportunities for employment compared to ChiShona.
The study concludes that the continued use of English as medium of instruction means that African languages such as ChiShona will remain underdeveloped and fail to find their way in the classrooms as languages of instruction in education. The study finally recommends the need for an all-inclusive multi-lingual policy that uplifts the status of indigenous languages and their literature without annihilating English.African Languages
D. Litt et Phil.
38
Molapo, Nkadimeng Raymond. "Implementing a distributed approach for speech resource and system development / Nkadimeng Raymond Molapo." Thesis, 2014. http://hdl.handle.net/10394/15922.
Full textAbstract:
The range of applications for high-quality automatic speech recognition (ASR) systems has grown
dramatically with the advent of smart phones, in which speech recognition can greatly enhance the
user experience. Currently, the languages with extensive ASR support on these devices are languages
that have thousands of hours of transcribed speech corpora already collected. Developing a speech
system for such a language is made simpler because extensive resources already exist. However for
languages that are not as prominent, the process is more difficult. Many obstacles such as reliability
and cost have hampered progress in this regard, and various separate tools for every stage of the
development process have been developed to overcome these difficulties.
Developing a system that is able to combine these identified partial solutions, involves customising
existing tools and developing new ones to interface the overall end-to-end process. This work documents
the integration of several tools to enable the end-to-end development of an Automatic Speech
Recognition system in a typical under-resourced language. Google App Engine is employed as the
core environment for data verification, storage and distribution, and used in conjunction with existing
tools for gathering text data and for speech data recording. We analyse the data acquired by each of
the tools and develop an ASR system in Shona, an important under-resourced language of Southern
Africa. Although unexpected logistical problems complicated the process, we were able to collect
a useable Shona speech corpus, and develop the first Automatic Speech Recognition system in that
language.MIng (Computer and Electronic Engineering), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014
39
Marungudzi, Thadeus. "English as a language of learning and teaching : perspectives of secondary school teachers in the Masvingo District (Zimbabwe)." Diss., 2009. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/3061.
Full textAbstract:
This study analyses the perspectives of teachers on English as a language of learning and teaching in the context of government recommendations that Shona and Ndebele be used alongside English as languages of learning and teaching in Zimbabwean secondary schools. Through a questionnaire survey, open interviews and classroom observation, it was found that the teachers regard English as a language of learning and teaching in a positive way though they are aware of the difficulties associated with its use. There was a high consensus on the desirability of English among teachers as informants with various attributes obtained attitude, pedagogical beliefs and perceived difficulties scores that were, in the main, not statistically significant. It also emerged that government recommendations for the use of endoglossic languages as languages of learning and teaching (LoLT) have not been complemented by concrete measures and that the subsequent efforts to change the language-in-education policy have so far seemed insincere.Linguistics
M.A. (With specialisation in Applied Linguistics)
40
Makamani, Rewai. "Linguistic and discursive strategies in media representations of HIV and AIDS healthcare policy in Zimbabwe : a critical analysis of selected printed discourse in Shona and English." Thesis, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/13228.
Full textAbstract:
This study sought to examine linguistic and discursive strategies used to construct messages reflective of the implementation of the HIV and AIDS policy for Zimbabwe of 1999 by government and private newspapers. Such analysis was perceived to be important since media content has a bearing on Zimbabweans‘ perception and attitudes regarding HIV and AIDS prevention, treatment and control. The study was aimed at comparing messages from newspapers with views by the people of Zimbabwe regarding the implementation of the policy. Findings reveal that empowerment programmes particularly those targeting women and children are lagging behind as Zimbabweans, literature and newspaper data sources testify. In addition, information sources concur that cultural (For example, stigmatisation, polygamy, religious practices, spouse inheritance) and structural (For example, patriarchy, masculinity, bureaucracy, politics) are stumbling blocks that negatively affect the implementation of the policy. Further, even though private and government newspapers do not fully agree on the portrayal of human agents, there is a general consensus between newspaper reports and Zimbabweans that people still face socio-economic and econo-political challenges that militate against the smooth implementation of the HIV and AIDS policy. Government newspapers tend to downplay aspects which reveal inadequacies of government activities. The study notes this as betrayal of use of ideological squares both by government and private newspapers whereby certain aspects regarding the implementation of the policy are either downplayed or highlighted to influence perception. The study reveals that newspaper reports used nominalisation, quantification, positive politeness, thematisation, rhematisation, intertextuality, euphemism, proverbs, idioms, action verbs, metaphors and citation of experts as linguistic and discursive strategies both for agenda setting and building purposes regarding the implementation of the HIV and AIDS policy. Other devices used particularly in the encoding of Operation Murambatsvina are, claptraps, deictic referencing, personal pronouns, adjectives and direct speech. The study attributes problems regarding the Zimbabwean HIV and AIDS intervention model to the top – down approach inherent in the policy. Hence, the call for an adoption of an unhu/hunhu/ubuntu inspired bottom – up HIV and AIDS intervention model in Zimbabwe. This would inculcate pro-family, pro-village, pro-nation/people and ―servant leadership‖ (Mangena and Chitando, 2011) values in the fight against the pandemic through the embracing of Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS). Unfortunately, such values largely continue to elude the radar of the current top – down HIV and AIDS intervention model cuurently in use in Zimbabwe.African Languages
D. Litt et Phil. (African Languages)
41
Mushore, Washington. "Media construction of reality : a critical analysis of the reportage of land reform in Shona and English Zimbabwean newspapers : the case of Kwayedza, The Herald, The Daily News and The Daily Mirror, 2000-2008." Thesis, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/10201.
Full textAbstract:
The study critically explored the language of reportage of the Zimbabwe Land Reform programme as presented in selected Shona and English newspapers in Zimbabwe. The study focused on Kwayedza, The Herald, The Daily News and The Daily Mirror. The objective was to find out whether or not the verbal and visual languages used in reporting the Land Reform programme left readers more knowledgeable about the programme, and then adopt a critical attitude towards the Land Reform exercise. The study used qualitative textual analysis to unpack the language frames used in representing Land Reform in the selected newspapers. Some relevant critical voices from readers were also enlisted in order to support or complicate interpretations of how Land Reform was portrayed in the selected stories.
Kwayedza and The Herald unequivocally supported the Land Reform. This official stance was contested in Chapter Four in which The Daily News adopted an ideological position opposed to both the idea of the Land Reform and the confiscatory way the land was repossessed. The Daily News’ extremely negative criticism of the Land Reform was challenged and then modified in The Daily Mirror. The Daily Mirror criticised both the government’s extremely supportive view of the Land Reform. The Daily Mirror also openly criticised The Daily News for refusing to acknowledge the historical inevitability and necessity of the Land Reform. The Daily Mirror advanced a perspective that suggested that Land Reform programme should benefit the masses more than the elites. It was argued that in contexts of political change such as that of Zimbabwe, newspapers take a stance and support particular ideological interests.African Languages
D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)
42
Gijimah, Tevedzerai. "Representation of traditional and faith healers in selected Zimbabwean newspapers." Thesis, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10500/22284.
Full textAbstract:
The study is an explication of the representation of traditional and faith healers in Zimbabwean newspapers. This is done through analysing newspaper articles from selected Zimbabwean Newspapers. Kwayedza, Umthunywa, The Herald, NewsDay, Daily News and two tabloids which are Bulawayo Metropolitan (B-Metro) and Harare Metropolitan (H-Metro) are the papers that were used in the study to pursue the purpose of the study. The study is guided by the Afrocentricity and the extended pragma-dialectic theory. The theories allow the study to explore the issue of traditional and faith healers in line with the political, economic and the social context which shape the system in which they find themselves. The study recognises that traditional healing is the father of all healing systems in Africa. Faith healing and Western medicine are both colonial phenomena; they came into limelight following the colonisation of Africa thereby giving African countries a three-tier health system that comprises of traditional healers, faith healers and medical doctors. The research adopts a qualitative research paradigm. Data for the research is extracted from interviews, critical discourse analysis of newspaper articles and questionnaires. The study established that traditional healers are diabolically represented in Zimbabwean newspapers and this is because of Eurocentrism which is still rife in the minds of Zimbabweans. Eurocentrism depicts people of the African race as inferior, uncivilised, barbaric, savages and chaotic and this annihilates and dehumanises Africans. Faith healers on the other hand receive both positive and negative representation. Positive representation is necessitated by the idea that they are aligned to Christianity and negative representation emanates from the idea that their healing systems embrace the African understanding of disease and illness. The study concludes that the stories are a reflection of the idea that both the media and the minds of the
people involved in news production are still held in colonialism. It is therefore concluded that media representation of traditional and faith healers is colonised. The study therefore advocates for the centering of the African in newspaper discourse about traditional and faith healers.African Languages
D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)
43
Brabcová, Alžběta. "Vliv doby působení druhého jazyka na chápání vztažných vět u dětí školního věku." Master's thesis, 2018. http://www.nusl.cz/ntk/nusl-388013.
Full textAbstract:
This study investigates the impact of second language age of onset on the development of syntactic competence in bilinguals. Forty-five bilingual children were tested using a picture- matching task with relative clauses. In this paradigm, children are aurally presented with relative clauses of various kinds and are asked to match what they hear with the appropriate picture (out of four choices) on the screen. More specifically, our experiment compared the comprehension of subject- vs. object-extracted center-embedded relative clauses and contained sentences with noun phrases (NPs) that did or did not match in number (both NPs singular or plural = match, one NP singular, one NP plural = mismatch). We compared the performance of a group of Simultaneous bilinguals (two languages since birth), Early sequential bilinguals (first exposure to L2 - English between the ages of 1 to 4) and Late sequential bilinguals (first exposure to L2 -English after the age of 4 but latest at the age of 6 - primary school). The mean age of the participants at the time of testing was approx. 10 years of age. The results show that there is a varied pattern in the comprehension strategies used among the three bilingual groups. The group of Simultaneous bilinguals showed more reliance on the syntactic information contained in...