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Ethnic nationalism and gendered morality in the semiotic construction of the Moro language of Sudan
In: Faits de LanguesAbstract
This paper brings together discussions on language and nationalism, with gender and nationalism. Drawing from ‘language ideology’ and ‘indexical gender’ from a linguistic anthropological approach, it traces the emergence of the “Moro language”, in the context of a Moro ethnic national movement, originating in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan, and how it became indexically linked with masculine authority. Moro identify as Nuba and Christian, as opposed to Arab and Muslim, the dominant identities. Christian literacy, spearheaded by patriarchal leadership became the frame through which Moro organized ethnic identity and unity. The constructed language, as the object of metapragmatic evaluation, is also tightly woven into norms of morality and gender within the community. Two registers are identified: textuality is normatively masculine and orality is normatively feminine. The Moro community draws on gendered ideologies to produce a new writing and speaking style, the “Moro Bible Language” (MBL). MBL results from the interweaving of the two registers in language standardization practices. Negotiating the ideologies that bring MBL to life occurs in metalinguistic discourse, teaching, learning and speaking styles. Since the politics of standardization are foregrounded, even seeming apolitical projects are laden with moral worth in the turbulent context of rapid cultural change.
Resume
Cet article, qui s’inscrit dans le champ de l’anthropologie linguistique, analyse des points de vue portant sur les liens entre langue, genre et nationalisme. En me fondant sur l’étude des idéologies linguistiques et de la fonction indexicale du genre, je m’attache à suivre le développement du concept de « langue moro », dans un contexte d’expansion d’un nationalisme moro à base ethnique et géographiquement implanté dans les monts Nouba (Soudan). Je montre comment, au niveau indexical, la « langue moro » est devenue progressivement associée à la notion d’autorité masculine. Les Moros revendiquent une identité nouba et chrétienne, contrastant avec les références dominantes de la culture arabo-musulmane. La production d’écrits moros d’inspiration chrétienne, contrôlés par une élite patriarcale, constitue le point de référence pour le sentiment ethnique et unitaire moro. L’élaboration de la langue moro, en tant qu’objet métapragmatique, entretient également des liens étroits avec les représentations morales ainsi qu’avec celles portant sur la place des sexes dans la société moro. Je mets ainsi à jour l’existence de deux registres de langue: la production de textes, considérée comme l’apanage des hommes et contrastant avec l’oralité, apanage des femmes. La société moro a ainsi recours à des idéologies fondées sur le genre pour développer un nouveau style écrit et parlé, le « moro biblique ». Ce moro biblique est issu d’un processus de standardisation marqué par l’interaction entre les deux registres de langue susmentionnés. Les débats idéologiques qui sous-tendent le moro biblique transparaissent à différents niveaux, tels que les discours métalinguistiques, ainsi que dans la langue employée tant dans le cadre de l’enseignement qu’au quotidien. De fait, au vu de l’importance politique prise par la standardisation de la langue dans une période marquée par de rapides changements culturels, même des projets apparemment neutres sur le plan idéologique se révèlent au bout du compte chargés de nombreuses implications morales.
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Ethnic nationalism and gendered morality in the semiotic construction of the Moro language of Sudan
In: Faits de LanguesAbstract
This paper brings together discussions on language and nationalism, with gender and nationalism. Drawing from ‘language ideology’ and ‘indexical gender’ from a linguistic anthropological approach, it traces the emergence of the “Moro language”, in the context of a Moro ethnic national movement, originating in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan, and how it became indexically linked with masculine authority. Moro identify as Nuba and Christian, as opposed to Arab and Muslim, the dominant identities. Christian literacy, spearheaded by patriarchal leadership became the frame through which Moro organized ethnic identity and unity. The constructed language, as the object of metapragmatic evaluation, is also tightly woven into norms of morality and gender within the community. Two registers are identified: textuality is normatively masculine and orality is normatively feminine. The Moro community draws on gendered ideologies to produce a new writing and speaking style, the “Moro Bible Language” (MBL). MBL results from the interweaving of the two registers in language standardization practices. Negotiating the ideologies that bring MBL to life occurs in metalinguistic discourse, teaching, learning and speaking styles. Since the politics of standardization are foregrounded, even seeming apolitical projects are laden with moral worth in the turbulent context of rapid cultural change.
| All Time | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 301 | 93 | 13 |
| Full Text Views | 16 | 5 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 25 | 8 | 0 |