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Part of
The Dynamics of English in Namibia: Perspectives on an emerging variety
Edited by Anne Schröder
[Varieties of English Around the World G65] 2021
► pp. 241–272

Chapter 11
A land in transition

The representation of linguistic diversity in Joseph Diescho’s Born of the Sun and Troubled Waters

| Bielefeld University

This chapter looks at linguistic diversity as represented in two Namibian novels, discussing aspects of authenticity, identity formation, style-shifting, and meta-language, but also the representation of multilingualism in literary texts. By combining linguistic analysis with literary study, the chapter sheds light on questions of language ideology and the representation of language groups, some marginalized, in the multi-lingual and multi-cultural make-up of the Namibian nation at its beginning and during the first years of its existence. This will help to gain some insights into the construction of ‘Namibianness’ during the struggle for and the first years after independence.

Keywords: Namibian English, Namibian novel, literary linguistics, multilingualism in literature, ficto-linguistics
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Historical background: The struggle for liberation
  • 3.Theoretical and methodological considerations
  • 4.Text analysis
    • 4.1 Born of the Sun
    • 4.2 Troubled Waters
  • 5.Discussion
  • 6.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 10 September 2021
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/veaw.g65.11sch
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