Language Policy in Africa (LPIA) is an open-access, peer-reviewed journal that will be published twice a year, starting with an inaugural issue in the second half of 2024. It is published under the auspices of the Edinburgh Circle on the Promotion of African Languages (ECPAL) by the University of Bern, Switzerland.
The journal supports the idea that African languages are key to Africa's development, also in the context of decolonisation. Currently, the majority of African languages are typically not used in formal settings although they are widely used in informal ones. It seems evident that more use of African languages in formal domains is not merely desirable; it is unavoidable to ensure inclusivity. Linguists and other social scientists have an important role to play in researching, discussing, and thus helping to shape practical, efficient, rational, and inclusive African language-based policies on the whole continent.
LPIA is committed to publishing original and sound articles by scholars who study the challenges and opportunities for African language policies from the above perspectives. What is the state of language policies in individual African countries and, generally, on the Continent? What is the sociolinguistic and development perspective for the future? How is Africa’s historically grown multilingualism to be reflected in meaningful national as well as supra-national language policies?
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