Papers by Hirut Woldemariam
Language Matters, 2007
It is a well-known fact that the best medium for teaching a child is his/her mother tongue. Imple... more It is a well-known fact that the best medium for teaching a child is his/her mother tongue. Implementing mother-tongue education is not, however, a trouble-free task for a country that is multilingual, multi-ethnic and culturally pluralistic. Mother-tongue education has been practised in Ethiopia since 1992. Before then Amharic, the federal working language, served as the only language of education in
In this article we address the issue of language and globalization by focusing on the use of inte... more In this article we address the issue of language and globalization by focusing on the use of international brand names and English in the linguistic landscape of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Ethiopia has been at the margins of the world economy; however, in the past decade Addis Ababa has witnessed a promising emerging economy, with many new international corporations investing in the country. The linguistic landscape is increasingly marked by the use of English, not only in general signage but also through international brand names and advertising. Moreover, a curious phenomenon has evolved in which international brand names and logos are used locally and are imparted an Ethiopian identity. The article highlights a particular case of cloning an international brand that touches on the discourse of national identity and development. The use of both English and international brand names in the linguistic landscape is perceived by locals as prestigious, indexing their aspirations towards mod...
... SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES A GRAMMAR OF HARO WITH COMPARATIVE NOTES ON THE OMETO LINGUISTIC G... more ... SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES A GRAMMAR OF HARO WITH COMPARATIVE NOTES ON THE OMETO LINGUISTIC GROUP BY ... 208-214 8.2. The focus domains 214-221 PART II NOTES ON THE COMPARATIVE MORPHOLOGY OF THE OMETO LANGUAGES 222-223 ...
Numeral systems have gained a scholarly interest not only from mathematicians but also from gener... more Numeral systems have gained a scholarly interest not only from mathematicians but also from generations of linguists. Like other domains of a grammar, a numeral system is subject to historical changes. For example, a historically quinary system may change to appear as a decimal one; the Ometo linguistic group provides a case in point. Here, complex numeral expressions of the older system were reinterpreted as simple units of the new system. Moreover, quinary-based expressions like 'five plus three' and 'five plus four' were replaced by 'two minus ten' and 'before ten', respectively. This paper is devoted to the investigation of these historical developments. Hence, reconstruction of the archaic numeral system, numeral bases and numeral forms will be the concern of the paper. In addition, etymological interpretations will be provided for certain numeral expressions.
Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Linguistics
The linguistic landscape (henceforth LL) has proven to be a fruitful approach for investigating v... more The linguistic landscape (henceforth LL) has proven to be a fruitful approach for investigating various societal dimensions of written language use in the public sphere. First introduced in the context of bilingual Canada as a gauge for measuring ethnolinguistic vitality, in the 21st century it is the focus of a thriving field of inquiry with its own conference series, an increasing number of publications, and an international journal dedicated exclusively to investigating language and other semiotic resources used in the public arena. The scholarship in this domain has centered on European and North American geographical sites; however, an increasingly voluminous share of studies addresses the LL of sites across the world through both books and articles. African contributions have added an important dimension to this knowledge base as southern multilingualisms bring into question the very concept of language in that speakers and writers draw on their rich linguistic repertoires, av...
Multilingual Margins, 2014
The study of the linguistic landscape has provided a new dimension to theories and issues related... more The study of the linguistic landscape has provided a new dimension to theories and issues related to multilingualism, including language policy. In this growing field of inquiry, however, not enough attention has been given to the linguistic landscape in sites in the Global South. Since one of the aims of literacy studies is to reveal the variety and social patternings of practices, there is a need to compare linguistic landscape data with other various textual materials. In this article, we present linguistic landscape data from two federal regional capitals in Ethiopia that demonstrate multilingual language use. We also compare the linguistic contact patterns with those found in schoolbooks used in the same region. Such a comparison involves language use in unregulated as well as in regulated spaces (see Sebba 2009). Regional ethnically based languages are now being used in new arenas, including the linguistic landscape and education because of a new language policy promoting the ...
The purpose of this research was to investigate and explain how the grammatical structure of Afan... more The purpose of this research was to investigate and explain how the grammatical structure of Afan Oromo reveals social gender bias ideology. Based on quantitative and qualitative data collected from primary and secondary sources of the Macha dialect, the grammatical structure of Afan Oromo was analyzed in the light of the socio-cultural lives of the language community. The theoretical base of this study was the dominance theory. As this study reveals the grammar of Afan Oromo distinguishes masculine and feminine gender systems. Nouns are assigned to one of the two genders based on semantic attributes and pragmatic knowledge. This linguistic principle is metaphorical conceptualization emanating from the social gender bias ideology of the society. In addition, the morphological, the syntactic, and the semantic structures of the language also reflect the social gender bias practices. In general, the grammatical conventions of Afan Oromo mirror the socio-cultural practices of the societ...
Journal of Ethiopian Studies, 2005
Numeral systems have gained a scholarly interest not only from mathematicians but also from gener... more Numeral systems have gained a scholarly interest not only from mathematicians but also from generations of linguists. Like other domains of a grammar, a numeral system is subject to historical changes. For example, a historically quinary system may change to appear as a decimal one; the Ometo linguistic group provides a case in point. Here, complex numeral expressions of the older system were reinterpreted as simple units of the new system. Moreover, quinary-based expressions like 'five plus three' and 'five plus four' were replaced by 'two minus ten' and 'before ten', respectively. This paper is devoted to the investigation of these historical developments. Hence, reconstruction of the archaic numeral system, numeral bases and numeral forms will be the concern of the paper. In addition, etymological interpretations will be provided for certain numeral expressions.
Linguistic Landscape, 2015
In this article, we investigate how the linguistic landscape serves as an important strategy amon... more In this article, we investigate how the linguistic landscape serves as an important strategy among a diaspora community not only to maintain a transnational identity but also to construct a unique identity in the recipient society. We examine the linguistic landscape in the Ethiopian diaspora of Washington DC, referred to as “Little Ethiopia”, which provides an interesting site to investigate the role of the linguistic landscape in constructing an imaginary community built on the myth of the old homeland, including a unique African identity in a new homeland with other Africans as well as African Americans. Serving as a rich source of data for investigating language, culture and identity, the linguistic landscape in “Little Ethiopia” encompasses many semiotic resources. This Ethiopian transnational community engages in (re)constructing socio-cultural and political ideologies through the linguistic landscape.
Studies in Language Companion Series, 2009
Linguistic landscape: Expanding the scenery. London: …, 2009
Oslo Studies in Language
A common language-planning problem in places with plural societies is deciding which language sho... more A common language-planning problem in places with plural societies is deciding which language should be the language of education. Indeed, de-cisions regarding which languages should be established as the medium of instruction (MOI hereafter) are political decisions which, if ill managed, can lead to appalling consequences. Often, political ideologies and identity contestations interact with and bring influence to on the interpretation of linguistic endeavors. Linguistic diversity in the Gamo area has become entangled with political interests in the process of (re)articulating and implementing the current multilingual language policy in Ethiopia. Contrasting positions have been taken in the course of implementation of the policy. On the one hand, the local authorities have tended to adopt a type of assimilationist approach. Considering the close genetic relationship among the linguistic groups, a common MOI has been prescribed for several ethno-linguistic groups in the former North ...
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Papers by Hirut Woldemariam