Entanglements

Between Decolonial and Southernizing Linguistics

Edited by Prof. Sinfree Makoni, Unyierie Idem, Edwin Appah Dartey, Bassey E. Antia

Publication date:

12 August 2025

Publisher

Multilingual Matters

Dimensions:

245x174mm
7x10"

ISBN-13: 9781836681106

This book explores the ways in which language is understood in diverse contexts, and how linguistic theories – and the idea of language as an object – fail to represent a reality that is inherently multi- and trans-. The chapters tease out the way that an understanding of language as a social practice, and the central role of the speaker(s) and their repertoire, allows for a more nuanced interpretation of language in contexts ranging from English as an international ‘neutral’ language in research and teaching, to the importance of life trajectories and multilingualism in the development of theoretical perspectives. The book offers a glimpse of a decolonial linguistics that recognizes the importance of entanglement – between languages, between the North and South and between the personal and the theoretical.

This volume is most remarkable for its intellectual humility. Even as it shares insights from some of the most important scholars of decolonial thought and praxis, the volume – and the Forum that led to it – remains committed to diverse perspectives and genuine debate. In refusing ‘a perpetual search for mythical purity’, this volume offers readers a radical example of how to listen carefully and think openly about decoloniality.