#820 Joseph Errington: The History of Linguistics, Colonialism, and Language Ideologies
RECORDED ON APRIL 18th 2023.
Dr. Joseph Errington is Professor of Anthropology at Yale University. He studies language change as a source of insight into the ways languages constitute intimate parts of our everyday lives, and at the same time are foundational for large-scale institutions, social groups, and social dynamics. He has worked mostly in Indonesia, studying Javanese (90 million speakers), Indonesian (250 million speakers) and a range of Malay dialects. He has also worked on questions of language ideology and practice: how conceptions of language can shape and reflect social interests, naturalize images of social groups, and shape everyday ways of talking. He is the author of books like Language and Social Change in Java, Shifting Languages, and Linguistics in a Colonial World.
In this episode, we talk about some topics in linguistics. We discuss language ideologies. We talk about the history of linguistics, and its ties to colonialism, including the invention of hierarchies of languages; stripping languages off their sociocultural context, and issues with the Universal Grammar approach; imposing written forms on languages; reducing languages to the versions used by social elites; and the invention of national languages. We also discuss misconceptions about non-standard versions of languages; threats to marginalized languages and their communities; and how these issues manifest on the Javanese and the Indonesian language.
Time Links:
Intro
Questions in linguistics that interest Dr. Errington the most
Language ideologies
The history of linguistics, and its ties to colonialism
Hierarchies of languages, and other historical misconceptions
Stripping languages off their sociocultural context, and the Universal Grammar approach
Imposing written forms on languages
Studying the languages of the elites
The invention of national languages
Misconceptions about non-standard versions of languages
Threats to marginalized languages and their communities
The Javanese and the Indonesian language
Follow Dr. Errington’s work!
Follow Dr. Errington’s work:
Faculty page: http://bit.ly/3kqdfNt
ResearchGate profile: https://bit.ly/3QQ3Qus
Amazon page: https://bit.ly/3iKW090