Speaking Xhosa multilingually

Abstract

Abstract Although code-switching has been quite well studied as a worldwide phenomenon, closer attention to effects on the more localized language involved is needed, especially in the repertoires of younger, well-educated speakers speaking in a multilingual mode. We argue that their language shows creativity going well beyond older instances of borrowing and code-switching into a “third space” grammar, which shows an active and creative synthesis of at least two languages. This study is based on interview data with 37 speakers of Xhosa in Soweto, South Africa. It focuses on (a) the verb suffix -isha as a marker of multilingual Xhosa par excellence, (b) a new lease of life given to the class 14 prefix ubu- in connection with (mainly) Latinate adjectives from English, and (c) the interchangeability of logical connectors across the third space.