AFL2601/201/1/2020

Tutorial Letter 201/1/2020

Communication Dynamics in African

Languages
AFL2601

Semester 1

Department of African Languages

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

This tutorial letter contains important information

about your module.

BARCODE
1 INTRODUCTION

Dear student

This tutorial letter contains the Key to Assignment 01. Thank you very much for the
assignments you have submitted. Your hard work and efforts are highly appreciated and will
ultimately pay off.

2 CONTACT DETAILS

Lecturers responsible for units dealt with in this assignment, are:

Unit 1
Lecturer’s name :
Building and office number:
E-mail address:
Telephone number:
Prof SE Bosch & Ms VMS Pule
WMM 07- 44 & WMM 06-55
boschse@unisa.ac.za / epulevm@unisa.ac.za
012 429 8253 / 012 429 4509

Unit 2
Lecturer’s name: Ms VMS Pule & Mr MZ Maponya
Building and office number: WMM 06-55 & WMM 07-106 & WMM 06-53
E-mail address: epulevm@unisa.ac.za /maponmz@unisa.ac.za
Telephone number: 012 429 8253/ 012 429 6110

Unit 3
Lecturer’s name: Mr MP Lesoetsa & Mrs BBB Xaba
Building and office number: WMM 07-119 & WMM 7-102
E-mail address: lesoemp@unisa.ac.za/xababbb@unisa.ac.za
Telephone number: 012 429 6815 / 012 429 6093

Unit 4
Lecturer’s name: Prof FS Madonsela & Ms NJ Malele
Buliding and office number: WMM 07-47 & WMM 07-114
E-mail address: madonfs@unisa.ac.za / malelnj@unisa.ac.za
Telephone number: 012 429 4140 / 012 429 2075

Unit 5
Lecturer’s name: Mr MZ Maponya & Mr D Mathevula
Building and office number: WMM 06- 53 & WMM 7-51
E-mail address: maponmz@unisa.ac.za / mathed@unisa.ac.za
Telephone number: 012 429 6110 / 012 429 6440
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Unit 6
Lecturer’s name:
Building and office number:
E-mail address:
Telephone number:
Ms LR Mfazwe-Mojapelo & Ms L Davhana
WMM 07- 48 & WMM 07- 97
emfazwlr@unisa.ac.za & edavhal@unisa.ac.za
012 429 6976 / 012 429 8680

3 ANSW ERS TO MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS

ANSWERS TO ASSIGNMENT 01

1. 2 21. 2
2. 1 22. 3
3. 3 23. 2
4. 4 24. 1
5. 4 25. 3
6. 2 26. 4
7. 4 27. 3
8. 3 28. 2
9. 3 29. 3
10. 1 30. 1
11. 2 31. 4
12. 4 32. 1
13. 2 33. 4
14. 2 34. 4
15. 3 35. 3
16. 4 36. 1
17. 1 37. 4
18. 2 38. 2
19. 4 39. 3
20. 3 40. 2
TOTAL MARKS: [40]

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1. Which term best describes the following: Niger-Congo, Nilo-Saharan, Afro-Asiatic and
Khoisan?
1. Languages.
2. Language families.
3. Bantu languages.
4. Endangered languages.
Explanation:
Option 2 is the correct answer. Niger-Congo, Nilo-Saharan, Afro-Asiatic and Khoisan are
four language families that have been identified by Nurse & Philippson (2013). Languages
are grouped together into language families when they are genetically related, in other
words they derive from a common origin. A language family has common phonetic,
phonological, morphological and syntactic characteristics and an extensive common
vocabulary.

Option 1 is incorrect, because the term ‘language’ refers to the standardized, generally
acceptable medium of communication or a deliberately created common form in speech
and writing.

Option 3 is incorrect because, of the four terms, only the Niger-Congo group includes the
Bantu languages as a sub-
group.

Option 4 is incorrect because the terms are classificatory terms, unrelated to the status of
some languages as endangered.

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2. Why can the origin of the Bantu languages not be determined with any certainty?
1. There are no written records of the original language.
2. There is no archaeological evidence of the existence of the original people.
3. Diachronic postulations were made without a synchronic study.
4. Bantu languages lack the operation of regular sound shifts.
Explanation:
Option (1) is correct. Languages were carried over orally from one generation to the next. No
orthography existed to record the spoken language. The absence of written evidence makes it
impossible to trace the origin of Bantu languages with any certainty. Option (2) is not true. It is
stated in the guide that the linguistic data on which the origins of the Bantu languages were
postulated, can be supported by archaeological evidence.
Option (3) is not true. Diachronic (historic) postulations were only possible, because the process
was preceded by synchronic study.
Option (4) is not true. The discovery of regular sound shifts between these languages, made it
possible for researchers like Guthrie and Meinof to reconstruct hypothetical forms of the ‘original’
language.

3. The term ‘Ur-Bantu’ refers to …

1. The systematic fragmentation of the Bantu language family.
2. Guthrie’s corpus of approximately 2 300 starred forms.
3. The presumed ancestor language of the Bantu languages.
4. The place of origin of the Bantu languages.
Explanation:
Option 3 is correct. Ur-Bantu is the name given by Meinof to the presumed (hypothetical) original
Bantu language which is reconstructed using collection of groups of cognate items from various
languages.
Option 1 does not describe ‘Ur-Bantu’, but refers to a process whereby different Bantu languages
are assumed to have developed out of the presumed ancestor language through regular sound
shifts.
Option 2 the starred forms compiled by Guthrie served to show the commonality of the Bantu
languages and only constituted in part the original hypothetical language, which Guthrie termed
‘Proto Bantu’.
Option 4 ur-Bantu is not a geographical area (place), but a reconstructed language from which the
modern day Bantu languages have emerged.

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4. Guthrie’s classification of languages into zones was based on the following
principles:
1. psychological.
2. grammatical.
3. hypothetical.
4. areal.
Explanation:
Option 4 is correct. The term ‘zone’ in Guthrie’s classification refers to geographical areas. The
other options do not have geographical connotations.

5. The following (Northern Sotho) example demonstrates class concordance as a

typical feature of a Bantu language:
1. bathong! (goodness!).
2. motho – batho (person – persons).
3. monna – mosadi (man – woman).
4. batho ba pele (first people).
Explanation:
Option 4 is correct. It is the only example illustrating class concordance, i.e. grammatical
agreement between two or more words in a phrase. The noun batho is linked to pele (meaning
‘first’ or ‘front’) by means of a possessive concrd ba-. There are no agreement morphemes
exemplifying class concordance in any of the other options.

6. The fact that there is such close correspondence between the word for ‘people’ in
different languages, i.e. abantu, batho, ovandu, antu, watu, etc. is evidence that they
all belong to the same …
1. language.
2. language family.
3. language group.
4.dialect.
Explanation:
Option 2 is correct. There is a close correspondence between the word for ‘people’, but it is not so
close that the words would be regarded as belonging to (1) the same language (3) the same
language group or (4) the same dialect.
7. In Guthrie’s study “starred forms” represent …
1. the system of grammatical genders.
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2. the operation of regular sound shifts.

3. archaeological evidence for the interrelatedness of Bantu languages.
4. roots from which words could have been derived.
Explanation:
Option 4 is correct. Guthrie postulated nominal stems and verbal radicals (roots) known as
“starred forms” which he arrived at through synchronic comparisons. According to him these
starred forms constituted in part the original hypothetical language which he called Proto-Bantu.
Option 1 is incorrect because grammatical gender has to do with the concordial system operative
in the Bantu languages, whereby grammatical agreement is established in sentences by means
of morphemes.
Option 2 is incorrect, because it does not describe “starred forms”, but the principle of sounds
changing in a predictable and related manner in languages of the same language family, e.g. r in
Sesotho sa Leboa is regularly reflected as th in isiZulu as in -roma vs -thuma ‘send’.
Option 3 is incorrect, because “starred forms” are based on linguistic postulations on the origin
and relatedness of languages, not on any archaeological findings referring to artifacts that would
point to the interrelaedness of the Bantu languages.

8. Meinhof could make postulations about the relatedness of the Bantu languages by applying
the principle of…
1. diachronic reconstruction.
2. geographical spread.
3. regular sound shifts.
4. language classification.
Explanation:
Option 3 is correct. The fact that sounds change in a systematic way across different
languages, made it possible for Meinhof to establish their relatedness.

Option 1 is incorrect. A diachronic reconstruction could not be used, because there was
no written evidence of older forms of the languages and this method would also not have
helped in establishing the relatedness of the languages.

Option 2 is incorrect. The occurrence of languages in different geographical areas is not

necessarily an indicator of their relatedness.

Option 4 is incorrect because language classification can only be done, once the re
latedness of languages has been established.

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9. Which airstream is used in the production of clicks?
1. Glottalic airstream.
2. Eggressive airstream.
3. Lingual airstream.
4. Pulmonic airstream.
Explanation:

Option 3 is correct. When sounds are produced by the tongue, they are said to be
produced by a lingual airstream.

Option 1 is incorrect. The glottalic airstream is responsible for the production of ejected
(glottalic) sounds, not clicks.

Option 2 is incorrect. An eggressive airstream is responsible for the production of sounds

whereby air is exhaled. Clicks, however, are produced with an ingressive airstream (where
air is inhaled).

Option 4 is incorrect. A pulmonic airstream, i.e. an airstream provided by the lungs, is

responsible for the production of voiced and voiceless sounds, not clicks or ejected sounds.

10. Articulatory phonetics is the study of….

1. the movement of speech organs when speech sounds are uttered.
2. the changes in meaning produced by speech sounds.
3. the system of the International Phonetics Association (IPA).
4. the primary role of speech organs.
Explanation:
Option 1 is correct. Articulatory phonetics is one branch of phonetics that studies how
speech sounds are produced by means of the speech organs.

Option 2 is incorrect. This option does not describe how sounds are produced, but how
they function to distinguish meaning – this is known as phonology.

Option 3 is incorrect. The IPA is a special phonetic alphabet, whereby sounds are
represented by an internationally agreed upon system of symbols.

Option 4 is incorrect. Speech organs perform certain primary functions, such as coughing,
breathing and swallowing. Their secondary function is to produce speech sounds.

11. The African languages are experienced as difficult to learn by non-speakers of an African
language because of …
1. economic pressures
2. structural differences between their languages and an African language.
3. lack of prestige associated with knowing an African language.
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4. an inherent inability to acquire an additional language.

Explanation:
Option 2 is correct. Speakers who are unfamiliar with an African language find it difficult to
grasp the structure of these languages, because it is quite different from what they are used
to in their own mother tongues (e.g. W estern languages). The other options can hardly be
advanced as reasons for finding it difficult to acquire an African language. Being under
economic pressure

Option 1 should be no hindrance to learning an African language from African language

speaking people one mixes with every day in South Africa.

Option 3 is an irrelevant statement, since the prestige or lack of prestige associated with a
language, has nothing to do with one’s mental and physical ability to learn an African
language.

Option 4 is also invalid, i.e. when people find it difficult to learn an African language as an
additional language; it will not be because they were born with a defect of not being able
to learn another language.

12. Greater flexibility in word order in the African languages as compared to English is made
possible through…
1. subject, verbs and objects.
2. deletion of nouns.
3. non-distinction of gender in the pronouns.
4. agreement morphemes.
Explanation:
Option 4 is correct. It is only because of the existence of agreement/concordial morphemes
(such as subject and object concords), that greater flexibility is allowed in the positions,
which may be taken up by words in a sentence, e.g. Northern Sotho:
Monna o ngwala lengwalo ‘The man writes a letter’ (subject) (predicate) (object)
Or
Lengwalo, o a le ngwala, monna. ‘The letter, he writes it, the man’ (object) (predicate) (subject)
Or
Lengwalo, monna o a le ngwala ‘The letter, the man writes it’ (Object) (subject) (predicate)
Or
O a le ngwala, lengwalo, monna ‘He writes it, the letter, the man’ (predicate) (object) (subject)
Option 1: Subjects, verbs (predicates) and objec ts cannot take up just any position in the
sentence (i.e. their positions are not flexible) without the use of agreement morphemes as
shown in the examples given under Option (4) above.

Option 2: Nouns which are deleted are not responsible for the fact that words may
change word order in the sentence. The deletion of the noun is only made possible if it is
represented in the sentence by its agreement morpheme, e.g. in Northern Sotho motho yo
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 mogolo ‘the big man’ > yo mogolo ‘the big one’, where motho can be deleted, because it
is represented by its agreement morphemes yo mo- in yo mogolo.

Option 3 is not valid. The fact that there is no distinction between sexes (he/she) in the
pronouns has nothing to do with the flexibility in word order.

13. When you are able to apply some of your knowledge of one language to a new
language this is called …
1. linguistic improvisation.
2. language transfer.
3. automatic translation.
4. information extraction.
Explanation:
Option 2 is the correct answer. When acquiring a new language, you tend to move from the
familiar (your own language) to the less familiar (the language you want to acquire) and in
the process you will inevitably transfer some of your knowledge to the new language.
Language transfer may stand you in good stead, but on the other hand it may also result in
ungrammatical formations in the new language, because of direct transfer from the familiar
language, e.g. ‘people like cats’ may incorrectly be translated directly into Northern Sotho as
*batho rata dikatse.

14. Which of the following statements does NOT convey a correct fact about the noun
classes?
1. Singular and plural forms are placed in separate classes according to the standard
format for listing the class prefix system.
2. All nouns in even numbered classes have singular forms in their corresponding
uneven numbered classes.
3. Most nouns denoting people are accommodated in classes 1 and 2.
4. Not all languages distinguish the same number of classes.

Explanation:
Option 2 is the only option which contains a wrong statement about the noun classes. The
fact of the matter is that NOT all nouns in even numbered classes have singular forms in their
corresponding uneven numbered classes. Some of such nouns are found in class 6 a nd
they denote liquids which are uncountable, hence they have no singular form in class 5, e.g.
Northern Sotho meetse ‘water’, maadi ‘blood’, maswi ‘milk’. Many nouns in class 14, an even
numbered class, are abstract nouns which are uncountable and thus don’t distinguish a
singular form.
15. A noun class which is non-productive is characterised by …
1. new words which may be added to the class by means of its prefix.
2. the invariant locative suffix (-ni or -ng).
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3. a limited number of nouns or only one noun.

4. a prefix which displays variant forms.
Explanation:
Option 3 is correct. Non-productive classes are classes with very few or only one noun, e.g.
the so-called locative classes 16, 17 and 18, for example, Northern Sotho fase (16), godimo
(17) and morago (18). The reason why these classes have become unproductive (i.e. why no
new words are added to these classes) is because the class prefixes are no longer used to form
locatives. Instead another strategy developed whereby locatives are formed through a locative
suffix.

Option 1 is ruled out because ‘non-productive’ means that a prefix is no longer used to add
new members to a noun class.

Option 2 is nonsensical, because the productivity or non-productivity of a class is measured by

its ability to accommodate new words by means of its prefix, not a suffix.

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Option 4 refers to the fact that the class prefix of certain noun classes may assume different
shapes in certain words (e.g. Northern Sotho distinguishes mo-, m- and ngw- for the class 1
prefix). The differences in the form of the prefix are unrelated to the productivity of a noun class.

16. Affixes are classified into two main types, namely

1. lexical and grammatical morphemes.
2. singular and plural markers.
3. preprefix and a basic prefix.
4. prefixes and suffixes.
Explanation:
Option 4 is correct. The term “affixes” is a term that specifically denotes prefixes
(morphemes placed before a root or stem, i.e. to the left of a root or stem) and suffixes
(morphemes placed after a root or stem, i.e. to the right of a root or stem). Apart from
prefixes and suffixes, some languages also distinguish infixes, which are morphemes
placed inside of a root or stem.

17. The stem of a primitive noun like batho/abantu consists of …

1. one morpheme, i.e. a root.
2. two morphemes, i.e. a root and a suffix.
3. three morphemes, i.e. a prefix, a root and a suffix.
4. two morphemes, i.e. a prefix and a root.
Explanation:
Option 1 is correct. The stem of a word is that part which makes up the rest of a word fol
lowing the prefix. In the given example the stem consists of one morpheme, i.e. the root
-tho/-ntu. Option 2 is not applicable, because there is no suffix in the given examples.
The final vowel - o/-u is part of the root and not a separate morpheme. Option 3 is
incorrect. The analysis given in this option describes the morphemes of the complete
word, but not that of the stem alone. Option 4 is inaccurate, firstly because a prefix is
not part of the stem and secondly, because the stem in the given example does not
contain a suffix (as explained under Option 2).

18. Phonological rules are the rules responsible for the following changes in words:
1. lexical changes.
2. sound changes.
3. a change in the sequence of words.
4. a change in class gender markers.
Explanation:
Option 2 is correct. Phonological rules are involved when sound changes take place due
to affixation or other word formation processes.

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Option 1 deals with the field of semantics and morphology where lexical changes are
usually brought about by derivation and compounding.

In Option 3 a change in the sequence of words falls within the field of syntax, while Option
4 falls within the field of morphology, where class gender markers are responsible for
forming grammatically correct sentences.

19. When most of the words in a language consist of more than one morpheme, such a
language is said to have …
1. a reciprocal morphology.
2. a monomorphemic morphology.
3. an invariable morphology.
4. an agglutinative morphology.
Explanation:
Option 4 is correct. Languages may be classified according to the structure of their
words. When their words have a tendency of consisting of many morphemes, as in the
case of the Bantu languages, they are said to have an agglutinative morphology.

Options 1 and 3 do not describe valid types of morphology.

Option 2 is a type of morphology, but it does not apply to the Bantu languages. It refers
to languages in which most of the words equal one morpheme. Such languages are said
to have an isolating typology.

20. Which is the most accurate description of what a deverbative is?

1. It is a word which can take several extensions.
2. It is a word which ends on a suffix like -i or -o.
3. it is a word which has been derived from a verb.
4. It is a word which enlarges the vocabulary of a language.
Explanation:
Option 3 is the most accurate description of a deverbative, e.g. umthengi (noun) ‘buyer’
from thenga (verb) ‘buy’.

Option 1 may be applicable to deverbatives, i.e. deverbatives may take extensions as in

the case of umthengisi (salesperson), but the addition of extensions is not a necessary
feature of deverbatives. Option 2 does not describe the essential nature of deverbatives.
The suffixes may differ and are not restricted to -i and -o.

In Option 4 it is true that deverbatives enlarge the vocabulary of a language, but there
are other word formation processes which also add new lexical items to a language, not
only deverbatives.

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21. Non-verbal communication is more useful than verbal communication in conveying
which of the following kind of information?
1. Initial expression.
2. Emotional expression.
3. Basic information.
4. None of the above.

22. Positive gestures are body signals that make look…

1. hurtful.
2. arrogant.
3. relaxed.
4. Nervous.
Explanation:
Positive gestures are body signals that make you look relaxed. The correct answer is 3.

23. The use of non-verbal behaviour to stress oral messages is called…

1. social behaviour.
2. accenting.
3. contradicting.
4. demographic.
Explanation:
The use of non-verbal behaviour to stress oral messages is called accenting. The correct
answer is 2.

24. The replacement of a non-verbal symbol with a verbal one is called…

1. substituting.
2. frowning.
3. shrugging.
4. apologising.
Explanation:
The replacement of a non-verbal symbol with a verbal one is called substituting. The
correct answer is 1.

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25. Locative gestures are used to indicate…

1. where students get their knowledge.
2. where academics write their research work.
3. where something is or what direction something might be going.
4. the heredity of something.
Explanation:
Locative gestures are used to indicate where something is or what direction something
might be going. The correct answer is 3.

26. When French people kiss their fingers in a gesture it is a sign of …

1. love.
2. hatred.
3. honesty.
4. admiration.

27. Blacks speak louder in public places to avoid…

1. their messages to be heard.
2. conflict.
3. suspicion of conspiracy.
4. arguments.
Explanation:
Blacks speak louder in public places to avoid suspicion of conspiracy. The correct answer is
3.

28. Verbal and non-verbal messages should match because…

1. verbal messages are often more credible than nonverbal messages.
2. together they contribute to the total message.
3. nonverbal messages are usually consciously observed.
4. people relate better nonverbally than verbally.
Explanation:
Verbal and nonverbal messages should match because together they contribute to the
total message. The correct answer is 2.

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29. In non-verbal communication, regulators refer to…
1. nonverbal acts that display instinctive responses.
2. nonverbal acts which are learnt through initiation and replacement of words.
3. nonverbal acts that maintain and control the flow of speaking and listening.
4. nonverbal acts which are learnt through culture and replacement of words.
Explanation:
In nonverbal communication, regulators refer to nonverbal acts that maintain and control
the flow of speaking and listening. The correct answer is 3.

30. Greetings can be described as the exchange of…

1. expressions between two or more people meeting socially.
2. expressions between students for the purpose of preparing for an assignment.
3. academic information between two people.
4. information in business life.
Explanation:
Option 1 is the only correct answer.

31. Which areas in South Africa tend to be more linguistically homogeneous?

1. Cape Town.
2. Urban areas.
3. Johannesburg.
4. Rural areas.
Explanation:
Option 4 is the correct answer. Rural areas tend to be more linguistically homogeneous
while urban areas tend to have a mixture of people from different linguistic/cultural
groups. Multilingualism is more important here as people need to know the dominant
language for work and minority languages for social interaction. Options 1, 2, 3 are
incorrect.

32. Which section of the constitution provides the primary legal constitutional framework for
multilingualism?
1. Section 6 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996.
2. Geneva Convention, 1988.
3. Section 8 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 2006.
4. Section 7 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996.

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Explanation:
Option 1 is correct. Section 6 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996,
provides the primary legal and constitutional framework for multilingualism, the use of the
official languages and the promotion of respect and tolerance for South Africa's linguistic
diversity. Options 2, 3 and 4 are incorrect.

33. There are four crucial stages of a language development process and they are:
1. the development of a standard orthography, spelling system, modernization and
lexical modernization.
2. elaboration and modernization of the vocabulary, standard orthography and lexical
modernization.
3. standardization, modernization, lexical modernization and creation of registers for
special purposes.
4. selection of norm, codification of form, elaboration of function and acceptance
by the community.
Explanation:
Option 4 is correct since there four crucial stages of a language development process
and they are. Options 1, 2 and 3 are incorrect.

34. Codification is defined as …

1. maximal variation in function.
2. standard orthography and lexical modernization.
3. minimal and maximal variation in function.
4. minimal variation in form.
Explanation:
'Codification' is defined as minimal variation in form and 'elaboration' as maximal variation in
function thus Option 4 is correct. Options 1, 2 and 3 are incorrect.
35. In any multilingual society certain languages will be dominant, while others will be
minority languages. In South Africa this statement holds true. Dominance in some
languages is determined by …
1. people who speak many languages.
2. the number of speakers.
3. economic and political power.
4. the minority.

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 Explanation:
In any multilingual society certain languages will be dominant, while others will be minority
languages. Dominance is determined more by economic and political power than by the
number of speakers, although the number of speakers may play a role. So, for example, in
South Africa prior to 1996 English and Afrikaans were the only two dominant languages and
recognition of the indigenous African languages of South Africa, beyond their vernacular (non -
official) status, had not been envisaged even though they were widely taught and used as
media of instruction in primary schools.

36. The object of an ecological language policy must...

1. create a sustainable environment in which all languages can thrive.
2. enforce that only one or two 'powerful' languages thrive.
3. contribute constructively to the demise of other languages so that powerful languages
can play a hegemonic role over minority languages.
4. enhance the status of dominant languages.
Explanation:
From the above explanation it is very clear that the object of an ecological language policy
is to create a sustainable environment in which all languages can thrive. Thus option 1 is
correct and options 2, 3 and 4 are incorrect.

37. Extralinguistic factors that are inherent in the bilingual person's relation to the languages
that he/she brings with him/her into a contact situation are...
1. relative proficiency in one language.
2. non-specialisation in the production of each language by topics and interlocutors.
3. the different manner of learning two languages.
4. attitudes toward each language, whether idiosyncratic or stereotyped.
Explanation:
It is imperative to take extralinguistic factors into account when considering interference in a
language contact situation because of the importance of the socio-cultural setting of a
contact situation. Thus, one of those factors would be attitudes toward each language,
whether idiosyncratic or stereotyped. Therefore, option 4 is correct and options 1, 2 and 3
are incorrect.

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38. Multilingualism is viewed as a barrier by some language planning scholars because they
view language as a…
1. resource.
2. problem.
3. human right.
4. sentimental attachment.
Explanation:
Option 2 is correct. In the context of South Africa, viewing language as a problem connects
education with other social 'problems' such as unemployment and low educational
achievement of indigenous black people, and is often viewed as a cause of social
problems. Other reasons advanced by those who view language as a problem include the
unique socio -historical context of multilingual societies and the idea that there is a
connection between language diversity and social problems, namely, multilingualism leads
ultimately to a lack of social cohesiveness. Options 1, 3 and 4 are incorrect.

39. A multilingual person can be defined as…

1. a passive or active person.
2. a person who describes comparable situations.
3. anyone with communicative skills in more than one language.
4. a person who has extra languages at their disposal.
Explanation:
Option (3) is correct. A multilingual person is anyone with communicative skills in more than
one language, be it active or passive. Options (1), (2) and (4) are incorrect.

40. Multilingualism occurs at four different levels viz…

1. individual, international, economic and communicative level.
2. personal, societal, interactional and linguistic level.
3. individual, interactional, bilingual and trilingual level.
4. personal, international, linguistic and interactional level.
Explanation:
Option 2 is correct. Multilingualism occurs first at a personal level and then on the other
three levels which are societal, interactional and linguistic. Options 1, 3 and 4 are incorrect.
TOTAL MARKS: [40]

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4 CONCLUSION

We hope this feedback letter will help you understand Communication Dynamics in African
Languages better. W ishing you the best in your studies.

Regards

Your AFL2601 lecturers.

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