Indiana University
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H-NET BOOK REVIEW
Published by H-Africa@h-net.msu.edu

Rocha Chimerah, _Kiswahili: Past, Present and Future Horizons_.
Nairobi, Kenya: Nairobi University Press, 1998. xii + 152 pp.
Bibliography. $13.75 (paper), ISBN 9966-846-35-2.

Reviewed for H-Africa by Patricia S. Kuntz
Indiana University

KISWAHILI: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE HORIZONS

Rocha Chimerah's _Kiswahili: Past, Present and Future Horizons_
illustrates ways that Swahili (Kiswahili) has evolved into a
regional language. Chimerah states "Kiswahili has made a lot of
strides in many areas," (p. ix) and sets out to document the
changes. The essence of the book is that residents of East
Africa should take a proactive stance to support Swahili as a
national, regional, and even continental language.

As stated in the preface, this book contains a collection of
essays which the author wrote between 1989 and 1991. Thus,
these chapters represent the author's views held in the late
1980s concerning language planning of Swahili. Further, these
chapters may draw on Chimerah's doctoral dissertation, "The
Implications of the Selected works of Ngugi in the Eduational
Thinking and Pratices of Kenya_ earned at Ohio University in
1989.

Chimerah divides the book into two parts. The first part
contains four chapters which respond to the idea that Swahili
might be "[a]n African alternative to [an] imported European
language." In Chapter 1, the author describes some of the
achievements made as of 1989 such as language status, language
use as medium of instruction, language programs around the
world, archival records, radio and television programs, and
linguistic research. In Chapter 2, the author provides a
historical summary of attitudes held by colonial administrators,
missionaries, and local leaders concerning the use of Swahili
prior to independence obtained in the 1960s. In Chapter 3, the
author outlines the controversies put forth by different East
African constituents. Finally, in Chapter 4, he focuses on
different government policies which articulated when and where
Swahili could be taught as a language course and would be the
medium of instruction.

In the second part, Chimerah pursues the proposition that
Swahili is or can become an international language. Three
chapters provide justification. Chapter 5 enumerates uses of
Swahili in the fields of trade, religion, and politics. The
next chapter examines the language policies of independent
Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, and Congo (Democratic Republic). The
final chapter advocates the adoption of Swahili for the rest of
the continent by citing Wole Soyinka (Nigeria) and Museveni
(Uganda).

Although Chimarah's fundamental research question concerning the
importance of Swahili is important, this book contains some
fundamental flaws such as data collection and sources. For
example, the book contains no original or new data. Based on
the title and publication date (1999), this reader expected to
see results from a case study illustrating applications of
Swahili. The book does not provide an epilogue which highlights
changes in the use of Swahili since the 1980s. Likewise, this
reader anticipated current statistical data from Ministries of
Education (for instance) followed by an interpretation of the
results in context with the designated country's language
policy. For the most part, the author utilized examples
provided by European researchers and he did not evaluate or
interpret their conclusions. Moreover, most chapters utilized
the analyses of linguists such as Whiteley (1969), Ladefoged
(1971), Polome (1967), Prins (1961). For instance, in every
chapter that contains a reference list, the author cited
Whiteley (1969). This practice led the reader to ponder if the
book might more accurately be viewed as a historical summary of
the 1960s. Given the title of this book, this reader expected
the final chapter to contain a detailed plan of action,
including a timeline, which would inspire readers to a thorough
integration of Swahili into East African society.

The author made general statements without citations or
substantiation. Without evidence, his argument appeared empty.
For instance, the reader would expect to see data showing
enrollment changes in Kenya over time at all levels of
instruction rather than a statement. Instead, the chapter
entitled, "English as the Language of Instruction in Kenya,"
contained a historical review from the Phelps-Stokes Commission
(1924) to the Mackay Commission (1981). The author mentions
government policies but does not provide full archival
references. The reader would like to know to what extent the
Kenyan populous adhered to the edicts of these commissions and
if not, why not. Chimerah did not interpret the implication of
government policies in terms of educational policy, teacher
training, textbook preparation, or employment opportunities. The
second half of this chapter described English language policy in
a variety of countries around the world based on the finding in
one reference.

A third annoyance is the mentioning of facts without support or
a conflict of information. For example, the author listed
contributors to the Mhina dictionary _Kamusi ya Kiswahili
Sanifu_ (1981), but failed to provide an explanation of the
contents and design. The text implied that the dictionary was
not yet published, and yet, the chapter references did provide a
citation. In the same chapter, Chimmerah described programs in
Swahili on the radio and television. However, he did not
provide supporting evidence or an analysis of the programs,
their audience, and the time of broadcast. Moreover, it was not
stated in which years the broadcasts occurred. In a later
chapter, Chimerah lists artists who use Swahili either in
creative writing or in musical lyrics. However, he does not
include data concerning sales of books or tapes or attendance at
concerts of exclusive Swahili songs. As a result, the reader is
not certain if the lists are an aberation of a point in time or
of a feature of the growing popularity of Swahili over time.

Finally, the text contained numerous typographical errors. For
instance, the spelling of some names and places in the U.S. were
incorrect. The list of institutions which offer Swahili had no
citation and many of them were not current. The author ascribes
professors to universities where they have not taught since
1984. Unfortunately, these flaws detract from the book's
usefulness as a current work. The book might be used as a point
of discussion for the history of language policy in East Africa.

In conclusion, in contrast to this book, works by Middleton
(1994) _The World of Swahili: An African Mercantile
Civilization_ and Roy- Campbell (1992) _Power or Pedagogy:
Choosing the Medium of Instruction in Tanzania_ utilize the
historical texts such as those that Chimarah cited but they also
provide results from new, original data collections and new
interpretations of current or archival data. Consequently, the
information provided in _Kiswahili: Past, Present and Future
Horizons_ appears redundant to works which came previously. For
the reasons mentioned above, I would caution other U.S. readers
from using this book in introductory classes.

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