Mother tongues and languaging in Malaysia: Critical linguistics under critical examination

What is it about?

This paper critically examines 'critical sociolinguistics' developed and theorised from the West, especially 'languaging' and its sceptism of mother tongues' by exploring epistemologies of language in Malaysia, a case study from the Global South.

Featured Image

Why is it important?

The paper argues that critical sociolinguistics is still loaded with Western biases, and that not only have some critical ideas that are new to scholarship long existed in Malaysia, but operationalising a Western scepticism of 'mother tongues' would radically ignore non-western world views.