From Nerri

Nerri is from the east African country of Kenya. She explains the language situation there and how these have influenced her own attitudes toward languages. According to her, "people are divided into about 23 tribes, all of whom speak different languages. The tribes are further divided into 3 main groups: 1) Bantus, e.g., Kikuyu, Kamba; 2) Kushites, e.g., Turkana, Kisri; 3) Nilotes, e.g., Maasi (like you see on the Discovery Channel). I break these down this way so you understand that the Bantu tribes are very similar...and a Kikuyu would understand what a Kamba is saying except the tone is different and some words are too. The same applied to Kushites and Nilotes.This drives the point I am trying to make. If you learn French, you know Spanish and Italian are very similar, e.g., verb conjugations... Learning one language would therefore make it a lot easier to learn the next. This explains why statistics show that foreign language speakers easily learn other languages. It also makes you very competitive in the business field if you would like to study overseas or work there. International organizations also require that you speak at least 2 foreign languages and this sometimes determines the paycheck you take home. Stewardesses, travel agents, hotel management, etc. all are jobs that require foreign language speaking."

There are 61 different attested languages in Kenya, and many people are bi- or trilingual in Swahili and/ or English. English and Swahili are national languages, both of which are required subjects in school, and both of which serve for communication among groups speaking different languages.  Swahili serves for communication among speakers of different African languages, with 12,000,000 first and second languages speaker in Kenya, and 30,000,000 total second language speakers living in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Mayotte, Rwanda, South Africa, Burundi, the United Arab Emirates, Somalia and the United States. The function of English is similar,  providing access to the larger English-speaking world. The great majority of English-speaking Kenyans are non-native speakers of that language. Nerri is a native speaker of Kikuyu, spoken by about 20% of the population. She grew up speaking Kikuyu at home with her family, and learned English, Swahili and French, a widely studied foreign language in Kenya, when she went to school.

What are the main functions of these languages for Nerri? (They might have more than one.)

Kikuyu is... official    vehicular    vernacular     special status

English is... official    vehicular     vernacular    special status

French is... official    vehicular    vernacular     special status

Swahili is... official    vehicular    vernacular    special status