Orthography, ideology and the codification of Mauritian Creole

Abstract

This paper examines the choices made at the levels of Ausbau (‘language by development’, Kloss 1967: 29–30) and Abstand (‘language by distance’, ibid) during the codification phase of Mauritian Creole. Using the document Lortograf Kreol Morisien (Ministry of Education and Human Resources 2011) as its focal point, it studies the co-association between Ausbau and Abstand and connects the choices made to a broader ideological framework which sets out to ‘promot[e] our country’s language’ (Hookoomsing 2011: 9). It explores the implication of adopting a linguistic form which a user can ‘intimately connect with loved ones, community and personal identity’ (Delpit 2006: 95) while simultaneously providing it with the stature traditionally enjoyed by the lexifier. In the final instance it views the decreasing Abstand of Mauritian Creole as a form of prestige planning (Haarmann 1986) carried out with the possible intention of enhancing its public image.