This document summarizes a presentation on English and national identity in Sudan and South Sudan. It discusses how English can help shape a new national identity in South Sudan by serving as a common language, symbol of freedom and unity, and means for social and economic prosperity. It also examines the role of English in Sudan and the impact on national identity formation in learners through a case study. Recommendations include developing a sense of inclusion and spreading a culture of difference, hybridity, and ethnic tolerance.

1. English and National Identity
46th IATEFL Annual Conference
Glasgow 19-23 March 2012
Dr. Nada Sid Ahmed El jack
Sudan University of Science and
Technology
College of Languages
Department of English
neljack@hotmail.com

2. Contents of the Presentation
• Creating a new national identity in the
RSS
• Re-shaping a new national identity in the
RS
• The impact of English on national identity
construction in learners (A Case Study)

3. Major Questions That Need Answers:
• The global impact of English
• Global educational status of English in
the Sudan

4. • English and local Sudanese languages
• Sudanese English
• The man in the street

5. • English and particular fields in Sudan
• Sudanese policy makers, applied linguists,
and educators

10. RSS
• Dinka, Nuer, Shiluk, Zandi and Bari
(65%of the population)
• 50 mother tongues present
• Local languages, different varieties of
Arabic and English (1956 - mid1990s)

11. The Constitution of the Republic of
South Sudan (CRSS) (2011)
•Indigenous
languages
• English
language
•Arabic
language

12. Expectations of the Role of English
in the RSS
• Common means of communication for
southerners
• The language of freedom and unity
• A gateway to social, economic and political
prosperity

13. • Strengthening regional ties and trade within
the EAC
• Re-shaping the national identity for
southerners
• To gain both individual and social
empowerment

14. • Juba Arabic, mother tongues and English
• Language of business

15. RS
Examining the Potentiality of SPINE 3
•Objectives of the study
•Methodology

16. Dimensions of National Identity
Psychological
Political Cultural
Historical Territorial

17. (Summary of Results):
Techniques Utilized by the Authors
• Topics of interest
• What they avoided
• Short texts
• Variety
• ‘Great Men and Women’
• National institutions

18. Dimensions of National & Ethnic
Identity

19. Recommendations
• Develop the sense of inclusion
• A marker both of education and modernity
• Spread the culture of difference and
hybridity

20. • Indigenous cultures and knowledge
• Food, traditions, names, etc
• Live in peace and tolerance
• How and why to respect the other

21. • A sense of ethnic tolerance and acceptance
of the other
• A peaceful co-existence among different
groups
• A redefinition of the Sudanese national
identity

22. References:
• Smith, A.D. (1991) National Identity
University of Nevada Press: USA
• Guibernau, B. M. (2007) The Identity of
Nations Polity: Cambridge
• El Jack, N.S.A (2011) Construction of
National Identity in the Sudan A Critical
Discourse Analysis (CDA) Study of the
Arabic Language School Textbooks at the
Basic Level . Unpublished Ph.D Thesis:
SUST