Translating Camfranglais Literature: Exegesis, Jugglery, Cultural and SemanticSignification

Abstract

Code-switching refers to the alternate use of more than one code in a single speech act, a phenomenon
that Haugan refers to as the “the alternate use of two languages, including everything from the
introduction of a single unassimilated word up to a complete sentence or more into the context of
another language” (see Omole, p.58). In other words, these writers tend to transpose the imprint
of their cultural backgrounds onto fictional works, thereby creating a third code-camfranglais.
Camfranglais is a hybrid language spoken in the Republic of Cameroon where English, French and
248 indigenous languages co-exist. It is a medley of French, English, Pidgin and borrowings from
local languages. This paper examines some aspects of the complexity of the language situation in
Cameroon including the nuanced implication for translation in the field of literature.