John Hames defended his dissertation in April 2017 and will graduate with his PhD in Anthropology this coming August. His doctoral research analyzes the practice of language activism among a tight-knit network of Senegalese and Mauritanians devoted to the promotion of the Pulaar language, which is spoken by significant minorities in both countries. He conducted over a year of fieldwork in Dakar, Nouakchott, the Senegal River Valley and Paris between 2010 and 2016.
At the outset of his research, John set out to learn how speakers of Pulaar, which does not have lingua franca status in any single country, managed to nevertheless produce a large body of novels, poetry books, learning manuals, cinematic films, newspapers and broadcast content in their language. Though reaching thousands of people across West Africa and European and US Diaspora communities, these forms of cultural production have been sustained in significant part due to the commitment of a relatively small, core network of writers, journalists and performers.
Through his research, John found that the collaboration occurring between these Senegalese and Mauritanian Pulaar language activists has been a resource for each as they pursue claims within their respective countries. Living in situations where the nation-state is an unreliable guarantor of minority claims and interests, Pulaar language activists strategically engage with a variety of institutions and transnational connections. These engagements include the airing of programs on state-run and private radio and TV networks, accessing resources provided by NGOs and development agencies, and the involvement of Pulaar literacy activists and online media personalities living abroad.
John’s research has also resulted in the recent publication of his 2017 article, “‘A River is not a Boundary’: Interplays of National and Linguistic Citizenship in Pulaar Language Activism” in the Canadian Journal of African Studies.