The Role Language of Choice in Construction and Negotiation of Social Identities among Church Members in Multilingual Churches

Abstract:

Multilingual churches are significant places that not only serve as a medium of communication but also as a tool for building and negotiating social identity. Language diversity in churches has grown and escalated the importance of investigating the role of language use on church members’ experiences of belonging, participation and inclusion in worship. This study focused on the role of language choice in the construction and negotiation of social identities of church members in the multilingual churches in Kajiado North Sub-County, Kenya. The study adopted descriptive research design where 377 church members were surveyed using questionnaire and interview. Data analysis involved descriptive statistics for quantitative data and thematic and discourse analysis for qualitative data. The results indicated that language choice had a significant effect on how social identity was formed and expressed, as it affected the sense of belonging, participation and acceptance of the members in the church communities. English, Kiswahili, indigenous Kenyan languages and code-switching were strategically used to help churches respond to the linguistic diversity of congregants, boost common religious identities and reduce social exclusion. This sometimes led to an experience of marginalization for certain members of the congregation; however, as these were seen as dominant languages, often the relationship between language, power and identity was complex in multilingual worship contexts.