University Students’ Attitudes Towards Multilingualism among Ethnolinguistic communities in South Darfur

This chapter explores how the University of Nyala (henceforth UoN) students (Fur, Zaghawa, Masalit, and Daju) and their respective communities characterised by ethnolinguistic vitality in South Darfur negotiate, through ethnolinguistic dynamics, construction of their identities and political processes. The data were gathered via conducting focused group discussions with the university students, interviews with informed individuals, ethnographic observation, and linguistic semiotics produced and showcased at public events by the study population at different intervals spanning from January 2012 to September 2022. The study concludes that such groups were influenced by the competitive interethnic environment created by the current conflict in Darfur, asserting preservation of their ethnolinguistic vitality, ingroup sustainability, and political strengths via several processes, including vitalising of their native languages (transliteration), ‘resurrecting’ and exalting their ancient political figures (iconisation), and increasing their physical visibility through cultural performance, as well as posting ethnic solidarity signifiers in public events (visualisation). These they negotiated through, respectively, writing indicative phrases in their local languages on banners hung at public spaces, bringing ‘alive’ their ancient political symbols to assert the domination of their groups, and through attaching national symbols (flag and national anthem) to their groups together with mass ethnic mobilisation and participation in public events.