Скачать или смотреть Africa’s linguistic diversity goes largely unnoticed in research on multilingualism

This geographic bias is not unique to multilingualism research. It echoes concerns raised in many other scientific fields about the lack of representation of scholars and research locations in the so-called “global south” (Africa, Latin America, and most countries in Asia and Oceania).

In this case, however, the underrepresentation is particularly detrimental. It is precisely in the global south that multilingualism is most common. The predominance of global north research locations, then, means that much of the knowledge of multilingualism stems from regions that are comparatively monolingual.

This is not to say that no research is being carried out in highly multilingual regions. We ourselves are currently conducting a large-scale study on multilingualism in South Africa, and we know of several (South) African scientific journals that regularly publish studies conducted in African countries and other linguistically diverse areas. However, studies published in smaller journals may be less likely to shape the field of multilingualism research.

The reduced visibility of research conducted in the global south has a complex web of causes. These include the unequal distribution of resources (like research infrastructure and research funding), as well as bias in the academic publishing system, which is dominated by global north institutions and publishing houses.

As a consequence of this imbalance, the global north is often seen as the “default” site for research, while global south settings are perceived as specific and a source of knowledge that is not generalisable to other contexts. This is simply untrue.
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