Beatrice Ng’uono Okelo, Ph.D., is a linguist and a language pedagogy specialist.  She holds a Ph.D. in Linguistics, with a concentration in African languages and linguistics, and a minor in African Studies, from Indiana University. She has taught Swahili both as a second language, in Kenya, and as a foreign language, here in the U.S., where she has taught Swahili language and culture for about 16 years. 

This presentation focuses on language use and language identity in Kenya, and discusses the role of language in cultural identity; how language and its use shapes and influences a person’s identity; how other components of identity correlate with language; some stereotypes associated with a person’s language use and identity; the interrelationship between language and power; language identity vis-à-vis linguistic ability and language situation; language identity in Kenya and in globalized and diasporic contexts; how language is used in various situations in Kenya to accomplish different objectives; how language identity affects social interactions among Kenyans, home and abroad; the roles of language in uniting and dividing Kenyans, both in Kenya and abroad; and the roles of Kenyan languages in globalization and cultural integration.