It is not clear which population group most qualifies as the ‘founders’ of Namibian English. While Namibia's historical Afrikaans-speaking settler population has a tradition of Afrikaans-English bilingualism, English as a lingua franca was first introduced after independence by returning Black Namibian exiles with mostly Oshiwambo as a first language. This study seeks to determine which ethnolinguistic group plays the largest part in shaping contemporary Namibian English. Based on phonetic and ethnographic data, the findings suggest a loosening continuum between a White variety aligned with South African models and more locally rooted varieties. This partly reflects local language ideologies, which among the Blacks involve the pursuit of a Namibian urban identity set against both Namibian Whiteness and traditional Namibian ethnicities.

中文翻译：

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创始人原则和纳米比亚英语

目前尚不清楚哪个人口群体最有资格成为纳米比亚英语的“创始人”。虽然纳米比亚历史上讲南非荷兰语的移民人口具有南非荷兰语-英语双语的传统，但在独立后，英语作为通用语言首次被引入，主要是奥希万博语作为第一语言的纳米比亚黑人流亡者返回。本研究旨在确定哪个民族语言群体在塑造当代纳米比亚英语方面发挥了最大的作用。根据语音和人种学数据，调查结果表明，与南非模式一致的白色品种与更多本地植根品种之间的连续性正在松动。这在一定程度上反映了当地语言意识形态，其中黑人追求纳米比亚城市身份，反对纳米比亚白人和传统纳米比亚种族。