`Malagasy' or `Madagascan'? Which English term best reflects the people, the culture, and other things from Madagascar?
Two words, Malagasy and Madagascan, have emerged in the literature as English terms to refer to the people, the culture, and other animate and inanimate objects from Madagascar, the choice of which has left room for confusion for users (e.g. Malagasy art or Madagascan art, Malagasy rice or Madagasca...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2019-07-01
|
| Series: | Scientific African |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2468227619300778 |
| _version_ | 1811326340313382912 |
|---|---|
| author | Ny Riavo G. Voarintsoa Andriamiranto Raveloson Rondrotiana Barimalala Onja H. Razafindratsima |
| author_facet | Ny Riavo G. Voarintsoa Andriamiranto Raveloson Rondrotiana Barimalala Onja H. Razafindratsima |
| author_sort | Ny Riavo G. Voarintsoa |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Two words, Malagasy and Madagascan, have emerged in the literature as English terms to refer to the people, the culture, and other animate and inanimate objects from Madagascar, the choice of which has left room for confusion for users (e.g. Malagasy art or Madagascan art, Malagasy rice or Madagascan rice, Malagasy Republic or Madagascan Republic, and so forth). This article has two aims: (1) understanding the sources of such confusion, and (2) subsequently proposing a unified English term (noun and adjective) that will avoid further misperceptions in written and verbal communications accounting for Madagascar. The results from investigating the Web of Science, from historical documents, and from viewpoints from online survey combine to suggest that the term ‘Malagasy’ must have unintentionally been substituted by the term ‘Madagascan’ from the earliest documented usage until now. These two words have been used interchangeably, and the usage has never been applied consistently. This could have been influenced by the simple assumption that ‘Madagascan’ is an intuitive form, derivative of Madagascar. The word “Malagasy” is not simply a straightforward English–Malagasy translation but there is much meaning to it that relate to the history and the culture of Madagascar. ‘Malagasy’ is unique to Madagascar, and in future usage in the English language, we recommend everyone to use it as a word qualifier for different objects, animals, plants, and the people of Madagascar. Keywords: Malagasy, Madagascan, Madagascar, Terminology misconception |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T14:48:12Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9fd20a7fa051481f81b2bd298efa5130 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2468-2276 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T14:48:12Z |
| publishDate | 2019-07-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific African |
| spelling | doaj.art-9fd20a7fa051481f81b2bd298efa51302022-12-22T02:42:41ZengElsevierScientific African2468-22762019-07-014`Malagasy' or `Madagascan'? Which English term best reflects the people, the culture, and other things from Madagascar?Ny Riavo G. Voarintsoa0Andriamiranto Raveloson1Rondrotiana Barimalala2Onja H. Razafindratsima3Department of Geology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-2501, USA; Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Corresponding author at: Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.School of Geosciences, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South AfricaDepartment of Oceanography, University of Cape Town, South AfricaDepartment of Biology, College of Charleston, 66 George St., Charleston, SC 29424, USATwo words, Malagasy and Madagascan, have emerged in the literature as English terms to refer to the people, the culture, and other animate and inanimate objects from Madagascar, the choice of which has left room for confusion for users (e.g. Malagasy art or Madagascan art, Malagasy rice or Madagascan rice, Malagasy Republic or Madagascan Republic, and so forth). This article has two aims: (1) understanding the sources of such confusion, and (2) subsequently proposing a unified English term (noun and adjective) that will avoid further misperceptions in written and verbal communications accounting for Madagascar. The results from investigating the Web of Science, from historical documents, and from viewpoints from online survey combine to suggest that the term ‘Malagasy’ must have unintentionally been substituted by the term ‘Madagascan’ from the earliest documented usage until now. These two words have been used interchangeably, and the usage has never been applied consistently. This could have been influenced by the simple assumption that ‘Madagascan’ is an intuitive form, derivative of Madagascar. The word “Malagasy” is not simply a straightforward English–Malagasy translation but there is much meaning to it that relate to the history and the culture of Madagascar. ‘Malagasy’ is unique to Madagascar, and in future usage in the English language, we recommend everyone to use it as a word qualifier for different objects, animals, plants, and the people of Madagascar. Keywords: Malagasy, Madagascan, Madagascar, Terminology misconceptionhttp://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2468227619300778 |
| spellingShingle | Ny Riavo G. Voarintsoa Andriamiranto Raveloson Rondrotiana Barimalala Onja H. Razafindratsima `Malagasy' or `Madagascan'? Which English term best reflects the people, the culture, and other things from Madagascar? Scientific African |
| title | `Malagasy' or `Madagascan'? Which English term best reflects the people, the culture, and other things from Madagascar? |
| title_full | `Malagasy' or `Madagascan'? Which English term best reflects the people, the culture, and other things from Madagascar? |
| title_fullStr | `Malagasy' or `Madagascan'? Which English term best reflects the people, the culture, and other things from Madagascar? |
| title_full_unstemmed | `Malagasy' or `Madagascan'? Which English term best reflects the people, the culture, and other things from Madagascar? |
| title_short | `Malagasy' or `Madagascan'? Which English term best reflects the people, the culture, and other things from Madagascar? |
| title_sort | malagasy or madagascan which english term best reflects the people the culture and other things from madagascar |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2468227619300778 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT nyriavogvoarintsoa malagasyormadagascanwhichenglishtermbestreflectsthepeoplethecultureandotherthingsfrommadagascar AT andriamirantoraveloson malagasyormadagascanwhichenglishtermbestreflectsthepeoplethecultureandotherthingsfrommadagascar AT rondrotianabarimalala malagasyormadagascanwhichenglishtermbestreflectsthepeoplethecultureandotherthingsfrommadagascar AT onjahrazafindratsima malagasyormadagascanwhichenglishtermbestreflectsthepeoplethecultureandotherthingsfrommadagascar |