Day Four: Zooming in the obscure hills of Nigeria

Characteristically, language is species specific and species generic possession that is uniquely human, that is peculiar to human beings and it can be both an individual property (when it exists as knowledge) and a social property, when it manifests to perform its function.

Nigeria, next to the Island of New Guinea, is linguistically the richest country in the world with over 500 indigenous languages. This situates the country as one of the linguistically diverse nations of the world. Out of the existing indigenous languages, three are regarded as national languages- Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba.

Hausa is one of the regional languages used in Nigeria. The language is one of the largest in West Africa and it has an estimated 30 million native users while an additional 20 million people use the language as the second language. Hausa is one of the regional languages used in Nigeria. The use of the language is also propagated by local media as well as international media such as Deutsche Welle, Voice of America as well The BBC.

The Hausa language traditionally used the Arabic writing system, but in recent years the language has incorporated the use of the Latin alphabet.

Yoruba is spoken by around 18.9 million Nigerians. It is the native language of the Yoruba people, a people native to West Africa. The Yoruba language is a member of the Niger-Congo family. Yoruba is a tonal language and comprises of three tones, namely high, mid, and low. Yoruba also features many loan words from Arabic.

Igbo is another regional language popularly used in Nigeria particularly in the southeastern region of the country. Igbo is one of the most popular languages in Nigeria with an estimated 24 million native speakers, the majority of whom are members of the Igbo ethnic group. There are more than 20 dialects of the Igbo language, but the standardized Igbo is based on Umuahia and Owerri dialects. Igbo is another regional language popularly used in Nigeria particularly in the southeastern region of the country.

As Nigeria is home to a diverse number of ethnic groups, so it would make sense that there are a variety of indigenous languages spoken in the country as well. Nigeria is home to hundreds of indigenous languages. In recent years, the federal government has been making efforts to promote the use of indigenous languages, many of which are endangered. Some of the indigenous languages spoken in Nigeria include Tiv, Kanuri, and Fulfulde.

Nigerian middle and upper classes increasingly speak English with their children. Linguists and writers worry about the survival of native languages, especially in the south.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie received more attention last year at the seventh annual Igbo conference, when the world-famous author of Half the Sun and Americanah told the audience that she speaks only Igbo with her daughter. Learning English was for a later phase, she added. “I’m always struck by the surprise people show, Igbo people in particular. They are sometimes shocked when they realize that my child speaks Igbo. Why?”

An excerpt:

 “Many years ago a friend introduced me to one of her friends. She said: ‘Chidi does not speak Igbo, by the way.’ Then her friend replied: ‘I am sorry for you.’ That has never left me. I wondered why did this person whom I never knew feel sorry for me?”