JOURNAL OF LINGUISTICS, LANGUAGE AND CULTURE (JOLLC)
Journal of Linguistics, Language and Culture (JoLLC) publishes research papers in linguistics, language and culture. It especially is interested in essays and studies that contribute to a better understanding of linguistics, language and culture in education. The journal also publishes critical reviews of books that contribute to knowledge in the areas of linguistics, language and culture. The number and the professional structure of the consulting editors correspond with the objectives and scope of the journal.
Dissecting the phenomenon of borrowing in Urhobo
The scope of our world is infinite in nature. New entities and phenomena are invented regularly, and as such, the need to constantly expand the vocabulary of any language is important. This is to enable the language to identify any new entity or phenomenon which may not have existed at some point; thus, the introduction of a new entity or phenomenon into a culture is concomitant with the introduction of a new word into its language. A language uses different processes of word formation to incorporate new words into its vocabulary. The most common of these processes is borrowing, which entails copying a lexical item from a language otherwise known as donor language, to another language known as recipient language. The act of borrowing is an upshot of language contact and it is triggered by the need to name a new concept or element. Imasuen (1998/1999) opined that borrowing is one of the several means by which languages adapt in response to a continuously changing socio cultural environment. As a common phenomenon to all languages, borrowing manifests itself in four different forms namely loan word, loan blend, loan translation and loan shift. This study discussed in detail and within the theoretical framework of functional grammar, the phenomenon of borrowing in Urhobo, a Benue-Congo language spoken by the Urhobo people of southern Nigeria. Its centre focus is to determine: (a) the forms of borrowing in the language; (b) rationale for borrowing in the language; (c) the donor languages; and (d) the effect of borrowing on the language. These were achieved through the collection and analysis of written and spoken data.
Communication and socio-engineering: The realities of SMS in language pedagogy
That man is advancing daily is a fact that Applied Linguists cannot shy away from. The global advancement is centered on communication and language is its hub. This study has as its focus on the GSM revolution and how its short messaging service (SMS) is reshaping language, for instance, the English language in Nigeria. It is the belief of many linguists that the short messaging service is taking text messaging through a natural process of language development. Findings have shown that the youths are more active in the use of text messaging. This is more reason why Applied Linguistics cannot go to sleep because this fragmentation of words, which is the concern of short messaging service, has dire consequences on the written English of Nigeria students mainly at the post-primary level of Education.
Goodnews Chinasa Ihezuonu & Chinedum Enweonye
Le pronom personnel dans la syntaxe de l’igbophone apprenant du français
Ce travail fait une étude contrastive des pronoms personnels en français et en igbo. D’àpres la linguistique contrastive les points de convergence entre deux langues faciliteraient l’enseignement et l’apprentissage de la nouvelle, alors que les points de divergence constitueraient des difficultés d’acquisition. Les découvertes de cette enquête peuvent donc nous déceler les sources de certaines difficultés d’apprentissage chez les igbophones apprenants du français
Significance of trickster in Igbo folktales in the education of the child: A lesson to all Nigerians
Folktale is universal. It is found in all parts of the world. One of the outstanding characteristics of folktale is the possession of trickster. Trickster has different names in the tales of different ethnic groups of the world. In Hausa, he is “ereke”, in Yoruba he is “ijapa”, in Ashanti (Ghana) he is “ananse”, in Trinidad, he is fox, in other parts of Europe, he is rabbit, monkey or hare etc. A trickster is often something of a rogue. He manages to extricate himself from intrigue and sometimes saves himself from dangerous situation by a display of mental ability. The trickster of the folktales of the Igbo people of Nigeria is tortoise ‘Mbe’. Tortoise is not an outstanding animal. In the case of gathering of animals, he would be the least noticed. There are large, ferocious, and beautiful animals that would make the presence of tortoise unnoticed. But when it comes to folktales, tortoise is the smallest among the characters. He so much defeats other characters by his deceptions. His greatest weapon is lies. Most of Igbo folktales are moral tales. They teach moral, yet trickster plays prominent role in the tales of Igbo people. In other words, trickster is used in the education of the young. The writer investigated the reasons for such development through reading books and journals relating to the topic. She studied six Igbo folktales and also through oral interviews of some prominent Igbo people of ages ranging from 20-70 yrs of age. The writer found out amongst other things that Igbo world view on life is responsible to the use of tricksters in their education of the young.
L’interférence des phonèmes suprasegmentaux Igbo en prononciation française
Une langue est avant tout un moyen de communication. L’aptitude de parler une ou plusieurs langues étrangères, donne accès à une audience plus large. L’acquisition du français langue étrangère ne se fait pas sans des problèmes d’interférence de la langue maternelle en l’occurrence l’igbo. Ce qui implique qu’il faut pouvoir conquérir les problèmes d’interférences phonologique qui ont le plus souvent entrave la bonne communication en langue étrangère en l’occurrence, la langue française. Les sons des langues humaines peuvent s’interférer, surtout en parole. En effet les sons suprasegmentaux igbo comme les autres langues à ton peuvent également interférer avec les phonèmes du français. Cette interférence phonologique et phonétique est provoquée par la divergence dans la nature des sons igbo et français. Les autres causes découlent de l’absence de certains sons français en langue maternelle de l’apprenant en l’occurrence, l’igbo. Par Exemple, une neutralisation d’un son en langue igbo, ou un contraste des sons valables en certaines positions, qui s’effacent dans les autres, peuvent causer l’interférence phonétique. Basé sur l’analyse des récentes recherches faites sur le comportement des phonèmes suprasegmentaux igbo avec les sons du français, on a découvert que les sons suprasegmentaux comprenant l’accent d’intensité, la hauteur, le ton et l’intonation interférent avec les phonèmes du français compte tenu des différentes phonologiques et phonétique entre une langue phonémique et une langue à ton en l’occurrence l’igbo. De la, dérive le phénomène de l’interférence phonétique occasionnant une prononciation fautive qui entrave la communication en français parlé.
Inheritance in Igbo contemporary society: Socio economic implications
Inheritance is the process of receiving or acquiring the property of a dead person. Every community and tribe has its peculiar system of inheritance. The scope of inheritance is very wide. It includes property and political inheritance like chieftaincy titles and positions of importance in the society. The study is limited to property inheritance. The manner people inherit property of their dead relatives in recent times has caused a lot of problems which many a time lead to violence, litigation and loss of life. The purpose of this study is to highlight the ways of inheritance in the olden days and how it is being practised today. Data for the study are collected from texts and interviews. It was discovered that in the olden days, people had an organized and accepted system of inheritance (though not written) with the result that they did not experience much problem and misunderstanding in sharing and acquiring the property of a dead relation. Today, the story is quite different. People struggle and quarrel over the property of their dead ones. It is discovered that greed and neglect for laid down rules of inheritance are not followed, some mischievous elders mislead the younger ones for some selfish benefits. Money seems to be all and all; hence the wealthy ones intimidate the poor and snatch their property from them. Recommendations are made on how to address problems emanating from inheritance to avert the conflicts and make for peaceful coexistence.
From English to Igbo translation of pre-marital sex messages for effective awareness
Premarital sex has become a menace in the society. It has eaten deep into the society that it is now considered a societal worm. Budgets and lots of governmental funds are being directed yearly to sex education. Hence, premarital sex has become a prevalent topic in today's society. This work delved into the causes of premarital sex such as poor family background, influence of peer groups, alcohol and drugs, early dating, need for social interaction, etc exposing and treating them profusely. Also, the consequences/effects of this act which ranges from physical effects, spiritual effects to psychological effects were also expatiated upon. It finally suggested possible means through which the ugly monster would be curbed in the society. This work aimed at enhancing the knowledge of the society about premarital sex and most importantly to bring this education on the causes and effects of premarital sex down to the doorsteps of the uneducated youths of the society especially in the Igbo speaking region through the translation of the causes and effects of premarital sex into Igbo. This will go a long way in reducing its effects when translated for effective communication and awareness in the society.
Explorations of the complementarity of pragmatic principles in Shoneyin’s the secret lives of Baba Segi’s wives
Communication is a goal-oriented phenomenon which requires that participants make conscious choices that best convey their illocutionary goals and yield the desired utterance meaning. These choices often bring the pragmatic principles into conflict with each other. The paper examines the complementary interplay of the Gricean Cooperative Principle (CP) and Leech’s Politeness Principle (PP) in the advancement of discourse goals. It reveals that the CP and the PP conflict with each other in utterances, leaving the speaker a choice to sacrifice one in favour of the other. This engenders a maxim “trade-off” relationship inter-principle and intra-principle. The choice of maxim precedence observed in the text is conditioned by the socio-cultural contexts of the communicators and the illocutionary goals of the utterances. The analyses show that neither the CP nor the PP is unilaterally adequate in all talk exchanges, but the two complement each other’s social function. As both interact in the interpretation of indirectness, the use of an indirect speech act to preserve the PP often induces implicature failure on the part of the hearer.
Numerals tell a lot of stories about the resourcefulness of most African languages. This is because several studies have shown that numerals (at least from 11-1000) are formed through various mathematical and morphological processes. It is through this mathematical means, that languages/dialects are able to form complex numerals from basic ones when the need arises. This paper records, documents and analyses the numeration process in Ukwunzu community in Delta state, where the Olukumi, a dialect of Yoruba (Yoruboid Family) and the Enuani dialect of Igbo (Igboid Family) are both spoken as native tongues. As a result of this peculiar bilingual situation in the community, this study will be both descriptive and comparative. In doing a descriptive study, we looked at the various mathematical and morphological processes involved in the derivation of numerals in both dialects and since both dialects are spoken by the same group of people, we placed both numerals side by side in our analysis to bring out the similarities and differences in their operations. Findings show that both addition and multiplication are prevalent processes in both dialects; thus new forms are derived by adding to the base or multiplying it. Also both dialects favour the vigesimal (base 20) system of counting, where new numerals are derived by adding to or multiplying the base. The study shows that most languages adopt the same universal principle in the derivation of new numerals, though the mathematical or morphological processes involved may vary from one language/dialect to another. The paper observes, in the course of research, that quite a lot has been done on numeration in the Nigerian major languages and that very little work has been done on the minority languages/dialects. The paper therefore recommends that efforts be made to record and document numeral systems of minority/dying dialects, in order to preserve their rich linguistic as well as cultural heritage.
The expression of imperative mood in Igbo
This paper examines the expression of imperative mood in Igbo syntax and the morphological structures of the verb forms used in expressing it, their tonal behaviours and how they occur in the syntactic structures. The data were obtained through observation of naturally occurring speech of Igbo native speakers. The paper adopts a descriptive method in the analysis of the data. The work reveals that the verbs used in expressing imperative mood in Igbo are morphologically marked. Not all the verbs are used to express it. The verbs involved are mainly action verbs and some stative verbs. Sometimes, the verbs with only the CV – root can be used to express it. The occurrence of the verb root with the suffixes is determined by the semantic content of the utterance. The syllabic nasal prefix “n-” is identified to occur as the prefix of the three verbs of movement such as “-je” (go), “ga” (go), “-la” (go) while “m: occurs as the prefix of “fu” (go/leave). Tone plays vital role in expressing imperative mood in Igbo. The rule of vowel harmony is observed. The verb forms used in expressing imperative mood in Igbo take mainly suffixes and minimally prefixes.
Evaluating the usage of indigenous languages in African literature: Biakolo’s situation in wonderful child
Language is undoubtedly fundamental to literature, and African literature like other literatures in the world depend solemnly on it for its full expression. The primary language used by the African writer is the one inherited from their colonial masters. However, during the last few decades there has been a remarkable shift in the focus of some African writers. They tend to bring into limelight some aspects of indigenous languages by way of substituting some western words with indigenous ones like Biakolo did in Wonderful Child. In this paper, our attention is focused on the combination of the two languages: English and Urhobo, with emphasis on how the Urhobo words are used. Biakolo made the reader to consciously or unconsciously identify with some Urhobo words. Effort will be made to determine the position of the writer as a teacher of the Urhobo language especially in relationship with its development as a minority language in Nigeria. Suggestions will be made on the analysis and which could be applied to other minority languages in Nigeria.
A look at the degradation of the Igbo language and culture
Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba are recognized as Nigeria’s three major languages. However, the Igbo language currently cannot be said to compete with the other two major languages, Hausa and Yoruba because of the degradation noticed in the Igbo language and culture particularly in schools, business sectors and churches. This degradation is attributed to the poor attitude of the Igbo towards their language and culture. This paper highlights the attitude of the Igbo exhibited in schools, business sectors and churches towards their language and culture and makes recommendation on how to overcome the problem.
Literature and democratic reforms in Nigeria
This paper is on the impact of literature on the democratic reforms process in Nigeria. It explains democracy as an alternative political system that involves the freedom of human relationships in the acquisition and exercise of power to the benefit of the people. Literature, by its nature does not thrive in the oblivion, it emanates and develops from the conscious act of me in the society. These are preceded by the definitions of literature, democracy and reform to the foreground understanding of the works. It concludes by urging literary writers to, with deep sense of commitment, be painstaking in weeding the garden of democracy.
A pragmatic exploration of Orji Uzor Kalu’s apology to Abians
In pragmatics, we study meanings which transcend beyond the surface structure of a given speech act i.e. meanings drawn from context and not just structure. In doing so, we view every speech act, whether written or spoken as comprising of locutionary act, illocutionary act and perlocutionary act (Austin’s speech act theory). Following these laid down parameters, certain speech act carries certain illocutionary force, which is adjudged felicitious or infelicitious depending on whether the illocutionary act resulting thereof meets the felicity conditions as well as conforms to the four maxims as stipulated by the cooperative principles. In a discourse situation, the analyst seeks to ascertain the felicity or otherwise of a given speech act based on previous background knowledge. On February 6, 2013 in an interview with the daily sun, the former governor of Abia state Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu apologized to the people of Abia state for “installing” the present governor Theodore .A. Orji who from all development indicators have succeeded only in further under development of the state. Thus our goal in this study is to critically examine the above speech act using the theoretical frameworks stated, with a view to determine if it fulfils the four basic Gricean cooperative principle and also to determine its felicitious status. From both textual and contextual analysis, certain conclusions were drawn on the future of democracy in the country.
Chris U. Agbedo, Maria I. Obadan & Bosco Okolo-Obi
JOURNAL OF LINGUISTICS, LANGUAGE AND CULTURE (JOLLC), VOL 1 NO 2, 2014
A Sociolinguistic and Literary Analysis of the Proverb in Likpakpaln ‘Konkomba’
This paper is a descriptive study on lilantaŋal/liyaataŋal ‘the proverb’ in Likpakpaln. The methods employed included both participant and non-participant observations and the semi-structured interview. Also, a secondary material (a list of some proverbs in Likpakpaln) published by the Ghana Institute of Linguistics, Literacy and Bible Translation (GILLBT) in 1985 was consulted. The data ascertained through these procedures were filtered through informal conversations and by native speaker introspection. The paper discusses the conceptual meaning, functions, contexts of use and the artistry of the Likpakpaln ‘Konkomba’ proverb. In addition, a brief morpho-semantic analysis of the term, lilantaŋal is done in order to enhance the understanding of the concept. Firstly, the study establishes that the proverb as an oramedia tool in Likpakpaln permeates as many discourse platforms as exist among the Bikpakpaam (Konkomba people). Also, the paper observes that the use of proverbs as well as their interpretations among Bikpakpaam is highly context-dependent. This is so because the proverb a speaker chooses and the interpretation that a hearer assigns to the proverb both hinge on contextual variables such as the subject matter, the place and the time of communication. Closely linked to the foregoing idea is also the discovery that one’s capacity to appropriately interpret proverbs is tied to one’s level of maturity in the culture of the people. Furthermore, the study holds that the most widely attested function of proverbs among Bikpakpaam is the conveyance of pieces of advice to members of the community. This is, nonetheless, not to contradict the fact that the functions of proverbs still remain numerous among the people. For instance, Bikpakpaam also use proverbs in traditional adjudication, libua bul ‘divination’ and in clinching arguments generally. Finally, the paper demonstrates that the proverbial lore in Likpakpaln is rich in artistry, citing metaphor, anthropomorphism and paradox, inter alia, as some of the dominant literary motifs of the genre.
Abraham Kwesi Bisilki & Linda Chinelo Nkamigbo
The Sociolinguistics of Igbo Personal Names
Naming is a universal linguistic act. In Africa, naming is linked with traditions, values, beliefs, and events in people's lives. This study firstly presents sociocultural relevance of personal names in Igbo. Personal names in Igbo reveal important insights into the patterns of social and cultural organization of the Igbo society. The paper discusses the typology of Igbo names such as family names, occupational names, circumstantial names, market day names, kinship names, honorifics and title names, metaphoric names, etc. Igbo naming systems depict the Igbo culture and philosophy because an indigenous Igbo name identifies the bearer as a member of the Igbo society and carves a space for him/her in the society. In the traditional Igbo society, name givers chose personal names that reflect their culture. However, the changing modern and religious influences on the land and the people have left their impact on naming patterns. This results in changing naming practices. The paper, therefore, attempts a study of naming forms and change in Igbo identity within the framework of social and cultural dynamics. The paper reveals that names are no longer driven by the traditional Igbo philosophy rather by some external factors like new religions, urbanization and Western philosophy.
Ebumnuche nchọcha a bụ ịchọpụta ma kọwaa ọrụ dị iche iche kwunkwugha na nkwugharị okwu na-arụ n’abụ ọdịnala Ẹzaa na ụzọ ọrụ ndị ahụ si emetụta echiche nkiti na echiche nsịna n’abụ ndị ahụ. A gbasoro atụtụ njirime/echiche nsinọnọdụ na usoro ndacha okwu were tụchaa ụfọdụ abụ ọdịnala Ẹzaa dị ka abụ ikpe, abụ ekwerekwe na ndị ọzọ. Nchọcha a chọpụtara na ndị Ẹzaa na-eji kwunkwugha dị ka mgbamonwe nka okwu nye abụ ha ma site n’ụzọ ndị ahụ mee ka nkwenye agbụrụ, agwa nñomi, atụtụ izugbe, ndịniwu, ejirimara, ekpe na mgbasa omenala ha wee pụta ihe. Ọtụtụ mgbe abụ ndị Ẹzaa na-enwe ngwakọ asụsụ na/ma ọ bụ mmafenye asụsụ nke gosiri na a na-enwe mgbanwe n’abụ ndị ahụ ka ha na-esi n’aka otu ọgbọ banye n’ọzọ. A chọpụtakwara na abụ ọdịnala Ẹzaa na-eji kwunkwugha ezipụta ụdịdị echiche dị iche iche nye ihe a na-ekwu maka ya na ọnọdụ a nọ kwuo ya. A tụchara ọrụ ndị ahụ site na ileba anya n’ọka okwu ndị e ji wube abụ ndị ahụ sitekwa n’ụzọ ahụ mee ka omume na nkwenye ndị Ẹzaa bụrụ ndị a na-sọpụrụ.
Emmanuel Emeka Nwaoke, Goodluck C. Nwode & Roseline O. Uka Egwu
Wa’azantarwa A Waƙoƙin Wasannin Yara: Salon Koyar da Lissafi da Lafazin Gagara-Gwari
Wannan takarda ce da take kokarin bayyana wasu daga cikin wasannin da kuma waƙoƙin yara waɗanda suke da halin koyar da lissafi da lafazin Gagara-Gwari ga yara na zahiri da baɗini. A nan, ana la’akari ne da yaran da shekarunsu ya fara daga biyar (5) Zuwa goma sha biyu ko sha uku(12-13). Amma kar a manta da zancen manya da suke cewa,‘‘Allah ɗaya gari bam-bam’’. A nan, sunayen wasannin da ma waƙoƙi sukan sha bam-bam daga yanki zuwa yanki. Bayan ga manyan darrusa biyu da ake amfani dasu daga wasannin da ma waƙoƙin, ana koyon bin doka da oda, sai kuma nutsuwa-waɗannan biyun na bin mutum har tsawon rayuwarsa.
Asụsụ bụ ụzọ mmekọrịta nke mmadụ ji egosipụta mmetụta, echiche na mmasi. Obodo maọbụ agbụrụ ọ bụla nwere asụsụ nke ha. Ndị Igbo bụ ndị nwe asụsụ Igbo nke ọtụtụ obodo na mpaghara ọwụwa anyanwụ Naịjirịa na-asụ. E nwere ọtụtụ nsogbu chere asụsụ Igbo akamgba nke gụnyere enweghị mmasị, ajọ agwa, enweghị ọtụtụ akwụkwọ, enweghị ndị nkụzi, nnọgbụ nke asụsụ bekee, enweghị ezi nkwado n’aka ndị nne na nna, wdgz. Ebumnobi nchọcha a bụ ịchọpụtagasị nnukwu nsogbu chere asụsụ Igbo akamgba. Nchọcha a chọpụtara nsogbu atọ gbara ọkpụrụkpụ nke gụnyere enweghị otu obi, enweghị mmasị na nledaanya, na ndị nne na nna enyeghị ụmụ ha ezi nkwado. N’ikpeazụ, a tụpụtara alo ndị ga-eme ka e nwe mgbanwe n’ajọ ọnọdụ a.
The Role of a Foreign Language (English) in the Socio-Economic-Cum-Political Development of a French Nation: A Case Study of Bénin Republic
The world is gradually becoming a global village and for proper understanding of each other, emphasis must be placed on the promotion of languages either indigenous or foreign. This paper therefore takes a look at the significance of foreign language (English language) in the socio-economic-cum-political development of Bénin Republic. And for English language to play such a vital role in a French speaking country like Bénin Republic, the author put forward some salient recommendations towards creating an international forum for Bénin Republic through an effective integration of English language in the life of a French speaking nation like Bénin.
Language, foreign language, development, language situation, multicultural and multi-lingual
Ajani Akinwumi Lateef & Tchakassou Seraphin
La Revolte Feministe Dans Perpetue Et L’habitude Du Malheur Et La Ruine Presque Cocasse D’un Polichinelle De Mongo Beti
Le problème de féminisme a engendré beaucoup d’écrits à travers plusieurs écrivains du globe. Le problème de féminisme porte particulièrement sur la cherche d’égalité entre un homme et une femme. C’est alors, la question des complexes dans laquelle une femme ou le sexe féminine est considérées inferieur au sexe masculin regarder comme celui supérieur. Cette positon a bien provoqué des réactions chez les femmes particulièrement celles considérées comme « les élites » dans le globe entier et en Afrique indépendante en particulier. Ce n’est pas seulement chez les femmes. Il y a beaucoup d’écrivains du sexe opposé qui rendent en leurs apports au sexe féminin pour contester et même contaminer violement ce fait d’infériorité attribué à ce sexe féminin. En Afrique, nous avons beaucoup de ces écrivains tels que Mongo Beti, Ousmane Sembène, Wole Soyinka, Guillaume Oyono-Mbia et ainsi de suite. Les femmes, particulièrement celles Africaines paraissent être silencieuses devant ce fait « d’infériorité » surtout les femmes illitéreés.Mais il arrive parfois les instances dans lesquelles elles se révoltent contre cet acte considèrée comme celui « abérrant ». Voilà pourquoi dans les romans Perpétue et l’habitude du malheur et La ruine presque cocassed’un polichinelle de Mongo Beti, perpétue l’héroïne de Perpétue et l’habitude du malheur nous présente des signes révoltants face au mal traitement par le bias de son époux, Edouard. Ces éléments révoltants s’apparent aussi chez Elingui Ngwane le protagoniste du roman La ruine presque cocasse d’un polichinelle du même auteur. Ces éléments sont apparents dans plusieurs ouvrages des écrivains africains dont nous allons faire témoigne
Prosodic Import of Eha-Amufu Mask Chants
Among the Eha-Amufu people of Isi-uzo Local Government Area in Enugu State, the mask institution is a hallowed traditional cult which has many variants in its fold. A notable aspect, the ‘mmonwu’, consists of masquerades which represent the spirits of the dead that come back to the living periodically to perform various roles which largely border on ritual modes. These actuated entities operate mostly in dramatic modes of spectacle; especially the type consisting of chants and entertainment. The mask chants and songs of esoteric and ancient traditional peculiarities form a large part of the people’s cultural needs. Traditional verses rendered by the masquerades contain prosodic elements which although are not exactly intelligible words of the Eha-Amufu dialect, still contain meanings that if well comprehended contribute to a holistic appreciation of the masquerade poetry performance. The important prosodic features are what this work explores; and indeed finds out the otherwise over looked kernels of crucial information in the general versification of this all important aspect of Eha-Amufu traditional performance.
Christopher Amaechi Ugwu, Goodluck Chigbo Nwode & Faith Eucharia Nnedinso Amaechi
A Syntactic Analysis of ‘fa’ in Ilorin Yorùbá Dialect
The prevalence of the grammatical constituent ‘fa’ in the conversational speech of Ilorin Yorùbá speakers is so unique that such feature is not observable in any other Yorùbá dialects. Hitherto, no tangible academic work has been done to give account of this phenomenon within the context of syntax. Thus, adopting the Principles and Parameters approach to linguistic theory, this paper examines the syntactic status of ‘fa’ in Ilorin Yorùbá Dialect with a view to proffering answers to two paramount questions: (a) Under which syntactic category can ‘fa’ be classified in the grammar of the dialect, and on what basis? (b) Does ‘fa’ have a syntactic license to head its own syntactic structure? Employing researcher’s observation cum oral interview, the data analyzed in this study were obtained from ten (10) indigenes of Ilorin who possess an appreciable competence in the dialect. From the survey carried out, there was uniformity in the responses of the speakers that the particle ‘fa’ is usually employed as a tool of emphasis in conversational settings. Similarly, it is observed that the speakers use it to exert prominence on the entire massage conveyed in the sentence rather than on a specific lexical or phrasal constituent. Therefore, this paper concludes that ‘fa’ expresses pragmatic focus in the dialect; meanwhile it is proposed that the particle be classified as a Quasi-Focus Marker on the basis of its function. Hence, being a functional constituent, it is ‘qualified’ to head its own syntactic structure, named in this paper as ‘Quasi-Focus Phrase’.
Syntactic analysis, Ilorin Yorùbá Dialect, fa, Quasi-focus marker/phrase, Principles and Parameters
Polysemy in Oghe Variant of Igbo language
This study investigates the concept and use of polysemy in Oghe Variant of Igbo language. Polysemy arises where one lexical item has two or more related meanings. There are some instances where polysemy brings about ambiguity which in turn distorts the meaning of lexical items. This study is based on literary meanings of polysemous lexemes in Oghe. There has not been a study of polysemy in Oghe variant of Igbo language to the best knowledge of the researcher. This prompted the researcher into investigating into this writeup. The objective of the study is to find out whether polysemy can exist in Oghe variety of Igbo without ambiguity. To achieve the objective of the study, the researcher collected lexical items from indigenes of Oghe. The use theory of Wittgenstein is used as the theoretical frame work of the study. It is found out among other things that polysemy can exist in Oghe variant of Igbo without ambiguity with the aid of use and context. The study will help to enrich the Igbo vocabulary as well as help lexicographers in the compilation of a standard Igbo dictionary.
JOURNAL OF LINGUISTICS, LANGUAGE AND CULTURE (JOLLC), VOL 6 NO 1, 2019
On Issue of Suprasegmental Assimilation in Igbo: A Review
This paper, which is a review of Uwaezuoke’s previous study, re-investigates assimilation in Igbo with the aim of not only establishing that tone assimilation exists in the language, but that it occurs both within a word and across word boundary. Primary data from Ogbunike Igbo variety and secondary data from existing literatures are analysed using descriptive method. From the results, tone assimilation exists in Igbo, and occurs both within a word and across word boundary in connected speech. For example, where the first noun ends in a down-stepped tone and the second noun begins with a high tone, the down-stepped tone of the final vowel of the first word assimilates the high pitch of the initial vowel of the second word, e.g. elū ‘top’ + ụlọ̀ ‘house’ → elu ụlọ̀ ‘house top’. Where the first word has a H ↓H tone sequence and the second word has a L L tone sequence, the down-stepped tone of the final vowel of the first word assimilates to the high tone of the initial vowel of the first word, e.g. egō ‘money’ + ìtè ‘pot’ → ego ìtè ‘money for pot’. Also, where the first word is in its infinitive form with a H ↓H tone sequence and the second word has a H H tone sequence, the high tone of the initial vowel of the second word drops its high pitch and completely assimilates the reduced high pitch of the final vowel of the first word, ibē ‘to cry’ + akwa ‘cry’ → ibē ākwa ‘crying’. Tone assimilation could be regressive or progressive.
Igbo phonology; tone assimilation; supra-segment; phonological processes
尼日利亚学生在学习汉字时遇到的挑战和困难
学习汉字的难点在全世界汉语学生的斗争中表现得淋漓尽致，有必要优先寻求解决办法。正是出于这样的需要，本研究“纳姆迪·阿齐基韦大学汉学系学生在学习汉字中遇到的挑战和难点”应运而生。本研究的总体目标是调查外国人在学习汉字时遇到的挑战和困难。具体目标是；了解汉语专业本科生在学习过程中遇到的困难，分析影响汉语专业学生学习汉字的这些挑战，并针对汉语专业学生在学习汉字时遇到的这些难题提供解决方案。除其他外，这项研究采用了习得学习理论。人口由用于研究的中国研究系的八十五人组成。为了使本研究具有更好的学术性，我们使用了原始数据来收集受访者的数据，其中使用了 85 项问卷作为数据收集工具。通过使用频率表和百分比来分析数据。本研究旨在为外国人在学习汉字中遇到的挑战和困难提供解决方案，最后得出结论并提出建议。本研究发现，汉字书写、形态差异、汉语声调系统、汉语发音困难、学习能力不足以及字与音的联系是本系学生学习汉字时遇到的挑战和困难。纳姆迪·阿齐基韦 大学中国研究系，奥卡阿南布拉州。
Àlẹ́gé is a small group of Bendi languages spoken in the Obudu Local Government Area of Cross River State, Nigeria, West Africa. In light of the community’s efforts to develop and sustain the language, this survey was conducted to assess the different domains of language use and the factors influencing the continued vitality of Àlẹ́gé in these domains. The aim of this study is to help the Àlẹ́gé community make informed decisions regarding the types of language development projects to initiate and the specific challenges to address. For this study, three survey methods were employed: individual and group interviews, participant observation, and the use of three structured questionnaires—village profile, household, and school-based questionnaires. Findings indicate that Àlẹ́gé is a multilingual community, where Àlẹ́gé is predominantly spoken alongside English, Nigerian Pidgin, and Bette (mostly spoken by adults) in certain domains. Despite the high level of multilingualism, the Àlẹ́gé people maintain a strong positive attitude toward their language, proudly using it in their homes, markets, churches, and other community domains. Considering various socio-economic and demographic factors, such as migration and youth unemployment, which currently affect the community, it is imperative to establish language development strategies that will enhance the vitality of Àlẹ́gé and prevent an intergenerational gap in language use. transmission.
Bosco Okolo-obi, Ebitare Obikudo, Roseline Alerechi
The semantics and pragmatics of proverbial dialogue
Language communicates the speaker’s intention to the hearer in every instance of human interaction. Linguistics maintains that language use carries both semantic and pragmatic content, and in Nigeria, language is often enriched with proverbs. However, there has been little investigation into the communicative value of the semantic and pragmatic content of proverbial language. This study seeks to determine whether the semantic and pragmatic content of proverbs is crucial for effective communication. A pragma-semantic approach is employed to analyze selected proverbs, using an arithmetic progression method for their selection. The findings confirm that proverbial expressions possess both semantic and pragmatic content. Importantly, the study reveals that the pragmatic content of proverbs plays a central role in conveying the speaker’s intention and is therefore essential for successful communication between the speaker and the addressee.