AUDIENCE PERCEPTION AND ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE USE OF PIDGIN IN BROADCASTING
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AUDIENCE PERCEPTION AND ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE USE OF PIDGIN IN BROADCASTING
Chapter two.
Literature Review
2.1 Introduction.
This chapter will provide a literature review for the study. The presentation will be divided into three primary sections: conceptual review, theoretical review, and summary of the literature examined.
2.2 Conceptual Review
2.2.1 Origin and Concept of Nigerian Pidgin English.
Nigerian pidgin is mostly an English-based pidgin and a Creole language by definition. According to Wikipedia (2017), the free encyclopaedia, this is because most speakers of the language are not native speakers, despite the fact that many children learn it from an early age. Pidgin, sometimes known as “brokin,” is widely spoken throughout Nigeria.
Elugbe and Omamor (1991) define pidgin as “some kind of a marginal language that arises to fulfil specific communication needs in welldefined circumstances.”
The aforementioned perspective suggests that pidgin is not an official lingualfranca, but rather a subsidiary language used for interaction, particularly among people who do not speak the same language.
According to Elugbe and Omamor, who cite Hall (1966), there are two indices that determine if a language is pidgin. According to their theory, for a language to be classified as pidgin, “its grammatical structure and vocabulary must be sharply reduced;
secondly, the resultant language must be native to none of those who use it” (Elugbe & Omamor, 1991). In accordance with the preceding assertion, Rickford (1998) confirmed that:
A pidgin frequently incorporates parts of its users’ original language and is simpler than their native languages in terms of word count, morphology, and a more limited range of phonological and syntactic choices.
Nigeria, according to Awodiya (2006), includes approximately 250 ethnic groupings. According to Wikipedia (2017), all of Nigeria’s approximately 250 ethnic groups can communicate in pidgin, however they typically add their own versions. The following examples exemplify this reality:
When speaking pidgin, the Yorubas utilise vocabulary like ‘Se’ (pronounced Shay) and ‘abi’. These are frequently employed as the beginning or finish of an intoned speech or query. For example, the phrase “you are coming right?” becomes “Se you dey come?” or “you dey come abi?”
The Igbos introduced the word “Nna,” which is also used at the beginning of some phrases to express brotherhood. Examples: “Man, that test was hard” changes to “Nna, that test hard no be small.” (Ingboanusi, 2008)
The origin of Nigerian Pidgin may be difficult to determine, however it can be traced back to contacts between Europeans and Nigerians. According to the literature, Nigerian Pidgin English was spoken as early as the 18th century, particularly in the Niger Delta’s coastal city states (Agheyisi, 1984; Ogu, 1992).
According to Agheyisi (1984), this early pidgin was mostly used for trading. However, as Flint (1960, p.83) notes, societal conditions and the introduction of schools by missionaries and colonial administrations gradually led to its growth and development.
The influx of Ibo (Igbo) east of the Niger resulted in a cosmopolitan effect, with most cities becoming trilingual, speaking Ijo, Efik, Ibo (Igbo), and Pidgin English for trade with Europeans.
By the end of the 18th century, Calabar had basic schools for teaching Pidgin English, reading, and writing, with the goal of producing clerks and bookkeepers.
In addition, Elugbe and Omamor (1991) assert that “Nigerian Pidgin rose from the contact between multilingual coastal communities of Nigeria and visiting European explorers/traders – first, the Portuguese, then briefly the Dutch and finally the English” .
As a result, there was an urgent need to communicate in a common language. A Portuguese-based Pidgin was initially developed, but it was later replaced by an English-based pidgin, which is still extensively used today. According to Jowitt (2000, p. 15):
Nigerian Pidgin probably evolved and developed its standard forms over a 3000-year period between the sixteenth and nineteenth century. Its vocabulary is based on English, with popular words like dash, palaver, and sabby (or sabe) most likely originating in Portuguese.
This is because the visiting European traders/explorers most likely considered it was unnecessary to acquire the language of the locals, possibly because they were superior to their local hosts and hence unwilling to master the local language.
On the other side, it could be because the local host speaks a variety of dialects and languages. As a result, foreigners began interacting with Nigerians in their native language.
According to Elugbe and Omamor (1991), “Nigerians had to accommodate the visiting Englishmen by resorting to some makeshift form of English”.
Therefore, Jowitt(2000) states that NigPE “served as a language of trade for communication between Englishmen and Nigerians living along the Nigerian coast and Pidgin was useful because it could be learned easily by both races” .
This was largely due to the fact that trade was the primary objective of both sides, and the Europeans saw little reason to invade the interior. However, in the nineteenth century, when Europeans, particularly Englishmen, took a new interest in the people and their land, the Englishmen did penetrate the interior, driven by religious and political interests.
Pidgin was thus supposed to serve as an important means of communication between the indigenous peoples and the invaders. Following independence, Nigeria adopted Standard English as its official language.
Despite the usage of Standard English as the nation’s lingua franca, it is clear that many Nigerians prefer to communicate in NigPE. According to Mafeni (1971), NigPE has become widely spoken in Nigeria, and many town and city residents are bilingual in NigPE and one indigenous language, usually their mother tongue.
Faraclas (2004), like Mafeni, claims that NigPE is now spoken by millions of people, particularly those under the age of 30, representing various linguistic areas in Nigerian culture.
According to Ihemere (2006), Nigerian pidgin is the native language of roughly three (3) to five (5) million people and at least another 75 million people speak it as a second language. Faraclas (2004, p.828) says this:
More than half of Nigeria’s 140 million people are now conversant in the language, making NPE the most widely spoken language in the country as well as the indigenous African language with the most speakers.
Given the rapid prevalence of NPE among younger Nigerians, this number is expected to rise to more than 70 or 80 percent by the time the current generation of children enters adulthood. NPE has more speakers than any other Creole language in the world.
Previously, NigPE seemed to have received little attention, with most speakers only embracing and associating with the language when it was essential to communicate. It’s worth noting that, despite its widespread use in Nigeria, Pidgin has yet to receive formal recognition.
However, the continued usage of NigPE by Nigerians has resulted in its increased popularity throughout the country. In other words, despite its unofficial status, NigPE has remained one of society’s most significant languages.
Although no language is linguistically minor or major, genuine or bastardised, Nigerian Pidgin English is often perceived as corrupt, bastardised, or substandard (Igboanusi 2008; Mann 1996). As noted by Elugbe and Omamor (1991), the general public’s impressions of NigPE are not founded on sound or logical reasoning.
Despite the fact that NigPE is spoken by the majority of Nigeria’s population today (Faraclas 2004; Igboanusi 2008), and it is used by people from all walks of life, including graduates and professionals (Akande 2008), the majority of Nigerians’ attitudes towards NigPE remain uninspiring. According to Deuber (2005, p. 183),
Although it is a major lingua franca, it has no official recognition; even without any policy statements, it performs a growing range of functions, including that of a medium of public broadcasting, but no efforts have been made to develop it so that it can cope with these functions, as has been done for major and, to some extent, minor indigenous languages.
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