307 plural-marking strategies in etulo chikelu i. ezenwafor-afuecheta1 inyani adams2 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka1 benue state university, markurdi2 ci.ezenwafor@unizik.edu.ng1 inyaniadams87@gmail.com2 abstract this paper discusses the plural marking system of etulo (an idomoid language of niger congo). it describes the number marking strategies employed for categories such as the noun, pronoun, demonstratives and the verb/copula. it is observed that etulo lacks an inflectional plural. etulo expresses nominal plurality via the use of the plural morpheme ‘èmí’, reduplication, quantifiers, and vowel substitution. number marking in nouns may be obligatory or optional depending on the animacy feature of the noun. most animate [-human] and inanimate nouns may, but need not be marked for number while most animate nouns [+human] are obligatorily marked for number. etulo makes a dual distinction between the singular and plural in its pronominal paradigm. pronominal number is marked by suppletion. for the verb category, some type of number marking and agreement is observed with specific verbs such as the copula dzɛ ̀ ‘be’ (sg), to ‘be’ (pl), gbɛ/kie ‘take’. etulo demonstratives are marked for plurality using the morpheme ‘ńto ̄’. the data for this research are obtained via field work and are analysed using the descriptive approach. keywords: etulo, plurality, number agreement, pronominal number mailto:ci.ezenwafor@unizik.edu.ng1 mailto:inyaniadams87@gmail.com2 plural-marking strategies in etulo – ezenwafor-afuecheta & adams 308 1. introduction etulo is an idomoid language spoken in benue and taraba states located in the north central part of nigeria. it shares striking similarities with other idomoid languages (idoma, alago) within the benue congo subgroup of the niger congo language family. etulo is a tone language with a predominant svo word order. it is basically an isolating language with little agglutinative features. it is therefore, not unusual that the category of number is not inflectionally marked in etulo. number distinction in etulo is observed in categories such as the noun, pronoun, verb/copula and demonstratives. they show a two way contrast between singular and plural. across languages, a typological variation is observed with respect to number marking on nouns in terms of obligatoriness vs optionality of marking, the formal properties of plural marking, semantic distinctions on which classes of nouns get marked for plurality (see naess 2018). also, languages vary in terms of the number of values expressed by lexical categories (noun/pronoun). for instance, in english and some other european languages, a dual distinction is made between singular and plural while in languages like karko (a nubian language), number values attested by nouns include: singular, plural, singulative, pluralative, collective and associative (see jakobi & dimmendaal 2019). this paper gives a description of the strategies adopted in marking number number distinctions in etulo. it also discusses the relatively rare instances of number agreement especially between the etulo copula and the np subject. the rest of the paper is structured as follows: section 2 gives a review of related literature on plurality and number marking. section 3 discusses nominal plurality, pronominal number, pluralisation of demonstratives, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 309 verbal number agreement. section 4 gives the summary of findings and conclusion. the data for this research are obtained (via interview) from 3 native speakers of etulo using a structured questionnaire. a descriptive approach is adopted in the analysis of the language data. the etulo data are represented using the international phonetic alphabets (ipa) and the tones are fully marked. 2. plural marking across languages the number category is assumed to be language universal although there is considerable variation across languages on the means of expressing it. the basic evidence for the category of number is found in the distinction between singular and plural in relation to nouns and other categories. crystal (2003) notes that number is a grammatical category that covers word classes displaying such contrasts as singular, plural, dual, trial or apical (few). plurality applies to not only nouns, but also to other categories such as the pronoun, determiner/demonstratives, and verbs when they encode the number value of more than one. for the noun, dryer (2013) identifies two ways of indicating plurality. the first involves changing the morphological form of the noun via affixation, stem change, partial or full reduplication of the stem and tone. the second involves coding of plurality by means of a morpheme that occurs somewhere else in the noun phrase. this morpheme could be a plural word or clitic. in haiwailan (elbbert & pukui 1979), nominal plurality is coded by the plural word mau which has the same function as a plural affix but is a separate word modifying the noun as in the example below: 1) elua a’u mau i’a two my pl fish plural-marking strategies in etulo – ezenwafor-afuecheta & adams 310 ‘my two fish’ in languages such as english and other european languages, plurality is marked by an affix. in english for instance, a plural suffix is used in coding nominal plurality as in the following examples: 2) the girl (singular: one girl) the girls (plural: two girls) for the pronoun, number distinction can vary in terms of the values encoded. languages such as igbo, a niger-congo language, make a two way distinction (sg/pl) for personal pronouns while other languages like bouma fijian (austronesian, oceanic; dixon 1988) distinguish four numbers for the pronoun: singular, dual (2 participants), paucal (a small number of participants) and plural (a larger number of participants). dalrymple (2012) also notes that number distinction can vary across the pronominal paradigm. for instance, pronouns in biak (austronesian language) make a four way distinction in the 3rd person but a 3 way distinction in the 1st and 2nd person. for the verb category, languages distinguish between verbal number and verbal agreement. verbal number or pluractionality refers to the number of events in a complex event description while verbal agreement indicates concord between the verb and the noun on the basis of number. karko (a nilo saharan language) distinguishes between verbal number and verbal agreement (see jakobi &dimmendaal 2019). verbal number in karko is realised by singular or plural stems while verbal agreement is realised as suffixes on the verb. veselinova (2006) illustrates the notion of verbal number with data from mpun (chadic; frajzygier 1993). the awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 311 mupun verb meaning ‘kill’ has two forms; one for a single event and the other for multiple killing events. examples from mupun: 3. a) n-tu joos 1sg-kill-sg rat ‘i killed a rat’ b) n-tue joos (mo) 1sg-kill.pl rat pl ‘i killed rats’ demonstratives typically encode the relative distance of an entity being referred to. they could be marked for number (sg/pl) and in many languages, demonstratives are known to agree in number with the nouns that they modify as in the english examples (4) and (5). in terms of number, a two way contrast is made for both proximal and distal demonstratives in english and some other languages. examples: 4) a. this girl (proximal-sg) b. these girls (proximal-pl) 5) a. that girl (distal-sg) b. those girls (distal-pl) in general, dryer (2013) observes languages differ in the extent to which indication of plurality is required with semantically plural referents, even when a morphological form is available. similarly, haspelmmath (2013) states that the occurrence of plural markers vary along two dimensions: animacy and obligatoriness. in the animacy dimension, a distinction is made between animate (especially humans) and inanimate nouns. in the obligatoriness dimension, the contrast is between non-occurrence, optional occurrence and obligatory occurrence of the plural marker. the plural-marking strategies in etulo – ezenwafor-afuecheta & adams 312 common generalisation made from cross-linguistic studies on number and plural-marking is that human nouns are more likely to have plural marking than non-human nouns. in many wes african languages such as yoruba, igbo, alago, and emai, plurality is encoded by a combination of different strategies. also, the coding of plurality in these niger-congo languages is usually non inflectional and non-obligatory in some cases. 3. plurality and number agreement in etulo in this section, we discuss the strategies for marking nominal plurality, the number values of the pronominal paradigm, demonstratives and the copula/verb. also discussed are the number agreement features attested in etulo. 3.1 nominal plurality with respect to the noun category, etulo makes a dual distinction between singular and plural. plural marking on nouns is encoded via a number of strategies which include: vowel substitution (stem change), reduplication, plural morpheme èmí and quantifiers. number marking may be optional or obligatory depending on the noun. many animate nouns with the feature [+human] are obligatorily marked for number via the process of vowel substitution. the word initial vowel of the singular noun which is typically /o/ is substituted by the vowel /e/ in the plural form (see 7-..). animate nouns with the feature [-human] and inanimate nouns are rarely marked for plurality using the vowel substitution strategy. except for the noun úkɛ̂ ‘basket’ which has its plural form as ákɛ̂ ‘baskets’, we do not find any other instance of vowel substitution with inanimate nouns. in contrast with examples (7) (17) which involves the /o/→/e/ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 313 substitution, example (18) involves the /u/→ /a/ vowel substitution at the word initial position. examples: table 1: vowel substitution singular plural 7) óbâ ‘husband’ ébâ ‘husbands’ 8) ònwɛ ̀ ‘child’ ènwɛ̀ ‘children’ 9) òŋgɪ ̀â ‘woman’ èŋgɪ̀a ̂ ‘women’ 10) òŋgìùlɔ̂ ‘man’ èŋgìùlɔ̂ ‘men’ 11) òwà ‘wife’ èwà ‘wives’ 12) òmgbɛ́ ‘little child’ èmgbɛ ́ ‘little children’ 13) òwàkwádɛ̄ ‘widow’ èwàkwádɛ̄ ‘widows’ 14) ònwɛ ̀ òŋgɪ ̀â ‘girl’ ènwɛ̀ èŋgɪ̀a ̂ ‘girls’ 15) ònwɛ ̀ òŋgìùlɔ̂ ‘boy’ ènwɛ̀ èŋgìùlɔ̂ ‘boys’ 16) ótsɛ́ ónwɛ ̀ ‘father’ étsɛ ́ énwɛ ̀ ‘fathers’ 17) ónɔ́ ónwɛ ̀ ‘mother’ énɔ ́ énwɛ ̀ ‘mothers’ 18) úkɛ̂ ‘basket’ ákɛ̂ ‘baskets’ there are certain contexts in which plurality is marked in etulo by means of reduplication. the noun stem is fully reduplicated to mark entities that are more than one. however, for inanimate nouns, plural marking using the reduplication strategy is optional. below are some examples: 19) a. òʃɛ́ ‘grass’ òʃɛ́ óʃɛ ́ ‘grasses’ b. ígbé ‘bag’ ígbé ígbé ‘bags’ c. ḿgwɔ̂ ‘mountain’ ḿgwɔ́ ḿgwɔ̂ ‘mountains’ d. àbù ‘shirt’ àbù àbù ‘shirts’ they are further illustrated in the following sentences: plural-marking strategies in etulo – ezenwafor-afuecheta & adams 314 20) a. ánɪ̂ gíá àbù àbù tá 1sg buy-pst shirt shirt only ‘i bought only shirts’ b. òkwò ḿgbi ̄ íɳànì lì òʃɛ́ óʃɛ ́ farm of pn is bush bush ‘inyani’s farm is full of bushes’ another means of marking nominal plurality is by the use of the plural morpheme èmí. this strategy is restrictive. the plural morpheme only occurs with animate nouns, especially in possessive constructions as shown in (21-25). it is incompatible with inanimate nouns except perhaps, in the context of etulo folktales where inanimate entities could be personified. the following examples are illustrative: table 2: the plural morpheme èmí singular plural 21) ónɔ́ ánɪ̂ ‘my mother’ èmí ónɔ́ ánɪ̂ ‘my mothers’ 22) òkà àdi ̂ ‘adi’s friend’ èmí òkà àdi ̂ ‘adi’s friends’ 23) ŋ̀gɪ ́sɛ̀ ‘person’ èmí ŋ̀gɪ ́sɛ̀ ‘people’ 24) m̀dà ḿgbí áni ̂ ‘my cow’ èmí m̀dà ḿgbí áni ̂ ‘my cows’ 25) m̀tsɛ ̀ ‘witchcraft’ èmí ḿtsɛ̂ ‘witches’ the co-occurrence of èmí with inanimate nouns results in ungrammaticality. in (26) for instance, an ungrammatical awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 315 construction results from the co-occurrence of the plural morpheme with the inanimate noun àfɛ ̀ ‘book’. to indicate plurality in (26), quantifiers may be used instead by specifying the number of books using a numeral. 26) *èmí àfɛ̀ ḿgbí ánɪ̂ pl book poss 1sg ‘my books’ the plural morpheme also co-occurs with other quantifiers such as the numerals in encoding plurality as illustrated in (27a-b). 27) a. èmí ónɔ́ ánɪ̂ èdá pl mother my five ‘my five mothers’ b. èmí òkà àdí éfà pl friend pn two ‘adi’s two friends’ the use of quantifiers is another means of marking plurality. etulo uses the quantifiers, kpákpá and kwùbà ‘many’ to express nominal plurality. both quantifiers are compatible with animate and inanimate nouns as shown in (28 -29). 28) àdì nwɔ ́ m̀dà kpákpá pn kill-pst cow many ‘adi killed many cows’ 29) ánɪ̂ gɪ ́á àfɛ̀ kwùbà 1sg buy-pst book many ‘i bought many books’ plural-marking strategies in etulo – ezenwafor-afuecheta & adams 316 in addition, etulo numerals function as quantifiers in encoding nominal plurality as shown in the example below: 31) 28) ánɪ̂ gɪ ́á àfɛ̀ ètá 1sg buy-pst book three ‘i bought three books’ 3.1.1 optional vs obligatory plural marking in etulo as noted earlier, plural marking in etulo is obligatory with animate [+human] nouns. for instance, indicating plurality for the noun oŋgia ‘woman’ compulsorily requires the /o/→/e/ vowel substitution. in contrast, plural marking is optional for inanimate and animate [-human] nouns. this is consistent with dryer (2013); that languages differ in the extent to which indication for plurality is required with semantically plural referents, even when a morphological form is available. in relation to etulo, it is observed that although strategies are available for the coding of plurality with inanimate and animate [-human] nouns, their use is usually not obligatory unlike some other languages like english. in sentence (32) for instance, the inanimate noun àfɛ̀ ‘book’ is subject to two interpretations: singular and plural readings by default. formal marking of plurality is only applicable when there is the need for specificity. however, this is not the case for animate [+ human] nouns. in sentence (33a), the noun òŋgìa ̂ ‘woman’ receives one interpretation which is a singular reading while in (33a), the noun èŋgìâ ‘women’ receives one interpretation which is a plural reading. examples: 32) adi gɪ a afɛ pn buy-pst book(s) ‘adi bought a book/adi bought books’ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 317 33) a. anɪ di òŋgìâ mì ìdu ̂ 1sg see woman in market ‘i saw a woman in the market’ b. anɪ di èŋgìâ mì ìdu ̂ 1sg see women in market ‘i saw women in the market’ 3.2 pronominal number in this section, the pluralisation of personal pronouns and demonstratives is discussed. 3.2.1 pluralisation of personal pronouns the number values of the etulo personal pronouns comprise the singular and plural. besides these two number values, no further distinction is made with respect to number or gender. the pronouns are not inflectionally marked for number. their pluralisation is coded by means of suppletion as shown in table 3. the singular personal pronouns are wholly replaced by other forms in their pluralisation. the 3rd person plural pronoun is realised by three forms conditioned by case. for the nominative case (subject), the plural forms á/ámá ‘they’ are used while for the accusative case, the form ma ́ ‘them’ is used. table 3: personal pronouns singular pronoun plural pronoun 1st person ánɪ̂ ‘i’ éji ̂ ‘we’ 2nd person ábu ̂ ‘you’ émâ ‘you’ 3rd person ó ‘he/she/it á/ámá/má ‘they/them’ plural-marking strategies in etulo – ezenwafor-afuecheta & adams 318 3.2.2 demonstratives etulo distinguishes between distal and proximal demonstratives. proximal demonstratives point to entities that are close in relation to the speaker, while distal demonstratives point to entities that are far off in relation to the speaker. two number values are assigned to etulo demonstrative: singular and plural. the demonstratives agree in number with the nouns that they modify. they also function as nominal plural markers as shown in the examples below: 34) a. òkwɔ̀ nɛ̂ ‘this farm’ òkwɔ̀ ńtónɛ̂ ‘these farms’ b. òkwɔ̀ nɛ ́nɪ̌ ‘this farm’ òkwɔ̀ ńtónɛ ́nɪ̌ ‘these farms’ 35) a. m̀dà nâ ‘that cow’ m̀dà ńtónâ ‘those cows’ b. m̀dà nánɪ̌ ‘that cow’ m̀dà ńtónánɪ̌ ‘those cows’ the demonstrative determiners in (34a) and (35a) are used interchangeably with the ones in (34b) and (35b). etulo demonstratives also function as pronouns. as a pronoun, the proximal demonstrative is realised as nɛ nɛ ‘this’ (see 36a) while the distal demonstrative is realised as nana ‘that’. they share the same plural forms as their adjectival counterparts. 36) a. nɛ ́nɛ́ lì ḿgbɛ́̃n this is poss:1sg ‘this is mine’ b. ńtonɛ̂ lì ḿgbɛ́̃n these are poss:1sg awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 319 ‘these are mine’ 37) a. náná lì ḿgbɛ ̃́n that is poss:1sg ‘that is mine’ b. ńtónâ lì ḿgbɛ́̃n those are poss:1sg ‘those are mine’ table 4 etulo demonstratives type singular plural proximal demonstrative (adjective) nɛ /nɛ nɪ ntonɛ /ntonɛ nɪ distal demonstrative (adjective) na/nanɪ ntona/ntonanɪ proximal demonstrative pronoun nɛ nɛ ntonɛ distal demonstrative pronoun nana ntona 3.3 verbal number agreement typically, etulo verbs do not express number agreement with an np argument except for few verbs such as the copula dzɛ̀/tó ‘be’ and the verbs ḱé ‘take’and gbé ‘pack’. in this section however, we focus on number agreement between the copula and the np argument. number can be co-specified by the noun and verb, whereby, a singular np subject requires a singular verb, and a plural np subject requires a plural verb. as shown in examples (38)-(39), the etulo locative copula has two forms: the singular form dzɛ ̀ ‘be’ plural-marking strategies in etulo – ezenwafor-afuecheta & adams 320 occurs in agreement with singular np subjects such as òŋgɪ ̀â ‘woman’, while the plural form tó ‘be’ co-occurs with plural np subjects such as èŋgɪ ̀â ‘women’. examples: 38) òŋgɪ ̀á mà dzɛ̀ ìlégo ̄sì woman the cop:sg lagos ‘the woman is in lagos’ 39) èŋgɪ̀á ma ̄ tó ìlégo ̄sì women the cop:pl lagos ‘the women are in lagos’ etulo constructions that violate the number agreement between the copula and the np subject argument are considered ungrammatical as illustrated in (40) below. 40) *ánɪ̂ tó ìlégo ̄sì 1sg cop:pl lagos ‘i am in lagos’ 4. conclusion this paper has examined the plurality in etulo with emphasis on the number values encoded in nominals, personal pronouns, and demonstratives. it also discussed the etulo verbal number agreement features with respect to the copula dzɛ ̀/tó ‘be’. it is observed that etulo combines multiple strategies in the marking of plurality. these strategies include: vowel substitution, reduplication, use of plural morpheme, quantifiers, demonstrative determiners and suppletion. for all the categories studied, a two way number distinction between singular and plural is made. it is shown with supporting examples that plural marking is obligatory for animate [+human] nouns but optional for inanimate and animate [-human] nouns. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 321 references crystal, d. (2003). a dictionary of linguistics and phonetics. (5thed.). oxford: blackwell publishers ltd. dalyrymple, m. (2012). number marking: an lfg overview. in miriam butt & tracy holloway king (eds.). proceedings of the lfg 12 conference. csli publications. dixon r.m.w (1988). a grammar of boumaa fijian. chicago: university of chicago press. dryer matthew, s. (2013). coding of nominal plurality, in dryer matthew, s. & haspelmath, martin (eds) the world atlas of language structures online. leizpig: max planck institute for evolutionary anthropology. ezenwafor, c. (2017). a grammatical sketch of etulo. phd dissertation submitted to the department of linguistics, scuola normale superiore, pisa. haspelmath, martin (2013) occurrence of nominal plurality. in: dryer, matthew s. & haspelmath, martin (eds) the world atlas of language structures online. leizpig: max planck institute for evolutionary anthropology. jakobi, a. & dimmendaal, g. (2019). number marking in karko and nilo saharan. in paolo acquaviva & michael daniel (eds.). hand book of number. naess ashild (2018) plural-marking strategies in aiwoo. oceanic linguistics, vol 57, no 1. pp 31-62. university of hawaii press. veselinova, l. (2006). suppletion in verb paradigms. typological studies in language 67. amsterdam: john benjamins 199 proverb use in insecurity and conflict resolution in igbo ebele deborah uba 1 okoli, sunday ifeanyi 2 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka ed.uba@unizik.edu.ng1 & sundayifeanyiokoli@gmail.com2 abstract proverb is a concept of deep thought, an insightful traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience which could be metaphorical and use formulaic language. this paper focuses on proverb use in insecurity and conflict resolution in igbo. in other words, it aims at selecting the igbo proverbs that relate to insecurity and also those ones which could be used to resolve conflict. the study uses elicitation as the primary source of data, while the secondary source is book compilations of proverbs. this paper adopts searle’s (1975) speech act theory whose illocutionary classifications include; assertives, commissives, expressive, declarations and directives for its analysis. observation was made that certain igbo proverbs are primarily used as signals towards insecurity; example, ‘mkpume rịgoro elu, egwu atụwa ite mmiri’ which is used to predict the state of insecurity at an aforeplanned action. furthermore, ‘agwọ nọ n’akịrịka’, is a general proverb used for insecurity or danger. on the other hand, proverbs for conflict resolution include; ‘nwa mmadụ emegbule nwa mmụọ, ma nwa mmụọ emegbule nwa mmadụ’ which is a call for fair justice among all, ‘mmadụ anaghị ekwo otu ọkọ siri kọọ ya kọhịa ahụ’ which is a proverb that encourages tolerance. conclusively, it could be said that igbo proverbs play a vital role in security alert and conflict resolution. mailto:ed.ubah@unizik.edu.ng mailto:sundayifeanyiokoli@gmail.com2 proverb use in insecurity and conflict resolution in igbo – uba & okoli 200 keywords: proverb, insecurity, conflict resolution, speech act 1. introduction it is noteworthy that the wisdom and spirit of the people are manifested in its proverbs and sayings. more so, acquiring proverbs and sayings of one’s own nation or other nations, not only contributes to a better knowledge of the language, but also promotes a better understanding of the way of thinking and the nature of the people that speak it. proverbs and sayings are pearls of folk wisdom. in fact, as people interpret artistically various aspects of life, social experience, their outlook is revealed, the originality of artistic attitudes and tastes, mental and ethical and aesthetic values, and social ideals cultivate new generations from century to century. the main purpose of proverbs is to give people's assessment of the objective reality of phenomena as an expression of the world. in proverbs and sayings are expressed the peculiar store or mindset of the peoples’ intelligence; way of judgment; view of features; indication of the way of life and everyday life; the spirit and character of the people; their manners and customs, and beliefs and superstitions. hence, proverbs and sayings most clearly illustrate lifestyle, and geography, and history, and traditions of a community united by a single culture. insecurity on the other hand, is a state of fear or anxiety stemming from a concrete or alleged lack of protection. as conflict points towards opposition, conflict resolution is the reduction, elimination, or termination of all forms and types of conflict. hence, this research gears towards the use of proverbs in insecurity and conflict resolution in igbo. 2. literature review 2.1 proverbs a proverb (from latin: proverbium) is a simple and insightful, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 201 sense or experience. proverbs are based on symbolic or metaphorical language. metaphors used as an aspect of a teaching method could be effective because they could enhance the conceptualisation of abstract ideas. metaphors reveal only part of the answers and learners could be actively involved in completing and understanding the meaning of metaphors. proverbs encourage curiosity about their meanings. they also exert pressure or, at the least, suggest that ideas should be related to prior knowledge and experience (entwistle, 2000). proverbs communicate in a symbolic way, which is not direct or literal. proverbs conceal and reveal information and often leave one with a question that one has to answer oneself. proverbs function metaphorically in the same way that visual communication design does. in african languages, proverbs are used consciously to educate and to manipulate and persuade. mckenna (1974) describes proverbs as a way in which society warns its members of the dangers of life. according to daniel, smitherman-donaldson and jeremiah (1987), proverbs are central to abstract thinking and reasoning. according to boateng (1983:332), a proverb conveys a message in a way in which a child also learns to reflect on the possible meanings of the proverb. it is an indirect way of teaching through which a child does not feel bombarded by rules. boateng (1983:332) further remarks that ancestors play an important role in giving the proverb strength, in that a phrase such as “it is the ancestors that said…” is sometimes used before a proverb. boateng (1983:331) points that proverbs are “validators of traditional procedures and beliefs” and warns that the rejection of black african heritage will leave the black african with a feeling of lost identity. 2.2 insecurity the word ‘insecurity’ has myriads of connotations which signify danger; hazard; uncertainty; lack of protection, and lack of safety. proverb use in insecurity and conflict resolution in igbo – uba & okoli 202 beland (2005) in ndubuisi-okolo and anigbuogu (2019) observes that insecurity is the state of fear or anxiety stemming from a concrete or alleged lack of protection. it refers to lack or inadequate freedom from danger. this implies that insecurity is an absence of peace, order and security. achumba, ighomeroho and akpor (2013) also define insecurity from two perspectives. firstly, insecurity is the state of being open or subject to danger or threat of danger, where danger is the condition of being susceptible to harm or injury. secondly, insecurity is the state of being exposed to risk or anxiety, where anxiety is a vague unpleasant emotion that is experienced in anticipation of some misfortune. these definitions of insecurity underscore a major point that those affected by insecurity are not only uncertain or unaware of what would happen but they are also vulnerable to the threats and dangers when they occur. 2.3 conflict resolution robbins (2005) defines conflict as a process that begins where one party perceives that another party has negatively affected, or is about to affect negatively something that the first party cares about. this is an accurate definition emphasising that conflict is about perception not necessarily real hard facts. it further points to the emotional nature of conflict, by referring to a word like care. it states that more than one party is involved and that there may be future component attached to it. furthermore, thakore (2013) opines that conflict means to be in opposition to one another. it refers to disagreement between people or members of organisations. such disagreement is inherent in relationships between all human beings. robbins (1991) in osabiya (2015) highlights types of conflicts. they include: i. hierarchical conflict: there may be conflict between the various levels of the organization. the board of director may be in conflict with top management, middle management may be in conflict with awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 203 supervisory personnel, or there may be general conflict between management and workers. ii. functional conflict: there may be conflict between the various functional departments of the organization; conflict between the production and marketing department in an industrial organization is a classic example. iii. linestaff conflict: there may be conflict between line and staff. it often results from situations in which staff personnel do not formerly possess authority over line personnel. iv. formalinformal conflict: there may be conflict between the formal and informal organizations for example; the informal organization norms for performance may be incompatible with the formal organization norms for performance. conflict can be viewed into five sequential stages which are; latent, perceived, felt, and manifest and conflict resolution stages. v. latent: in this stage the basic conditions for potential conflict are resources, role conflict, drivers for autonomy, divergence of individual goal, etc. these conditions are lower suppressed for reasons not quite known to members or belong to the opposition on every issue. vi. perceived: at this stage, focused anxieties are created between the anxiety and tension. each party begins to develop negative feelings towards each other. as the parties in conflict argue and battle for their points of view, the significance of the disputed issue is likely to be blown out of proportion. vii. manifest: this is the stage of open conflict, a stage when conflict behaviour is exhibited; such overt behaviour includes sabotage. viii. resolution and aftermath: this stage represent the condition that exists after the resolution or suppression of the conflict if the conflicts have been genuinely resolved, it can lead to an improved relationship and effective cooperation between organizational proverb use in insecurity and conflict resolution in igbo – uba & okoli 204 members. but if not resolved adequately, it may lead to a new and more severe conflict than the first. in a similar vein, osabiya (2015) states that conflict could be intrapersonal or interpersonal, inter-group or inter organizational. intrapersonal are conflict that are internal to individual i.e. mutually exclusive positive goal conflict, positive negative goal conflict and negativeconflict. interpersonal are conflict between two or more people in the organization. intergroup are conflict between groups in the same organization. inter-organizational conflicts are conflict between organizations. osabiya (2015), states that conflict resolution involves the reduction, elimination, or termination of all forms and types of conflict. he further states that when people talk about conflict resolution they tend to use terms like negotiation, bargaining, mediation, or arbitration. 2.4 speech acts theories speech act is when people perform various actions through the use of words and when utterances are made, a particular act is performed. the speech acts theory is also described as “how to do things with words theory” since it has its roots in the work of austin (1962) and searle (1969). they are able to provide a shift from constative notion to performative notion in the empirical verifiability of signs; that is, the truthfulness of signs to what an expression does when it is uttered. speech acts according to austin (1962) fall into three classes, which are: locutionary, illocutionary and perlocutionary acts. a locutionary act is an act of saying something; that is, the act of producing an utterance. illocutionary acts are the core of any theory of speech acts. the perculotionary act is the effect or influence on the feelings, thoughts or actions of the listener/hearer unlike locutionary acts. perlocutionary acts could be awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 205 inspiring, persuading, consoling, promising, encouraging etc. it brings about an effect upon the beliefs, attitudes or behaviours of the addressee. it is in consonance with this that levinson (1981) describes perlocutionary act as the intended or unintended consequences of the speaker’s utterance. searle (1969) improves on austin’s (1962) speech act theory by distinguishing between two types of speech acts: direct and indirect speech acts. searle (1969) categorizes the illocutionary act into five classes: i. assertives: these are statements that describe a state of affairs in the world which could be true or false. they commit a speaker to the truth of the expressed proposition. ii. directives: these are statements that compel or make another person’s action fit the propositional element. it is usually used to give order thereby causing the hearer to take a particular action, request, command or advice. iii. commissives: these statements commit the speaker to certain future action. it could be in the form of a promise. iv. expressives: the purpose of expressive statements is to express sincerity of the speech act like excuses and sympathy. v. declaratives: these statements are used to say something and make it so, such as pronouncing someone guilty and declaring a war. 3. data presentation and analysis in this section, we present the proverbs used in insecurity and also conflict resolution. 3.1 proverbs used in insecurity several igbo proverbs are suggestive of security alertness to the people around. 1) nkwụcha abụghị ụjọ (alertness is not fear) 2) a naghị agwa ochi ntị na agha esula (a stubborn person is not notified of war) proverb use in insecurity and conflict resolution in igbo – uba & okoli 206 3) o ji ọsọ agbakwu ọgụ, amaghị na ọgụ bụ ọnwụ (he who runs towards fight, is not aware that fight is death) 4) onye ọ na-eme omume omume, na-ebe obube obube (he who is regularly oppressed, cries always) 5) agwọ nọ n’akịrịka (there is a snake in the grass) 6) ọkụkọ na-akpa nri sị ụmụ ya, anya uhie akọla ha (a hen in search of food instructs the chicks not to be careless) 7) ọsọ ndụ agwụ ike (life race is not tiring) 8) ọsọ chụwa mmadụ, ọ gbalaga ikwu nne ya (when one is being pursued, he will run to his maternal house) 9) mkpume rịgoro elu, egwu atụwa ite mmiri (when a stone gets up, water pot gets frightened) 10) ebe nwata na-ebe akwa arụ aka, nne ya anọghị ya nna ya anọrọ ya (where a child is pointing at while crying, it’s either the mother or the father is there) from the above examples (1-10), the proverbs are suggestive of insecurity, of which the effect is meant to keep the individual at security consciousness or alert. sometimes, it could be for a quick action to be taken or just an illustration of the after effect of a happening. the most prevalent illocutionary acts in the proverbs in insecurity are assertives, commissives and directives. as perlocutionary acts are described to be inspiring, persuading, consoling, promising, encouraging etc. which brings about an effect upon the beliefs, attitudes or behaviours of the addressee. hence, example (7) depicts encouragement as the perlocutionary act. in insecurity, igbo proverbs do perlocutionary acts of behavioural change of the listeners, either positively or negatively. it creates awareness to the native speakers of the language who get the meaning of the proverbs and act accordingly, but negatively to the ones who do not have the knowledge of the proverbs. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 207 3.2 proverbs used in conflict resolution there are several proverbs in igbo which are used in conflict resolution. they include: 11) e gbuwe na a tọrọ, mmadụ agaghị afọ (if killing is based on seniority, nobody will remain). there is no equality on earth. there is seniority based on age, rank, etc. in the family setting, the same is applicable; whereby bullying is not allowed irrespective of the superiority. this is obtainable because when one bullies another due to seniority, he/she would be bullied by a senior. at that, no one will be left safe. 12) ọkọ kọwa mmadụ, ọ gakwụru mmadụ ibe ya, ma ọ kọwa anụ ọhịa, ya aga n’ukwu osisi. (a human goes to a fellow human when wants to scratch, whereas animals go the tree). when there is conflict, individuals involved do not help one another, yet it is needful that one should help each other in life. this proverb is an expressive one. 13) nwa mmadụ emegbule nwa mmụọ, ma nwa mmụọ emegbule nwa mmadụ (human should not maltreat spirit and spirit should not maltreat human). no one is permitted to maltreat or bully another as a result of superiority or otherwise. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is directives. 14) onye mụtara nwa gụọ ya akụmefule, o sị kwanụ nke onye fuo? (he who gives birth and named him my wealth should not lost, is asking whose own to lost). as everyone on earth wishes him/herself well, it will be an aberration for such individual to wish others crisis. during conflict, each opponent wishes the other evil and as well rejoices when the evil befalls the opponent. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is directives. 15) iwe nwanne anaghị eru n’ọkpụkpụ (brothers anger does not get to the bone). in settling conflict, it is noteworthy to remind the proverb use in insecurity and conflict resolution in igbo – uba & okoli 208 individuals involved that brotherhood has strong bond. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is assertives. 16) ikwu na-amaghị, ibe ezi ya. (when kinsman does not know, the relatives will teach him). one can be at fault, but at the cause of conflict resolution, the proverb would be a pointer towards correction and bringing right perspective to the individuals involved. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is assertives. 17) onye na-atabeghị onugbu anaghị ama ka ihe na-adị. (he who has not chewed bitter leaf, does not know how things are). experience is the best teacher. people take things for granted when they have not experienced the impact or effects of certain actions or situations. this proverb enlightens those in conflict to turn away from it. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is assertives. 18) oji onye iro n'ala jikwa onwe ya. (he who holds the enemy on the ground, is also holding himself). this proverb plays a vital role in conflict resolution by educating the individuals involved that one’s progress is on hault as he keeps the progress of others on hault. nobody progresses by blocking the progress of others. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is assertives. 19) onye iberiibe amaghị na nwanne ya bụ ọbịa (a fool does not know that his sibling is a visitor). igbo people entertain visitors in a pleasing manner. as such, when people in conflict perceive themselves as visitors, the conflict can easily be resolved. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is assertives. 20) mmadụ anaghị ekwo otu ọkọ siri kọọ ya kọhịa ahụ. (one should not as a result of the intensity of scratch, injure oneself). actions ought not to be takes with the gravity of offence, if peace should be retained in the system. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is assertives. 21) otu mkpịsị aka rụta mmanụ, ya ezuo ọha. (when one finger gets oil, it touches others). the impact of a simple conflict can spread awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 209 abroad, affecting even innocent individuals. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is commissives. 22) egbe bere ugo bere, nke sị ibe ya eberela, nku kwapụ ya.(eagle and hawk should perch, and anyone resists another from petching, should suffer wing break). selfishness is a cankerworm that destroys peace. this proverb is used in counseling those in conflict on the impact of selfishness. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is assertives. 23) a kpaa akpaa, a rahụ n’ute (when well discussed, would sleep on the mat). when there is understanding through proper discussion or negotiation, conflict ought not to arise. this proverb instructs that those in conflict should reach a consensus through negotiation. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is assertives. 24) isi ala anaghị atọ ebe a kpọrọ ya (head bend does not remain where it is bowed). humility is not a sign of weakness. accepting defeat is also not a sign of being a weakling. this proverb is used in conflict resolution whereby the individuals involved are educated that accepting defeat is not a sign of weakness but just to let peace reign. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is assertives. 25) nwanne na nwanne bi n’udo, bụ e leta a ghara (there is peace between sibling, is forbearance). this proverb teaches the importance of forbearance among people. so long as offences keep coming, one needs a heart of forbearance to stay away from conflict. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is commissives. 26) udo na ọganiihu bụ ụmụnne (peace and progress are siblings). this proverb explains the impact of peace in place of conflict. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is assertives. 27) biri, ka m biri mere na ụwa na-aga nke ọma (live and lets live is the reason why life is going forward). when everyone lives in peace, there is progress. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is expressives. proverb use in insecurity and conflict resolution in igbo – uba & okoli 210 28) n’oge ọkọchị, ọkụkọ amabeghị onye ga-efo ya ọdụ n’udummiri (during dry season, the hen does not know who will remove her feather in the rainy season). for an effective flight of a hen during the rainy season, a portion of the feather ought to be removed. when humans are likened in this situation, it predicts the fact that those in conflict do not know who would save or help the other in the future time when uncertainty befalls the individual or group. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is assertives. 29) mmadụ ka aha ya bụ ọgụadịịmma (someone’s name is ‘fight is not good’). fight, war or conflict is not an ideal way of life. this is a proverb used in counseling people in conflict for peace to be restored. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is expressives. 30) onye gbuo nwanne ya, naanị ya ọ ga-ebi? (if one kills his brother, will he live alone?). lonliness is the reward of him who kills his neigbhour. this proverb is used in conflict resolution whereby those in conflicts are counseled on the effect of the situation. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is assertives. 31) were ehihie chụwa ewu ojii, tupu o rue abalị mgbe ọchịchịrị na ewu ojii ga-abụ otu (look for the black goat during the day before night comes when the black goat and night would look alike). conflicts are better resolved earlier when the impact or effects have not cause colossal damage. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is directives. 32) diochi anaghị ekwucha ihe ọ hụrụ n’elu nkwụ. (palmwine tapper does not say everything he sees on the palm tree). a palmwine tapper sees several things when he climbs the palm tree in the bush. he sees both positive and negative things. he is bound not to utter all that he has seen for the sake of safety, sanity, etc. an individual should not take to bar all that happen around him for the sake of peace. the illocutionary act present in the proverb is expressives. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 211 from the above examples (11-32), the proverbs are suggestive of the presence of conflict, of which the effect is meant to resolve the conflict and restore peace. these proverbs are used to settle dispute in igbo. many times, once a certain proverb is uttered, the individual whom it is meant for, has taken note. furthermore, the proverbs used in conflict resolution are for warning, explanation, etc. the most prevalent illocutionary acts in the proverbs for conflict resolution are assertives, directives and commissives. on the part of perlocutionary acts, which are actually the resultant effects of the utterances of the speaker which could be inspiring, persuading, consoling, promising, encouraging, etc. hence, it could be seen as the intended or unintended consequences of the speaker’s utterance. in example (31), it could be seen as an act of persuading someone to do something or encouraging an individual. this is a perlocutionary act. examples (25, 26, 27, etc) could be seen as being inspiring as the perlocutionary act. perlocutionary act of promise could be seen in example (16). in example (24), it could be seen as a consolative perlocutionary act, etc. 4. summary and conclusion in summary, it could be seen that proverbs play vital role in igbo, beyond mere discussion, counsel, education; it also plays role in security alert and conflict resolution in igbo. proverbs are words of deep understanding whose meaning have several expressive roles. in igbo, each situation has proverbs best suitable for it which includes; death, children, wealth, animals, etc. through this research, we focus on the proverbs that play role in security alert and also conflict resolution. observation was made as certain proverbs give notice at the presence of insecurity, ‘agwọ nọ n’akịrịka’, ‘ọsọ ndụ agwụ ike’, ‘ọkụkọ na-akpa nri sị ụmụ ya, anya uhie akọla ha’, etc. proverb use in insecurity and conflict resolution in igbo – uba & okoli 212 at the uttering of such proverbs in igbo land, it signals insecurity to the individuals, of which proper security consciousness should be imbibed. on the other hand, proverbs help in resolving conflicts in igbo. for instance, ‘ka anyị kwọọ mmiri mgbe ọ ka dị n’obe ụkwụ tupu o rue n’ukwu’, ‘n’oge ọkọchị, ọkụkọ amabeghị onye ga-efo ya ọdụ n’udummiri’, etc are proverbs suggesting peace where there is conflict. furthermore, the use of proverbs amongst non-native speakers of the language hence creates insecurity to the hearers who may feel the utterances are made against them. even though the non speakers might have basic knowledge of the language, but as proverbs are deeper part of a language which is not learnt on a peripheral, poses threat of insecurity to the hearers who do not belong to the language class. the discussion was based on searle’s (1969) categorization of illocutionary act which are into five classes: assertives, directives, commisives, expressives and declaratives conclusively, it is not gainsay that proverbs are merely ordinary words for normal use, but of diverse importance especially in igbo land. nevertheless, igbo language is not the only language that makes use of proverb in conflict resolution or for security awareness. this research has thrown light on this dimension of the importance of proverbs in igbo land. proverbs play vital role in conflict resolution and security alert in igbo. references achumba, o. s., ighomereho, m. o. & akpor, r. m . (2013). security challenges in nigeria and the implications for business activities and sustainable development. journal of economics and sustainable development, 4(2):79-99. austin, j. l. (1962). how to do things with words. oxford: oxford university press. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 213 boateng, f. (1983). african traditional education: a method of disseminating cultural values. journal of black studies, 13(3), march:321–336. daniel, j.l., smitherman-donaldson, g. & jeremiah, m.a. (1987). makin’ a way outa no way: the proverb tradition in the black experience. journal of black studies, 17(4), june:482–508. entwistle, n. (2000). promoting deep learning through teaching and assessment: conceptual frameworks and educational contexts [online]. paper presented at tlrp conference, leicester, november 2000 [2001, 6 december]. mckenna, j.f. (1974). the proverb in humanistic studies: language, literature and culture – theory and classroom practice. the french review, 48(2), december:377–391. ndubuisi-okolo, p.u. & anigbuogu, t. (2019). insecurity in nigeria: the implications for industrialization and sustainable development. international journal of research in business studies and management. volume 6, issue 5, 2019, pp 7-16 osabiya, b.j. (2015). conflict management and resolution in nigeria public sector. review of public administration and management vol. 4, no. 8, pp.107-120 robbins, s.p. (2005). organisational behaviour (11th ed.) new jersey: pearson education, inc. 423. de dreu, c. & van de vliert e. (1997) using conflct in companies, london: sage publications. searle, j. r. (1969). speech acts: an essay in the philosophy of language. cambridge: cambridge university press. thakore, d. (2013). conflict and conflict management. iosr journal of business and management (iosr-jbm) e-issn: 2278-487x.volume 8, issue 6 (mar. apr. 2013), pp 07-16. 322 a phono-semantic account of the igbo ‘take’ verbs wè and chị cecilia amaoge eme 1 iwuchukwu chinenye uwaezuoke2 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka1 ebonyi state university, abakiliki ca.eme@unizik.edu.ng1 iwuchukwuchinenye@yahoo.com2 abstract many researches have been done on the igbo verb as the verb is central and prolific in the study of igbo language spoken in south east nigeria. the centrality of the verb in the igbo language has caused the language to be referred to as a verb-centred language (nwachukwu, 1983). these facts of the igbo verb notwithstanding, none of the numerous researches has investigated the role of verbs in the expression of plurality and countability in igbo. this paper sets out to fill the research gap. it gives a phono-semantic account of the igbo verbs wè and chi ̣́ in order to establish the semantic imports they carry besides ‘take’, which is often seen as their conventional meaning, and the role of tone in the achievement of the meanings. the data for this study are collected from ten igbo native speakers and are descriptively analysed. the research discovers that the verbs perform interesting semantic functions in igbo which range from the expression of singular and plural to portraying countable and uncountable notions. on tone, wè and chị in their canonical form, that is, when used as roots bear the low and high tone respectively. however, when the root is combined with affixes or other roots to yield complex or compound verbs with further meaning, the tone may change in accordance with the established behaviour of tone in igbo grammar (nwachukwu, 1995; eme, 1998). this study adds to the existing knowledge on verbal plurality and countability in language. mailto:ca.eme@unizik.edu.ng1 mailto:iwuchukwuchinenye@yahoo.com awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 323 keywords: igbo verb, phono-semantic account, plurality, countability, verb-centred 1. introduction the igbo language of nigeria is spoken by over 29 million people (eberhard et al, 2021). the speakers are predominantly in the southeast comprising five states: abia, anambra, ebonyi, enugu and imo states. igbo speakers are also in some other states in nigeria such as parts of delta and rivers states. igbo belongs to the kwa group of the benue congo family within the niger-congo language phylum (williamson and blench, 2000). it is one of the developed indigenous languages of nigeria and has received a lot of linguistic researches in the course of its development. virtually all the aspects of the language have been studied in one way or the other. for the igbo verb, researches have touched on verb generally or on some specific verb or verbs. in fact, many scholars have shown interest in the study of igbo verbs, as the verb is central and prolific in the igbo language. the centrality of the verb in the igbo language has caused one of its foremost linguists, prof. philip a. nwachukwu, to refer to the language as a verb-centred language (nwachukwu, 1983). these facts concerning the centrality of the igbo verb and the numerous researches already conducted on the igbo verb notwithstanding, none of the researches, as much as this paper’s researchers know, delved into finding out how the verbs contribute in the expression of plurality and countability in igbo. the need to fill the research gap prompts this paper, which gives a phonosemantic account of the igbo verbs wè and chị. it is in order to establish the semantic imports wè and chị carry outside ‘take’, often seen as their usual meaning. also, as tone is crucial in igbo studies, not only because the language is a tone language but because “tone is at the core of igbo grammar; and any accurate account of so many a phono-semantic account of igbo ‘take’ verb: eme & uwaezuoke 324 syntactic phenomena in igbo must take tone into account” (nwachukwu, 1995), we shall investigate the role of tone in the achievement of the said meanings by the wè and chị verbs in igbo sentence structures. we collected the data for this study from ten igbo native speakers randomly selected irrespective of their dialects. the data were authenticated by the researchers using their native speaker intuition. for the analysis of data, we adopted the descriptive approach. the tone marking convention used here is that of green and igwe (1963); high tone is left unmarked while low and downstep tones are marked with grave accent [ ̀ ] and macron [ ̄ ] respectively. 2. earlier studies on verbs the verb, a grammatical category, refers to a word that conveys action, occurrence or state of being in grammatical constructions of language. it is, therefore, a universal phenomenon. ikegwuonu (2021) explains that the functions of verb vary according to languages; in many languages, verb takes different forms to depict tense, aspect, mood and voice while in some languages, it may also agree with the person, gender or number of some of its arguments, such as subject, or object. hofherr (2010) investigates plural marking on verbs and distinguishes between expressing many events together, termed event plurality, and using verbal markers in expressing multiple events, which she refers to as verbal plurality. she explains that such verbal markers can also be called pluractional markers. in her examination of what is meant for a single event to be plural, she distinguishes between distributive and non-distributive plurality, event-internal and event-external plurality, and event number and participant number. this is to say that one event can have multiple https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/word https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/language https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/grammatical_tense https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/grammatical_aspect https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/grammatical_mood https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/voice_(grammar) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/grammatical_person https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/grammatical_gender https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/grammatical_number https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/argument_(linguistics) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/subject_(grammar) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/object_(grammar) awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 325 events “due to distribution over plural times, spatial locations and participants.” she gives the following examples: distribution over time: 1) john sang a song, and then he sang the song again, and then again. distribution over space: 2) john planted trees in different places. distribution over participants: 3) john sang two french songs: john sang the marseillaise and then he sang “je ne regretterien”. 4) john and mary baked a cake: john baked a cake and mary baked a cake. plural meanings through verbal plurality can also be achieved through such other means as repetitiveness, repeated occasions and events, persistent consequences, distributed quality and continuity. lee’s (2016) work examines pluractional verbs in ranmo (papuan) by investigating the morphological, syntactic, as well as semantic properties of root alternation in the language. pluractionality is the term that refers to the situation of verbs being morphologically marked for plurality; and plurality “covers a range of meanings, whether in connection to multiple participants, times or locations”. the language of investigation, ranmo, is “a papuan (non-austronesian) language, spoken by approximately 300 people in yenthoroto village, western province, southwest papua new guinea.” like the igbo language, ranmo is an svo language. only ‘extended’ roots of ranmo exhibit pluractional verb characteristics. according to lee, all pluractionals must have two components clearly defined in the semantics—pl(ural) and deg(ree). deg(ree) a phono-semantic account of igbo ‘take’ verb: eme & uwaezuoke 326 is for large quantity; not necessarily simple plural. he points out that across languages, pluractional verbs are commonly formed through reduplication. concerning the verbs of the igbo language, several scholars have delved into the study from different research perspectives. let us look at a few of these studies. emenanjo (1978) examines the igbo verbals, verb phrase and verb forms. under verbals, he discusses auxiliaries, participles and verbs. he explains, among other things, that the igbo verb is the head of the vp, precedes its complements, can be nominalized, and is “the only part of speech that takes affixes.” this is to say that all the other form classes do not accept affixation. according to him, the igbo verbs, like suffixes and enclitics, begin with consonants; unlike nouns which usually begin with a vowel or a syllabic nasal. he classifies the igbo verb stems into simple and complex, with reference to the number of elements or morphemes they containthe former contains one element (5a-i) while the later contains more than one element (6a-d): 5) a. za ‘answer’, b. me ‘do’, c. ri ‘eat’, e. zà ‘sweep’, f. bà ‘enter’, g. pu ̀ ‘go out’, h bịa ‘come’, i. hie ‘tie up’ 6) a. bufè ‘carry across’, b. tụpụ ̀wa ‘begin to throw out’, c. buwe ‘begin to carry’, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 327 d. rọgọ ̀ ‘bend’. according to ume, ugoji and dike (1989), the igbo verb expresses future, past and perfective aspect as well as tense. they point out that scholars classified igbo verbs in different forms using specified criterion. for them, igbo verbs can be classified according to the number of morphemes they possess. thus, there are simple verbs and complex/compound verbs. whereas simple verbs have only one morpheme, complex/compound verbs have two or more morphemes. according to izunwa (2019), the verb is language universal, since it is a grammatical category found in all languages. he explains that in classifying the igbo verbs using their morphological make-up, we have simple verbs, complex verbs and compound verbs. each of these classes of verbs can be inflected for tense, mood, aspect, negation and ergativity. a verb that is in its citation form only is a simple verb; a complex verb has the citation form plus one or more affixes; and a compound verb has two or more independent simple verbs. according to mbah (2018), cited in ikegwuonu (2021:217), while talking on the structure and behaviour of igbo verbs avers, ‘‘a simple verb form must not change its form by vowel harmony rules in any morphological alternation’’. the simple verb form comprises a consonant at the onset and a vowel at the peak. in other words, the structure of the simple verb form in igbo can be represented as consonant (c) + vowel (v) (i.e. cv structure). thus, the simple igbo verb root has a cv structure. the igbo ‘take’ verbs we are investigating, wè and chi ̣́, align with this cv syllable structure. a phono-semantic account of igbo ‘take’ verb: eme & uwaezuoke 328 3. data presentation and analysis the ‘take’ verbs wè and chị can be realized in different morphosyntactic forms to give complex verbs and different meaning realizations. our data and their analysis substantiate this claim. 7) i-wè ‘to take’ 8) ị-chị ̄ ‘to take’ in (7) and (8), wè and chị are in the infinitival form, marked by the prefixation of the harmonizing vowel prefix iand ịfor wè and chị respectively. the prefix is determined by the phonetic feature of the vowel of the verb; as the igbo vowels harmonize in terms of the phonetic feature of advancement or retraction of tongue root [ +atr]. although they have the same semantic notion of ‘to take’, the nuances in their meanings have the implications of singularity and countability for wè, while chị indicates plurality and or countability, depending on the noun involved. this will become clearer in our further analysis of the data. on their tone, observe that wè retains its inherent tone after the prefixation of the infinitive marker while the tone of chị changes from h to a downstep. this is in line with the behaviour of igbo tones during affixation for infinitive formation; where a low tone cv root retains its l tone while a high tone cv root has the i/ị prefix on h tone while the h of the root steps down to a downstep tone. 9) wè-re ‘take’ 10) chi ̀-rị ‘take’ in (9) and (10), the verbs are realized in their imperative form. unlike the imperative form of most igbo verbs, that is, cv + open vowel suffix, wè and chị take the -rv suffix for their imperative, that awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 329 is, ‘r’ followed by a harmonizing vowel. this explains why we have wère and chi ̣̀rị. as we can see, the suffix is on h tone. semantically, the verbs mean ‘take’. however, whereas wère commands the hearer to take the only one item or one item out of the countable lot like yams and bales of cloth, chi ̣̀rị implies that the hearer should collect, sometimes with both hands, uncountable items such as sand, groundnut, roasted breadfruit, and quantity of firewood. 11) a. wèèrè ‘took’ b. chi ̀i ̀ri ̀ ‘took’ 12) a. wedà / chịdà ‘take down (from a height)’ b. wepụ̀ / chịpụ̀ ‘take out/take away’ c. wèga / chi ̀ga ‘take to’ d. wèli / chi ̀li ‘take up’ e. wetù / chịtù ‘take down’ f. wèkpu / chi ̀kpu ‘take inside’ g. wèla / chịla ‘take home’ h. we(ghà)chi/ chị(ghà)chi ‘take back’ 13) a. i wè gà = iwègà / ị chị ga = ịchịga ‘to take to’ b. i wè kpù = iwèkpù / ị chị kpu = ịchịkpu ‘to take inside’ c. i wè lì = iwèlì / ị chị li = ịchịli ‘to take up/ to raise’ d. wè gà rà = wègàrà / chị ga rà = chi ̀gàrà ‘took to’ e. wè kpu rù = wèkpùrù / chị kpu rù = chi ̀kpùrù ‘took inside’ a phono-semantic account of igbo ‘take’ verb: eme & uwaezuoke 330 f. wè li rì = wèlìrì / chị li rì = chi ̀lìrì ‘tookup/ raised up’ the -rv past tense marker can also be suffixed to the wè and chị verb roots to depict past tense, as seen in (11a, b). here, wè and chị again behaves differently from most igbo verbs that form their past by the -rv suffixation only. for wè and chị, the vowel of the root is reduplicated before the -rv suffix is attached. however, like other igbo verbs, the tone is l for the verb and its inflections. this l tone of the -rv past suffix differentiates it from the -rv of the wè and chị imperative (seen in 11 a, b), which is h tone. both wèèrè and chi ̣̀i ̣̀ri ̣̀ mean ‘took’. further description of what was taken could show the ‘took’ meaning to have nuances of number and countability. for instance, if ‘it’ is the pronoun of what was taken, it implies one countable item or a bundle or pack of an uncountable entity. in this case, wè can be used in all the options, excluding chị when one countable item is involved. in fact, chị when used for a bundle or pack of an uncountable entity would subtly imply that the bundle or pack was loose and so not intact. however, if ‘them’ is the pronoun for what were taken, an idea of plurality emerges for both verbs. this would, therefore, imply that what were taken were two or more pieces of the countable item or two or more bundles or packs of an uncountable entity: 14) a. o wèèrè ya/ ọ chi ̀i ̀ri ̀ ya ‘he/she took it (e.g. cloth, rope)’. b. o wèèrè ha/ ọ chi ̀i ̀ri ̀ ha ‘he/she took them (e.g. tubers of yam, books, goats)’. furthermore, the igbo ‘take’ verbs wè and chị can combine with other simple verb roots to form compound verb structures. this can awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 331 be illustrated with the verb forms in example 4. each of the items comprises two roots, giving the syllable structure of the compound verb as cvcv. item 4 (h) has an optional element, ghà, between the two cvcv roots; hence the realization of we (ghà) chi/chị (ghà) chi ‘take back’. in all the items, the idea of ‘take’ inherent in wè and chị verbs still manifest; further information about the ‘take’ is then given by the additional root. for instance, in (12a) weda / chịda achieves its meaning of ‘take down (from a height)’by the combination of wè ‘take’ and dà ‘fall (down)’. for wepụ / chịpụ (seen in 12b), the idea of ‘take out/take away’ comes in because of the addition of pụ ‘go (out/away)’. for the meaning got for 12 (c) wèga / chi ̀ga ‘take to’, it is clear because of the meaning of the cv root ga ‘go to’. the items in example (13) show that the igbo compound verbs can be inflected. whereas (13a-c) show the verbs assuming infinitive forms by the addition of the infinitive marker i/ị, (13d-f) show simple past tense by the suffixation of the l tone past tense morpheme, rv suffix, to the compound verbs. 3.1 further discussions the verb wè in its canonical form cannot be used to indicate present tense in igbo sentences. this is because only the infinitive form of the verb iwè ‘to take’ can occur in the present time meaning. in the expression of ‘take’ in the present tense, wè is not acceptable but is substituted with jì which has the basic semantic import of ‘take’. examples are shown in below: 14) ike jì akwà èje ahịa ike take cloth pref-go market ‘ike takes cloth to the market’ 15) ike jì akwụkwọ èje ụlọ akwụkwọ a phono-semantic account of igbo ‘take’ verb: eme & uwaezuoke 332 ike take book pref-go house book ‘ike takes a book to school’ 16) ògbu ehi jì ehi èje ahịa killer cow take cow pref-go market ‘the butcher takes cow to the market’ 17) ede jì ụkwà èje ahịa ede take breadfruit pref-go market ‘ede takes breadfruit to the market’ 18) ede jì àhụekere èje ụlọ akwụkwọ ede take groundnut pref-go house book ‘ede takes groundnut to school’ 19) ede jì ajao ̀to ̀ àrụ ụlo ̀ ede take soil clay pref-build house ‘ede builds house with clay soil’ in the above data (14-19), the verb jì relates to the actions/events that are current or that are happening or taking place at the time of utterance or at the time of speaking. the verb jì depicts singularity in (14-16), which invariably influences the object in the sentence to become singular. it, however, is neutral to countability, as it can be used with countable (singular) and, as seen in (17-19), uncountable nouns. this shows that one of the grammatical functions of the substitute take verb jì in igbo is to mark singularity for the object np in the sentence. in the data above (14-16), cloth, book and cow are singular and collocate with the verb jì. also, the data (14-19) show that the ‘take’ verb is usually followed by the object np. this awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 333 makes for ease of transfer of action from the subject to the object thereby making the verb transitive in that sense. let us look at the chị ‘take’ verb in sentences below: 20) ibè chị akwà èje ahịa ibè take cloth(es) pref-go market ‘ibe takes a cloth/some clothes to the market’ 21) ibè chị akwụkwọ èje ụlọ akwụkwọ ibè take(pl) book pref-go house-book ‘ibe takes some books to school’ 22) ibè chị ehi èje ahịa ibè take(pl) cow pref-go market ‘ibe takes some cows to the market’ examples (20-22) illustrate the plurality of the chị ‘take’ verb in the present tense. the verb’s depiction of plurality invariably influences the object np in the sentence to become plural, though not overtly marked in igbo. so in the data (20-22) above, clothes, books and cows are in the plural. we must point out that in (20), the meaning could be in the singular; for whatever noun that could be described as long/wide and flexible is usually associated with chị. other example in that category is u ̀do ̀‘rope(s)’. the ‘take’ verbs wè and chị can be used in certain sentential constructions or contexts to relate to the actions or events that took place in the past at the time of utterance. in such cases, wè and chị change to their past form wèèrè and chi ̣̀i ̣̀ri ̣̀ respectively. it is, however, acceptable for wè to be substituted with the verb jì, as in (23-25); and chị being retained but with l tone in line with the tone structure of igbo past tense verbs, to realize chi ̣̀ to give the plural forms, as in (26-28). this is illustrated below: a phono-semantic account of igbo ‘take’ verb: eme & uwaezuoke 334 23) àda wèèrè/jì akwà je ahịa. ada take-pst cloth go market ‘ada took cloth to the market’ 24) ànyị wèèrè/jì ehi je àkwamozu 1pl take-past cow go funeral ‘we took a cow to the funeral’ 25) onye nche wèèrè/jì egbè je ọrụ person security take-pst gun go work ‘the security man went to his work placewith a gun.’ 26) àda chı̀ o ̀kụko ̀ je ahịa. ada take(pl) chicken go market ‘ada took some chickens to the market.’ 27) ànyị chı̀ ehi je àkwamozu 1pl take(pl) cow go funeral ‘we took some cows to the funeral’ 28) onye nche chì egbè je ọrụ person security take(pl) gun go work ‘the security man went to his work place with some guns.’ the above data (23-28) indicate that the actions or events have happened in the past at the time of speaking. this implies that the actions have ceased to happen at the time of speaking. the verb is followed immediately by the object np and gives the object np its form of singularity (in 23-25) or plurality (in 26-28). awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 335 example (29a and 29b) illustrate the structures where wè and chị change to their past form wèèrè and chi ̣̀i ̣̀ri ̣̀ respectively, by the suffixation of the -rv past tense morpheme, to express past tense. examples (29a, 30a and 31a) explain wèèrè while (29b, 30b, 31b) illustrate chi ̣̀i ̣̀ri ̣̀: 29) a. òbi wèèrè akụ obi take-pst kernel ‘obi took a kernel nut’ b. òbi chı̀ı̀rı̀ akụ obi take(pl)-pst kernel ‘obi took some kernel nuts’ 30) a. ha were ụ̀dọ̀ 3pl take-pst rope ‘they took a rope’ b. ha chı̀ı̀rı̀ ụdọ 3pl take(pl)-pst rope ‘they took some ropes’ 31) a. o wèèrè akwụkwọ 3sg take-pst book ‘he/she took a book’ b. ọ chı̀ı̀rı̀ akwukwo 3sg take(pl)-pst book ‘he/she took some books’ a phono-semantic account of igbo ‘take’ verb: eme & uwaezuoke 336 all the data items in example (29a, 30a and 31a) and (29b, 30b, and 31b) above indicate past time meaning because of the attachment of the past tense suffix -rv to the wè and chị verb roots. the wè and chị ‘take’ verbs can be inflected to depict different negative semantic realizations by attaching the negative suffixes to the verb roots. the general negative marker ‘-ghị’ and the perfective negative marker ‘-beghị’ as well as the imperative negative marker ‘-la’ are the negative suffixes that can be used to achieve negation with the igbo wè and chị ‘take’ verbs. examples are shown below in (32-34) with ‘-ghị’ negative marker for wè and chị respectively: 32) a. ò weghı̀ akwụkwọ ahụ̀ 3sg take-neg book dem ‘he/she did not take the book’ b. ò chịghị akwụkwọ ahụ̀ 3sg take(pl)-neg book dem ‘he/she did not take the books’ 33) a. uchè ewèghı̀ mkpụrụ akwụ̄ uche pref-take-neg seed palm nut ‘uche did not take palm nut’ b. uchè achịghì mkpụrụ akwụ̄ uche pref-take(pl)-neg seed palm nut ‘uche did not take palm nuts’ 34) a. ì weghı̀ akwà gị 2sg take-neg cloth 2sg ‘you did not take your cloth’ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 337 b. ì chịghī akwà gị 2sg take(pl)-neg cloth 2sg ‘you did not take your clothes’ we illustrate the suffixation of the perfective negative marker ‘beghị’ to wè and chị ‘take’ verbs in examples (35-37) below: 35) a. ò webèghì akà ahụ̀ 3sg take-perf-neg bead dem ‘he/she has not taken that bead’ b. ò chịbèghì akà ahụ̀ 3sg take(pl)-perf-neg bead dem he/she has not taken those beads’ 36) a. akụ ewebèghì akwà ahụ aku pref-take-perf-neg cloth dem ‘aku has not taken that cloth’ b. akụ ewebèghì akwà ahụ aku pref-take-perf-neg cloth dem ‘aku has not taken those clothes’ 37) a. ò webèghì ụ̀dò 3sg take-perf-neg rope ‘he/she has not taken a rope’ b. ò chịbèghì ụ̀dò 3sg take(pl)-perf-neg rope a phono-semantic account of igbo ‘take’ verb: eme & uwaezuoke 338 ‘he/she has not taken the ropes’ in (38-40) below, we show that the wè and chị ‘take’ verbs can inflect with the imperative negative maker ‘-la’ for a different semantic interpretation. this is illustrated thus: 38) a. ewèlà ji pref-take-imp-neg yam ‘do not take a yam’ b. achīla ji pref-take(pl)-imp-neg yam ‘do not take yams’ 39) a. ewèlà òkè m pref-take-imp-neg share 1sg ‘do not take my share’ b. achīla òkè m pref-take(pl)-imp-neg share 1sg ‘do not take my shares’ 40) a. ewèlà akwụkwọ m ̄ pref-take-imp.neg book 1sg ‘do not take my book’ b. achīla akwụkwọ m ̄ pref-take(pl)-imp.neg book 1sg ‘do not take my books’ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 339 although we have glossed (38a, 39a and 40a) for singular and (38b, 39b and 40b) for plural, it is pertinent to note that (39b) could also imply single entity. for example, if pieces of meat are shared into slots whereby a slot could contain ten pieces, one is right to use the sentence as in (39b). we see, however, that in this instance, we are referring to a singular entity or set containing many pieces, hence the use of chị ‘take’ verb. this issue is further exemplified in the following paragraph. the wè and chị ‘take’ verbs can be used with certain nouns to depict both singularity and plurality. in this sense, both wè and chị can be used as singular and also as plural. in such a case, the verbs denote the nature of the noun, which often involves something long or wide that requires folding together or items in a set, such as cloth, rope, a share of pieces of meat, heap of groundnuts. this is illustrated in the examples below: 41) a. wepụ̀ akwà take-leave cloth ‘take away the cloth/clothes’ b. chịpụ̀ akwà take-leave cloth ‘take away the cloth/clothes’ 42) a. wepụ̄ ụ̀dọ̀ take-leave rope ‘take away the rope/ropes’ b. chịpụ̄ ụ̀dọ̀ take-leave rope ‘take away the rope/ropes’ a phono-semantic account of igbo ‘take’ verb: eme & uwaezuoke 340 43) a. wère òkè m take-imp share 1sg ‘take my share/shares’ b. chìrị òkè m take-imp share 1sg ‘take my share/shares’ 4. conclusion the research is a phono-semantic account of the igbo ‘take’ verbs wè and chị. it discovered that the verbs perform interesting semantic functions which range from the expression of singular and plural to portraying countable and uncountable notions. on tone, wè and chị in their simple structure bear low tone and high tone respectively. however, when the root is combined with affixes or other roots to yield complex or compound verb forms and portraying further meanings in declarative, imperative, perfective and negative constructions, the tone may change. the change in tone is as expected, as it aligns with the already established behaviour of tone in igbo grammar in some of the earlier studies on the igbo verbs, including the fact that igbo verb + -rv past suffix is always on a low tone. this study adds to the existing knowledge on verbal plurality and countability, not just in the igbo language but in language in general. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 341 references eberhard, d.m., f.s. gary and c.d. fennig (eds). 2021. ethnologue: languages of the world. twenty-fourth edition. dallas, texas: sil international. online version: http://www.ethnologue.com. eme, c.a. 1998. conditional constructions in igbo. ma thesis, university of nigeria, nsukka. emenanjo, e.n. 1978. elements of modern igbo grammar. oxford: oxford university press. hofherr, p.c. 2010.verbal plurality and event plurality. cnrs umr 7023 / paris 8& surrey morphology group. izunwa, a.i. 2019. farming verbs in igbo: an aktionsartdescription. ma thesis, nnamdi azikiwe university, awka. ikegwuonu, c. n. 2021. the study of the ji in igbo: a morpho syntactic analysis.http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/og.v17i1.12 lee, j. 2016. root alternation and verbal plurality in ranmo. university of pennsylvania working papers in linguistics, vol. 22, issue 1. proceedings of the 39th annual penn linguistics conference,article 22.http://repository.upenn.edu/pwpl/vol22/iss1/22 nwachukwu, p.a. 1983. readings on the igbo verb. onitsha: africana/fep. nwachukwu, p.a. 1995. tone in igbo syntax: studies in igbo linguistics, vol. 2. nsukka: the igbo language association. williamson, k. and r. blench. 2000. niger-congo. in heine, b. and d. nurse (eds.). african languages: an introduction. cambridge: cambridge university press. 11-42. http://www.ethnologue.com/ http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/og.v17i1.12 http://repository.upenn.edu/pwpl/vol22/iss1/22 85 enclitics in igbo and chinese: a comparative analysis ebele nwamaka anajemba1, davidson ugochukwu mbagwu2 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka en.anajemba@unizik.edu.ng1, du.mbagwu@unizik.edu.ng2 abstract clitic as a linguistic element is neither a word nor an affix; this has not been easy for scholars to cosign a singular grammatical category. the principle of its operation is universal but the parameters with which it operates is specific among languages. clitic classifications of proclitic, mesoclitic, enclitic and endoclitic exist in many languages but this work centres on enclitics in igbo and chinese. the data used for this work is secondary as they are elicited from already existing studies on the clitics of igbo and chinese. this is a comparative study, the enclitics are descriptively analysed and used to highlight the universality of human languages that is displayed by enclitics of both languages despite that both languages are very distinct from each other and belong to different language phyla. the findings confirm that, enclitics in both languages take hosts that belong to different linguistic categories, semantically, their presence in sentences is not mandatory but they influence the meaning of the sentences in which they occur. phonologically, their tonal dependency on hosts and level of attachment to host in both languages is specific. morphologically, igbo enclitics occur on the word level whereas chinese enclitics take the form of phrasal affixation. this study concludes that though the concept of enclitic is universal, therefore making it a general principle; languages are diverse in ways of operation. enclitic in mailto:en.anajemba@unizik.edu.ng1 enclitics in igbo and chinese – anajemba & mbagwu 86 both languages is language specific as what obtains in igbo is not completely obtainable in the chinese language. keywords: enclitics, universals, principles, parameters 1. introduction the manifestation of clitic in human languages as a linguistic element that borders between words and affixes varies as they influence meaning, and can attach to different linguistic categories. their features span across phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics, while it is obvious that their absence do not render a sentence ungrammatical. from already existing studies on clitic classifications, there are proclitic, mesoclitic, enclitic and endoclitic in many languages of the world which includes the languages under study. the igbo language is an agglutinating language. in accordance to williamson (1989) language classification, it belongs to the kwa group of languages under the niger-congo family. it is one of the most widely spoken languages in west africa with a population that is not less than 7 million speakers. indigenous speakers of the language are found in the south eastern part of nigeria in states like abia, anambra, ebonyi, enugu, and imo. other speakers are also found in delta, edo, rivers, akwa-ibom, and cross river states. the chinese language is an isolating language which belongs to the sinitic branch of the sino-tibetan family of languages. there are various dialects of the chinese language. it is the language with the largest population through-out the world with about 30 million speakers. it is a graphematic pictographic language; however it has the pinyin which is the alphabetic representation of the language. in the chinese language, each unit usually a chinese character hànzì (汉字) corresponds to a syllable. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 87 globalization has provided opportunity for people to learn other languages in order to interact with others on their daily activities. chinese government in their bid to reach out to the whole world is investing enormously in the study of their language and as such china is indirectly influencing the world. the study of chinese language within africa is on the increase, and nigeria is not an exception as this is evident in the number of universities that study chinese now; unlike what was obtainable in the past. within the last decade, the ties and relationship between nigeria and china has increased tremendously. this spans through economy, industrialization, education and others. igbo speakers are deeply involved in this move as many have embraced the learning of chinese language, greater percentage of who are youths because of the opportunities that abound from it. with this development, it is justified that studies involving both languages be carried out in order to understand the principles and parameters with which both languages operate. studies already carried out between igbo and chinese include but not limited to phonology of igbo and chinese (eme & odinye, 2008), dp in igbo and chinese (anajemba & mbagwu, 2015), igbo and chinese tonal systems (odinye & udechukwu, 2016), chinese and igbo proverbs: analysis of sexism (okafor, 2020), interrogative patterns of igbo and chinese (anajemba, 2016), grammatical errors of students learning chinese (odinye, 2011), error analysis of igbo learners of chinese (anajemba, 2021) and others. 1.1 statement of research problem owing to the growing interest in the chinese language by igbo speakers and the studies that abound, it is important to examine the clitic of both languages narrowing it down to the enclitics. the objective is to demonstrate the universality that exists between both enclitics in igbo and chinese – anajemba & mbagwu 88 languages despite being distinct and not belonging to the same language phyla. this is done by showing the features of enclitics that is common to both languages and also specifying those that are language specific. 1.2 methodology descriptive analysis here anchors on comparative framework in order to specify language common and language specific parameters that boost the universality of human languages. data used for the study is secondary as all of them are sourced from already published works by scholars in igbo and chinese. both languages are tonal, therefore all tones are properly marked save for those that bear neutral tone as in the case of chinese. 2. review of literature clitic originates from a greek word klitikos which interprets as ‘leaning’; its root word is actually klinein ‘to lean’. the traditional grammarians’ approach to the notion of clitics is that they are ‘little words’, especially in reference to that which does not bear an independent accent and have to lean accentually on an adjacent word (anderson 2005). in the igbo language, various linguistic elements have been identified as clitics, their typologies, and possible places of attachment to hosts are illustrated in (anagbogu 2001, nweze 2009, egenti 2011, nweze & ikegwuonu 2012, anyanwu 2012, mbah et al 2012, emenanjo 2015 and udemmadu & anidobe 2017). clitics in chinese come after any word class. they mainly function at the phrasal level. it can be equated to phrasal affixation in accordance to klavans (1985), anderson (1992), liu (1998) and others. chinese clitics are toneless function words which are always unstressed such as structural particles (结构助词) de 的， de 得， de 地 ，aspectual particles (动态助词) le 了, zhe 着，guo 过and awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 89 sentence particles (语气助词), ne 呢, ba 吧, ma 吗, a 啊, and ou呕 (huang, 1989, třísková, 2014). the rules responsible for the placement of clitic can be specified in terms of parameters such as scope (it is located in the scope of some constituents), anchor (located by reference to first vs. last vs. head) and orientation (proceeds or follows its anchor) (klavans, 1985). with regard to the placement of clitics on their host; scholars have identified three different types as proclitic, mesoclitic, and enclitic. enclitics are elements that follow the host/words that they depend on. it occurs at the object position or after the main verb. they may not attach to the word just like some auxiliaries in the english, french, spanish, and italian do. anagbogu (2001) defines enclitic as the object clitics which are positioned between the main verb and the sentence final position. some of these clitics are bụ/bu, cha, fụ, kwa, nnọọ, tụ, rị, zị and others. ngoesi (1989) describes enclitics as elements that add meaning to sentences and occur in any position in the sentence structure but in most cases they attach to verbs, nominal and nominal modifiers. when following verbs, enclitics combine with the verb as a word but when it follows other linguistic categories, it is written separately. 2.1 theoretical framework comparative method in linguistics is used to show similarity in languages based on four dimensions namely; chance, universality, borrowing (contact) and geographical/social contacts. comparing languages based on universal is arrived at in part by comparison that is typologically inspired and how widespread a feature is crosslinguistically. this type of comparison is not genealogically oriented rather based on universality of languages (joseph, 2016:40). based on the above notion, the comparative framework as enclitics in igbo and chinese – anajemba & mbagwu 90 used in this study is a comparative framework with a contrastive implication in order to identify similarities in the enclitics of both languages that establish universality of languages as well as the differences that portray their language specific parameters. 2.2 empirical studies nwankwere et al (2014) describe enclitic as linguistic elements that follow hosts anywhere in a construction. in their study of morphology of clitics in òwèrè satellite dialect (osd) of igbo, they assert that the position of enclitics in constructions varies which includes preverbal subject positions (before the main verb). these enclitics may or may not be phonologically and/or syntactically attached to their hosts. they attach to verbs, nouns, pronouns, adjectives and so on. 1) ńdé èkóówukó tàátà! pl. psn det ecl be ecl babies ‘so, these are also babies! they can also form long clusters and can be seen below: 2) ì jé –má –ná –àrí (ríì/rí hè) (dáā) 2sg go – inc –prog –vwl ecl (ecl) (ecl) ‘good bye/safe journey (to you) my darling’ [nwankwere et al 2014: 90] the ordering of the enclitics in osd is mostly subj (-ecl) –pcl –host –ecl –suf –(ecl) as shown above. the enclitic ‘rí’ is believed to have evolved from the verb rí (be) as in the example above. this enclitic can be reduplicated severally with the reduplicants on a low tone as awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 91 in ríì/rírì/rírìírì/rírìíhè/rírìírìí hè. these reduplicants show different degrees of emphasis on endearment or derision. syntactically, enclitics add to the phrasal structure and semantically modify the meaning of their host and in other cases, they modify the meaning of the entire construction in which they appear. contrary to earlier researchers on igbo enclitics, udemmadu and anidobe (2017) show that prepositions can equally host enclitics just like other linguistic categories as can be seen below. 3) há biàrà gbàsáránnoọ̀ọ́ ókwú áhụ̀ they come-pst prep (about) –encl talk that ‘they came because of the matter’ 4) nneka na eche banyereri ihe ahu e mere ya nneka aux-pref-think prep (about) encl thing that someone do-pst her nneka is thinking just about the thing done to her [udemmadu & anidobe 2017:9] according to the data below, the function of enclitics is primarily semantically oriented as they add meaning to an expressed meaning of a sentence as in the instances below; 5) e-so-kwu m pref-follow-encl(also) me ‘i am also included’ 6) ndeewo nụ hello all ‘greeting to more than one’ [udemmadu & anidobe, 2017:9] enclitics in igbo and chinese – anajemba & mbagwu 92 mbah et al (2012:179) discussing the enclitics in igbo add that enclitics can be separated from hosts as can be seen below: 7) nyè-tụ́ ḿ ńchà give –cl 1sg soap ‘(please) give me a little soap’ 8) ònyé –zí kà í kpọ̀rọ̀? who –cl that 2sg call pst ‘who then did you call?’ 3. data presentation and analysis 3.1 enclitics in phonology igbo and chinese languages are both tonal. here we consider the prosodic effects on the enclitics as shown in the data following: 9) ńdị́ à -chà bù ǹkè yá pl. dem-cl be poss 3sg ‘all these are his’ 10) àtọ́ -chá dì n’ ímé yá num –cl be prep inside 3sg ‘as many as three are inside it’ [udemmadu & anidobe, 2017: 11] 11) gà tú ̣ go cl ‘go a little’ 12) ǹyè-tụ́ ḿ ńchà awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 93 give cl 1sg soap (please) give me a little soap [mbah et al., 2012: 184, 179] 13) òbí rì kà m síírì ńrí obi cl that 1sg cook apl pst food ‘obi is the one i really cooked for’ 14) égǒ rì kà ó nyèrè ùjú money –cl that 3sg give pst uju ‘money is even what s/he gave uju’ 15) ákwà rì kà ó nyèrè ùjú cloth –cl that 3sg give pst uju ‘cloth is even what s/he gave uju’ [mbah et al., 2012:185] 16) ákwáà rị́ị ̀ kà ọ́ nà-èbé cry –cl that 3sg aux pref cry ‘s/he is even crying’ 17) újúù rị́ị̀ kà ḿmádụ̀ ǹchá nà-èché uju –cl that person all aux-pref wait ‘it is even uju that everybody is waiting for’ [mbah et al., 2012:187] the tones for –cha in (9 & 10) depend on the host for prosodic interpretation, while in (11 & 12) the tones for tụ́, and rì in (13-15) are specific, they do not depend on their hosts. (8 – 9) show the use of rị́ị ̀as it enforces the introduction of a tone bearing unit, so that it maintains their tones without change, and this shows that they enclitics in igbo and chinese – anajemba & mbagwu 94 comply with obligatory contour principle, they affect the tones of their hosts in order to comply with their tonal prosody. so, some clitics in igbo are host dependent, some are tone specific while others conform to obligatory contour principle. here we consider the following chinese examples: 18) 去 吗？ nǐ qù ma? 2sg go cl ‘do you go?’ 19) 我 马 上 就 去，你 呢？ wǒ mǎ shàng jiù qù nǐ ne? 1sg horse-up then go 2sg cl. ‘i will go immediately, and you?’ [chaofen, 2006: 76, 77] from the data (10 – 11), the enclitics ma 吗and ne 呢 are neutral, they bear no tones irrespective of what tones their hosts might bear. 3.2 enclitic in semantics in this section we try to investigate the influence of enclitics on the semantics of the sentences where they are found in both languages. 20) bị̀á-nụ́ come cl ‘you(please) come’ 21) bị̀á-nụ̀ come cl ‘you(pl.) come’ [udemmadu & anidobe, 2017:10] awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 95 22) （你）来 ! nĭ lái (you) come ‘you come here’ 23) (你）来 啊/呀 nĭ lái a/ya! (you) come cl ‘you come here!’ [li & thompson, 1981: 315] the imperative as specified above in (22 & 23), equally employ the use of enclitics to influence the meaning of the sentences. in (20) nụ́ is used to add some form of politeness to the command, but in (21), nụ̀ is used to mark pluralization, to show that the command is meant for more than one person, therefore, the difference in their tone realization. in the case of chinese, without the enclitic a/ya啊/呀, the command becomes very strict as in (22) above, but with the addition of the enlitic, the speaker shows some kind of politeness in the command. the enclitics both come at the end of the imperative sentences. so, we see universality in the use of enclitics to influence meaning of sentences as well as their positions in the sentences in both languages. more instances on other enclitics and their tonal behaviour in both languages: 24) hẹ́ kwá bịàrə 3sg cl come ‘they also came again’ enclitics in igbo and chinese – anajemba & mbagwu 96 [nweze & ikegwuonu, 2012:611] 25) kèdụ́ fụ̀ ǹ ke ka mmā ? wh cl that pass beauty ‘which one is even better?’ [mbah et al., 2012: 186] 26) ònyé – dụ́ tụ̀rụ̀ gì òkwutē? wh cl throw-pst 2sg stone ‘who was that that threw stone on you?’ [udemmadu & anidobe, 2017:7] 27) ndị à -cha ́ bụ̀ nke ya pl. dem-cl be poss 3sg ‘all these are his’ [udemmadu & anidobe, 2017:11] 28) 她 很 好 看 吧？ tā hěn hǎo kàn ba 3sg(f) very good look cl ‘she is very good looking, don’t you agree?’ 29) 好 好 做 功课 呕 hǎo hào zuò gǒng kè ou good good do exercise-work cl ‘do homework carefully, ok?’ 30) a. 我 喝 了 三 杯 咖啡 wǒ hē le sān bēi kā fēi 1sg drink pfv three cup coffee awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 97 ‘i drank three cups of coffee’ b. 我 喝 了 三 杯 咖啡 了 wŏ hē le sān bēi kā fēi le 1sg drink pfv three cup coffee cl ‘i have drank three cups of coffee’ [chaofen, 2006:244] 31) 来 呀！你 呀，还 是 去吧！ lái ya! nǐ ya, hǎi shì qù ba! come cl 2sg cl still be go cl ‘come!’ ‘you, you should go!’ 32) 他 放 了 一 本 书 在 那 张 桌子 上 tā fàng le yī běn shū zài nèi zhang zhuōzi shang 3sg put asp one cl book at that cl table cl ‘he put a book on that table’ 33) 李四 卖 得 那 张 桌子 上 lisi mǎi de nèi zhang zhuōzi shang lisi buy cl that cl table cl ‘on the table that lisi bought’ [lui, 1998: 63] in the data (24-27), the clitics -kwá -dụ, -fụ, and -cha, imposed additional meanings of emphasis, inclusion and surprise to the sentences. without the inclusion of the clitics, the sentences would still be meaningful. in (28-32), the use of enclitics ba吧, ou呕, le了, ya呀, de得, and shang上 also imposed additional meanings to the enclitics in igbo and chinese – anajemba & mbagwu 98 sentences. this agrees with the universal assertion that clitics are straightforward function words because they do not have meaning on their own; rather have to lean on another word in order to add meaning to the phrase or sentence. their presence or absence in a sentence contributes to the total meaning of the utterance. clitics are semantically like the independent word because they express notions similar to those of words. they are not obligatory for grammatical acceptability of any sentence in both languages. however, their usage is specific in both languages. 3.3 enclitics in morphology and syntax the combination of enclitics and words in sentences is considered in both languages with the following examples; 34) bị̀á-nụ́ come cl ‘you(please) come’ 35) nyè-tụ́ ḿ ńchà give –cl 1sg soap ‘(please) give me a little soap’ 36) égǒ rì kà ó nyèrè ùjú money –cl that 3sg give pst uju ‘money is even what s/he gave uju’ 37) ńdị ́à -chà bù ǹkè yá pl. dem-cl be poss 3sg ‘all these are his’ 38) àtọ́ -chá dì n’ ímé yá num –cl be prep inside 3sg awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 99 ‘as many as three are inside it’ 39) kèdụ – zị –nnọọ –kwa –zị ihe m mèrè gị. what cl – cl – cl cl thing 1sg do pst 2sg ‘what then really have i done to you again?’ [mbah et al., 2012: 181] 40) 我 告诉 他 那 件 事 了 呕 wǒ gaosu ta nei jian shi le ou 1sg tell 3sg(m) that cl matter cl cl ‘i told him about that matter’ 41) 他 当然 是 了 啊/呀! ta dangran shi le a! 3sg(m) of course be cl cl ‘of course he is!’ 42) 来 呀！你 呀，还 是 去吧！ lái ya! nǐ ya, hǎi shì qù ba! come cl 2sg cl still be go cl ‘come!’ ‘you, you should go!’ [li & thompson, 1981:316] in (34-39), the enclitics are attached after the host words, this implies that the affixation process is on the word level in igbo; the enclitics can equally come in clusters of up to four as shown in (31), however with the chinese data in (40-42) the enclitics attached to phrases (vp, np and others) and not more than two clusters as in (42). enclitic in chinese takes the form of phrasal affixation. enclitics in igbo and chinese – anajemba & mbagwu 100 3.4 similarities in igbo and chinese enclitics from the discussions above, we have been able to show that in igbo and chinese, enclitics just as it is obtained in other languages, attach to different word categories as can be seen below: 43) ńdị ́à -chà bù ǹkè yá pl. dem-cl be poss 3sg ‘all these are his 44) àtọ́ -chá dì n’ ímé yá num –cl be prep inside 3sg ‘as many as three are inside it’ 45) 去 吗？ nǐ qù ma? 2sg go cl ‘do you go?’ 46) 我 马 上 就 去，你 呢？ wǒ mǎ shàng jiù qù nǐ ne? 1sg horse-up then go 2sg cl. ‘i will go immediately, and you?’ [chaofen 2006: 76, 77] 3.5 differences in igbo and chinese enclitics tonal behaviour of enclitics in both languages are specific, hence this is illustrated with given examples: 47) hẹ́ kwá bịàrə 3sg cl come ‘they also came again’ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 101 48) kèdụ́ fụ̀ ǹ ke ka mmā ? wh cl that pass beauty ‘which one is even better?’ 49) 他 当然 是 了 啊/呀! ta dangran shi le a! 3sg(m) of course be cl cl ‘of course he is!’ 50) 来 呀！你 呀，还 是 去吧！ lái ya! nǐ ya, hǎi shì qù ba! come cl 2sg cl still be go cl ‘come!’ ‘you, you should go!’ morphologically, enclitics attach to words in igbo but in chinese it displays a kind of phrasal affixation as can be seen below: 51) nyè-tụ́ ḿ ńchà give –cl 1sg soap ‘(please) give me a little soap’ 52) égǒ rì kà ó nyèrè ùjú money –cl that 3sg give pst uju ‘money is even what s/he gave uju’ 53) 她 很 好 看 吧？ tā hěn hǎo kàn ba 3sg(f) very good look cl ‘she is very good looking, don’t you agree?’ enclitics in igbo and chinese – anajemba & mbagwu 102 54) 好 好 做 功课 呕 hǎo hào zuò gǒng kè ou good good do exercise-work cl ‘do homework carefully, ok?’ 4. findings the phonological features of clitic in both languages show that in consonance with the universal features of clitic, both languages partially depend on hosts for tonal prosody of their enclitics. in chinese, the tones of the enclitics are always dependent on their hosts and in such cases, the enclitics all have neutral tones. but in the igbo language, the tonal prosody varies. some enclitics are totally dependent on their hosts for their tonal representation; some have specific tones no matter the tones of their hosts, while others obey the obligatory contour principle. in this situation, the clitics affect the tones of their hosts in order to comply with their own tonal prosody. semantically, the presence of enclitics in sentences in both languages is not mandatory but they influence the meaning of the sentences in which they occur. morphologically, it was observed that enclitics in both languages take hosts that belong to different linguistic categories. for chinese, enclitics are attached to phrases as it comes at the end of np, vp, adjp or even the advp. in the igbo language, enclitics are attached to words and they can have up to five clusters while chinese rarely have clitic clusters. this shows that the level of attachment to host in both languages is specific. 5. summary and conclusion comparative studies help to bring out the universality among languages by showing enclitics as a principle that exists in both languages. in the case of phonology, tonal prosody is not totally universal as the enclitics in igbo are not completely dependent on awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 103 their hosts. in the morphology of enclitics in both languages, enclitic in chinese takes the form of phrasal affixation. this study concludes that though the concept of clitic is universal, therefore making it a general principle; languages are diverse in ways of operation. enclitic in both languages is language specific as what obtains in igbo is not completely obtainable in the chinese language. references anagbogu, philip n. 2001. a study of the igbo clitics. nsukka journal of african languages and linguistics. 1(2). 42-50. anajemba, e. n. and mbagwu d. u. (2015), dp in igbo and chinese. nkoà (3) 39-61. www.academia.edu. anajemba, e. n. (2016). a contrastive analysis of chinese and igbo interrogative sentences. european journal of english language and literature. 3(2) 32-43. www.idpublications.org ______ (2021). error analysis of igbo learners of chinese. journal of chinese and african studies (jocas). 2(1) 60-71. anderson, s. r. (1992). a-morphous morphology. new york: cambridge university press. _______ (2005). aspects of the theory of clitics. oxford studies in theoretical linguistics. oxford: oxford university press. anyanwu, o. (2012). pronominal subject clitics in igbo. theory and practice in language studies. 2 (3), 377-388. chaofen, s. (2006). chinese: a linguistic introduction. cambridge: cambridge university press. egenti, m. c. (2012). the morphosemantic of the igbo clitic kwa. in uchechukwu chinedu (ed.) extensional suffixes and clitics in igbo. igbo language studies series. 4, 101-118. http://www.academia.edu/ http://www.idpublications.org/ enclitics in igbo and chinese – anajemba & mbagwu 104 eme, c. a. and odinye, s. i. (2008), phonology of standard chinese and igbo: implications for igbo students learning chinese emenanjọ, e. n. (2015). a grammar of contemporary igbo. port harcourt: m & j grand orbits. huang, c. (1989). pro-drop in chinese: a generalized control theory. in o. jaeggli and k. safir (eds.), the null subject parameter, 185-214. kluwer academic publishers huang, j., li, a. and li, y. (2009). the syntax of chinese. cambridge: cambridge univesity press. joseph, b. (2016). the comparative method: simplicity + power = results. veleia. 33 39-48. www.researchgate.net/publications/320477011 klavans, j. l. (1985). the independence of syntax and phonology in cliticization. language 61. 95 – 120. li, c. n. and thompson, s. a. (1981). mandarin chinese: a functional grammar. berkeley: university of california press. liu, feng-his (1998). a clitic analysis of locatives particles. journal of chinese linguistics. 26 (1) mbah, b., mbah, e. and iloene, m. (2012). phonology of igbo morpho-syntactic clitics. research on humanities and social sciences. 2 (6), 176-191. ngoesi, m. c. (1989). nchịkọta ihe ọmụmụ nke asụsụ igbo maka ule sinịọ sekọndịrị. (3rd ed.). nkpor: optimal press. nwankwere, n. u., nwaozuzu, g. i. and iloene, i. (2014). morphology of clitics in òwèrè satellite dialect of igbo. nsukka working papers in language, linguistics & literature. 2 (84-95). http://www.researchgate.net/publications/320477011 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 105 nweze, i. m. (2009). clitic marking in igbo: a case study of nsukka dialect cluster. nsukka journal of african languages and linguistics. 5-6, 53-67. nweze, i. m. and ikegwuonu, c. n. (2012). cliticization of igbo. the nigerian linguists festschrift series 9, 607-616. odinye, i. s. and udechukwu, g. (2016), igbo and chinese tonal systems: a comparative analysis. a new journal of african studies. 12 (255-272). odinye, i. s. (2011). the grammatical errors of the students learning the chinese language at nnamdi azikiwe university, awka. unizik journal of arts and humanities (ujah) special edition. 60-70. okafor, m. u. (2020). chinese and igbo proverbs: analysis of sexism. interdisciplinary journal of african and asian studies (ijaas), 6. (2) třísková, h. (2014). ‘weak form words’ in pǔtōnghuà 普通话里 的弱读式词 www.orient.cas.cz udemmadu, t. and anidobe, c. j. (2017). on enclitics in the igbo language. preorcjah, 2 (2), 1 – 16. www.ezenwaohaetorc.org. list of abbreviations 1sg first person singular pronoun 2pl second person plural pronoun 2sg second person singular pronoun 3pl third person plural pronoun 3sg third person singular pronoun adjp adjectival phrase advp adverbial phrase http://www.ezenwaohaetorc.org/ enclitics in igbo and chinese – anajemba & mbagwu 106 asp aspectual marker aux auxiliary cl clitic cl classifier dem demonstrative ecl enclitic f female np noun phrase pfv perfective marker pl plural marker poss possessive marker pref prefix pst past tense suffix psn person suf suffix vp verbal phrase 180 uncensored language of social media news, videos and pictures as a source of insecurity in nigeria: the anambra state example ifeanyi e. ofor1 greg o. obiamalu2 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka ifeanyiofor3@gmail.com1 go.obiamalu@unizik.edu.ng2 abstract uncensored language of the social media is a serious threat to the security and wellbeing of nigeria and anambra state in particular. censorship is the art of editing and controlling the language that maybe used in the publication of any material (oral or written) for human consumption. this study investigates the dangerous effects lack of censoring the language of the social media thrusts on the security of nigeria and anambra state in particular, from the perspective of j. l. austin’s 1962 speech acts theory. the theory sees language as an activity in the context of performative acts which when applied can trigger a lot of either negative or positive social action. a lot of ills have taken place and several unhealthy groups have been formed due to uncontrolled use of language in nigeria social media space. prior to the existence of digital appliances as the mobile phones and use of social media; anger, hate, aggression, banditry, religious bigotry, agitations and violence were comparatively low. the prevalent insecurity is caused by the untamed use of misguided, raw and unedited language and digital manipulations to trigger violence in the society. the unguarded language of uncensored information has created various restive and aggressive groups such as ipob, fulani herdsmen, mailto:ifeanyiofor3@gmail.com1 mailto:go.obiamalu@unizik.edu.ng2 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 181 militants, unknown gun men (ugm), kidnappers, yahoo boys, ritualists, e.t.c. that were never in existence but now unleashing mayhem and death in the society. social media videos, pictures, and news reportage can be censored through creating awareness, integrating the use of social media in the curriculum for our youths, government promulgation of rules to litigate offenders, redirecting our youths and empowering them financially among others. it is the belief of the researcher that if that had been done, the debacle at the inauguration of the anambra state governor, h.e. prof. chukwuma c. soludo could have been averted from the public domain. keywords: speech acts, social media, electronic media, video/news/pictures, censorship, uncensorship, insecurity 1. introduction a lot has been written on the increasing challenges of the social media; a fallout of the digital era, but less attention has been drawn to the effect the language of the social media has on insecurity in recent times. prior to the advent of social media, information is critically edited by relevant authorities before it reaches the public domain. information, according to malcolm (1977:70), which represents public opinions originate from two vital sources the public at large and the elite, is heavily laden with public emotions. such information if not edited or censored will have “prejudice and tradition heavily into it, making it, not infrequently, unreasoning, volatile, impulsive…” information and communication are filtered to the society through language. language is a psychological or cognitive property of humans (carnie, 2007:3) which has far reaching effects on human communication and actions. it can be defined from several perspectives. however, each definition relates to vocal or non-vocal expressions, all aligning to human utterances and communication and the effects from each. in mey’s (2006:6) uncensored use of social media news in anambra – ofor & obiamalu 182 opinion, communication in society happens chiefly by means of language. communication is seen as a speech act in which utterances presupposes the speech action of the addresser to the addressee. speech acts, according to mey (2006:95), is an activity that brings about a change in the existing state of affairs. in other words, the way we communicate has a lot of influence in the way we think or act. people’s thoughts are therefore activated by their culture and what they come in contact with. language could thus be said to mirror culture and peoples’ way of life. communication on the other hand can be manual or electronic. in this paper, our concentration is on electronic art of communication as regards to news, videos and pictures. the influence of language on these media sources cannot be overemphasized. communication consists of four fundamental elements according to konkwo (1997:5). they are the communicator, the message, the medium and the recipient. these four elements can positively or negatively influence the total output according to the language used. presently, there are several sources of electronic media that are available to all ages. the most common denominator is the mobile phone, followed closely by television. however, between the two, mobile phone is the least censored. it is evident that without proper ethical standard or censorship, these sources can cause insecurity in the system through the choice of language in use. the choice of language in disseminating information is determined by the action of the media practitioner and what he intends to achieve. media practitioners, according to jubril (1985:28), can influence and set our linguistic norms to a greater extent than they realize. eze (2009:238) explains that some of these media especially film/video have immense power to influence the viewer to do either good or bad. a learning ethics thus says “what a child hears, he forgets, what a child does he awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 183 knows/learns and what a child sees he remembers”. then, is it not proper that what a child and even an adult see should be censored for him to learn positively and productively? this will automatically discipline the child and make him a responsible adult. this study focuses on the effects language of the social media news, pictures and videos has on insecurity in the society using the theoretical framework of speech acts theory proposed by j. l. austin (1962) adopting the performative utterance proposition. speech acts is the activity or actions that go with our utterances. it is concerned with what utterances do, how they can be used and most importantly, with how we can use them in conversation (wardhaugh 2000; searle 1969; levinson 1979; verschueren 1999; agbedo 2002). wardhaugh (2000:280) summarizes that speech acts “changes in some way the conditions that exist in the world.” the researcher believes that the theoretical framework is apt for the analysis because, of the three propositional utterance analysis which borders on semantic-pragmatics interface constantive utterance, phatic utterance and performative utterance; the latter concerns itself with how a person is not just saying something but is actually doing something if certain real-world conditions are met. according to saeed (2007:224), the action in perfomative utterances are identified by the first verb in the sentence. saeed (2007) notes further that performative utterances do not indicate true or false proposition but pragmatically seeks to find whether the utterances carry any force of action, whether the action works or not and if they constitute a successful warning. when these conditions are met, austin (1962) terms it to have met the felicity conditions and otherwise, it becomes infelicitious. it is evident as can be seen in the ‘declarations’ made by these insecurity groups that the choice of their language not only carry force of actions but are also uncensored use of social media news in anambra – ofor & obiamalu 184 intimidating, aggressive, violent, warning and prone to negative repercussions if not carried out. 2. theoretical review 2.1 speech acts speech acts is a theory proposed by j. l. austin (1962) and developed by searle (1969). speech acts supports the theory that most utterances carry with it some elements of force and compliance as its response. it revolves on how the hearer perceives a particular utterance and the force that accompanies such utterance. saeed (2007:223) describes the response in three related assumptions: that the basic sentence type in language is declarative, designate a state of affairs and the meaning of the utterance may have a true/false proposition. searle (1969:23-24) notes that we ‘perform different types of acts when we speak’. further, in utterances we make use locutions, that is, express intent from a speaker, such that the utterances can function when an illocutionary force is applied. speech acts, according to wardhaugh (2000:281), has three types of utterances in a proposition: a. constative utterance: the utterance reveals happenings in a possible world. the proposition elicits true/false propositions. example: ‘are you sick?’, ‘your dinner is ready!’ b. phatic utterance: this has an ethical type of proposition in which stative statements are made. it has an affective value. example: ‘do have a nice day’, ‘thou shall not kill’. c. performative utterance: utterances in this group demand a follow-up action. it could be a warning, an instruction to be carried out or a promise to be fullfiled. austin (1975) notes awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 185 that performative utterance must meet certain conditions for effect known as felicity or otherwise, infelicity conditions. austin (1975) further divides the speech acts into three categories of force which the social media aggression leverages on – the locutions. locutions, according to searle (1969) in wardhaugh (2000:282), designate “some intents which a speaker has.” they are: locutionary, illocutionary and perlocutionary acts. a. locutionary force: this is the utterance the speaker makes from the addresser to the addressee. it has meaning according to the perception and understanding of the receiver. b. illocutionary force: this is the type of force accompanying each utterance. it can come in form of a request, question or offer and can be versed with different degrees of feelings, emotions, tones and attitudes. c. perlocutionary force: this implies the extent to which the speaker achieves with the utterance made. it is the change or effect of the locution on the addressee. 2.2 social media social media came into existence through the introduction of information and communication technology (ict). the need for technological growth and ease of communication made possible the birth of electronic social media. onwuchekwa (2021:146) notes that social media is self-serving “technoself” and a change from traditional electronic media such as television and radio. he enumerated some social media applications as: whatsapp, zoom, telegrams, chitchat, xender, googles, video players, snapchat, tiktok, facebook, instagram, e-mails, camera, twitter, pinterest, uncensored use of social media news in anambra – ofor & obiamalu 186 blogging, networking, linkedin, youtube, wikipedia, e.t.c. these social media appliances can be assessed by anyone from children to adult who has access to android mobile phones, laptops, palmtops or ipads. they are personalized and can be manipulated by any digitally literate person. nwabueze (2009:170) describes social media as “media that use web-based technologies to transform and broadcast media monologues into social dialogues”. in the author’s summation, social media is equivalent to ‘attention age’ in which information are freely and instantly created, consumed and shared with the social media community on the internet. this is why it is difficult to be censored and the urgent need for censorship. 2.3 electronic media: video, news and pictures these are some of the agents of communication and types of electronic media. ofor (2012:2) states that the three major types of electronic media are: radio (news), television (news, videos and pictures) and film (movies). it is further noted here that even the news media associated more with the print media is now assessed electronically. he maintains that electronic media has the advantage of wider publication and audience. ofor and obiorah (2014:265) also note that its use as agents of communication in a civilized society are restricted by certain ethics which contains censoring the information disseminated to the public. ethics, therefore, are the rules, principles and moral values guiding individual or group conduct. the essence of these principles is that all information must be censored before release to the public. 2.4 censor and censorship censor is an agent of control. censorship can be seen as a weapon used by government and its agencies, organisations, companies, institutions, arms of government, religious bodies, e.t.c., to control the dissemination of information to the public. it can also be summarized as a type of control measures of restricting, controlling, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 187 banning or deleting in part or in whole, of the press as it might infringe on the rights of the citizens for the purpose of security. some countries employ censorship as a counterintelligence measure by which government control any information in the public domain that could be destructive or adversely affect the citizenry through outright deletion or ban. the oxford advanced learner’s dictionary (2015:236) defines censor as a person whose job is to examine books, films/movies, e.t.c and remove parts which are considered to be offensive, immoral or a political threat. no wonder most films/videos are usually seen with an inscription from the foreign or nigerian censorship board (nbc) as; “above 18” or “for adults above 18 only” or “for those below the age 13 or 16”. at other times, the social media censor also go with the warning “viewer’s discretion is advised”! 2.5 the importance of censorship and censoring social media materials the code of ethics for nigerian journalists (1988), section 5 states; “a journalist should not present lurid details, either in words or picture of violence, sexual acts and abhorrent or horrid scenes”. this section of the nigerian constitution restricts some information from entering the public domain advertently or inadvertently, failure of which, is litigable. this is done to among other things:  respect the citizen’s privacy  reinforce civilization and civility  protect children and minors from ugly exposure  reduce marital problems  create good and responsible citizens  reduce abuse and trauma and  create an enabling environment for rearing and training our young ones. uncensored use of social media news in anambra – ofor & obiamalu 188 some of the censored issues are based on: 1. family unity spearheaded by husband and wife 2. issues on rape 3. minors/underaged 4. a moral reports 2.6 insecurity insecurity is an after effect of violence in the system. violence is any action intended to hurt, maim or kill somebody. violence could come in form of physical abuse, verbal or mental abuse. insecurity is an expression of lack of confidence, anxiety, instability, uncertainity in ourselves and our environments. according to eze (2009:239), human beings express violence either as a result of biological disposition, psychological or socio-economic dispositions. insecurity, therefore, is a state of fear motivated by physical, emotional, mental and domestic violence. it is intended to suppress, intimidate and instill fear in others through the act of violence. insecurity could be perpetrated by an individual, group of individuals, military, civilians, protesters, thugs and molesters. 3. data presentation and analysis uncensored social media is a documentary without rules or ethics and which choice of language could constitute serious threats to security in any country. information and communication technology (ict) is an elitist profession where information and language of dissemination are censored and graded according to the age, maturity, intellectual capability and relevance to the culture and language of the reading public. information includes, video coverage, pictures, data, interviews, dialogue and press briefings of both public, private official and personal information which otherwise ought to be private. in anambra state, since the awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 189 information technology of the android phones was birthed into existence, vile information such as pictures, video clips of killings, rape of her women and children, pornography (child and adult), threats to life and properties, mental abuse, incessant destruction of homes, crops, agricultural farmlands have become causes of aggression and violence in the hands of the amateur. the provocations caused by this exposure have done more harm than good in the society. the inability to moderate the information causes retaliation and compounded insecurity. the digitally literate ones in the society manipulate people’s emotion using these uncensored means by changing and recreating at will, the environment in the direction of most provocative videos and pictures thereby inflicting and unleashing mayhem even war could not create. research indicates that television and radio stations whose language, videos, news and pictures are ably censored are controlled by the government. even, private media station’s information dissemination is also censored by the government censorship boards and any offensive language could cause sanction or closure. it is no news that all government press releases, circulars, memoirs, pictures and videos are censored. as a matter of fact, to avoid the invasion of privacy and the nascent uncontrolled use of social media, coverage of events in government establishments especially governor’s offices, lodges and meetings are strictly and adequately censored. recently, the need for censorship played out at the inauguration of the current anambra state governor, his excellency, prof. charles soludo. the altercation between the former first lady, mrs. ebelechukwu obiano and amb. bianca ojukwu, the wife of the late anambra state warlord, dim chukwuemeka odumegwu ojukwu, is a case study. the inauguration witnessed government approved photographer and video cameraman covering the event. however, by the time the show of shame erupted, the moderator uncensored use of social media news in anambra – ofor & obiamalu 190 could only control the government approved news, video and pictures. within a twinkle of an eye, the whole world has witnessed the unedited, raw and uncensored information from private mobile phones. the uncensored information in our social media appliances have become serious security challenges to the people more than the actual aggression itself. the result of the uncensored social media creation is the rise of sectional, economic, regional and religious monsters in anambra state. these are the ipob, miyetti allah, amotekun, herdsmen, unknown gunmen, cult groups, bandits, kidnappers, cultists, yahooboys, yahooplus and ritualists. the author believes that until censorship laws are made and promulgated, there might not be calm. this study looks at the properties we introduce when we make utterances and the force of the language we introduce so that actions can match utterances in a conversation. the study applies the critical discourse analysis (cda) as a qualitative methodology which is apt in dissecting the different performative utterances of the social media in propagating aggression in the society. it also adopts the speech acts theory by j. l. austin (1962) as the theoretical framework. data are obtained from the various unedited, unregulated, uncensored on-line video clips, news and pictures by the various groups to the public. these groups introduced the language of violence as a resort to achieving their aims through social media videos, voice notes and pictures. below are some of the many ‘declarations’ and ‘utterances’ which were made by the groups and carried out by the public out of fear by the masses and even the government unofficially. 3.1 the indigenous people of biafra (ipob) 3.1.1 video and news declarations/utterances awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 191 indigenous people of biafra popularly known as ipob is a separatist group founded by mazi nnamdi kanu of igbo origin, with the aim of realizing the independence of the republic of biafra in the southeast geopolitical zone. they have made declarations and utterances at various times in sync with the militancy of the group. below are some of the performative utterances: a. sit – at home the indigenous people of biafra (ipob) declares every monday sitat-home starting from monday, august 9th 2021 until nnamdi kanu is released from prison. the group media and publicity secretary, emma powerful declares: i. “… we the global family of ipob, wish to announce that every monday has been declared a ghost monday. ” ii. “this declaration takes effect from monday, august 9, 2021. from that day biafraland will be on lockdown every monday from 6.00am to 6.00pm until our leader, mazi nnamdi kanu who was unlawfully abducted in kenya and illegally detained by the federal government is released” iii. “nobody should attempt to flout this directive as doing so may come with huge consequences. anybody flouting this order is taking a big risk” b. warning to politicians from south-east against sabotage: our leader mazi nnamdi kanu is not a criminal and has rights to be visited in their custody; iv. “this is a call for biafran leaders, politicians especially those mentioned as those behind his uncensored use of social media news in anambra – ofor & obiamalu 192 abduction and extradition to nigeria, if anything happens to our leader, mazi nnamdi kanu, all of them should prepare never to come back to biafraland because it will not accommodate us together.” c. no nigerian flag on any south-eastern establishment (biafraland) and october 1st declaration: ipob declares not only sit-at-home but also none identification with the nigerian independence day celebration of 1st october and removal of the nigerian flag in any institution such as government establishments, companies, banks, schools, churches, e.t.c in any southeastern states (biafraland) as from 25th september, 2021. v. “ipob has declared 1st of october 2021 total shutdown in biafraland as a sign of our rejection … and there shall be no movement in biafraland on this day” vi. “also ipob has declared from today, 25th september 2021, that all nigerian flags mounted anywhere in biafraland must be brought down … before we do it in our own way … everybody must strictly adhere to this directive … we want the world to know that biafraland is not nigeria and shall not be. don’t say i don’t know, a word is enough for the wise”. 3.1.2 miyetti-allah (cattle breeders associations of nigeria) videos, news and pictures miyetti allah, brief for the miyetti allah cattle breeders association of nigeria (macban) is a fulani/muslim local organization of the cattle breeders that is in charge of the herder’s awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 193 welfare, protection, justice and politics. they cater for the migrant herdsmen and their relationship with the communities in which they migrate to. this group has been unheard of and the relationship between the herders and their host communities has been managed cordially by the government until the advent of social media. declarations/utterances: d. on politics: bello badejo, the president of miyetti allah kautal hore says the association would not support a southern candidate for the presidency in 2023: vii. “even though nigeria is one, we are not going to support a southerner as president. a president from the north is better because northerners are better managers of nation than southerners." e. on grazing rights (ruga) and the governor of benue state, his excellency samuel ortom accenting to the house of benue assembly bills against herders right to graze in the state: viii. “ortom wants to be a hero by force. after the end of his tenure, even to be a councilor in his village, he can’t get it. he is doing politics with the fulani.” ix. “we cannot oblige any self-centered regulations with primordial sentiments based on injustice, intolerance and infringement of people’s fundamental rights… if you attack a cattle herder and collect his cattle, he has no choice than to attack…” (punch newspaper, 2018) a cursory assessment of the language of utterance by the two groups above has the effect of introducing fear into the masses. added to uncensored use of social media news in anambra – ofor & obiamalu 194 the performative utterances is the fact that these warnings are matched with accompanying actions of violence to effect compliance. for instance, there are no nigerian flag hanging in any government, bank, school or religious institution property in the south-east. again, in most cases, lives, properties, farmlands are lost due to non-compliance in sit-at-homes. a lot of politicians and prominent wealthy persons of igbo extraction, the army and police officers has been murdered for daring the utterances. many muslims and christians have been killed in counter offensive as retaliation for defying their utterances. in may 2022, it was alleged that 14 civilians were killed in series of attacks in southeast, nigeria. also, in december 2022, it was reported that no fewer than ten (10) persons were murdered because of non-compliance of a 5-day sitat-home and lots of properties especially cars were razed between anambra, enugu and imo states. 4. negative effects of uncensored language of the social media videos, news and pictures the negative effects of the uncensored language used in social media videos, news and pictures include:  proliferation of violence e.g. daily killings, brigandage, arson  cultism e.g. human rituals, senseless beheading and burning the corpse  proliferation of sexual abuse as rape, violent sex habits and homosexuality  disrespect for elders and authorities  psychological trauma and stigmatization  unquenchable greed for financial autonomy and thuggery  misinterpretation and misrepresentation of news items  fear  insecurity awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 195  wrong dress attitude  increased abuse  lack of privacy 4.1 negative creations of uncensored social media the creations of the groups identified below are often started as a mechanism to check and protect the very essence of living. while some are economical in outlook, others are sectional, religious as well as social.proliferation of some of the security threatening outfits in anambra state includes: • indigenous people of biafra (ipob) • fulani herdsmen • militants • unknown gun men (ugm) • kidnappers • yahoo boys and yahoo+ groups • ritualists • drug barons • fake currency buyers and sellers • bank thieves/robbers; commando style for ransom • vandals • examination misinformation • political thuggery 5. strategies for censoring the language of the social media the following are the strategies for censoring language use in social media: i. inbuilt designs in phones, palmtops/laptops/ipads for censorship. ii. promulgating laws for censorship and profiling it. i. controlling social media through the internet builders. uncensored use of social media news in anambra – ofor & obiamalu 196 ii. litigating the source of the uncensored materials. iii. creating public awareness on the need for privacy and censoring information. iv. using the church and religious as sources of social justice. v. integrating the essence of censorship in school curriculum especially secondary. schools as the foundation for the amateur 6. summary and conclusion the need for censoring information in the society is to create sanity in the system. individual criticism of the government and society may be ideal but when it is left in the hands of amateurs, severe danger is inflicted on the society. before the advent of mobile phones and appliances, news dissemination are left in the hands of the prudent, educated and civilized professionals who knew the essence of sanity, privacy and relationship in the wider society. in such a situation, the temperament of the citizens are controlled and monitored. there are less violence and crimes. the existing ones could not be easily circulated and learnt by the gullible ones. decorum was sustained in the society. language of manipulation by the internet users through the use of social media appliances was not rampant, so the security situation was under governmental control. we are not however, advocating for the return of the traditional method of information dissemination. rather, a sanitized system of control will be more appropriate. the advent of ict materials exposed a lot of managed and censored secrets in crime and violence. social media might have its advantages though, but the ills far outweigh the good. if, for example, the imbroglio between the wife of the immediate past governor of anambra state, his excellency chief obiano and the awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 197 wife of the late dim emeka odimegwu ojukwu at the inauguration of his excellency, prof. chukwuma charles soludo in anambra state had been censored, the damage control could have been effective. finally, proliferation of the evils in the society especially among our youths in nigeria and anambra state in particular, could have been averted if standardized, censored use of digital communication devices is put in place. references carnie, a. (2007). syntax: a generative introduction. australia: blackwell publishing eze, e. c. (2009). film, culture of violence, and the niger delta region: an analytical appraisal. journal of communication and information science. a biannual journal of school of information technology (sit), federal polythechnic oko, anambra state nigeria, vol. 1, no.1, may. malcolm, g. m. (1977). propaganda, polls and public opinion. london: prentice-hall, inc. mey, j. l. (2006). pragmatics: an introduction. australia: blackwell publishing. monzali, j. (1985). linguistics: the language education of the media practitioner. in nwaokedi amatokwu (ed), writing for the ideological mass media. lagos: taorgan press building. nwabueze, c. (2014). introduction to mass communication, media ecology in the global village. owerri: topshelve publishers ofor, o. c. (2012). the mass media and the law: insight and application. awka: amaka dreams limited. ofor, o. c. and obiorah, c. c. (2014). opinion writing in the media. awka: scoa heritage nig. ltd. uncensored use of social media news in anambra – ofor & obiamalu 198 okonkwo, d. j. (1997). principles, concepts, theories and practice of mass communication. owerri, crc publications ltd. onwuchekwa, d. c. (2021). practical approach to journalism and media studies: ebiogwu’s concept. awka: fm. saeed, j. i. (2007). semantics. australia: blackwell publishing. searle, j. r. (1969). speech acts: an essay in the philosophy of language. cambridge: cambridge university press. verschueren, j. (1999). understanding pragmatics. london: arnold. wardhaugh, r. (2000). an introduction to linguistics. oxford: blackwell publishers ltd. 42 dramatic literature and the challenges of insecurity in nigeria augustine obiajulu eziechine university of delta, agbor, delta state augustine.eziechine@unidel.edu.ng abstract one of the greatest challenges plaguing nigeria today is that of insecurity of life and property. such challenges manifest in form of youth restiveness, religious and ethnic violence, armed robbery, kidnapping, insurgent bombing, political violence, and cybercrimes. this negative trend which impedes progress and inhibits meaningful national development has persisted in nigeria over the years. the situation has become very worrisome and thus demands urgent intervention. premised on the sociological approach to literary criticism, this paper attempts to establish the utilitarian function of drama as a veritable weapon which can be used to fight insecurity in nigeria. the study is basically an exploration of selected plays written by nigerian dramatists, which x-ray issues of insecurity in nigeria. the selected works are subjected to content analysis. the findings reveal that poverty, unemployment, corruption, religious intolerance, injustice, among others are the major causes of insecurity in nigeria. the paper concludes that addressing the socio-economic problems of the poor and the less privileged, and ensuring equitable distribution of social amenities will go a long way towards curbing the menace of insecurity and insurgency in nigeria. keywords: insecurity, unemployment, injustice, corruption, violence. mailto:augustine.eziechine@unidel.edu.ng awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 43 1. introduction insecurity as a concept simply means absence of security. it is the state of being open to danger or threat. it means lack of protection or the state of being insecure. security on the other hand, has been defined as the quality or state of being secure or free from danger, fear and anxiety. in other words, a nation is said to be insecure, when its citizens are living in fear of hostility, violence and terrorism. the spate of insecurity in nigeria today is alarming and frightfully disturbing. in recent time, nigeria has witnessed unprecedented acts of terrorism and wanton destruction of life and property. such notorious acts of violence and terrorism began to manifest in nigeria after the nigerian civil war (1967-1970). the civil war left sophisticated weaponry in the hands of unemployed soldiers who became criminals and refused to surrender their weapons after the war. instead, they engaged the use of such weapons as an alternative means of earning a living. this appears to be the genesis of armed robbery in nigeria. from the early 1970 to date, the menace of armed robbery has been on the increase. insecurity challenges in nigeria today have gone beyond the mayhem of armed robbery. different forms of clandestine activities, such as kidnapping, ritual killing, political, ethnic and religious violence etc., have all emerged. kidnapping of innocent citizens and demanding huge ransoms for their release have become a major source of earning quick money today. the niger delta militia activities which involve kidnapping of oil workers especially the expatriates are indeed a reference point here. the niger delta region is blessed with enormous deposit of crude oil which the multinational oil companies have been exploring over the years. as a result of the activities of the oil companies, the people of the niger delta region suffer the consequences of gas flaring, oil spillage and other environmental damages occasioned by continuous ecological awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 44 pollution of the area. meanwhile, the revenue accruing from oil exploration in the area is enjoyed by the oil conglomerate and nigerian government who use such revenue to develop other areas while the oil-rich region remains undeveloped. as the people continue to suffer environmental degradation and gross violation of their rights, a pressure group known as movement for the survival of the ogoni people (mosop) was founded. the group submitted the mosop bill of rights to the nigerian government demanding ethnic autonomy and selfdetermination for the people of ogoni land. when this peaceful and constitutional attempt failed, the people resorted to militant approach as a means of protesting the injustice perpetrated by government and the multi-national oil companies situated in their area. the protests involve kidnapping of expatriate oil workers and vandalization of oil pipe lines. this was intended to secure international attention with regard to the oppression, exploitation and environmental damages suffered by the people. similar security challenges have also emerged from other parts of the country at different times. from the northern part of nigeria, an islamic sectarian movement known as boko haram has engaged in subversive activities since july 2009. the jihadist terrorist group started an armed rebellion against the government of nigeria. the group attack public places and government establishments and claim responsibility for such attack. the group specializes in kidnapping innocent citizens and demanding huge ransoms for their release. the climax of the subversive activities of this group was the kidnapping, hostage keeping and raping of 250 innocent female students of government secondary school, chibok in maiduguri, borno state on the 14th of april, 2014. the menace of kidnapping and violent protest has also been replicated in the eastern part of nigeria. since 2012, the indigenous awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 45 people of biafra (ipob) had emerged and demanded the restoration of an independent state of biafra. the activities of this group have been a threat to life and national security. recently the leader of the group has been arrested and facing trial. this development has ignited worse violent reactions from members of the group who are demanding for the release of their leader. the fulani herdsmen have also introduced another dimension of terrorism in nigeria. they invade communities, attack innocent citizens in their farms, rape women and most often slaughter their victims like rams. they also kidnap innocent citizens and demand ransom from their family members before they could be released. most recently, nigeria has also witnessed a new wave of security challenge. the quest for wealth has led some nigerian youths into terrible criminal acts such as ritual killings and cybercrimes (advanced free fraud) also known “yahoo”. these young criminals kill human beings and use parts of their body for money rituals. sometimes the rituals are performed to enhance their “yahoo” exploits. the foregoing is the general state of insecurity in nigeria. there is no gain saying the fact that insecurity challenges in nigeria have reached an alarming stage and now demand urgent attention. this paper attempts to establish the utilitarian function of drama as a veritable weapon which can be used to fight against insecurity in nigeria. the paper explores the issues of insecurity in nigeria as documented in selected plays written by nigerian dramatists. this approach to dramatic creativity which reckons on drama as a veritable weapon of social reconstruction is a product of the marxist aesthetics which is one of the primary functions of theatre of ideology, radicalism and social commitment. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 46 2. conceptual framework this discourse is premised on the sociological approach to literary criticism since the issues to be discussed in this paper fall within the purview of sociology of literature. the basis for sociological approach to literature is the belief that there is a symbiotic relationship between literature and society. in other words, literature does not exist in a vacuum; it reflects the society that produces it. to understand any literary work, one may need to probe into the writer’s society so as to understand the social milieu which informed the writer’s response. our choice of the sociological approach to literary criticism is informed by the fact that this critical theory sees literature (drama) as being at the vanguard of social change, and a testing ground for the dissemination of innovative and radical ideas that are likely to bring about a functional and progressive society (oniyide ajisafe, 2010 p.67). an important aspect of the sociological approach is the marxist criticism. marxist criticism goes beyond a formal and content analysis of artistic works, to a consideration of the very institutional processes of art creation and art criticism. in the words of omafume onoge (2007 p.472), “marxist critics are necessarily class partisan. they do not camouflage this partisanship…for a marxist sociology, men are not just stage performers, they are also fundamentally playwrights and authors.” 3. the role of dramatic literature in addressing insecurity challenges the utilitarian aesthetics of drama cannot be disputed. drama is one of the most powerful instruments of social change. as a veritable weapon of social reconstruction, drama can be used to address insecurity issues such as armed robbery, kidnapping, ethnic and religious violence, ritual killing and cybercrimes. drama as a form awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 47 of african literature is used as a medium of human interaction, and is suitable for probing the conscience of society with a view to correcting abnormal situations and bringing sanity to the society. it is against this background that we have embarked on the exploration of selected nigerian plays namely femi, osofisan’s once upon four robbers (1980), emeka nwabueze’s a parliament of vultures (2000), augustine eziechine’s waves of violence (2019). ahmed yerima’s hard ground (2005) and heart of stone (2013), and esiaba irobi’s hangmen also die (1987). these plays unveil the causes of insecurity in nigeria. the content analysis of the plays reveals that insecurity problems in nigeria are traceable to poverty, unemployment, corruption, social inequality, religious intolerance and injustice. possible solutions to these problems are also proffered in the plays. 3.1 unveiling the causes of insecurity in nigeria the menace of armed robbery in nigeria in the early 1970s is the subject of femi osofisan’s once upon four robbers. femi osofisan views drama as a medium of instruction. he has therefore created a unique theatre where he seeks to rouse his audience into critical awareness of the prevailing social decadence and thus move them into taking appropriate action. he achieves this by providing critical insight into the basic causes of societal malaise and at the same time proffering suggestions as to how societal malady can be overcome. his plays therefore, consistently attack all forms of corruption, oppression, injustice and tyranny (gbileka 1997 p. 74). in once upon four robbers, osofisan expresses his concern for man to reclaim his lost humanity in an unjust world. his belief is that dehumanization, though a concrete historical fact, is not a product of destiny; it is created by man. to osofisan, the ultimate consequence of dehumanization is violence. jude agho (1999, p. 73) corroborates this position when he argues that because awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 48 dehumanization is a condition of not being fully human, sooner or later, being less human leads the oppressed to struggle against those who made them so.” violence manifests in form of armed robbery in once upon four robbers. the leader of a group of an armed robbery squad has just been violently executed by the oppressor. this act leads the other members of the group to reflect on their future and their gangster activities generally, especially now that they are left without a leader to coordinate their notorious activities. osofisan sees these armed robbers as the product of an unjust society. he attributes the violence of armed robbery to the following social structure. take a look at our salary structures, at our sprawling slums and ghettoes, our congested hospitals and crowded schools, our impossible markets...and then take another look at the fast proliferations of motorcars, insurance agencies, supermarkets, chemist shops, boutiques, etc. the callous contradiction of our oil-doomed fantasies of rapid modernization (once upon ...p.1). this implies that the dichotomization of society and its implications have produced the likes of alhaja, angola, major and hassan – the armed robbers of today. in other words, when there is joblessness, poverty and hunger, armed robbery will become inevitable (saint gbilekaa, 1997, p.92). there is armed robbery, kidnapping and ritual killing in nigeria today because a few privileged members of the society have appropriated the people’s labour, the nation’s wealth, which they awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 49 divert into their private pockets while the masses are wallowing in abject poverty (gbilekaa, 1997, p.92). with this prevailing condition, armed robbery becomes inevitable as an alternative means of survival. indeed, the scourge of armed robbery has become a dangerous threat to life and property in nigeria. on thursday, 24th february, 2022 for instance, a group of armed robbers stormed four banks at uromi, edo state, destroyed the banks with dynamite, killed two policemen and four civilians and made away with undisclosed sums of money. (bbc online report). this sad experience is replicated in different locations and at different times. osofisan believes that armed robbers are not totally to blame for their nefarious activities. rather, he blames society for manufacturing them. he contends that it is societal inequality, the unequal distribution of wealth and opportunities and the competitive nature of capitalism that are responsible for the production of these hoodlums (gbilekaa 1997, p.77). corruption, excessive greed and inordinate ambition have been identified as major causes of insecurity in nigeria. these are captured in emeka nwabueze’s a parliament of vultures and eziechine augustine’s waves of violence. emeka nwabueze’s a parliament of vultures is a political satire against the corrupt political system in nigeria. the play unveils the gamut of corruption and hypocrisy, which polarize the political atmosphere in nigeria. it ridicules the corrupt legislative establishment in nigeria as well as the poor political culture which allows illiterates and morally decadent individuals to find themselves in parliament. the failure of the legislature in nigeria to perform its responsibilities creditably has led to several attacks from writers. nwabueze for instance, likened the unpatriotic legislators to vultures. vultures are ravens. they are greedy, voracious and insatiable...they prey on the people, scavenging them to death awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 50 (uwem affiah, 2012, p.378). examples of such parliamentarians who are neck-deep in sociopolitical evils are madam omeaku, reverend jossy, and habamero. emeka aniago (2017, p.69) describes madam omeaku as an ill-mannered, illiterate street-side food and liquor owner who became a parliamentarian through dubious and crooked means. madam omeaku boasts that just by being a member of the parliament, she has acquired houses in choice places in the country, and can afford month long expensive holiday in choice spots in any part of the world. again, she also brags that she owns choice cars and has even bought one car for her ‘car-less’ husband from the proceeds of their dubious deals with public funds. in the words of aniago (2017, p.70), “nwabueze characterizes madam omeaku as a classic epitome of ineptitude, greed, insensitivity and callousness, which have continued to pervade politics in nigeria.” it is pertinent to observe however, that in the midst of these agents of the devil are a few well-meaning politicians who are threatened, arm-twisted, side-lined and even brutalized for refusing to compromise (aniago, 2017, p. 70). after madam omeaku and her cohorts have succeeded in falsely incarcerating the two decent parliamentarians (dr parker and mr otobo), the youths who could no longer bear the wicked and unpatriotic acts of the corrupt parliamentarians storm the parliament, round-up the parliamentarians, and proceed to tie them up with ropes. this is a revolutionary attempt. nwabueze seems to be warning the parliamentarians and nigerian politicians in general that the ultimate result of political corruption and personal aggrandizement is violence, which might further develop into full scale revolution. like nwabueze’s a parliament of vultures, eziechine’s waves of violence is also a political satire against the corrupt political system in nigeria. in the play, dr. david anochie, a decent awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 51 university lecturer has been invited by his people to represent their clan in a forthcoming state house of assembly election. dr. david registers his objection to the proposed plan in the first instance. however, after listening to the pleas of his elders and family members, he finally accepts the proposed plan which he considers as an honour done to him and an opportunity to render selfless services to his people. little did he know that politics in nigeria is fraught with intrigues, intimidation and threats to life. the politicians themselves are abysmally corrupt. party leaders demand “a pound of flesh” from candidates who are contesting elective positions. political opponents use whatever means available to win election. it is either by hook or crook. isama, david’s political opponent for instance, tells okemnuo: “i will be ready to do anything to make my dream come true, even if it requires human sacrifice.” (waves... p. 48). political activists engage in wanton murder of innocent citizens. this is carried out by unemployed youths who are recruited by unscrupulous politicians as their thugs. the thugs are used by the politicians to eliminate their political opponents by means of assassination or ritual killing. chief anthony isama, for instance, has made several attempts to eliminate dr. david, his political rival. when his first plot against dr david failed, isama hired assassins to kill him. again, this attempt failed. but the shameless and unrepentant politician refuses to let go his nefarious acts. he goes to see dr. ken, the chief returning officer with a whooping sum of twenty-million naira gratification as an inducement to secure a seat in ani-eze state house of assembly. the unscrupulous power seeker further reveals his selfish and unethical disposition in the following conversation: dr ken: tony, i don’t understand what you are asking for? awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 52 isama: well, all i am asking for is your help. i mean, just do what you can to make me win the election…what i am asking you to do is to use your good office as the returning officer in charge to manipulate the election results and then declare me the winner of the election. i want to be assured that my victory in the election is guaranteed. period. dr ken: but you know this is impossible, tony. how can i assure you of victory in an election that has not been conducted? and how would you expect me to get myself involved in election malpractice by using my office to manipulate the result of the election? you know i can’t do that. that will be tantamount to contravening the provisions of the electoral laws of nigeria. it is a punishable offence. please, understand my plight and don’t lure me to do what is not lawful. isana; but i am not asking you to do what is not lawful. i am only asking for favour which is normal everywhere. you have all it takes to do what i am asking for except you don’t want to help me after all we are all nigerians. (waves…pp.60 61). this is a typical example of a highly corrupt and criminally-minded politician. he is morally bankrupt; a political misfit, seeking for selfish aggrandizement. in this conversation, dr ken has displayed the quality of a patriotic gentleman with good moral standing. but he finally bowed to pressure and violent threat from isama. in this play, violence is caused by corruption, excessive greed and inordinate ambition. out of sheer greed and inordinate ambition, isama hires assassins to eliminate dr david who appears to be a threat to his dream of becoming a member of his state house of assembly. it is the same greed that makes dragon and his cohorts accept two million naira as payment to assassinate david, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 53 an innocent man. again, because of greed the assassins granted david the option of either paying them double what they had received from their master or face violent death. the playwright condemns these unethical practices by punishing the evil perpetrators and rewarding david the symbol of peace, justice, honesty, and patriotism. the playwright addresses the issue of corruption and emphasizes the need for enthronement of a new political culture of transparency and meritocracy in nigerian politics. he also stresses the need for gainful employment of nigerian youths to avoid being used by politicians as cheap vessels of their murderous ventures in the pursuit of their inordinate ambition. ahmed yerima’s hard ground and heart of stone capture the activities of the niger delta militia group and those of the boko haram terrorist movement from the northern part of nigeria. in hard ground, yerima paints a vivid picture of the activities of the niger delta militants. he shows the initial effort of the people to fight for their liberation from economic exploitation and environmental devastation. yerima also presents in the play names of heroes like ken saro-wiwa who fought for the liberation of the people. he was later hanged alongside other human right activist in 1996. however, there were still other people who sabotaged the good cause pursued by the people of the niger delta region. in the play, some selfish individuals dealing with arms see it as a business avenue which must not be stopped. so, they encouraged the perpetuation of violence. the elders on the other hand have also made the youths to believe that the only way to get out of their present situation is violence. inyingifaa maintains this position in the following lines. my business stopped. my shipment could not pass through. no one awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 54 wants my guns. i was told that the big men had established another route and other source. my men were killed. paraded on television that they were caught bunkering. but i never meedle in oil, only guns. now the lives of my boys must be avenged (hard ground, p. 22) this further depicts the level of selfish interest inherent in the struggle for the emancipation of the people of the niger delta. as agozie ugwu puts it, the virus of corruption obviously has eaten deep into the fabric of society because the leaders of the society have left the root cause of their problem and have forgotten the ugly situations of the eco-system, the pains the common man in the villages who can neither carry weapon nor violently acquire his own share of the compensation money by force is daily made to endure, the diseases terrifying the natives and the economic hardship confronting the people of the niger delta region(agozie ugwu, 2016, par.5). the truth is that the insecurity situation that erupted in the niger delta region is occasioned by miss appropriation of revenue generated from oil exploration and exploitation in the area. yerima seems to be saying that violence and agitation for resource control may not stop until a greater share of the oil revenue generated from the area is equitably distributed and the people compensated awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 55 adequately for the devastation of their land. yerima’s heart of stone captures the issues bordering on ethnic and religious crisis in nigeria. the play reflects the activities of the boko haram terrorist group from the northern part of nigeria and the quest for a peaceful solution to all the insecurity challenges plaguing the nation. the plot of the play revolves around musa, a well digger, who is recruited and trained by boko haram, the dreaded islamic group from the north. in the play, musa, a muslim extremist has a strong hatred for the christians whom he believes insult muslims in their songs and mode of worship. this is revealed in the following conversation: musa: a song, eh? satan don fall for gutter. match am, match am. that’s me. that’s us. the song is saying that all muslims are siblings of satan, who should be trampled upon. we? who did we ever hurt? i mean who are the peace-loving cursed docile illiterates? us! amina: us? musa: yes...us muslims. all songs...all their prayers insult us. they brand us as the children of the most evil spirit, the devil, shetani! they want hell fire to burn us to smithereens. and yet they want us to be one, to be friends. they say we worship the same god. how can? i swear i will not go for the wedding if this is the kind of songs they will sing at the wedding. even their prayers are so militant, aimed at us described as blind ‘gambari’ beggar children of the devil (heart of stone, pp. 38-39). from his expression, it is clear that musa nurses deep hatred for christians because of what he perceives as insult on muslims by awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 56 christians. his misconception about the christian songs and prayers triggers his hatred into action by getting recruited into boko haram group and trained to carry violent actions against the christian songs and prayers triggers his grated for christians. he translates his hatred into action by getting recruited into boko haram group and trained to carry violent actions against the christians in particular and humanity in general without any regard for human life. this tactic of holy jihad according to jonathan mbachaga (2019, p. 85) “is used by terrorists to instill fear and generate coercive submission in their target subjects, the target being to crumble the rule of law, human rights and happiness”. as the play progresses, we find that the church is attacked by suicide bombers who believe that they will be offered 70 virgins in heaven as a reward for their suicide mission. yerima’s major concern in this play is to unveil the problem of religious intolerance precipitated by wrong religious doctrines. he believes that feeding the people daily with wrong religious doctrine will bring about religious misunderstanding among people from different religious and ethnic background and such misunderstanding may lead to religious crisis. yerima’s position is that the dignity of human life should be respected and emphasized above every other consideration. in hangmen also die, esiaba also paints the picture of a society where the leaders have appropriated the proceeds from the land to themselves and have left the masses to wallow in abject poverty. as a result of this, the graduates from the area who could not find job after leaving the university, take to violence as the only way out. bloodletting, therefore, becomes their only means of earning a living as well a means of taking revenge on the society that ruptured their future (agatha nwanya 2014, p.19). esiaba however, redirected their attention to chief erekosima, the real awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 57 object of their resentment. chief erekosima confiscated the compensation money sent by the government for the oil spillage which has ruined their eco-system. he shared the money with the councilors and local government chairmen. the natives did not receive anything. the aggrieved youths kidnapped and killed him. although corruption, selfish interest and personal vendetta appear to over shadow the true cause of the struggle of the niger delta people, irobi, in this play emphasizes that the crux of the people’s struggle is the urgent need for the provision of a green and healthy environment for the people and equitable distribution of the oil wealth raised from their land. 3.2 dramatic literature and the fight against insecurity challenges in nigeria as a veritable instrument of social mobilization and conscientisation, drama can be deployed as a tool to fight insecurity. once upon four robbers, for instance, has been described as a radical sociology of crime, an exposition of the struggle of the oppressed masses to liberate themselves from the tyranny of the wealthy class (gbilekaa, 1997, p.94). in highlighting the causes of violence, particularly armed robbery, osofisan has given it a dialectical treatment. he has juxtaposed the arguments of the robbers with those of the hunters (oppressors) in order to provide insight into socio-economic conditions that drive men into unpremeditated crimes. with this device, he expects his audience to judge for themselves in the referendum at the end of the play. in a parliament of vultures and waves of violence, emeka nwabueze and eziechine augustine mercilessly lampooned the unscrupulous political class of their time, who are neck-deep in sociopolitical evils. the politicians are portrayed in the texts as being classic epitomes of ineptitude, greed, insensitivity and awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 58 callousness. indeed, these calibers of abysmally corrupt politicians promote violence in their desperate quest for selfish aggrandizement. in ahmed yerima’s hard ground and heart of stone and esiaba irobi’s, hangmen also die, the root causes and architects of ethnic and religious violence in nigeria are unveiled. in hard ground, yerima captures through a dramatic representation, the dynamics of the activities of the niger-delta militants. the play examines the form, pattern of agitation and militancy that engulf niger delta area. the remote and immediate causes of the struggle is made manifest. in using theatrical medium to negotiate for an egalitarian society based on the socialist principles, and to arouse the consciousness of the masses towards the inequalities and injustices that permeate the nigerian society, the revolutionary playwrights, yerima and irobi have adopted the political theatre and resistance drama approach in their bid to make firm political statements and present recipes for social change. indeed, through the playwrights’ creative prowess, the consciousness of the masses to negotiate for an egalitarian society based on the socialist principles is raised. 4. conclusion this paper is an overview of selected plays written by nigerian playwrights, which focus on insecurity challenges in nigeria. the playwrights in these plays have exposed the issues responsible for such challenges. they have in various ways raised the consciousness of their audience towards critical awareness of the causes of violence, insurgency and insecurity in nigeria and at the same time proffering possible solutions to them. femi osofisan for instance, provided critical insight into the basic causes of societal malaise in once upon four robbers. osofisan contends that it is awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 59 societal inequality, the unequal distribution of wealth and opportunities and the competitive nature of capitalism that is responsible for the production of hoodlums who manifest as armed robbers in nigeria. he blames society for manufacturing them. similarly, emeka nwabueze’s a parliament of vultures and eziechine augustine’s waves of violence, trace the causes of violence and other forms of insecurity challenges in nigeria to brazen corruption, excessive greed and inordinate ambition. in hard ground and heart of stone, on the other hand, ahmed yerima conceptualizes the viruses of corruption, exploitation, oppression and religious extremism as major causes of violence and insurgency in nigeria. in esiaba irobi’s hangmen also die, corruption, oppression and deprivation gave rise to terrorism and insurgency in the niger delta. as a way forward to curb the menace of insecurity challenges in nigeria, these playwrights in the world of their plays have advocated the enthronement of a new democratic culture of transparency, equity, justice and good governance. the playwrights envision a nigerian society where there will be equal distribution of wealth and opportunities; a society where there shall be gainful employment of all the jobless youths. indeed, the playwrights emphasize the need for religious tolerance and respect for human rights and dignity as ways towards curbing the menace of insecurity challenges in nigeria. references affiah, u. (2012). “vultures in parliament: perspectives of emeka nwabueze,” african journal of social issues and humanities, vol. 2 (6), 378-383. agho, j.a. (1999). new perspectives on african literature benin city: jubilee press. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 60 ahmed, y. (2005). hard ground. ibadan: kraft books limited ahmed, y. (2013). heart of stone. ibadan: kraft books limited aniago, e. (2017). “political culture as product of social constructs in emeka nwabuewze’s a parliament of vultures.” ikenga: international journal of institute of african studies, unn, vol. 17, no. 1, 69-74. eziechine, a.o. (2019). waves of violence. enugu cnc publications. gbileka, s. (1997). radical theatre in nigeria. ibadan: caltop publishers. irobi esiaba (1989). hangmen also die, enugu: abic publishers mbachaga, j. (2019). “dramatic literature and the fight against terror, insurgency and insecurity in nigeria: yerima’s vision in heart of stone. advances in language and literary studies, vol. 10 (5), 8387. nwabueze, e. (2000). a parliament of vultures enugu: abic books equip. ltd. nwanya, a.n. (2014). “insecurity, the bane of development in nigeria: echoes from dramatic literature”, losr journal of humanities and social sciences (iosr-jhss), vol. 19 (12), 17-23. omafume,f.o. (2007). “towards a marxist sociology of african literature.” in t.olaniyan & a. quayson(eds). african literature. an anthology of criticism and theory. oniyide,a.a.(2010). social protest and literary imagination in selected nigerian novels. a phd thesis submitted to the school of post graduate studies, university of lagos akoka. osofisan f. (1980). once upon four robbers. ibadan: bio publications ugwu, a.u. (2016). “terrorism or emancipation: a dialectical study of esiaba probi’s hangmen also die” and ahmed yerima’s hardground” retrieved february 28, 2022 from https://www.researchgate.net. uromi bank robbery. (2022). online b.b.c. pidgin news retrieved 27/2/22 from https://www.bbc.com https://www.researchgate.net/ 144 challenges of implementation of anti-terrorism legislation in nigeria wisdom c. egwu1 eberechukwu e. omezue-nnali2 akanu ibiam federal polytechnic, unwana ukpabie3@gmail.com1, egwuwisdom@gmail.com2 abstract there is yet a dearth or scarcity of judicial authorities on the study in nigeria, as our courts have not been sufficiently engaged to proffer views and opinions on it. terrorism has been seen as the intentional use of violence and fear against a given population mostly civilians. in the recent years, nigeria has had unrest due to terrorist attacks by the boko haram, fulani herdsmen, bandits, unknown gunmen and the likes. despite the existence of anti-terrorism legislation in nigeria, there seem to be not much done in the arrest and prosecution of the terrorists. the general purpose of this study is to examine the challenges of implementation of anti-terrorism legislation in nigeria. in the course of this research work, the major finding of this work is the conflicting role of the national security adviser and the attorney general of the federation. the 2013 act stated that the office of the national security adviser shall be the coordinating body for all security and enforcement agencies under this act while it further stated that the ag of the federation shall be the authority for the effective implementation and administration of this act. the role of the national security adviser and attorney general of the federation under this act is overlapping and is capable of frustrating the working of this act especially where the occupants of mailto:ukpabie3@gmail.com mailto:egwuwisdom@gmail.com awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 145 these offices want to show the superiority of the offices they occupy. therefore, recommendation was made for the amendment of section 1a(1) and (2) of terrorism (prevention) act, 2013 which is on the powers of the national security adviser and that of attorney general of the federation to clearly delineate their roles and functions in order to strengthen the fight against terrorism. also, recommendation was made for ten years imprisonment for any person that pays ransom for a kidnapped victim to be released. keywords: terrorism, legislation, national security adviser, attorney general of the federation 1. introduction this topic is significant in view of the security challenges that have taken over the center stage in the management of security of lives and property in nigeria recently. globally, the issue of security, peace and development is at the center stage of local, national and international discourse. states, especially developing ones are constantly in search of security.1 on tuesday 11th september, 2001, four commercial planes were hijacked by terrorists. one hijacked passenger jet leaving boston, massachusetts crashed into the north tower of the world trade centre at 8:45am setting the tower on fire. eighteen minutes later, a second hijacked airline, united airlines flight 173 from boston, crashed into the south tower of the world trade centre and exploded: both airlines caused massive structural damage to the towers. later that morning both the north and south towers collapsed, plummeting into the streets below. at 9:43am, a third hijacked airliner (american airlines flight 93) crashed in 1 a.o. ojeniyi, terrorism in nigeria and group activities, 2nd edition,(lagos: maxt publishing ltd, 2003) p.45. challenges of implementation of anti-terrorism legislation in nigeria egwu & nnali 146 somerset county, pennsylvania, south east of pittsburgh.2 the crashing of these hijacked airliners into buildings and on land was the worst terrorists attack in the history of the united states. this led to the loss of nearly 3000 innocent lives and damaged property running into billions of dollars. the terrorist attacks not only served as a chilling reminder of the dangers inherent in international terrorism but also sent shock waves all around the world. the attacks were unequivocally condemned by states and by international organizations. on 12th september 2001, the united nations general assembly passed a resolution condemning the heinous acts which had resulted in loss of lives and collateral destruction.3 while showing solidarity with the people of the united states, the united nations called for international cooperation to bring to justice the perpetrators, organizers and sponsors of the crimes committed on 11th september 2001. on september 12th 2001, the united nations security council also condemned the terrorist acts expressing them as a threat to international peace and security.4 the council called upon all states to work together urgently to bring to justice the perpetrators of the crime, organizers and sponsors of the terrorist attacks. further, resolution 1373 was 2 information taken from cnn. 11th september 2001: chronology of terrors http/edition.cnn.com/2001/us/09/11/chronology attack. retrieved on 12/08/2018 at ll:40am. 3 gares.56/l(12th september, 2001) www.un.org/documents/ga/dqcs/56/agresolution.htm retrieved on 12/08/2018 at 11:50am. 4 s/res/1368 adopted by the security council at its 4370th meeting. unodc: universal legal framework against terrorism, publishing and library section, united nations office, vienna, february, 2012, pg. 2. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 147 adopted on 28 september 2001. under the resolution, the security council required states to adopt and implement the existing international legal instruments on terrorism, and to prevent and suppress the financing and the freezing of funds and financial matters. it also required that states allow one another assistance for criminal investigations and proceedings relating to the financing or support of terrorist acts.5 according to the resolution, states are also to prevent the movement of terrorists or their groups by effective border control. the security council also determined that states shall intensify and accelerate the exchange of information regarding terrorist actions or movements like traffic in arms and sensitive materials, forged or falsified documents, use of communications and technologies by terrorist groups: and the threat posed by the possession of weapons of mass destruction. the former president of nigeria goodluck jonathan said that the international community could assist nigeria through the use of foreign aid earmarked to create economic opportunities in the country's northern regions.6 moreover, for countries to give aid they would have to be sure that the money is being used in its intended manner. with the current state of corruption in nigeria, that is anything but certain. transparency international ranks nigeria 134th on its corruption perceptions index alongside bangladesh, togo, zimbabwe, and azerbaijan not exactly paragons of good governance.7 the challenges 5 security council sc/7158 (4385th meeting) 28 september 2001. security council unanimously adopts wide-ranging anti-terrorism resolution calls for suppressing financing, improving international co-operation. resolution 1373 (2001) also created the committee to monitor implementation. 6 v. chima “north east crisis more of islamist extremism” new telegraph newspaper april 15th, 2013, p.4. 7 transparency international: matters arising. retrieved from challenges of implementation of anti-terrorism legislation in nigeria egwu & nnali 148 facing nigeria are serious, and the solutions are scarce. a local, domestic terrorist group has now grown into something larger and much more dangerous. the boko haram sect could bond with extremist movements like al-qaida in the islamic maghreb. president muhammadu buhari said, the boko haram sect, has metamorphosed into a new terror network in the form of killer herdsmen in nigeria.8 the expansion of al-qaida from the maghreb into sub-saharan africa is a scary thought; one that concerns not only nigeria, but all other countries that could be a target of al-qaida, given the origins of the group, the solution will not come from government security forces. if the leadership of boko haram is eliminated, another group will simply step up to take its place. nigeria must look within itself to fix its social, economic, and political problems. boko haram is a symptom of alienation in nigeria's north, something the u.s. and other countries can do little to address. extremism is bred in inequality and insufficient economic opportunity, and the government of nigeria must deal with these problems to achieve peace and security within their country. the need to feed livestock of herdsmen necessitates their migration from their communities due to inadequate pastures to other communities and this has led to the trespass of these pastoralists to the farmlands of local agriculturalists and destruction of their crops thereby leading to conflict and killer herdsmen menace. the nigerian nation has persistently been in a fierce vortex and seemingly boiling cauldron of terrorism. nigerian parliament while passing anti-terrorism bill avoided the difficulty associated with the acceptance of a general http://thewillingnigeria.com/opinions/3467. 8 f. onuoha the changing faces of terrorism punch newspaper, november 6th, 2017, p. 12. http://thewillingnigeria.com/opinions/3467 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 149 consensus on the concept of terrorism and went further to define a terrorist as “anyone who causes an attack upon a person’s life which may cause serious bodily harm or death; kidnapping of a person; destruction of government or public facility transport system, an infrastructural facility including an information system, a fixed platform located on the continental shelf, public plaza or private property likely to endanger human life or result in major economic loss”. the bill also covers possession of or use of explosives as well as research into the development of explosives including biological and chemical without lawful authority. it stipulates a minimum of ten years imprisonment for anyone found in the training of potential terrorists, passing or withholding terrorist information, aiding or harboring terrorist and funding terrorist activities. the bill also stipulates a maximum of 20 years imprisonment or death penalty, in case of loss of life in any terrorist act.9 generally, the involvement of attacks on civilian population, police, military and other security agencies coupled with massive destruction of government facilities and civil properties like the oil installations, police stations, prisons, churches, mosques, and shops and so on. there could be no stability in the society where social injustice, corruption and exploitation permeate the society. african countries including nigeria were therefore brought under intense pressure through diplomatic and security necessity, to enact or amend their existing criminal laws to punish acts of terrorism. this was made pertinent by the establishment of a counter terrorism committee by the united nations security council. meanwhile, the national assembly of nigeria in february 9 k. akinlola, “senate passes anti-terrorism bill”, the new telegraph newspaper february 18th, 2011. p. 9. challenges of implementation of anti-terrorism legislation in nigeria egwu & nnali 150 2011 passed the terrorism prevention act, which the then president of nigeria, good luck ebele jonathan signed into law. this therefore made nigeria to join other league of nations determined to fight terrorism. the counter terrorism committee was established by the security council resolution 1373 and was adopted unanimously on 28th september, 2001 to monitor the implementation of resolution 1373 by member states.10 according to the former leader of the african union terrorism violates international law including the charter of the united nations, the principles and values enunciated in the constitutive act and the protocol relating to the establishment of the peace and security council (psc).11 however, with rapid increase in bombing and terrorist acts in the country, there was a dire need for a comprehensible legal framework guarding against terrorism in nigeria. this brought about the sponsoring of the anti-terrorism bill in the national assembly. the then committee chairman, senator nuhu aliyu explained that the fight against terrorism has become a global fight and nigeria as a member of international community seeks to play an important role in combating same. the bill was signed into law by the then president of federal republic of nigeria good luck ebele jonathan in june 2011. however, terrorism prevention act 2013 was enacted to cure the defect of 2011 act. notwithstanding the existence of antiterrorism legislation enacted in nigeria, we are still experiencing challenges as regards its implementation. 10 1. t, sampson, global terrorism: contending perspectives on the necessity for comprehensive legislation (chicago: gills publishing ltd, 2002) p.10. 11 a. konare, a report on preventing and combating terrorism in africa, available at www.httpafricaunion.org. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 151 2. problems of implementation of anti-terrorism measures in nigeria 2.1 inhibitions to counter terrorism measures in nigeria there are certain factors that militate against counter terrorism measures and they include: 1) porosity of the borders: this is an impediment to counter terrorism measures in nigeria. while nigeria’s border problem is related to colonial history, its porosity has been exacerbated by the failure of succeeding governments to properly administer these borders. there are instances where many of these weapons come from war-torn countries in and outside africa. it is against this backdrop that the former president of nigeria, goodluck jonathan rationalized that his imposition of a state of emergency in borno, adamawa and yobe states was to mop up arms that was smuggled into nigeria from the libyan uprising when he stated the following: we must comb the whole place to seize all these weapons and so on. a lot of free weapons come in because of the libya crisis. we must seize them. they are illegal weapons and must be seized and you cannot do that without declaring a state of emergency to enable the military enter any house, whether it is a residential building, it is a church, a mosque, a shrine, anywhere, hotel, anything that we suspect. we will be able to challenges of implementation of anti-terrorism legislation in nigeria egwu & nnali 152 enter and seize these weapons.12 from the above narrative one can postulate with some west africans that 'when the war ends, the guns remain. after conflict, small arms are recycled for use in new conflicts and crime at home, or sold to other west african countries for use in new conflicts or to prolong ongoing ones. despite the termination of most conflicts in the sub-region, smuggling and the illicit trade in small arms are reported to be on the increase. others have found that many of the arms smuggling rings operate out of cameroon, equatorial guinea and nigeria.13 the smugglers use speed-boats to connect to the high seas, and then ferry the arms back to shore. niger delta region of nigeria is a classic example; arms of various shades are brought into niger delta from various locations. most of the weapons-such as the russian ak-47, the german g-3, the belgian fn-fal, czech machine guns and serbian rocket-propelled grenades (rpgs)—are supplied by illegal dealers and sellers, who are paid through the proceeds of bunkered (stolen) oil. in october 2006 the rivers state police commissioner arrested chris ndudi njoku, a nigerian businessman who specialized in importing and smuggling prohibited firearms into nigeria.14 in his possession were g-3s, ak-47s and beretta automatic rifles. european dealers are also involved in the trade with their nigerian counterparts, 12arms smuggling in nigeria border. available at www.iss.co.za/uploads/terrorismreport.pdf accessed on may 2nd, 2018. 13 i. thomas, the dynamics of arms smuggling in africa available at <www.terrorislmanalysts.com/index.php/pot/article/view/152/html> accessed april 3rd, 2018. 14 d. omoniyi, “smuggling of arms in nigeria ” leadership newspaper august 17th, 2015. p. 8. http://www.iss.co.za/uploads/terrorismreport.pdf http://www.terrorislmanalysts.com/index.php/pot/article/view/152/html awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 153 but rarely have to face justice. legal laxity in the region has increased the spate of arms proliferation. the deterioration of many west african states' capacity to enforce the rule of law has blurred the boundaries between legal and illicit markets, enabling a thriving trade in small arms and light weapons. 2) extra judicial killing by security agencies: this is a serious challenge of counter terrorism measures in nigeria. the nigeria 1999 constitution stipulates that: every person has a right to life, and no one shall be deprived intentionally of his life, save in execution of the sentence of a court in respect of a criminal offence of which he has been found guilty in nigeria.15 also the african charter on human and peoples' rights stipulates that: human rights are inviolable. every human being shall be entitled to respect for his life and the integrity of his person. no one may be arbitrarily deprived of this right.16 in the same vein, the international covenant on civil and political rights stipulates that: every human being has the inherent right to life. this right shall be protected by law. no one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his life.17 despite the protection for the right to life provided for by national, regional and international instruments, cases of extra-judicial, summary and arbitrary executions by the police and other law enforcement agencies are still prevalent in nigeria. the entrenchment of democratic rule since 1999 has not significantly reduced this practice. the frequent issuance of 'shoot-at-sight' orders by government authorities during or upon apprehension of breakdown of law and order has worsened the situation. worthy to observe is the extra judicial killing of mohammed yusuf by nigeria police in 2009 triggered the guerrilla 15 see section 33, constitution of the federal republic of nigeria, 1999. 16 see article 4, african charter on human and peoples' rights. 17 article 6(1), international covenant on civil and political rights challenges of implementation of anti-terrorism legislation in nigeria egwu & nnali 154 war between nigeria government and the terrorist. prolonged years of military dictatorship in nigeria entrenched a culture of disregard for human life, particularly on the part of security and law enforcement agencies. this attitude has largely remained unchanged, seven years after the advent of democracy. cases of extra-judicial, summary and arbitrary executions have been persistently recorded across the country. another good example of case of extra-judicial, summary and arbitrary executions was reported in april 12th, 2016; umar ibrahim danjuma a 23 years old student of university of maiduguri was innocently killed at damboa road maiduguri by policemen on patrol on the april 8th, 2016 on the allegation that they received an anonymous distress call that some terrorist were operating around the area. the police claimed that upon getting to the area, they found the suspected terrorist in an uncompleted building. he started to run away and the deceased who tried to jump over the fence was shot dead. the body was taken to the police station and eventually to the hospital where he died. however, the account of the incident by the deceased family, friends and eyewitnesses contradicted by the account of the police. 3) the overlapping roles of the national security adviser and the attorney general of the federation: the 2013 act18 stated that the office of the national security adviser shall be the coordinating body for all security and enforcement agencies under this act while it further stated that the ag of the federation shall be the authority for the effective implementation and administration of this act. the role of the nsa and agf under this act is overlapping and is capable of frustrating the workings of this act especially where the occupants of these offices want to show the superiority of the 18 terrorism prevention act, section 1 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 155 offices they occupy. this is a potent danger in the administration of the act and if not looked into may derail the fight against terrorism. 4) indefinite detention of terrorism suspects under the act: the 2013 act19 by providing for the detention of a suspect for up to 90 days is derogatory of the fundamental human rights of the person. any law that tends to infringe on the rights of a suspect unduly should not be allowed to stand, after all, fighting terrorism is not at odds with the inalienable rights of the people; rather each should be made to reinforce and complement the other. 5) conflicting punishment of the offence of kidnapping in criminal code act and terrorism prevention act: even though the criminal code act did not particularly mention terrorism but contains the offence of kidnapping, which is in the terrorism prevention act of 2011 as constituting act of terrorism. the effect of this is that an accused person could be charged either or all of the legislation, depending under which law the suspect is charged; he may get a lesser punishment for the offence if convicted. this is because, kidnapping under criminal code act carries ten years imprisonment20 as against 20 years imprisonment provided under terrorism prevention act, 2011 (as amended).21 6) payment of ransom for kidnapped victims: payment of ransom for kidnapped victims pose a serious danger to the implementation of anti-terrorism legislation in nigeria. this is because kidnappers take advantage of this negative practice by some nigerians thereby making it a lucrative business. this kidnap kingpins demand as much as hundred million as ransom to release their victims. 19 terrorism prevention act, section 27 20 criminal code, cap c. 38, lfn, 2010. 21 section 1(c)(ii) of terrorism prevention act, 2011 (as amended). challenges of implementation of anti-terrorism legislation in nigeria egwu & nnali 156 3. recommendations 1) amendment of the provisions of the law: to strengthen the fight against terrorism, the following sections of terrorism law and constitution have to be amended. i. amendment of sections 1a (1) and (2) of terrorism (prevention) act, 2013 which is on the powers of the national security adviser and that of attorney general of the federation; ii. amendment of section 27 of terrorism (prevention) act, 2013 which empowers a judge to grant an order for the detention of a suspect for a period up to 90 days subject to renewal and amendment of section 32 to include state high court in handling terrorism 2) harmonization of terrorism prevention act to be in tandem with other cognate legislation: this is necessary because the enactment of terrorism prevention act did not repeal the punishment for the offence of kidnapping in criminal code act, which is ten years imprisonment as against twenty years provided under the terrorism prevention act. 3) the roles of the national security adviser and that of the attorney general of the federation shall be clearly delineated in terrorism act: this is to avoid overlapping of functions which is capable of eroding the fight against terrorism. 4) strengthening of traditional institution and its integration: there is need to strengthen the traditional system of our country, these traditional institutions instill morals on children and youths. nigeria by nature is endowed with well-organized traditional institutions headed by obas, emirs as well as igwes, ezeogos in igbo land respectively. some of these traditional institutions are well structured just like pyramid. these institutions should be awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 157 properly integrated in our political system particularly to solve problems that touch the society directly. 5) redefinition of national security goal: fundamentally; nigeria needs to redefine its national security goal. the national security aspiration of nigeria has for a long time centered on expelling external aggression and containing internal upheavals. therefore; economic deprivation or imbalances; poverty; health concerns; international migration; environment or issues like desertification; gully erosion and other ecological problems should form part of the security agenda. this is critical to the resolution of the herdsmen/farmer’s conflict which has led to killer herdsmen menace in nigeria. 6) punishment for payment of ransom for kidnapped victims: any person found guilty by a competent court of paying ransom for kidnapped victims should be imprisoned for 10 years imprisonment. 4. conclusion so much have been done internationally, regionally and domestically to ensure that this evil called terrorism that has besieged this generation is curbed, so that people can go about their businesses without fear of being killed or kidnapped. is of no doubt that, different set of terrorist group have emerged in nigeria with boko haram leading the prawn. there is no doubt that, effective police action or military action, within the precincts of law, can certainly reduce terrorism. we should therefore, not operate under the illusion that military action alone can eradicate terrorism completely. unless terrorist groups themselves decide to abandon armed struggle, it may be difficult to overcome them by force, having regard to the asymmetric nature of their approach. the enactment of terrorism challenges of implementation of anti-terrorism legislation in nigeria egwu & nnali 158 prevention act 2011 can be regarded as a right step, this is because legislation alone cannot end terrorism. references abdul, k. (2016).‘arbitrary execution by the police’ leadership newspaper april 24th, p. 3. abubakar. d. (2000). the rise and fall of the first and second republics of nigeria, 2nd edition (ibadan: macmillan books ltd). ademola, o. (2010) politics of domestic terrorism, 1st edition (ibadan: newton publishing co. ltd). akanji, o. (2011). the politics of combating domestic terrorism in nigeria. (lagos: marx publishing ltd). akinlola, k. (2012). ‘senate passes anti-terrorism bill’, the new telegraph newspaper february 18th, p. 9. akpan, c. (2013) the impact of terrorism in nigeria 1st edition (ibadan: spectrum books ltd). arms smuggling in nigeria border.www.iss.co.za/uploads/terrorismreport.pd f accessed on may 2nd, 2018. bassiouni, m. c. (2011). international terrorism 4th edition, (ibadan: macmillan books ltd). bedeau, c. u. (2012) repression and poverty behind global terrorism (ibadan: macmillan books ltd). charles, k. 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(2017). the changing faces of terrorism punch newspaper, november 6th, p. 12. s/res/1368 adopted by the security council at its 4370th meeting. unodc: universal legal framework against terrorism, publishing and library section, united nations office, vienna, february, 2012, pg. 2. http://www.httpafricaunion.org/ challenges of implementation of anti-terrorism legislation in nigeria egwu & nnali 160 sampson, i. t. (2002) global terrorism: contending perspectives on the necessity for comprehensive legislation (chicago: gills publishing ltd) p.10. security council sc/7158 (4385th meeting) 28 september 2001. security council unanimously adopts wide-ranging antiterrorism resolution calls for suppressing financing, improving international co-operation. resolution 1373 (2001) also created the committee to monitor implementation. transparency international: matters arising. retrieved from http://thewillingnigeria.com/opinions/3467. http://thewillingnigeria.com/opinions/3467 82 language and framing of insecurity on social media: a content analysis of posts eberechi chinenye amadi1 chioma deborah onwubiko2 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka1 federal university of technology, owerri2 ec.amadi@unizik.edu.ng1 chioma.onwubiko@futo.edu.ng2 abstract the social media (sm) platform has become a news breaking centre for information of any sort. it has reengineered social awareness, political discourse, and mobilization, advancing social and national insecurity in nigeria. for some years now, individuals and groups have used social media to disseminate information on terrorism, agitation and propaganda, using various forms and language to facilitate their course. this study sets out to identify the connection between language and social media frames by examining how facebook frames security issues, and the influence of such news to public attention and perception of readers. the study also identifies frames adopted by social media users in reporting security issues. about four social media accounts were picked. posts on security matters were analysed to find out their language use, context, frame types; their link to insecurity in nigeria were examined using frame theory. the research method is qualitative. the data were collected from facebook account of four individuals. findings indicate there are frame effects of fear, panic and uncertainty seen from the comments of readers. key words: language, framing, frame effect, insecurity, social media. mailto:ec.amadi@unizik.edu.ng mailto:chioma.onwubiko@futo.edu.ng awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 83 1. introduction the challenge of insecurity has in recent times witnessed an upsurge and assumed a more dangerous dimension which unfortunately, has become part of the daily happenings in nigeria. hardly will one listen to the news of the day, go to social media or read the dailies without coming across the issue of insecurity. it has become such a menace that it forms the major news headline in various online platforms, local and national dailies and television channels. the social media is not left out in disseminating this discursive subject. being a tool to stamp one’s stance, social media has engendered this subject and presented it to the public using various frames. these frames are portrayed with language, which is the most fundamental medium of communication in any social environment (eggins, 2004). according to yule (1996), language is a dynamic entity which performs several functions including building, destroying and creating the society. in the view of bamidele and adama (2019), insecurity is the inability of a particular country to ensure absence of violence, lawlessness, civil disorder and insurgency. also, adejumo (2011) defines insecurity as the inability of a country to keep peace within her governing territories. some of the security issues challenging the country include terrorism, religious and ethnic crisis, attacks on oil installations, kidnapping, armed robbery, extra judicial killings, attacks by herdsmen, hoodlums, bandits, unknown gunmen and the likes. government in attempt to tackle and eradicate this menace (insecurity) and restore peace and security in the country for sustainable development, has adopted the strategic security partnership on intelligence sharing with her borderline neighbours – cameroun, niger, mali and chad. efforts of the law enforcement agents and the millions annually budgeted by the government as security votes are notable in combatting this threat. language and framing of insecurity on social mediaamadi & onwubiko 84 insecurity in nigeria is a threat to life, property, national development and investment, both for local and foreign investors. it seems that all efforts by the government to nip this hydra-headed monster in the bud, has been defied. the masses insinuate that the process of getting a solution to this national issue has been compromised. this is because corruption has penetrated the nigerian system which makes it difficult for them to trust the government thus, breeding social unrest. the masses have therefore, taken to social media especially, facebook to express their stance on the issue of insecurity. the growing readership on facebook calls for attention on the relationship between language, social media, and insecurity. this study attempts to fill this gap by carrying out an indepth study of the language use on facebook as it concerns insecurity using the frame theory. the present study investigates the various ways language is being deployed in the discourse of insecurity in nigeria using different linguistic frames and audience reaction to information and, to understand how social media frames and language use draw public attention and affect the perception of online community. 2. literature review okeke (2012) examines effective use of language in ensuring national security and avers that appropriate choice of words in communication is more powerful and subtle than military force in tackling the issue of national security. he claims that words that do not constitute threats, anxiety or danger for human existence will contribute more to the development of a nation and at the same time engender development. he concludes that the problem of national security should not be left for government alone rather, nigerians should collaborate with government to ensure national security by strategically figuring what and how to say things while awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 85 understanding other people’s opinion. this, he believes is a comprehensive measure to tackle nigeria’s insecurity challenges. oluwadoro (2017) explores language-based solution to the problem of insecurity in boko haram dominated north eastern nigeria, he notes that indigenous languages like arabic, kanuri, hausa and fulfulde should be deliberately promoted by the government in administration, education among others especially, in the north eastern states. also, language of immediate environments should be incorporated into the trainings of the security forces (the police, the military and other related personnel) and be considered during their postings. alabi (2018) examines nigeria’s security challenges from a sociolinguistic approach and asserts that government should assign more roles to the indigenous language in order to use them to tackle the issue of insecurity. he observes that the use of indigenous language in disseminating security information will enable proper sensitization of the public against security threats. also seen as helpful is exchange of security information between government agencies and the public, especially those who do not understand english on the activities of suspected criminals, kidnappers and terrorists in their communities. bamidele and adama (2019) investigate the role of language in addressing nigeria’s multifarious challenges and observe that it is needful to deploy security agents to their state of origins. this, they opine, will enable them communicate intelligibly with the people in their indigenous languages, which will enhance proper investigation that will curb crime and incessant killings and kidnapping. 3. theoretical framework the theory adopted in this work is frame theory. the theory was first used by erving goffman in his book frame analysis (1974). language and framing of insecurity on social mediaamadi & onwubiko 86 goffman attests that audiences interpret situations around them through their primary framework. framing theory tells how something is presented to audience “the frame”, through ‘‘metamessage’’. text, utterances are framed to influence the choices people make in line with how they digest their information. agreeably, the objective of framing lies on the ability to interpret the metamessage and context that identify the frame-how the words are meant, and the meaning in the context. terkildsen and schenell 1997:881 as cited in linstrom and maris (2012) suggest that framing is important whenever an issue is presented in multiple ways which may potentially influence how people think about the issue. in this case a frame refers to the way social media as the information house presents topics, ideas, and event online. frames as an ‘‘implicit answer as to what should be done about an issue’’ is important in influencing individuals’ judgement and disseminating information. framing assumes that how an issue is characterised in news reports can have an influence over how it is comprehended by audiences (scheufele and tewksbury, 2007). 3.1 social media and framing effects social media is a web-based platform also known as digital media, aids in spreading information on crises situation and violence. their news breaking role is becoming more ground breaking and acceptable just like print media. digital technology has ushered in a communication revolution that has fundamentally changed the nature of media and power relations among an organizational and grassroots communicators hon (2015). it’s no stranger to reporting of events as they unfold and aptly the opinions and decisions of readers. according to matthes (2009), framing implores effective tools like metaphors, messages and images to examine the salience of specific topic and events. this definition given by matthes (2009) explores the context in which framing is effective and further awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 87 observes that there are certain tools or languages that the social media use to influence the opinion of their audience. iyengar (2019) supports this definition by going further to state that framing occurs when opinions on an issue is altered by placing emphasis on parts of the issue. nwofe (2016) noted that much of the power of framing comes from its ability to define problems – articulating cost and benefits specifying causes, make moral assessments, and recommend solutions. according to entman (1993), framing involves selection and salience. to frame is to select some aspects of a perceived reality and make them more salient in a communicating text, in such a way as to promote a particular problem definition, causal interpretation, moral evaluation, and/or treatment recommendation for the item described’’ (entman, 1993). this is why social media focuses attention on certain events and places them within a particular linguistic frame, inevitably to influence perceptions and interpretation of issues and these representations are adopted by their audience. papacharissi and oliveira (2008) summarise that the media is in position to frame what the general public sees, knows and understands about the violence perpetrated by insurgent groups. importantly, framing cannot only provide a foundation for choosing images and texts that can be used to reinforce key idea (the sociological aspect) but can also provide the basis for how people should take action (the psychological aspect), li (2008). this work investigates the relationship between language, facebook frames and effect on readers. 4. methodology this study employs a qualitative content analysis. lasswell, learner and pool (1952) see content analysis ‘‘as a technique which aims at language and framing of insecurity on social mediaamadi & onwubiko 88 describing, with optimum objectivity, precision, and generality, what is said on a given subject in a given place at a given time’’ (p. 34). the qualitative content analysis describes the language use, and interprets meaning from the content of text data. in line with other views, weber (1990) agrees that content analysis is a research method that uses a set of procedures to make valid inferences from text (p.9). pan and kosicki (1993) describe framing analysis as a specific technique for content analysis to explain how the media promotes certain aspects of a perceived reality. the research design for this study embraced qualitative content analysis. wimmer and dominick cited by linstrom and maris (2012) explain that news frame analysis, as a form of qualitative content analysis, could be conducted for media research purposes:  describing communication content;  comparing media content to the ‘‘real world’’; and  establishing a starting point for studies of media effects. in this case, qualitative content analysis involves explaining the issue, describing, analysing and interpreting data on security frame, and also to understand the relational messages from social media post. therefore, posts that address security issue on internet were looked into, using purposive sampling method; picking desired sample elements that conform to the predetermined characteristics (dode 2002). researchers went through 1207 posts to select a total of 60 facebook posts. selection of posts was done manually from january 2020 to january 2021. the sample size for this study comprises of posts from four facebook accounts. the study considered accounts with visibility, that is, accounts with more than 5,000 active following, reason is that they are opinion shaper on awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 89 facebook. we chose not to disclose real identity of selected facebook account holders because opinion for disclosure was not sought. we identify them as anonymous a, b, c and d. anonymous a, is a known voice and opinion shaper on sm, his facebook account is verified, with about 120k followers, followership, relevance and strong online presence. anonymous b is an opinion shaper with large following, anonymous c is an ipob sympathizer and defender, with strong support opinion on activities of the sect. anonymous d is neutral journalist that updates his follower on current news and trends. the selections were based on their wide followership, relevance and strong online presence. 5. results analysis 5.1 analysis on language there was contextual use of linguistic metaphor on facebook post to characterize event of violence to the audience, creating fears in people and playing with their emotion. this is seen in posts that has metaphor like ‘‘smashed’’ and ‘‘gunned down’’, the metaphors are based on the horror of the insecurity event, ‘‘smashed’’ and ‘‘butchered’’ represent intense violence, ‘‘gunned down’’ is metaphorically viewed as death, they embed meaning in language. in using this linguistic metaphor reader get to understand what is going on, the level of insecurity and the situation at hand. another instance is ‘‘shot at point blank’’; ‘‘left barren’’, the first metaphor was used to express loss of life. all show violence and crime rate. these metaphors have a way of stretching meaning of a subject matter. many context-induced metaphors are seen running in some of the posts. there is persuasive language and tone of horror and pains observed. 5.2 categorization of frames language and framing of insecurity on social mediaamadi & onwubiko 90 as a major source of information, social media places certain events within a particular linguistic frame, using words to characterize the violence, social unrest and insecurity that invaded south east. we identify five categories of frames depicting insecurity in south east. each frame is defined by a set of consequences of insecurity in south east of nigeria, characterising what each frame category describes. the frames are ‘violence’, ‘protest’, ‘threat’, ‘crime’ and ‘economic and social disruption’. 5.2.1 violence frame violence frame consist of three main themes: destruction of lives, destruction of properties and destruction of the future of igbo people. destruction of lives included languages that convey loss of lives. some of the language and frames in this theme that depicted physical violence are; shooting sporadically, burning of properties, gun down, bombing of places, declared dead, barbaric cutting of human body, beheading, self-inflicting injury, 6 cars set ablaze, were reported predominant theme in the posts that coded violence. these words synced with tense tone style to capture and identify violence frame. violence frame is projected in the way armed and cult groups were going about killing of citizens, destroying properties. the extra judicial killing of youths by police men, violence between unknown gunmen and nigerian police, the burning of government institutions, incidence such as unlawful killing and burning of properties, bombing of places, burning of vehicles, arbitrary arrest, ill-treatment and torturing. this frame talked about the impact of violence on people and also included the recommendation people made to call attention of the general public to the level of insecurity and unrest in the south east. 5.2.2 protest frame protest refers to reactions and disturbances. this frame type focused on the action expressing an objection to something by the aggrieved awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 91 people. frame themes like demonstration, sit-at-home, no election order, agitation, banning, and dissent were the themes captured in protest frame category posts. protest was described by both anonymous a and b as a demonstration of their unhappiness and marginalisation from the federal government, it is believed the government has been partial in appointment of people in key positions from south east, this informs the protest. this frame demonstrated uncertainty by the people, disturbance and ban action showing unhappiness were relatively evident in the actions of the aggrieved people in south east. anonymous a and b captures posts around the incidents stating that ‘‘people are angry and don’t like the actions of the government’’. in a bid to cause tension at all cost, aggrieved groups declared sit at home, no movement, banned movement of human, animal or vehicle to further heighten the insecurity situation in the region. this frame registers disapproval and consequences. 5.2.3 threat frame this frame refers to the fear put on people, to control their mind, and achieving their objective. it is another predefined frame identified from the reviewed studies, anonymous b and c, structures their post to convey message of fear, public panic, threats to the lives of the defenceless citizens of the country and a peaceful region. the post in this category had a negative sentiment, for instance, killing of people that went about their daily activities, pictures of wounded people and dead bodies conveyed threat frame, depicting security situation. open statement like every mondays is a sit-at home – made people to avoid activities on mondays. every uniform igbo man should resign from uniform joborder for every uniform personal from igbo extraction to resign immediately was given. don’t buy fulani’s cow –people were forced to stop buying and eating cows from northern nigeria. avoid anything from north: language and framing of insecurity on social mediaamadi & onwubiko 92 disobey ipob order and die – this was used to make people to adhere to ipob to totally avoid items from north. these statements were used to convey threats and to frighten the people in the region. citizens lives were threatened, even all-security apparatus in states were threatened to leave their duty post and southeast land. ipob group threaten people to support ipob, because according to them they are acting to liberate the igbo land. many became victims; people and uniform personnel. in fact, it was the second highest frame through which fears and uncertainty were displayed. 5.2.4 crime frame the crime category focused on violent activities that frightened people, attack by state-actors, armed attacks, violence crime such as kidnapping, robbery, cultism, assassination, rape, burglary, beheading, gun-battle with security forces. this frame also consisted of writing expressing the damage done by the criminals and call for help from the government. for instance, 4 killed, students abducted by gunmen in south east nigeria, we voted a government that stays to watch her people killed, gallant soldiers, four ipob members killed in anambra. military engages gunmen in shootout. police final bust the hideouts of those criminal element terrorising orlu people. these tweets frame southeast as unsafe place, a region criminal element have taken over and causing serious harm to the people, it shows the level if criminal activity besieging southeast. 5.2.5 economic and social disruption this frame refers to the instability in people’s daily activities, the disruption of business and change in social lives. this theme focused on the negative impacts that caused changes in social and economic lives of south east people. the post is structured to narrate how businesses are packing up, people closing up shops before 7 pm for fear of attacks, people living in fear, busy places awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 93 becoming deserted. economic and social disruption set the region backward economically, having enjoyed relative peace over time. 5.3 measuring media frame effect this study adopted cognitive bias approach where people are influenced by positive or negative connotations. following plous scott (1993), this study defined cognitive bias as framing effect where people decide on options based on whether the options are presented with positive or negative connotations; e.g., as a loss or as a gain. the media frame effect was measured by the readers’ engagement on security issues in south east. media effect was measured by the reaction of readers on positive and negative words and phrases. positive post got little reaction while negative post got emotional comments and reaction. context factor such as position and credibility of writer affects the way readers take information. 5.4 discussion this research identified language techniques and frames use by selected facebook account holders in framing insecurity in south east. observations are made on the use of tense tone, contextual use of linguistic metaphors on post to characterize a mental event of insecurity to the audience, creating fears in people and playing with their emotion. most importantly, the facebook posts select particular language to pass a message of insecurity ‘‘smashed the windscreen’’, ‘‘gunned down’’, ‘‘we closed down’’. the metaphors are based on the horror of the insecurity event. the term smashed represents violence, gunned down is metaphorically viewed as death. many context-induced metaphors are seen to be embedded in some of the posts made. drawing attention to the online community, there are sensational post and misleading information spread online. importantly, there were also subjective analysis of events that characterized the security situation in southeast compared to the language and framing of insecurity on social mediaamadi & onwubiko 94 reality on ground. it reflects in the language and choice of frames presented, that manipulate and amplify incidence, distorting information and heightened fear and panic among inhabitants of south east and outsiders. 6. conclusion the media landscape in nigeria is one filled with vigour jinmiahisu and osah (2021), where users use language to frame their messages; however, the messages convey certain meaning to readers. users carefully word their posts in order to control public perception and shape public opinion on specific topics. in the bid to understand how social media framed insecurity in south east of nigeria, and how people view the region, the framing theory was used, and five frames were picked to enhance understanding of language employed by the social media to frame violence, unrest related issues in the region. a common practice amongst social media is presenting matters in a way to catch attention (readership) and reaction, they do so by carefully choosing words to influence minds, and pass message. however, the extent to which these influences affect readers remains insufficiently investigated. four facebook accounts with constant updates on security matters were used and analysed. we observed social media such as facebook has significant impact and brings about public awareness on trending issues. there is no direct link or relation of security updates on facebook and insecurity in se. what we observe is presentation of sensitive topic with subjective views that makes readers form opinion, 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(1990), basic content analysis (2nd ed.) newbury park, ca: sage. 161 a review of human rights violation in african cultural practices eberechukwu e. omezue-nnali1, wisdom c. egwu2, chinyere ifeanyi-aruogu3 akanu ibiam federal polytechnic, unwana ukpabie3@gmail.com1, egwuwisdom@gmail.com2, chinyere.ifeanyiaruogu@gmail.com3 abstract africa is enriched with diverse rich cultural heritage. some of these cultural practices have been upheld over the decades despite westernization. however, civilization has enlightened africans in some regions to realize that some of these cultural practices are barbaric, absurd and constitute a violation of their fundamental human right. these cultural practices that stramble on the human rights of africans has in some regions impeded socio-economic and educational development. the purpose of this study shall be to examine these harmful cultural practices obtainable in selected west african communities which violate the fundamental human rights of her citizens including a few cultural practices that has been eradicated or left optional. some of these harmful cultural practices to be reviewed here include female genital circumcision, child labour, tribal marking, virginity testing, son preference/ male dominance, removing of a girl’s teeth in preparation for marriage and so many others. the scope of this study shall be limited to nigeria and a few west african states. the research methodology to be adopted is the theoretical approach with a little touch of empirical method by way of conducting mailto:ukpabie3@gmail.com mailto:egwuwisdom@gmail.com2 mailto:chinyere.ifeanyiaruogu@gmail.com3 a review of human rights violation in african cultural practices – nnali, egwu &aruogu 162 interviews on selected elders, other data shall be sourced through library and internet sources. thus the study recommends that some cultural practices should be abolished as same poses a threat to the exercise of the fundamental human rights of children and more especially females generally. also strict adherences to some of these cultural practices impede socio-economic development of the region. thus, any cultural practice that does not respect the human rights of the people especially females should be modified or eradicated. keywords: culture, tradition, human rights, law 1. introduction there is a behavior that a people can practice over the years and it becomes a norm to them not minding whether such traditional/cultural practices are harmful or not. thus, some practices in the african culture has persisted over decades and centuries because they are not questioned or challenged, thus the people have grown to see such harmful practices as a normal thing that is morally justified. it is pertinent to note however that morality is not law. for example, prior to 1876, twins were killed together with their mother as they were seen as an abomination and their killing was in order to wipe away their presumed bad omen from the community. 1.1 background of study africa is a nation blessed with a rich cultural heritage. africa culture also varies from one country and tribe to another. the culture in africa is rich in traditions, art, music, literature and food. the africans were enjoying their cultural heritage before the invasion of the whites and this westernization had both negative and positive impact on africans. however, some parts of africa still wholly embraced their culture not minding that it violates the human rights awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 163 of others. thus, traditional cultural practices deal with the value and beliefs that are held by members of a community for periods often spanning generations (factsheet, 2021). human rights are the standards that are recognized to protect the dignity of all human beings (unicef, 2021). these rights are available to us as humans and it belongs to every person on earth regardless of tribe, sex, and nationality; and it’s from birth to death (national human rights institute, 2019). on the other hand, international human rights embodies the laid down rights of human which states are bound to respect. 1.2 statement of problem african people have an aspect of their lives which is very important and it is called culture. this culture has much influence in structuring the lives of men and women in the community and their relationship (ncube, 2018: ii) due to long term acts of practice, these cultural practices are seen as normal by the greater number of persons in the community, yet no matter how generally accepted this cultural practices are, it does not negate the fact that it is a violation of human rights of these persons and thus the most vulnerable among them are mostly women and children. westernization robbed african culture of some of her cultural heritage, yet there are still many of these traditional practices that are still being practiced by the people. thus, till date, there are still some frictions between some cultural practices that are in conflict with the human rights of men and women in practices as practiced in nigeria and some few west african states. 1.3 research questions the main research question as deprived from this research work is what are the harmful cultural practices in west africa that violate the human rights of the people? a review of human rights violation in african cultural practices – nnali, egwu &aruogu 164 2. theoretical framework edward shils theory of tradition sees the idea of tradition as any precipitate or filament of past practice or past belief that is transmitted (handed down) by a parent, teacher or persons and which is learnt and re-enacted (or rethought) by agents through at least three consecutive generations (straus jacobs:2007). there are some theories on culture, which review culture in three theoretical perspectives which include functionalism, conflict theory and symbolic interactionism. the functionalists sees the society as a system where everything works or functions, thus culture is a requirement for the society to function. functionalists see culture as a reflection of the society’s values, in other words, culture is meant to meet the basic needs of its members. the conflict theorist sees inequality in the social structure, it could be as a result of power differentials related to issues like age, race, gender, etc. the conflict theorists believes that culture is used as an edge by a certain persons against others, that is to say it reinforces the privileged groups against others, this could be based on gender, race, class, etc. for example, women striving for relevance in a male dominated state; the blacks struggling for recognition among the white men especially the groups that detest foreigners. they believe culture favour some people and hurt others. for example, polygamy which is common in some cultures is unthinkable in other cultures, gay and lesbian marriages practiced in america and other states are greatly frowned at by africans. the third is symbolic interactionism is a sociological perspective that is mostly concerned with the face to face interactions between members in the society. they see culture as what is created and maintained by the ways people interact and this is also relevant on how individuals interpret each other’s actions. in symbolic interactionism, every object and action has a awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 165 symbolic meaning and these meanings are communicated face to face by the use of language. this approach can come to play when arts and music are used in the expression of culture to the people. (lumen learning; reading: theoretical perspectives on culture, module 2). we shall now explore the theories of human rights. andrew heard (1997) sees human rights as the great ethical yardstick used to measure a government’s treatment of its people. thomas paine states that natural rights are those which appertain to man in right of all his existence (heard a. 1997:1). thus, it is generally accepted that only human beings are the only holders of human rights, and this is by virtue of their humanity irrespective of your age, gender, race, nationality or membership of any particular social group. earlier on it was referred to as ‘natural rights’ but was called ‘human rights’ after the world war ii. (legalraj, 2020) basically, the two theories that dominate contemporary human rights discussion are the interest theory and the will theory. the interest theory which is well represented by philosopher john finnis (1980), who argues that human rights are justifiable on the grounds of their instrumental value for necessary conditions of human well-being. he identified seven basic forms of human good, which are life and its capacity for development, the acquisition of knowledge, play as a capacity for recreation, aesthetic expression, sociability and friendship, practical reasonable thought processes and religion or the capacity for spiritual experience. in summary, this approach tends to see our fundamental interests as predeterminants of human moral decency. the will theory approach attempts to construe the validity of human rights to be centered on the capacity for freedom. hart (1955:77) infers that all rights of man are embedded on the fundamental right of freedom-‘equal right of all men to be free.’ in a development of this theory, henry shue (1996) argued that a review of human rights violation in african cultural practices – nnali, egwu &aruogu 166 liberty/freedom alone does not encompass all the rights. thus, he added security from violence and the necessary material conditions for personal survival. gewirth developed the will theory further, alan gewirth (1978:1982) argues that all human action is rationally purposive and that freedom are the basic ingredients for a rationally purposive action. it is worthy to note that both approaches have suffered much criticism for its weaknesses (andrew fagan, 2021) from the foregoing literatures, it is pertinent to note that there is no literature that reviews are the cultural practices that are obtainable in some selected african states, hence this research work 2.1 harmful cultural practices harmful cultural practices are discriminatory practices committed regularly over long period of time that communities and societies begin to consider them acceptable (unicef (2021). these harmful traditional practices are forms of violence which have been committed primarily against women and girls in certain communities for so long that they are presented by the perpetrators as part of the accepted cultural practice. (public health scotland: 2021). the protocol of the african charter on human and people’s rights on the right of women in africa defines harmful practices as all behavior, attitudes, and/or practices which negatively affect the fundamental rights of women and girls, such as their right to life, dignity, education and physical integrity” (achpr, 2018) in ncube n. a., 2018) these harmful cultural practices reflect some traditional values and belief system which has spanned generations, some of the practices are life threatening and harmful to some members of the community, where as it is generally accepted as a norm by greater members of the community. this harmful traditional practices include female genital mutilations (fgm), early marriage/ early pregnancy, son preference, male dominance, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 167 virginity test, child labour, tribal marking and so on (factsheet no. 23, 1979). ncube (2018) observes that the recognition of these cultural practices makes room for the perpetration of this act of gender inequality which violates the human rights of individual. article 1 of the universal declaration of human rights provides that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights and further in article 2 states that everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or any other opinion (un general assembly, 1948). 3. harmful cultural practices these hurtful cultural practices shall be explained here seriatim: 1. female genital mutilation/ circumcision (fgm): maluleke (2012) explained female genital mutilation (fgm) as a disfigurement that involves the cutting of the clitoris. it also includes changing the form of the labia or elongating them (maluleke, 2012: 7). according to the world health organization (2012), female genital mutilation (fgm) involves the partial or total removal of external female genital or other injury to the female genital organs for non medical traditional practitioners. it is usually carried out on minors, thus it is a violation of the rights of children and girls (who, 2022).unicef (2019) observed that every year around four million girls globally are at risk of undergoing female genital mutilation (fgm) before the age of 15. also, that most communities that practice fgm believe that it is needful because of the socio-cultural convictions. some cultures believe it shows maturity into womanhood, while others see it that it suppresses a woman’s sexuality (unicef, 2019). a review of human rights violation in african cultural practices – nnali, egwu &aruogu 168 as stated by who (2022), there are several health hazards that may result to some surrounding genital issues and likely death. long term complications can include urinary problems, vaginal problems/infections, menstrual problems, increased risks of childbirth complications, need for later surgeries and then psychological problems. maluleke (2012) noted that there are several health hazards of engaging in female genital mutilation, which includes hemorrhage, blood poisoning, sickness or death and this act of fgm is a practice of torture which is contained in article 5 of the african charter on human and peoples’ right. the swiss agency for development and cooperation (sdc) narrates that the un estimates that globally 200 million women and girls undergo the practice of fgm and amazingly, 80% of this violation happen in africa and somalia (in east africa) has highest rate of practice. in somalia, 98% of women undergo this procedure; it is followed by sudan, ethiopia and kenya (sdc (24/2/2021). about 31 countries in africa still practice fgm but it is mostly practiced in djibouti, egypt, guinea and mali (kathryn reid, 2021) in nigeria, fgm is predominantly practiced in the ratio of 77% in the south, 68% in the southeast and 65% in the southwest (immigration and refugee board of canada, 2016). between 20142016, nigerian newspapers noted that fgm is mostly practiced in this six states which are ebonyi, imo, ekiti, lagos, osun, and oyo (ibid, vanguard 9 sept. 2015, un 21 une, 2016 . punch 7 feb, 2016, icir 7 feb. 2015). recently, on 6th february, 2022 on the international day of zero tolerance of fgm, unicef nigeria warned that female genital mutilations is still on the rise in nigeria especially among girls 0-14 (unicef nigeria (2022). fgm inflicts torture on the girl child, it has been condemned globally and thus should be stopped not minding the cultural approval of same awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 169 3.1 child labour according to the international labour organization (2021), child labour is any work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential and their dignity and that is harmful to physical and mental development (internal labour organization, 2021). in determining what constitutes child labour, consideration is usually paid on the age of the child, the type of work, she/he does, the hours of work performed, the conditions under which the child does the work and the objectives pursued by the individual’s country. there are the worst forms of child labour which is defined by the article 3 of the ilo convention no. 182 and it includes the following: i. all forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery. for example, trafficking of children, forced labour, forced or compulsory recruitment for use in armed conflict ii. offering of a child for prostitution or any pornographic performances iii. offering of a child for illicit activities, such as production or trafficking of drugs iv. such work which is likely to harm the health safety or morals of a child. the international labour organization in 2020 estimated one third of children in child labour are out of school and that worldwide, about 160 million children are involved in child labour accounting for almost 1 in 10 of all children worldwide (63 million girls and 97 million boys). sub-haram africa was rated highest globally by having 86.6% in child labour and 38.6% in the harzardous work. on a review of human rights violation in african cultural practices – nnali, egwu &aruogu 170 the other hand, arab states have the least number of children engaging in the child labour, as it is only 2.41% (ilo and unicef 2022). the 2016 global estimates of child labour has indicated that one-fifth (1/5) of all african children are involved in child labour which nine percent (9%) of children are involved in hazardous works (international labour organization, 2021) child labour and fundamental human rights children are the most vulnerable and so needs the protection of parents and guardians in the society. in 2010, the international community adopted a roadmap for achieving the elimination of the worst forms of child labour by 2016 and this emphasized on the fact that child labour is an impediment to children’s rights. (international labour organization (ilo) world day against child labour: 2012). child labour stampedes on the rights of the child to education and exposes the child to numerous risks to his health and requisite training. unicef (2021) has also noted several consequences of child labour which includes of their fundamental rights, health hazards, slavery, sexual or economic exploitation, mental harm or even death (unicef, 2021) 3.1.1 son preference/ male dominance every family in africa desires to have at least a son in the family. generally, where there is no son in the family, the society sees it that the lineage has been cut off. earlier on in west africa, girls were not sent to schools when westernization just started, they were seen as goods that would soon be bought over by another man for his pleasure. however, this concept is gradually changing as girls are now sent to schools even to the highest level by parents including the illiterate parents. despite the high rate of civilization, most west african families still prefer and value the birth of a son than that of a daughter. 3.1.2 son preference and human rights awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 171 son preference is discriminatory in nature. every person/child has a right to be free from discrimination based on gender; this is a fundamental human right as provided in the constitution of most african states. this discrimination can lead to denial of inheritance that is due to a girl child, it can also affect her access to education; and then in marriage, it would make the female aim tirelessly at reproducing a male child, some women are even chased out of their matrimonial homes because they could not give birth to a son. son preference is a violation of the rights of the girl-child as stipulated under articles 2, 6, 12, 19, 24, 27 and 28 of the convention on the rights of the child. son preference keeps the girl child perpetually disadvantaged from birth and this is something she did not choose for herself, nature/god made her a girl. it is still the woman (grown girl child) that suffers the risk of death/ health hazards in the extreme cases where the man/husband would decide on selective abortion/ female infanticide which aims at having a male foetus. 3.2 early marriage early marriage is a societal problem that girls face in africa. there is a cultural belief that the girl should marry as a virgin, in order to actualize same, they give out the girl in marriage before the age of 18 -20 years. thus the female is sometimes tested by a process called virginity test (this shall be discussed hereinafter). immediately the marriage is contracted, the woman is expected to start consummating the marriage and the next expectation is pregnancy and child birth. most times, those that marry earlier have more chances of giving birth to more number of children in the family. 3.2.1 early marriage and human rights this early marriage otherwise referred to as child marriage is a violation of the human rights of the girl child, who cannot make an informed decision at that tender age. this early marriage and its a review of human rights violation in african cultural practices – nnali, egwu &aruogu 172 accompanying early pregnancies expose the girl-child to some health hazards such as vesicovaginal fistula, resulting from early and multiple pregnancies. early marriage also stampedes on the mental, economic and all round growth. she is denied basic education because she has to take care of the home because she was forced into adulthood premature, thus financially, this girl –child may have nothing to contribute to the family and these may attract assault and other forms of domestic violence, which is a violation of the right of the woman. it is pertinent to add here that in most parts of nigeria especially igbo land (eastern nigeria), a young girl who gets pregnant for a boy/man is forced to go and live in the home of the boy/man not minding whether the boy/man is ready for marriage and family life, this in most cases has left the girl-child traumatized, she has no support/love from her family and the family of the boy/man in most cases maltreated her for being imposed on them for marriage. this practice also affects the psychological health of the girl-child and the nutritional health of the girl and the unborn child. 3.3 some harmful widowhood practices widowhood is a life filled with grief, incompleteness and loneliness. however, despite this emotional stress that the widow is experiencing at the said period, there are still some cultural harmful practices that the poor widow is subjected to which to the belief of the people is aimed at exonerating her over the death of her spouse. a reasonable man is left to wonder why the widow should be the prime suspect over the death of her own partner, lover and spouse. kamatikibiu (2017:2) observes that everything should be done to assist a widow in order to help her withstand the emotional and psychological trauma of a loss of a husband, however most african tradition add to the problem of the widows by maltreating her. kamatikibiu (2017:4) in his empirical findings also discovers awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 173 that widows in adamawa (in northern nigeria) were thrown out immediately after the burial of their late husband and properly left behind were shared among parents of the deceased while his wife and children are left in pain and penury there are some widowhood practices that are degrading, injurious, violent and a breach of the fundamental rights of widows in our society. they include, sharp shaving of the woman’s hair, subjecting the woman to stay with the corpse of the husband indoor for days, making a woman to drink of the water used in bathing of the corpse of the deceased spouse, denial of the widow of access to the deceased husband’s property, the woman is subjected to wear a particular dress for some months or even up to a year to show that she is mourning her deceased husband., denial of the widow of access to the deceased husband’s property, maltreatment by in-laws, eviction from her home especially by the in-laws who come to dispossess her of her husband’s assets especially where there is no male child or when the male is still a minor. it is pertinent to note that the international laws, the 1999 constitution of nigeria and violence against persons (prohibition act, 2015), all provide against any form of molestation of women. article 7 of the universal declaration of human rights (1948), article 5 and 16 of the convention on elimination of all forms of discrimination against women, all protect the women from being discriminated against by reason of their gender or status. 3.4 tribal marking/ scarifications tribal marks are bodily marks that have been used for years in africa to indicate a person’s tribal heritage. tribal marks dates back to the 14th century by during the slave trade era, these marks were used by families to identify one another even when sold out to another country. thus, it helps for the purpose of identification of a person’s tribe, family or patrilineal lineage (yewande adeleke, a review of human rights violation in african cultural practices – nnali, egwu &aruogu 174 2021). tribal marks have also been said to be used for spiritual protection and healing purposes. farida dawkins, 2021) emphasized on the meanings of some african tribal marks as same can be used as a sign of beauty and for indication of one’s tribe. times reporter (2010) in recounting how tribal marks are made, states that ‘a sharp object which could be a stone or coconut shell was pressed and dragged across the fresh in patterns or designs leaving behind cuts, then some dark pigment such as charcoal or other acerbic plant juice were rubbed into the wound to make permanent blisters, other used fish-hook to pull the skin and then slice it with a sharp object. once the wound was inflicted, they were further inflamed by rubbing ash and other substances into it, when these cuts heal, they form heavy raised scars. the african tribal marks are as imposed by the cultural demands this is not the same with tatoos that americans and others do where they determine the kind of marks to be made, the part of the body, and when to make it. africans believe that the facial marks scar the spirit of death away from them. 3.4.1 how tribal marks violates the human rights these tribal marks are inflicted on persons when they are still young and cannot make a choice. its presumed benefits are already outdated and it is not acceptable by so many parents now. these tribal marks are inflicted using sharp objects which could be infected, the marking which is a scar could also attract infections, and furthermore, it could lead to bleeding as it is not done under the supervision of a healthcare service provider. the tribal mark could make a child withdrawn especially when in an era where no one values tribal marks. 3.5 virginity test virginity test is a controversial practice that aims to determine whether a girl has had sexual intercourse or not (issm: 2022). issm awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 175 (2022) also noted that virginity testing is a practice that is known globally, however, its practice is higher in some parts of africa, asia and the middle east. however, virginity test has also been found in canada, spain, sweden and netherlands. in south africa, the children’s act (act no. 38 of 2005) and its associated regulations provides for the practice of virginity testing which could be conducted on both the male and the female children over the age of 16, with their consent obtained. however, behrens kelvin g., 2014) argues that virginity testing is unjustly targeted at the girl-child that it promotes patriarchal social order, it is discriminatory, that it has no reliable means of testing and that its result can be false. the united national agencies has called out for the ban on virginity testing as such practice is discriminatory, painful, humiliating, traumatic and of no medical consequences. the united nations human rights , united nations women and world health organization has condemned the practice of virginity testing for whatever reason which is usually for marriage or family or cultural purposes for employment purposes or even as a proof of penetration where there is an allegation of rape. in the traditional african society, virginity test is usually conducted by traditional experts, this practice is still ongoing despite the several calls by the united nations and the world health organizations that same is an act of violence against women hence a violation of their human rights. 3.6 teeth removal in preparation for marriage the practice of removing a girl’s teeth in preparation for marriage is mostly practiced by the koma people. they mostly engage in endogenous marriage (which is a practice of marrying within a specific social group and rejecting suitors from outside the group). between the ages of 10 to 14, children undergo puberty rituals where a review of human rights violation in african cultural practices – nnali, egwu &aruogu 176 the boys are circumcised and the girls have their teeth extractedthis practice they believe signals maturity (around the worldscooper news, 2021). koma people consists the ethnic group in northern adamawa in the atlantika mountains which shares a border with southern cameroun. there exist 21 koma villages in the camerounian-side of the alantika mountains and 17 villages on the nigerian side. (wikipedia, 2012). the koma people still maintain the stone age life style of living in cave-like settlement and going about naked, they only wear leaves and animal skins to cover only the vital parts of their body. according to their custom, marriage can only be performed after passing through the puberty rituals of circumcision (for boys) and teeth removal (for girls). (nigera galleria (2021). we know that it is of one’s best interest to preserve their culture and cultural heritage however we still hold that it should be within what is generally accepted as not a violation of one’s fundamental human rights. 4. conclusion/ recommendation from all the analysis above, we have considered about eight (8) harmful cultural practices that are still practiced in our nation and how each of them poses a threat to one’s health and psychological development and especially the violation of the fundamental human rights of persons (especially women and children). we believe that a redress of these violations would mean an adjustment of the people’s cultural practices. we are not advocating however for the eradication of our cultural heritage but only seek for its adjustment to the extent of which it violates the rights of individuals especially the most vulnerable persons such as children and women. most of awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 177 these practices have also been condemned by the world health organization (who) and the unicef. from this research work, we have discovered some areas where further studies can be pursued, and that is on the rationale behind the koma people teeth removal of matured girls in preparation for marriage, we believe an investigation into the main act or event that led to the origin of that culture and its advantages to the people. references ncube n. a. (2018). the clash between human rights and culture: case studies of south africa and zimbabwe, thesis in fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of master of arts (political science) in the faculty of arts and social sciences at stellen bosch university.) around the world (2021). meet the koma people who remove girl’s teeth to prepare them for marriage. scooper news. cdnscopernews.com factsheet, no. 23, harmful traditional practices affecting the health of women and children. www.ohchr.org>publications farida dawkins (2021). african tribal marks and their meanings. www.weafriquenations.com immigration and refugee board of canada (2016). nigeria: prevalence of female genital mutilation (fgm) including ethnic groups in which fgm is prevalent. refworld. www.refworld.org nga105628.e in leadership 6 feb. 2016, borgen magazine 19 feb. 2014 internal labour organization (2021) what is child labour. ilo. www.ilo.org ) http://www.weafriquenations.com/ http://www.refworld.org/ http://www.ilo.org/ a review of human rights violation in african cultural practices – nnali, egwu &aruogu 178 international labour organization (ilo) (2012). world day against child labour 2012: human rights and social justice…let’s end child labour. www.ilo.org issm (2022). what is virginity testing? why is it used, and what are its potential effects?. international society for sexual medicine. www.issm.info ) kamatikibiu j. d. (2017). pains and challenges of widowhood in adamawa state nigeria. american journal of clinical research and review.1-2) kathryn reid (2021). 6 facts about female genital mutilation (fgm). world vision. www.worldvision.org lumen sociology reading theoretical perspectives on culture, module 2:culture and society, www.courses.lumenlearning.com>chapter times reporter (2010). the new times, rwanda’s leading daily. www.newtimes.co.rw maluleke m. j. (2012). culture, tradition, custom, law and gender equality. potchefstroom electronic law journal (pelj) per (15) 1 page 7 national human rights institute (nhri) (2019). what are human rights?. www.equality-human rights.com> nigeria galleria (2021). koma hills, adamawa state. www.nigeriagalleria.com sdc (24/2/2021) eighty per cent of fgm cases happen in africa. http.www.reliefweb straus jacob (2007). edward shils’ theory of tradition, sage journals. https://doi.org/10.1177/00483931077299685 un general assembly, (1948) unicef nigeria (2022) unicef warns fgm on the rise among young nigerian girls. www.unicef.org http://www.ilo.org/ http://www.issm.info/ http://www.worldvision.org/ http://www.newtimes.co.rw/ http://www.nigeriagalleria.com/ https://doi.org/10.1177/00483931077299685 http://www.unicef.org/ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 179 unicef (4/3/2019). what is female genital mutilation? 7 questions answered. unicef. www.unicef.org unicef, www.unicef.org unicef (2021). child labour. www.unicef.org who (2022). female genital mutilation, world health organizationn, www.who.int wikipedia, 2012). koma in adamawa. www.en.m.wikipedia.org world (2021). meet the koma people who remove girl’s teeth to prepare them for marriage. scooper news. cdnscopernews.com yewande adeleke (2021). tribal marks: the struggle between tradition and abuse. history of yesterday publishers. www.historyofyesterday.com http://www.unicef.org/ http://www.unicef.org/ http://www.unicef.org/ http://www.who.int/ http://www.en.m.wikipedia.org/ http://www.historyofyesterday.com/ 214 a functional linguistic perspective of language and insecurity in governor ortom’s speech on the killings at abagana idp camp samuel edem nigeria police academy, wudil, kano. dmsamuel19@gmail.com abstract this study, from a functional linguistic perspective, examines language and insecurity via an impromptu speech of governor ortom on the killings at the abagana idp camp delivered 28th wednesday, march 2021. the study aims at two things. first, it examines the language of the speech through the structures unfurling how insecurity has become a major concern in benue state. second, it undrapes the linguistic features used in foregrounding this concern. findings unveil that binary opposition, mood, modality, transitivity, and deictic references are linguistic features expended by governor ortom to achieve different meanings. while binary opposition tends to foreground intentional and unethical acts levelled against the people of benue state; modality tends to compel certain obligations to stop this act. an interrogative is invested rhetorically to implicitly justify an action taken rather than elicit an answer. an imperative is utilized to achieve warning, and transitivity choices that are metaphorically pointy are employed as statements of straightforward facts that thrust the ideological current of the discourse. the study deployed both tabular and narrative analysis to enhance the meaning of the discourse. tables were used in most cases not just to indicate how roles were realized via transitivity processes, but when there is a mailto:dmsamuel19@gmail.com awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 215 role shift, notably, in a passive structure. the speech was, first transcribed into a written form out of which thirteen excerpts as data were purposively selected and their structural patterns examined using halliday’s systemic functional linguistics approach. keywords: insecurity, governor ortom, abagana idp camp, ideology, systemic functional linguistics 1. introduction the study is impelled, first, by the spontaneity and responsiveness of governor ortom’s impromptu speech or address at the abagana idp camp within a group context; and second, how language has been credibly deployed in the speech to address the insecurity situation in benue state. our definition of credibility evolves from the spontaneous and responsive nature of the address which certainly accentuates originality, unlike a rehearsed speech where the language may have been intentionally patterned as a result of a great deal of time spent in thinking and constructing ideas. insecurity as it were in the contemporary sense is a national threat that should not be spared but completely eradicated. today, in nigeria, it has found its way into our society as an indispensable necessity in form of terrorism, banditry, militancy, inter-tribal war and so on. the results are obvious, despite several concerted efforts made by each successive government to nib this hydra-headed problem in the bud and exterminate it (edem and aluya, 2017). the fulani-herdsmen and farmers conflict is a prototype of a grievous insurrection that has bedevilled the country over the years without a solution in sight. their militancy has become a key security concern for the nation. in addition to its religious colouration, the farmerherdsmen unrest has been attributed as basically economical. this a functional perspective of language and insecurity edem 216 involves the fulani versus tiv farmers, fulani versus jukun farmers, fulani versus the birom and so on. the killing at the abagana idp camp by bandits seems to be a furtherance of the fulani-tiv farmers’ unrest and governor ortom’s impromptu speech is a spontaneous reaction to the event. the primary function of language is communication. thus, the study attempts to unveil what governor ortom tries to do with language and the devices deployed in doing it. this is a functional approach to language. according to dik (1981, p.3), a language is first conceptualized as a tool of social interaction intentionally deployed for the establishment of communicative relationships among human beings. it is from this perspective one attempts to illustrate the instrumentality of language to what people do and achieve with it in social interaction. as such, functional linguistics is primarily interested in explaining language phenomena. this is the reason sfl initiates the idea that language comprises ‘a system of meaning’, which affords a speaker an unlimited choice of ways of creating meanings (bloor and bloor, 2013, p. 3). therefore, from the perspective of armstrong, and ferguson (2010), when we explore how language contributes to the construal of different kinds of social interactions, we tend to further comprehend functional communication. 2. methodology the study attempts a functional linguistic analysis of language and insecurity in samuel ortom’s impromptu speech delivered on 28 wednesday, april 2021 at the abagana idp camp. first, the speech is transcribed into a written form out of which thirteen excerpts as data are purposively collected and analysed, using the theoretical approach of halliday’s systemic functional linguistics (henceforth sfl). the study deploys both narrative and tabular analysis. tables awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 217 are used, first, to show how different roles in the selected texts are realized via transitivity; and second, to showcase when there is a role shift, especially, in a passive structure. with this, a passive voice is indicated as a significant linguistic choice. the study has embraced sfl because of its interest in how language is deployed in a social context and the choices available for the speaker to make meaning in that context. with this, the study attempts to substantiate how insecurity is meaningfully construed by governor ortom as a national threat via the choices of mood, modality, transitivity, deictic references, and opposition in the discourse. 2. theoretical framework one of the hallmarks of functional linguistics is its emphasis on communication as the prime purpose of language. in other words, how people expend language to successfully communicate meaning becomes an essential parameter. with this, the relationship between language and its function cannot be severed since functional linguistics sees language and its elements as essential factors in understanding linguistic processes and organization. in other words, the language of any text, like the speech text under consideration, can best be examined and realized through the functions that the elements in the speech text are inclined to perform. this is why the concept ‘functional’ is deployed in functional linguistics to illustrate the method which ascertains syntactic categories in terms of their communicative functions. there are so many functional approaches to linguistic categories such as foley and valin’s (1984) functional syntax, dik’s (1981) functional grammar, van valin’s (1993) role and reference grammar, hengenvel and mackenzie’s (2008) functional discourse grammar, halliday’s functional grammar (1984) a functional perspective of language and insecurity edem 218 amongst others are characteristics of diverse functional approaches central to the study of grammatical forms and functions. halliday’s sfl for instance is a formal grammar of description. it tends to describe how language in social interaction is encoded through diverse metafunctions or linguistic features that initiate the creation of diverse meanings in discourse. these linguistic features range from ideational to interpersonal and textual. however, they are semantically connected to three contextual variables such as field, tenor and mode respectively. the ideational has to do with the field of discourse. it conveys a text or clause as experience (experiential meaning) and the sequences of experiences (logical meaning). the interpersonal relates to the tenor and it sees a text or clause as an exchange. finally, the textual is concerned with the mode, which indicates how the text or clause is patterned or constructed into a meaningful discourse via context (halliday, 1994; halliday & hasan, 1976; hunston & thompson, 2000). the interest in this study is to show how these meta-functions as linguistic choices entwine at some level with other linguistic choices in the discourse to enhance readers’ cognitive understanding of governor ortom’s speech on insecurity. 3. analysis and discussion of speech excerpts the interest of the study is in the language patterns of the speech and its communicative functions; the purpose of communication. what the governor or speaker intentionally or unintentionally tries to convey to the audience on insecurity matters bordering benue state. to this end, the study attempts to analyze the speech from the following sub-headings: (i) linguistic choices that allege the killings in benue state as intentional (ii) linguistic patterns that foreground prejudices and (iii) linguistic patterns that call for action against the state of insecurity. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 219 (i) linguistic choices that allege the killings in benue state as intentional 1. for several years, we have been calling on the federal government to take proactive steps to address this matter; they have refused to do so. two basic ideas run through the language patterns of text 1. first, the incessant calls made by the people of benue state for preemptive steps to stem insecurity, and second, the federal government’s (henceforth fg) refusal of the calls. these basic ideas are substantiated in the discourse via the circumstantial adjunct and temporal deixis ‘/for several years/’ and the referential element ‘/they/’ respectively. these linguistic choices which operate in a larger declarative mood choice become pointing expressions according to carter, goddard, reah, sanger, & bowring (1997) which direct the attention of the audience to the circumstance of the event and the referent or participants involved in the event; thereby, from a structural sense, foregrounding the speaker’s claim that the killings in benue state are intentional. this is why bloor and bloor (2011) assert that linguistic choice is accessible to a speaker at the point of every speech depending on the environment. halliday (1985) uses the term ‘system’ to describe the series of linguistic alternatives or choices available to a speaker of the language to make meaning at any point in time. according to halliday’s sfl, the tables below convey the world of the text the governor is describing. a functional perspective of language and insecurity edem 220 table 1: declarative mood structure 1 for several years we ha ve been callin g on the federal governm ent to take proactive steps to address this matter cir sayer proc: verbal receiver verbiage a s f p c c topical theme [marked] topical theme [unmarke d] rheme table 2: declarative mood structure 2. they have refused to do so behaver proc: behavioural s f p topical theme rheme while table 1 through a verbal process --/have been calling/ conveys the several calls made by the people of benue state as instantiated by the temporal deixis or circumstantial adjunct ----/for several years /, table 2 through a behavioural process as well dispenses the action of an absolute refusal by the fg to the several calls made by the people of benue state for several years. conversely, we have the communicative functions of calling and refusal respectively. the pronoun /we/ as an unmarked topical theme represents the people of benue state who have been making the calls for rescue from the speaker’s viewpoint. the temporal deixis or circumstantial adjunct awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 221 ----/for several years / in the first declarative mood structure functions as a marked topical theme that iteratively strengthens the speaker’s position on the claim that the event must have occurred more than once. the deictic element ‘/they/’ which also functions as a reference foregrounding the behavioural act of refusal in the mood structure // they have refused to do so// becomes a categorical factual statement that conveys the killing as an intentional act, sequel to the fg’s outright repudiation to intervene in the state of affairs. the deictic linguistic elements create a connection between the discourse and the situation. they become significant linguistic alternatives within the declarative mood that help the speaker or governor to confidently paint a picture of the state of affairs as he sees it and equally make the portrayal hard to contest. in text 2 below, one finds the same linguistic use of the deictic referrer or reference ‘/this/’ for details in the first and third declarative mood structures. 2. this is not acceptable. go to guma, the same killings have taken place. go to gwer west, the same killings have taken place. this is not right. the federal government has refused to take proactive steps to arrest this ugly situation that we are witnessing here today. the first ‘this’ in-//this is not acceptable//, from the viewpoint of the speaker carries a certain attitudinal meaning of a rejection of the whole situation as it cataphorically points at the disturbing and disheartening state of affairs that successively follow the clause, apparently signified by material process imperative mood structures--// go to guma, the same killings have taken place// and //go to gwer west, the same killings have taken place//. the verb ‘/go/’ performs not just a deictic function that directs the audience’s a functional perspective of language and insecurity edem 222 attention away from the speaker to the location where the homicides are committed but as an evidential statement that also foregrounds new information evolving from the fg's continual refusal to stem the insecurity crisis in the state. the subsequent demonstrative pronoun ‘ /this/’ in the third declarative mood structure---//this is not right// also carries an emotional meaning that points to the fg’s behavioural impassiveness to insecurity matters as captured in the declarative structure-//the federal government has refused to take proactive steps to arrest this ugly situation that we are witnessing here today//. the factive present perfect verb --// has refused// presupposes the truthfulness of the information that follows it, that is, the toinfinitive. as a verbal group, it seems to establish an observable action of continual silence exhibited by the federal government. consequently, the continual silence could be inferred as communicatively functioning in the discourse as a deliberate act. this premeditated act is further illustrated in text 3 below via linguistic choices or elements that intertwine in the discourse. 3. you will recall that i alerted the nation when fulanis in fourteen countries met in yola and declared that except we repeal the prohibition of the open grazing law; benue will not no peace. and underground, i did say i was targeted for elimination…. it was only god that saved me. i did say they were going after my people, so the federal government should arrest the leadership of miyetti allah kautal hore that hosted that meeting. up till today, nothing has been done. this is very unfortunate. it means we don’t have a government in place at the federal level. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 223 at the level of transitivity choices, the conception of the fg’s intentional act of silence to arrest the insecurity situation in benue state is shaped by a process of reporting where linguistic alternatives such as modality, ‘naming’ and reference intertwined in transitivity choices to enhance the meanings of the discourse. transitivity in systemic functional linguistics looks at the way processes are derived via the predicate. thus, from the context, the study attempts to convey how the speaker presents this claim via different processes the first modal element ‘/will/’ in the mental process intertwining in a verbal process --// you will recall [[ that i alerted the nation when fulanis in fourteen countries met in yola]] //, is invested as an expression of politeness in transporting a past occurrence or phenomenon before the knowledge of the public. this phenomenon is further signified by labels or naming words such as ‘/fulanis/’, ‘/fourteen countries / ‘, and ‘/yola/’, ’ to enhance the scenario that disregards questionable assumptions on foreseeable harm to the people of benue. this foreseeable harm is established in the discourse as a mental intention of a group to commit a crime against another. this mental intention is further marked by a verbal process that announces an intention as signalled in // [[fulanis in fourteen countries]]] declared that except we repeal the prohibition of the open grazing law; benue will not no peace //. at the level of transitivity, the intended crime of threat is understood as resolute because from the language pattern, it is governed by the aforethought malice. by implication, there is an existing odium between both parties. the subsequent verbal process is structured to strengthen the report of this intention against the people of benue---// i did say they were going after my people //. it is on this note that the governor solicits or requests the fg via the modal verb ‘should’ to arrest the group to stop an intention with an impending danger as captured in a functional perspective of language and insecurity edem 224 the modal structure --//so the federal government should arrest the leadership of miyetti allah //. the entire declarative structure becomes communicatively significant here, as the grammatical process of labelling or naming ‘/ miyetti allah /’ does not only direct or colour readers' view of the group referred to as being behind the problem but establishes the speaker’s position against the federal government’s refusal to arrest the group. the clause // up till today nothing has been done// is probably expended to establish the speaker’s claim that the fg’s act of silence on the killings is intentional. the linguistic structure conveys a contrary opinion; hence, it constructs in the mind of the audience a representation of a situation that is at odds with a presupposed reality. the clausal structure-//it means we don’t have a government in place at the federal level // which sums up text 3, foregrounds the fg’s refusal to assent to a call for the security of lives and properties. this means that the meaning or content of the text can be understood from a mental perspective because to the speaker, the principal responsibility of a government is the security of lives and property but the declarative clause showcases some level of culpability as far as national liability is concerned. from the language, the governor seems to see no reason why the fg should exclude itself from conduct capable of giving rise to insecurity by failing to take measures that are within its power to arrest the situation. from the language system used, one perceives how an ideology is created from such a remark, which tends to advocate for the devolution of power to states since it is apparent that the fg is incapable of handling issues of insecurity affecting the state. the discourse also implies that sfl is capable of unveiling ideological underpinnings. in text (4), we are accosted with a blunt assertion in this regard. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 225 4. you sent these people away from their villages; they came here to take refuge and today, they are being killed in this camp. in except 4, the orchestration of insecurity by the repressive world of the speech can be comprehended also via transitivity. the clauses describe the role of the participants in the state of affairs or actions expressed. there are three material process clauses in the discourse that are successively and semantically connected by pronouns to represent and emphasise the alleged intentional act that culminated into a typical experience of displacement and maltreatment. for instance, the effect of the act is signified in the first clause where the deictic pronoun --//‘you’// is expended to blame or allege an intention. the pronoun increases our impression of the agent or actor involved in the act spoken because it attributes an intention to the actor. the predicate or verbal group represents the thing that is been done--// …sent these people away… //. but in the third clause, there is a role shift. the pronoun ‘they’ is used in the passive sense to accentuate the effect of this intentional act on the people. with this, the pronoun /‘they’/ is assigned the position or role of ‘goal’ while the role of the ‘actor’ is elided in the structure as captured in table 3. this is one of the reasons why passive structures are referred to as a marker of objective and impersonal style (yadugiri, 2011, p.412). the essence is to assign blame to the fg for inaction. to this end, lexical items such as /sent/, /away/ and /are being killed/ in the clauses are structured to construe an intentional act on the part of the actors; thus situating the audience within the governor’s position concerning the situation. the representation of the process is further enhanced by table 3 below indicating how a passive a functional perspective of language and insecurity edem 226 structure is realized differently from an active structure in terms of its functional role. table 3 clause 1 (active) you sent these peopl e away from their village s clause 2 (active) they came here to take refuge s f c a actor proc: materi al goal circu m clause 3 (passiv e) today they are bein g kille d in this camp. a s f p c a circu m. goal proc: material circu m. topica l theme marked topical theme unmarke d rheme awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 227 (ii) linguistic patterns that foreground prejudice/ ethnic bigotry 5. i saw where some security men were arresting people who had cutlasses, who had swords because they are from benue state. how about the fulani men? you know where they are. go and disarm them text 5 ranges from declarative to interrogative and imperative which conveys some level of repression foregrounded by ethnic prejudice. here, hate, bigotry or prejudice against the benue people is sharply registered in the language patterns. the first declarative alluded by a mental process--/i saw…./ tends to project hate against the benue people. the subordinate clause /because they are …./ amplifies this hate via an adjunct of reason that projects bias and intolerance. the interrogative, on one hand, is instantiated by the governor to front this ethnic bigotry ---// how about the fulani men? //. to the governor, the fulani man is known for these weapons for which the benue man is being arrested; hence, they are tolerated; why not the benue man? the second declarative and the imperative are instantiated to resist such hostility. to the governor, whatever is done to ‘a’ should be done to ‘b’ without disparity. it is this polarization that fronts the governor’s stance against prejudice or ethnic bigotry in the context. in a sense, polarization can also be achieved not only by pronominal but ngps that are ideologically motivated as implicitly captured ---/benue people vs fulani men/. in texts 6 and 7, the same tradition of prejudices is enacted. 6. i know the implication of telling people to go on self-help and i want to repeat my call that if you are unserious on this security matter; mr president allow us to buy ak47s and face these people. give us a license so that we too can face a functional perspective of language and insecurity edem 228 them. you have armed your brothers and you have disarmed us. in text 6, one conceives a kind of prejudice that is grounded by ethnic preference in the declarative and imperative mood structures. this phenomenon of disparity can be further enhanced from the point of transitivity where the state of mind of the speaker, on one hand, is propelled by mental verbs such as /know/ and /want/ respectively in //i know the implication of telling people….// and // i want to repeat my call that if you are unserious… // and material process verbs which request consent to propel actions in /allow/ and /give/ in //mr president allow us to buy ak47s and face these people/ and //give us a license so that we too can face them// and material process verbs that intensify this ethnic preference as instantiated by oppositional contrast in --// you have armed your brothers and you have disarmed us.//. with the oppositional contrast, the governor’s idea of the whole situational reality is formulated. this contrasting clause in a parallel pattern has a lot of implications. the contrast foregrounds discrimination that is levelled with threats. it directs one’s attention to the unethical act against the benue people. also, the language system tends to convey how power and social domination by one group over the other are created in text. this social domination is conceived via the approval and disapproval of live ammunition. what one finds in the first and second material clauses is a kind of commitment by the governor against the continual state of insecurity bedevilling the state. 7. mr president said the other day that security people should shoot anyone with ak47, and up till today, we have not heard where the security shot them. the minister of defence came and reversed what mr president said…. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 229 text 7 begins with a reported statement that is a verbal process to initiate prejudice. the modal verb ‘should’ tries to augment this prejudice in a sense since it expresses something that would have been normatively required. but to the amazement of the governor, the normative expectation is fouled with prejudice of predilection or preference. this prejudice is properly conveyed in the second and third clauses enhanced by mental and material processes respectively -----//up till today, we have not heard where the security shot them/ and / the minister of defence came and reversed what mr president said//. the declarative mood--//the minister of defence came and reversed what mr president said// is used to strengthen this predilection that tends to favour a harmful act committed by the referent ( ‘anyone’ or ‘them’) as less or worse. the representation of some of the processes is illustrated in table 4 to expand comprehension. table 4 representation of processes clause 1 up till today we have not heard where the security shot them a s f/p c senser proc: mental phenomenon clause 2 the minister of defence came and reversed what mr president said s f c actor proc: material goal a functional perspective of language and insecurity edem 230 topical theme unmarked topical theme marked rheme (iii) language patterns that orchestrate resoluteness against out-group intimidation 8. i am aware … all over the country… this barbaric act is taken by the same fulani and people are afraid to say it and they give the name bandits. they are not bandits. they are fulani. these ones that came here. they were speaking that language ….. insisting the state government proscribe or repeal the prohibition of open grazing. that will not happen. it is not my making. it is the people of benue state that told me to do that one. i didn’t sit on my own and take any law and so no one should try … anything. four things interest one in text 8 via the choice of words. first, the factive verbs that follow one another as underlined tend to ground or authenticate the information as it borders around the situation.  //i am aware…//--a mental process that points and situates readers to that fact of the situation rather than speculation. it affirms the speaker’s knowledge of the situation  //this barbaric act is taken by the same fulanis// ----a material process  //people are afraid to say it// --a mental process intertwined with a verbal process  //they are not bandits // ; //they are fulani// ---relational process that is exemplified by negation--not x but y, making the information factual. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 231  //these ones that came here//- a material process with a deictic reference, pointing to those involved in the guilty act.  //they were speaking that language//--verbal process -- used to authenticate or emphasise the aforementioned the text is immersed with pronouns as deictic references to make the discourse cohere. such cohesion enhances knowledge as they create a link between diverse parts of the discourse making the text flow from one fact to another. second, the naming words or labels utilized by the governor point at the mastermind of the insecurity as captured in –/ this barbaric act is taken by the same fulani/, /they are not bandits/ and / they are fulani/. the third is the use of the modal ‘will’ in //that will not happen// to show not just some level of certainty of refusal by the governor to non-adherence to repealing the open grazing law but commitment as part of an in-group that aligns with the people of benue state and misalign with the opposition. with this, language becomes a symbol that influences thought, action and credibility. the fourth is the use of the cleft sentence or it-cleft documented as relational and material processes respectively captured in---//it is not my making// and //it is the people of benue state that told me to do that one//. from the discourse, the ‘it-cleft’ seems to serve two essential functions (i) to indicate a contrastive focus and (ii) to portray rather new information. the contrast here is made explicit not implicit as in ---// it is not my making; it is the people of benue state that told me to do that one.//. by logical notation, it implies --not x but y. the new information by the it-cleft clauses redirects one’s attention from a presumable assumption to a reality or fact concerning the enactment of the open grazing law. it shows that it was not a solitary a functional perspective of language and insecurity edem 232 decision by the governor but rather by consensus as further grounded in --// i didn’t sit on my own and take any law…//. the ‘it-cleft clauses’ are used by the governor not only as declaration markers but as a shift to a new episode in the face and history of the benue people. it has an in-group ideological undertone. with sfl, one perceives the distribution of language use orchestrated by the social transmission for change through the tenor of the discourse as it attempts to drive some level of power and solidarity. the submission here is that sfl cannot be void from ideological discourse because of its meta-functional approach to discourse that is context-dependent. 9. president buhari must arise to his responsibility as commander-in-chief of the armed forces. if he does not do it, our people say that a goat doesn’t bite but when you push it to the wall; it will bite. the people’s resoluteness against insecurity in the state is comprehended in text 9 via modality and the ‘if’ mood structures. the modal structure is signalled by the modal verb ‘must’ that deontically represents the governor’s view on an obligation that has to be executed. the conditional mood structure further clarifies this resoluteness via a proverb that points to the people’s will to retaliate if the needful is not done by the president---// our people say that a goat doesn’t bite but when you push it to the wall; it will bite//. (iii) linguistic patterns that call for actions against the state of insecurity 10. president buhari was elected by the people. he must arise and do something. no other person has the responsibility of awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 233 arming the security men and providing enough equipment … ensuring they eradicate this. text 10, through a material process that is phrased in the passive voice--// president buhari was elected by the people //, instantiates a duty to rescue via a call fronted in the modal structure— // he must arise and do something//. the modality is deployed by the governor to hypothesize or posit that a certain action is necessary to ensure the eradication of insecurity in the state. the anaphoric reference pronoun ‘he’ points back to the referent / buhari / in the first mood structure proffering an insight into why the modal statement is made in the first instance. the argument by the passive structure --// president buhari was elected by the people // is understandable since it reminds the president of the role of the people in the past towards the actualization of his presidential ambition. to this end, they must constitute a prime focus of his leadership. as indicated earlier in text 4, passive structures seem to be a significant linguistic choice by language users in driving the meaning of their communicative discourse. here, the passive voice is used to actualise some level of fronting that tends to drive across the message of governor ortom to the president; reminding him of how he mounted the present position; a piece of essential information about president buhari which is later supplied by the rheme. while text 4 uses a passive structure that is agentless or void of an actor, text 10 enacts otherwise as tabulated below: table 5 clause 1 (passive) president buhari was elected by the people s f p c goal proc: material actor topical theme rheme a functional perspective of language and insecurity edem 234 while the modal structure in text 10 is devised as a continuant to compel certain obligations on the part of the president on security matters, the last mood structure that follows is used as a constructive reminder to the president to preside over his fundamental role in security matters. by implication, it is the responsibility of the president to make sure that doable legislation and policy on security are followed to the latter if nigeria’s security image must be redeemed. this despicable situation is not far from onoja’s (2019, p.6) submission that the absence of legislation and policy on security imperilled security in nigeria. 11. buhari cannot be playing on us around because these are fulani men doing this same thing. as i said, they want to take over our land; if not what is the essence? you sent the people away from their farms and here they are in the idp camp; you came to kill them. buhari if you were the governor of benue state, what do you want me to say? you must arise and do something to stop this. text 11 summarizes the entire content of the speech. the first modal structure attempts to convey the disingenuousness of the president as instantiated in // buhari cannot be playing on us around//. the second part of the sentence further enunciates the situation using the subordinating conjunction /because/ to shed light on the reason for alleging. the aim of this could be to make the audience see that the entire situation confronting the benue state is intentional. the intentionality is further amplified in subsequent clauses via a verbal process that is interrogatively dispensed--// as i said, they want to take over our land, if not what is the essence?//, and material awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 235 processes that do not only register the act as intentional but callous in-// you sent the people away from their farms// and //you came to kill them//. the second interrogative clause with a vocative -- //‘buhari, if you were the governor of benue state, what do you what me to say?// is rhetorically expended by the governor because of the conceived notion held. also, it tends not to elicit an answer as it were, but expresses the attitude of the governor, implicitly justifying an action taken. the last modal structure tends to be forceful in this call for rescue because to the governor, the state of benue is already faced with potential injury and death. 12. they are your kinsmen. call them and tell them enough is enough./ 13. you must stand and address these issues and declare an emergency on security. call security submit. call all of us together and let us agree and you must be sincere this time not just playing on us. imperatives call for actions, unlike interrogatives that call for information. while the imperatives in text 12 via a verbal process in --/call them and tell them enough is enough// attempt to exert some level of authority via warning, the imperatives in text 13 strictly evoke some level of power that tends to regulate behaviour that is perfidious or disingenuous ---// call all of us together and let us agree and you must be sincere this time not just playing on us//. this regulation of behaviour is amplified by the modal structure --//you must be sincere this time…//. the modality seems to showcase an obligation towards sincerity. this infers that the president’s behaviour at a point was characterized by insincerity towards the insecurity that affects the people of benue state. while text 12 is tainted with some cynicism and divergence, text 13 is loaded with a a functional perspective of language and insecurity edem 236 concept of convergence towards finding a lasting solution to the problem of insecurity. 4. conclusion all the dimensions discussed so far are attempts by the study to unveil how functional linguistics via the approach of sfl can contribute to the understanding of a discourse of this type. on the part of the audience, this kind of communicative speech tends to project the likelihood that the speaker will be perceived as credible. hence, the audience tends to pay better attention to the message because of its candour on insecurity matters bedevilling the state. from the language of the speech, the informative level is comprehended via choices such as declarative mood and modality, transitivity, oppositional contrast, interrogatives and imperatives that signal diverse processes which determine what constitutes facts and truths and also regulate behaviour. the language use or grammatical patterns of the speech achieve the connecting functions between the speaker and the audience. the insecurity issues captured in the speech via the linguistic choices have helped front the severity of the problem as one that needs urgent redress. thus there must be (i) policies to checkmate the activities of the herdsmen. (2) a call for a round table discussion or conference at the federal level where state governors are invited to proffer strategies that can be adopted to eradicate the insecurity problem with sincerity of purpose as captured in text 13---// call all of us together and let us agree…// references armstrong, e. m., & ferguson, a. (2010). language, meaning, context, and functional communication. aphasiology, 24(4), 480-496. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 237 bloor, t and bloor, m.(2013). the functional analysis of english. london: arnold. cater, r., goddard, a., reah, d., sanger, k., & bowring, m (1997). working with texts: a core introduction to language analysis. london: routledge. dik, s. c. (1981). functional grammar. dordrecht/cinnaminson nj: foris. edem, s and aluya, i. (2017). the language problem and national security in the 21st century. at the 14th international conference of the literary society of nigeria conference (lsn)federal university dutse. foley, w. a., van valin, r. d. jr. (1984). functional syntax and universal grammar. cambridge: cambridge univ. press. halliday, m. a. k. (1984). a short introduction to functional grammar. london: arnold halliday, m. a. k. (1994). an introduction to functional grammar (2nd ed.). london: arnold. halliday, m. a. k., & hasan, r. (1976). cohesion in english. london: longman hengeveld, kees & mackenzie, j. lachlan (2008). functional discourse grammar: a typologically-based theory of language structure. oxford: oxford university press. onoja, a. (2019) security: framing a middle belt of nigeria perspective. 20th inaugural lecture at nasarawa state univertsity keffi, april 17th 2019. ortom s. (2021) governor ortom blows hot as he visits abagana idp camp in benue. intel news. https://web.facebook.com/watch/?v=292891805675467 a functional perspective of language and insecurity edem 238 thompson, g., & hunston, s. (2000). evaluation: an introduction. in s. hunston & g. thompson (eds.), evaluation in text: authorial stance and the construction of discourse (pp. 127). oxford: oxford university press. van valin, r. d jr. (ed.). (1993). advances in role and reference grammar. amsterdam: benjamins. yadugiri, m.a. (2011). making sense of english: a text book of sounds , words and grammar. new delhi: viva books private limited. 61 the religious language and the challenges of insecurity in nigeria benjamin chukwunonso nwokocha nnamdi azikiwe university, awka. nwokochabenjamin@gmail.com, bc.nwokocha@unizik.edu.ng abstract this study discussed and analyzed what constitutes religious language and how it can help to reduce or heighten the insecurity challenges in nigeria. given to the present security challenges facing the country, this study analyzed the role which religious languages have played either as instrument of nation-building or as a tool for instigating insurrections, conflicts, and ethnic disputes which adversely affect the national development in nigeria. specifically, the study explored the meaning of religious sentences and utterances. religious sentences are generally taken to have a religious subject matter; a religious utterance in speech or writing of a token religious sentence. in nigerian multilingual context, with emphasis on the diversities of languages amongst the various ethnic nationalities in nigeria, religious subject matters could encompass a variety of agents, states of affairs or properties-such as god, deities, angels, miracles, redemption, grace, holiness, sinfulness among others. most attention, however, has been devoted to the meaning of what people say about god. an attempt is made in this study to ascertain the authenticity of such sayings. the study also investigated the existing dividends of multi-lingualism in nigeria in terms of intra-ethnic group relations as regards to the use of religious language. however, following the findings of this study, the researcher recommended that nigerian religious leaders should mailto:nwokochabenjamin@gmail.com mailto:bc.nwokocha@unizik.edu.ng religious language and the challenges of insecurity in nigeria nwokocha 62 be mindful on their usage of religious language so as not to instigate violence. the scope of religious language and discourse should be construed in such a way that it would not be castigating, hateful, abusive or insulting to one another; being that nigeria is comprised of multiple religions. it is hoped that this will help in reducing the incessant insecurity challenges in nigeria. keywords: religion, language, insecurity, nation-building 1. introduction crises in nigeria particularly, religious crises have affected the growth and development of communities and people in particular and economy in general. many lives have been cut short, properties worth millions of naira destroyed while many innocent nigerians are displaced and turned refugees in their father’s land. most of this crises and insecurity challenges are caused by some religious utterances which instigate violence and strife against the various religious groups in nigeria (okpanachi, 2010). nigeria is a multiethnic society consisting of about 340 ethnic groups. this means that in terms of social relations, one of the sociological problems of building nigeria as a nation is ethnic and religious crises. religious and ethnic nationalism has led to conflicts about control of state power, unequal allocation of resources, citizenship issues, state collapse, economic decline and ethno-religious clashes. nigeria has been pushed hither and thither by recurrent crises of regional or state illegitimacy, often impairing efforts at economic transformation, democratization, national cohesion and stability (osaghae and suberu 2005). with this continental background, this research work seeks to examine the relationship between religion, ethnicity and conflict in nigeria, focusing mainly in the south-east region of the awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 63 country. the study seeks to ascertain the extent of which conflicts are emanating from religious sources. furthermore, with the numerous ethnic groups and well over 450 languages, nigeria is a multi-lingual and multi-cultural country where diverse culture and religions coexist. all the ethnic cultures are greatly influenced by their respective religious systems and each religion has its distinct religious language by which the adherents communicate with their supreme being or deity. this religious diversity contributes to her rich heritage and at the same time mares its growth as a nation. in nigeria, people of an ethnic group are indentified by their religion and languages spoken and practiced in their community. for instance, the three largest ethnic groups which include hausa, yoruba and igbo speak the hausa, yoruba, and igbo languages and as well practice christian, islam and african traditional religion respectively. other large groups as edo, ijaw, ibibio, efik, kanuri, ebira, nupe, and tiv are predominantly christians and traditionalists. the micro minority groups like ishekiri, urhobo, idoma, igala, isoko, fulani, the ikwere among others are partly christians and partly muslims. moreover, english and indigenous languages are used side by side amongst these ethnic nationalities in nigeria whereas hausa, yoruba, and igbo are predominantly spoken and used as means of communication in the regions where they are located. though some forms of linguistic homogeneity exist in some parts of the north, west and east, there are a handful of heterogeneous linguistic groups in small, minority speech communities with a variety of dialects. this could be said to contribute to the inability of the country to design national language policy. the fear of marginalization of the minority groups by the majority groups is mainly responsible. however, recent studies on religious identity have underscored the positive function of religion and language in religious language and the challenges of insecurity in nigeria nwokocha 64 promotion of peace. on the other hand, mobilization of identity has been used to incite political groups to struggle and religious groups to legitimize wars and various modes of brutal and violent acts (alger, 2002). religious practice is a belief system that is practiced among individuals of different ethnic groups within a political system where language and culture are the most prominent attributes. the formations of religious language within a cultural, political and ethnic space are ways in which religion interacts with the socio-cultural orientations of the people. thus, the distribution of these languages is directly proportional to both religious and socio-political power, and therefore the language group to which one belongs defines his/her status in society. missionaries and local politicians created standard languages and hoped they would homogenize language and ethnicity, and create more harmonious ethnic identities. for example, during the colonial and post-colonial era, the administrators allowed the emergence of “us” versus “them” syndrome, where muslims were pitted against christians, northerners against the southerners, hausa-fulani, yoruba and igbo against each other, and so on (adefemi, 2003). in this era, religious and ethnic differences have become prominent factors in instituting and executing socio-economic strategies and applications. apparently, nigeria does not have a language policy. the constitution nonetheless states that the national assembly must conduct its affairs in english. the constitution also allows the use of indigenous languages in addition to english in the state house of assembly. moreover, the role of english as a dominant language to a large extent could be said to be one of the causes of language regression in nigeria. nigerians do not only prefer english to their domestic languages, they believe that the later are limited in scope and usefulness. on this fact oluwole (2001) argues that the extent awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 65 to which one language or type of language is favoured or preferred depends on the community’s perception of the role or status of that language or language type in the context of the prevailing linguistic attitudes in the society. it could also be said that the spate of religious and ethnic crises in some parts of the country, as well as religious bigotry and ethnic cleansing which has led to disharmony and disintegration, could account for a change in communication patterns. where people are continuously fleeing from one part of the country to another, the tendency will be to adopt and acquire new speech acts. this affects the overall development of nigeria in following ways such as having some cases of multi-ethnic vices such as allegiance to ethnic group, intra-cultural and inter-ethnic antagonism, hostility, aggression, bitterness and hatred which have not augured well in developing an egalitarian and a virile nation. following the above findings, it is discovered that the central causes to the under listed problems in nigeria is the diversities of religious languages of the multifarious religious groups in the country. this has increased and exaggerated the rate of insecurity in diverse ways. 1.1 conceptualization of religious language and insecurity a religious language can be described as religious sentences and utterances; religious language in the sense that they are generally taken to have a religious subject matter. it is also described as a religious utterance because it is the production in speech or writing of a token religious sentence. it encompasses such words as god, deities, angels, miracles, redemption, grace, holiness, and sinfulness. in a nutshell, religious language is devoted to the meaning of what we say about god. such languages would be from a linguistically distinct community that has been settled unto certain conceptions and belief about god. it can also be described as a systematic means of communicating the people’s understanding of religious language and the challenges of insecurity in nigeria nwokocha 66 god by the use of words or conventional symbols. religious languages are patterned based on the people’s worldview and philosophical conception of god. these are languages construed according to the aboriginal perception of a certain religion practiced by a certain people. for example, what constitutes religious language for african traditional religion may not apply in christianity and in other religions. once a language becomes associated with religious worship, its believers often ascribe virtues to the language of worship that they would not give to other language even their native tongues. religious or sacred language is vested with a solemnity and dignity that ordinary languages lack. consequently, the training of priests in the use of religious language via greek, hebrew and less often latin has become an important cultural investment, and the use of such languages is perceived to give them access to a body of knowledge that untrained lay people cannot have. the sacred languages typically preserve characteristics that would have been lost in the course of language development. however, only very few of these languages have written forms. a number of languages have been used as religious languages. they include: classical arabic for muslims who believe it to be the only language of qur’an. it differs from the various forms of contemporary spoken arabic. the core of the hebrew bible is written in classical hebrew referred to by some jews as the “holy language”. hinduism is traditionally considered to have one liturgical language, sansktrit. the churches which trace their origin to the apostles have continued to use the standard language of the few centuries after christ’s ascension. these include: latin in roman catholic church, greek in greek orthodox church and greek catholic church, coptic on the coptic orthodox church, english for the western protestant churches mainly in england and syriac in the syriac churches (buswell, 1997). awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 67 insecurity refers to a state of being uncertain about one thing or the other, which may include job, protection, food, health, shelter, career, emotions, feelings, government or livelihood. it is a state of being doubtful which could be influenced by decisions, suspicions, opinions, actions, attitudes, responses and counter-responses. in the context of this paper, insecurity refers to the state of lawlessness, instability, anxiety, and exposure to danger caused by social vices such as terrorism, crime, kidnapping, killings and maiming, religious and extra-judicial killings. insecurity in this context also includes, loss of lives, property, and business, terror and huge fear of sudden danger, community violence, harassment, emotional insecurity and threats as well as blatant divisions or disputes among ethnics, religious sects and groups, as many as such cases that are found in nigeria. 2. literature review on the meaning and problems of religious language in nigeria for proper appreciation of this work, it is necessary to review some literatures on what have been written or expressed concerning the meaning and problems of religious language. through the process of reviewing the previous studies on the subject matter, gaps uncovered would be indicated. ugwu (1996) holds that religious language is a purely human and non-instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotions and desires by means of voluntarily produced symbols. ndukwe (2009) views it as a system of arbitrary vocal symbols by which the members of a religious society interact in terms of their religious beliefs and expressions. madu (2003) argues that it is the institution whereby humans communicate and interact with the divine or spirit beings by means of habitually used oral-auditory symbols. however, the roles of religious language in religious language and the challenges of insecurity in nigeria nwokocha 68 the inter-connectivity of the finite and infinite beings are suggested above. the use of religious language in divine rituals and worship illustrates its relationship with beliefs and mind sect (chomsky, 1998) .abrams and greenhawt (2020) affirms that the wrong use of religious language during the covid-19 lockdowns in nigeria worsened the effect of the pandemic on the people. however, the literary genres above maintain that proper use of religious language would integrate religion with language of a given people. the over estimation of the value of foreign tongues in religious worship is rather overwhelming and is having some negative effects amongst the various religions in nigeria. the reason for this stemmed from the acceptance of foreign languages by africans in attending to almost all their affairs. this is evidenced by bangbose (1970) that nigerians have learnt to adore, and perhaps overestimate the value of foreign tongues. mbagwu and obiora (2015) further pointed out that there are hardly any african countries that have indigenous languages as official languages in both religious and civil matters. kenya and tanzania are one evidence, nigeria is another, in fact, in the colonial times there was heated argument especially among the c.m.s group on the translation of the book of common prayer (b.c.p) in indigenous languages. it was henry vein, the secretary general of the c.m.s that came up with his theory of self-supporting, self-reliance and self-governing of the african churches that settled the matter (ezenwa, 1997). the point here is that it is the level of value attached to a given language that makes it religious or sacred, civil or official. this argument is in line with akao (1999) as he posits that the ancient language like hebrew and greek were taken to be religious based on the people’s acceptance. ugwu and ugwueye (2002 affirms that hebrew language was the only language that united jews diachronically and synchronically, through time and space. he observes that it was their awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 69 daily usage of it in both the religion and secular matters that earned it such a universal acceptance. coke (2000) adds that apart from hebrew as a religious language, other languages could earn, such a universality based on the people’s appreciation of it. boktin (1999) further insists that no particular language is termed “religious by god”. he further argued that every language speaks the mind of god. based on the above background, one can envisage the opportunities offered for man to communicate his feelings, opinions with the transcendental beings in one’s own language. in the course of interacting with divine beings in one’s peculiar language, man acquaints himself/herself with divine messages which he/she in turn relates to his/her immediate environment. when people are deprived of the use of their language, they lose their self-identity enshrined in their belief and traditions. this does not restrict the knowledge and the use of other languages. in this case, religious language can be said to unite its users because people who speak the same tongue are likely to be closer and friendlier than others who do not understand a common language of communication. this is seen clearly where people of diverse dialect converge in a place. religion has such a binding force that it sometimes supersedes that of siblings. in fact some christian conservatives and christian denominations address one another as brother, sister or even elder. however, the languages of nigeria are classified into three broad linguistic groups: niger-congo, nilo-saharan, and afroasianic (akao, 1999). he further states that the huge niger-congo group is further subdivided into nine major branches, including the kwa subgroup, spoken in the extreme southwestern corner of the country; the ijoid branch, spoken in niger delta region, the atlantic subgroup, which most notably includes fula; the extensive benuecongo subgroup, which includes tiv, jukun, edo, igbo, igala, religious language and the challenges of insecurity in nigeria nwokocha 70 idoma, nupe, gwari, yoruba, and several languages of the cross river basin such as awak, waja, waka, and tula, spoken in the northern nigeria. the nilo-saharan group is represented in nigeria principally by kanuri, although speakers of bagirmi and zerma are also present in the country. afro-asianic is a much larger linguistic group and comprises of hausa, margi, and barde, among others. some peoples (such as the fulani and the tiv) are relatively recent immigrants, but, on the basis of modern linguistic research, it is thought that the great majority of nigerian languages and specifically the kwa subgroup have been spoken in roughly the same locations for some 4,000 years. hausa is widely spoken in the northern states of nigeria. in addition to english, hausa, yoruba, igbo, and fula, are also widely spoken in nigeria. many of these languages exist in written form. these languages can be further developed to ensure unity and security of its users. 3. using religious language to ensure peace and stability in nigeria religion and language individually or collectively can be strong determining factors for employment, admission into schools, marriage and a whole lot of other cooperation, unions and solidarities. it is because nigerians have not exploited the benefits of language that it is being used for negative purposes. many have used language in the past for the destruction of lives. some have used religion and language to hide the truth from the people; a situation whereby religion and language are employed to cause confusion, disunity and war in the country. however, to understand religious language which falls under what crapo (2002) calls “restricted code” is not easily decoded especially if one is not an insider. what this implies is that the peace and unity of any people is guaranteed when they understand and appreciate their individual awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 71 language in all spheres of life. this is why spolky (1999) maintains that religious adherents express and identify themselves with their faith and religious consciousness. he goes further to state that to relinquish the people’s language from their religion is to literarily or symbolically relinquish a significant and powerful dimension of practical religious identity. this is collaborated in the words of anzadua (2000), who categorizes religion and language as a “twin skin” to religious identity, and says “language is religion and religion is language”. this relationship of language and religion is best examined from the historical perspective of abrahamic religions like judaism, christianity and islam. apart from the meaning of language in religious perspective, scientific and archaeological discoveries are also expressed in language. every kind of idea or feeling is given through the medium of language. most natural, religious ideas are also represented as language. as a result, religion has developed its own register and consequently generated some peculiar text-variety (bhatia, 2006). following this development however, the researcher understands that ineffective communication is responsible for most unsatisfactory situations that dominates all the facets of the country’s life. this as a matter of fact has heightened ethnic tensions and insecurity owing to status and adoption of certain languages that are not familiar to the people especially at public and religious functions. from the purview of dukor (2003), the use of religious language must conform in a system of arbitrary vocal symbols by which members of a religious community cooperate and interact. religious language therefore, does the primary function of externalizing and objectifying thought processes and belief system. nonetheless, the secondary functions of religious language are not less significant. these are stimulative, descriptive and argumentative functions (popper, 1963). a people develop a religious language and the challenges of insecurity in nigeria nwokocha 72 language appropriate to their needs and environment. such language serves them as a medium of communication, the transmission of knowledge, religion, culture and values, and for the articulation of their worldview. in this regard, various languages can be said to be equal in so far as each serves adequately the fundamental language needs of its linguistic group. however, the outstanding challenges occasioned by not using language in the right sense of it include: 1. retarded economic development: the low economic status of the country’s life could be attributed to the ineffective communication owing to the multifarious languages in the country. economic policies are formulated in english whereas the implementation of the said policies is not only for the elites but for all and sundry including those who are not lettered in english language. incidentally, those illiterate ones constitute a greater part of the population and their illiteracy in english creates the difficulty in the implementation of the policies, especially the ones on agriculture and small scale industries, which largely concern them. moreover, in the use of sacred languages in a religious worship, there are phrases or statements that could be labeled as religious sayings. having a conversation about the cost of things in the market or about poverty in the society is nothing unusual. each is a topic directly related to everyday experience and is often referred to as everyday language. if the conversation is to turn to discussion about god or virgin mary or angels, then the language drifts from the everyday to religious, mysterious, sacred or metaphysical. many doubt the truth of such statements, and if not clarified may spark off crises and religious violence. 2. poor education: one of the challenges of education in nigeria revolves around reading and writing in native awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 73 languages. given the adoption of foreign language in schools amongst the local communities, it hinders promotion of vernacular literacy. it would be impossible to acquire a religion without the medium of language especially the indigenous language. because what is said may particularly condition what can be thought, the use of such speech pattern will have subtle psychological effects on the speakers. religion, like language, has testified to be easily learned by children. religion is acquired by language. religion is taught literarily early from one’s mother’s knees, and religious faith infused early in life. hence, there is need for good and quality childhood education to facilitate the good and efficient use of language in both religious and civil matters. with good and quality education in the country, there will be a clearer understanding of the real meaning of religion as well as its values, beliefs and ritual practices. in this way also, some religious jargons and hate speeches that often create enmity will be reduced a sound academic learning will discourage hate speech and promote a lovely and friendly interactions like; “we are one in christ”, “we are all the children of god” most of the perpetrators of crimes in the country are mostly drop outs and less informed members of the public. in fact, illiteracy alone can lead to restiveness. an adage has it that half education is a disease. because some of them could not express themselves in english language or understand the government economic policies as well as the overall system of government and religious message which are documented in english, they tend to misinterpret the government political policies, and by that implication organize themselves to stage violent religious language and the challenges of insecurity in nigeria nwokocha 74 demonstrations. it is also understood that because of the fact that majority of the members of the religious groups are illiterate in english (in the case of christianity) and arabic (in the case of islam); they hardly receive appropriate religious information given to them in those languages. 3. poor health and mortality rate: health workers are trained in english. again, information about health matters is disseminated in english. the illiterate masses certainly have a problem with adequately and appropriately understanding the information. nwaozuzu (2002) laments: “the situation where a people’s health is dependent on the information passed on to them through a foreign language, is, to say the least, undesirable, taking into consideration the percentage of the populace who can comprehend and speak such languages”(p.65). undoubtedly, this situation has brought about most of the masses patronizing native, quack and witch doctors who speak the language of their understanding. the result of this would always lead to poor health and mortality rate. 3.1 addressing the challenges of insecurity using religious languages the writer believes that if the following recommendations are taken and applied, would considerably reduce language barriers in the country. it will enhance effective communication which will in turn reduce the unbridled tensions and insecurity occasioned by the multifarious factors in nigeria. effective communication will be enhanced which will in turn reduce the unbridled tension and insecurity occasioned by the multifarious factors in the country. a) being cautious in the use of certain languages in religious worship awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 75 many religions have sacred languages that are mostly unintelligible to the laity. these vulgar and unintelligible languages often times instigate violence. an example is the phenomena of glosolalia (speaking in tongues). this is the production of sound sequences that have no conventional meanings in speech which often occurs during ecstatic trance states. in nigeria for example, glosolalia is commonly associated with pentecostal churches where it is understood as a gift of the spirit in which the speaker is believed to be either praising god in angelic language or is into a spiritual warfare. these utterances when misinterpreted can lead to crises in families or between one another. it is important that religious leaders should adopt clear and common language in administering to their congregations. b) establishing an active national language commission nigeria urgently needs to establish an active national language commission with branches at states and local government levels throughout the country. the primary objective of this body should be to serve as a databank on all language-related matters. it will advise the federal and other governments, as well as other relevant ministries on language and religious affairs. it will also promote the preservation and enrichment of nigeria’s language resources. the present situation where all language matters are left in the hands of linguistic departments of the nigerian universities is not satisfactory. a commission with multi-disciplinary committees with members spanning all relevant professional fields should be created. c) training teachers to use the mother tongues in teaching there should strategies mapped out for educational development through mother tongues, and adequately training of language teachers across the nation. compulsory use of english for instruction in schools should be minimized. teachers should be trained in the mother tongues of the area where a school is situated. religious language and the challenges of insecurity in nigeria nwokocha 76 on this note okonkwo (2008) states: “the child thinks and dreams in the language which was used at the time he worked his way from the state of infancy to that of member of language community. this naturally is the mt/lic. and for this reason the mt/lic happens to be the best language of schooling for intellectual development of the child” (p.8). education is for human development and civilized life relies on language which is the basic tool for communication. this implies that language, religion and culture are inseparable. language is the essence of religion and culture, for it constitutes the medium for cultural and religious transmission (okediadi, 2009). that is why every nigerian child should be tutored in his/her mother tongue especially within the category of pre-primary, primary and post-primary schools. as each of the language is by definition a mother tongue, in theory they all qualify to be taught as school subjects. it is also expedient that the three major languages, viz: hausa, igbo, and yoruba indigenous languages in the country should be allowed to feature in the country’s formal school system. however, a major setback to this fact is that the native speakers of these languages look down on each other language and this presupposes why the language teachers teaching any of these languages are regarded as second hand teachers including the public schools situated in each locality where each of these languages is the mother tongue. this has hampered the growth of some of these indigenous languages thereby marrying the sole objective of the language policy of nigeria. d) developing indigenous languages nigerian linguistics has done a good job on the indigenous languages. however, the work is not sufficient. this is because there are many of the languages that have received little or no attention at all; a situation that makes it difficult for information to be expressed in english. worse still, the so called major and main languages do awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 77 not have enriched vocabulary to satisfy new developments in the world today. an example is igbo where “iba” is used to refer to malaria, hepatitis, and typhoid; an indication that users of the language have a problem with the foreign terminologies (ezeuko and mbagwu, 2009). the point here is that all the indigenous languages demand varied degrees of attention for communication to improve in nigeria. however, many native speakers add salt to the injury by not speaking their language either in religious worship or person to person interaction. they see their language as inferior. suffice it to say that if all the people would speak their languages to the young people, they would have no need for indigenous language curricula or for conferences to save their languages. if nigerians can speak their languages, all of their languages would be healthier and very effective. e) making nigerian pidgin official the nigerian pidgin is the language of the widest inter-ethnic mode of communication, especially between the members of the illiterate class (mann, 1990). it is easy to acquire or learn because of its simple grammar, hence, its widespread use in the country. in fact, making it official would largely reduce ineffective communication, which is associated with english, the official language of the country. when developed, would lead to the emergence of a true national language, which would not be seen as foreign. if used in religious worship would help in reducing ambiguity associated with some religious expressions. f) identifying communication roles english cannot play in the different speech communities in the country there are certainly some communicative roles, which english or any other foreign language cannot perform. such roles are better performed with the use of the people’s indigenous languages. an religious language and the challenges of insecurity in nigeria nwokocha 78 example is the blessing of oji igbo which is always carried out using the igbo vernacular. this is the reason why the indigenous languages should never be relegated to the background but enhanced for optimum use when necessary. 4. conclusion there are many instances when language is used for quite different reasons ranging from expressive, communicative to descriptive functions. religious languages are all about the people’s channeling their energies to communal religious construction. this is because every language entails the reflection of the people’s collective imagination. any language whether indigenous or national has the same functions except for coverage. a good command of a given language is necessary for effective communication in any human society. nigeria is one of the countries in which ineffective communication has led to some unfavourable conditions ranging from religious conflicts, restiveness, retarded economic development, and poor education among others owing to the fact that people hardly understand one another. a major factor causing this, as has been pointed out, is underdevelopment of languages in religious and civil matters; a situation that justifies the adoption of foreign language, english as the official language. literacy in english language is low and this is the main cause of insecurity in the country. this study discussed ways of reducing the aforementioned challenges and one of them is developing the indigenous language of the people. references abrams, e. and greenhawt, m. 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(2002). african traditional religion: a prolegomenon. lagos: merit. 98 language, culture and human rights abuse in igbo land esther ogochukwu akpulu nnamdi azikiwe university, awka eo.akpulu@unizik.edu.ng abstract this study examines language, culture and human right abuse in igbo land. language and culture are integral components of the society. the language of the people is embedded in their culture. language and culture can help to achieve unity, promote security and human right in the igbo nation. to ensure posterity, no cultural group should forsake their lifestyle and tradition, instead, express their culture and participate in the society free of irrational hostility. unfortunately, there are some cultural practices that negate the human right in igbo land. the english language as the official language is deemed more prestigious despite that no ethnic group in nigeria is english language native speakers. the objective of this study is to highlight and discourage inhuman cultural practices in igbo land because most often, these practices abuse the human rights and expose the victims to insecurity. the study also aims to analyse the interconectivity between language and culture, their roles towards enhancing security and rights of the citizens. the study is descriptive in nature. thomas aquinas’s natural right theory is used for analysis. the data collection was by observation, library and internet sources. the findings reveal that some inhumane cultural practices in nigeria had come into serious confrontations. it also revealed that although there has been notable changes for instance in widowhood practices, more still has to be done. some unassuming persistent practices that violate the human rights should be addressed and abolished. it recommends that both mailto:eo.akpulu@unizik.edu awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 99 the human rights activists and all concerned individuals should stand up against practices that abuse the human rights whether they are masterminded by cultural practices or government policies. keywords: language, culture, human rights abuse, cultural practices 1. introduction the igbo nation occupies the eastern part of nigeria, and it comprises five states namely abịa, anambra, ebonyi, enugu and imo. out of over two hundred and seventy groups that make up nigeria, igbo nation is presumed to be one of the largest. igbo language is the native language of igbo people though, they have various dialects. prior to colonial rule, the igbo people operated a republican society and were guided by values, norms and customs. norms are guidelines of behaviour based on values. cultural norms of the igbo people serve as code of conduct for the generality of the people. the code of conduct over the time forms the custom of the people and thus, considered as laws of the land. the customary laws were not written any where instead, placed in the hearts of the members of the society. akpulu (2021:86) posits that “for the igbo people, there is no book that contains their laws or code of conduct. unlike the europeans... but every member of the igbo society grows up and learns it informally from his people.” the customary law has a general application and is no respecter of any body – man or woman, poor or rich, young or old, titled or non-titled members of the communities. cultural plurality helps to attain unity in diversity where subordinate groups do not have to forsake their lifestyles and culture instead, express their culture and participate in the larger society without prejudice. apparently, within the groups exist some harmful and inhuman practices. since culture is the way people express themselves in their daily interactions, cruelty of any kind must be language, culture and human rights abuse in igbo land akpulu 100 eliminated so as not to keep the victims in a permanent state of fear or insecurity. this is because the abuse of the fundamental human rights instead of promoting it, makes the individual or even group involved to sometimes assume a low esteemed identity. in some cases, the victims may summon courage to forcefully register their displeasure and take their natural rights thereby resulting to unrest in the system. in as much as people live out their culture in their daily lives, it is very pertinent to strike a balance between any claim of cultural rights and universal human rights. needless to say is that women and children are most vulnerable to these dehumanising cultural practices. human rights are rights we have because we are human beings. they are the rights we rightfully possess as human beings. these universal human rights are inherent to us. this is to say that these rights are not granted by any state. the universal human rights include right to life and liberty, freedom from slavery and torture, right to freedom of opinion, choice and expression, the right to education and work among others. any custom of the land that violates human rights of the citizens should be revisited. what this study stands to portray is that most of these human rights still face abuses by some persistent obnoxious and dehumanising cultural practices and insincerity of the state to respect these rights even as entrenched in the law. igbo cultural norms and customs that expose the citizens especially women and children to abuses and insecurity should be abolished. it then calls for more serious intervention of the national human rights commission, human rights activists, religious leaders and all concerned individuals to curb the abuses. this will help to secure the society where everyone will be safe and have a sense of belonging. this paper examines how negative usage of language and culture can militate against the human rights instead of enhancing it awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 101 in igbo cultural setting. language and culture will be briefly explained. the concept of human rights will also be expounded. some cultural practices that still exist within the igbo communities will be examined and the efforts of the nigerian human rights protection agency to avert them portrayed. the findings and recommendations will bring the research to a close. 2. literature review 2.1 language language is the basic means of communication. its role is to convey message from a speaker or writer to the possible audience. without language, interpersonal relationship will be very difficult to achieve. language is used to create and convey ideas. it is an inseparable part of the human society. it is also used to learn, conserve and transmit cultural traits. emenanjo (1980) agrees that most human knowledge and culture is stored and transmitted in language. isidienu and ibeh (2020:228) observe that “language is a devise which employs vocal symbols to give or hide information, to give illusions of love or to create realities of hate, to build or to destroy.” nzeakor and usondu (2013) assert that, man as a social being, acquires language for a harmonious living. meaning that the purpose of every language is to communicate efficiently and that failure to do so will amount to communication breakdown. language and the ability to communicate is an essential building block of human relations. the above concepts of language reveal that language is very crucial for interpersonal associations. it helps to share information, ideas and feelings with one another and can enhance or mar relationships depending on the usage. the researcher agrees that language as a means of communication and information dissemination can integrate or cause divisions in a multi regional language, culture and human rights abuse in igbo land akpulu 102 society like nigeria. the use of abusive language by any individual or group against any other can ignite sense of insecurity. 2.2 culture many scholars have given many definitions and concepts of culture. culture is the totality of what a group is known for. anozie (1999:91) posits that “obviously, in order to know a people correctly, the knowledge of almost all things they do is very important. the central issue in this probe is not only just how they do things, but more, the reason for what they do. the knowing of why and necessarily how, puts one in an objective position to appreciating others...” akpulu (2021:203) maintains that, “... people’s culture is how they live as a group of people and what is used to identify them.” ayton-shenker (1995) in eseyin and udoh (2015:71) posits that, “culture is one of the prime source of identity and a great deal of self-definition and expression, therefore fundamental values, traditions and cultures which are familiar to a common set of people, give a secure sense of one’s identity.” williams in anozie (1999:93) notes four way development of the term culture thus: broadly, the concept of culture was developed in four ways, all of which still affects its meaning. first, culture came to mean “a general state or habit of the mind,” with close relations to the idea of human perfection. second, it came to mean “a awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 103 general state of intellectual and moral development in a society as a whole.” thirdly, it came to mean “the general body of arts and intellectual work.” fourth, it came to mean, “the whole way of life, material, intellectual, and spiritual, of a given society. williams points out that all these efforts show humankind’s endeavour to show new ways of human social, moral and intellectual development. this equally depicts the changing nature of life. the researcher therefore believes that, since the nature of life can change, any cultural practice that militates against the human rights should be adjusted. this in effect will enhance the overall security and development in the society. 2.3 interconnectivity between language and culture language and culture are interdependent. language is an aspect of culture. members of society live out their culture using language. since culture is a particular group of people’s way of life, their beliefs, crafts and everything they are known for, then their language if a conveying factor towards achieving all these. isidienu and ibeh (2020:229) concur with this when they opine that “language is one of the main tools or instruments by which values, norms, belief system, technology and cultural practices of any society are communicated.” writing on the interrelationship between language language, culture and human rights abuse in igbo land akpulu 104 and culture, paz (2014) believes that since language is central to identity, one’s freedom to use one’s language is seen as ‘inherent’ in the ‘dignity of the human person’ and thus falls within the ambit of human rights law. wolff (2006) observes that, the function which language serves in the society cannot be ovrelooked. the cultural values, history and realities are transmitted through language. 2.4 human rights human rights are rights and freedom which human beings should enjoy because they are human beings. they apply regardless of where one comes from, what one believes or how one choose to live his life. oghenefavwe (2021) asserts that, “as a basic principle of rule of law, human rights and freedom are acceptable as part of culture of some nations, eg. great britain, india, etc, while in other nations (like nigeria, united states of america, ghana, etc) they are enshrined in their constitutions.” when entrenched in the constitution, it shows high level of sincerity to respect these rights. according to edwin, shorts and than (2001) in afunadulla (2005), the universal declaration of human rights (udhr), adopted by the united nations on december 10th, 1948, is based on the human diginity and worth inherent in the person, and the principle that the human person is the central subject of human rights and fundamental freedoms. human rights are also defined as the rights people are entitled to simply because they are human beings, irrespective of their citizenship, nationality, race, ethnicity, language, sex, sexuality, or abilities: human rights become enforceable when they are codified as convetions, covenants, or treaties, or as they become recognized as customary international laws, (gbgmumc.org/umw/education/glossary.html). this definition shows the universality of human rights. igboin (2011) concurs with this as he declears that human rights have been defined as the rational basis awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 105 for a justified demand. what constitutes demand should be understood as that which is different from favour or privilege but one’s due, free from radical, religious, gender, political inclinations. this entails that human rights enforcement is never a prefrential treatment or an honour granted to an individual or group, instead, it is what ordinarily should be obtainable. human rights conventions, declarations and acts all attempt to guarantee human decent treatment and protection against discrimination and all sorts of abuse. there are three human rights principles. they are, first, human rights are interdependent and indivisible. this principle connotes that all human rights have equal standing, and none of the rights is more important than another. guaranteeing one right is not the same as guaranteeing all, and abuse of one human right is abuse on others as well. secondly, human rights are inalienable, meaning that human rights are completely unconditional. they don’t have to be bought or earned, and they cannot be taken away for any reason, by any person, group or institution. lastly, human rights are universal. this means that all human beings in the world have human rights. though, whether this is upheld is debatable. but all states have the duty to protect the human rights of their citizens, soken-huberty (2018). human rights are very necessary as it is a means of protection for all especially for those who may experience abuse, neglect and isolation. human rights also allow people to stand up to societal corruption. this means that people can speak up when they experience abuse and corruption. this is why specific rights like the right to assemble are so important because no society is perfect. the concept of human rights educates and empowers people and tells them that they deserve dignity from society. human right helps to hold the government accountable, soken-huberty (2018). language, culture and human rights abuse in igbo land akpulu 106 2.5 reasons for the emergency of human rights the horrific events and experiences of the second world war (ww11) opened the eyes of the world that certainly humans are not being treated equally. in the opinion of futurelearn (2021), the mass genocide of jews, as well as the murder of many disabled and lgbtq+ people during the holocaust, was a harsh wake-up call for the world leaders. obviously, human rights have merely existed formally for about 200 years, but before that, there were no real laws to ensure people are treated fairly reagardless of things like race, gender, age, and religion. after the creation of un which was in 1945, the member states under the umbrella of the universal declaration of human rights came together to create the list of human rights. this move was guided by american diplomat and first lady then, eleanor roosevelt. this document was revolutionary as it was the first time un members states acknowledged that all human beings are born the same and so they deserved the same rights, regardless of circumstances. oghenefavwe (2021:66-67) agrees that “the un declaration of universal human rights has become a landmark declaration in the history and politics of global emancipation struggle. ... no people struggling for human rights and genuine democracy can consciously deny themselves the inspirartion, vision and wisdom embodied in every sentence of that world historical declaration.” according to united nations (un) document, some human rights contained also in 1999 nigerian constitution include: 1.all humans are born equal before the law. 2. nobody should be treated like a slave. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 107 3. nobody has the right to torture another. 4. the law is the same for everyone. 5. freedom of speech and expression. 6. right to citizenship. 7. right to freedom of movement. 8. if anyone is hurt, the person can go to another country and ask for protection. 9. right to work, choose the type of work to do and get paid fairly. 10. right to vote and be votted for. considering the above explanations, when the human rights are violated instead of respected or protected, the result is human rights abuse. human rights abuse is violation of the basic rights of people by treating them wrongly. this abuse could be either physical or verbal maltreatment and can come up in many ways. for instance, in as much as there is freedom of speech and expression, the use of insulting speech or abusive language violates human right as it demeans the intergrity of the concerned human. in the case of a group, it can instigate insecurity. 3. theoretical framework 3.1 natural law the natural right law was developed by classical greek philosophers, such as aristotle and plato, but the concept was more fully developed by thamos aquinas in his summa theologica. natural law is a philosophical theory that states that humans have certain rights, moral, values and responsibilities language, culture and human rights abuse in igbo land akpulu 108 that are inherent in human nature. the emergence of human rights from the natural rights tradition did not come without opposition as some argued that rights could only come from the law of a particular society and could not come from any natural or inherent source. natural law states that there are behaviours that are naturally right or wrong because god ordained it so. what was naturally right could be ascertained by humans as good or right by thinking properly. then what is bad should be condemned because it is unnatural. any action that distorts human nature is also generally condemned as evil. this implies that nature intends man to behave in certain ways and to do certain things. olaposi (2018:76) agrees that “natural law refers to the principle inherent to man which tells him that what is fair, good, impartial, right and just.” hugo grotius in heard (1997:103) further expanded on this notion where he propounds the immutability of what is naturally right or wrong thus, now the law of nature is so unalterable, that it cannot be changed even by god himself. for although although the power of god is infinite, yet there are somethings, to which it does not extend. ...thus two and two must make four, nor it is possible otherwise; nor, again, can what is really evil not be evil. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 109 3.2 strength of natural law natural law is important because it is applied to moral, political and ethical system today. it has played a large role in the history of political and philosophical theory and has been used to understand and discuss human nature.the development of the concept of equity, human rights, and democracy across the globe. it is universal and absolute so, it is always relevant. it allows for a clear cut approach to morality and establishes common rules. 3.3 demerits of natural law this theory is based solely on right reasoning, which is a criterion that cannot be verified through empirical scutiny. there is what is called ‘the multiple-conscience problem.’ that is to say, different individuals have explanations for, and what is right and wrong ... olaposi (2018). natural law stresses ‘what ought to be done’ and not necessarily ‘what is done.’ 4. cultural practices that violate human rights in igbo land cultural and traditional practices have long played crucial roles in igbo society and continue to influence many aspect of life in the igbo nation. cultural institutions like kindred, daughters of the patrilineage ụmụada, masquerade cult among others in igbo land, for instance have been very useful in promoting the igbo culture. cultural practices like iru mgbede (for young madiens) and ịwa akwa (for young men) have historically provided training for young adults in the pre-colonial era before formal education structures. however, it has been observed that some cultural practices common to many igbo cultural communities have significant negative impact(s) on the exercise and enjoyment of fundamental language, culture and human rights abuse in igbo land akpulu 110 human rights. some of these cultural practices include female genital mutilation, widowhood rites, servile marriage like trokosi, abuse of children, osu caste system, wife inheritance, women disinheritance, early and forced marriage among others. these harmful cultural practices discriminate more against women and children and inflict injury to their person and dignity. these dehumanising practices differ from one community to another. examples include, 4.1 widowhood practices the widowhood practices are those cultural practices and rites married women are subjected to when their husbands die. the igbo custom expects the widow to mourn the dead husband for one year. the woman is secluded from others and do not partake in social activities as a result of observing the widowhood rites. in some cases, the widow is subjected to sit on a tattered mat and wear a particular mourning attire usually an old tattered cloth. she would not change or wash the cloth until the last day of the twelve days izunaatọ when the cloth and mat will be burnt. the widow would then change to a black mourning cloth. (akpulu, 2016). sometimes, a woman is subjected to drink water used to bath the corpse of the husband just to prove her innocence. this is in a case whereby the woman is alleged to have killed the husband and in an attempt to prove her innocence. ogbazi and orabueze (2013:14 -15) assert this thus “... if the husband’s relations do not suspect her of killing him. if they do, she can be forced to swear an oath or drink the water used in washing the corpse in the order to prove her innocence.” a refusal to drink the water will be a further and complete proof of her guilt, therefore such women go through the ordeal which may eventually affect their health. it is also obtainable in some other cultures that when a man dies, the surviving wife or wives are subjected to dehumanising funeral rites. every hair on the body is clearly shaven, unfortunately awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 111 by fellow women, and forbidden to see the light of the day for some period proscribed by custom, adedeji in eseyin and udoh (2015:76). even while women are encouraged to reject these obnoxious practices, some of them for fear of being haunted by their deceased husband’s ghosts, would themselves demand for the rites; consequence of a myth that has been indoctrinated in their cultural consciousness. hence, the call for continuous re-orientations of these women especially those in the rural communities. this will enable them acknowlege that they deserve their rights to the dignity of human persons and those rights as granted by nature and coded in the law should be protected. because of christian influence, there has been reformations and modifications in widowhood practices in most communities in igbo land. for instance, the mourning period has been reduced to six – three months, wearing of black for mourning changed to white, and no longer total isolation of the widow. but surely, it has been observed that in some communities, the obnoxious treatment associated with widowhood rites still persist. for instance, in igbo widowhood rites, though christians are more in number than the traditional religionists presently, their movements are still restricted upon the death of their husbands. the human right abused here is the right to the dignity of human person, principle of nondiscrimination and torture which customary international law protects, eseyin and udoh (2015). any woman who failed to observe the restriction in movement is percieved as nonchalant. sometimes, this alone leads to allegation that the woman is the cause of the husband’s death. a woman was alleged to have killed the husband because the man died on the cause of sexual intercourse with the wife in aguleri community of igbo land. the woman was paraded round the village naked. 4.2 women dis-inheritance language, culture and human rights abuse in igbo land akpulu 112 obviously, women disinheritance is an igbo custom that has remained adamant to change. the arduous condition of a widow does not end with the burial of the husband. she is yet to battle with the discriminatory and humiliating treatment from the husband’s family. common in the past are cases where uncles or brothers to the deceased dispose the widows of their husbands’ property. ogbazi and orabueze (2013:16) assert that “in the past, one of her husband’s brother will inherit her. if she is lucky, he will take care of her and her children; if she is not, he will simply divest her and her young children of her husband’s property, particularly houses, land and economic trees.” the widow is not permitted to be present when the landed properties are shared as obtains in igbo custom. even if she has young sons, they will not be there at the sharing. it is only where the sons of the deceased have grown up that they will inherit their father’s property. by imlpication, the widow losses the landed properties to her husband’s uncles and brothers if she has only girl child or children. in some cases, the uncles and brothers of the deceased will pretend they are merely holding the properties for the young sons of their brother. but when the time is ripe to return the properties, they will sieze them to the detriment of their dead brother’s nuclear family. the widow is dissuaded from going to court in order to avoid sanctions such bold step can incur her as well as her children. then, such widow in her despicable condition finds it very difficult to raise her young children. this exposes the woman and her children to insecurity while some unguided among them eventually end up being notorious elements in the society. though, this is not as prevalent as it used to be in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, it still obtains in some remote communities. women dis-inhertance in igbo land affects the igbo woman as a wife, a daughter – married or unmarried, married but childless or has only female children. whatever a man has in his lifetime awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 113 belongs to his male children. the girl child is not included in property sharing. there is a belief that when the girl marries, she will not take anything to the husband because she will get new properties from the husband. remember that when the same husband dies, the woman is divested of those properties if she has no grown up male children. ajayi (2021) posits that the custom around inheritance in igbo land is in favour of men, and is unlikely to change soon. ogbazi and orabueze (2013:18) concur that “... because it has permeated the mindset of the people – men and women, educated and uneducated, young and old, married and single – for they condone it and are not in a hurry to do away with it.” this is true because, not even christianity, education or constitutional provisions have eliminated this discriminatory custom against women. it is observed that a rich father can buy land for the daughter in the city as a wedding gift probably during idu ụnọ in igbo custom; but the land must never be one inherited from his forefathers. 4.3 forced and early marriage another cultural practice that abuses human rights is forced and early marriage. through home training and education in igbo cultural setting, young girls are taught that marriage is good and early marriage more desirable. this avails the required foundation for early marriage. it can be at the age of 14 or 15 when these girls are yet to be fully matured physically, psychologically and emotionally. they embrace this teaching and as very young wives, they give birth when they are not yet fully developed to go through the rigorous experience of child birth. in most cases, they may end up having prolonged and difficult labour and probably die in the process. worst still, it may result to ruptured bladder and the victim ends up with vesico vagina festula (vvf). obviously, this is a very humiliating health condition which makes them to leak and smell language, culture and human rights abuse in igbo land akpulu 114 urine, thereby, always go about with urine bags under them. their husbands will marry another wives and their parents may reject them thus they become outcast and insecured even among their people. despite condemnations, early and forced marriage has continued in some igbo communities. it is observed that some young girls who got pregnant outside marriage are still being forced into marriages with men old enough to be their fathers or even grandfathers. cases also reoccour where people give out under aged daughters in marriage because of poverty. these youngsters go into the forced unions to suffer with no one to rescue them. again, yoruba people have servile marriage in which a virgin girl is offered to serve and appease the gods for a crime such as murder committed by a family member. asomah (2015) avers thus “the trokosi system is an african traditional religious practice that exist in ghana, benin, togo and in yoruba land in nigeria.” it means that harmful cultural practices are not peculiar to communities in igbo land but also obtain in other african communities. these cultural practices are not only dehumanising but aslo abuse on human rights and should be condemned and discarded. the victims of these abuses are mainly women and children especially the girls. most of these practices are traditional religious practices. bilyeu (1999:459) agrees with this as he asserts that “states will often justify discrimination and noncompliance with human rights conventions on the basis of custom or cultural practices.” hernandez-truyol in bilyeu (1999:459) concurs that “using religion to justify practices that many believe are violations of human rights standards is not a new concept.” national human rights commission has found out that culture most often becomes an avenue in which serious crime are committed against humanity, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 115 and the perpetrators often go unpunished due to their precieved cultural attributes. 4.4 language and abuse of human rights nigeria has the english language as her official language and deemed more prestigious than over 350 languages in nigeria. irrespective of the fact that there is no ethnic group in nigeria whose native language is english. some people particularly igbo people now take the english language to be more prestigious than other native languages. consequently such people do not speak their native language to their children. this makes the affected children to feel unsafe and as strangers whenever they mingle with their peers or people that speak the igbo language. as paz (2014) rightly states that since language is central to identity, one’s freedom to use one’s language is seen as ‘inherent’ in the dignity of the human person’, and thus falls within the ambit of human rights. in this case, those children are denied the right to learn, speak and use their native language. one of the characteristics of language is that it is not inherited but learn. as a result, children learn so easily the language of their orientation. moreso, derogatory language can violate human rights and instigate insecurity. instance is the president buhari’s hate speech against igbo people on june 10 2021 in an interview with the arise tv broadcast. pesident buhari states that indigineous people of biafra is like a dot in a circle and will have no where to go if allowed to exit, judging the manner they are spread all over the country. this is as the country is experiencing the highest level of insecurity. statement like this instead of curbing insecurity rather heightened the tension in the land. the president maintains in his negiligence for human rights “in any case, we say we will talk to them in the language they understand. we will organise the police and the language, culture and human rights abuse in igbo land akpulu 116 military to pursue them.” statements as this against a group of people can spur social unrest. the proper approach should have been to call the group for a round table discussion where prerogative language will be used to address the situation. the nigeria human rights commission serves as an extrajudiciary mechanism for the respect and enjoyment of human rights. it also provides avenues for public enlightenment, research, and dialogue in order to raise awareness on human rights issues. 4.5 findings findings show that most cultural practices against human rights are traditional religious practices. national human rights commission has found out that culture most often becomes an avenue in which serious crimes are committed against humanity, and the perpetrators often go unpunished due to their precieved cultural attributes. among the findings also is that women and children are the most vulnerable. they undergo widowhood practices, affected by early and forced marriage, and suffer women dis-inheritance. it also reveals that most of those cultural practices that violate human rights had come into serious confrontations and modified, but some like dehumanising widowhood rites still persists especially in the rural communities. from the findings, it is evident that religious organisations, the national human rights commission, human rights activists, and some none governmental agencies contribute to educating and redirecting the people to understand their rights and possible ways to seek redress when their rights are violated. though, more still need to be done. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 117 5. conclusion language and culture as components of the society and their interrelationships make them very essential tools to foster human rights. it therefore means that any cultural practices that militate against human rights instead of enhancing it should be jettisoned. human rights as inherent from nature should be protected and guarded and it is the responsibility of all well meaning members of the society. people should stop hiding under traditional or cultural practices to perpetrate evil as any cultural practices that do not foster human rights, abuse it. igbo people should reach a consensus and do away with all customs that violate human rights especially those practices that dehumanise women. some of the obnoxious practices against human rights had been adjusted as mentioned earlier but a lot still need to be done, for instance, in widowhood practices among rural dwellers. women particularly the educated ones should help to sensitise their fellow women to stand for their rights. the women should strive to liberate themselves from the shackles of obnoxious traditional practises against them. the state should on their side be sincere enough to bring to book any violator of human rights. punishing violators of human rights will go a long way to deter potential offenders. the government need to step up on their fight against boko haram, banditry, unknown gunmen and others who torture, kill, and trample on human rights of the citizens with impunity. this will restore dignity of human life, peace and security not only in igbo land but also in the country. language, culture and human rights abuse in igbo land akpulu 118 references ajayi, a. 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(2006). “the language factor in discourse in development and education in africa.” in kembe-sure, s. s.nwangi and n. o. ogechi (eds.). language planning and development in africa. eldoret moi: university press. www.gbgm-umc.org/umw/education/glossary.html. accessed 15/03/202 http://www.gbgm-umc.org/umw/education/glossary.html 121 language and mind decolonization: a sure way to africa’s language development cecilia a. eme1, iwuchukwu c. uwaezuoke2 nnamdi azikiwe university awka1 ebonyi state university, abakaliki2 ca.eme@unizik.edu.ng1, iwuchukwuchinenye@yahoo.com2 abstract almost every african country was colonized at a point in history. colonization makes the colonized subservient to the colonizer, who determines their linguistic, cultural, social, political, religious and economic life and development. colonization, bad as it is, goes beyond these to a worse scenario called language and mind colonization. this is more like leading the colonized into psychological bondage where the colonizer makes them have a sense of being inferior and less a human capable of engaging in developmental strides to better their lot. of all the colonized peoples, africans seem to be the worst hit by language and mind colonization, with its attendant drawbacks. there is the urgent need to explain the issues surrounding this phenomenon and proffer workable solutions that will pave the way for language and mind decolonization in africa. this forms the thrust of this paper, aimed at making africans re-discover themselves and work towards developing their countries by themselves rather than go begging for aids from their erstwhile colonial masters; as no one loves them enough to do it for them. data were sourced mainly from our direct observation of nigerians, internet materials, local and foreign media write-ups and broadcasts. after descriptive analysis of data, the paper discovered that africans are no less endowed than their mailto:ca.eme@unizik.edu.ng1 language and mind decolonization – eme & uwaezuoke 122 colonizers and so, with proper language and mind decolonization through sensitization, africans would not only improve themselves and their environment but also develop their countries to join the comity of developed nations. keywords: africa, language, mind, colonization, decolonization, development 1. introduction language is the powerful tool for communication. it has a direct relationship with thought and social environment. thus, it could be positively or negatively manipulated for or against societal development. colonizers often tilt towards negative manipulation in order to achieve their numerous goals, particularly the psychological defeat of the colonized. almost every african country was colonized at one point in history or another. for instance, between 18th and 19th centuries, nigeria and ghana were british colonies. france colonized benin republic and parts of ivory coast. between 1848 and 1962, algeria was a french colony (onyekpere and amadi, 2013). colonization makes the colonized subservient to the colonizer. this is because the colonizer would always want to assert superiority to prove to the colonized that whereas he, the colonizer, is the master, the colonized is the servant. in most cases the colonial ‘master’ influences and, more commonly, determines the linguistic, cultural, social, political, religious and economic life and development of the colonized ‘servant’. colonization, bad as it is, goes beyond these issues of master/servant relationship and control of the linguistic, cultural, social, political, religious and economic life and development of the colonized to a worse scenario called language and mind colonization. this is more like leading the colonized into awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 123 psychological bondage and defeat where the colonizer makes the colonized have a sense of being inferior, useless and less a human to the point of their having a deep sense of feeling that they are not capable of engaging in developmental strides to better their lot. of all the colonized peoples, africans seem to be the worst hit by language and mind colonization, with its attendant drawbacks. there is the urgent need to explain the issues surrounding this phenomenon and proffer workable solutions that will pave the way for language and mind decolonization in africa. this forms the thrust of this paper, aimed at making africans re-discover themselves and work towards developing their countries by themselves. yes, it is only imperative that africa must be decolonized if visible and sustainable development will be achieved. rather than africans and, or through, their leaders going begging for financial or material aids from their erstwhile colonial masterswho treat them like the wretched of the earth and give them what their country rejected-they should decolonize themselves and become truly independent in all facets of their lives. to conduct this study, the researchers sourced data mainly from the internet, local and foreign media write-ups and broadcasts, and literature. a few instances from our data collected through our direct observation of nigerians may be brought into the paper. we subjected our data to descriptive analysis. we shall define some terms crucial to this study in our conceptual framework, review a few relevant materials, engage in a discussion on sources of africa’s colonization and the strategies for decolonization, we then summarize and conclude the paper. 2. literature review language is a very powerful means through which human beings communicate. “language is very important to man. … [it] is a language and mind decolonization – eme & uwaezuoke 124 means which human beings have devised for communicating ideas, feelings, emotions, desires, etc. through complex vocal or written symbols” (anagbogu, mbah and eme, 2010:1). o’grady, archibald and katamba (2011:543) see “language is about communication. it is through language that we are able to make our thoughts, feelings, intentions and desires known to other people.” one wonders how much human beings would have been able to achieve without language. this could be the reason phan (2018) brings in some human inventions in his definition of language. he says, language is a means for communication…just as like electricity is a means to energize a light-bulb or an electric stove or a motor to propel a car, bus, street car, or train. …language is a means of communication, one which allows greater flexibility in expressing emotions, conveying information and discussing ideas. we can certainly communicate by pointing and grunting, but language gives us the ability to be far more informative and expressive. (36) talking about language is like asking blind men to touch an elephant and describe it, because of the numerous ways we can look at it. for instance, according to nwobu (2020:90), “the natural language of a people is like a name as well as a face to them.” for robins (1972:24), “our social life depends on language. …many traditions treat language as a sacred thing; they are justified in so doing, for it is language that gives order and significance to primal chaos.” language is even described as ‘the soul’ of its owners (fafunwa, 2005) and “a vital force for the understanding and domination of the world” (agbanusi, 2009:277). we must make it clear that language awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 125 is a possession of humans only; thus, supporting umera-okeke (2019:13) that, “language is … a tool for communication and this tool is human and can only be used by human.” this means that although different animals have different ways of communicating among themselves, it is only human beings that have the capacity and ability for language. humans have body as well as mind and other attributes of their being human. unlike the body which can be seen and touched, the mind cannot.the fact of its being invisible does not make it less important than the body. odey (1997:84) explains this further when he quotes martin luther king jnr. thus: something should remind us once more that the great things in this universe are things that we can never see. you walk out at night and look up at the beautiful stars as they bedeck the heavens like swinging lanterns of eternity, and you think you can see all. oh, no. you can never see the law of gravitation that holds them there. …you look at me and you think you see martin luther king. you don’t see martin luther king; you see my body, but, you must understand, my body can’t think, my body can’t reason. you don’t see the me that makes me me. … the definitions of ‘mind’ vary; often depending on professions, and viewpoints. wiktionary (online) has many definitions of ‘mind’; the one that interests us the most is, “(philosophy) the non-material substanceor set of processes in which consciousness, perception, affectivity, judgement, thinking, and will are based we now see that anyone whose mind is colonized is like a living dead, who does not language and mind decolonization – eme & uwaezuoke 126 have any understanding, judgement, thoughts, etc. of their own. such a one can definitely not ‘help’ themselves. colonization is the act of ‘taking over’ a people such that the colonizer comes and settles or lives among the local or indigenous people of a particular area and, usually forcefully, establishes control over such indigenous people. in many cases of colonization, the colonizers maintain their authority over the colonized by use of certain regulations that make the colonized people lose their sense of dignity and worth. it has been vividly explained that, in most cases, the goal of the colonizing countries is to profit by exploiting the human and economic resources of the countries they colonized. …in the process, the colonizers – sometimes forcibly – attempt to impose their religion, language, cultural and political practices on the indigenous population (longley, 2021). the colonized people could only extricate themselves from the shackles of colonization by making conscious efforts at decolonization of all aspects of their colonized lives. decolonization has been defined simply as “the undoing of colonialism…” (www.newworldencyclopedia.org). it can also refer to a “process by which colonies become independent of the colonizing country” (www.britannica.com). in this case, africa became ‘decolonized’ in 1950s and 1960s when the british withdrew from africa and granted independence to its numerous african colonies. for us decolonization goes beyond the formal gaining of independence to being “the process [or act] of rolling back the negative effects of colonial mentality [and all aspects of colonized life] that are still with us in this age” (hwande, 2018:245). http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/ http://www.britannica.com/ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 127 furthermore, we view development as a positive change in the overall living standards of the people. giurgi, in aghogho and ita (2017:54), sees development as “the process of economic and social transformation that is based on complex cultural and environmental factors and interactions. …it is a process of change – change that is positive, … change that affects the good majority of the people, change that is sustainable.” since development is that positive change that pervades all aspects of the community and touches every individual, aghogho and ita (2017:53) aver that, “the concept of development has become a household affair.” agbanusi (2009) uses a shakespearean novel, julius caesar,to illustrate the power of language. after summarizing, he events of the assassination of caesar, he leads the reader into the events of his funeral, where he uses the speeches of mark anthony and brutus to vividly illustrate “… the fact that language is a great instrument of motivation and mobilization” (p. 278). brutus uses his speech to try to convince the romans that his assassination of his friend, with the help of other conspirators, was in the best interest of all the roman citizens. he almost succeeded. however, mark anthony engages his powerful speeches to upturn the table against brutus and his co-conspirators. by the narrative and illustrations, agbanusi (2009:277) shows “… the extent to which language can be used to influence or motivate or mobilize people into accepting an intended view-point, and even, putting them in the mind-set to act in a certain way.” from this we see how the power of language can be used to influence people’s behaviour and their mind-set. this was exploited by the colonizers against the colonized africans. we notice that many african countries are not making the needed efforts to promote and foster the development of their indigenous languages because of the fall out of colonization where the colonial masters made the language owners to jettison their language and mind decolonization – eme & uwaezuoke 128 language in preference to the language of their colonizers. this happened irrespective of the fact that language marks or identifies a people, among other things. hear uyanne and motanya (2013:173), every human language spoken by individual person or individual society is a sublime gift given to define and identify the person and the community. …the fact is that our language is bound up [inextricably] with our humanity… [that is,] our value system and our sociocultural views. oyeweso (2019) looks at plural loyalties and multiple identities in post-independence nigeria. he believes that the nature of the politics, economy and other aspects of nigeria’s existence is determined by the experiences the country went through in the course of its history. he goes on to blame colonization of nigeria by the british in the 19th and 20th centuries for most of nigeria’s woes. he points out that “[nigeria] was a deliberate creation of the british colonial government to suit its imperial and colonial designs.” the colonialists did all they could to achieve their purpose of the creation of nigeria. even after they formally left in the form of granting independence to nigeria on 1st october 1960, they are still very much with us, wielding their undue influence that is detrimental to the development of nigeria and her people. onyekpere and amadi (2013) lament the negative attitude of the igbo people towards their language – the igbo language. they point out that igbo, like other languages, confers a unique identity on its speakers. the igbo poor attitude to their language, which results from the negative psycho-social effect of the english language andculture threatens the igboness of the igbo people. in their view, to amend the attitude, “certainly, the igbo need a re-orientation” awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 129 (p.147). this feeling expressed by onyekpere and amadi (2013) is not restricted to igbo. we view it as an expression relevant to most african languages and cultures that were under the influence of colonization. the owners of such languages and cultures actually ‘need a re-orientation’ in form of decolonization of, especially, language and mind. 3. discussion on sources of africa’s colonization in language and mind through colonization that came with evangelism the colonizers made the local languages insignificant and pulled theirs to the level of prestige through language and mind colonization. not much about the local people was left untampered with by the colonizers. the missionaries followed the same trend by denigrating the culture of the people they come to evangelize and imposed their own, in defiance to the directive of the supreme pontiff, pope pius xii. according to muonwe (2014:54), the pope cautions that in the course of evangelizing a society, foreign cultures should not be imposed on the society. the pope “advocates rather that missionaries carry out their work with due respect for the indigenous peoples and cultures.” nnaji (2021) confirms the role of evangelists in this regard when he explains that christianity regards cultural practices, including indigenous names and naming ceremony, as pagan practices and by this restrict converts from adopting indigenous names. we also noticed that majority of the africans do not have regard for their languages, the reason being basically because of the negative effect of colonization on the indigenous languages. africans must strive to preserve their identity by promoting their languages in all spheres of their lives, up to their national lives. it is not a thing of joy to hear that many african countries do not project language and mind decolonization – eme & uwaezuoke 130 their indigenous languages long after they gained independence from their colonizers. it is a truism that “tanzania [colonized by the british] is one of the few countries, along with somalia and ethiopia that promote the use of an indigenous african language as the medium of instruction throughout primary education” (ideh, 2017:91). this is a sad scenario. african children should not be made to learn, dream and form their personalities based on foreign languages – the languages of the colonizers. the media, due to colonial mentality, is a major source of language and mind colonization of africa. they propagate everything from and by the colonizers as the best, while using pejorative language to describe all that has something to do with africa. let us take a few instances. in the television show of animal life in their habitat, called natgeowild, such terms as ‘savage’, ‘deadliest’, ‘weird’ are used in the description of animals in africa, while in europe, projecting animals that are fighting and wounding or killing themselves does not attract any of such terms. such situation could only be described simply as ‘animal fight club’. during winter, the falling of snow that covers the fields and trees and causing the death of some animals is often described simply as ‘rumble’. we feel that the idea the presenters of the show create is to make the world know that africa is bad. they expect africans to loathe their environment and, consequently, themselves and all that pertain to them as africans. reports have it that dr. ngozi okonjo-iweala’s victory as the first female and first african director general (dg) of the prestigious world trade organization (wto), after beating many others from different parts of the world, was immediately greeted on 11th february, 2021 with demeaning language by a swiss newspaper. let us recall that the dg was appointed to the position on 15th february 2021 and assumed office on 1st march, 2021. one awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 131 wondered whether the insult on her person was meant to tell the world that it made a wrong choice and should not go ahead to appoint her, or may be to cause her to have a very low self-esteem on the new job. the abuse of this seventh dg of wto, whose tenure will expire on 31st august 2025, was so glaring that it trended on the internet thus, “swiss newspaper headlines the nomination of ngozi okonjo-iweala for wto director general as, ‘this grandmother will become the new boss of wto’” pointing out that if not for her being an african, the headline would have projected her as “harvard economist, ex-world bank managing director and ex-minister of finance…” her comportment and outcry across the globe forced the swiss newspaper to deliver apology to her by hand in her office. outside of the media, colonizers also invent concepts in various fields of human endeavour that place them higher and above the colonized. for instance, in linguistics, mbagwu and eme (2012) view the concepts used by the colonizers in describing indigenous languages of the colonized and the languages of the colonizers as they relate in pidgin language as faulty. for instance, with specific reference to the nigerian pidgin, with the source of its grammatical structure as the indigenous nigerian languages, mbagwu and eme (2012) point out that the terms ‘superstrate’ and ‘substrate’ for the description of english and nigerian languages respectively smacks of ‘master-servant’ or superior-inferior’ social relation. other terms, like describing english as the dominant language is not acceptable either. they argue (p.136) that, “‘dominant’ or ‘superstrate’ seems to us a product of imperialism which commenced with colonization, at a time when ‘superiority’ or ‘inferiority’ may have been a key concern.” africans should reject such demeaning or debasing concepts that litter the different disciplines as we have them today. in march, 2022, on the different whatsapp platforms, we see major al mustapha (rtd.), the chief security officer (cso) of the language and mind decolonization – eme & uwaezuoke 132 nigerian military head of state, general sanni abacha, lamenting on the cause of insurgency in nigeria and accusing our colonial masters of playing a crucial role in ensuring that nigeria is not developed. in his words, … since 1972 [when] nigeria was 12 years old as an independent state; with the discovery of oil and with the [good] performance of general gowon, the then head of state, some certain forces came together and said, “it will be disheartening to see us serve this same colony of ours as now subordinates.” that was why at that material time, a new program came up on how to dwarf nigeria; and i challenge the academia, i challenge patriots, i challenge leaders to go and search for that document and look at the arrangements of dividing nigeria, creating crisis, creating differences … in nigeria that will dwarf us. … the fear is: “allow this country to be, we will all be there as subordinates working for them. … no black man should be seen, particularly in west africa and nigeria; as a subject [none] should be allowed to grow.” …understand that there is a game that will never allow us to grow. we will be fighting ourselves while they are busy taking what we have. this built-up non-development programme for nigeria and many other african countries by their former colonizers must have greatly contributed to the poor state of the continent, up to this day. according to ugwu (2009:195), “…it is disheartening to note that [africa] is the only continent in the world that entered the 21st awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 133 century with all the negative human development indicators.” africa must help herself and come out of her miserable situation. using the colonizers language to express our africanness in works of literature and other works on africa and her peoples can hardly yield the desired dividend. the truth remains that no other language can express a thing about a people better than that people’s language. eme and mbagwu (2012:115) aver that, “the use of language in communication illustrates its relationship with the mind. … the mind here suggests creativity. … [and] literature depends on language”, yet african languages have not been much engaged by african authors in their literary engagements. this is a case of language and mind colonization. in many literary works and films involving europeans and africans, authored or directed by europeans, african characters and actors are made to play the second fiddle. where they are the protagonist, such a character is met with abysmal failure. the case is completely different for a european protagonist who succeeds even in the face of daunting challenges. such characters achieve even the impossible and come out great achievers. this scenario is nothing but to create the impression in the psyche of africans and african children that success is not for them. thus, they create the false negative impression that success is the attribute of europeans while failure is the attribute of africans. 3.1 strategies of language and mind decolonization in africa of all the strategies of language and mind decolonization available to africans, we are of the view that the best approach is for africans to non-violently tackle the problem headlong by asserting their humanness, intellectual sagacity and love for their linguistic and cultural identity. our forebears were able to do this, even in foreign language and mind decolonization – eme & uwaezuoke 134 lands. we should be able to do this to the colonizers who are still in our lands, either by their physical presence or by proxy, long after we secured our independence. if we fail to take up our rights and make it obvious to the colonizers or their cronies that we are standing up for what we are and should be, we may not be able to decolonize ourselves and all we stand for, especially in language and mind. an instance of how one of our very own, a respected african and our forefather we should emulate, dr. nelson mandela of the blessed memory, was able to ‘decolonize’ himself in a foreign land is trending on the internet to mark his posthumous birthday. it involves his few encounters with his racial professor. the trending story is worth reproducing here: when nelson mandela was studying law at the university, a white professor, whose last name was peters, disliked him intensely. one day, mr. peters was having lunch at the dining room when mandela came along with his tray and sat next to the professor. the professor said,"mr. mandela, you do not understand, a pig and a bird do not sit together to eat." mandela looked at him as a parent would a rude child and calmly replied, "you do not worry, professor. i'll fly away," and he went and sat at another table. mr. peters, reddened with rage, decided to take a revenge. the next day in class he posed the following question: "mr. mandela, if you were walking down the street and found a package, and within was a bag of wisdom and another bag with money, which one would you take?" without hesitating, mandela responded, "the one with the money, of course." prof. peters, smiling sarcastically said, "i, in your place, would have taken the wisdom." nelson mandela shrugged and responded, "each one takes what he awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 135 doesn't have." prof. peters, by this time was about to throw a fit, seething with fury. so great was his anger that he wrote on nelson mandela's exam sheet the word ‘idiot’ and gave it to the future struggle icon. mandela took the exam sheet and sat down at his desk trying very hard to remain calm while he contemplated his next move. a few minutes later, nelson mandela got up, walked up to the professor and told him in a dignified polite tone, "prof. peters, you signed your name on the sheet, but you forgot to give me my grade." don't mess with intelligent people; pass it on to your intellectual friends.... *happy mandela day* everyone. may the lord give us wisdom to respond to our haters. don't hate back but apply wisdom! if all africans at home or in the diaspora are able to intelligently claim their right and send the right signal to the ‘abuser’ to desist from the ignoble behaviour, it will go a long way in solving the problems left behind in africa not just by colonization of the past but even by the current neo-colonialism where africans, especially the leaders, are often used against their fellow africans. when africans, nay nigerians, who are leaders begin to behave like the colonialists of former years, they should be reminded in the language they understand that they are there to make life better for the africans they lead. sometimes, citizens of the various countries of africa become so quiet and docile in the face of provocation. this could be attributed to language and mind colonization, and possibly economic deprivation. for instance, nigerians are afraid to speak out or react in the face of misrule by their leaders. they are, therefore, often blamed for their predicament language and mind decolonization – eme & uwaezuoke 136 by a very small minority that speak out, but whose voices are usually swallowed up in the palpable silence of the teeming majority. on this attitude, odey (2007:162) says, all said and done, i have said it several times that our so-called leaders treat us the way they do because we have allowed them to live in a different world where they use our money to provide for themselves a superabundance of everything that makes life comfortable but allow the rest of us to lack the barest necessities that could sustain our wretched lives. africans should rise up to the challenges of misrule by decolonizing their minds and employing the power of language to emancipate themselves from modern day colonization and stand up to their identity. it is only this way that they themselves can bring in the needed development in the african continent by non-violently compelling their leaders to do the needful. when dr. ngozi okonjo-iweala was insulted by the media to make her lose her self-worth, she was not deterred by the abuse; she knew the stuff she was made off. africans are, therefore, encouraged to be the best of all. all the contenders for the wto director general’s position were beaten by her. she has the african spirit of excellence. no african should drop this spirit for colonial mentality. africans must promote and develop their indigenous languages bastardized in one way or the other by the colonizers. if they fail in this direction, they are not likely to regain their languages and cultures that they jettisoned in preference to those of the colonizers. here, again, dr. ngozi okonjo-iweala’s dress code stands out to edify her africanness and beautiful culture. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 137 the researchers’ observation shows us that in establishments requiring security checks, anyone carrying the identity or passport of our colonizers is allowed to pass through without the stipulated thorough security checks. we see this as the colonial mentality of the staff of these establishments who believe that their erstwhile masters are incapable of committing security breaches, or cannot ‘condescend’ so low to commit a crime. for them, only africans and their likes must be scrutinized. this observation is part of our effort at decolonizing africans working in such places. everyone should be treated equally. concerning the major al mustapha’s lamentation on the role of our colonial masters in entrenching crisis in nigeria to ensure its non-development, it becomes clear that colonization is still with us. the colonizers are said to have left nigeria on 1st october, 1960; but they are still in operation directly from their base and indirectly through their cronies who are themselves nigerians. we are unequivocal in stating here that only decolonization will save the country and remove the colonial fetters from nigerians to enable them think positive about developing the nation. most of the authors that do not use african languages in their literary works raise some issues why african languages may not be ‘suitable’ for their works. the issues range from non-development of the african languages, reducing the number of the readers of their works, etc. these issues could easily be addressed (see eme and mbagwu, 2012). not properly engaging african languages in literary writings would become a thing of the past if african authors engage in concerted efforts at language and mind decolonization of africa. with this determination that will launch african languages to the height of developed languages, there is nothing africans cannot achieve with their language. the assumptions that african languages are inferior to other languages like english, and that language and mind decolonization – eme & uwaezuoke 138 african languages are incomplete and, therefore, cannot be used to express the artistes’ intentions have been dismissed as erroneous by many lovers of african languages (see eme, 2015; ugochukwu, 2021). on the portrayal of africans as failures in literary works and films, african literary writers and film directors must change this narrative. even in works involving only africans as characters, the characters should be made to succeed in their career and other worthwhile ventures they set their minds to. this is a decolonization strategy. we appreciate some african literary artistes who have adopted this strategy. one of them is idongesit lawrence udoh, a young nigerian literary writer. she condemns this idea of nigerian authors projecting their characters as eventual failures. in her words, trending on the internet, idongesit lawrence udoh raises a pertinent question: maybe, one day, we’ll talk about nigerian classics and how they’ve been used to instill failure in the nigerian youth. because, explain to me why school literature always has to have a tragic end if not to teach the youths that ‘failure is imminent’. long before we knew about game of thrones, our classical authors were destroying the lives of our main characters: beggars’ strike, joys of motherhood, things fall apart. in books for children. we’ll read foreign books where the white characters [colonizers] go off and succeed at whatever crazy thing they want to do, and yet, the people who look like us, who have the same experiences as us, the people we identify with… are given failure and destruction in the end? why???? awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 139 unless african literary artistes adopt this decolonization strategy and encourage our youth to step out and aim to achieve greatness, with the conviction that success is assured, african hope of development would continue to be a mirage. african youth, if so decolonized in mind using the power of literary language, will lead africa into its much sort after development. their strength, intelligence, forward-looking spirit, development-oriented mindset and all the virtues lying latent in the african youth must be enkindled for them to make exploits hitherto unimagined. literature and films can play a very vital role in this direction. 4. summary and conclusion the study has pointed out that although the colonized african countries have gained their independence, they are yet to decolonize themselves. africans are, by this, still ‘colonized’, especially in language, mind and other areas of their lives. the listed evangelization, the media, concepts in various disciplines, negative attitude of language and culture owners, programmes negative for african development, foreign and indigenous literary artistes as some of the sources of language and mind colonization of africans. africans should rise up to the challenges by decolonizing their minds and employing the power of language to emancipate themselves from modern day colonization and stand up to their identity. it is only this way that they themselves can bring in the needed development in the african continent. we agree with hwande (2018:251) that, “it is only when they [africans] change their minds and look back on their language and culture with love and admiration while charting a new course for their life that we … as a continent can grow” and develop to our full potentials. this will make us to be proud of being africans and be proud to raise our heads high for who, and what we are. language and mind decolonization – eme & uwaezuoke 140 references agbanusi, a. 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(2013). style as the man: a continuum of thought and culture in nation building. in k. nwadialor, l. nkamigbo, c. nweke & n. obi (eds.). the humanities and nation building.awka: fab anieh nig. ltd. 173-186. wiktionary (online). retrieved 19/3/2022. 342 outside matter in igbo dictionaries juliana mgbechikwere okeke nnamdi azikiwe university, awka, anambra state julieokeke80@yahoo.com abstract the outside matter is a major concept in lexicography. it is a cover term for all the components of a dictionary which are not part of the central word-list but are of great significance to the dictionary user. the importance of the outside matter has been grossly overlooked by most writers and users of igbo dictionaries. this has resulted in poorly written outside matter and an underuse of the information provided. several works have been done, by various authors, on igbo lexicography, but none has really addressed the concept of outside matter in its entirety. this study looks at the outside matter of two igbo-english (bilingual) dictionaries and one english (monolingual) dictionary. the dictionaries are considered research objects, and the data for this study are collected from the outside matter of the three dictionaries. the theoretical framework adopted for this study is ‘standard over form’ proposed by nielsen in 2011. this framework provides the principles and criteria for proper analysis and evaluation of dictionary outside matter, to identify its strengths and weaknesses. the analysis of the data reveals that the igbo-english dictionaries do not provide the required information for a dictionary outside matter. basically, the obligatory contents (preface and user’s guide) which are the most essential elements of a dictionary outside matter are lacking in them, while the nonobligatory contents they provide are inadequate. this study recommends the development of adequate outside matter awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 343 information for future igbo dictionaries of any type (monolingual, bilingual, lsp) and awareness on its importance to the users. key words: lexicography, outside matter, dictionary, igbo 1. introduction the outside matter is a major concept in lexicography. it is a cover term for all the components of a dictionary, which are not part of the central word-list. it is one of the major components of a dictionary, though not part of the lemma list; it contains information that aids the dictionary user to easily access and retrieve different types of information from the dictionary. the outside matter provides information about the dictionary, and a guide on how to use it, among other things. the functions of a dictionary are mostly achievable through the provision of adequate outside matter texts. without a well-written outside matter, the user of a bilingual dictionary may find it difficult to interpret some dictionary entries, and others who are new to the dictionary may have the challenge of retrieving needed information as quickly as possible. the whole idea of a good dictionary refers to how the dictionary enables users to access and retrieve needed information with ease. this can only be made possible through adequate outside matter texts for the intended user group, guided by the purpose or function of the dictionary. the importance of the outside matter has been grossly overlooked by most dictionary writers and users. some writers, especially of igbo dictionaries do not provide adequate information needed in the outside matter of their dictionaries. yet on the other hand, most users do not also understand the importance of the outside matter and the information it provides. probably, they may not read through the information in the outside matter, or they do so in haste such that the information does not serve its purpose. several works have been outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 344 done on different aspects of igbo lexicography by various authors and linguists including: oweleke (2007, 2008 and 2013), ugochukwu (2008), ajunwa (2009), uchechukwu (2011a and b), uchechukwu and oweleke (2015) and others. all the works cited above and many more have contributed immensely to the development of igbo lexicography, but none has been done explicitly on the outside matter of igbo dictionaries. the work by uchechukwu (2011a) ‘foreign culture lexicography and beyond: perspectives from the history of igbo lexicography’ addresses the notion of target audience in igbo dictionaries, stating the need for igbo dictionaries by native speakers to shift from the point of european audience and generalized audience towards internal audience who should be the native speakers of igbo language. the ‘target audience’ which is a major point in uchechukwu (2011a) is only one of the required information that should be contained in the preface (an obligatory content) of a dictionary outside matter. on this note, this study is set to fill the gap on the study of the entire outside matter of some igbo dictionaries on which no earlier work has been done. this study is focused on identifying what the required content of outside matter of a dictionary should be and this purpose shall be achieved through:  identifying what the ideal contents of a dictionary outside matter should be – the obligatory contents and the nonobligatory contents.  reviewing the outside matter of the dictionaries under this study to see how much of the ideal contents or information they provide. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 345  identifying and evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of the outside matter of the various dictionaries under this study and drawing a conclusion on them.  identifying the extent to which the information in the outside matter of each dictionary relates to its function or type. there are quite a number of bilingual igbo dictionaries, beginning with the work of t.j. dennis in 1923, dictionary of the ibo language: english-ibo. presently there are both printed and a few online igbo dictionaries by various authors. however, this study is centered on the outside matter of two out of all the bilingual (igbo-english) printed dictionaries and one english monolingual dictionary. the three are all learner’s dictionaries a dictionary type that is of general purpose in nature, but designed specifically for learners of the language or languages involved. the two igbo-english dictionaries are authored by igwe (1999), and eke (2001), while the monolingual english learner’s dictionary is hornby (2000), (oxford advanced learner’s dictionary of english 6th edition), to be referred to in this work as hornby (2000) oald 6th edition. the choice of the three dictionaries for this study is not just related to space constraint for this paper and the three being learner’s dictionaries, but also because they are all authored within the same time bracket (late 1990s and early 2000). the rest of this paper discusses the subject matter as follows: section 2 is on literature review, while section 3 is focused on methodology and theoretical framework. section 4 shows the presentation and analysis of data. finally section 5 is the summary and conclusion on the study. outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 346 2. literature review this section reviews the literature on outside matter, its nature and components, in addition to some empirical works on the outside matter of dictionaries. the outside matter and its components outside matter is also known as outer texts in some literature. svensen (2009:76) describes it as those other more or less obligatory dictionary components which occur before or after the lemma list. brangel (2015:99) looks at it as the component of a dictionary consisting of external texts which do not belong to the dictionary entries. however, although the texts do not belong to the dictionary entries, they are not arbitrarily chosen. that is the reason gouws (2014:74) opines that the nature and the extent of the functions of a dictionary play a decisive role in the selection and presentation of its outside matter. in other words, the purpose of a dictionary should determine the data type and the way it is presented in the outside matter. components of the outside matter according to their location in the dictionary are discussed below. front matter the front matter of a dictionary refers to those texts that occur before the dictionary entries or central word-list. they provide information on the purpose of the dictionary and a guide to its use. wang (2012:68) sees the front matter like a doorman that leads the learner as he or she walks into the “foreign world” of the new language. according to brangel (2015:99) the front matter, which is the introductory part of the dictionary, should attend to two main functions: i) to present the objectives of the dictionary and ii) to be an instruction manual for the user. mafela’s (2014) view is that the awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 347 front matter plays a dominant role in guiding users towards the use of a dictionary and serves as a users’ style guide. the front matter content, based on singh’s (2010) position may include some or all of the following: cover design, title page with information on the editor(s), publication and publisher; table of contents, introduction or preface, explanation of the innovations and characteristics of the edition concerned, outlining the editorial principles followed in the work, the user’s guide, general information about the language (and its grammar in some cases), map of the dialect to locate the area (if it is a dialectal dictionary), list of abbreviations used in the dictionary, brief note on the orthography (useful for standardization of orthography), explanations of the transcription used, introduction to the manner and method of pronunciation used. however, hausmann and wiegand (2003:210–212) explain that the only component of the outside matter viewed as obligatory is the text which provides explanations on the use of the dictionary, which is the user’s guide, normally located in the front matter. it can also be assumed that the user’s guide and the preface are essential parts of the front matter of a dictionary. this is because of the importance of the information usually located in them. the preface and the user’s guide are considered very important parts of the front matter of any dictionary type, although some authors consider the user’s guide more obligatory. based on the assertion of svensen (2009: 380), a preface should provide a coherent account of the general features of a dictionary. such information should include the purpose of the dictionary, intended user group, general approach, and organization and scope of the dictionary. it should be more of descriptive information, which should also explain the design and approach adopted in the dictionary including the principles of selection and the source of data used in the dictionary. outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 348 also, a bibliography of metalexicographic literature may be provided, and a list of persons involved in the dictionary project. the user’s guide, on the other hand, is that component of the dictionary which provides the user with information on the use of the dictionary, and how to retrieve information effectively. mafela (2014) is of the view that the main object of the user’s guide is to inform the user, as explicitly as possible, of the kind of information contained in the dictionary, how the information should be interpreted and where the different kinds of information can be found. he cites landau (1984:116) who opines that the users’ guide provides clues for locating, as quickly as possible, particular items of information, in addition to explaining the structure and content of the different lexical entries, such as pronunciation of words, use of prefixes and suffixes, use of diacritics, formation of plural forms, derivation of words, finding idiomatic expressions and proverbs, and identifying parts of speech. the user’s guide in most modern day dictionaries are often presented using different colours and eyecatching schemes. kirkpatrick (1989:756), cited in karpinska (2012), opines that the design of more attractive presentation of the vital information about the dictionary might take significantly less time to absorb than elegant, discursive prose. however, the scholar also notes that dictionary users are reluctant to consult the front matter, even less the back matter. middle matter the middle matter refers to those items that are inserted in-between the dictionary entries to provide extra information on the entries themselves but they are not part of the entries. they break up the alphabetical order of words and provide extra information which includes pictures and other illustrations. they are described by hausmann and wiegand (2003) as comprising those immediate awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 349 constituents of the whole dictionary text which are inserted in the central word list but which are not part of the word list. it comprises all the information interposed between entries (brangel 2015:100). back matter the back matter refers to the group of texts or information that is located after the dictionary entries. they are not part of the dictionary entries but they provide useful information to the user. singh (2010:4) opines that the back matter of a dictionary might contain both linguistic and encyclopedic information, depending on the size and scope of the dictionary. karpinska (2012:59) explains that the front matter and the back matter may contain very different components. most of the non-obligatory components can navigate among the two positions, for instance, the list of abbreviations can appear in the front matter in one dictionary and in the back matter in another. nielsen (2011:217) notes that several information, or distinct data types should not be lumped together in one part of the outside matter. in other words, the information and data types that are represented in the outside matter of a dictionary should be adequately spread out, some in the front matter, in the middle matter, and others in the back matter. he adds that every important information that is needful to aid the dictionary user should be presented in the outside matter, avoiding ambiguity. outside matter / user’s guide in bilingual dictionaries mafela (2014:2) explains that outside matter (users’ style guides) vary from one dictionary to another, and is necessary in all types of dictionaries, but more so in bilingual dictionaries. this is because a bilingual dictionary is mostly used by learners of a particular language he says. adding that without a user’s guide, learners may find it difficult to find and interpret the meaning of lexical entries in outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 350 bilingual dictionaries. it could also make it difficult for learners of the language, and users, who are new to the dictionary look-up operations, to retrieve the required information as quickly as possible. mafela further observes that most of the currently available bilingual dictionaries contain very little information in the outside matter (users’ style guide) and some do not have a guide for users at all. however, bilingual dictionaries are important tools for learning a language. the absence of a user’s guide may render the dictionary not user-friendly to learners of the language says mafela. he cites atkins and rundell (2008), who identify different texts that can be found in the user’s guide of a bilingual dictionary to include provisions for headwords and meaning, information on items that have no direct target language equivalence, and how to deal with abbreviations and their full forms. other pieces of information that should be included or explained in the user’s guide of bilingual dictionaries for indigenous african languages as explained by gouws (2014:3) include: location of the language involved, possibly including the distribution of the population of the language(s), pronunciation and orthography in the indigenous african language, the use of affixes and formation of plurals, abbreviations and their full-forms, the use of diacritics, where they are obtainable in the particular language. there should be an explanation on how to find words with diacritics in the dictionary, dialects – where there are differences in the orthography of the different dialects which may be confusing to the dictionary user, order of arrangement of idiomatic expressions in the dictionary. issues in the classification of outside matter components apart from the general view on the components of the outside matter based on their location in the dictionary, namely, front matter, middle matter and back matter, there are also scholars and awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 351 lexicographers who have come up with other ways of classifying the outside matter components. some of the classifications identified are: simple and complex composition outside matter, proposed by karpinska (2012). integrated and non-integrated components by gouws & prinsloo (2005), classification based on function, by svensen (2009), and classifications based on knowledge oriented and communication oriented function by gouws (2004), as well as primary and complex outside matter texts. however, the generally known and accepted classification of outside matter according to location, which is front matter, middle matter and back matter is adopted for this study. a brief look at the empirical a brief look at the review and analysis of the outside matter of different dictionary types including monolingual, bilingual dictionaries, languages for special purpose (lsp) dictionaries, online dictionaries, and a dictionary with knowledge-oriented function by authors like brangel (2015); wang (2012); chabata and nkomo (2010); fernandez and cormier (2010); ellendersen (2007), and klosa and gouws (2015) reveal that different authors adopt different strategies, approaches and theoretical frameworks to suit their kind of study. they involve identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the outside matter of a dictionary or dictionaries under each review and pointing them out in the analysis. they have been basically descriptive in nature. 3. methodology/theoretical framework the dictionary is considered a research object; therefore, the data for this study was collected from the three dictionaries through a thorough study of the outside matter of each of the dictionaries. the data presentation begins with a brief description of the general style outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 352 adopted by each author(s), followed by a tabular summary presentation of the outside matter content of each dictionary. the second stage is the evaluation of data using the theoretical framework (substance over form). the theoretical framework adopted for this study is the ‘substance over form’ approach proposed in nielsen (2011). it is an approach which focuses on what type of data actually exists in a given section of a dictionary, how they are accessed, presented and how they support the functions of the dictionary. the author believes that “dictionary reviews should not be merely descriptive, but should contain thorough analyses, evaluation and reflection of their object”; therefore, he proposes the ‘substance over form’ approach with its principles based on his previous work and that of other renowned lexicographers like herberg (1989), nielsen (1994: 88-93; 1995: 168-169), chan and taylor (2001:168), kirkpatrick (1989) and nielsen (2005:2006). 4. data presentation/analysis igwe (1999) igbo-english dictionary the entire contents of the outside matter of igwe (1999) igbo – english dictionary are located at the front matter and made up of fifty eight (58) pages. the dictionary according to the author is a scholarly and scientific book which combines in one volume a grammar book and a dictionary of igbo. what is considered the outside matter therefore, does not just contain what can be regarded as the typical outside matter information of a dictionary but a grammar book with other types of information that are not integrated into the dictionary entries. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 353 table 1: summary of the outside matter of igwe (1999) igboenglish dictionary front matter (58 pages) midd le matte r back matt er available nil nil concept content brief explanation purpose and need 1. purpose 2. need  a two in one book(gramma r book and dictionar y)  to serve students and learners of igbo (igbo and nonigbo). preparatio n process 1. orthogra phy  discusses official orthograp hy outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 354 2. phonolo gy 3. tonal notation 4. syllable structur e  explained with examples  states the igbo tonal notation which is adopted for the dictionary entries  the syllable structure of igbo is explained with examples. grammati cal issues 1. gramma r  verbs: classificat ions infinitive, gerundial, participle, aorist.  noun: classificat ion – by tone, derived awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 355 and underived  adjective s, adverbs, idiophone s, suffixes and numbers human resource/ funding 1. author 2. funding  rev. dr. g egemba igwe  oxford universit y press eke (2001) igbo-english dictionary (qkqwa okwu) the outside matter of eke’s (2001) dictionary is made up of a front matter and a middle matter. the front matter is contained in thirteen (13) pages with few contents, while the middle matter is made up of illustrations by way of the use of pictures on some pages. the contents of the outside matter of this dictionary include dedication, foreword, introduction, abbreviation list, appreciation, igbo orthography (mkpuruedemede igbo), parts of speech (nkejiasusu) and, spellings (nsupe ndi a), no back matter. table 2: summary of the outside matter of eke (2001) igbo-english dictionary outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 356 front matter (13 pages) middle matter bac k mat ter available availabl e nil concept content brief explanation brief explana tion purpose and need 1. purpo se 2. need  diction ary based on standar d igbo  student s of seconda ry and tertiary instituti ons  lovers of igbo who desire to learn the languag e illustrati ons: pictures placed randoml y with the names of the items written in igbo and english. some placed close to the lemma they are illustrati ng. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 357 preparation process 1. ortho graph y 2. parts of speec h 3. spelli ngs  represe ntation of the igbo alphabe ts, vowels, conson ants and diagrap hs.  a list of 37 of them with their english equival ents.  a list of 118 words with their english equival ents grammatica l issues nil nil outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 358 human resource/fu nding 1. autho r 2. fundi ng nze dr julius ginger eke not stated oxford advanced learner’s dictionary 6th edition the outside matter of hornby (2000), oald 6th edition is made up of information and data at the three locations of the front matter, middle matter and back matter. the front matter information is contained in fourteen (14) pages including the inside front cover. its content is discussed and arranged under different headings which include: abbreviations and grammar labels, symbols, labels (used in the dictionary), key to verb patterns, table of contents, preface, key to dictionary entries (user’s guide), understanding definitions, numbers and lastly, symbols. the preface provides information on the function of the dictionary, which is text reception and production. it also states that the dictionary is designed for the learning of english language. therefore, it is designed to support the needs of learners who are designated in the fourth paragraph as ‘less experienced learners’ and ‘most advanced learners’. table 3: summary of the outside matter of hornby (2000) oald 6th edition front matter (14 pages) middle matter (in sections ) back matter (33 pages) availabl e availab le availabl e awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 359 concept content brief comment purpose and need 1. purpos e 2. need  text recept ion and produ ction  learn ers (less experi enced and advan ced learne rs preparati on process 1. source of lemma 2. abbrev iations and gramm  the ‘defin ing vocab ulary (unde r 3000 words )  as used in the section i: pictures and names of equipm ents. section ii: illustrat ion pages appendi x i: irregular verbs appendi x ii: geograp hical names appendi x iii: numbers outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 360 ar labels 3. symbol s and labels 4. key to verb pattern 5. key to diction ary entries 6. underst anding definiti ons dictio nary  as used in the dictio nary  a guide for using the dictio nary  with illustr ations on how to use the dictio nary  helpi ng the user to under stand defini with pictures and names of the items in british and americ an english. section iii: langua ge study. practica l topics in the learning and use of english. section iv: maps notes on usage with illustrati appendi x iv: punctuat ions appendi x v: languag e of literary criticism appendi x vi: notes on usage appendi x vii: defining vocabula ry awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 361 7. numbe rs and symbol s tions with ease  as used in the dictio nary and for gener al knowl edge ons in boxes located on differen t pages. gramma tical issues 1. key to verb patterns 2. gramm ar in the entries  how differ ent forms of verb are prese nted in the dictio nary entrie s  how gram matic irregular verbs: showing a list of all verbs with irregular forms in the dictionar y, except those with hyphenat ed prefix. outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 362 al class of lemm as are indica ted human resourc e and funding 1. author 2. adviso ry board 3. editors: a. chi ef edit or b. sen ior edit or c. pho neti c edit or a.s. hornby six (6) members sally wehmeier diana lea michael ashby joanna florio dilys parkinson oxford university press awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 363 d. edit ors 4. funding looking at tables 1 and 2 above, the two igbo bilingual dictionaries do not have adequate distribution of their outside matter information into the three locations of front, middle and back matter as identified by this study. igwe (1999) has all its outside matter information lumped together in the front matter, no middle matter, no back matter. this is contrary to the generally acceptable standard by various lexicographers that outside matter information should be spread into the three locations. eke (2001) has front and middle matter with scanty and inadequate information, and no back matter. hornby (2000) oald 6th edition has a complete distribution of its outside matter information into front matter, middle matter and back matter. the next section provides a further analysis of the dictionaries’ outside matter using substance over form. substance over form analysis of the dictionaries’ outside matter a. the obligatory components of the dictionaries’ outside matter the obligatory components of a dictionary outside matter are the preface and the user’s guide. these are discussed below as identified in the various dictionaries’ outside matter.  the preface and user’ guides i. the preface outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 364 there is a section designated ‘preface’ in the front matter of igwe (1999) igbo-english dictionary. however, it does not provide information on the function of the dictionary, its subject field, the target group neither does it provide information on the empirical basis of the dictionary. it is simply a self-introduction of the author’s motivation for the production of the dictionary. it gives background information on the author’s contributions to the development of the igbo language and contains an aspect of acknowledgement. it concludes with a wish that the dictionary will meet the needs of igbo and non-igbo, who are interested in the igbo language. the outside matter of eke (2001) igbo-english dictionary (okowa okwu) has no preface, the only related information to the preface is found on page vi of the front matter without any heading. in that single paragraph information, the author states that the dictionary is meant for secondary and commercial schools, colleges of education, and candidates for ssce/gce, masters degree and others. he adds that it is also helpful to lovers of igbo language who are desirous to learn the language. the preface of hornby (2000) oald 6th edition provides information on the function of the dictionary, which is text reception and production. it is also stated that the dictionary is designed for the learning of the english language. therefore, it is designed to support the needs of learners who are designated in the fourth paragraph as ‘less experienced learners’ and ‘most advanced learners’. it also provides information on empirical basis of the dictionary by stating in paragraph three of the preface that the definitions are written using a defining-vocabulary of under 300 words. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 365  summary on preface the two igbo bilingual dictionaries are deficient in the provision of adequate preface based on the ‘substance over form’ evaluation. igwe (1999) has a section titled preface, but the content does not provide what is required of a dictionary preface. it does not provide answers to the evaluation questions. eke (2001) has no preface, the only preface-related information on its outside matter is on the target group found on an untitled single paragraph write up on one of the pages. the preface of hornby (2000) oald 6th edition adequately answers all the evaluation questions as proposed by ‘substance over form’. it states the function of the dictionary, its subject field, the target group, as well as the empirical basis of the dictionary. therefore, it can be considered an adequate example of a dictionary preface which is usually located at the front matter. ii. the user’s guides based on the definitions of a user’s guide and its contents as described by lexicographers such as karpinska 2012, svensen 2009, kirkpatrick 1987, mafela 2014, and using the evaluation questions provided by ‘substance over form’ approach, it is clear that the two igbo-english (bilingual) dictionaries under this study do not have user’s guides. there are no such designated sections that provide information on types of data available in the dictionary and where they can be found; how best a user can access data for text production or text reception when using the dictionary; how the data in different sections of the dictionary can complement the data in the lemma list, and types of data that can best serve for various user situations. the user’s guide of hornby (2000) oald 6th edition, titled ‘key to dictionary entries’, gives explicit guide on the types of data outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 366 available in the dictionary, how and where to find them, and how to use them. this is done with practical illustrations showing how these data types are reflected in the dictionary entries, to grant the user easy access to the data or information. this is done under four different subheadings, which are: finding the word, finding the meaning, using the word, and building your vocabulary. in summary, it can be said that the preface and the user’s guide which are the most relevant and in fact, the obligatory components of the outside matter of a dictionary, are lacking in the two igboenglish (bilingual) dictionaries under this study. on the other hand, hornby (2000) oald 6th edition has provided a perfect example of what the preface and user’s guide of a learner’s dictionary should contain. the contents of this user’s guide serve as confirmation that the dictionary is a tool for language learning. the comparison is summarized in table 4 below. table 4: comparison of the obligatory components in the dictionaries’ outside matter dictionaries and authors/ nielsen’s obligatory components igwe (1999) igbo-english eke (2001) igboenglish hornby (2000)oald 6th edition preface available, but not adequate (no required information) not available available and adequate user’s guide not available, but not available available and adequate awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 367 partial information the non-obligatory components of the dictionaries’ outside matter there are some other possible contents of a dictionary outside matter which have been designated non-obligatory. some of them that are represented in the dictionaries are discussed as follows: igwe (1999) makes an extensive discussion on igbo grammatical class, provides a list of abbreviations and a brief note on the orthography but does not show how it applies to the dictionary entries. eke (2001) only presents a list of abbreviations, the orthography of igbo language and a list on parts of speech without any comment or explanation attached. on the other hand, the nonobligatory contents of hornby (2000) oald 6th edition are designed to enhance the learning of english language, which is the function of the dictionary. they therefore meet the needs of the target users. these non-obligatory contents are also spread across different parts of the dictionary (front, middle and back matter) 5. summary and conclusion this study was centered on the outside matter of two igbo-english (bilingual) dictionaries and one english (monolingual) dictionary. it sorts to analyze and evaluate the outside matter of each of the dictionaries according to the identified required contents of a dictionary outside matter. the result of the evaluation reveals that the two igbo-english (bilingual) dictionaries do not provide adequate outside matter information, and the available information types are not distributed to the appropriate locations. igwe (1999) lumped all the outside outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 368 matter contents in the front matter, while eke’s (2001) outside matter information is scanty and located in the front and middle matter only. again, in evaluating the contents of the outside matter of each of the dictionaries using “substance over form’ approach, it was established that the two igbo-english (bilingual) dictionaries do not provide the required obligatory contents (the preface and the user’s guide) of a dictionary, which is of great importance to the user, while hornby (2000) oald 6th edition does. with regard to the non-obligatory contents, the two igbo-english dictionaries have some non-obligatory contents, though not perfectly adequate for the outside matter of a bilingual learner’s dictionary. nevertheless, some of them are relevant. the nonobligatory contents of hornby (2000) oald 6th edition are adequate and commendable as a guide for developing nonobligatory contents of a learner’s dictionary. the weaknesses of the outside matter of the igbo-english dictionaries lie in their inability to provide the required obligatory contents for a bilingual learner’s dictionary. secondly, the nonobligatory contents were not selected to suit the dictionary types and the target audience; some of them are not integrated into the dictionary entries. thirdly, the contents are not well designed and evenly distributed to the three locations of a dictionary outside matter. however, their strengths are that they have some nonobligatory contents which are integrated into the dictionary entries. recommendations from the above findings this study proposes that a standard pattern for writing outside matter in igbo dictionaries be adopted and awareness created on its importance to the users. this paper awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 369 therefore recommends the following steps to facilitate this much needed improvement: the obligatory contents – preface and user’s guide should statutorily be located at the front matter and provide information as follows: a) the preface should provide information on the target audience, source of lemma and function(s) of the dictionary b) the user’s guide should contain information that will enable the user in the following ways: show how to access different data types with ease when using the dictionary. explain data types that are found in the dictionary and at what locations in the dictionary they can be found. discover how information at different sections of the outside matter relates to, complement or supplement the data in the wordlist. understand how data at different sections of the dictionary can be used for various situations. non-obligatory contents are usually selected based on the dictionary type, its function and the target audience. they can navigate between the front and back matter. several suggestions have been made on what the non-obligatory information should be for an african language dictionary of any type. they may include: pronunciation and orthography, the use of affixes, list of abbreviations and their full-form, an explanation on how to find words with diacritics, order of arrangement of idiomatic expressions and proverbs, information on words that have no direct translation etc. the middle matter should provide additional in-between-entries information that give further insight into understanding of the dictionary entries. they can take the form of pictures and specially designed short notes, but need to be orderly and systematically arranged. the back matter information should be designed with data that is relevant to the african environment, or more specifically the outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 370 igbo culture and environment, these will further promote the task of language learning which a dictionary is set to achieve. awareness on the importance of dictionary outside matter is needful, and deliberate effort in that direction would be necessary. the outside matter texts can be designed with eye-catching characters, fonts and colours. the data may also be presented in form of illustrations that will be easy to understand, instead of long prose that will require much reading. secondly, lessons on ‘appropriate dictionary use: beginning with the outside matter’ can be introduced in our institutions of learning, right from the basic education level (primary school). through such knowledge, children will grow with the culture of studying the outside matter of dictionaries, which will make dictionary use for data retrieval and language learning an enjoyable exercise. references atkins, beryl t. and rundell, michael 2008. the oxford guide to practical lexicography. oxford; new york: oxford university press brangel, larissa m. 2015. review of oxford primary dictionary. eurasian journal of applied linguistics 1(2) 2015: 99-102. federal university of rio grande do sul, brazil. www.ejal.eu chabata, emmanuel and nkomo, dion 2010. the utilization of outer texts in the practical. lexicography of african languagges. african languages research institute (alri), university of zimbabwe, harare, and department of afrikaans and dutch, university of stellenbosch, captown, south africa. http://www.ejal.eu/ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 371 chan, alice y.w. and taylor, andrew. 2001. evaluating learner dictionaries: what the reviews say. international journal of lexicography 14 (3): 163-180.. egenti, martha c. a review of the use of cross-reference in igbo dictionaries. an unpublished paper presented at the 6th igbo language symposium on the theme: aspects of igbo lexicography. nnamdi azikiwe university, november, 2015. eke, julius g. 2001. igbo-english dictionary (qkqwa okwu) . new generation books, shop 51, nnamdi azikiwe stadium shopping mall, ogidi road, enugu, nigeria. ellendersen, jona 2007. grammar in dictionaries of languages for special purposes. cand.ling.mere (tt) thesis. aarhus school of business. fernandez, heberto and cormier monique c. 2010. for better understanding of this dictionary, peruse the preface to the reader: topics in the outside matter of french and english dictionaries (1580 -1673). adventuring in dictionaries: new studies in the history of of lexicography. considine, john (ed). cambridge scholars publishing gouws, rufus h. 2004. outer texts in bilingual dictionaries. department of afrikaans and dutch, university of stellenbosch, republic of south africa. lexikos 14 (afrilex-reeks/series 2004):67 – 88 gouws, rufus h. and prinsloo, d.j. 2005. principles and practice of south african lexicography. sun press, a division of african sun media, stellenbosch hausmann, franz j. and wiegand, herbert e. 2003. typology of access structure. https//www.researchgate.net outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 372 herberg, duo. 1989. wörterbuchvorwörter.hausmann, f.j., o. reichmann, h.e. wiegand and l zgusta (eds.). 1989–1991: 749-754. hughes hornby, albert s. 2000.oxford advanced learner’s dictionary 6th edn. oxford university press. great clarendon street, oxford ox2 6dp igwe, egemba g. 1999. igbo-english dictionary. university press plc, three crowns building, jericho, ibadan, nigeria. karpinska, laura 2012. critical analysis of english – latvian lexicographic tradition. doctoral thesis, university of latvian, faculty of humanities, latvian. kirkpatrick, brain w. 1989. user's guides in dictionaries. hausmann, f.j., o. reichmann, h.e. wiegand and l. zgusta (eds.). 1989–1991: 754-761. klosa, annette and gouws, rufus h. 2015. outer features in e 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nigeria a festschrift for conrad max benedict brann. port harcourt: m & j orbit oweleke esther n. 2013. igbo dialects and the citation-form: the possibility of a standard igbo dictionary. in o. m. ndimele (ed.) issues in contemporary african linguistics. a festschrift for oladele awobuluyi. the linguistics association of nigeria in collaboration with m. & j. grand orbit communications ltd, port harcourt. http://www.researchget.net/publication/307730748 outside matters in igbo dictionaries okeke 374 uchechukwu, chinedu 2011a. foreign culture and lexicography and beyond: perspective from the history of igbo lexicography. contibutions to the sociology of language, 100, uchechukwu, chinedu 2011b. the citation form in igbo lexicography: insights from the sos verbs. ozomekuri, n. (ed.), festschrift for ohiri-aniche. port harcourt: orbit communications ltd uchechukwu, chinedu and oweleke esther n. 2015. igbo verbs and their lexicographic relevance. in igbo language studies. a journal of igbo language and linguistics. uchechukwu (ed.) asusu amaka. nkpor: brystevand publishers, no. 90 enugu-onitsha singh, parman 2010. dictionary and its structure. department of linguistics, banaras hindu university,varanasi. anusiilana, svensen, bo 2009. a handbook of lexicography: the theory and practice of dictionarymaking. cambridge university press. the edinburgh building, cambridge cb2 8ru, uk wang, mei 2012, a critical evaluation of bilingual chinese/ english dictionaries for elementary and intermediate mandarin learners at stallenbosch university. mp thesis at the university of stallenbosch, faculty of arts and social sciences, department of afrikaans and dutch. http//scholar.sun.ac.za (online). retrieved 19/3/2022. 375 a linguistic ethnography of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms unwana idongesit archibong1 , salem ochala ejeba2 department of linguistics and communication studies university of port harcourt unwana_archbong@uniport.edu.ng1 salem.ejeba@uniport.edu.ng2 abstract as it is the case in many african languages, proverbs and euphemisms in ibibio, a lower cross language spoken in akwa ibom, nigeria, are essential sources of linguistic complexity and cultural peculiarity. this study utilizes a linguistic ethnography approach in investigating ibibio proverbs and euphemisms as speech events with distinct structural patterns which serve to unravel meaning potentials and typify a distinct ibibio cultural milieu. the genres of proverbs and euphemisms transmit norms and belief systems enacted through verbal exchanges within the speech community. as samples of language use, there are rich linguistic and discourse features associated with these genres. the proverbs and euphemisms collected for the study come from oral interviews and archival resources.the study employed the participant observation design to explore the native speaker’s opinions on the delineated ibibio proverbs and euphemisms. the findings show that ibibio proverbs and euphemisms have a direct link to the people. proverbs help to reveal the identity, norms, value system and beliefs of the people. findings also show that euphemistic expressions are gender sensitive. key words: ibibio proverbs, euphemisms, linguistic ethnography 1.0 introduction a language is a veritable tool through which ideas, thoughts, emotions, opinions, messages and information are passed from one person to another or between groups of people to ensure inter-personal relationships. language is also broadly regarded as a system of communication. such communication may be by speech, which is essentially affected by the mailto:unwana_archbong@uniport.edu.ng linguistic ethnography of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms – archibong & ejeba 376 tongue and the lips, or by movements such as gestures, whose meanings are known to the second party. language in itself is a symbol to identify and a representation of people’s identity, and a means of identifying people’s value systems, beliefs, traditions, norms and world views. this is particularly true of proverbs and euphemisms which are discursive strategies in a language, are generally believed to be words of wisdom and correction, usually didactic, pleasant and could be passed down easily from one generation to another. according to ogunbowale (1970) cited in abdulraheem (2008), a proverb is “a criticism of life and a product of the mind, which reflects prevalent attitudes with didactic interests”. the concept of a particular mind in the above definition is synonymous with a specific context of use. however, the contextual use of proverbs equally depends on several social contexts (zakariyah, 2013:8). these contexts include, but are not limited to a marriage, family, religion, peer relation, etc. proverbs and euphemisms serve as avenues for reflecting attitudes, dispositions, worldviews, norms and social values. both are products of people’s experiences and are mostly context-specific. contexts and settings contribute to proverbial and euphemistic utterances. contexts and settings dictate a people’s lifestyles; it is what contexts and settings provide the people with, that the people make use of in choosing appropriate proverbs and euphemisms. therefore, not only are proverbs and euphemisms context-specific but they could also be said to be context and setting sensitive. to understand the context of a proverb and a euphemism, there is a need to consider the social variables which affect the mutual contextual belief, presupposition and intentions of the language users. furthermore, omera and inegbeboh (2013) note that proverbs are influenced, to a large extent by the linguistic and sociogeographical experiences and orientations of the diverse peoples that make up the place. hence, jegede (2008) identifies proverbs as a dynamic mode of discourse with a unique identity. he further posits that proverbs form a pool of linguistic and thematic resources from which speakers and writers in rhetoric, politics, economics, philosophy, history technology etc. draw inspiration. awka journal of linguistics and languages special edition 1, 2022 377 on the other hand, euphemisms are words created to support language that is considered too unpleasant and provocative. robert burchfield’s (1985) study as cited in gao (2013:7) observed that a language without euphemisms would be a defective instrument of communication. in ibibio language, euphemisms are widely used in various contexts and settings to neutralize the taboo words. euphemistic expressions allow us to talk about unpleasant things while neutralizing the unpleasantness. euphemistic terms are found in every aspect of society. euphemisms can be used to avoid embarrassing situations and thus protect individuals' feelings. genetically, the ibibio language belongs to the benue-congo subfamily which in turn belongs to the niger-congo family, one of the largest families of languages in africa, according to greenberg’s (1963) classification. ibibio is coordinate with other lower cross group, a group of closely related languages to which efik and annang, with which ibibio forms a cluster of dialects. in a new classification of african languages proposed by professor kay williamson and others working on the nigercongo languages, ibibio will belong to the enlarged new benuecongo.this paper explores ibibio proverbs and euphemisms from a linguistic ethnographic approach, in some settings and contexts to reveal people’s identity, worldviews and communicative competencies 2.0 literature review 2.1 proverbs the meaning and nature of proverbs are complex to define and this is why there is no single universally accepted definition of the concept. for instance, archer tailor (1931) cited in ahmed (2005) attempts to explain the meaning of proverbs in more than two hundred pages, and concludes that it is impossible to give a definite definition of it. lauhakangas (2004) describes proverbs as multifunctional and flexible instruments of everyday reasoning that maintain and solidify attitudes or traditional modes of thought of a certain culture. meider (2004) states that proverbs, like riddles, jokes or fairy tales, do not fall out of the sky and neither are the products of a mythical soul of the folk. linguistic ethnography of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms – archibong & ejeba 378 instead, they are always coined by an individual either intentionally or unintentionally. that means proverbs originate from people to teach morals and capture and express the worldviews, values and identities of those who coined them. similarly, syzdykov (2013) in his contrastive studies of proverbs pointed out that there is a need for a basic understanding of proverbial sayings to get information about one’s nation, culture, and tradition. also, lauhakangas (2004) reiterates that the use of proverbs in one’s language or dialect has a central function to be a kind of speech that strengthens the identity of the community. akinwumi (2006) from a literary point of view, focuses on the use of proverbs as a tool for the restoration of social order. in other recent efforts, sanusi and omoloso (2008) examined the use of proverbs in preserving archaic lexical items and expressions. in ibibio, the term “proverb” loosely translates as “nke” plays an important role in the language. proverbs act as a vital means of communication mostly among the elders and also help in expressing the user’s expertise in the language. in ibibio, expressions are considered rich and intelligent when they are duly laced with proverbs. this informs why a traditional ibibio man and woman would constantly punctuate their speech with appropriate proverbs to drive home their point. 2.2 euphemisms euphemisms are powerful linguistic tools that are embedded so deeply in our language. the need for euphemisms is both social and emotional, as it allows the discussion of touchy, taboo subjects (such as sex, personal appearances or religion) without engaging, outraging, or upsetting other people. geoffery (1974) in his discussion on semantics describes euphemisms as the linguistic equivalent of disinfectants. euphemisms act as disinfectants that provide mild expressions that protect the mind of the language user against taboo expressions. according to rawson (linfoot ham, 2005), euphemisms are powerful linguistic tools that are embedded so deeply in our language that we cannot make taboo expressions pleasant or mild without using them. meihua (2013) notes that euphemism is not only a common strategy in language usage but also a kind of cultural awka journal of linguistics and languages special edition 1, 2022 379 phenomenon that has a great effect on people’s daily agreeable communication while adhering to social-communicative conventions. in other words, euphemisms save the faces of users and enable them to communicate successfully. scholars have an intensive interest in euphemistic expressions. much research on euphemism has already been conducted in different fields, such as daily conversations; inter-cultural communications, science, literature, business affairs and even media language like newspapers and advertisements. although many of these studies have referred to euphemistic strategies in the english language, few have been carried out with the ibibio language using the linguistic ethnography approach. it is therefore very important to conduct research on this linguistic tool in the ibibio language. 2.3 theoretical framework 2.3.1 linguistic ethnography linguistic ethnography is an umbrella term that comprises two interdisciplinary concepts; linguistics and ethnography. the combination helps in understanding how social and communicative processes operate in a range of settings and contexts. it is a theoretical and methodological development orientating towards particular, established traditions but defining itself in a new intellectual climate of late modernity and post structuralism (cresse 2008). today, linguistic ethnography has been described as an umbrella term; an area of shared interests where established research traditions interact (tusting & maybin, 2007). tusting and maybin, (2007) note that linguistic ethnography is in its infancy. it is very much similar to the anthropological traditions to the study of language, such as the ethnography of communication (hymes, 1968) and interactional sociolinguistics (gumperz, 1972). it claims distinctiveness by keeping the door open to wider interpretive approaches from within anthropology, applied linguistics and sociology. linguistic ethnography typically takes a post-structuralist orientation by critiquing essentialist accounts of social life. in conjoining the two terms linguistic and ethnography, it aligns with a particular epistemological view of language linguistic ethnography of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms – archibong & ejeba 380 in the social context. linguistic ethnography generally holds that language and social life are mutually shaping, and that close analysis of situated language use can provide both fundamental and distinctive insights into mechanisms and dynamics of social and cultural production in everyday activity (ramption et al, 2004). mohlig’s (1995:85) asserts that african folk narratives are “structured verbal texts and not just the product of associative accident” even though “what has been missing is a measure of agreement among oralists on a comprehensive method by which these structures can be exposed”. without any ambition to solve the problem of disagreement in methosd, this work on ibibio proverbs and euphemisms draws insight from linguistic ethnography (le) as a suitable model for analysis. the epistemological bases of the le model is in constraining the speech events in ethnography by the analytic framework provided in linguistics while at the same time enriching the linguistic analysis with variability of structures that only data based on the uses of language in society afford (rampton, 2007; rampton et al, 2004; and creese 2008). rampton, maybin and roberts (2014:20) provide a basis for le research in the statement that “good research should be careful, logical, accountable, explicit, skeptical, well-informed, comparative and original, leading to the production of interesting claims that people (in some determinate discourse community) can trust.” in this wise therefore, the present work leans on an adaptation of le for the elicitation of knowledge available to the cultural insiders/made available to the analyst without allegiance to the length and breadth of le research. the leaning of the present work finds some expression in frame semantics and u-semantics. fillmore’s (1982:111) frame semantics sets out the agenda for the possibility of “a research programme in empirical semantics and a descriptive framework for presenting the results of such research”. he explicates his view as follows: “frame semantics comes out of traditions of empirical rather than formal semantics. it is most akin to ethnographic semantics, the work of the anthropologist who moves into an alien culture and asks such questions as, ‘what categories of experience are awka journal of linguistics and languages special edition 1, 2022 381 encoded by the members of this speech community through the linguistic choices that they make when they talk?’ a frame semantics outlook is not (or is not necessarily) incompatible with work and results in formal semantics; but it differs importantly from formal semantics in emphasizing the continuities, rather than the discontinuities, between language and experience” (fillmore 1982:111) fillmore’s emphasis here is that meanings of words are determined by the frame of reference in which they are used and the frames are, importantly, based on recurring experience (encyclopaedic knowledge) which is usually domiciled in culture rather than the surrounding linguistic items. as petruck (1996:3) additionally points out on the basis of fillmore’s work that the notion of frame underlies ‘semantics of understanding (usemantics)’ with the goal of determining “what it takes for a hearer to provide an interpretation of a sentence, in other words, to determine what situation a sentence fits”. she elaborates on this as follows: “u-semantics is compositional in that its operation relies on knowledge of words, phrases, and grammatical constructions for an interpretation to be constructed. however, it is non-compositional in that the interpretation of a sentence is not constructed by purely symbolic operations.” petruck (1996:3) thus states that “the frame is also considered a useful tool in text semantics and semantics of grammar. the interpreter of a text [sharing the requisite cultural background] invokes a frame when assigning an interpretation to a piece of text by placing its contents in a pattern known independently of the text.” de stefani (2016:53) pins down the main points of both frame semantics and u-semantics in other words by focusing on the ‘emic perspective’ of the anthropological approach, “to grasp the native’s point of view, his relation to life, to realize his vision of his world”. by this phrase, de stefani (2016) elucidates the consequence of the need to describe text in a contextualized way which encompasses the linguistic as well as the broader social environment in which texts occur. the linguistic ethnography of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms in the present analysis, in plain words, takes over from the anthropological approach its standpoint on the necessity of the linguistic and social context linguistic ethnography of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms – archibong & ejeba 382 in describing proverbs and euphemisms as a clear exemplification of linguistic ethnography. for empirical instance of the le approach to analysis, the present work focuses on musere’s (1999:1) introduction to african proverbs and proverbial names, in which he notes concerning the baganda people of uganda that they are “renowned for their generous array of proverbs and proverbial names which they have for centuries involved in their day-today conversations. musere further notes the following as characteristic of luganda (bantu language of uganda) proverbial personal names, which butrress the delineated descriptive perspective: “proverbial personal names have served as historical reminders for events at the time of birth of the named, and through them social rules and lessons are communicated to descendants. proverbial names, like many types of african names, also indirectly communicate opinions of the name giver towards others. the study of proverbial names is important since language is intimately linked to culture. types of tensions, emphases and phenomena vary from society to society. african language communication, when compared to the western mode of communication, is highly metaphorical in content. there is a salient element of discreteness, circuitousness, allusion and secrecy in african language that is exemplified in proverbs. many african proverbs and proverbial names recall words of wisdom with respect to such issues as intelligence, friendship, cooperation, trust and mistrust, thankfulness and unappreciation, humility, giving, ignorance, showiness, boastfulness, jealousy, allegiance, alertness, warning, defense, laziness, speed, hastiness, bravery, cowardice, and patience. a wealth of priceless oral literature is revealed.” muser’s (1999:2) data presentation and analysis is of interest: rather than provide a mere list of names and their meanings in isolation, he presents the names as part of proverbial texts noting that this “would enlighten many readers on the ordering of the text, and on relationships between the names and the proverbs”. this ties the linguistic interpretations to the awka journal of linguistics and languages special edition 1, 2022 383 perceptions, dispositions, expectations and beliefs of the society, in other words the ethnography, rather than the linguistic forms themselves, as in the following instances: luganda data (bantu, uganda) 1. omugenyi akusuula ku bbanja ‘a visitor puts you in debt’ with the arrival of the visitor, one often goes to borrow from a neighbour so as to be able to give the visitor a proper welcoming treat and cater for the visitor’s other needs. mugenyi (m) guest; a stranger; a visitor. banja/bbanja (f/m) debt. a newborn given the name mugenyi or bbanja by the parents, could have been born during a period of famine and poverty that compelled the newborn’s parents to borrow money and food from neighbours. or the child may have been born around the time the household had many visitors, some of whom proved to be expensive to cater for. 2. omwana omuto akaabira ekitali kikye ‘a young child cries for that which is not his’ children are known to easilycry forthings that they so much desire, that is includingthings that are not theirs. coveting is not to be encouraged since itcan lead to problems like stealing, focusing on things that are not of much importance, unduly guiding one’s life according to what the crowd likes and does, and living above one’s standard. mwana (f/m) [mwaah-nah] child; kid; youngster; son; daughter. muto (f/m) [muh-toh] younger brother or sister;a young one. mwana (f/m) [tch-ih-tah-lih] that is not musere shows the proverb, the names derived from this as well as information on the pronunciation and the gender of persons named thereby, the semantic interpretation of the names, as well as ethnographoc commentary, as in (1) and (2). musere’s insight for textual analysis of names is instrumental generally in organizing and analysing data in the present paper. linguistic ethnography of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms – archibong & ejeba 384 wardhaugh (1998:237) notes the importance of ethnography when he states that an important function of language is social maintenance, therefore “we must try to understand how different groups of people use their language if we are to achieve a comprehensive understanding of how that language is related to the society that uses it.” whereas hymes (1974) proposes an ethnographic model that caters for the description of communicative event, the objective of such communicative event and its achievement using the speaking acronym for relevant factors (setting and scene, participants, ends, act sequence, key, instrumentalities, norms of interaction and interpretation and genre); the present work finds relevant for an ethnographic analysis the act sequence (the actual text generated in the communicative event of proverbs and euphemisms), proceeding with a heuristic investigation on this basis in understanding the correlation of the linguistic elements with social reality (halliday 1973). lambek (2006) studied the difference in the importance of a spirit’s name to its identity drawing on the ethnography of spirit possession among malagasy speakers of mayotte and northwest madagascar taking a pragmatic view that gives attention to speech acts involved in the social procedures of the bestowal of names on spirits that instantiates the entities themselves as being. he observes from the perspective of pragmatics that “the bestowal of a name is factive insofar as it brings into being the state of affairs with which it is concerned” and thus generalizes that in modern states birth and marriage certificates, our so-called identity papers, confirm or validate not only our name but also our person; they constrain movement and agency and in their absence our very existence is illegitimate.” he further states based on observation of the mayotte mystification rituals, that a world is in bestowing a name, quoting rappaport (1999:27) as confirming this position: “the performance [of ritual] … logically entails the establishment of convention, the sealing of social contract, the construction of…integrated conventional orders…the investment of whatever it encodes with morality, the construction of time and eternity; the representation of a paradigm of creation, the generation of the concept of the sacred and the sanctification of conventional order…” awka journal of linguistics and languages special edition 1, 2022 385 lambek thus combines insight from naming itself as an instance of speech acts and discourse on the power of naming with meaning potentials within the context of mayotte culture. lambek’s work may be considered a successful one for its purpose of establishing the power relationship in naming and its ethnographic content meets the demand of the present work. lambek’s work and observations are in tandem with dauda (2016:284) who notes that “òwe [proverb] is a virtual memory bank for all of the yorùbá way of life and living, including philosophy, values, beliefs, ethics, and political economy.” he also notes that “as codes of ethics and civic responsibilities, òwe exist for all aspects of public and private affairs.” these roles of proverbs are widespread in african societies and are relevant for a descriptively adequate depiction of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms, which constitute the subject of the present study. 3.0 methodology the qualitative design approach was adopted in this study. data for this study were gathered in uyo metropolis. a large population of ibibio speakers resides here. the researcher’s native speaker competence was also helpful in identifying and extracting the proverbs and euphemisms in the speeches recorded. brief interviews were conducted to ascertain the meaning of some of the proverbs which were not known. the analysis of data is based on ethnographic model proposed by hymes in 1974. an ethnographic model caters for the description of communicative event, the objective of such communicative event and its achievement using the speaking acronym for relevant factors (setting and scene, participants, ends, act sequence, key, instrumentalities, norms of interaction and interpretation and genre); the present work finds relevant for an ethnographic analysis the act sequence (the actual text generated in the communicative event of proverbs and euphemisms), proceeding with a heuristic investigation on this basis in understanding the correlation of the linguistic elements with social reality (halliday 1973). linguistic ethnography of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms – archibong & ejeba 386 4.0 data presentation and analysis 4.1 contextual analysis of ibibio proverbs proverb 1 ᴐ́kpᴐ́k èkè ébí ídò áyárá ótò k’úyèn ádát ìsìn gloss: the lizard that will be male grows a red tail from infancy. interpretation: whoever wants to be great or achieve something spectacular must start early in life to work and plan towards the goal. context: this proverb can be used within the family or larger societal context. within the family context, it means that it is from the traits exhibited in a child that the parents know which child would turn out which way. within the larger society also, it may mean that people who become big, start early in life to work towards it. at the individual level, this proverb may also play the role of motivation and inspiration; suggesting to the individual that, if one desires to be great, he/she must begin small and start early. cultural connotation: the time of youth is the best time to prepare for life’s goals. analysis: the proverb explores the logical sequence of things/phenomena: that a general analysis can be made from specific traits. in the real world from the initial stage, through countenance and appearance, one can identify the good, the bad and the ugly. the reference to the lizard in our psyche is illustrative in ibibio mythology, red is the colour of strength for maleness and achievement. no lizard no matter how strong its desire to become male will be able to grow a red tail after a certain age. youth is the time to prepare for life’s goals. certain actions at particular times are indices of our youthful age. proverb 2 tèèp tèèp ọ́yọ̀họ́ àbàñ gloss: drop by drop, the water fills the pot. interpretation: the cure or solution to all problems lies in exercising patience. awka journal of linguistics and languages special edition 1, 2022 387 context: this proverb is applicable in situations where an individual or group of individuals seem impatient about certain conditions, which need time, and which with time would take care of themselves. cultural connotation: it is not how fast but how careful and how a thing is done. patience is needed in life. analysis: the crux of the proverb is the message of patience. the idea of slowly dropping water is referenced. the english equivalent could be “slow and steady wins the race” with patience. the water drops slowly yet fill the water pot. the moral lesson of patience is preached indirectly. the reference to the water further elucidates the meaning and distils the sense deeper. this proverb reveals why an ibibio person (note that “ibibio” itself loosely translates to “short-short”) would like to do one thing at a time with the mindset that “slow and steady wins the race”. proverb 3 ówó ánâm sé ídèm ónô ábàsì àyák úbók gloss: when a person does what nature endows him with, god prospers him/her. interpretation: one should always take a firm decision about himself in life’s endeavour and god will prosper him/her. context: this can be used in contexts where a person is advised to make ends meet with the available resources while waiting on god to prosper him/her rather than sit idle and wait for what he/she is not sure will eventually come. cultural connotation: it shows that the ibibio are religious people who believe in god and know that he provides for their needs and prospers them. analysis: the proverb aptly sums up the essence of determination and a strong will to work hard in life. it may go for the english equivalent of when the desirable is not available, the available becomes desirable. reference to ídèm (benevolent spirit) and ábàsì (supreme deity of the ibibio) of ibibio traditional belief is of connotative import. linguistic ethnography of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms – archibong & ejeba 388 the message interpreted is that when man shuns idleness and engages himself in hard work with the available jobs or occupations; god lends his/her hands by blessing and prospering them. proverbs 4 íkwúˋ ᴐ d ísítámḿáké úwéemé, ódó ákpétámmá ódó ényé ábínè ñkpó ébínè ényé gloss: a toad does not run in the daytime for anything. it is either pursuing something or being pursued by something. interpretation: there is a cause for anything abnormal that happens. context: it is used in situations where people express regrettable actions they had to take to accommodate or contain unhappy events. cultural connotation: situations/ strange and abnormal occurrences change people or make people do what they do not intend to do. analysis: the proverb tasks our mental conception or general knowledge of the toad as a nocturnal animal. if such an animal, therefore, does “run” (a lexical item preferred by the researcher for metaphorical or stylistic effect, against the normal collective word, “jump”) in the day, there must be something amiss. the proverb senses that there is a cause for anything abnormal that happens; there must be a reason, at least there is “no smoke without a fire”. a toad running in the daytime is probably pursuing or being pursued. the proverb alludes to the “causeand effect” philosophy. proverb 5 ètèk éyìn ámá áyìe ùbòk asana, àdíá ñkpó yé mmè ḿbˋ ᴐ ŋ gloss: a child that washes his hands clean, and eats with kings. interpretation: if a person does the right thing at the right time, good fortune, honour, esteem and credit will be his/hers. context: it is expressed in a context where somebody beneath the agegrade or class is honoured based on some accomplishments; when someone who may naturally be undeserving of some credit earns it because of hard work. awka journal of linguistics and languages special edition 1, 2022 389 cultural connotation: the proverb portrays that the ibibio are people who love cleanliness. it also instantiates that careful/clear planning takes one to a greater height. analysis: the proverb portrays honour and dignity attributed to cleanliness and responsibility. it thematizes hand washing, good character training and a hygienic way of eating as a sine qua non to honour. we infer that if a person does the right thing at the right time, as the proverb entails, good fortune, honour, reverence, esteem and credit will be his/hers, just like eating together with kings. the pragmatic understanding of how high the ibibio rated their traditional ruler provides further insight into the semantic import of the proverb. proverb 6 ńnàn-èyìn átìe ńtè édìm, ádèp kè áfìd ᴐ́kˋ ᴐ m gloss: problems are like the rain, it falls on every roof. interpretation: tragedy that befalls one, at some point has also befallen or will befall another. context: where a person is lamenting about a particular misfortune and gets to know along the line that another person suffers a greater misfortune than his. he may use this proverb as a consolation to himself. also, the proverb may be used in the context that problems and challenges are not unique or peculiar to one individual alone. cultural connotation: the proverb shows that problem is universal. analysis: the proverb emphasizes the universality of problems or misfortunes. it suggests that problems, challenges or misfortunes are among the phenomena that go around. at the denotative level, it is further interpreted to mean that rainfall spares no roof wherever it drops; it falls on everyone’s roof. in essence, as rain does not discriminate, misfortunes, problems and challenges, visit all people. the tragedy that befalls one group, we infer, may at some point befall the other group. thus, no people should exult because of other people’s misfortunes. linguistic ethnography of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms – archibong & ejeba 390 proverb 7 ńtè ídóhó úñàná ífíók ásìn ékpú áká áñwàn mmè áñwà? gloss: is it not ignorance that makes the rat attack the cat? interpretation: it is ignorance that would make a person attack a more formidable enemy, for such will be tantamount to his liquidation. cultural connotation: wisdom and common sense are necessary attributes in an ibibio person’s life. one should avoid what one needs to avoid. analysis: concerning our understanding of the two animals, rat and cat, our knowledge of the world make us agree with the force of the rhetorical proverb. it is ignorance that would make a person attack a more formidable enemy for such will be tantamount to his imminent execution or punishment. the inference made is that a wise person will always avoid having a direct encounter with his more powerful adversary, so that the latter does not liquidate him. the reference to, and the stylo-collective import of “cat and rat” strengthens the sense of the proverb. proverb 8 ˋ nkò ésìò àbìàrá édéd ké ˋ mbáŋ, ínúá átà ńkpò ke ńdìk gloss: until the rotten tooth is pulled out, the mouth chews with caution. interpretation: as long as the cause of a problem or bad influence persists, there will remain a hindrance to the smooth progress of society. context: where the action of one causes the others to suffer. cultural connotation: one bad person can destroy the community. since evil is not condoled within the ibibio society, such a person should be fished out. analysis: this proverb presents a general knowledge in a philosophical grab. with collocates like “rotten tooth”, and “mouth/chew”, the proverb evokes the sense that as long as bad influences or people remain, as few as they may be, they would constitute a hindrance to the healthy growth or development of the society. with the rotten tooth in place, the whole mouth is rendered handicapped and whenever it eats, it must be with extreme caution. in the real world, it is a practicable truism. awka journal of linguistics and languages special edition 1, 2022 391 proverb 9 èkà ébò ámá obo eyin, umaha édíkpᴐ́ᴐ́ŋᴐ́ ìwòúd kè ˋ ᴐ kˋ ᴐ k eto: atimme ama usan ᴐ tᴐ ŋ gloss: the mother monkey said to her child: you don’t like knocking your head against branches of trees: would you rather prefer to be in the pot of soup? interpretation: to take a little temporal inconvenience or to postpone immediate comfort and pleasure for the sake of earning a richer life and better days ahead pays. context: it can be used where a person rebels against a temporal inconvenience that will in the end bring lasting comfort. also within the context where students, young people in their families, young workers in their various places of work are unwilling to live temporary under hard conditions or to look away from many pleasurable distractions around them, to concentrate on the preparation for a successful life. boys, girls, men and women all have to make choice. it is an individual matter. cultural connotation: immediate ease and comfort too early in life get swept away into destruction. also, the hunting life of the people is portrayed. analysis: concerning our understanding of the animal monkey which used to be the favourite game of hunters; monkeys knew this and learnt very early in life the tactics of survival consisting mainly of brisk swings from branch to branch (which often meant they may hit against such branches). such tactics were risky for the young monkey who would rebelliously refuse to take such risks. the proverb entails stylistic and connotative imports of such words as “eka/eyin” (mother/child monkey” and “ᴐ kᴐ k eto/usan ᴐ tᴐ ᴐ ŋ” (branch of tree/soup pot), that one should endure a temporal inconvenience for the sake of earning a better day ahead. proverb 10 úwáná òwòdéén òtòhó kè émáná gloss: the struggle of a man begins at birth. linguistic ethnography of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms – archibong & ejeba 392 interpretation: a child struggles to live and become a (successful) man/woman till he/she dies, with every day posing its challenges. context: it is used when considering life’s struggles that struggles never end till death occurs. cultural connotation: the ibibio people have this philosophy that life is never a bed of roses. the struggle continues. analysis: this is an epigram, implicating the centrality of struggle in life. right from his first breath at birth, the proverb entails, a child struggles to live and become successful till he dies, with every day posing its challenges. the connotative sense derives from its being metaphorical. it is in the realm of philosophy (i.e. realist theory) that it would be appropriately understood that not only do adults struggle, but a day old baby also battles to survive. table 1 taboo words gloss euphemistic expression àkpá ‘die’ ákpón ìsòng, ádákà ìsàn, ámòd, ábóyò fèb, ádòp ìwèh úrân ‘faeces’ ìfùᴐ, ìkód àkpárà ‘prostitute’ àsáng essien, ówó éfèbè, mma ìnò ìtìd (female) mfet (male) ‘vagina’ ‘penis’ ḿkpò ówó úwàn ḿkpò ówó dèŋ ákùn ‘intercourse’ áñà, áyípé ádíá, átòk ìkìm taboo word 1: “die” ákpá euphemistic expressions ákpón ìsòng = ákpón (leave) ìsòng (earth) = “leave the earth”, ádákà ìsàn= ádáká (he/she has moved) isang (journey) = “he/she has taken a journey”, “été/mma ádákà ìsàn o” (the man/ woman has taken a journey), ḿkpò ùtòk ìkìm awka journal of linguistics and languages special edition 1, 2022 393 ámòd, “ákpón ìsòng”, ádòp ìwèh = ádòp (stop) ìwèh (breath) = s/he has stopped breathing taboo word 2 : “faeces” “úrân” euphemistic expressions ìfùᴐ, ìkód taboo word 3: prostitute “akpàrà” euphemistic expressions àsáng essien= àsáng (walking) essien (outside) àsáng essien= one that is walking/staying outside. ówó éfèbè = a person that is doing abominable acts. prostitution is one of the abominable acts in ibibio. ówó éfèbè is use in religious setting, especially when giving sermon. mma ìnò (woman that steals). taboo word 4 ìtìd (female) ‘vagina’ ḿkpò ówó úwàn mfet (male) ‘penis’ mkpo owo deŋ euphemistic expressions ḿkpò ówó úwàn (something that belongs to a woman). mkpo owo deŋ (something that belongs to a man). ḿkpò ùtòk ìkìm (something used for urinating). this euphemistic expression is used for both male and female. it can be used for any context. taboo word 4 “ákùn” ‘intercourse’ euphemistic expressions áñà (sleep) he/she sleeps. when a man or woman has an affair, “áná” is a euphemistic expression for ákùn. it can be used in any context. áyípé ádíá (he has pinch and eat) ḿkpò ùtòk ìkìm linguistic ethnography of ibibio proverbs and euphemisms – archibong & ejeba 394 átòk ìkìm (he has urinated that is to say he has ejaculated). used by young men when referring to intercourse. it is mostly use in social discourse. 5.0 conclusion in conclusion, the paper investigates ibibio proverbs and euphemisms using linguistic ethnography approach to study different contexts and how these linguistic tools reveal the people’s identity, value system, and worldview. proverbs and euphemisms which are generally believed to be words of wisdom and correction are usually used to instruct, rebuke, teach morals and make offensive expressions less offensive. in ibibio, proverb is known as “nke” while euphemism does not have vocabulary except it is explain with a phrase “nkara iko” depending on the sense the user of such expressions intends them to be. proverbs and euphemisms affect us all. proverbs are seen as witty statements that are capable of revealing one’s identity and value system, at the same time teach, instruct and rebuke bad attitudes. ibibio proverbs are often prosodical in realization, that is, they are realized with a poetic finesse to give the proverbs rhythmic intonation. at the same time, we all probably have a few things we refuse to talk about and still others we do not talk about directly. 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(1998). sociolinguistics: an introduction. 3rd edn. oxford: blackwell publishers. 332 tackling terrorism using love language: insights from juvenile correctional units in awka, nigeria chinwe doris ojiako nnamdi azikiwe university, awka, anambra state cd.ojiako@unizik.edu.ng abstract nigeria has been inundated by a lot of terrorist groups such as boko haram, niger delta militants, bandits, iswap (islamic republic of west african province), unknown gunmen and al-quaeda who make life unbearable for citizens. force and rule of law have been deployed to correct these ills but to no avail. this paper therefore investigates the effectiveness of love language as a catalyst to stopping terrorism tendencies in nigeria. the research is an eclectic study adopting chapman’s theory of love language and social interactionist theory. data was collected purposely from 30 juveniles under correction in some schools’ disciplinary committee. the needs assessment design was used in the analysis. findings show that humans respond positively to love language, denial of love language expressions can lead to deviant behaviours but its use encourages stronger relationship amongst citizens and thus helps in prevention of terrorist activities. having highlighted the various causes of terrorism in nigeria, this study illustrates various ways that could be deployed in correcting deviant behaviours using love language. the study recommends that nigerian government should prevent radicalization of citizens by deploying love language approach. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 333 keywords: terrorism, social interactionism, love language. response and perception 1.0 introduction local and international actors have tried to mitigate or curb the activities of terrorists in nigeria but their actions did not have intended effects. various interventions by governments of the region to counter terrorism also had minimal effect. some indigenes of different states in nigeria are gradually becoming refugees in their own country. the term ‘terrorism’ can be described in many ways depending on the angle through which one views it. it could be a description for obscene acts of violence perpetrated against civilians such as june 2021 attacks in burkina faso or weak corrupt regimes branding of opponents ‘terrorist’ as a way of delegitimizing their objectives. in africa especially, colonial powers labeled independence movements as terrorist in order to retain power and demonize their adversaries and justify the use of extreme retaliatory measures (chatham house 2021) terrorism is an anxiety-inspiring method of repeated violent action, employed by (semi) clandestine individual, group or state actors, for idiosyncratic, criminal or political reasons whereby in contrast to tackling terrorism using love language ojiako 334 assassination-the direct targets of violence are not the main targets (leonard et al 2004). in recent years, west africa and the sahel have become a hotbed for terrorist activities by violent extremist groups. a host of terrorists group – including, al-qaeda in the islamic maghreb, the islamic state in the greater sahara, ansarul islam operating in nigeria, mali, niger, burkina faso and other countries in the sahel and lake chad basin and boko haram in nigeria have wreaked destruction and exploited security vulnerabilities in carrying out sustained attacks against both civilian and security targets. burkina faso, which is fast becoming the epicenter of terrorist violence in the region reveal the southward spread of terrorist activity, with possible consequences for west african coastal states such as ghana, benin, and togo (osei, 2020). in mali, violent extremist groups, including al-qaeda in the islamic maghreb (aoim), al mourabitoun, the movement for oneness and jihad in west africa (mujao) and isgs, have exploited weak governance and growing poverty to destabilize the country. ethnic tuareg rebels and radical islamic terrorists returning from war in libya have exploited poor socio-economic conditions to destabilize northern mali. this act has also spilled over to burkina faso causing mayhem in the country (osei, 2020). military sources in sahel are often made up of poorly trained and under equipped soldiers, unpaid troops mutinying or deserting hence unprepared to tackle terrorism. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 335 a recent unicef report outlined the humanitarian toll of burkina faso‘s violence and instability as follows: 330,000 children in affected locales need psycho-social support; 2,000 schools closed affecting another 330,000 children and 9,000 teachers; 69 health facilities closed and 71 others limited to minimal operations thereby affecting 817,000 people. 147,000 children under the age of five are suffering from severe acute malnutrition (including 86,000 children in seven emergency affected regions of burkina faso (osei, 2020). this is to say that most countries in west africa (mali, burkina faso, guinea, sierra leone, nigeria etc) have suffered successive weak government, characterized by corruption, impunity, disorganization and failure of elites to provide security for the vast sections of the population. in nigeria particularly, in addition to the groups mentioned earlier, we also have the iswap terrorists in the north, the unknown gunmen in the south east and niger delta militants all unleashing terror in the counry. however, in the world at large, we are seeing a rising trend in insecurity, insurgency, xenophobia, religious crisis, often fuelled through social media and other forms of communication. just as guterres (2019) puts it, “public discourse is being weaponized for political gain with incendiary rhetoric that stigmatizes and dehumanizes minorities, migrants, refugees, women and any so-called ‘other’. he observed that this trend has become a global phenomenon that weakens the pillars of our common humanity. tackling terrorism using love language ojiako 336 this is evident in the way the whole world is at war, witnessing different social vices. indeed, the crisis in the world is eating deep, the norms that hold the nations. the economic community of west african state (ecowas) with significant support from other stakeholders has developed strategies to counter terrorism which they organized within the tried and tested strategic frame work of 4 p’s (contest, 2018). ecowas whose major aim was economic integration has now pre-occupied itself with conflict management as a result of regional instability and conflict. despite the different counter terrorism responses by the key players in west africa, activities of terrorist groups, continue to escalate, towing different dimension, according to guterres (2019): “today, i fear we have reached another acute moment in battling this demon, and so i have asked my senior advisers to explore what more we can do”. inadvertently an alternative means is necessary to tackle terrorism in nigeria. adoption of love language approach (words of affirmation, quality time, physical touch, acts of service and receiving gifts) encourages stronger relationship amongst citizen and thus will help in prevention and countering of terrorist activities. each of us can build stronger relationships if we take time to learn and understand each person’s preferred love language. this is true of all relationships from romantic to professional and security is no awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 337 exception (chapman, 1992). it is in this view that this research focuses on tackling terrorism using love language approach. this is achieved through the following objectives: i. does this concept of love language work on the target teenagers? ii. what are the consequences of abuse or denial of love languages in the target teenagers? iii. can triggering love languages correct damaged behaviour caused by its denial? 2.0 literature review some of the key concepts used in this study are explained as follows: terrorism is a problematic term when defined in relation to use of violence against civilians as practiced by some african government. other scholars opine that terrorism is an act of rebellion and severe violence to bring down a government and its people (leonard et al 2004, chatham house, 2021; alex and john, 2021). this points to the fact that terrorism can be described in many ways depending on the way we look at it. chatham house, (2021) states that terrorism could be a description for obscene acts of violence perpetrated against civilians such as june 2021 attacks in burkina faso or weak corrupt regimes branding of opponents ‘terrorist’ as a way of delegitimizing their objectives. in attempt to combat terrorism, various authorities adopt counter terrorism approach. counter terrorism are measures and strategies put in place to combat terrorism. local and international actors have tackling terrorism using love language ojiako 338 always tried to prevent and counter terrorism but have not achieved desired result. terrorism is an anxiety-inspiring method of repeated violent action employed by (semi) clandestine individual group or state actors, for idiosyncratic, criminal or political reasons whereby in contrast to assassination the direct targets of violence are not the main targets (leonard et al, 2004). this agrees with social interactionist theory which opines that the actions of individuals in the society are as a result of the social context causing one to accept, reject or fight against unwelcomed behavior. this work adopts social interactionist theory for its analysis. for (leonard et al, 2004), the immediate human victims of violence are generally chosen randomly (targets of opportunities) or selectively (representative or symbolic targets) from a target population and serve as message generators. threat-and violence-based communication on processes between terrorists (organization), (imperiled) victims and main target (audiences), turning it into a target of terror, a target of demands or a target of attention depending on whether intimidation, coercion, or propaganda is primarily sought (leonard et al, 2004). what this explains is that the terrorists do not expose themselves but they indirectly create awareness and attention of the main target by attacking at random people within the target population. terrorist use repeated violence to meet their target. it is in this same view that contest (2018) opines that terrorism is designed to change minds by destroying bodies. this is to say that in the attempt to meet their target, they cause human casualties. miller (1987), in discussing the language of terrorism stated that contemporary terrorism combines awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 339 selective violence with reliance on language to articulate terrorist motivation, belief and objectives. subsequently, yuanbo (2020) postulated that directive, expressive and assertive were the most common classes of speech acts and threatening speech acts most prominently used by terrorists. their language is often filled with threat, coercive and assertive in nature. language use plays a lot of roles in the society in that the same way language can make a community is the same way it can mar it. language use wrongly (hate speech) can have great consequence. aristotle as pointed out in azizul (2018) defined language as a speech sound produced by human beings to express their ideas, emotions, thoughts, desires and feelings. most of the writers are pointing to the fact that terrorists use threats and coercion in their language which they apply to cow their targets into yielding to their demands. another common act of the terrorist is repeated violence and human attacks. however, from the aforementioned one can conclude that terrorism is a complex phenomenon but no matter how it is viewed, one thing is common, the fact that in the act of terrorism, “one” often the vulnerable suffers coercion, oppression, violence, intimidation, suppression and human casualty in the hands of the ‘other’ normally referred to as the terrorist. hence for terrorism to occur, one or more of the following indices must be present: coercion, oppression, violence, intimidation, suppression and human casualty (covish). tackling terrorism using love language ojiako 340 terrorism has been seen to be instigated by certain actions or in actions of people. this often comes as a result of wrong use of words. the term ‘hate speech’ has been used to refer to speech which expresses, encourages, stirs up, or incites hatred against a group of people (anderson, 2022). some claim the term “hate speech” itself is misleading, because it wrongly suggests “virulent dislike of a person for any reason”(gelbers, 2017).hate speech is understood as any kind of communication in speech, writing or behavior, that attacks or uses pejorative or discriminatory language with reference to a person or a group on the basis of who they are, in other words, based on their religion, ethnicity, nationality, race, colour, descent, gender or other identification factor (guterres,2019). critics of hate speech argue not only that it causes psychological harm when it incites violence, but also that it undermines the social equality of its victims (williams, 2010). chapman’s theory of love language was adopted for this study. chapman (1995) proposed the theory of love languages which he refers to as different ways of expressing and interpreting love. they are words of affirmation, quality time, physical touch, acts of service, gift giving. he proposed this theory from his experience from marriage counseling and linguistics. he explained that each of us has what he calls a primary love language meaning that what makes one person feel loved may not make another person feel the same way. in other words, if we don’t receive love in our love language, we are not likely to feel loved, even though the person may be expressing love in other ways. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 341 according to him, each of us can build stronger relationships if we take time to learn and understand each person’s preferred love language. this is true of all relationships from romantic to professional and security is no exception. he concluded that the concept of love languages has helped people connect or reconnect emotionally to significant people in their lives. one can understand that people are affected differently by the winds of insecurity in our country and many are living with restrictions affecting their ability to relate to others. this notwithstanding, so long as the same social environment is concerned, there must always be chain reactions, such that either of these parties may directly or indirectly receive the consequences associated with insecurity. in this kind of situation, love and feeling loved become vital weapons for keeping the mind going. a. words of affirmation: words of affirmation according to chapman (1992), entails verbal communication that is encouraging, affirmative, active, and appreciative. we can express words of affirmation through spoken or written messages, which show our love to others. chapman opines that you communicate love strongly when you speak deeply to the words of affirmation person, affirming her for some personality trait that you appreciate; such words like “you are good”, “you are beautiful” you will survive it, “you can make it”, “we tackling terrorism using love language ojiako 342 can settle the dispute” are words of affirmation and are catalyst for change in the mindset of the people. b. quality time: this is giving someone your undivided attention. quality time can be a love language expressed by anyone, and finding ways to express it within your non-romantic relationships is important too (chapman, 2009). chapman’s undivided attention signals that you should remove all forms of distractors and focus on the person. c. physical touch – this is the act of showing love through physical signs of affection, including kissing, holding hands etc. physical intimacy and touch can be incredibly affirming and serve as a powerful emotional connector for people with this love language. d. act of service – this love language is for people who believe that actions speak louder than words. unlike those who prefer to hear how much they are cared for, people on this list like to be shown how they are appreciated. if your love language is acts of service, you value when your partner goes out of his way to make your life easier. they are things like bringing you soup when you are sick, making your coffee for you in the morning, or picking up your dry cleaning for you when you had a busy day at work. chapman (2009) describes awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 343 acts of service as “doing something for your spouse that you know they would like for you to do”. e. giving gift – gift is a pretty straightforward love language. you feel loved when people give you “visual symbols of love”, as chapman calls it. it is not about the monetary value but the symbolic thought behind the item. people with this style recognize and value the gift – giving process: the careful reflection, the deliberate choosing of the object to represent the relationship, and the emotional benefits from receiving the present. the concept of love language should be adopted to discourage hate speech. bhikhu (cited in anderson, 2022), listed these as some of the examples different countries have either punished or sought to punish as hate speech: “blacks are inherently inferior, lecherous, predisposed to criminal activities, and should not be allowed to move into respectable area” “shouting “(n-words) go home, making monkey noises, and chanting racist slogans at soccer matches” hate speech according to william (2010) can also include nonverbal depictions and symbols for example, the nazi swastika, the confederate battle flag. romaine (2000) discussed the effect of wrong use of words using the quakers’ experience. the quakers rejected the use of ‘you’ as a polite form of address, and preferred ‘thou’ which to them, showed intimacy and equality. by so doing, the quakers provoked hostility tackling terrorism using love language ojiako 344 from others who regarded their behavior as a sign of contempt. the lady whom he addressed as ‘thou’ instead of ‘you’ swore that she would kill him. this goes to explain why one should be careful in ones choice of words. yule (2010) attributed such perception of words to cultural differences. he opined that we need socially acquired knowledge to be able to handle such differences in perception of things. he concluded that the particular language we learn through the process of cultural transmission provides us, at least initially, with a ready-made system of categorizing the world around us and our experience of it. this is not strange because language when used wrongly can have a negative implication. nigerians are highly religious people. gallup international (2012) ranked nigeria as the second most religious country in the world. religion plays a big role in the politics, economic and security of nigeria. certain religious doctrines and rituals are often manipulated to encourage violent conflict. an example is the campaign of terror in the lake chad region by the nigerian based islamist bokoharam; which killed over 23,000 people and displaced 3 million people as at that time (oyewole, 2016). recent religious doctrine motivated killing was the case of deborah samuel who was beaten to death in sokoto over alleged blasphemy on thursday, the 12th day of may, 2022 (vanguard, 2022). considering the grave consequence of hate speech to national peace, it is advisable to resort more to affirmative words as can be seen in chapman’s word of affirmation in the theory of love language. hate speech is a menace to democratic value, social stability and peace. as a matter of principle, the united nations must confront hate speech at every turn (guterres, 2019). awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 345 chapman’s theory of love language has been studied and applied by the following researchers. a concept from positive psychology asserts that positive words can do more than just demonstrate love (newberg & waldman, 2012). according to them, speaking and hearing positive words more often than negative ones can activate the motivational centers of the brain, encouraging us to take positive action more often. using affirmative words like “love”, “peace” and “loving-kindness”, improve our brain functions – resulting in increased cognitive reasoning, strengthened frontal lobes. supporting this view, michelle (2009) explains that positive affirmations ensure more than simply a good feeling for those who receive them. as human beings, we aspire to feel competent, valued and appreciated. positive words have this type of power, creating the solid foundations needed to build strong, productive relationships that resonate clear lines of communication. readers and psychologists are in agreement that the qualitative research collected from over 30 years of marriage counselling points to useful, practical applications from which we can all benefit. harmon (2010) pointed out that many children who have not had ample physical and emotional attention are at higher risk for behavioural, emotional, and social problems as they grow up. harmon further stated that the psychology behind this form of communication goes deeper than one might think. touch is the first language we use to communicate as infants, and it plays a critical role in social and behavioural development. supporting this view, gallace and spence (2010) found several notable outcomes from their studies regarding physical touch: elderly nursing home residents tend to feel unwanted or unloved due to a lack of physical contact with others. secondly, people are significantly more likely to return a dime left in a phone booth if the preceding telephone tackling terrorism using love language ojiako 346 caller touched them. also, individuals who have been touched are more likely to agree to participate in mall interviews. gulledge, gulledge & stahman (2003) elucidate, ‘touch is crucial in creating and strengthening romantic relationships. they concluded that conflict resolution is easier with more physical affection including hugging, cuddling, holding hands and kissing on the lips. kirwan (2011) observed that there are psychological advantages to both giving and receiving. giving a gift increases feelings of satisfaction and helps to reinforce relationships by positively acknowledging each other. according to kirwan, both the giver and receiver benefit from the act of giving or receiving emotionally. experts suggest that the entire act of giving gifts from the thought, the careful choosing of tangible item to represent the relationship, and finally to the actual giving itself, elicits the feeling of affection towards another person (south university, 2011). acts of service is another way we give love and feel loved. the psychology behind it is something we can all likely relate to that warm, fuzzy feeling you get from a selfless act. michelle (2009) expands on the idea, noting that serving another is a type of relational leadership. she says, “true leaders serve others before serving themselves. this level of unselfish service inspires people, as well as the communities and families they impact, to be greater, to go beyond, and to aspire. hakeem onapajo et al (2021) in their study postulated that terrorism does not end with only a military approach. a coercive counter-terrorism strategy has often produced negative out comes by promoting more violence and creating humanitarian crisis. nonmilitary approaches are increasingly being embraced as a more practical route to eliminating the root cause of terrorism. this is characterized by political negotiations and grassroots developments, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 347 de-radicalization, disarmament, rehabilitation and reintegration programmes. they agreed that these de-radicalization programs are flawed and needs fixing. their view corroborated with chapman’s theory which was adopted in this study. for works in africa, the term love language was not used but the concept was vividly shown. amma darko (2013) emphasized on the wonders of physical touch when she presented the words of a street girl about 14yrs old interviewed by a reporter from one of the private fm stations as follows: “one day a kind woman i met at a centre made me very happy, before i went there, i knew that by all means she would give me food, but this woman gave me more. she hugged me, i was dirty, i smelled bad, but she hugged me. that night, i slept well, i had a good dream. sometimes i wish to be hugged even if i am smelling of the streets”. the implication of this statement is that some street children need physical care and this can take them off the street. the work also pointed out that most of the victims of parental abuse and neglect are the ones unleashing terror in the streets of accra. reasons being that no one gives what he or she does not have. these children take to the street and become terror themselves in nigeria, ikejiani (2007) stated that the federal goverment had used joint military task force to control the activities of the niger delta militants but this measure resulted to heavy loss of life. the niger delta militants were known to engage in various forms of terrorists activities such as oil pipeline vandalization, kidnapping of oil company workers for ransom and crude oil theft within the niger delta region of nigeria. ikein (2009) stated that between 2005 and 2008, nigerian economy went down drastically as a result of these niger delta militia. the most potent militant group in niger delta include: movement for the emancipation of niger delta(mend) led by henry okah, the niger delta peoples volunteer tackling terrorism using love language ojiako 348 force(ndpvp) led by asari dokubo and the niger delta vigilante led by ateke tom. the then president of nigeria, alhaji shehu musa yaradua on seeing the weakness of joint military task force in controlling the activities of the niger delta militant, set up a committee on 8th september, 2008. the essence is to recommend better measures to be adopted in controlling the militancy in niger delta. the committee recommended amnesty and disarmament of the niger delta militants. following the recommendation of this committee, president yaradua granted amnesty to about 20,192 militants across 9 states. the key programmes of the amnesty are as presented on table 1. amnesty according to otite and umukoro (2011) refers to a general pardon of an offence by government or deliberate overlook of offences against the state or to cancel or not to exact punishment due for an offence. amnesty programme proved more effective than the coercive approach which the then government utilized. solomon adebayo (2016), also examined the attempt made by nigerian government in curbing the menace of terrorism and agreed with the fact that adopting the following measures (deployment of troops to the affected areas, joint task force by neighbouring awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 349 countries, declaration of state of emergency and encouragement of the public and media to provide intelligence support) alone cannot curb the menace of terrorism. he then recommended the creation of empowerment programmes that reduce unemployment, conflict resolution among parties, strict enforcement of laws against terrorism, and cutting off all sources of funding for terrorists. 3.0 methodology needs assessment research design was adopted for this study. this design studies what is available in relation to what ought to be (nwankwo, 2013). the population is purposefully open, targeted at teenagers involved in grave disciplinary cases in public secondary schools in awka, anambra state, nigeria and other juveniles with target features around okpuno. the data was collected using 4 likert scale questionnaire which are filled out for during one on one question and answer section for illiterate ones while the ones who can read and write; go through the interview and subsequently fill out the questionnaire. 30 teenagers were used for this research, 20 boys and 10 girls. the names of the secondary schools are withheld for confidentiality. the theoretical framework is enclitic adopting chapman’s theory of love language and social interactionist theory. the quantitative approach was adopted for the questionnaire evaluations while qualitative approach was adopted for the logical interpretation of the interview in order to make points clear and well understood. average mean was used for questionnaire analysis. 4.0 data presentation and analysis tackling terrorism using love language ojiako 350 = 3.03 (where means average mean) the interpretation rating in four likert scale are 3.25-4.0 for strongly agree, 2.5-3.24 agree, 1.75-2.4 disagree and 1.0-1.74 strongly disagree. from table 2, it is observed that the quest to be helped as a sign of love has the mean of 2.8, which confirms the fact that teenagers examined, wish that feelings of love could be expressed in such a way. this also applies to affirmative words and gentle correction with the 3.1and 3.5 mean scores respectively. giving of gifts has 3.2 mean score while quality time and touch check got 2.9 and 2.67 respectively. from this result, it is clear that all the five love languages are real and felt among humans. some can be strong in some individuals, mild in others and others can be generally receptive to all or shy away from some. however, the analysis shows that words of affirmation is a major booster of love and self-esteem that people yearn for even when they deserve to be scolded. touch as a love language is observed to have the lowest awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 351 mean. this can be attributed to the age examined; and the culture which sees cuddling and affection as some sort of acts of spoiling the child. its importance cannot be over emphasized seeing that its mean score is affirmative despite the cultural restrictions. the average mean is 3.03 indicating that love language is a natural phenomenon. table 3 shows that denial of love languages can create wrong impressions, form negative opinions and harden one up. some wrong impressions observed from this study are the mind set of discrimination, that is, rendering good behaviour only to those they deem fit. this does not take cognizance of innocent people. as long as you have not rendered help, you are a potential victim to them. this makes it easier to understand innocent killings. employing force in issues of terrorism only worsens the situation because table 3 no 8 shows that force automatically strengthens violence or headiness. denial of needs only breeds resentment and jealousy as seen on table 3 no 9. this is similar to focusing on a particular community or region as seen on table 3 no 10. no 11 did not record much effect as physical touch in itself may not have the force to create friction. the average mean is 2.91 showing that there are negative consequences emanating from the denial of love languages tackling terrorism using love language ojiako 352 the mean scores on table 4 shows that introducing love language can help ameliorate grave conditions. it is observed from the mean scores that when retracing steps, acceptance, apology and offering a token, in this sequence are the key love languages to employ, having mean scores of 3.2,2.9 and 2.9. the average mean is 2.86 showing that love language is a viable instrument in restoration of good behavior. friendly touch and quality time would help restore what has been lost. this will be discussed in the next section with examples from the niger delta amnesty programme introduced by his excellency, alhaji shehu musa yaradua, former president of nigeria. discussion of findings most of the studies on niger delta militancy owned up to the fact that the amnesty programme restored peace in the region. ikejiani (2007) also noted that the use of force by the federal government fuelled the crisis. this is in line with the recommendation of this study that the use of love languages approach rather than coerciveness will help reduce tendencies that could metamorphose into terrorism. a look into the amnesty policy as cited in ugwuanyi awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 353 et al (2014) shows the love languages in action even though presented in different wordings. key activities like transformational training, counselling, and wellness assessment under the demobilization and rehabilitation column simply present act of service, physical touch and quality time. this explains that 6 to 12 months rehabilitation exercise goes a long way to make the people concerned feel loved and accepted. they are being given enough quality time filled with practical experiences, all in the attempt to reintegrate them into the society. quality time requires you to focus on the person concerned. rehabilitation goes beyond psychological to include physical touch where the need for massaging and wound dressing become the option. the third column titled reintegration also presents its key activities to include: knowledge and skill acquisition, financial empowerment, placement programme, conflict resolution, micro credit amongst others. these are also the use of love language of gift giving, quality time, act of service, physical touch and words of affirmation. during conflict resolution, people whose language is physical touch forgive and feel better when they hug or shake hands to show they have resolved their differences, the reintegration programme also adopted financial empowerment which falls in line with chapman’s love language of gift giving. in all these activities, one is indirectly affirming that these militants are not condemned in totality hence the use of placement programmes to fix them where they will use their energy positively. word of affirmation according to chapman, affirms one’s positive character and this has the capacity to bring out the best in the individual. the nigerian government as at the time of this amnesty, instead of condemning these militants, has granted them pardon meaning they are hopeful of getting the best from the once acclaimed terrorists. this is indirect use of word of affirmation. in tackling terrorism using love language ojiako 354 summary, 5 years integration programme is enough quality time to offer services, monetary gifts, and physical touch rehabilitation, all geared towards affirming that the militants could be better. this worked like magic in returning peace to niger delta, 5.1 conclusion nigeria and other west africa countries are inundated with a lot of terrorists group. this is occasioned by a lot of factors ranging from inability of the nigerian state to provide the basic developmental needs of the people, weak corrupt regime, growing poverty, porous borders, and unpatriotic behaviours and hate speech amongst others. guterres (2019) concludes that what is happening is “hate” moving into the mainstream of the world .chapman (1995; amma darko,2013; solomon et al, 2016; hakeen onapajo, 2021and ikejiani, 2007) are all of the view that military action only cannot curb the menace of terrorism in nigeria . in agreement with their view, it is pertinent to point out that terrorist activities are in geometrical progression, carrying with it, weapons of massive destruction. something urgent must be done to put a halt to this ugly monster called ”terrorism” adoption of chapman’s theory of love language encourages peaceful relationship among citizens and thus helps in calming deviances that could result into terrorism. 5.2 recommendation this paper recommends that chapman’s theory of love language should be adopted by nigerian government to discourage potential terrorists. words of affirmation as a verbal positive reinforce and the use of physical touch should be encouraged against hate speech. acts that make one feel good or focus on ones well-being should be encouraged so as to reduce frustration that leads people to negative life style. these include taking care of refugees in idp camps, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 355 putting them under a roof, extending continued medical care (physiotherapy, total rehabilitation) to deviants and other marginalized members of the society. again, the act of service, like creating job opportunities for youths, engaging those on the streets into something meaningful will be a great step to peaceful coexistence. quality time should be extended to the vulnerable by spending time with them through counselling. teaching youths selflove and skill will help reduce their engagement in social vices. through quality time, we can achieve these four ‘e’ strategy of educating, engaging, empowering and encouraging our youths to become better citizens. gift-giving those people that have become refugees with clothes, blankets etc to keep going will make them heal faster. unpatriotic behavior should be discouraged through words of affirmation. basically and most importantly, the government should provide the basic needs of the citizens and should also not be over dependent on the use of unnecessary military force. references alex, .v. & john, w. 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(2021). the psychology behind the 5 love languages. http://www.uage.edu) vanguard news (2022) people talk: on killing of deborah samuel in sokoto. https://www.vanguardngr.com william, .m. c. (2010). hate speech. encyclopaedia of political theory. sage publication https://www.britannica.com yuanbo: (2020). the language of terror: exploring speech arts in official english language isis videos, 2014 – 2017. available online https://do:org/10.1080/09j92318.2020. 1775055 accessed on 07-02-2022. yule, g. (2010). the study of language. 4th ed. cambridge university press. http://www.uage.edu/ https://www.vanguardngr.com/ https://www.britannica.com/ https://do:org/10.1080/09j92318.2020.%201775055%20accessed%20on%2007-02-2022 https://do:org/10.1080/09j92318.2020.%201775055%20accessed%20on%2007-02-2022 269 conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria . adaobi ifeoma ik-iloanusi1 onyinye anulika chiemezie2 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka. ai.ik-iloanusi@unizik.edu.ng1 oa.chiemezie@unizik.edu.ng2 abstract insecurity in communities can be classified following the attitude and response of the community members in the evolving crime strategies employed by miscreants every day. existing literature attest that scam call is a phenomenon prevalent in nigeria, which harasses the financial security, and resources of the people. this study is geared towards analyzing the contextual cues evident in these calls, bringing out the perceived behaviors that portray the luring of the receiver and/or the pragmatic lapses of the caller that gives him away as a fraud. ten scam call audio clips, adopted from individuals and social platforms were used. jefferson’s transcription model and sacks’ conversational analysis theory are adopted for this research. the researchers assert that scam calls come in different manifestations. the results show that while the callers adopt luring cues such as presenting supposed vulnerable financial situation of the caller’s account, pleasantness, assurance to solve posed problems, mentioning callers full name and prying cues such as asking for tokens and codes; the receiver recognizes fraudulent moves like skipping vital information, ignoring or rushing over questions from the receiver, insistence on a particular code/pin, impatience perceived when the receiver delays to respond. the responses swayed from that of devastated victims, vulnerable targets to highly secured targets who are so confident to play along with fraud calls or switch roles in the fraud game. the study mailto:ai.ik-iloanusi@unizik.edu.ng mailto:oa.chiemezie@unizik.edu.ng conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 270 recommends that the linguistic cues harnessed scam calls and other insecurity manifestations be provided in the content of media jingles for awareness against scam calls and insecurity to reduce the rate of vulnerability of the nigerian citizens. keywords: conversational analysis, linguistic cues, scam calls, nigeria. 1. introduction in nigeria, crime and insecurity has been a notable issue over the years. sadly, the government has done little or nothing to curb this menace completely, as it has become an unquenchable challenge, sprouting into different facets. the rate at which this menace has eaten deep into our country is quite alarming, thereby contradicting section 14(2) (b) of the nigerian 1999 constitution which clearly states that “the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of the government”. defining human security, the united nations development programme (1994) opine that human security is the protection from hidden and hurtful disruptions in the daily activities, at homes, offices, or communities. thus, explaining security as that which simply means the freedom from threat and danger. this issue of security includes but not limited to safe keeping of lives as properties and material resources are also involved. supporting this claim, akin (2008) states that security is seen as any laid down procedures geared towards the protection of person and property against hostile individuals. it is no longer news that quality security guarantees and reassures citizens of their safety. in this stead, coupland (2007) is of the opinion that insecurity has an extensive impact on people’s lives and well-being and for this striking reason, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 271 the government has an obligation to live up to its responsibility of guaranteeing security. generally, on insecurity, a wealth of materials already exists. however, this paper focuses on the insecurity that borders on scam calls and scam in general. scams are deceptive schemes intended to defraud individuals or organizations and has gained significant attention due to their increasing prevalence and detrimental impact on society. there are various types of scams that have emerged in recent years, such as phishing scams, advance fee frauds, identity theft, pyramid schemes, online auction frauds, scam calls, etc. each type of fraud has its unique characteristics and strategies, employed by scammers in order to succeed. for instance, advance fee frauds often known as “419 scams” involve promising huge sums of money in exchange for ahead of time/ upfront payments (holt, 2016). discussing phishing scam, wang et al (2018) define phishing scam as an attempt by scammers to obtain sensitive information. according to kshetri (2017) identity theft is a situation where personal information is stolen for fraudulent purposes. lage and jackson (2017:4) opine that “scam calls are used by fraudsters to con someone out of their money or obtain their personal information to commit fraud. the deception can range from pretending to be your bank, to selling you goods or services that are fake, or you will never receive”. the focus of it all, being to obtain money or information under false pretence or deception. most at times, old people seem to be the primary target of these fraudsters. according to (lage and jackson 2017: 6), “whilst we are all susceptible to scam calls, figures from national trading standards show that older people are being deliberately targeted, more so than other demographics” these fraudsters capitalize on the fact that older people are usually vulnerable, and most of the time, they suffer from dementia or alzheimer’s disease, dwindling conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 272 memory and cognitive impairment in general. also, the fact that elderly people are technologically unaware, digitally debarred, often alone, and are privileged to have money and assets at their disposal, has made them more liable to be scammed. ordinary conversation is the most basic form of talk. this basic form of talk accounts for mainstream negotiation, interaction and information connectivity. call scam has been perpetuated using conversational strategy and manipulations. a pragmatic analysis of such call scams would be to relate practical or contextual indices that are employed. these indices will help the researchers interpret the level of decadence in issues of insecurity in nigeria. 1.1 expressions connected with scam as the use of technology advances, scammers become more savvy and tech – efficient, thereby improving their skills on how to catch their unsuspecting targets off guard and also mount undue pressure that will push them into making hasty and regrettable decisions that will eventually turn them into victims. below are some of the commonly used terms and their meaning culled from waugh (2021). some bloggers’ site and interview sessions with some of our students are presented under four categories. 1.1.1 scam activity expressions a) call spoofing: when a scammer deliberately falsifies the information or the identity that appears on the targeted victim’s phone caller id in order to disguise their true identity, and appear as someone familiar to the target, or some representative of a known service provider company, for the purpose of scamming the target, it is called call spoofing. b) skimming: this fraud is perpetrated by scammers, using a device called skimmer. the skimmer device is attached to automated teller machines and point of sale systems in awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 273 public places like the fuel stations, parks, markets, etc. in order to extract information on the credit card’s magnetic strip which fraudulently pilfers the information in a credit card chip for their dubious use. c) hacking: in recent times, with the increase in fraudulent activities, hacking has become one of the most popular words in use. it is the unauthorized access to phones, tablets, computers and other devices with the aim of accessing information for illicit purposes. d) mail fraud: this is also called wire fraud in some places like the united states of america. scammers send fraudulent emails to their targets, intentionally disguised as government issued mails, mails from reputable companies, schools, immigration, etc. with the sole intention to defraud the target of either money or vital information needed for other fraudulent activities. e) identity theft: this scam involves stealing of another’s personal information like their credit card number, name, license, identity card number and others to commit fraud against the owner using the stolen details. f) smishing: this is a fraudulent practice of sending text messages also known as sms (short message service) to unsuspecting targets. since caller id’s are easily spoofed, such text messages appear to come from trustworthy sources or mistaken to be from the person whose phone caller id has been spoofed. g) robocall: an automated / recorded telephone calls or messages impersonating a human caller. h) wire or money transfer: oftentimes, scammers hack into people’s phones, thereby gaining access to their personal information, phone contacts inclusive. they proceed by conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 274 sending messages to the victim’s contacts and acting like the owner of the device, they try to convince the targets to send them money through a wire or money transfer means. sometimes, they cook up stories and make it sound like the real owner of the device is in trouble or has an emergency and need help with funds transfer. 1.1.2 expressions that describe scammers there are many other names used for scammers across the globe. it is well known that scammers are called names like fraudsters, swindlers, tricksters, con artists, defrauders, sham, imposters, rogues, fake, etc. in nigeria particularly, these fraudsters are identified with names like; i) yahoo boys/ g boys: this name signifies or identifies the bearer(s) as a scammer. it is the number 1 nickname for scammers in nigeria. the name originated from the use of yahoo messenger to scam people back in the days. j) yahoo plus: this is an upgraded version of the yahoo boys, because the scammers in this category are not ordinary scammers, rather they are those ones who believe in the use of charms and magical powers for protection and to charm their targets. k) azaman: a name coined from the frequent use of the word aza which means account number. because of their lavish and non-prudent lifestyle, scammers are known for how they spend lavishly. therefore, an azaman is a scammer with a lot of money to throw around. and does not hesitate to ask for account number for quick giveaway. l) homeboys: a homeboy is a scammer still under training. homeboys are used for those still learning the process to awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 275 become well trained scammers. they are also known as fraud apprentice. 1.1.3 expressions that describe scam victims just like the scammers have different names, there are also names for the victims. m) mgbada: mgbada is an igbo name for deer which is usually a prey for hunters. in the same vein, the name mgbada translates into an identity for scam victims especially in nigeria. n) fools: once a scammer gains access to the identity of a large group of people, these people are labelled fools by the scammer. o) maga /mugu: this is a name given to a male foreigner who is being scammed and deceived into believing he is involved in a romantic chat with a beautiful girl without having the slightest idea he possibly chatting with a boy somewhere within nigeria. the term maga/mugu means a senseless or foolish person. it has also extended to local victims. 1.1.4 expressions typically used by scammers p) format: scammers have an arranged manner or pattern which they use in sending emails, text messages and even calls to their targets. their modus operandi is known as format. q) legit: this means legitimate. just some other words, this is not restricted to scammers alone, but they use it to confirm the authenticity of information given about a target. information or details about a target is legit when it is legitimate or confirmed to be true. r) picker: a picker is someone whose account has been provided for use, especially for foreign fraudulent conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 276 transactions. proceeds from these scams are deposited into the account provided by the picker. s) wayawaya: this is the term used by scammers to discuss money coming from their foreign victims. once wayawaya(wire) is mentioned by someone who doesn’t have any legitimate business abroad or family members outside the country to send (wire) money, it is most likely suspectable such a person is into fraud or a scammer t) aza: aza is a slang which has become a part of the nigerian vocabulary. it simply means account number. scammers and fraudsters use this term a lot even though the use of the word aza is not restricted to scammers alone. u) grinding: grinding is a general term for hustling or working hard. scammers also use it to express the level of hard work they put into getting their format right and the sleepless nights they experience especially when they have a target who resides in a country with a different time zone. this socalled hard work is what they refer to as grinding. v) opata: this term is used to express that a discussion is rubbish or nonsense. in other words, when a target is saying something that is out of line or different from what the scammers expect to hear, they call it “opata” which simply means the target is talking rubbish, trash or nonsense. w) bad market: not all experiences with their targets go well or yield money. a times, they encounter targets who are aware of their plans to scam them, and those type of encounter may seem rough and not so smooth and may lead the abortion of a laid down plan or format. cases like these are referred to as bad market, failed venture or an unsuccessful move. x) shaye: shaye is a nigerian term which means to live life. scammers also use it to express the need to have fun, party awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 277 or club. it is not associated with scam or fraud, and its usage is not restricted to scammers or fraudsters. however, because they live a lavish lifestyle, always partying and clubbing it’s as if the word “shaye” is mostly heard from them. y) eke: eke has become a name commonly used by people on the streets or hustlers. eke is a term used for the nigerian police, and scammers use this name a lot whenever they talk about the police. scammers are fraudsters, so they use this name to alert their members and inform them of the presence of the police without mentioning the name police. z) hk: this is a term for headquarters. their headquarters is usually a place they converge to do their fraudulent business. most times, these scammers gather at a place to perpetrate their act. conversational analysis (ca) focuses on the study of human social interaction. this study of social interaction started from the lectures and writings of the late harvey sacks in the 1960’s. later in the 1960’s and early 1970’s, a consolidation in his collaboration with emmanuel schegloff and gail jefferson was made. conversational analysis is considered as the study of talk in interaction and other forms of human conduct in interaction other talk, for instance, body language, gesture, gaze, etc. (sidnell, 2010). during a conversation, which is a social way of using language with other people, there are concepts to be noted. sacks et al (1974) highlights three basic elements of conversation, the turn taking, adjacency pair, and sequential implicativeness. the basic unit of the conversation is the ‘turn’, which means, a shift in the direction of the speaking ‘flow’ which is characteristic of normal conversation. moreover, in normal, civilized, western – type conversation, people involved in the conversation, or conversationalists do not speak at the same conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 278 time, they wait and take ‘turns’ showing that not more than one person talks at a time (sacks,1995). the term adjacency pairs, refers to an order involving two related utterances is made by two speakers. for instance, if speaker a asks, “how do you do?” a response of “i am doing great” is expected from speaker b. thus, in adjacency pair, the creation of an utterance from one speaker, meets with an acknowledging response from the second speaker. example, a complain meets with an apology, a greeting with a greeting, a question with an answer, etc. finally, sequential implicativeness focuses on the speaker’s ability to make contributions based on the existing understanding of the conversation on ground. a speaker can make input in a conversation by showing the understanding gained from the previous turn, and divulge their expectation concerning the next turn. conversational analysis theory forms the basis of this study as it best addresses the issues of scam calls raised in this paper. 2. studies on cybercrime and scamming ibikunle and odunayo (2013) and makeri (2017) worked on the challenges facing cyber security in nigeria with focus on reasons for cybercrime and ways to ensure cyber security. he gave seven categories of cybercrime, such as hacking, where the perpetrator finds out a loophole in an operating system and gains access through that either to lay hold of classified document or destroy important files. cyber-theft though categorizes differently is a next step after hacking. viruses and worms also are handy tools in the hands of the deviant, introduced to destroy files or crash the system. a bit different one is financial fraud termed “phishing‟ . the scammer tries to gain the potential victim’s trust by posing as a worker in an organization the victim is part of. this is some sort of identity theft also used to exploit people of their credit card details; web cloners share similar objectives too. most of the monies gotten from the awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 279 media are usually made untraceable using cyber laundering skills. cyber harassment is more of stalking one on the internet using threats. most of these categories are interwoven and in feedback relationship. however, the researcher’s financial fraud through calls (ibikunle and odunayo, 2013; makeri, 2017). ibikunle and odunayo (2013) and makeri (2017) identified some of these scam in nigeria as will scam, online charity scam, next of kin scam,“winning ticket in lottery you never entered” scam, state department’s green card lottery and many others, however, the peculiarities of call scams were not specified and this research will provide insight on that. ibikunle and odunayo (2013) and makeri (2017) outlined problematic domestic and international law enforcement, unemployment, poverty level, inability to provide comprehensive, functional database for the country as some of the major motivations for cybercrime. ibikunle and odunayo (2013) and makeri (2017) iterated that the solution to cybercrime resides in education and building up cyber defense such as firewall, encrypting, creating anti and spy viruses amongst others. uwadia and eti (2018) gave other sources of motivation for cybercrime to include inactivation of the privacy settings one’s laptop, sharing of passwords, easy to predict passwords, working on classified files and using social media handles at the same time among others. the work suggested that implementation of the 43 section cybercrime prosecution acts of 2015, mounting of surveillance cameras, adopting the use of nogender screen name, activation of security settings and using knotcracking passwords will go a long way in curbing cybercrime in nigeria. the work however did not discuss the mechanisms in everyday cybercrime regarding peoples’ experiences for proper awareness. this paper addresses this gap. conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 280 sule, mat , sambo, tal , and yahaya (2021) went a step further in a closer interface with anti-cybercrime enforcement personnel, gaining access to their conversations on cybercrime, asking questions on cybercrime from security agencies and institutes on cybersecurity, with the objective of assessing the consequences of cybercrime and inadequate cybersecurity on the economy and security of nigeria and nigerians. these researchers used the muthiah alagapp 1987’s model of national security of developing states to drive home this aim. this work attempted a one on one interaction with persons involved in cybercrime issues however, while the author directed their focus on the crime fighters, this present research focuses on the victims and perpetrators with aim of grading the level of insecurity using conversational analysis. 3. data presentation and analysis1 audio clips on scam calls were scouted for (from victims who record their calls or anyone who has access to such recordings and social media) listened to, transcribed using jefferson’s pragmatic transcription model and interpreted using conversational analysis propounded by harvey sacks, which involves analysis of natural conversations with the view of extracting linguistic features and everyday talk characteristics (silverman, 1998). duration of clips 1 i indicates the researchers glossing of the igbo language expressions used by the participants. (.) means pause, pause, >< quickened speech pace, <> slowed speech pace, [] overlapping speech, (( ))contextual information with no indication (here extra information is given within the bracket) indicates particular interest to the analyst), = latched speech, :: elongated speech or stretched sound. rreceiver, 2r –second receiver, 01,02 etc –line 1,2 etc. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 281 vary from 0.56 -5.28 minutes. a total number of 10 clips were used in this research. example 1  r.01: hello (.) hello (.) onye na-ekwu i(who is speaking)  c.02: madam (.) >i am mr gaius from first bank ikoyi branch, lagos<.  r.03: [ikooo:: ]  c.04: [ikoyi], <ikoyi lagos>. madam, you are:: chinwe aniagboso, priscilla  05: right?  r.06: >ee ee onwee? i(yes yes anything?)<(indicator 1: surprised to  07:hear name)  c.08: madam, your account has a problem and customer care needs to fix it else 09: your account can be hacked. i mean, fraudulent people can easily withdraw 10: money from your account without you knowing  r.11: jesus (( naivety indicated )) the talk makes use of balanced turn taking and equal conversation power, adjacency pairing, repair, response. these are all present and the conversation just started and the participants are getting to know each other. lines 01-02 indicate a proper introduction and adjacency pairing making the caller identifiable. in line 01, the receiver allocates turn to the caller using the question-answer technique, onye na-ekwu? asking this question, indirectly suggests that it it the turn of the caller to speak. the caller also allocates turn to the receiver in line 05 using confirmation technique, ‘right?’ line 03 suggests a knowledge gap when the receiver elongates the ‘o’ sound indicating that the location of the caller was not adequately captured. the receiver helps to supply this using the repair technique. the fast conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 282 speech in lines 02 was used to show some level of professionalism while the slowed speech in line 04, you are indicates either that the caller is not conversant with the name and slowed down to get it right; or that the caller wants to claim some level of unfamiliarity /formal attachment to the name, making it look like the name or account is of no personal interest to him. the information in lines 08-10 is the main thrust of this scam call and the response in line 11 can be said to be a preferred response given that the caller may have wanted the receiver to buy this idea. this clip represents the first stage this study observes as the shock stage. this is the stage where most people are not yet aware of certain crimes or their possibility. the factors that gave wheels to this assumption is the adherence to the techniques of ca. the participants maintained adequate turn taking. the introduction by the caller as demanded by the receiver fulfilled the adjacency pairing technique making the caller somehow responsible. the receiver’s details are let out in the guise to authenticate that the person receiving the call is the true owner of the account. however from another angle, it is a tactics to create some sort of genuine and trust in the mind of the receiver and at the same time distracts the receiver from any form of security intuitiveness, shifting the receiver’s focus on assuring the caller that s/he is the right person other than confirming or enquiring same from the caller. more so, the calm and professional disposition of the caller, using fast and slow speech where naturally needed while enlightening the receiver of the problems with the account seals this trust. anyone can fall victim at this stage but the elderly people and uneducated are more vulnerable. this stage ends without the receiver knowing/realizing it was a scam. when the deduction alert starts coming in and the receiver gets to the bank that the fraud is detected. this stage, though filled with shock and pain, is indirectly awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 283 portraying a less corrupt society. another type of scam call is presented in example (2) example (2)  r.01: 6875 7325 1243(.) i can’t see very well. biko nwee ndidi i(be patient)  02: agozie:: come and help me call the numbers biko i(please)  2r.03 : hello  c.04: <i am gaius from first bank>, >please help her call out the digits<  r2.05: god punish you ((scammer identified))  c.06: sorry?  r2.07: wicked soul, see old woma =  c.08: you, thunder fire you ((scam aborted)) here turn taking was adhered to; however the introduction of the third participant required another cycle of introduction. the slow and fast speech professional flow was employed adequately in the introduction however the response of the receiver in line 05 which is far from being a befitting response of line 04 violates adjacency pairing. this suggests that there is a prior knowledge the second receiver has. line 05 is a dispreferred response which the caller tried to align or repair using the line 06. the repeated dispreferred response in line 07 made the caller to give a commensurate response to the insults of the receiver. the caller cutting short the second receiver in line 07 and self-selecting him (self) to speak, violates turn taking technique. here it is observed that the prior knowledge of the second receiver (hence forth r2) identified the call as a scam call irrespective of the calmness of the caller. after this discovery, it is observed that the receiver and caller both violated the adjacency conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 284 pairing, refused repair and alignment and engaged in self-selection. this shows that prior knowledge contributes immensely to talk in interaction. this can be likened to sequential implicativeness imported from previous experiences into the present conversation. the second clip is what this study identified as the ‘basic knowledge’ stage. here the shock of scam calls has subsided, and news has spread about the crime. however, there are still individuals in the community who may still be victims due to their inability to access the warnings from the bank or quite oblivious of what is happening in their environment. the aged and illiterate also fall into this category. they can only be rescued if younger or literate persons intervene. the abusive word exchange in lines 05 and 07 indicate that the whole plan has been messed up and the scam aborted. the stage is basically using the knowledge of existing insecurity to avoid victimization. the abuses do not in any way stop the spread or caution the scammer. in fact, the response of the caller shows that he is neither afraid nor limited in anyway. the next clip is a bit different in content as seen in example (3) example (3)  r.01: hello (.)  c.02: hello (.) >am i on to micheal onukwa<.  r.03: yeees (.) please who am i speaking with?  c.04: ok (.) >i am victor from megahit draw. congratulations on your n500,000 05: random draw award. phone numbers of subscribers are used in this exercise and 06: you are one of the lucky winners. congratulations once again<  r.07: (.) ((sensing fraud))  c.08: hello (.) awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 285  r.09: yes yes . continue i’m with you((bracing up to block every manipulative  10: access))  c.11: ok (.)>like i was saying, you won the n500, 000 megahit draw. you may need 12: to come to our headquarters at wuse , fct, abuja for proper documentation  13: before you can access the cash prize.  r.14: abuja? (.)  c.15: >there could be a way around it sir. the logistics arm of our firm can help you 16: with the documentation if you send the required details and the sum of n50,000 17: registration fee which was paid for you initially by the company<  r.18: n50, 000?  c.19: yes . >this is 10% of the cash prize and is required to be paid before the draw. 20: however, you were one of the lucky ones the company considered to sponsor<  r.21: thank you for reaching out to me. what details do you need from me?  c.22: <your name, bank, account number and phone number, sir> after paying the 23:registration fee, the …  r.24: ok. you already have my name and phone number. please tell your logistics 25: unit to help me with the documentation, process the money then deduct n50, 000 26: from my money. i can then send my account number for the money to be  27: transferred. thank …  c.28: <there are organizational procedures, sir>  r.29: please pay for me and deduct even n150,000  c.30: beep beep beep ((call drops)) conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 286 here turn taking and adjacency pairing are observed. however the information in line 04 sounds so good to be true especially if the receiver never registered for any draw. this is observed in the receiver’s silence in line 07. lack of excitement also suggests that something is not right. the caller wants to make sure his cover is not blown, he seeks the attention of the receiver using the adjacency greeting technique ‘hello’, in line 08. the preferred response of the receiver (in line 09) when it is likely that he is aware of danger suggests mischief in his own part. lines 14 and 15 violate the adjacency pairing technique. the question ‘abuja?’ is expected in formal conversation to be responded to as ‘yes’ given that the receiver needs a confirmation of the location but the caller suggestion to help the receiver out, when the receiver didn’t complain of inability to travel, and adding a substantial fee of n50,000. fuelled the dispreferred responses that ensued from lines 24 -30. the caller claims that the receiver won a certain prize but needs to go through some documentation which require some payment (which he the caller is willing to help the prize winner do, if he just sends in his details and the clearance charge) and afterwards will be asked to send his account details and then the cash prize will be transferred to him. note the calm disposition of the receiver and the quick speeches (>…<) showing off competence as a public relations officer. conversely, the receiver gives affirmative responses seemingly projected to help the caller achieve his goal. lines 22 -25 clearly shows that he succeeded in indirectly throwing the caller off balance when mr caller thought he has his game. the attempt in line 26 to bring in protocol issues in order to nullify the receiver’s argument, spurred the receiver into the bargain in line 27 (where he pleads with the caller to pay with his own money and deduct it in 3 measures from the cash prize), all in the bid to just pay the caller back in his own coin. the beep at the awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 287 caller’s end marks the abrupt ending of the call. here it is assumed that the caller was resisted from every angle until he ran out of schemes. the third stage is known as the blocking/restraining/logic stage. this happens when the receiver notices after some minutes that it is a scam call and immediately forms a defense to politely block off the luring. let’s consider another example of scam call. example 4  r.01: and you have received your money  c.02: aaaahhhh. i have received my money, buy all sorts of things, doing all sorts 03: of businesses  r.04: and people don’t know about this...bitcoin… is currency of china and by 05: the time you change it to nigerian money, is big money now…. know i use to 06: hear about this [bitcoin, i didn’t know]  c.07:[if you want to come to our plat form]  r.08: i even have classmates i can refer them  c.09: the more you refer people the more your bonus. so quickly meet up with 10: me so i can attend to the next person (( initiates end of conversation ))  r.11: <thank god, thank you mr patrick. god bless you. honestly, it’s now i 12: understand how this bitcoin business is going. people will just come and use 13: you to do scam and run away with your money ((initiates new  14: conversation)). you now, you take your time to explain this thing very well  c15:yeah yeah so that you will know how it works and how we also get our money conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 288 here the turn taking is balanced. the receiver seems to talk more than the caller. again adjacency pairing is violated by the receiver in line 08 when he avoided being introduced to a certain platform, in line 11 when he ignored the end signal of conversation by the caller (which is ‘so i can attend to the next person’ seen in line 10). this conversation may be said to be partially hijacked by the receiver. this clip suggests that the receiver is fully aware of the ills in the society, the mechanisms, manifestations, diversities and all. there is no shock, restrain, anger in this stage. though there is an overwhelming height of insecurity, the receiver feels that he can maneuver through them and braces himself to take advantage of the caller. from this excerpt, it is observed that the receiver freely discusses the fears of the society concerning scam calls but indirectly assures the caller that he thinks he is genuine. this luring and assurance are tactics that naturally would belong to the caller but has been usurped by the receiver is the skill to give hope and make the other participant very optimistic about a big game/catch. the promise to get more people into the business whets the appetite of the caller. consider the excerpts of another scam call. example (5)  c.01: have you gone to the bank yet  r.02: i have called the bank guy, so the bank guy told me to exercise patience, so 03: i am exercising patience.  c.04: why can’t you? don’t you know how to do ussd code?  r.05: usb, usb charger?  c.06: ussd code, code  r.07: please teach me that usd let me know how i will do it awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 289 here turn taking technique was adhered to. however, receiver in line 05 used an expression wrongly and still ignored the repair technique offered by the caller in line 06 and continued using wrong expressions in line 07. it is also observed that the receiver assumed the position of a novice and to take advantage of the callers’ time, voucher and intellect. let’s consider the subsequent conversation in example (6) example (6)  c.01: okay let me send it to you, let me first teach you the procedure first  r.02: okay  c0.3: dial star seven one zero star the amount, which is five thousand, star the 04: account number. i’m going to send you the account number=  r.05: <let me try it, let me try it= because even me self i'm convi=>  c.06: it will work, try it on your access bank let me send you the account 07:number  c.08: i’m going to send it to you now, star the account number and you will  09: press hash..once you press hash then you will proceed and you are going to 10: see the name of the account number and you proceed yes, and you will write 11:your pin and you will transfer the money  r.12: i’m convinced, i’m convinced in my heart that this thing is genuine  c.13: you have nothing to be worried about sir, i am the one assuring you, i 13: attend deeper life church i can't lie to you i am an elderly man i am assuring 14: you. conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 290 here the receiver violates the adjacency pairing in line 05, 12 employing slow speech. the caller on the other hand, violates the turn taking in lines 06 and 08. this may be as the result of the impatience in getting the job done. the introduction of a side topic on religion just to assure the receiver of his integrity took another turn as the receiver in violation of the adjacency principle, made it the main topic. see example 7 example 7  r.01: ooooh you attend deeper life...  c.02: you will be the one to call me and thank me for this opportunity sir  r.03: you attend deeper life church ((insists on the new topic))  c.04: yes sir i attended deeper life church  r.05: wow my brother (laughs) ooo this is wonderful…. i use to attend deeper 06: life when i was in the village  c.07: wow that is =  r.08: woooow,eeeehn that's very good, praise the lord!  c.09: alleluia sir  r.10: praise the lord! my brother,chai,kai  c.11: okay sir quickly proceed=((initiates previous topic))  r.12: which branch of deeper life do you attend? ((insists on the present 13: ‘fruitless’ topic))  14: background noise, beep beep here the caller breaks the adjacency pairing in line 2 and the receiver in turn breaks the adjacency pairing in line 03 just to retain his topic of interest. the caller obeys the adjacency pairing to satisfy the immediate conversational desire of the receiver so that the initial discussion can continue. in line 11, the caller tactically reinitiated awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 291 the previous topic but the receiver totally ignores it. adjacency pairing takes care of smooth running of a conversation and where it is lacking, coherence which is one of the principles of conversational analysis is totally lost. this explains the frustration of the caller in dropping the call. the final phase of this stage four is when the scammer realizes that the receiver is not willing to part with his penny but would rather continue to rigmarole. both speakers violate adjacency pairing rule when they ignore the expected response from each other and continue on lines of thought more preferable to them. the less motivated gives in. 4. conclusion shock is felt when there is a new introduction that disrupted a once serene state. this shock was once felt for the first time a government official embezzles money or someone demanding sex in exchange for a job, took a contract and failed to deliver. whatever the scenario is, from the data discussed under stage 1, we have observed there is always an inception of insecurity of our money, lives, resources and the nation in general. and this inception comes with shock to the first-hand victims and the nation in general. this is quite understood and expected because it has never been the norm. in diversifying the crimes under the basic knowledge stage, and placing the searchlight on the nigerian politicians, a scenario is painted and it shows that crimes committed make waves all over the nation, draws attention of the law enforcement agencies, the media as it makes headlines, the news is well circulated, the masses rejoice and commend the law enforcement agencies involved for a job well done, etc. it appears so convincing that the politicians who committed the heinous offences will go in for it, considering the media visibility and the involvement of the law enforcement agencies. sadly, the news starts to dwindle, information begins conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 292 disappear, it ends in court with court cases always adjourned to far dates, several hearings in court, forfeiture of properties in nigeria and other places begin ... at this point, one would expect a conclusion of the case and judgment of the jail term meted out on these politicians whose properties bought with public funds has just been forfeited as a penalty to show that a crime was committed. alas, killing and ruining all hopes of bringing the defaulters to book. subsequently, a pardon is granted, and after a little while, the same defaulters go ahead to vie for higher political position, and to the amazement of all, they win and get into power yet again. supporting the above claim, is the case of former governor of enugu state, his excellency chimaroke nnamani. a federal high court in lagos has ordered that four companies associated with former enugu state governor, chimaroke nnamani, be forfeited to the federal government. the four companies – rainbow net nigeria limited, cosmos f. m, capital city automobile nigeria limited and renaissance university teaching hospitalwere convicted by a judge of the lagos court, mohammed yinusa, on tuesday after pleading guilty to a 10 – count amended charge against them by the economic and financial crimes commission. furthermore, at the ruling, counsel to the anti-graft agency, kevin uzozie, prayed the court to make the order of final forfeiture of the companies based on their plea. reviewing the facts, mr yinusa made an order of final forfeiture of the properties which includes 22 duplex buildings in ebeano under tunnel and so many others. (premium times, july 7, 2015). another report unveils the revelation made by the fbi on how the former governor chimaroke nnamani stole $41.8 million, paid millions of dollars in cash for florida property. report has it that the former governor used the ill-gotten riches to acquire luxury assets in florida, according to a statement submitted by the fbi in a awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 293 forfeiture proceeding. the alleged crime was committed during his tenure as governor of enugu state between may 1999 and may 2007. among his co-conspirators are peter mbah (the governor elect of enugu state), late sam ejiofor and chika ohaa. (9news, october 4, 2022). with the above information, especially as it concerns looting of public funds, one would expect that the politicians involved would never have the opportunity of holding any public office again. however, that is not the case, because the former governor of enugu state, chimaroke nnamani became a senator representing enugu east senatorial district under the platform of the people’s democratic party, pdp from 2007-2011 and returned to the senate in 20192023. in this case, it appears as if looting, misappropriation of funds, money laundering, crime in general does not in any way dent the image or affect the political career of these politicians. this is more like endorsing the laundering of our national resources; a case of national and state insecurity. in the third stage, the victim tries to block or wade off every access of being scammed using nonviolent resistance. this comes as an aftermath of an awareness of the issue on ground. for instance, during elections corrupt politicians get involved in vote buying, they come to the pooling units with lots of money, entice some of the voters and get them to change their mind and vote in another candidate in order to collect money. this blocking stage, is the stage where these voters/ masses are tired of the corruption /election scam, and have decided to take the bull by the horn by electing the candidate that appeals to their conscience, someone who has the capacity to work for the masses and not loot, and by so doing, refuse to be enticed with money and also refuse to sell their votes to the opposition candidate. this claim is evident in the action of a certain old woman from ebenebe in anambra state, that made waves in the conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 294 news over her refusal to take money and vote for a candidate that is not her choice candidate. in the past election that brought prof. chukwuma soludo into office, the said woman was captured on camera as she vehemently refused financial inducement during the election. (www.vanguardngr.com september 18, 2022). a similar event in this stage is the endsars saga. this revolt organized by young nigerians who came together to block and put an end to an ugly recurrent trend of violence by the police. nigeria has recorded series of issues bothering on police brutality, mainly against the youth, but little or nothing has been done about it. the spark that birthed the endsars protest was a video of a man allegedly being killed by the notorious and scandalous special anti-robbery squad (sars) which went viral. for two weeks, nigerian youths were protesting in different and almost every part of the country, saying ♯ no to police brutality, ♯ stop the killing, ♯ endsars and some other slogans. this protest got the attention of the government, and they promised to disband sars and setup judicial panels of inquiry to look probe the allegations of abuse by officers. (www.bbc.com october 2021). protests of large number of youths lasted that long because they chose to be organized, civil and rightfully drive home their point. the fourth stage is replica of the nigeria we see today.the storylines of 2022 asuu strike and the tussle with the federal government for eight months was expected to rouse the anger of masses rather it was used for cartoons, social media tiktok jokes and personal entertainment. (makinde, 2023). the 2023 election campaigns were colored with obvious incompetence of some candidates, seen in their speeches, physical and cognitive instability. these became raw materials for social media jokes, slangs and part of conversational comic relief and ice breakers in events. http://www.bbc.com/ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 295 this research identified progressive and yet, overlapping stages of depreciation in the security of nigerians. it is progressive in the sense that the first level has lesser implications than the second and so on. it is overlapping in the sense that the progression is not running wholly around the nation rather each unit or section or arm or organization or family or persons have different progressive stages they are involved in. this implies that someone in three different organizations may be exposed to two to three or all the four stages of this security depreciation. the study encourages that the linguistic cues harnessed from these scam calls be provided in the content of media jingles for awareness against scam calls and insecurity in general. references akin, ibidabo-obe. (2008). the utility of closecircuit television (cctv) in intelligence gathering by security operatives in nigeria. proceedings of conference on intelligent security, lagos. coupland, r. (2007). security, insecurity and health. bulletin of the world health organization 85,181-184. holt, t.j. (2016). fraud in the digital age: towards a criminology of the information age. routledge. ishola, a.h.(2019). insecurity as an impediment to development in nigeria. veritas journal of humanities 1(1) kshetri, n. (2017). blockchain’s roles in strengthening cybersecurity and protecting privacy. telecommunications policy. 41(10), 1027-1038. lage, i., & jackson, c. (2017). protecting consumers from scam calls: toolkit for the citizens advice network. https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/global/citizensadvice/ca mpaigns conversational analysis of scam calls in nigeria – iloanusi & chimezie 296 levi, m. (2009). financial crime in: michael tonry (ed.), oxfordhandbook of crime and public policy. 223-246. new york: oxford university press. makeri, y. (2017). cyber security issues in nigeria and challenges. international journal of advanced research in computer science and software engineering. volume 7, issue 4, april 2017 www.ijarcsse.com makinde, p.o. (2023). visual representation of asuu strikes in nigeria: a semiotic analysis of cartoons in selected nigerian newspapers. language and semiotic studies. doi:10.1515/lass-2023-0006 ibikunle, f., & odunayo, e.(2013). approach to cyber security issues in nigeria: challenges and solution. international journal of cognitive research in science, engineering and education vol. 1, no.1, 2013. www.ijcrsee.com sule, b., mat, b., sambo, u., tal, m., & yahaya, m. (2021) cybersecurity and cybercrime in nigeria: the implications on national security and digital economy. journal of intelligence and cyber security. volume 4, issue 1: october 2021 sacks, h., schegloff, e., & jefferson, g. (1974). a simplest systematics for the organization of turntaking in conversations. language 50(4):696-735. sacks, h. (1995). lectures on conversation. gail jefferson, (ed.). vol i-ii oxford: blackwell. sidnell, j. (2010). conversation analysis: an introduction. west sussex, uk: wiley-blackwell. silverman david (1998) conversational interaction. new york: academic press undp (1994). human development report. new york: oxford university press. http://www.ijarcsse.com/ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 297 uwadia, f. & eti, i. (2018) cyber security in nigeria: issues, challenges and way forward. international research journal of advanced engineering and science, volume 3, issue 2, pp. 351-354, 2018. wang, y., zhang, x., & zhang, y. (2018). a novel antiphishing method based on visual similarity assessment. journal of ambient intelligence and humanized computing, 9 (2), 463-472. waugh, e. (2021). 12 common scam and fraud terms you should know. 9news, october 4, 2022 www.bbc.com october 7, 2021 www.vanguardngr.com september 18, 2022 premium times, july 7, 2015 https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/common-scam-andfraud-terms-to-know/ 21 nigerian scammer slangs | info, guides, and how-tos. (explain.com.ng) soludo rewards woman who rejected money for vote with road project (vanguardngr.com) exposed!!! how senator chimaroke nnamani stole $41.8 million, paid millions of dollars in cash for florida property fbi reveals – 9news nigeria (9newsng.com) http://www.bbc.com/ https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/common-scam-and-fraud-terms-to-know/ https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/common-scam-and-fraud-terms-to-know/ https://explain.com.ng/topic/21-nigerian-scammer-slangs/ https://explain.com.ng/topic/21-nigerian-scammer-slangs/ https://www.vanguardngr.com/2022/09/soludo-rewards-woman-who-rejected-money-for-vote-with-road-project/ https://www.vanguardngr.com/2022/09/soludo-rewards-woman-who-rejected-money-for-vote-with-road-project/ https://9newsng.com/exposed-how-senator-chimaroke-nnamani-stole-41-8-million-paid-millions-of-dollars-in-cash-for-florida-property-fbi-reveals/ https://9newsng.com/exposed-how-senator-chimaroke-nnamani-stole-41-8-million-paid-millions-of-dollars-in-cash-for-florida-property-fbi-reveals/ https://9newsng.com/exposed-how-senator-chimaroke-nnamani-stole-41-8-million-paid-millions-of-dollars-in-cash-for-florida-property-fbi-reveals/ 22 the use of drum language for security education and awareness in tiv esther i. shagba1, terver udu2, christopher o. erenje3, elizabeth ugechi4 benue state university, makurdi shagbaesther@gmail.com1 goldudu2013@gmail.com2 elizabethugechi@gmail.com3 erenjechristopher@yahoo.com4 abstract insecurity is a global menace, which has escalated to such a worrisome level that certain measures have to be put in place in order to checkmate it. the fact that there are security challenges in nigeria and west africa as a whole and indeed the world at large is no longer news to anyone. in this study, the research seeks to explore the use of drum language in tiv as a means of security awareness and prevention of crime and violence in the society. drum language in africa served as a means of communication long before the wireless cell phones were invented. in those days, drums were used to send detailed messages from village to village much faster than a person could walk in an era where there were no vehicles. even in contemporary times, the drum language is still being explored. the research has used the gratification theory propounded by blumler, katz, and gurevitch in 1974 to explicate on the effects of drums on the audience. it is gathered that drums are cheaper and more easily accessible by the natives. also, for security reasons, the use coded language that is no easily deciphered by strangers. data for this research was collected from both primary and secondary sources. oral interviews were conducted and the authors also used their intuitive knowledge to gather information. these gave credence to the work. the study finally established that the appropriate use of drums serves as preventive measures as well as mobilization and awareness creation to dispel insecurity. the aesthetic values of drums also instill peace in the hearts of the audience thus causing warring parties to lay down their arms. the research established that drum language, if effectively used, will curb insecurity and easily create awareness and sensitize the populace and impending security challenges. keywords: communication, drum language, gratification, insecurity, security awareness mailto:shagbaesther@gmail.com1 mailto:goldudu2013@gmail.com2 mailto:elizabethugechi@gmail.com3 mailto:erenjechristopher@yahoo.com4 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 23 1. introduction insecurity is the state of being vulnerable, unguarded, defenseless, undefended and unsafe. the period of insecurity makes it difficult for people to sleep with both eyes closed. the state of insecurity makes things unpredictable by both the government and the masses. in nigeria, west africa and indeed the world at large, there is so much insecurity that there is never a day one wakes up without hearing about one security challenge or the other. this is prevalent both in the rural and urban areas. this paper seeks to bring to bear some of the security challenges as well as methods to tackle them. the use of the drum language is the measure that is being advocated to ensure security education and awareness creation to curb insecurity. before the advent of the telephone and other western based channels of communication in africa, there was a medium of communication, which allowed africans to relay messages from one village to another without any worry of interception. this channel of communication was the drum; it enabled people to communicate at a distance of ten miles and sometimes greater, depending on the time of the day and the activities in the village. in traditional african society, drums are essentially significant mediums of communication, which serve as a voice of the whole community and communicate their desires and wishes. although, drum messages are not languages in their own right, they are however, based on actual natural languages. sounds produced by drums are idiomatic signals based on a particular speech pattern with fixed context dependent messages. this makes drum languages culturally defined, depending on the linguistic boundaries of that particular culture. sometimes misinterpretation could occur in decoding the message and sometimes it could be interpreted awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 24 correctly. the message is usually exclusively understood by those that share the same cultural background because it is usually passed with cultural precision. in the tiv cultural environment, drums were used to communicate from village to village, community to community among others across the length and breadth of tivland as well as communicating with the supernatural world. drums were fashioned to enhance grassroots mobilization for developmental needs of the society. drum messages were meant for formalized announcements about impending danger, birth, death, marriage, forthcoming hunt or wrestling contests for instance. drums were played at the death of important community leaders to announce, give alert or signal the members of the community concerning the news of such death. aside from announcement and messages; drum languages were used as the most common form of expression and were understood very well by the populace. as important as drum language is to the dissemination of information, very little concern and attention has been given to address the phenomenon of this language among the tiv people of recent. as a general information tool, it has been neglected not to talk of using it for a highly needed purpose like security education, and the governments of west africa have also done very little or nothing concerning security education and emergency preparedness. it is against this backdrop that this paper seeks to advocate for the revival of the drum language, not just as a form of communication by which to impart security education and create awareness among the members of the community to arise to security consciousness in the wake of so many security challenges. the major aim of this study is to advocate for the use of drum language for security education and awareness among the tiv populace. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 25 2. literature review in this segment, a brief review of some related literature is done. the concepts reviewed are as follows: 2.1 drums and drum languages the drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, technically classified as the membranous. the drum consists of at least one membrane called a drumhead or drum skin. the skin is stretched over a shell and struck either directly with the player’s hands, or with a drumstick, to produce sound (grove, 2001:26). according to uzukwu (1997:17), the drum is a unique symbol or instrument of communication in black africa and is comparable to the bible and the koran because it carries the primordial word which is identical to the primordial word of these books. uzukwu (1997:19) again opines that human beings experience life in africa through rhythms of sound created by drum languages. fabre (1996:31) states that the drum is the symbol of african culture where the sound of drums forms the acoustical writing in the culture of africans than any other culture; hence, drums have played a more important role in writing in most african cultures, making them a cultural matrix through which messages pass. drums are found in nearly every culture in the world and have existed before 6000bc. they have had ceremonial, sacred, symbolic functions and take a more prominent role in tribal ceremonial gatherings where they accompanied ritual dancing and celebration. according to wikipedia (http:www.wikipedia/drumsenotes.com), drums can be classified into two main types, namely the slit gongs and pressure drums. the slit gongs, also known as message drums are larger all-wood instrument hollowed out from a single log. slit gongs have long narrow openings with hollow chambers that resonate when struck awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 26 with a stick. the tone of the sound largely depends on the wall thickness of the log. hence, the bigger the log, the louder the sound generated as well as the distance covered. moreover, the slit gong is given a stand at each end of the log to enhance the tone of the sound created. slit gongs are either crafted with intricate designs or made simple. the slit gong can send messages over a distance of 8 kilometres. johnson (2011:29) states that the drum is the oldest instrument in the world dating back to 4000bc in kemet, northeast africa. he (johnson, 2011) further describes the drum as a tool for telegraph type of communication in africa. he also maintained that the drum was used by our ancestors to communicate from village to village, community to community among others across the length and breadth of africa as well as used to communicate with the supernatural world. the drum set the pace for dance and worship, ritual and rites. other practical uses include signaling the start of the day, to lead celebrations and notify the people as well. each drum language according to him (johnson, 2011:34) is influenced by the geographical location, the size of the drum, the drum style, number of drums and the rhythm or beat pattern. moreover, drums are instruments widely used in the tiv community and have survived through decades in relation to other instruments such as toho u nanden (bush burning) and others which are rarely being used in recent times in the tiv socio-cultural communities for communication. 2.2 communicative and cultural significance of talking drums without communication, members of a society may not be able to transfer knowledge of their norms and values among themselves. the talking drum is an important cultural instrument in the african society. it is a functional communication instrument used for awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 27 disseminating information from one african community to the other. in many african societies, the talking drum serves as a potent channel of traditional communication. it is one of the most efficient communication methods used in villages and rural areas to enhance grassroots mobilization for societal development. the real significance of the talking drum lies in the role it plays in communication. in its earliest form, the talking drum served as an aid to ancient storytellers. these traveling poets and musicians would use the talking drums to carry on the oral traditions of their culture. talking drums were used as a means of inter-village communication by themselves rather than any accompaniment. instead of hand-delivering a summons or warning from one village to another, a message could be sent directly and instantly via drum language. players were taught the corresponding drum phrase for any given word. messages would then be sent through drum players beginning with the name of the recipient, followed by the name of the sender, and then finally the message. when danger approached a village, the talking drum was used to warn villagers using sounds plucked from the beat in tones that matched the speed of the approaching danger. the drum beats travelled across the air with clarity and, faster than a horse rider would, and thus, saved time. this postulation is according to akume (2021: 18-19). the talking drum is a means by which nigerians communicate with their identity. it is used in different cultures and has different names. the bambaras (mande people of mali) call it odondo or dondo; the yoruba (western nigeria) call it gangan or dundun, the hausa (northern nigeria) call it kalangu or dan karbbi, and songhai (central mali) call it doodo, the tiv people call it gbande (singular) or agbande (plural), to name a few. they awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 28 all reflect the cultures and identities of the various people that use them. culture is the way of life of a people in a particular society and the talking drum serves as an instrument to celebrate and promote the cultural heritage of people of a particular society. talking drums have been the most effective means of communication and information dissemination, not only in tiv land but its informational value spreads across sub saharan africa. the talking drums are employed not only in social gatherings among tiv people but they are also used in the traditional festivals such as dance festivals and new yam festivals. the talking drum served as an important function in west african culture and had a language specific to each region. it was used to assist in storytelling, used to relay an important message as summon to a ceremonial dance or as an aid in telling fables that taught important life lessons. when people hear of the talking drum, they believe it is just an instrument to be drummed for people to dance but it is not just that, it is also used as a means of conveying messages. messages can be conveyed in diverse forms. one can convey messages in a long or short distance depending upon the situation at hand. drums are also used in places of worship like the church. 2.3 types of drums in tiv the tiv people have different types of drums as earlier mentioned; but due to time and space constraint, only three (3) are being discussed here. the three types are: there are certain contexts in which plurality is marked in etulo by means of reduplication. the noun stem is fully reduplicated to mark entities that are more than one. however, for inanimate nouns, plural marking using the reduplication strategy is optional. below are some examples: awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 29 i. the tiv indyer: the indyer is a heavy wooden instrument carved out of mahogany trunk. ugbagir and cuttings (2013:18) describe the indyeras “a tiv indigenous ritual slit wooden hollow log instrument for communication used to be the most potent communication device in the tiv-fold. apparently, ownership of indyer was vested in the hands of agnate kinsfolk (ityô) and matrilineal kinsfolk (igbya); and owners of indyer were noble men in the tiv society and communicant members of the tiv indigenous religion. anyone desiring ownership of indyer was required to inform his ityo and igbya to get permission, after which he consulted the indyer carver (or gban indyer) to carve it for him. fig.1: showing a picture of the indyer drum. oral history has it that the making of indyer required series of blood sacrifices. the blood needed for sacrifice for the making of indyer was that of human and the tiv native cow awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 30 (bua tiv). the costs and sacrifices involved, notwithstanding, it was a potential tool for communication among the tiv people. the ilyu and indyer, according to gbenda (2005:39) are also used in communicating with the ancestral world. ii. the ilyu: the ilyu is a light wooden instrument which was used to pass messages to people in the villages. this was either for the invitation of the people for a particular meeting of the elders at the king’s palace or for the people to gather at the market square for a message from the king. akume (2021:24) posits that the ilyu is now used as an instrument to indicate the death of someone. it is also used during marriage ceremonies to announce the marriage of important personalities. fig. 2: showing the picture of the ilyu drum awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 31 however, the ilyu is smaller than the indyer. it is used for marriage ceremonies along with the agbande and kwen. in places of worship (churches) too some smaller versions of ilyu are used alongside with agbande to give beautiful rhythms that accompany the spiritual songs. iii. gbande: the gbande is a memberanophonic wooden musical instrument made of artistically carved wooden pipetry and is covered with animal skin. according to akume (2021:25), the tiv gbande is “a hollow cylinder of wood or in advanced tiv technology, metal, with skin or vellum stretched on ring-like frames fitted over one end, kept with hook and cords.” it is played by beating the head or the heads if it is double-sided with ave (hands) or asavagbande (drum sticks). fig. 3: tiv gbande (talking drum) awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 32 the construction of gbande is a highly technological process that demands skill and training to make it perfect. the history of gbande making or construction dates back to 1758ad under a renowned stone mason and blacksmith called gyar anyi. the gbande belongs to the african instruments category called the membranophones. a membrane material is stretched over a frame and it is attached through pegs or hides strips. drums are the most common membranophones and are the most popular musical instruments in the tiv nation and the entire nigeria. invariably, the sizes of agbande (drums) vary from ichorugh to birim (abirim plural) and indyergenga which means from very small ones to the ones that reach 11 to 13 feet; and their shapes vary from cylindrical to cask, and in x-shape form. the position of playing agbande essentially depends on the size, combination and shape. some of the agbande are placed on the ground, between the knees or simply slung over the shoulder of the player. the position depends on the size and weight of the drums. in some cases, two or more agbande are combined and laid on a platform for a player who is dexterous in managing the beating and tone of the respective drums. akume (2021:26) further reiterates that in the tiv traditional technology, the purpose for which a drum is made and the meteorological conditions of the geographical location where it is to be played are the fundamental determining factors for choosing the type of materials that will be used in constructing the agbande. the best wood used in carving the gbande frame is gbaaye tree, which moth and other insects as well as water cannot destroy. in terms of imande (peg – singular) or amande (pegs plural), the trees used for making them are: ikpine, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 33 ikpikyegh, baverkpua and the like. the ikyôvor (hides, membrane or skin) is made from goat, sheep, electric fish, deer or other animals’ skin. the rope for slinging the drum over the shoulder is extracted from the skin of antelope. the gbande is of different sizes ranging from big, medium and small. 2.4 the drum chief (tor-agbande) the concept of executive chieftaincy was alien to the tiv until when the british colonialists came to establish the indirect rule system of governance in nigeria during the colonial era. it was then that the british insisted that the tiv should also have some chiefs through which they (british) would be ruling them (tiv). this was what gave rise to the selection of the first set of chiefs in tiv land known as tor-agbande (drum chief). this is aptly captured by east (2003:406) thus: the arrival of the chief was announced by the blowing of a wooden trumpet and the beating of cone-shaped drums (hence the title “drum chief”). the chief was not allowed to sit down until a specially appointed official had set him down with a bed set for him, on which was spread a leopard’s pelt. it can be deducted from this extract that the drum chiefs were so named because of the drums that were beaten to announce their arrival. they were not the drum players. 2.5 security the word security has been defined by different scholars in different ways. it is derived from the old french word securite (meaning safety) and latin securitas (meaning freedom from care; carelessness; safety) etc. the oxford advanced learners dictionary (2006:063) defines it as the activities involved in protecting a awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 34 country, building or person against attack, danger or protection against something bad that might happen. all these definitions have a central focusthat is protectionand safety. for the purpose of this research, the definition by har (2018:5) below is very essential. he considers security as: the development and implementation of mitigating measures by an individual, organization or a nation to protect lives, properties, image, reputation, procedures, policies and information from threat, harm or any form of danger by the adversary (enemy) category (sic) after a careful conduction of a risk assessment. he further defines risk assessment as the process of determining what type of measures or security controls to be selected and the cost of such security measures presented to management for approval (har, 2018:5). in this study, we are taking a careful look at security awareness and education. security education is the awareness creation of the presence or imminence of danger and ways to protect and safeguard lives, properties and places. the absence of security which is insecurity is closely related to crimes. 2.6 crime a crime is an illegal action or activity for which a person can be punished by law, an act committed in violation of a law prohibiting it, or omitted in violation of a law ordering it; often specific such as an act of felony. crimes are variously punishable by death, imprisonment or imposition of certain fines or restrictions. the range of crime includes felonies and misdemeanors, but not petty violations of local ordinances. in the legal parlance, crime is also known as offence but not all offences are criminal. on the other hand, all crimes are offensive. har (2018:31) defines crime as: awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 35 any action or omission that is punishable by law which is committed against an individual and/or the state. there must be reasonable evidence that an action or offense was committed for it to be considered and treated as a crime. the last sentence, in essence, means that even if one commits a crime and there is no evidence to convict him, he can go free. there are different types of crime in our society. among them are; theft, armed robbery, burglary, kidnapping, drug addiction and abuse, human trafficking, arson, fraud, rape, cultism, murder, pilfering, sale of fake drugs, workplace violence, ritual killing, cattle rustling, herdsmen attacks, banditry and terrorism. the presence of these and many more not mentioned here make the society so insecure that people cannot sleep with both eyes closed. something needs to be done in order to curb them. 2.7 theoretical framework this study is analyzed using the uses and gratification theory (ugt) otherwise simply known as the gratification theory. the theory was propounded by jay blumler, elihu katz and michael gurevitch in 1974. it states that people choose to consume certain kinds of media because they expect to obtain specific gratifications as a result of those selections. according to wikipedia (2022), the uses and gratification theory is an approach to understanding why and how people actively seek out specific media to satisfy specific needs. ugt is an audience-centered approach to understanding mass communication. uses and gratification theory is a well utilized theoretical framework for explaining the different motives and reasons behind the use of any given communicative medium. the users usually preferred the messages from the talking drums for security reasons. according to them, the talking drums have a peculiar and secretive way of passing information to the natives that awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 36 is not easily decipherable by strangers. this gives them a sense of security such that they feel they have an edge over their enemies. they also argue that drums are part their culture; also they are cheaper and less technical to operate than other communication gadgets. the drum is a traditional medium of communication that can be used for various purposes. each type of drum depending on the culture, has its peculiar purpose. some drums are used for ceremonial purposes like festivals; others are used to communicate messages such as the death of a king, the birth of a child, annunciation of war, appointment of a new king and so on. the gratification theory suggests that peoples’ needs influence what media they choose. it differs from other theoretical perspectives in that it regards audiences as active media users as opposed to passive receivers of information. while other traditional media theories focus on “what the media do to people” and assume audience as homogeneous, the uses and gratification theory is more concerned with “what people do with media”. the gratification theory discusses the effects of the media on people and in this case, the drum language. in other words, it can be said that the theory argues what people do with the media rather than what the media do to people. in relation to this study, the theory explains that the cultural and communicative benefits or lack thereof, derived by the tiv people while using the drum as a medium is dependent on how they use the drum to attain their needs such as information, entertainment and in this case caution and security awareness. this theory is very relevant as it advocate for proper use of drum language to sensitize the populace on security matters. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 37 3. methodology data for this research were collected chiefly through primary sources. the unstructured interview method was used to elicit information from the informants. the target population was wood carvers of drums and some traditional drummers. observation and recording of some drum languages were also done. 3.1 messages imbued in tiv drum languages in this segment, the day to day use of the drum language is discussed. after that, the aesthetic qualities of drum language are presented and analyzed, and in addition, how to use the drum language for security education and awareness is the highlight of this segment. the following are the various purposes for which the drum language is used: war; tiv gloss kabera utya kabera utya kabera utya (3x) i kase gborototo kwagh ngu van u bo kembera kembera kembera sound of war people should gather at once a bad thing is coming all together all together all together death; tiv gloss kpe! or kpe! gidiya! gidiya!! gidiya!!! died (rhythm) tiger-lord god bless the king (3x) awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 38 takuruku takuruku anyamazenga aondo a ver tor (3x) tor tile jighjigh keghen waningyo (3x) waningyo ngu van sha kumun kumun kumun utamen (3x) karen nen akar (iti) kpe do royally stand upright and await the passage of your brethren transiting on the ancient broad-way of the great beyond (yina 2011:95) come over quickly (name) has died somebody has died! somebody has died! marriage; tiv gloss kun kun kun kun akpera kwase iyar kwase kwase zende kpilidididi kwase doo kwase doo kwase u he nyor ooo rhythm mortar woman buffalo woman woman walks majestically woman is beautiful (2x) the bride has arrived oo these were gotten from both primary and secondary sources. the primary sources are from mr akua ugbede the oldest man in mbayogo district in vandeikya local government area in benue of benue state and others. the unstructured questions are at the end of the references as appendix 1 apart from the above purposes, drums are used during traditional dances and cultural festivals. with the advent of the christian religion, drums are also used by christians in their places of worship to accompany the songs of worship. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 39 3.2 the aesthetic effects of drums on the audience the rhythm of drums has not just a communicative effect but other spiritual and cultural effects on the listeners. when the tiv drums are played, all the listeners present, whether they understand tiv or not, are moved to dance to the rhythms. as for the warning signals, those that understand them are alerted and act immediately. as for how the drum language can be used to give security education and awareness, this can be done by summoning the villagers together in the market place or village square to pass the information across to them. in times of emergency, the indyer can be used to pass across messages to the villagers to alert them of the danger that is looming ahead. for example, the drums can be beaten to inform the villagers of strange faces in their village and warn them to avoid following some routes that are not safe. in fact, drum language can be used to prevent or forestall criminal attacks on the tiv communities as well as a way of apprehending criminal elements. 4. recommendations having looked at the importance of drum language in the society, it is also observed that there is less use of the drum language in the tiv society of recent especially for communicative purposes. this research, therefore, recommends that: i. the use of drum language should be revived and modernized so as to check-make the insecurity in the society. ii. drum language should also be taught as a course unit in the department of languages and linguistics. iii. the younger generation does not really comprehend drum language as much as the older ones. the drum language, especially the talking drum should be used awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 40 side by side with modern communication gadgets so that the younger generation will also grasp it. iv. drums and drum languages should be properly documented for future references. 5. conclusion this study has taken a critical look at the spate of insecurity in nigeria and the world at large and advocated that drum language should be used as an effective tool for security education and awareness. in doing this, the uses and gratification theory has been used to analyze what people do with the drum medium of communication. the prompt response of the listeners to the warnings and promptings by the messages from the drums will improve the security of the society and reduce criminality to the barest minimum this study has succeeded in bringing to the front burner the fact that drum language is very important as it can be used for security education and awareness creation. the work has also suggested for the modernization of drum language in the age of technological advancement to suit the hi-tech and high profile security challenges in nigeria and the world over. references akume, d.j. (2021) analysis of drum languages among the tiv people. a b.a project, benue state university, makurdi east, r. (2003). akiga’s story: the tiv tribe as seen by one of its members. ibadan, caltop publications (nigeria) fabre, g. (1996). drumbeats: mask and metaphors. london: contemporary afroamerican theatre, harda university press gbenda, j.s. (2003). escathology in tiv traditional religious culture: an interpretative enquiry. enugu: chuka educational publishers awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 41 grove, g. (2001). the new grove encyclopedia of music and musicians. 2nd ed. grove’s dictions of music, vol. 3 har, j.t. (2018). security education/awareness and emergency preparedness. port harcourt: zetus integrated concept hornby, a.s. (2006).oxford advanced learner’s dictionary. new york: university press johnson, r. (2011). the drum as an indicator of cultural unity in the africanworld: from hip hop to africa. academic articles black voice on the hills. retrievedin september 2021 from http:www.ourlegacycontemporaryarticle.com ugbagir, n.n. & cuttings, a.t. (2013). tiv technology education and economic development of african states. being a paper presented at the 2nd international conference of global education, university of sierra leone, free town on the 11th to 15th nov, 2013 uzukwu, e.e. (1997). worshippers’ body language: introduction to christian worship. minnesota; african orientation liturgical press yina, g. (2011). the semiotics of tiv oral poetry. makurdi: aboki publishers http//:www.wikipedia.org (retrieved on the 18th of march, 2022) appendix i unstructured interview questions 1. what is the importance of drum language? 2. what types of drums do the tiv use chiefly for communication? 3. what are the other purposes for which drums are used? 4. why do you prefer the use of the talking drum to other communication gadgets? 298 language misuse by media, individuals and groups as the remote cause of insecurity in west africa monica nnenne okafor1 nwode, goodluck chigbo2 ebonyi state college of education1, ikwo, ebonyi state university, abakaliki2 monicaokafor36@yahoo.com1, nwodegoodluck@gmail.com2 abstract currently, most studies only pay attention to socio-cultural, economic and political factors behind insecurity in africa. the aim of this study is to rouse deserving attention on linguistic or languagebased factors behind the increasing insecurity in west africa, focusing on the case of nigeria. it seeks to do so through the lens of applied linguistics. the study is anchored on halliday’s theory of systemic functional linguistics, which sees language as a social semiotic that presents users with a network of choices to create oral and written contents. from observation and secondary data, subjected to objective, descriptive and critical analysis, the study reveals that individuals, traditional and social media, and groups misuse language in the course of interpersonal and intergroup relations and communication. thus, they cause and ignite insecurity in the study area. it maintains that this situation, arising from the deviant use of language, applies to every human society where language users are not mindful of how to use language effectively to avoid conflicts that lead to insecurity. the study concludes that language misuse is the remote cause of the consistent and alarming insecurity confronting west africa; particularly nigeria majorly, the study charges the government to put in place strong legislations that could efficiently check against the misuse of language to cause mailto:monicaokafor36@yahoo.com mailto:nwodegoodluck@gmail.com awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 299 and ignite insecurity. agents of socialisation are also charged to be up and doing in the use of language and matters concerning language misuse. keywords: language misuse, media, individuals, groups, remote cause, insecurity introduction globally, the misuse of language by media, individuals and groups causes a lot of issues of interpersonal and intergroup relations. in other words, wherever in the world that language is misused by media, individuals and groups, various issues arise and confront the society in no little ways and manners. this study seeks to argue that language misuse is what remotely causes the endemic insecurity in west africa, with the case of nigeria taking the lead. put the other way round, the misuse of language by media, individuals and groups is the ground cause of the recurrent insecurity confronting west africa in general and nigeria in particular. although insecurity portends and concerns violence or war, it also extends to socioeconomic and political wrongs and ills that threaten the safety, peace and tranquility of any society (oyedeji, 2018, p. 3). it is to that end that this study concerns itself with making a critical exposition of how language is misused by media, individuals and groups to cause all that culminates to insecurity in society. by virtue of its concern, the study seeks to moves away from the common trend of exclusively considering only the socio-economic and political factors behind insecurity to considering the language-based factors behind insecurity in society, as commonly obtained in nigeria and other parts of west africa. the increasing spate of insecurity in the contemporary society as a whole is worrisome (tukura, 2021; alozieuwa, 2016). peoples of diverse linguistic and ethno-religious backgrounds are susceptible language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 300 to ‘perennial communal and sectarian strife, fostered by hegemonic and resistance politics’ (alozieuwa, 2016), religious extremism and tribalism or ethnicity. language politics in such places is also hegemonic and thereby meets resistance. west african peoples, especially those in nigeria, capitalise on their diversity for sustained intergroup and interpersonal clashes, violence and insecurity. the supposed peaceful and harmonious co-existence among individuals and groups in such settings get shattered by perennial communal and sectarian strife, political hegemony, resistance, sour intergroup and interpersonal relations, crises (interpersonal conflicts), ethnic hate and prejudices, religious fundamentalism, violence, terrorism, intolerance, disintegration, social vices and what have you. as the supposed peaceful and harmonious co-existence among individuals and groups in society becomes a mirage, insecurity takes precedence. theoretical framework for a theoretical backing, this study adopts michael a.k. halliday’s (1978; 1985; 1994) systemic functional linguistics theory. it gives this theory the abbreviation short form ‘sflt’. sflt will be used henceforth, almost all through here. halliday, the proponent of sflt, theorises that language is social semiotic, which offers its users a network of choices to create texts, both spoken and written alike (halliday, 1985; 1994). it follows that sflt considers language as a resource for making meaning. contrarily, meaning resides in systemic patterns of choice. this view clashes with the conventional consideration of language as a system of rules that stifles creativity in speech, as chomsky (1956) maintains. halliday’s words grounding his consideration of language as a semiotic system read, “it seemed to me that explanations of linguistic phenomena needed to be sought in relationships among systems rather than among structures – in what i once called ‘deep awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 301 paradigms’ – since these were essentially where speakers made their choices” (halliday, 1985, p. 1). it could be understood from halliday’s (1985, p. 1) above quoted words that although linguistic phenomena (elements, structures and other constituents of language) relate, in seeking to know and in the course of analysing their relationship, the systems among them rather than their structures should be given utmost consideration. in reflecting on halliday’s above quoted words, teo (2000, p. 24) rightly observes that the meaning of spoken or written texts (messages) is dependent on the choices made by users, especially speakers and writers. making emphasis on speakers and writers stresses the fact that communication begins with speakers and writers, as those who encode/d the messages communicated across listeners and readers. phenomena are given meaning using language. they are also made meaningless using language. that is to say language use either makes or mars interpersonal communication, and intergroup relations and interaction. that depends on how it is used by (a) given user(s) and the context of usage. as halliday notes, there are three types of meanings available to speakers. meanings are of three categories and every utterance encodes meaning on three levels, simultaneously. these are textual, interpersonal and ideational. language users use their lexicon-cumgrammar over the course of a given utterance to: (i) efficient structural information from a communicative point of view (textual meaning); (ii) achieve interpersonal goals (interpersonal meaning); (iii) represent experience (ideational meaning). this encoding of meaning is regards as metafunctions. in both conceptual and contextual applications, metafunctions are characterised by three terms that influence language use. these are field, tenor and mode. accordingly, tenor refers to the socially language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 302 defined relations between the parties involved in an interaction. field refers to the subject matter of the text. mode is the medium and role of language in the situation (david, 2002). the implication of the foregoing is that language use involves two or more parties involved in the communication, who make up the parties in communication process. next, there must be a subject matter (theme, aim and in every discursive interaction of the parties engaged in communication. lastly, language must be used for the communication. that is to say communication between and/or among the parties involved require using a medium or several media, depending on the context. also, it implies that there is functional connectivity between the systems and the parties involved in the whole exercise of communication. the term ‘lexicogrammar’ is introduced by halliday (1994) as an essential concept in understanding language functions. he avers that a language consists of more-or-less closed systems of words and grammatical structures, with our vocabulary constituting a relatively open system, and grammar a fixed number of relatively closed ones. it is from these systems that language users make choices in order to construct wordings and meanings (halliday, 1994). in what theoretically sheds highlights on how users should use language well, let us reflect on halliday’s (1985, p. 1) expressed view. he is of the view that in explaining how language works, functional analysis should be basis of the explanation, since language had evolved to enable human beings and animals alike meet certain critical functions in their ‘eco-social environment’ in the course of their interaction, relationship and communication. the central implication of the foregoing expressed reality is that the functionality of human beings, phenomena and societal systems and structures is intertwined. the network of functional connectivity makes it obvious that the functional lapses or deviances of one, some awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 303 or all of the parties in communication results in a network of malfunctionality. malfunctionality is used here to refer to the situation whereby systems, structures and parties involved in a process malfunction, and the issues arising from their failure to function accordingly and also the lapses or associate issues of their functioned functionality. the textual metafunction relates to the mode, the internal organisation and communicative nature of a text. this comprises textual interactivity, spontaneity and communicative distance. the textual metafunction is that part of the meaning which builds up different coherent thematic structures into the main text. the textual meaning refers to the actual form of the way text is organised. it deals with information management, resources and genres. through the combination of resources at different textual levels, it allows ideas and attitudes about themes, actions and events to be expressed. ‘textual’ concerns the creation of text. it expresses the structure of information and the relation of each part of the discourse to the whole and to the setting (halliday, 1973). tenor consists of three component areas. these are the speaker/writer persona, social distance, and relative social status. the interpersonal meaning expresses judgments and assessments; gives guidelines; and deals with relationships between people. the relationship between texts and readers/viewers and the relationships within texts is interpersonal. this means that there is also the grammar of personal participation between them. the relationship expresses the speaker’s role in the speech situation, and their personal commitment and interaction with others (halliday, 1973). the interpersonal metafunction relates to tenor or interactivity aspect of a text. texts come under the four main types of mood in english language. these are declaratives, interrogatives, imperatives and subjunctives. thus, texts come under one of them language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 304 at a time. these four main types of mood all develop different relations with the audience and the speaker. in addition to representing the context as they experience it, speakers of a language enact their roles as participants in the context, as they interact with each other. in a sense, in interacting, they create the context, as they negotiate their own roles in it and those of others. in the words of ogunsiji (2000, p. 77) ‘metafunction… helps to establish and sustains social relations.’ having said the above, it is imperative to note that the central theoretical assumptions of sflt are summarily highlighted by anderson (2014) and eggins (1994) viz: (i) sflt postulates that language is functional. that is, it is concerned with how language is structured and used to make meanings. (ii) language is semiotic. this means that the meaning of a text is dependent upon the choices made by the speaker from the options available within the language system. (iii) a text is understood within context. in this sense, a text is understood in terms of the information about the context within which it was generated, either the context of situation or the context of culture. given the foregoing, the systemic functional linguistics theory (sflt) aptly suits this study in several regards. for example, through the lens of sflt, it is understood that language users, who seek the relationship of linguistic phenomena in their structures rather than among systems of their entirety, make wrong choice of language use. this is what happens when language users make use of language in ways that lead to insecurity as the aftermath of awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 305 conflict arising from language misuse. obviously, media, individuals and groups most often than not know that using language otherwise could easily lead to or bring about crises or conflicts between and among individuals, groups and nations. yet, they go ahead go misuse language to attain their conceived goals. regrettably, such usage causes communicational and relational problems between and among individuals, groups and even nations. media could also get into intergroup (inter-media) issues arising from the deviant use of language. insecurity could be averted and combated with the effective use of language. it could also be aggravated using language. in this case, language is misused, unlike in the case of the former in which language is used rightly, constructively and effectively. in illustrating halliday’s theoretical assumptions of sflt, fowler (1986, p. 148) mentions birthplace, family, school and affiliated social groups, together with the patterns of interaction and the limitations of experience associated with them as evidence of the overall assumptions of sflt. essentially, worldview is revealed by texts to speakers, writers and even listeners and readers in the course of discourse. the meanings of the texts are realised and understood in the participants of the communicative exercise. however, in some cases, communicated texts are unrealised and misunderstood. consequent upon these, crises or conflicts arise and soon afterwards or much later metamorphose to insecurity. according to coffin (2001, p. 94), all speakers are influenced by the economic and social systems in which they live and also by the roles they inhabit within these systems. this expression emphasises halliday’s demand for considering systems rather than structures. citizens of west africa as well as nigerians are influenced by prevailing socio-economic and political systems of their area. linguistic or language-based factors influencing these citizens are of more concern to this study language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 306 than the non-language-based factors, such as influences of the prevailing socio-economic and political systems. this study argues that language is also central in the socio-economic and political factors behind insecurity. commonly noted causes/sources of insecurity although this study concerns itself with the language-based factors behind insecurity, it devotes this sub-section to discussing the commonly noted causes and sources of insecurity in society. the various causes of insecurity double as the sources too. these include kidnapping, armed banditry, political thuggery, hired assassination, fulani herders’ attacks on farmers and communities, hate speeches, elitist incitement, religious fundamentalism and crisis, ethnic hate, indigene versus non-indigene palaver, communal clashes, boundary disputes, chieftaincy tussle, unemployment, poverty, hunger and starvation, rape and gender violence women (alubo, 2006; lewis, 2011; ayoade 2014; odekunle, 2010; alozieuwa, 2016; robert, 2017; odekunle 2018; dibie, gotau and robert, 2016; besong & robert, 2019; robert, 2020; ahmed, 2021; tukura, 2021). stating in specific terms, insecurity arises from conflicts over clash of interests or opposing capacities in relation to perceived or anticipated benefits or outcomes between the two or more parties involved. as lammers (1959, p. 559) notes, conflict originates from the difference in timing, objectives, interests, efforts, approaches, and attitudes of people to issues. socio-economic and political wrongs are the bane of social issues culminating to insecurity. examples include unemployment, poverty, hunger and starvation, rape, gender violence against women as well as against men. social issues cause insecurity, because those affected by them gradually take to it as a means of survival or getting back at the society that fails and incapacitates them perpetually. for example, unemployment causes insecurity because those who are not awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 307 employed and those underemployed get engaged in illegitimate activities as means of survival or getting back at the society. being that unemployment engenders the tendency of engaging in evil or unethical means of survival, it is a factor behind insecurity because the evils lead to acts of insecurity. the youths are mostly unemployed despite the fact that a larger number of them are educated. they are deliberately incapacitated and impoverished and left unemployed by the state through – agents of the state (amozua, 2016; robert & anura, 2018; besong, 2019; robert, 2020). on her part, okoye (2006, p. 6) observes that ‘extreme poverty, as obtained in many third world countries, causes people to commit suicide. frustration is a strong contributory factor to suicide.’ she goes on to observe that there are many more factors that cause individual and societal stress and tension in africa and many other developing nations of the world (okoye, 2006, p. 6). okoye (2006, p. 6) notes that the most prominent of the factors are devastating poverty, loss of hope and not knowing where your next meal is coming from, while others are constant civil unrests, tribal clashes, religious rivalries, strikes, political killings, rape, destruction of public properties, unemployment, etc. clearly, she agrees with most of the other scholars, such as those above, on the causes of insecurity, as she stresses poverty, social vices, heinous crimes against individuals and the state, institutional issues, etc. the frustrating situations many find themselves are what get them into dubious ways of life. the deviant ways of life cause tension, civil unrest, crises, violence, survival of the fittest, discrimination and exclusion, moral decadence, lawlessness, and what have you. the reality that the aforementioned factors are both causes and sources of insecurity had once been expressed by awolowo (1970), who noted that the aggressors against peace and stability in nigeria are abject poverty, hunger, disease, squalor and ignorance, which language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 308 are more devastating in their ravages, more insidious, more thorough and more resistant in their operations, than armed rebellion. thus, being that these factors are why insecurity rises and confronts the nigerian society, it is logical to conclude they are the causes of insecurity. and, being the causes, they double as the sources of insecurity too. in fact, one realises from awolowo’s observation that the social issues, which he mentioned, pose more challenges to the security of the nigerian society than the security challenges posed by non-state actors causing insecurity. nigeria’s peace and stability are threatened by these factors. that is why insecurity is now increasingly alarming, since the government does not care about combating it significantly but rather igniting it to their covert advantage and to the peril of the poor innocent masses. the menace of these causes and sources of insecurity is why awolowo (1970) emphasised that these non-human enemies or aggressors ought to be crushed ruthlessly with immediate alacrity. similarly, lula da silva, former president of brazil, is quoted to have once said, ‘when i became president of this country, half of the population couldn’t sleep because of hunger, while the other half could not sleep because of the fear of the hungry half’ (adamu, 2015, p. 24). reflecting on lula da silva’s observation, adamu (2015, p. 24) observes that ‘about 54.6 million people go to bed every night hungry in nigeria.’ in the same vein, yagboyaju (2019, p. 50) laments that ‘one third of the country’s entire population goes to bed hungry every day.’ as a saying goes, ‘a hungry man is an angry man.’ the hungry among us are angry with those who could get rid of their hunger but yet do nothing. they unleash mayhem on nigerian society as well as other west african societies. reacting to the observation made by awolowo above, yagboyaju (2019, p. 34) says that awolowo’s assertion is apt because even after five decades of his observation, the issues he identified still manifest awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 309 in nigeria, as most of the issues are the remote factors behind most of the cases of insecurity in present-day nigeria. it means that those issues awolowo identified are largely responsible for the contemporary security threats to peace and stability in nigeria. the threats include abject poverty amidst abundant resources, hunger and starvation, unemployment, ignorance and illiteracy, prostitution, armed-robbery, theft, kidnapping, hired assassination, money ritual killing, menace, rape and killings, banditry, resource control contestation, communal clashes, ethno-religious conflicts, fulani herders’ sustained attempts to cleanse agrarian communities, chieftaincy tussle, and what have you (lewis, 2011; ayoade 2014; odekunle, 2010; odekunle 2018; dibie, gotau and robert, 2016; besong & robert, 2019; robert, 2020) politicians and other elites of west african nations mobilise and incite the same youths they incapacitate, impoverish, make jobless, and subject to abject poverty, lack, ignorance, illiteracy and various helpless situations of life to cause mayhem, disrupt and threaten peace, stability, tranquility and unity in diversity among the citizenry of this region. the number one example is the case of nigeria, where its political leaders and other elites do nothing good for the youths among the masses, but only mobilise them for crimes, evil deals, violence, terrorism, political thuggery and electioneering, militancy, ritual killing, kidnapping for ransom, attacking and murdering political opponents, and so on (robert, 2020, pp. 90-95; besong, 2019, pp.11-14; kia and vurasi, 2013, p. 165; amozua, 2016). in his contribution to the foregoing, galadima (2016, p. 48) argues that most of the traditional rulers of these days join forces with the secular politicians to unleash mayhem on the society, as such traditional rulers and politicians politick with the lives and the belongings, peace and tranquility and development of their people and places for political gains. he adds that some of traditional rulers language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 310 either incite such conflicts for their own interests or their superior politician bosses’ (galadima, 2016, p. 48). and, where/when they do not incite or cause conflicts, such traditional and secular political office holders fuel the conflicts/crises, including financial support and donation of war weapons to either party at war, towards attaining genocide (galadima, 2016). obviously, the misdeeds of political and other elites of west african nations, especially those of nigeria, continuously cause, ignite and compound the insecurity confronting nigeria as well as other west african nations. as amozua (2016) argues, criminals and all kinds of other enemies of the state and its citizenry are the covert products of the heartless elites, who continuously gather the same youths they have frustrated and incapacitated to unleash untold mayhem, woes, pains, atrocities and insecurity on the society and its people for them, all for their selfish political and economic gains. in what lends credence to the foregoing, oladiran and adadevoh (2008, p. 103) note that the nigerian social, political and economic spheres have been characterised by the following social symbolic indices due to ethnic politics: (a) the lack of an even distribution of wealth and income due to ethnic bias; (b) mono-cultural and enclave economy; (c) insecurity of jobs, lives and property; (d) high and increasing illiteracy rates; (e) un-conducive atmosphere for healthy political bargaining and compromise; (f) structural imbalances, corruption and increased per capita poverty. at this juncture, this study makes a brief analytical exposition of how language misuse constitutes a cause of insecurity in society. it argues that language is one of the remote causes but not sources of awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 311 insecurity. it is only but a cause because humans are those who make it to be a cause of insecurity, as they misuse it. here, the study reiterates the point that language misuse is one kernel cause of insecurity. in fact, language misuse is the first cause of insecurity in that everything one does include language use. first, language is used to communicate the mind-conceived evils that culminate to insecurity in practical contexts, when made manifest. next, the manipulative use of language gets some persons into perpetrating the evil of insecurity. in the simplest sense of language use as the bane of insecurity, consider a situation in which what is said to some individuals provoke them to react violently to a situation they had been calm about erstwhile. a study reports that violent conflict leading to insecurity could arise upon calling any (or certain) jos men ‘women’ to denote that they are not as strong as men, but weak like women (krause, 2019). for example, upon being mockingly called ‘women’ – weak men, who do not fight, jos dadin kowa men changed from being peaceful to being violent, just to prove their masculinity and gallantry in war/conflict (krause, 2019; 2018; 2017). in the bids to prove their masculinity that they are not women, such men resort to being violent. consequently, conflicts often arise and in most cases degenerate to violent conflicts that threaten and take lives, property and the environment. clearly, the above situations of violence and insecurity aroused from language misuse on gender lane to degrade peaceful men, like those of jos dadin kowa. language use for peace-building had earlier informed their attitude towards situations of conflict, violence and insecurity. that is why they were largely peaceful and never engaged in violence and insecurity of various phases. thereafter, the orientation got altered by the use of derogatory gender label for them. then, in response to that, the jos dadin kowa abruptly altered their age-long or erstwhile language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 312 internalised orientation on non-violence, just to prove their masculinity and gallantry. they became resolved to show that they just never wanted to be violent. otherwise, they could even do worse than the men of some other areas, who consider themselves ‘men’, not ‘women’ and consider their fellow men in dadin kowa as ‘women’. krause (2019, p. 1742) posits that men in the most violence-prone neighbourhoods of jos often make use of ‘violent masculinity to access status and resources’, as a good number of them are excluded ‘from regular income activities.’ traditional and social media and language misuse for insecurity here, the study makes an exposition of how the media misuse language and insecurity arises as its consequence. both traditional and social (new) media are simply referred as ‘media’ or ‘the media’. the central argument here is that in the course of reportage (dissemination of information), broadcast and anchoring various media programmes, the media misuse language in such manners that conflicts arise and sometimes metamorphose into insecurity. this argument takes centre stage of the analysis to be made here, with a view to showing how language misuse by the media causes insecurity. accordingly, edogor, ojo, ezugwu and dike (2015) are of the view that the reportage of any conflict is non-negotiable for the media. that is, the media do not negotiate with anyone to report a conflict. this is true. that view focuses on the traditional media. the case of new (social) media is even more non-negotiable than that of the traditional media. the traditional media most often have to be invited or told by someone to get into the matter or to the scene of the conflict. that is not the case with reportage of conflict or any other matter on social media. even news gathering and the coverage of an event do not wait for invitation or follow formalised processes. a passerby could awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 313 just snap or video-cover an event without the knowledge of those involved in the event or the actions making up the event. afterwards, s/he uploads the videos and/or photos with news features (articles) explaining the circumstances behind the photos and/or videos. the implication of the foregoing is that both professional and nonprofessional users of the mass media report events and as well give news online. those who give factual or real news of various events show the proper or ideal use of language, which helps to combat insecurity rather than to cause, ignite or aggravate it. conversely, those who give fake news, penchant/sensational reports, and misinformation, etc. to the masses, using language and other means of mass communication, evidently show the misuse of language as well as those other communication media. this otherwise use of language and the mass media results in insecurity, or rather causes, ignites and aggravates insecurity. just as this study argues that conflict is the underlying factor behind insecurity, resulting from language misuse, adamu (2013, p. 82) cites manoff (2011) to have noted viz: ‘journalism is the handmaiden of conflict. the epistemology of journalism is inherently conflictual in the same way our system of jurisprudence is inherently adversarial.’ it implies that there is a nexus between journalism and conflict, just as there is a systemic similarity between epistemology of journalism and that of jurisprudence, as both are characterised by conflict. the nexus lies in the former being conflictual and the latter being adversarial. in what lends credence to the foregoing, adamu (2013) avers that news given by journalists is usually predicated on conflict and individual’s definition of conflict; audiences love and savour conflict; conflict is the framework within which journalists labour. obviously, in giving the news, journalists make use of language for news gathering, dissemination (reportage) and analysis. at any point in time that language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 314 journalists misuse language for any media purposes, problems arise. these include the rise of fake news, misrepresentation of facts, misinterpretation of facts and/or what is reported, propaganda, penchant or sensational broadcast, spread of rumours and/or falsehoods, incitement, rhetoric, and/or what have you. in the course of bringing image-making and agenda setting roles of the mass media to manifestation, the press misuse language against those labelled for indictment or condemnation. on the other hand, they use language effectively to assert those set aside for imagemaking and agenda setting. obviously, whatever and whoever the media pay attention to and make their image, with significant media contents and jingles, they automatically become popular, relevant and prominent (chiakaan & ahmed, 2011; chiakaan, 2013; robert & besong, 2016; robert & besong, 2016). in doing so, the mass (traditional) media make good as well as positive use of language to talk, write, act and perform about the persons and/or the things drawn out for image-making and agenda-setting. this applies to the role of the mass media in insecurity. there are ways in which the mass media would talk, write, act and perform about certain persons, nations, cultures, themes and things, they would un/consciously rouse the attention of the masses to insecurity itself or what culminates to. the mass media, like the new (social) media, could cause, ignite or aggravate insecurity by the ways they use language in producing media contents characterised by what generate, heighten or lead to insecurity. next, the kind of reportage they make, using language negatively, also tells of how the mass media could cause, ignite or aggravate insecurity in society. by being sentimental and unprofessional in terms of breach of media and conventional ethics, the mass media play a significant role in causing and fuelling security in society. the kind of information given by the media awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 315 about insecurity could end up causing tension, psychological trauma, mixed feelings, conflicts, and/or insecurity. of course, it is language that is used to give out information. so, when the information disseminated is as such, it implies that the mass media have misused language in the dissemination of the given information. the media’s penchant for exaggerating details of ethnic, religious, political, communal and other related crises, which thereby fuel their intensity is commonly known and affirmed by both oral and written sources (kukah 1993). this character by the media caused the gravamen in the 1987 kafanchan religious disturbances. news reports monitored on radio kaduna, immediately after the commencement of the kafanchan upsurge, alleged that christians were killing muslims indiscriminately, burning their mosques and copies of the holy qur’an, and banishing them from the town. the broadcast further alleged that an itinerant preacher had misquoted the qur’an and blasphemed the name of prophet mohammed, urging christians to kill muslims and burn their mosques (news watch, 1987, p. 10, cited in tsaku, 2017, p. 30). these reports ignited reprisal attacks by muslims all over kaduna state, causing an invaluable loss of lives and property (gofwen 2004, p. 91-3). most religious leaders in the country have therefore, accused the media of fanning the embers of religious violence by their provocative and emotive reports (kukah, 1993; gofwen 2004). obviously, it was a case language misuse by the media, which caused as well as ignited the murderous violence in kaduna that year. of course, that was a serious situation of insecurity. that was also a clear case or indication of how media cause and/or ignite conflicts, war, violence and/or insecurity. the proliferation of media technology has made it easy for some of these emotive reports and images of slain persons to be transported language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 316 far and wide, generating intense hatred between belligerents and reprisal attacks in a cycle of violence (tsaku, 2017; gofwen 2004; kukah, 1993). the dissemination of gory images of victims on the internet either triggers violent conflicts, as reprisal attacks, or ignites conflicts, as sources of insecurity. according to edogor et al. (2015, 87), journalists reporting conflict situations are coerced into a quadruple dilemma. hetsroni (2007, p. 759) captures the allegation levelled against the television in particular with reference to portrayal of crises and violence by observing that ‘for decades, the networks have been loudly accused for causing irreversible mental damage to innocent viewers by exposing them to explicit violence.’ in a nutshell, journalists have been accused over the years of deliberately feeding the audience with crises and violence scenes for the sake of promoting their organisation’s profit motive mainly (edogor et al., 2015, p. 88). meanwhile, the term ‘user’ came to be associated with those who consume some media contents with the advent of web 2.0 technologies, software or applications (edogor et al., 2015, p. 87). these are technologies that enable media consumers not only to read, listen or view messages, ideas, information, experiences, values etc., but also to contribute in generating the contents offered for public consumption. the web 2.0 applications promote the audience from being mere recipients of mass media contents as hitherto churned out by the journalists to becoming contributors in the media packages delivered to the public (edogor et al., 2015, p. 87). as ezeah, asogwa and edogor (2013, p. 23) observe, ‘by their nature, the social media have the capabilities of inflaming the audience.’ hate speeches are also everywhere online. inciting news, capable of causing security threats immediately or in the nearest future, is everywhere online. fake news on social media is just everywhere on the internet. facebook, as the giant of social media, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 317 is characterised by pronounced propaganda. for example, it is reported that that facebook altered the nature of american democracy (olan et al., 2022). fake news is one way through which facebook has altered american democracy. mcpeak (2014, p. 581) lends credence to this observation by noting that ‘social media data is changing the face of civil discovery in many cases, and informal discovery of social media content on sites such as facebook can prove extremely valuable for litigants’ (mcpeak, 2014, p. 581). recently, fake news was spread on social media about a young driver in lagos, indicting him to be the one drove round with the foreigner who brought in covid-19 to nigeria. he suffered stigma, isolation, humiliation, and so on until he had to make and post round his own self-made real video, disclaiming the fake news about him and clarifying the public on the indictment. see one of his self-made video clips, disclaiming the fake news about him: language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 318 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 319 on the whole, excessive exhibition of crises scenarios could inflame the audience to act in a manner that could be inimical to orderliness and peaceful co-existence of people (edogor et al., 2015, p. 87). one often realises that media contents have or receives more audience that non-conflict contents. given this reality, it appears that the prime news value of the media is conflict or disorder, negative events. good news stories receive less media attention than bad news. okoye (2011, p. 268) cautions that ‘media contents that portray… scenes of… violence should be handled with caution.’ in the same vein, although yoroms (2009, p. 25) admits that media objectivity barely obtains, he argues that one has to apply ‘the right standard of significance, because conflict is more pervasive once the media reports are based on imagination.’ he stresses that once the media fail to be objective and rather show partiality, conflicts can be escalated. dul (2007) argues that media objectivity is usually affected by ownership, economic interests, religious affiliation and cultural factors. she insists that this issue can only be overcome through reorientation of practitioners, training on conflict management and provisions of adequate funding for media houses. individuals’ misuse of language and insecurity different persons hold and express personal ideologies that generate insecurity in several regards. individuals’ words incite insecurity. profane words are capable of causing or igniting insecurity. threats to security come from individuals in various ways as a result of the way they make use of words. some individuals use sweet-tongue to get many persons into acts that threaten security. of course, there are many wars and violent conflicts different societies have suffered as a result of the kind of words individuals used and at the end they got into a battle that cause a war between their people. individuals in positions misuse words against some persons and groups and at last, violent conflict or insecurity arises. for example, the ombatse language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 320 crisis in nasarawa state is an ample example. it is alleged that the then governor, tanko almakura had decided to use language to criminalise the ombatse people with their ethnic cult group, labelling them as insurgents. that was to prevent him from fulfilling the share power and resources he had promised them, for which he got the physical and spiritual support leading to his success. then, he mobilised and sent in force men from abuja to wipe out the cult shrine. but unfortunately, the security personnel reached there and rather began shooting one another or themselves (alozieuwa, 2016). it is language individual elite use to cajole the masses into doing things that promote violence and insecurity. this is a common practice among politicians and religious leaders. individual clerics have misused language to deceive the faithful into doing what led to or ignite conflicts and other phases of insecurity. the misuse of language is the ground factor behind the successful formation and transformation of the boko haram sect in the northeast. using language in manipulative manners, mohhammed yusuf, a secondary school dropout from yobe, mobilised and convinced many almajeri’s in maiduguri and yobe and introduced his radical islamic ideologies to them. he learnt his radical islamic ideologies from chad and niger republic, where he later went and studied quran. it is with manipulative use of language that he convinced some political and islamic elites and gained their support and sponsorship. consequently, he secured political, national and international links, funding and support; and embarked on aggressive recruitment of members. before mohhammed yusuf came on board in 2002, abubakar lawan had used language in negative light to form boko haram group in 1995 (mukhtar, 2015; abimbola, 2011). then, it was formed as a reborn of marwa maitasine, and called sahaba. abubakar lawan later left for studies at the university of medina in awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 321 saudi arabia and handed over to mohhammed yusuf, who was appointed then the then leading clerics (mukhtar, 2015; abimbola, 2011). from the maiduguri complex, mohammed yusuf relocated the school to later become boko haram, disguised to be a normal islamic school, to his village, kanamma in yobe, close to the niger republic border (mukhtar, 2015). the complex was built by governor ali modu sheriff, with a school and mosque that had students of poor parents of nigerian, chadian, nigerien and malian origins, most of who could understand and speak arabic (kanu, 2016). yusuf used language technically to preach against the government for allowing these children to wallow in abject poverty, illiteracy and various frustrating issues. groups’ misuse of language for insecurity language misuse is the remote factor behind group conflicts. religious groups discriminate and war with and against one another because of the misuse of language against one another. muslim faithful call the faithful of christianity various names or derogatory terms, which rouses religious intolerance between the faithful of the two religions (dibie, gotau & robert, 2016; robert, besong & dibie, 2016; robert & besong, 2017). their leaders use language to incite religious hatred against each other. hate speech is a mechanism of language-based factor behind conflicts, violence and insecurity. the religious of different religions make use of hate speech to condemn faithful of other religions that are not theirs. nasty comments, hate speeches, foul language, fake stories, etc. about one religious group by another gradually pile up to become what cause and ignite insecurity arising from religious conflicts and violence. apart from religious groups, various other societal groups misuse language against each other and one another. there are male and female folks. the persistent gender issues between males and language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 322 females are rooted in the misuse of language by either folk against the other. for example, the males use language loosely and negatively to associate females with weakness, evil, sin, and what not. consequently, the efforts for self-assertion have led to gender streaming and a sustained violent and non-violent war by women against men. gender violence against men is a result of gender streaming and a sustained violent and non-violent fight against men. next, consider inter-cult rivalries. these happen when one cult group uses language negatively against another group. it is language that leaders of a cult group use to take oaths with their subjects and new members and to boast about that they have the power to do and undo this and that for members. the conviction gets members acting anyhow to members of other groups. the manifesting consequence of such misuse of language by cult groups is the recurring inter-cult clash between one group and another. for example, as one group sees and declares itself the most rugged, the strongest, the bloodiest, that with the highest number of elite that always order the released of members in police net, and so on, its members become more volatile and troublesome. they resort to always looking for trouble and perpetrating all kinds of evil. militants, militias, terrorists insurgents and other crime monger groups use language in bad light about the government in particular and the society at large in order to get and keep its members. they misuse language even in the course of carrying out their evils acts. for example, the boko haram sect members use ‘allah kubar’ while murdering victims or members who are found wanting. their use of this phrase is clear case of misusing that phrase coined and used initially by the muslims for positive deed or when what is good before almighty allah. one need not be a muslim to know that allah is not supposed to be mentioned by this sect members or anyone else carrying out evil. it is just like one saying, ‘in the name awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 323 of god or jesus, i slaughter or kill you.’ the misunderstanding that arises among sect members, leading to the formation of new groups within the broad umbrella of the sect is a result of misuse of language in expressing this or that. consequently, clash of interests arises. boko haram has gradually got split into alqa’ida, taliban and ansaru. the misuse of language also causes interand intra group clashes among al-qa’ida in the lands of islamic maghreb (aqlim), ansar al-dine of mali, the movement for oneness jihad in west africa (mujao), and azawald national liberation movement (mnla), among others (kanu, 2016; mukhtar, 2015; abimbola, 2011) it is language misuse by group that occurs between orthodox medicine and traditional medicine. the practitioners of orthodox medicine use language in negative light about and against traditional medicine. as they damn traditional medicine and its practitioners, most members of the public believe them and conceive only but negative thoughts about and against traditional medicine. the practitioners of these two medicines continuously war against other in mute. tribal wars and clashes arise from the misuse of language by one tribe against the other(s). ethnic hate and prejudices are formed using language in negative light about other (or certain) tribes, while using language in positive about oneself. language use and security: government and socialisation agents’ task government and all agents of socialisation ought to rise to the challenge of combating insecurity and installing security in society, making effective use of language. it is language misuse that causes the whole problem of insecurity in society. yet, it is the effective use of language in positive light that would cause the deserving change and bring to place security, peace, unity and what have you. the task of combating insecurity is supposed to be endless, because language misuse as remote cause of terrorism in west africa – okafor & nwode 324 once the state fighters relent, the non-state actors are bound to take advantage of their relenting efforts against them. the government and other stakeholders are undoubtedly agents of socialisation in various regards. most of them are parents. all of them are members of different families. they belong to different religious, peer and pressure groups. some of them are of the media professionally and/or otherwise. government and other stakeholders ought to be proactive and always ready to unceasingly fight against the non-state actors, who are making the public to be dissatisfied with their significant efforts, diligence and service delivery. the failure to adequately combat the diverse phases of insecurity, inclusive of terrorism, militancy, kidnapping, unemployment and other forms of threats to peace and safety of a nation and its people, undoubtedly leads to violent (civil) war (oyedeji, 2018, p. 3). it is an indisputable fact that once state actors duly rise against the non-state actors, causing the insecurity posing serious challenges to the wellbeing of the state and its citizens, the alarming insecurity in nigeria would be brought to the barest minimum, if not completely eradicated. so, the kernel problem is the poor attention paid to them; or simply put the other way round, the major problem lies in the attitude of negligence or naivety to the problems at stake, causing insecurity. it is imperative to note that there are some cogent measures that have not been evolved, employed and sustained by nigerian security agencies and political office holders, for which the insecurity continuous to strive. the public, being aware of the ideal might, capability, resources, logistics and technicalities of these two sets of state actors, is left with the temptation to conclude, from inference, that security agencies and political office holders are behind the diverse phases of insecurity, which is why they willingly blind their eyes over the spate of security in the country and allow it to awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 325 continuously strive. this is because they can fight the non-state actors to the barest minimum and win them hands-down. the willingness to do so is all that is needed to efficiently combat insecurity through flushing out the non-actors unleashing insecurity on nigeria. conclusion so far, this study has successfully demonstrated how language is misused by media, individuals and groups in various ways and manners to cause and ignite crises, violence and all other forms of insecurity in society. given the realities from its analytical exposition, the study concludes that language misuse is the remote cause of the consistent and alarming insecurity confronting west africa as well as nigeria. language misuse lies solidly behind all the known causes and sources of insecurity. thus, effective language use in positive rather than negative light is the panacea. basically, the study charges the government to put in place strong legislations that could efficiently check against the misuse of language to cause and ignite insecurity. and, the agents of socialisation are charged to be up and doing in the use of language and matters concerning language mis/use. references abimbola, d. 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(eds.), conflict management the media in nigeria. centre for research and documentation (crd). 235 language endangerment: the echie experience bridget p. nwaduwa1, evelyn s. badom2 captain elechi amadi polytechnic, port harcourt princewillbridget35@gmail.com abstract this paper examined language endangerment focusing on the echie experience. it adopted the descriptive survey research procedure. the researchers employed the purposive sampling procedure, and the data were presented in simple frequency tables and the analysis done in simple percentages. the study found out that the languages in contact in echie speech communities are nigerian pidgin, english, igbo, ikwere, yoruba, hausa and french. this paper observed that echie is seriously losing speakers to nigerian pidgin and english language. it also revealed that nigerian pidgin, echie and english are in serious competition in echie speech communities. the study further noticed that echie can be classified as an endangered language because the majority of parents in echie speech communities, especially those who reside in urban cities such as port harcourt are not encouraging their children to acquire the language. this may be as a result of the feeling that echie is an inferior language since it is not used in the domain of education, administration, and politics among others. therefore, this work recommended that a deliberate policy should be made to encourage the use of echie at home by children and linguists of etche origin should as a matter of urgency document the language for the possible implementation of its use as language of instruction in the first three years of primary schools in echie speech communities. keywords: language, language endangerment, language contact, language shift, language death mailto:princewillbridget35@gmail.com language endangerment – nwaduwa & badom 236 1. introduction the importance of natural languages in the survival of human race cannot be overemphasized. without language, it is practically impossible for humans to express themselves, interact with one another, educate the people, exchange ideas, innovation or interact with fellow humans and carry out social and business transactions. this implies that language is extremely relevant in all aspects of human lives. therefore, the loss of one’s language is the loss of one’s birthright and identity. it is difficult to imagine how one will feel if he notices that his language is endangered. that is, the language is gradually dying out. the young generation does not use the language but a foreign one. if he wants to interact with the younger generation, he must use a foreign language. this may make him to forget the pieces of his native language. it is also likely that he alone remembers the culture of his people, how they used to live; everyone else has moved on to live more modern lives. this may result in the feeling of solitude even when surrounded by people. this is a very devastating experience not only for those who speak the endangered language, but also to language scholars (linguists). this is because the lost of a language implies the lost of linguistic data and the shrinking of the scope of our ability to learn about our world. endangered languages can be a great source of information, if only one can reach them before the death of last speakers or user. it is against this background that this paper seeks to investigate whether echie can suitably be a classified as an endangered language or not. 1.1 the language and the speakers in this paper, we shall refer to the people as etche and their language as echie. echie is an igboid language spoken in etche and omuma awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 237 local government areas, rivers state of nigeria. the language is also spoken in umuru and omunbha of abia state. according to ndimele (2003) umuru and omumbha were part of the etche ethnic nationality before state creation and boundary adjustment placed them in the present abia state. ndimele further, said that “echie is mutually intelligible with some contiguous igbo varieties, such as òwèrè, ngwhà and ndòkì.” the language is treated as a distinct language because it falls within the multilingual rivers state. echie has eleven major dialectics: central echie, òzùzù/ìsu, ihuìè, òwu, egbu/ògidhà, obitè/ìgbodhò, ndashì, mba, umuoye, àkpokù and òmuma. the degrees of relatedness of these varieties/dialects have not been adequately established. thus, the classification for now is said to be merely impressionistic. however, it is observed that central echie seems to be the most favoured in the few written literature and, also the one commonly used in pan-etche gathering. 1.2 statement of the problem echie native speakers have been in contact with people of other linguistic background for many years. this is mostly due to their geographical location which has given rise to economic particularly oil exploration, religious, educational and social contact. this surely has sociolinguistic implications on the echie. also, echie speakers enter into marital relationship with people of various linguistic groups. previously, when a couple spoke different languages, the wife used to learn her husband’s indigenous language along with the children. disappointingly, it is observed that most parents from echie speech communities who are of diverse linguistic background especially those living in an urban multilingual environment such as port harcourt prefer to bring up their children as monolingual speakers of english. one of the main reasons for this preference may be because they (parents) feel that their children need english language endangerment – nwaduwa & badom 238 language to effectively integrate into the wider society. also, the increasing number of influx into etche by people of varous linguistic background due to oil exploration may result in a shift from the use of the language to either english or nigerian pidgin. nowadays, most children in echie speech communities grow up not knowing their indigenous language. the implication of this is that the language may be losing speakers to english and nigerian pidgin. in some cases the language is been used in lesser domains and by fewer people, especially children. hence, english and nigerian pidgin seem to be expanding their home while the echie is being relegated to a position of inferiority. sometime it is regarded as the language of the illiterates, poor, socially and economically disadvantaged people. more so, it is now fashionable not to be able to speak echie language. if nothing is down to reverse the trend, the language may be in danger of extinction or death which is usually one of the major consequences of language endangerment. thus, this paper investigates whether echie can suitably be classified as an endangered language or not. the aim of this paper is to find out whether echie can suitably be classified as an endangered language. its objectives are to: 1. evaluate the languages in contact in echie speech communities. 2. examine the domains where echie language is commonly used. 3. ascertain the attitude of echie native speakers toward their language. 4. identify the factors responsible for the attitude toward echie language. 2. reviewed of related literature trudgill (1992), mathews (1997), salzmann (2007), mcgregor (2009), agbegha (2010), udu & swande (2015) and yibo (2018) awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 239 unanimously agree that the terms “language endangerment” is closely related with the terms “language shift” and “language death.” in their opinion, one cannot meaningfully discuss any of them without making reference to the others. according to trudgill (1992, p. 45), “if the entire community shifts totally to a new language, the original language will eventually have no speakers left in the community in question, and the end point of the language shift will be language death.” similarly, mathews (1997) an endangered language is any language that shows evidence that it will or might cease to be spoken, soon or in the foreseeable future. more so, salzmann (2007), harrison (2007) and hoffmann (2009) assert that some of the primary causes of language endangerment can be classified into external and internal factors or forces. the external forces include military, economic, religious, cultural, or educational subjugation. on the other hand, the internal forces consist of a community’s negative attitude towards its own language or by a general decline of group identity. once more, salzmann (2007), harrison (2007) and hoffmann (2009) note that internal pressures are usually the product of the external factors. both break the intergenerational transmission of linguistic and cultural traditions. many minority communities associate their underprivileged social and economic situation with their inherited culture and language. this is because they assume that their languages are of no use any longer and not worth retaining. thus, the speakers of minority languages abandon their languages and cultures in the hope of overcoming discrimination, to secure a livelihood and enhance social mobility for themselves and their children. the feasibility of a language is determined first and foremost by the general attitude of its speakers towards their heritage culture, of which their language may be considered the most essential component. language endangerment – nwaduwa & badom 240 additionally, mcgregor (2009, p. 342) says that “language shift can result in language endangerment and ultimately death.” he also notes that language endangerment is “the process by which the community of speakers of a language reduces significantly, and fewer children acquire it.” furthermore, emenanjo (2010) accepts that language endangerment is a prevailing sociolinguistic phenomenon. according to emenanjo (2010, p. 6), “language endangerment is no longer news in sociolinguistic discourse.” this is because linguists usually agree that over half of the world’s languages are moribund. this indicates that a greater majority of the languages in the world are not effectively being transmitted to the next generation. he also notes that like other living organisms (human beings, groups, plants and animals), languages: …become endangered when their original, natural, indigenous or auchthtonous habitats, ecologies or environments become hostile, unfriendly, uncomfortable, inconducive or spent. phenomena react to their environments according to their species. but in the fullness of time when the unfriendly environments persist, the species die out completely (p. 6). following emenanjo (2010), this paper posits that languages can react according to their environment. for that reason, an unfriend or a hostile environment poses a serious danger to the existence of a language. it is also construed from the statement of emenanjo awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 241 (2010) that language endangerment can result to the death of a language. in the same vein, alamu & ugwuoke (2010, p. 56) lament that: …some nigerian languages are being endangered; the rich cultural heritage is being gradually eroded. the surest way through which people can retain and safeguard knowledge, wisdom and the authentic cultures inherited from their ancestors and hand them on to generations yet unborn is through language. the assertion of alamu & ugwuoke (2010) clearly proves that language endangerment results in the loss of cultural identity. it is a common belief that a group that loses her language to another reduces herself to the position of a slave. in addition, alamu & ugwuoke (2010, p. 57) note that “the most important remedy to language endangerment is language loyalty.” this indicates that the speakers of an endangered language can revive the language through consistent use of the language in different contexts. in other words, an endangered language is a language that is used in fewer domains by its speakers. this is in line with the statement of agbegha (2010, p. 280) that “an initial criterion for language endangerment is the number of speakers.” he says that the issue of language endangerment is more real than the numerical factor can reveal. this means that the initial criterion is obsolete. from the discussion so far, this paper notes that an endangered language is a language with language endangerment – nwaduwa & badom 242 a weak political status, only a few speakers and limited to certain functions. 2.1 theoretical framework this paper employs the sociolinguistic approach. linguists such as trudgill (1992), mathews (1997), finch (2000), adesanya (2002) and ayuwo (2013) express different opinions about the sociolinguistic approach to the study of human languages. they unanimously assert that it (the sociolinguistic approach) involves the study of all aspects of the relationship between language and society. mathews (1997) and finch (2000) claim that the sociolinguistic framework was first advocated by william labov (an america linguist), and peter trudgill (a british linguist) and their followers in the late 1960s. mathews (1997) acknowledges that the approach was mostly applied or widely known in the late 1970s. following the statement of mathews (1997), it is construed that sociolinguistics includes the examination of the correlations between linguistic variables and non-linguistic variables such as the social class of speakers, their age, sex, multilingual or bilingual phenomena, endangerment among others. likewise, adesanya (2002) restates that sociolinguistic approach looks at the social significance of language as it relates to humans in their interpersonal and intercrops interactions. this denotes that sociolinguistic approach focuses on the way in which the structure of language changes in relation to its social function in different social context. once more, the claim of ayuwo (2013) shows that the sociolinguistic approach or framework is very pertinent to this paper since it involves an examination of the social phenomena commonly referred to as language endangerment. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 243 3. methodology this paper employs the descriptive survey research procedure which comprises the study of a sample drawn from a given population in order to identify their basic characteristics that can be generalized to the entire population. it adopts purposive sampling procedure which is a non-probability sample; therefore, each member of the population has a chance of being chosen. the data for this paper was collected through the use of questionnaire which the researchers administered to a total of one hundred and eighty (180) respondents within eighteen communities in echie speech communities, etche and omuma local government areas, rivers state of nigeria. this implies that the researchers sampled ten (10) questionnaires in each of the selected community. the data obtained for this study were presented in simple frequency distribution tables and the analysis done in simple percentages in total response by one hundred (100) percent. this suggests that the data were arranged and recorded according to the responses received. the method for the calculation of the percentage is as follows: % = number of responses × 100 total number of items 1 4. data analysis/discussion in this section, the researchers present the data obtained through the use of questionnaire, data analysis and discussion of the data. the first part comprises the demographic information of the respondents. the data are presented in simple percentage tables. out of the total number of one hundred and eighty (180) questionnaires given to respondents, one hundred and seventy four (174) which represents 97% were accurately filled and returned. thus, the analysis is based on the 97%. language endangerment – nwaduwa & badom 244 table 1: gender, age, material status, the number of children and highest educational qualification obtained of respondents demographic data responses frequency percentage gender male 78 44.8% female 96 55.2% total 174 100% age 18 – 25 29 16.7% 26 – 33 64 36.8% 34 – 40 32 18.4% 41+ 49 28.1% total 174 100% material status single 55 31.6% married 68 39.1% divorced 14 8% widow/widower 37 21.3% awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 245 total 174 100% number of children 1 – 2 39 22.4% 3 – 5 61 35.1% 6+ 17 9.8% nil 57 32.7% total 174 100% highest educational fslc 11 6.3% qualification obtained ssce 37 21.3% grade 11/nce/ond 46 26.4% first degree 59 33.9% post graduate 21 12.1% nil 0 total 174 100% the data in table 1 shows that a majority of the respondents, that is, 96 which represents 55.2% are female while 78 which represent 44.8% are male. the table also demonstrates that 64 (36.8%), 49 (28.1%), 32 (18.4%) and 29 (16.7%) are within the age ranges of 26 language endangerment – nwaduwa & badom 246 – 33, 41+, 34 – 40 and 18-25 respectively. it further reveals that a majority of the respondents, that is, sixty eight (68) which represent 39.1% are married, 55 (31.6%) are single, 37 (21.3%) are either widows or widowers while 14 (8%) are divorced. more so, a greater number of the respondents that is, one hundred and seventeen (117) which represent 67.3% out of the total respondents of one hundred and seventy four (174) respondents claim to have 3 – 5 (61, that is, 35.1%), 1 – 2 (39, that is, 22.4%) and 6+ (17, that is, 9.8%) children respectively and 57 which represents 32.7 do not have children. once more, the table attests that 59 (33.9%), 46 (26.4%), 37 (21.3%), 21 (12.1%) and 11 (6.3%) have first degree, grade11/nce/ond, ssce, post graduate degree and fslc respectively. table 2: the language(s) use in echie speech community items responses frequency percentage (%) 1. which of these languages do you speak echie 143 82.2% as mother tongue? nigerian pidgin english others 31 17.8% total respondents 174 100% 2. what other language(s) do you use/speak english 174 100% in addition to your mother tongue? french 6 3.5% awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 247 hausa 2 1.2% igbo 123 70.7% ikwere 49 28.2% nigerian pidgin 174 100% o̩gba 1 0.6% yoruba 7 4% 3. what language(s) are you capable of echie 81 46.6% reading? english 174 100% french 6 3.5% igbo 102 58.6% nigerian pidgin 93 53.5% 4. what language (s) are you capable of echie 54 31% writing? english 174 100% french 6 100% language endangerment – nwaduwa & badom 248 igbo 97 55.8% nigerian pidgin 88 50.6% the response to item 1 in table 2 indicates that 143 (82.2%) and 31 (17.8%) of the respondents respectively speak echie and other languages such as igbo, ikwere, hausa and yoruba as mother tongue. also, item 2 in the table reveal that all the respondents speak english and nigerian pidgin in addition to their mother tongues. one hundred and twenty three (123) which represent 70.7% of the respondents claim that speak igbo. forty nine (49), that is, 28.2%, 7(4%), 6(3.5%), 2(1.2%) and 1(0.6%) of the respondents claim that they speak ikwere, yoruba, french, hausa and o̩gba respectively in addition to their indigenous or native languages. again, items 3 and 4 in the table illustrate that all the respondents can read and write in english. in other words, all the respondents are literate users of english language. item 3 in the table demonstrates that 102 (58.6%), 93 (53.5%), 81 (46.6%) and 6 (3.5%) claim that they read igbo, nigerian pidgin, echie and french languages respectively. additionally, item 4 in table 2 indicates 97(55.8%), 88 (50.6%), 54 (31%) and 6 (100%) have the ability to write in igbo, nigerian pidgin, echie and french respectively. table 3: the languages used in different domains in echie speech communities items responses frequency percentage (%) 5. which language(s) do you use when echie 139 79.9% awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 249 communicating with children, parents, english 114 65.5% siblings, and others? hausa 2 1.2% igbo 78 44.8% ikwere 32 18.4% nigerian pidgin 166 95.4% yoruba 3 1.7% 6. which language(s) do you speak in office echie 29 16.7% with colleagues, boss, visitors and others english 101 58% within echie speech communities? nigerian pidgin 44 25.3% total 174 100% item 5 in table 3 demonstrates that most homes in echie speech communities are linguistically complex. 95.4% (166) of the respondents claim that they use nigerian pidgin when communicating with their children, parents, siblings and others in etche. also,79.9% (139) and 65.5% (114) say that they use echie and english respectively when communicating with their children, parents, siblings and others in etche. the data further show that 44.8% (78), 18.4% (32), 1.7% (3) and 1.2% (2) claim that they use igbo, ikwere, yoruba and hausa when communicating with their language endangerment – nwaduwa & badom 250 children, parents, siblings and others in etche. similarly, item 6 in the same table prove that 101 which represents 58%, 44 which represents 25.3% and 29 which represents 16.7% respectively use nigerian pidgin, english and echie in offices within echie speech communities. table 4: attitudes of echie speakers toward their language items responses frequ ency percen tage 7. which language would you prefer your children to speak fluently? echie 61 35% english 77 44.3% nigerian pidgin 34 19.5% neutral 2 1.2% total 174 100% 8. what are your reason(s) for your response in 7 above? it is a national, official language and language of education. 77 44.3% it is my mother tongue 61 35% other 13 7.5% neutral 23 13.2% total 174 100% 9. in the office, how do you feel when someone speaks echie? positive 62 35.6% negative 73 42% neutral 39 22.4% awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 251 total 174 100% 10. in a formal native ceremony, which language do you prefer either as an mc or audience? echie 62 35.6% english 68 39.1% nigerian pidgin 36 20.7% igbo 3 1.7% neutral 5 2.9% total 174 100% 11. how do you feel about the view that echie language is dying out? positive 26 15% negative 58 33.3% neutral 90 51.7% total 174 100% item 7 in table 4 demonstrates that 77 (44.3%), 61 (35%) and 34 (19.5%) indicate that they will prefer their children to speak english, echie and nigerian pidgin fluently respectively. 2(1.2%) are neutral which implies that they are not interested in the language their children speak fluently. more so, item 8 in the table attests that the reasons for language preference in echie speech communities are national, official language and language of education. 61 (35%) prefer their mother tongue 23 (13.2%) do not have any reason for their language preference. the data further reveal that there are other reasons for language preference which include intermarriage and trade. furthermore, item 9 in the table illustrates that 73 (42%) express negative attitude when someone speak echie language in their offices. also, 62 (35.6%) express positive attitude when echie is spoken in their office while 39 (22.4%) are neutral when echie is spoken in their office. item 10 indicates that 39.1% that is, 68 language endangerment – nwaduwa & badom 252 respondents prefer english language in formal ceremony while 62 which represent 35.6% and 36 which is 20.7% and 3 (1.7%) respectively prefer echie, nigerian pidgin and igbo in formal ceremony. while 5 (2.9%) are indifferent about the language use in formal ceremony. once more, item 11 in the table demonstrates that 90 (51.7%) are not bothered whether echie language dies or not. in contrast, 58 (33.3%) do not want the language to die while 15% which is 26 respondents firmly insist that the echie language can die. 4.1 discussion the data presented and analyzed in this paper reveal that etche is one of the linguistically complex societies in nigeria. there is a high level of language contact in echie speech communities. this paper found out that the languages in contact in echie speech communities are nigerian pidgin, english, igbo, ikwere, yoruba, hausa and french. one of the sociolinguistic implications of language contacts is that the language struggle for recognition. this paper observes that echie is serious losing speakers to nigerian pidgin and english language. the data collected for this research show that nigerian pidgin, echie and english are in serious competition in echie speech communities. for instance, item 5 in table 3 clearly shows that nigerian pidgin is the dominant language in the domain of home. this support the earlier assertions of williamson (2010, p. 3) that “far from english reducing its hold over communication in formal contexts, it seems to be extending it. english or its humble cousin pidgin seems to be steadily growing at the expense of nigerian languages.” the results of this are bilingualism or multilingualism code-switching, code-mixing, borrowing, and language shift. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 253 following alamu & ugwuoke’s (2010, p. 51) description of an endangered language as a language “whose speakers have lost or are losing confidence in… and thus consider it inferior or incapable of all the potentials believed to exist in other languages.” this paper insists that echie can be classified as an endangered language. the data in table 4 also reveal that most parents in echie speech communities prefer their children to use english language fluently than echie. this is another indication that echie may be heading to death if nothing is done to avert the trend. the reason for the negative attitude toward echie is the role assign to english as language of education, judiciary, administration, etc. the findings of this paper prove that fewer children are acquiring echie language. this is because of the negative attitude of most parents in echie speech communities toward the language. 5. conclusion this paper has been able to study language endangerment focusing on the echie experience. it adopts the descriptive survey research procedure. it employs purposive sampling procedure. the data obtained for this study were presented in simple frequency tables and the analysis done in simple percentages. it was noticed that echie is serious with nigerian pidgin, english, igbo, ikwere, yoruba, hausa and french. it was also found out that echie is seriously losing speakers to nigerian pidgin and english language. the study demonstrated that nigerian pidgin, echie and english are in stern struggle in echie speech communities. therefore, it affirmed that echie can be classified as an endangered language because the majority of parents in echie speech communities, especially those who reside in urban cities such as port harcourt are not encouraging their children to acquire the language. this is because they feel that echie is an inferior language since it is not language endangerment – nwaduwa & badom 254 used in the domain of education, administration, and politics among others. 5.1 recommendation this paper recommends that deliberate policy should be made to encourage the use of echie at home by children. echie linguists should as a matter of urgency document the language for the possible implementation of its use as language of instruction in the first three years of primary schools in echie speech communities. this is in line with the language policy of the national police on education in nigeria. references adesanya, f. (2002). introducing language. port harcourt: serivad ventures. agbegha, c. b. (2010). developing an endangered language: the izon example. in e. n. emenanjo (ed.). endangered languages in nigeria. port harcourt: m & j grand orbit communications ltd. ayuwo, j. g. i. (2013). language in society. port harcourt: gen-x print. emenanjo, e. n. (2010). how many nigerian languages are safe? in e. n. emenanjo (ed.). endangered languages in nigeria. port harcourt: m & j grand orbit communications ltd. finch, g. (2000). linguistics terms and concepts. new york: macmillan. mathews, p. h. (1997). oxford concise dictionary of linguistics. united kingodom: oxford university press. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 255 mcgregor, w. b. (2009). linguistics: an introduction. london: continuum international publishing group. ndimele, o-m. (2003). a concise grammar & lexicon of echie. aba: national institute for nigerian languages. salzmann, z. (2007). language, culture, and society: an introduction to linguistic anthropology. 4th edition, oxford: westview press. trudgill, p. (1992). introducing language and society. london: penguin book ltd. udu, t. t. & swande, s. v. (2015). play songs and peer group activities as resources for revitalising the tiv language. in o.m. ndimele (ed.). language endangerment: globalisation & the fate of minority languages in nigeria: a festschrift for appolonia uzoaku okwudishu. port harcourt: m & j grand orbit communications ltd. alamu, g. & ugwuoke, i. (2010). on endangered languages in nigeria. in e. n. emenanjo (ed.). endangered languages in nigeria. port harcourt: m & j grand orbit communications ltd. williamson, k. (2010). the present state of nigerian language studies. in e. n. emenanjo (ed.). endangered languages in nigeria. port harcourt: m & j grand orbit communications ltd. yibo, k. c. (2018). language use in egbeda speech community. unpublished m.a. dissertation: university of port harcourt. appendices section a demographic information of respondents gender: male [ ] female [ ] age: 18 – 25 [ ] 26 – 33 [ ] 34 – 40 [ ] 41 and above [ ] language endangerment – nwaduwa & badom 256 material status: single [ ] married [ ] divorced [ ] widow/widower [ ] number of children: 1 – 2 [ ] 3 – 5 [ ] 6 and above [ ] highest educational qualification obtained: none [ ] first school leaving certificate [ ] ssce [ ] grade 11/nce/ond [ ] first degree [ ] post graduate [ ] section a endangerment of the indigenous languages in rivers state 16. which language would you prefer your children to speak first? (a) english [ ], (b) mother-tongue [ ], (c) nigerian pidgin [ ] (d) others …………………………… 17. what is/are your reason(s) for your responds in 16 above………………………………. …………………………………………………................................ ............................................................................................................ ................................................................................ 18. which language do you speak to your children at home? (a) english [ ], (b) mother-tongue [ ], (c) nigerian pidgin [ ] (d) others …………………………… 19. in a formal native ceremony, which language do you prefer either as an mc or audience? (a) english [ ], (b) mother-tongue [ ], (c) nigerian pidgin [ ] (d) others …………………………… 20. what is/are your reason(s) for your responds in 19 above………………………………. …………………………………………………................................ ............................................................................................................ ................................................................................ 21. in the office, how do you feel when someone speaks your native language (mother-tongue?) (a) positive [ ], (b) negative [ ], (c) neutral awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 257 22. what is/are your reason(s) for your responds in 21 above………………………………. …………………………………………………................................ ............................................................................................................ ................................................................................ 23. how do you feel about the view that our native languages or mother-tongues are dying out? (a) positive [ ], (b) negative [ ], (c) neutral 204 a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo aloysius umeodinka1 ifeoma nweze2 nnamdi azikiwe university1 alex ekwueme federal university2 maloyudo@gmail.com1 ifeoma.nweze@funai.edu.ng2 abstract there are igbo words that seem so common, but when their use in social situations is considered, it reveals a rich endowment with multi-dimensional meanings. against this backdrop, this study offers a sociolinguistic analysis of the igbo terms: ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’. the study’s objectives are to explain the sociolinguistic uses of ‘nwa’ and ‘umu’ and the implications of their usage analysis. the method of the study is descriptive. the theory adopted in the analysis of data is the use theory of meaning. the data for the study is sourced primarily, because the researcher is an intuitive speaker of the igbo language. the study finds out that in some social situations, ‘nwa’ is used to denote relationship type, singularity, negligibility, offspring and parent, derogatory reference, child of a shrine, title name etc. the findings also show that ‘ụmụ’ is applied in some social circumstances to depict plurality, children and their parents, negligibility, a set of people, trainees or servants, disparagement and relations. in terms of the implications of the analysis, it is discovered that ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’ share some semantic similarities in their contextual usage to refer to child and children, respectively. also, ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’ are found to express oppositeness, especially when they refer to singularity and plurality, respectively. that notwithstanding, the analysis has exposed us to the knowledge of the way the igbo language assigns comprehensible descriptions to attitudes, professions and disabilities which have no names in igbo. keywords: sociolinguistics, plurality, igbo terms, contextual usage mailto:maloyudo@gmail.com1 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 205 1. introduction there are social roles language plays in a community. in other words, language tries to make itself suit and meet up with the needs of society. the discipline under which language does all these is sociolinguistics. the study of sociolinguistics engages in the process of blending sociology with linguistics. this explains why sociolinguists busy themselves with finding out what real speech actually is, within and among communities’. their major concern is to study the way in which language changes according to not only the social context but also the social group that uses it. the social group of concern for this paper is the igbo, whose language is spoken in abia, anambra, ebonyi, enugu, imo, and some parts of akwa ibom, cross river, delta and rivers states. in these areas, igbo language performs some specific functions. it is, however, not certain how the language uses these functions to convey social meanings. based on this, the topic of study here is “a sociolinguistic analysis of ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’ in igbo”. the objectives of the study are to explain the sociolinguistic uses of nwa and ụmụ and analyse their uses. the study will also draw out the implications of their usage analysis. the research method for the study is descriptive. the theoretical frame work is the use theory of meaning propounded by wittgenstein in 1953. the data for the analysis are primarily procured, because the researcher is an intuitive speaker of the igbo language. for the purpose of organised research presentation, the work is divided into four sections: the introduction, literature review, data analysis and conclusion. these sections are dealt with in sequence. the study is expected to be of immense benefit to researchers, the igbo language, linguists and igbo language learners both at home and in the diaspora. a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 206 2. literature review according to https://www.meriam.webster.com, “speech communities are groups that share values and attitudes about language use, varieties and practices”. they have recognised beliefs and value systems regarding forms and styles of communication. mcgregor (2009) defines it as a coherent group of people that have a language or languages common to them with more or less the same norms of language use. this group of speakers constitute a network of interacting individuals that linguistically communicate with one another in a more frequent and intensive way than they engage with outsiders. hudson’s (1980: 26) definition of community is “the whole set of people who communicate with one another, either directly or indirectly, via the common language”. the understanding in all these views centres around three major things: a speech community has to share a common language, the group has to be interacting frequently and have common norms of language use. this directly means that igbo is a speech community. 2.1 language language, according to sapir (1921), is a method that is not instinctive, but precisely human, and human beings make use of it to share ideas, emotions and desires through the process of communication and use of symbols produced intentionally by the same human beings. related to this definition is that of trager (1949) that sees language as a non-concrete system of symbols generated vocally by means of which societal members interact in accordance with their whole culture. okwudishu, in okolo (2010) describes language as something that is as important as the soul of a people; a system of communication which the people of a specific community, region or country employ through its symbols in their speech and writing. supporting the view, maduagwu (2008) emphasizes that a people’s history is kept alive through language, https://www.meriam.webster.com/ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 207 even as it is a means of transmitting a people’s culture. in fact, once language is affected in any way, the owners of such a language will also be affected in one way or the other. from the definitions of language by sapir (1921), trager (1949), okolo (2010) and maduagwu (2008), it is easy to point out some areas of sameness and divergencies. for instance, sapir (1921) and trager (1949) agree that language functions as a system. in this system, both of them particularize the use of symbols. and they agree that the use of these systematic human vocal symbols is for the purpose of interaction or communicating ideas, emotions or desires. where both of them differ is that trager (1949) specifies that it is the members of a common society that use language. okolo’s (2010) concern is on the importance of language to human beings, an idea which maduagwu (2008) shares with him. they agree that language is mainly for the purpose of communication in a community or a region, and that symbols are used systematically. following this analysis, language is obviously systematic and involves the use of systematic symbols for communication in a community which views their language as an indispensable instrument in their collective life. 2.2 igbo language in the words of ohiri-aniche (2013: 17): igbo language is spoken homogenously in five southeastern states of the country, namely, abia, anambra, ebonyi, enugu and imo. sizeable numbers of igbo speakers are found in delta and rivers states, while they are also found in one or two communities in edo and akwa ibom states. a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 208 onwuejeogwu (1975: 1) also captures the area where igbo language is spoken. he maintains that the area is delimited by an: imaginary line running outside the settlements of agbor, kwale, obiaruku, ebu (west niger igbo area), ahoada, diobu, umuagbai (port harcourt area), arochukwu, afikpo, ndinioafu, isiogo (abakaliki area) and enugu ezike (nsuka area and nzam). according to ohiri-aniche (2013), the people who share boundaries with the igbo are as follows: igala, tiv, and idoma to the north; the anaang, ibibio, efik to the south-east. then, to the south-west, are the urhobo, isoko and edo. on the side of south-south are delta areas with ijaw and ogoni.with these geographical descriptions by ohiri-aniche (2013) and onwuejeogwu (1975), it becomes clear that the words ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’ of the igbo language are used in these areas of nigeria. 2.3 linguistics as gleason (1961: 2) puts it through anozie (2007: 27), “linguistics is the science which attempts to understand language from the point of view of its internal structure”. as is explained by anozie (2007), the target of general linguistics is to present language as an activity and instrument used by human beings and not by the lower animals in the world. linguistics aims at scientifically comprehending the position language occupies in human life, how language is organized to enable it satisfy the needs it serves and the roles or functions which language performs for human beings. finch (2000: 1) gives a stage-by-stage explanation of the work of linguists, thus: awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 209 linguists begin their work by observing the way in which people use language, on the basis of which they provide a description of language use, and finally, when all the data has been analysed, an explanation. explanations of language use are the stage at which linguists endeavour to establish the underlying rules which speakers are following. according to prasad (2012), the work which linguistics does is to describe the nature, scope, structure, production, perception and how to transmit language independently. linguistics also does the work of establishing a theory of language, studies the components of a language system and tries to arrive at an explanation of how language works. the work of linguistics is, therefore, mainly descriptive, even as it also engages in historical and comparative investigations about language. in all these explanations, gleason’s (1961) focus is on the linguistic study of the internal structure of language. anozie’s (2010) concern is about how linguistics sets to differentiate language as a human behavioural aspect reserved for human beings alone. other roles he (2010) recognizes are that linguistics arranges language to satisfy human needs and also perform some functions. finch’s (2000) description of linguistics is centred on its scientific functional modalities, which, summarily, are empiricity, observation description and explanation. it is from prasad (2012) that the things linguistics describes are shown: nature, scope, structure, production, perception and transmission of language. based on all these, the position of this study is that linguistics is a scientific study of language as an aspect of human behaviour. in this study, linguistics descriptively explains the nature, scope, a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 210 structure, production, perception and how language is transmitted to satisfy the needs of humans in various ways. 2.3.1 descriptive linguistics anagbogu, mbah and eme (2010) maintain that descriptive linguistics involves making effort to describe or show how language existed at a specific time. this calls for analysing language precisely the way it is found, without additions or changes. prasad (2012: 5) obviously agrees with the above view from anagbogu, mbah and eme (2010) when he says that “descriptive linguistics deals with the description, and analysis of the ways in which a language operates and is used by a given set of speakers at a given time”. these authors also agree that descriptive linguistics involves phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax and semantics. what this implies is that it is through these branches that any language is described according to how it works at a particular point in time. 2.3.2 syntax syntax is “the study of grammatical relations between words and other units within the sentence” (matthews, 2007: 397). finch (2000) defines syntax as a reference to the rules that determine how words are combined to generate sentences. to him, it is about arranging words in a particular order. on his part, echebima (2015) maintains that syntax is about how different words are arranged so that they be in agreement with other words to deliver a meaningful expression. from the views of matthews (2007), finch (2000) and echebima (2015), it becomes clear that syntax involves putting words in an acceptable order to produce the sentences we use in speech. it is about sticking to the rules of a language to use the words from morphology to form sentences. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 211 2.3.3 semantics what we study in semantics is meaning. it has to do with the meaning of the sound of the word, structure of the word and the arrangement of the words. this is because language is communication by human beings, and this communication conveys meaning plus message (echebima, 2015). quoting lyons (1977), anagbogu, mbah and eme (2010: 215) maintain that “semantics is the study of meaning”. according to ndimele (1999: 1), “semantics is an area of linguistics which studies the meaning of words and sentences in language”. what is to be learnt from the above definitional attempts is that semantics is about the meaning which words and sentences convey in language. in other words, it is about the purpose of a piece of communication, which is passing information and delivering an actual message. 2.3.4 sociolinguistics sociolinguistics, in the view of hudson (1980) studies language in relation to society. the study believes there are relations between word-meaning and culture. through it, one has to learn the nature of language and the nature of society. it is through sociolinguistics that social contexts in language are learned and used. sociolinguistics shows that speech is clearly a social behaviour; it enables us to realise that speech has a social function, can serve as both a means of communication and the identification of social groups. prasad (2012) explains that sociolinguists indicate that one learns language in the society and that language follows social structure and culture. language remains a reflection of social structure. according to prasad (2012), sociolinguistics includes phonetics, morphology, syntax, semantics, vocabulary, proverbs a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 212 and sayings. in all these, language, being social, is always identical from one member of a speech community to another. anozie (2007), in explaining sociolinguistics, maintains that it accounts for the social backgrounds of both the speaker and the addressee, the relationship between the speaker and the addressee and also the context and manner of the interaction. all these will help in comprehending both the structure and function of the language used in a situation. it is easy to learn from all these views that sociolinguistics involves relating word-meaning to culture, social contexts and the social function of speech. in sociolinguistics, the background, relationship and the manner of the interaction between the speaker and the addressee have to often be considered. 2.4 stylistic or social meaning ndimele (1999) defines stylistic or social meaning as that which is as a result of a word producing a meaning which is characteristic of a specific speech pattern, a linguistic variety or a social situation, social meaning obtains when a person’s diction reveals his background. ogbulogo (2005: 22) is of the view that “when a particular pattern of speech, language variety or speech form is associated with a specific social context, stylistic or social meaning is achieved”. emenanjo (2015) mentions ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’ as igbo words used as singular and plural markers, respectively. he (2015: 14) gives the following as examples of where ‘nwa and ‘ụmụ’ are used to mark singular and plural, respectively. (a) nwa (child) ụmụ (children) (b) nwa nne (brother/sister) ụmụ nne (brothers/sisters) (c) nwa akwụkwọ (pupil/student) (ụmụ akwụkwọ (pupils/students) awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 213 also, emenanjo (2015) goes ahead to stress the meaning of “insignificance” in the use of ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’, thus: (d) ụmụ ihe little things (e) ụmụ osisi shrubs on treating “components with clear and independent meanings and genitival relationships”, oruchalu (1979: 67) points out the meaning of ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’, thus: (f) nwa agbọghọ (lady). in this case, ‘nwa’ stands as ‘offspring’ while ‘agbọghọ’ means ‘lady’. (g) ụmụ nwaanyị (women): this is as plural. (h) ụmụ okorobịa (youths): this is as plural. (i) ụmụ ntakịrị (children): this is as plural also. the above studies of emenanjo (2015) and oruchalu (1979) make it known that ‘nwa’ is actually used to express singularity whereas ‘ụmụ’ is used, in igbo to establish plurality in a construction. through the manner of their written forms, both of them have shown that both ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’ play qualificative roles in igbo. in the words of uba-mgbemena (2011: 43), “in igbo orthography the writing of ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’ deserves special attention. this is because each of these two items has three distinct semantic readings”. the three different meanings he is talking about for ‘nwa’ are: (i) child (ii) insignificant and (iii) one or not more than one. the examples of each are as follows: (j) nwa okeke bịara (‘nwa’ as child) (okeke’s child came) (k) ọ bụ nwa ụlọ ahụ na-eko ya isi? (nwa as insignificant) (is it that insignificant house that swells his head?) a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 214 (l) nwa akwụkwọ gị ahụ alaala (that student of yours is gone)‘nwa’ as singular marker). uba-mgbemena’s (2011: 44) examples on ‘ụmụ’ and its three distinct meanings are these: (m) ụmụ okeke bịara (ụmụ used as ‘children’). (okeke’s children came) (n) ọ bụ ụmụ ụlọ ahụ na-eko ya isi? (insignificant) (is it those insignificant houses that swell his head?) (o) ụmụ agbọghọ ahụ bịara (‘ụmụ’ as plural marker) (those maidens came) the clear point here is that both ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’ have three varying meanings each. if there are other meanings beyond these, we shall see that in the data analysis. 2.6 theoretical framework the theory that guides this study is the use theory of meaning founded by wittgenstein in 1953. this theory is also known as the contextual or operational theory of meaning (ogboluogo, 2005). 2.6.1 objective of the theory the objective of the theory is to see that the meaning of a word is determined by the context under which such a word is used. what this means is that it is the effect which a word creates within a specific situation that stands as the full meaning of that word. by extension, the theory is saying that words should not be seen as entities, that is, as things that exist separately from other things. it is the decision and its accompanying effects that bestow a meaning on a word. words do not just mean what is said, but their meaning lies in the way such a thing is said and the condition under which it is said. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 215 2.6.2 application of the theory by implication, the application of the use theory of meaning requires finding out what is said, how it is said and under what type of speech situation the word is used. the expression being considered must be some data from a competent user of the language (https://link.springer.com). following the explanation, in order to apply use the theory of meaning on any data, it requires finding out the words and the manner of their use and then using the situation of usage to draw out the meaning of the words. the social meaning of such a word is always key in determining the intended understanding of it. 2.7 empirical review odo (2018) conducted a research on “a sociolinguistic analysis of youth language in igbo”. the sole objective of the study is to investigate the youth language so as to highlight the language used by youths. the theory which is used in the research is systemic functional grammar (sfg). the findings of the study are that youths use language to express love, dislike and to achieve other goals. it also includes that total desires are expressed through language. considering the topic, objectives, theoretical framework and findings of the study, it becomes obvious that this research of ours is free for continuity; as both have no area of relationship. the only similarity is that both are sociolinguistic analysis, but in varying areas of the igbo language. madueke (2020) carried out a research on “the sociolinguistic analysis of binomials in igbo”. the objectives are to explain sociolinguistics and binomials and their types in igbo. another objective is to analyse the varieties of binomials. the research is guided by the use theory of meaning by wittgenstein (1953). the findings give the explanation of sociolinguistics and https://link.springer.com/ a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 216 declare the existence of only two types of binomials, the reversible and irreversible. it also finds out that binomials can be categorized in many ways based on context. from this review, the only similarity her work has with this one is the use of the same use theory of meaning. outside that, both do not have the same topic, objectives and findings. what this implies is that these researches cannot prevent the continuity of this one. 3. data presentation and findings what is to be done in this section is the presentation of the data generated by the intuitive researcher carrying out this study. the various data have to be classified and analysed along the line of their contextual meanings as stipulated in the research objectives. 3.1 explaining the sociolinguistic uses of ‘nwa’ in sociolinguistic analysis, the modus operandi is to survey how social factors affect or even determine the use of language in the society. in this light, the word has to be brought out as data for analysis. after that, the context of usage of the word has to be stated. it is now from the context that the real meaning of the expression has to be defined, as this table portrays: table 1: ‘nwa’ as singular (one unmarried person) words sentence type content of usage meaning (1) nwa okorobia (a youth) (2) nwa agbọghọ (a spinster) ikenna bụ nwa okorobia (ikenna is a youth) where the occasion requires stating the status of ikenna and adaku. (1) it shows that ikenna is one person, not more than on. (2) it also means that ikenna is not yet married. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 217 table 2: ‘nwa’ as insufficient or insignificant (very little) words sentence type context of usage meaning nwa oge (a little time/insufficient time) (1) ọ nọrọ nwa oge tupu ọ laa. (he stayed a little time before he left) when emphasis is on how long he stayed he stayed for a short time. nwa ofe (a little soup) ọ bụ nwa ofe ahụ i kunyere m ga-ezuru m nri a? (is it that small soup you put for me that will be enough for this food?) when emphasis is on whether the soup is big enough for the whole food he was given an insignificant amount of soup. nwa xlq (nwa xlq) (insignificant house) ọ bụ nwa ụlọ ahụ na-eko ya isi? (is it that insignificant house that swells his head? when somebody is unnecessarily so proud of the house he built. he is not supposed to be laying excessive emphasis on the house he built. a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 218 table 3: ‘nwa’ as an indicator of offspring and parent words sentence type context of usage meaning ‘nwa’ uche (uche’s child) nwa uche (uche’s child) udoka bụ nnwa uche (udoka is uche’s child) when emphasis is on the parent of the child uche is the parent of udoka and udoka is the child awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 219 table 4: ‘nwa’: naming persons in accordance with their igbo market day of birth words sentence type context of usage meaning nwa + orie nworie/nwoye (a name/ born on orie day) (nwafọ (name/ born on afọ day) nwankwo na nweke bịara ebe a (nwankwo and nweke came here). when it is necessary to say the name of a person that came. nwakwo, nweke and nwoye are persons named against the igbo market days in which they were born. nweke (name/born on eke day nwankwo (name/born on nkwọ day). nwoye gara ahịa afọ (nwoye went to afọ market). when it is necessary to mention the name of the person. a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 220 table 5: ‘nwa’ as a revealer of relationship type words sentence type context of usage meaning (1) nwanne (brother/sister) (2) nwanna (paternal relation) onyinye bụ nwanne m (onyinye is my sister). ikenna bụ nwanna anyị (ikenna is our paternal brother). when there is the need to specify relationships shared it shows the type of relationship onyinye and ikenna have with the concerned person. table 6: ‘nwa’ as indicating an afflicted child words sentence type context of usage meaning nwa nzuzu (a foolish child) ọfọma bụ nwa nzuzu (ọfọma is a foolish child) ọfọma is a foolish child when a person’s behavior calls for question it means that the behavior of such persons are not normal. nwa ọgbanje (a reincarnated child) agwa ya bụ nke nwa ọgbanje (her behavior is that of a reincarnated child). it arises when a child’s behavior appears strange. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 221 nwa enwe nne enwe nna (child not having mother or father an orphan) qbxm bụ nwa enwee nne enwe nna (he is an orphan). when someone is expected to call his/her parents. it shows that the child has no parents still alife. table 7: ‘nnwa’/ ‘nwa’ as a child belonging to a group words sentence type context of usage meaning (1) nwa akwụkwọ (a child of a school pupil/student ). (2) nwa umuchu (a child from umuchu) (3) nwa aro ndizuọgụ (a child from arondizuọgụ ) (1) chinedu bụ nwa akwụkwọ (chinedu is a pupil/student ) (2) nwa umuchu ahụ bịara ebe a, ya na nke arondizuọgụ (that umuchu child came here together with the arondizuogu child when the group or communit y one belongs to needs to be identified. (1) it shows that chinedu belongs to the school community and that okeke belongs to umuchu community. it means also that a child that belongs to arondizuog u community also came. a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 222 table 8: ‘nwa’ as a derogatory expression words sentence type context of usage meaning nwa nsụka (nsụka child) nwa abakaliki (abakaliki child) nwa ohụ (a slave child). (1) leenụ nwa nsụka a ka ọ na-agwa m okwu (look at this ordinary nsụka child talking to me). (2) chidi bụ nwa ohụ (chidi is a slave child). when civilization and enlightenment are being discussed people from a less developed nsụka & abakaliki are ridiculed (nwa ohụ a slave child is always ridiculed). it means that the use of nwa nsụka or nwa aba or nwa ohu is a derogatory reference. table 9: ‘nwa’ as a child of a shrine words sentence type context of usage meaning (1) nwaogwugwu (a child of ogwugwu shrine) (2) nwa agbara (a child of agbara shrine) (3) nwa ngwu (a child of ngwu shrine) (1) ikem jere ikpesara nwa ogwugwu (ikem went to complain to nwa ogwugwu) (2) nwa agbara kpọrọ dike oku (nwa agbara (1) when there is a case to be decided (2) a situation where the attention of dike is (1) ikem can report a matter to a shrine god. (2) it shows that the shrine can invite any of its worshippers to come and awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 223 shrine summoned dike) needed over a case. answer to a case. table 10: ‘nwa’: as the qualified, underlying form, ‘nnwa’ words sentence type context of usage meaning (1) uru nnwa (a child of profit) (1) obiageli bụ uru nwa (obiageli is a child born out of wedlock) when the status of children in the family is being defined. it shows that every child has a known status in his/her family. (2) añụrị nwa (child birth celebration) (2) ha na-eje añụrị nwa. (they are going for child birth celebration). in the case of stating one’s destination one can specify his/her destination. a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 224 (3) akwa nwa (cry for childlessness) (3) akwụla naebe akwa nwa n’ụla nka. (a prostitute cries for childlessness at old age) when expressing the regrets of a prostitute or the disadvantage of prostitution. every bad profession or attitude has its adverse effects in the long run. (4) ụkọ nnwa (child scarcity) table 11: ‘nwa’: as title names words sentence type context of usage meaning (1) nwa + ka ibe ya (nwakaibeya) (a child bigger than others (2) nwa + ka nnwa (nwakannwa) (same as above) (3) nwa + ezeefunamba --> nwaezefunamba (a king’s son never gets lost) (1) aha a na-etu ya bụ nwakaibeya. (his title name is nwakaibeya) (2) e chiri ya nwaezefunamba (he was given the title nwaezefunmba) when persons take titles to enhance their social status. it means that those are names with which they are honoured in public. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 225 table 12: ‘nwa’ in figurative expressions words sentence type context of usage meaning (1) the formula -> nwa + an expression nwa eyinne, eyinna udoka bụ nwa eyinne eyinna. (udoka has a queer behaviour) during character assessment udoka’s behaviour resembles neither the father’s or mother’s. (2) nwa si owere ba nne ya n’afọ (a child that entered the mother’s womb through unknown means. nweke bụ si owere ba nne ya n’afọ. (nweke is a strange child) when a child keeps manifesting an aberrant behaviour the child keeps behaving in an unusual, unacceptable way. (3) nwa ka ọ mụrụ, ọ bụghị ụmụ (he gave birth to a child and not children) n’ebe obiọma nọ, nne ya mụrụ nwa ọ bụghị ụmụ. (in obiọma, his mother gave birth to a child and not children) when a child exhibits appreciable behaviour always. the child is a wellbehaved one and not like the badly behaved ones. (4) nwa e ji a]ụ m ihe (a child of recompense). ibekwe bụ nnwa e ji añụ ihe when a specific child’s conduct is he/she is a child that has come to pay his/her a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 226 (ibekwe is a requital child) always in the negative. parents back for the bad things they did. 3.3 explaining the sociolinguistic uses of ụmụ table 13: ‘ụmụ’ denoting plurality words sentence type context of usage meaning (1) ụmụ nwoke (men) (2) ụmụ nwaanyị (women) (3) ụmụ agbọghọ (spinsters) (4) ụmụ okorobịa (youths) (5) ụmụ nkịta (dogs) (1) ụmụ nwoke na ụmụ nwaanyị bịara (men and women came) (2) ha bụ ụmụokorobịa na ụmụagbọghọ (they are youths and spinsters). (3) ụmụnkịta ahụ naata ọkpụkpụ. (those dogs are chewing bone). when there is the need to specify the attendees. that those who came were men and women specifying that the people are unmarried young boys and girls. explaining the action of many dogs, masticating bones. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 227 table 14: ụmụ: denoting offsprings words sentence type context of usage meaning (1) ụmụ ọgọnna (ọgọnna’s children) (2) ụmụ ọkụkọ (chickens) (3) ụmụ ewu (offsprings of goat) (1) chika na amaka bụ ụmụ ọgọnna. (chika & amaka are ọgọnna’s children) ụmụ ewu ojii ahụ na-anụ ara. (those kids are sucking breast). a situation where the parents of some children are to be specified. where the goats sucking breast need to be defined as to whether they are the offsprings of the goat. it means that the subjects of discussion are the offsprings of a parent. table 15: ‘ụmụ’ used in derogatory remarks for ‘many’ words sentence type context of usage meaning (1) ụmụ ọgwụgwụ oge (end time children) (2) ụmụefurefu (good for nothing children) (3) ụmụ iberibe (misbehaving children) (1) esokwala ụmụ ọgwụgwụ oge a n’agwa ha naakpa. (don’t join the end time children in their misbehaviour) (2) agwa ha bụ nke ụmụ efurefu when acts of bad conduct are being discussed. it means that the person in question is very badly behaved. a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 228 (their behaviour is that of end time children). table 16: ‘ụmụ’ showing negligibility and littleness words sentence type context of usage meaning (1) ụmụ ehi igbo (igbo cows) (2) ụmụ nghangha akwa (good-fornothing clothes) (1) ọ bụ umu ehi igbo ndị ahụ o gburu ka o ji eme ọnụ? (is it those igbo cows that he is proud of?) (2) ọ bụ umu nghangha akwa ya ahụ ka o ji eje ụka? (is it those good-fornothing clothes that he wears to the church). when what a person is proud of is dimunitive and negligible. when the cloth somebody is putting on is not fit for a formal outing. it means that somebody is laying emphasis on things worthy to be ignored. it means also that the time for a good thing is being wasted on a bad thing. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 229 table 17: ụmụ used in describing a set of trainees words sentence type context of usage meaning (1) ụmụ ọrụ (apprentices) (2) ụmụ akwụkwọ (pupils/stude nts) (3) ụmụ odibo (servants) (1) ha bụ umu ọrụ yá. (they are his apprentice s). (2) ụmụ odibo ya na-asa afere (his servants are washing plates). (3) ụmụ akwụkwọ ahụ naamụ akwụkwọ (those students are studying). used when the people concern ed are still learning a particula r art, job or business . it mean s that the perso ns in quest ion are still being taugh t what they are doing . a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 230 table 18: ‘ụmụ’ signifying relations words sentence type context of usage meaning (1) ụmụ ada (daughters) (2) ụmụ nne (maternal relations) (3) ụmụ nna (paternal relations) (1) ọgọọ bụ nwanne m. (ọgọọ is my maternal relation) (2) ụmụ ada nwere nzụkọ (the daughters of the land have a meeting). when specifying blood relation is necessary. it means that one form of blood relation or the other is shared by them. 3.4 implications of the analysis the analysis of the data gathered for ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’ has enabled the researcher to check, reorder and present the available data in the form of applicable and understandable information. one of the implications of the analysis is that the researcher should now be able to make meaningful deductions and conclusion from the data. of course, through it, the results can be properly used and applied. from the analysis, it comes out clearly that one thing is to know the meaning of ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’, another thing is to know their multiple dimensions of meaning in a social setting. again, it is now a common knowledge, through this research, that different sentence types have their different contexts and interpretations in the use of the words ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’. the analysis has made the revelation that ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’, in their social contexts, are similar in being used not only to refer to singular and plural, child and children, but also to make derogatory references, figurative expressions and to refer to applications. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 231 another implication of the analysis is that it will help the igbo language to have improved linguistic performance in several social situations. also, the analysis has the implication of pointing towards how language mirrors social reality. in a final note, the analysis shows how the igbo language assigns comprehensible descriptions to positions, attitudes, professions and disabilities which have no known name in igbo. 4. summary of findings and conclusion 4.1 findings the task of the sociolinguistic analysis of ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’ has been started, done and concluded. the first objective has been to explain the sociolinguistic uses of ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’. on the part of ‘nwa’, summarily speaking, the findings of its sociolinguistic uses include being applied in certain social circumstances to mark relationship type, singularity, insignificance, offspring and parent, child affliction, membership of a group, derogatory reference, child of a shrine, and title name. it is also used in figurative expressions. as for ‘ụmụ’, its sociolinguistic applications in varied social situations have to do with denoting plurality, children, negligibility, a set of people, trainees or servants, parents of children, disparagement and relations. in the area of the implications emerging from the analysis of the sociolinguistic uses of ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’, the study finds out that ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’ share some similarities and oppositeness in some contexts of usage in igbo. in the aspect of similarity, they both designate parenthood and offspring, derogatory reference and belittling. then, in oppositeness, ‘nwa’ is for singular where ‘ụmụ’ is for plural, especially in situations of talking about parenthood or products of marriage. where ‘nwa’ is about singular, ‘ụmụ’ is used there to refer to the opposite, which is plural. a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 232 the analysis of the data has made it easy for meaningful deductions and conclusion to be made about the use of the words, their contexts and sentence types. it is easy to draw out these pieces of knowledge from examining the sets of data. from the analysis, there is an obvious lesson that different sentence types vary in their interpretations as informed by their contexts. the analysis has the implication of helping to showcase how the igbo language is used to reproduce social reality. 4.2 conclusion this research has revealed the hitherto hidden advantages of studying the discipline of sociolinguistics. if not for this study, how could it have been imagined that such seemingly disregarded words as ‘nwa’ and ‘ụmụ’ would have such multi-dimensional meanings in social language usage as we have seen? what it translates to is that this study has brought to the fore a lot of issues of significance in language study. firstly, it is now certain that theoretical linguistics is not of much use without sociolinguistics. one thing is to construct language structure, and another thing is to understand the social structure of their application. secondly, it is now obvious that there are many variables that facilitate any comprehensive understanding of both structure and the language used in a situation. thirdly, it is no longer a hidden fact that it is the society that determines the said choice of language use. fourthly and finally, with this study, the igbo can afford to increase their knowledge of what is common across our various communities of communication. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 233 references anagbogu, p.n., mbah, b.m. & eme, c.a. (2010). introduction to linguistics. amaka dreams ltd: awka. anozie, c.c. (2003). igbo kwenu (akụkọ na omenaala ndị igbo) computer edge publishers: enugu. anozie, c.c. (2007). general linguistics: an introduction. tian ventures: enugu. echebima, g. (2014). a textbook of igbo linguistics. assumpta press: owerri. emenanjo, e.n. (2015). a grammar of contemporary igbo (student’s edition). m & j grand orbit communications ltd: port harcourt. finch, g. (2000). palgrave key concepts: linguistic terms and concepts. macmillan: usa. hudson, r.a. (1981). sociolinguistics. cambridge university press: london. matthews, p.h. (2007). oxford concise dictionary of linguistics. clays ltd: great britain. ndimele, o.m. (2005). semantics & the frontiers of communication. university of port harcourt press ltd: port harcourt. ogbalu, f.c. and emenanjo, e.n. (1975). igbo language and culture. oxford university press: ibadan. ogbulogu, c. (2005). concepts in semantics. sam iroanusi publishers: lagos. ohiri-aniche, c. (2013). igbo speech varieties. solo media international ltd: abuja, nigeria. okolo, b.a. (2009). proceedings of the national seminar on revival of igbo values;ofobuike intellectual union 2009 lecture series, 3 mindex publishing company ltd: benin. a sociolinguistic analysis of nwa and ụmụ in igbo – umeodinka & nweze 234 okolo, b.a. and ezikeojiaku, p.a. (2012). introduction to language and linguistics. sunray publications ltd: port harcourt. oruchalu, s.u. (1979). fundamentals of igbo spelling. festa printing press: benin. prasad, t. (2014). a course in linguistics. phl learning private limited: new delhi. 70 the semantics of the igbo verbs of opening adaobi ngozi okoye nnamdi azikiwe university, awka, nigeria an.okoye@unizik.edu.ng abstract languages deploy various means in the description of opening events. verbs of opening represent a subset of the separation verb class and comprise those verbs used to refer to the activity of removing or taking a part from an entity. the present study examines the igbo verbs that carve up the semantic domain of opening events. the study specifically seeks to identify the members of this verb class and in addition ascertain if there are specific conceptualizations that can affect the verbs in relation to contexts of usage. furthermore, the study seeks to determine if there are restrictions on the co-occurrence of the verbs with entities. data for the study is based on elicitations with five competent native speakers of the igbo language using relevant clips in the cut and break video stimuli. other strategies devised by the researcher also formed sources of data for the study. the findings of the study reveal that igbo verbs such as sàghéé, mèghéé, kwùghéé ,kpo ̩̀ghée, gbàghéé, ghù̩ghéé, kwàghéé and kpàghéé all translate to open and are used to describe opening events. in addition, the study observes that some verbs of opening can co-occur with the same object entity but usually with an apparent difference in the viewpoint from which the opening event is construed. keywords: igbo language, verbs, opening events, semantic domain awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 71 1. introduction the activity of separation cuts across languages and culture. separation events have been explored in different languages and certain postulations have been arrived at. for instance, in a cross linguistic study of 28 different languages, majid, boster and bowerman (2008) discover that cut and break hereafter (c&b) verbs i.e., those verbs describing material destruction formed a distinct group from opening and peeling verbs. thus, majid, bowerman, van staden and boster (2007) posit that separation events involving opening and taking apart involve the destruction of the affected entity in a minimal way which can be easily reversed. this study explores the semantics of verbs of opening. verbs of opening or detachment is a subset of the separation verb class, the other being the c&b subset. verbs of opening according to atintono (2019) describe the separation of one distinguishable part of an object from another which is usually reversible while the c&b verbs describe the slightest or extreme severance or material destruction of an object which is usually not reversible. discussions concerning the linguistic encoding of separation events across languages have occupied the linguistic fronts. notable among these discussions are the works which featured in a special issue of the cognitive linguistic journal. though the volume explored typologically divergent languages, the research findings in the volume suggests very interesting similarities that stimulate interest towards exploring languages whose separation events are yet to be accounted for. this has formed part of the motivation for the present study. ameka and hill’s study on the semantics of verbs of opening in ewe, a kwa language of west africa and longgu an oceanic language of solomon’s island further adds interesting findings particular to verbs of opening in two typologically divergent languages. ameka and hill (2020) demonstrate that although the the semantics of the igbo verbs of opening okoye 72 two languages carve up the semantic space of opening differently, shared properties of objects of physical actions of opening exist between the two languages. van staden’s (2007) study of verbs of separation in tidore language claims that many verbs cross-classify different aspects of separation events in tidore and further posits that tidore encodes aspects of the orientation of entities in description of specific separation events. despite the outstanding contributions made in the direction of accounting for separation events across languages, the present study adds further understanding to earlier discussions. in particular, the verbs used in describing opening events in igbo language which seem to divide along the instruments used as well as the manner of separation provides interesting insights which is specialized to the igbo verbs of opening. bowerman (2005) sets forth some characteristics of openable objects. according to the author, openable objects are unitary objects which may have parts. the objects separate along predetermined lines, (objects that are open can be closed, and hence the action can be reversible), separation involving opening provides access to something (a content, an interior space or a previously concealed part of the object with which one can do something). bowerman’s characteristics, though based on the english language are adequate for the present study thus affirming that cross-cultural parallels exist between cultures in the same semantic domain. this paper centers on the verbs of opening in igbo with the aim of determining the igbo verbs that carve up the semantic domain of opening events, ascertaining the conceptualizations that can affect the verbs in relation to contexts of usage and the explanations behind restrictions on the occurrence of the verbs with entities. opening verbs as earlier mentioned do not result to the destruction of the object. they describe the separation of one distinguishable part of awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 73 an object from another which is usually reversible. the rest of the paper is organized as follows; section two presents the methodology while section three and its succeeding subsections goes into the explication of the verbs of opening in igbo. in section four, we summarize and conclude the study. 2. methodology data for the study is based on elicitations with competent native speakers of the igbo language using relevant clips in the cut and break video stimuli designed by bohnemeyer, bowerman and brown (2001). the video clips contains fourteen (14) scenes which feature spatial separation such as opening the hand/mouth/eyes, a door, a cup, a scissors, a book, removing the cap of a pen etc. the consultants were asked to first observe and then describe the event observed in the video clips. their explanations yielded the expressions used in the description of the observed clips. further interrogations were put forth to the consultants especially where different verbs are used to describe the same scene. other discussions resulted in the elicitation of verbs used for culture specific items. one other source of data involves the construction of some sentences involving opening events based on my own native speaker intuition. these sentences were crosschecked and discussed with the competent speakers. the elicitations are presented and discussed in section 3 following. 3. verbs of opening in igbo some of the igbo verbs used in describing opening events are mèghéé, kwùghéé, kpo ̩̩̀ghée, kpàghéé, gbàghéé, sàghéé. the verbs have their variants as mèpéé, kwùpéé, kpo ̩̀péé,kpàpéé, gbàpéé, sàpéé. these verbs all translate to english ‘open’ but in terms of intrinsic semantics, factors such as manner or instrument contribute the semantics of the igbo verbs of opening okoye 74 to their meanings. although it is possible for more than one verb to occur with an entity, usually, this reveals a difference in the perception of the opening event. for instance, the verbs mèghéé ‘open’ and sàghéé ‘open wide apart’ can occur with parts of the human body but there is perceived difference in the magnitude to which the body part is opened. whereas meghe ‘open’ occuring with the body part o ̩nu ̩ ‘mouth’ can suggest open in such a way that the two lips are not together, sàghéé ‘open wide apart’ portends a scenario where the content of the mouth can be revealed. in subsections three following, we provide the elucidations of specific verbs used in the description of opening events in igbo language. 3.1 the verb meghe mèghéé is a verbal compound comprised me ‘do’ depicting the action and ghe from ighe oghe ‘to be open’ which denotes the result. the verb mèghéé is the general verb for open in igbo language. this is due to its prolific occurrence with diverse entities which can be animate, inanimate or institutions such as banks and schools. mèghéé as a verbal compound denotes action result and is derived from ghé óghē ‘be open’. the examples in (1) show the different occurrences of mèghéé. 1) a. mèghéé anya gi open eye 2sg ‘open your eye’ b. ó̩ nà è méghé úlo ̩̀ yá táà 3sg prog pref open house 2sg today [lit]he is opening his house today ‘he is organizing a house warming ceremony’ c. u̩lo̩ akwu ̩kwo̩ ga e meghe echi awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 75 house school fut pref open tomorrow ‘school will resume tomorrow’ d. a cho̩ ro̩ m i meghe akanwu ̩tu ̩ n’ u̩lo̩ aku̩ 1sg want pst 1sg pref open account prep house wealth ‘i want to open an account with the bank’ e. onye nkuzi meghe re akwu ̩kwo̩ teacher open pst book ‘the teacher opened the book’ f. o ji aka meghe u ̩zo̩ 3sg hold hand open door ‘he/she opened the door with hand’ g. meghe obi gi nabata jizos kraist open heart 2sg accept jesus christ ‘open your heart and accept jesus christ’ examples (1a) – (1g) illustrate some of the structures that mèghéé can occur with. in all the examples there is a sense of opening associated with the verb. in example 1a, the verb is used intransitively in its occurrence with the body part ánaá ‘eye’. 1b instantiates a usage that is rather metaphorical where the whole event associated with housewarming is captured by activity of opening. in 1b and 1c, the verb is used transitively. example 1d shows meghee occurring in a ditransitive construction. the event described by the verb has to do with opening account with financial institution typically, a bank. meghee can occur with akwu ̩kwo̩ the semantics of the igbo verbs of opening okoye 76 ‘book’ as in example (1e) to suggest targeted opening of the book as opposed to flipping through the book. example (1f) suffices as a serial verb construction where the verb mèghéé occurs alongside another verb ji ‘hold’. in all these instances, one observes that the verb mèghéé ‘open’ retains its form irrespective of position occupied in the sentence i.e. when occurring in the initial or medial positions in sentential construct. 3.2 the verb kwu ̩̀ghéé the verb kwu ̩̀ghéé typically occurs with openable objects for instance containers especially those with removable parts such as pots, cups, bottles, pen etc. the use of kwùghéé to describe an opening event suggests that the hand is the typical instrument involved even when it is implicit in the expression. furthermore, kwu ̩̀ghéé seems to collocate with entities which when opened, the openable part remains detached from the whole. consider the examples below: 2) a. kwu ̩̀ghéé ite ahu ̩ open pot dem ‘open that pot’ b. kwù̩ghéé mkpisi ode dee aha gi open pen write name 2sg ‘open the pen and write your name’ c. nne m kwu̩ghe-re bo ̩tu̩lu ̩ gbanye o ̩gwu ̩ na ngaji nye m mother 1sg open pst bottle pour drug prep spoon give 1sg ‘my mother opened the bottle, poured syrup in the spoon and gave me’ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 77 the verb kwu ̩̀ghéé do not collocate with body parts but only suffice for entities with detachable parts whose opening is achieved through the use of a body part typically, the hand. 3.3 the verb kpàghéé kpàghéé is used to describe opening events construed as being affected through the aid of an instrument other than the hand and key. the use of kpàghéé is usually evoked in a scenario where for instance an entity is locked with a padlock and the key to the lock is misplaced or not readily available. in order to open the padlock, an instrument other than the key and definitely not the bare hands will be required. kpàghéé and for some varieties of igbo kpàkáá denotes forceful opening of a previously locked entity. the verb collocates only with entities that can be locked for instance doors and boxes. most times, entities which kpàghéé or kpàkáá collocates with have tops (for boxes) or sides (in the case of doors) which when opened, remains attached to the whole. 3.4 the verb kpo ̩̀ghéé the verb kpo ̩̀ghéé is typical for corked entities which such as bottles or tins which can be opened using either the hand or an instrument for instance tin openers or keys. it is also used in the description of opening events pertaining to garments especially those with zips and/or buttons. kpo ̩̀ghéé is also appropriate for describing the opening of taps as well as events that involve unlocking fastened objects such as belts and/or seat belts on cars and planes. in the description of opening involving the hand as instrument, when the verb kpo ̩̀ghéé is used, it is required that the openable part of the entity be twisted with hands, for instance when trying to open a corked bottle of syrup. kpo ̩̀ghéé co-occurs with entities that can be locked whose openable part for the most times remains attached to the whole. entities opened using the verb kpo ̩̀ghéé can be locked i.e the action is reversible usually evoking the antonym kpò̩chíé ‘lock’, the semantics of the igbo verbs of opening okoye 78 an antonym which is inappropriate for kpàghéé. typically, one can open the door with a key and afterwards lock it but when it is opened forcefully using the verb kpàghéé, there is often a partial damage inflicted on the entity. 3.5 the verb sàghéé sàghéé is used in the description of opening events involving entities that can be opened along predetermined lines, for instance a book. the opened part remains attached to the whole and can be closed thus being reversible. consider the examples below 3) o̩ na asaghe akwu ̩kwo̩ 3sg prog pref-open book ‘he/she is flipping through a book’ the opening of the book as described by the example above is not considered targeted hence the use of sàghé. targeted opening with regard to a book evokes the use of mèghé. sàghé typically describe opening events where entities with divisible parts separate from each other in a manner that is wide apart. this separation causes the inner content of the entity to be revealed or accessed. example following represents the collocation of sàghé with body parts. 4) o̩ gwa -ra ya ka o ̩ saghee ukwu ya 3sg tell pst pron comp 3sg open leg 3sg ‘he asked her to open her legs’ example 4 above suggests a separation of the legs in a way that is wide apart such that the place in between the legs can be accessed. 3.6 the verbs gbàghéé and kwàghéé awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 79 gbàghéé is used in the description of opening events involving a body part as the instrument. the part of the body commonly involved is u̩kwu ̩ ‘leg’ while the means usually adopted to achieve the opening is the application of force. consider the instance below which depicts a scenario of force opening an entity (door) using the leg. 5) ha gbaghe re u ̩zo̩ 3pl open pst door ‘they opened the door’ the expression above conveys a sense of opening adjudged illegal. usually, it is expected that rightful owners gain access through normal rather than forceful opening of an entity. such normal opening will evoke the use of either mèghéé or kpò̩ghéé but not gbàghéé. kwàghéé comprising kwà ‘push’ and ghee ‘open’ literally means push open and is used to describe opening events which involve forceful opening of an entity using a part of the body other than the leg. the body part involved as instrument in achieving the opening though usually the hand can be other parts of the body such as the buttocks, the sides etc. kwàghéé collocates with entities which can be locked for instance doors and windows. 6) o̩ kwaghe re u ̩zo̩ bata n’ ime u ̩lo ̩ 3sg open pst door enter prep inside house ‘he/she opened the door and entered inside the house’ whereas, the examples in 5 and 6 above suggest a forceful access to an entity, they differ in the body part used in achieving the event as well as associated conceptualization. while gbàghéé suggests an the semantics of the igbo verbs of opening okoye 80 opening that is somewhat ‘illegal’ and carried out by hoodlums, kwàghéé typically describes an opening event which though achieved forcefully is devoid of a sense of illegality. in both cases, the opening event affords one access to something which hitherto remained inaccessible. 3.7 the verb ghu ̩̀ghéé ghùghéé has culture specific restriction in usage. this verb of opening comprises verbal compound ghù ̩ ‘bore and ghéé where the later is the action while the former represents the result. ghu ̩ghéé is used in description of opening events relevant to culture specific items such as aki ̩ bekee ‘coconut’. to achieve this opening, a pointed instrument which can be manipulated with the hand is required. a typical application of this verb is revealed when one tries to open the eye of a coconut in order to access the inner content (water) before finally breaking the coconut. the verb ghùghéé suffices as shown in the following example 7) ada ji mma ghù ̩ghéé aki bekee pn hold knife open coconut ada opened the coconut with knife the above example in 7 is different from breaking the coconut which is described by the verb ku ̩́wá ‘break’ but will not be discussed as it is beyond the scope of the present study. ghùghéé is also appropriate for describing opening events involving blockage for instance opening a blocked pipe to ease the flow of liquids and or semi-liquids. having discussed the igbo verbs of opening elicited from the study, i present below the verbs, instrument and manner of opening in addition to the compatible entities in table 1. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 81 table 1: igbo verbs of opening verb gloss instrument typical manner compatible entities mèghéé open hand volitional institutions, bodyparts, inanimate entities such as doors and windows kwùghéé open hand volitional utensils, containers especially those with detachable parts kpò̩ghéé open hand, key volitional using either a key or hand or teeth. corked entities, taps, padlocks, belts and other fastened entities. kpàghéé open metal such as pliers exerted force aided by an instrument inanimate entities sàghéé open hand and voluntary opening flipping and spontaneous opening body parts, books and other plane surfaces the semantics of the igbo verbs of opening okoye 82 gbàghéé open leg force using the leg inanimate entities kwàghéé open bodyparts other than the leg force aided by a bodypart inanimate entities ghu ̩̀ghéé open sharp pointed instrument exerted force using a sharp pointed instrument coconut 4. summary and conclusion this study has identified eight igbo verbs used in the description of opening events. the verbs which include sàghéé, mèghéé, kwùghéé ,kpò̩ghée, gbàghéé, ghu ̩̀ghéé, kwàghéé and kpàghéé translate to open in english. igbo verbs of opening differentiate opening events along the dimensions of degree of opening, manner of opening and the instrument(s) used in opening. with regard to the degree of opening, we notice the distinction drawn in the semantics of mèghéé and sàghéé when used to refer to opening a part of the body. as earlier indicated, mèghéé when used in conjunction with any part of the body denotes normal opening whereas sàghéé in collocation with any part of the body represents a ‘careless’ opening where the affected parts are flung wide open. the two verbs mèghéé and sàghéé also capture the differentiation along the dimension of manner of opening as observed in the use of the verbs in collocation with the entity book where the former represents targeted opening while the later has to do with flipping through the book. this points awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 83 to the fact that more than one verb can be used for the same opening event but with a difference in view. the distinction along the dimension of instrument used in the opening event is obvious in the use of use of gbàghéé for opening events where the leg is the sole instrument and ghù̩ghéé where a sharp pointed instrument is required. kwàghéé also reveals the distinction along the dimension of instrument used. these distinctions collaborate the opinion of enfield (2007) who suggests that “to truly figure out verbs of material separation requires an ethnographically grounded understanding of the social purposes for which communities maintain the semiotic distinctions they maintain”. obvious restrictions exist in the occurrence of igbo verbs of opening with object entities. this restriction at times, divides along animate/inanimate dimensions. using the verb kwùghéé as an instance, we notice that kwùghéé is not compatible with body parts. this is also true of verbs such as kpo ̩ghéé, ghàghéé and kpàghéé which all translate to open but restricted to collocation with inanimate entities. the present study asserts the verb mèghéé as the basic verb for open in igbo. this position is supported by the fact that among the igbo verbs elicited from competent native speakers, the verb mèghéé cuts across the various dimensions of distinctions which seem to exist in the semantic domain of opening events in igbo. references ameka, f.k and hill, d. (2020). the comparative semantics of verbs of opening. west africa versus oceanic in meaning, life and culture: a conversation with anna wierzbicka. the semantics of the igbo verbs of opening okoye 84 atintono, s.a (2019). the semantic properties of seperation verbs in gurene.. journal of west african languages. vol 46.1. bohnemeyer, j., bowerman, m., & brown, p. (2001). cut and break clips. in s. c. levinson, & n. j. enfield (eds.), manual for the field season 2001 (pp. 90-96). nijmegen: max planck institute for psycholinguistics. doi:10.17617/2.874626. bowerman, m (2005). why can’t you open a nut, or ‘break’ a cooked noodle? learning covert object categories in action word meanings. in lisa gershkoffstowe and david h. rakison (eds). building object categories in developmental time. london: lawrence erhlbaum associates. 75-102. enfield, n.j (2007). lao seperation verbs and linguistics categorization. cognitive linguistics. 18(2) 287-296. majid, asifa, james s. boster, and melissa bowerman. (2008). the cross-linguistic categorization of everyday events: a study of cutting and breaking. cognition, 109, 235-250. majid, a, m. bowermann , m. van staden and j.s boster (2007). the semantic categories of cutting and breaking events. cognitive linguistics. 18(2), 133-152. majid, a.m. gullberg, m. van staden and m. bowerman (2007). how similar are semantic categories in closely related languages? a comparison of cutting and breaking in four germanic languages. cognitive linguistics 18(2), 179-194 van staden, m. (2007). please open the fish: verbs of seperationin tidore, a papaun language of indonesia. cognitive linguistics. 18(2), 297-306. 258 examining the motivations and needs of nigerian hsk chinese learners at confucius institute, nnamdi azikiwe university, awka, nigeria a. u. n. nwankwere1 i. j. korie2 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka au.nwankwere@unizik.edu.ng1 ij.korie@stu.unizik.edu.ng2 abstract chinese has become one of the favorite foreign languages learnt by nigerians owing to its economic impact on nigeria’s socioeconomic growth. from its inception at nnamdi azikiwe university (unizik) in 2004, many chinese institutes and learning centers have been established across cities in nigeria. this has necessitated a lot of research bothering on learner-centered and learning-centered approaches to learning and teaching chinese. this paper investigates the motivations and needs of a set of mandarin chinese learners in confucius institute, unizik. the aim is to ascertain the employment of learner-centeredness in meeting the motivations of these learners. observation and survey questionnaire were used to elicit data from the current hsk level 3 students. there is an improvement in both teaching and learning chinese because of more native and trained nigerian chinese teachers, and learners exhibit more confidence. notwithstanding, there is considerable decline in student enrolment in 汉语水平考试(hànyǔ shuǐpíng kǎoshì): chinese proficiency test (hsk) courses. findings indicate that the basic motivation for enrolment into hsk is for speaking and listening in real world contexts, which is beyond hsk’ s but within 汉语水平考试(hànyǔ shuǐpíng kǎoshì): chinese spoken proficiency test (hskk)’s scope, since hskk develops chinese mailto:au.nwankwere@unizik.edu.ng mailto:ij.korie@stu.unizik.edu.ng2 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 259 learners’ spoken skills. we propose that demotivation be avoided: more focus should be put on the needs for job/travel/business opportunities which instrumentally motivate learners to enroll to learn chinese. this means that hskk and hsk should be presented as options for learners who are enrolling to learn chinese. a chinese program whose curriculum focuses on sustaining the motivations and satisfying learner needs is highly important and desirable. keywords: hsk and hskk, nigerian chinese as fl learners, needs analysis, unizik, foreign (second) language learning 1. introduction owing to its impact in the socio-economic growth of nigeria, the chinese language has risen to be one of the most lucrative foreign languages to learn as a nigerian. however, seeing that this language sounds nothing like any african language, and indeed, our nigerian languages, it has been a bit of a herculean task developing communicative competence in chinese. consequently, this situation has led to the introduction of teaching and learning chinese as a foreign language in nigeria, particularly via the hanyu shuiping kaoshi: chinese proficiency test (hsk) program. thus, in 2006, after a lot of efforts, proposals, inspecting and strategizing, the teaching and learning of the chinese language and culture began in nigeria at nnamdi azikiwe university, awka in the department of african and asian studies, faculty of arts (okafor, 2021: 56). a year later, the confucius institute was established in this same university and in the following year, 2008, at the university of lagos. the reason for the establishment of the institute is described by professor yongjing wang (director of confucius institute, university of lagos) thus: …the establishment of these institutions was to get the nigerian people acclimatized with chinese culture examining chinese learners at confucius– nwankwere & korie 260 especially as china’s influence extends through africa and the world. knowledge of mandarin (chinese) in today’s world will open up jobs at home and international opportunities for nigerians. over a decade later, in 2022, a good number of chinese learning centres have been set up across various cities in nigeria. prominent among them are the confucius institute and department of chinese studies, faculty of arts, nnamdi university, awka; confucius institute, university of lagos; confucius institute and department of chinese in kaduna state university; confucius institute learning/teaching point at university of port harcourt, federal polytechnic oko, abuja, and imo respectively, among others. with the introduction of these chinese centres and programs, it has become prevalent to ensure that the needs of the nigerian learners of chinese are being met and their motivations sustained. moreover, lots of studies and research have been conducted to enhance the learning experience and teaching techniques to promote effectiveness of the program. they include contrastive studies of the chinese and english languages (zhao 2016, cheng 2018, fang 2018), contrastive and comparative analyses of chinese and major nigerian languages (mbagwu and anajemba, 2015, anajemba 2016, odinye 2016, nwokoye 2018); error analysis of chinese fl learners (odinye 2009, anajemba 2021), and more recently, attitudes and needs of nigerian learners of chinese as a foreign language (fl) (in odinye 2017, in uchenwoke 2021 and in miracle 2021). these researches have gone a long way in revising and rendering more useful chinese as a fl curriculum and seeing to the needs of the learners, thereby facilitating and enhancing the learning process. consequently, the findings from these researches have provided insights to challenges and issues faced in relation to teaching and awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 261 learning chinese and recommendations are made to close the lacuna met by learners who enroll for this course. this paper will therefore address the motivations and needs of hsk level 3 chinese learners in confucius institute, unizik, to ascertain whether these needs are being met or have changed with time, and the motivations being sustained, questioning the effectiveness of the current curriculum and its revision in meeting with learners’ needs. 1.1 research questions the following research questions serve as the basis for this study: i. what is/are the foremost motivations of a nigerian learner of chinese as an fl who enrolls for the hsk program? ii. how has the hsk program maintained learners' motivations? iii. how has the hsk program met learners' needs? iv. if it has not, how can the learners' motivations be sustained and their needs met? 2. literature review needs analysis is a procedure for collecting information about learners and classroom activities to design a syllabus (nunan 1988). it is a basic method for designing relevant language courses, whether foreign or indigenous languages. nurul haque (2014) presents a detailed study of the origin, scope and growth of this theory in language teaching, both indigenous and foreign (in this case, chinese) languages. richards and rogers (2001:206) define a foreign language (fl) as a language which is not the native language (nl) of the large number of people in a particular country or region. by the reason of this definition, an fl is spoken by very few persons in a country or region who should/must have undergone some form of formal examining chinese learners at confucius– nwankwere & korie 262 training/learning. a language that is considered foreign in a country is not acquired but learned because it is not the mother tongue or prevalent language spoken in the society nor is it used in everyday life. little wonder, nwankwere, 2019 cites crystal who defines it as ‘a language other than one’s mother tongue used for a special purpose, e.g., for education, government, etc.’. in view of this situation, this language is learned primarily for the purpose of communicating with foreigners and natives of the said language as situation arises, such as economic, academic, socio-political reasons. in the list of many foreign languages that have come to stay in nigeria, chinese is one of those that have gained a rapid welcome since the inception of its teaching and learning in nigeria in 2004. findings by odinye (2013) show that nigerian students have a positive attitude towards learning chinese and most of the learners are extrinsically motivated by the economic benefits/rewards of being able to communicate in chinese. the reasons for this vary quite distinctly amongst learners in other parts of the world. huang et al (2013) discuss, in their investigation on the development of teaching and learning chinese as a foreign language in thailand, that the major motivation for thai students in learning chinese are to acquire chinese traditional culture and chinese food. this is quite unlike the reasons why nigerians take up chinese as a foreign language. okafor (2020) found out that nigerian learners of chinese as an fl are both intrinsically and extrinsically motivated. top on the list for learning the chinese language include building stronger ties between china and nigeria, to communicate competently and to get a job. uchenwoke (2021) reveals that a great number of nigerian students have high expectations for their target chinese proficiency level, and top on their needs is the ability to listen accurately and speak fluently. thus, according to her study, reading awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 263 and writing ranked as the least desired among the five skill options of listening, speaking, reading, writing and translating. from the foregoing, we can argue that the need of a nigerian chinese foreign language learner is for communicative competence so as to advance his/her socio-economic status, which serves as their motivation. among other definitions, yule (2006) describes communicative competence as the general ability to use language accurately, appropriately and flexibly. this ability can further be measured as grammatical competence, sociolinguistic competence, discourse competence and strategic competence. what this means for the nigerian learner of chinese is that they seek the ability to be able to make use of the appropriate vocabulary, correct grammatical structure in spontaneity, creatively and effectively, and as the situation calls for it. nevertheless, with the need being identified but motivation lacking, language learners could easily give up on their language learning goals. ryan and dec (2000) propose the selfdetermination theory which differentiates between intrinsic and extrinsic motivations. intrinsic motivation is the eagerness and interest to do and take part in certain activities because an individual feels that they are attractive and pleasant. on the other hand, extrinsic motivation is the propensity to take part in an activity for reasons which do not link to the activity (tenghu and sepideh, 2021). in relation to language learning, a learner who is intrinsically motivated takes up the language learning course for the sake and love of the language while one who is extrinsically motivated takes up the language course for what that language will help them achieve such as greener pastures, better employability opportunities among others. from the foregoing, it is evident that the nigerian learner of chinese is basically extrinsically motivated and as brewer and examining chinese learners at confucius– nwankwere & korie 264 burgess (cited in okafor, 2020) posit, motivation is a basic and essential part of learning. therefore, the motivation of a language learner should be put into consideration as this determines the level at which the language need is met quicker. 2.1 theoretical review needs analysis has had a long history in language teaching and learning and was first proposed by the council of europe modern language project group before 1970s (nurul, 2014). needs analysis (na) is generally defined as a learner-centred approach to language teaching and learning which tries to establish how second language (l2) learners wish to learn the target language (tl) rather than what they ‘need’ to learn about the language. according to para (2014:18) quoted in (nwankwere, 2019: 58-59), needs analysis in curriculum development is a process of ‘collecting information that increases understanding of the learners’ language needs, so that decisions can be made to set goals and content for a language course.’ therefore, na is one of the central procedures in modern language education (nwankwere: 2019) because it enhances/develops a language to full potential as an integral part of learner-centredness. lack of na procedure in a language programme prevents experts in the field of language pedagogy from being aware of the language needs identified by the target learners themselves, as to tailor the course and all the related activities towards meeting such needs. thus, this research focuses on identifying the needs of nigerian learners of chinese so as to recommend design and implementation of a curriculum that satisfies, to a reasonable extent, the needs of learners in the hsk) programmes. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 265 3. research methodology 3.1 research method this study is a combination of survey research design, using questionnaire and personal observation of hsk learners of chinese. this methodology empowers the researchers to collect data from only a few respondents who serve as a representative sample of the total population under study (sadsiharan, 2012 in nwankwere, 2019). thus, using the simple random sampling technique, on the 2nd of march, 2022 (this was in the period of the asuu strike action, however, the confucius institute's classes were still held), copies of the survey questionnaire were administered physically to the representative population of 24 hsk level 3 learners at the confucius institute, between 9:00am – 1:00pm. the questionnaires were distributed just before the commencement of their hsk classes for the day, and collected after their classes. where it was necessary that sections of the questionnaire be explained, this was done to enhance a smoother data elicitation. the quantitative method presents the data collected from the questionnaire survey. according to ary et al as quoted in nwankwere (2019), ‘ when the population consists of a number of subgroups or strata, that may differ in the characteristics being studied, it is often desirable to use a form of probability sampling called stratified sampling’, which can be proportionally or randomly done. even though the basis for stratification is usually sociological as in age, gender, income, place of origin (nwankwere, 2019), among other factors (which our survey questionnaire was designed to cover), the method of data presentation and subsequently the analysis considers only the factor of class/level. the stratified sampling is employed in this research on the basis that the learners of varying age ranges, varying duration of study, different places of examining chinese learners at confucius– nwankwere & korie 266 origin, were all in hsk level 3, at the said period of time. also, this method of data presentation requires a small sample size to save a lot of time, money and effort. each level is viewed as a stratum. thus, our research study borders on the hsk level 3 as the representative stratum. furthermore, the qualitative application of this method infers from the data presented to attempt answers to the research questions. moreover, interaction with the students and staff both in the classroom and in unofficial settings provide firsthand information and furtherance on the study. 3.2 area and population of study this study focuses on the area of applied linguistics concerned with language pedagogy and second language education. the study bothers on issues related to learning mandarin chinese as a foreign language among nigerian learners. the research site was the confucius institute, nnamdi azikiwe university, awka, anambra state, nigeria. originally, the survey was targeted to randomly select and sample 6 learners each (out of 60 learners per level) from hsk levels 1-4, bringing a total of 24 chinese learners as the representative sample. thus, the target population was all nigerian chinese learners in the hsk program at the unizik confucius institute, with 300 learners. but, in line with the voluntary ethical condition, according to bryman and bell (2007), which demands that people should not be forced into participating in research nor cajoled into offering responses for research, a willing and accessible number of 24 respondents from hsk level 3 were used as the representative population. thus, a total of 24 questionnaires were distributed during this survey, and out of these, only 15 responses received were considered valid because these were filled in completely and provided the necessary information relevant to data awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 267 analysis. this small number was also due to the 2020 covid pandemic restrictions on physical classes which were yet to resume fully by the time of the fieldwork. consequently, some of the levels, such as levels 1 and 4 were physically absent. 4. presentation and analysis learners’ identified motivations (extrinsic motivations for enrolling in the hsk course/learning chinese: the grades were assigned in a way that grade 1 represented the major motivation for enrolling to the hsk program. grade 2 was for the second highest motivation, while grade 3 was for the least motivating factor for enrolling into the program. thus, every participant was required to tick, on all the possible motivations for enrollment, out of 3 boxes (grades 1, 2 and 3). table 1: learners’ identified motivation motivation grade 1 grade 2 grade 3 population % (15) 100 population % (15) 100 population % (15) 100 job opportunity 8 53.3% 5 33.3% 2 13.3% travel opportunity 3 20% 3 20% 2 13.3% further studies 2 13.3% 3 20% 3 20% speak confidently 0% 1 6.6% 4 26.6% volunteer 1 6.6% 1 6.6% 0% expand business in international market 1 6.6% 1 6.6% 2 13.3% examining chinese learners at confucius– nwankwere & korie 268 total 15 99.8% 14 91.3% 13 86.5% table 1 above is in response to the research question 1; the (foremost) motivation of nigerian chinese learners who enroll for the hsk course. the motivations are grouped into grades 1-3; with 1 being the strongest motivation, 2 being the average motivation and 3 being the least motivation. the grades show the strength and intensity of the incentive which has both driven and kept the learners in the program. from the figures in the table, 8 out of 15 learners (i.e., 53.3% of the population) agree that their strongest motivation for enrolling in the hsk course is to secure job opportunity, only 2 out of 15 persons (i.e., 13.3%), view this as their least motivation. also, it is evident from the table that the motivation to secure a job is the only item that has a full participants' response, that is, all 15 participants selected this motivation (even though at varying grades). the second option and motivation; travel opportunity, has only 8 responses out of 15; 7 of the participants were either undecided or did not consider it a motivation to be selected. 3 participants out these 8 responses opt for securing travel opportunity as their greatest motivation while 2 vote for it as a least motivation. this is also applicable in the third option; for further studies, where only 8 participants select this option as a motivation. in this case, just 2 out of these take the option of further studies as their greatest motivation, while 3 of them see it as their least motivation. the option; to speak confidently, received only 5 responses, out of which none view it as their highest motivation. rather, 4 out of the 5 take it as their least motivation. the option; to volunteer, received only two responses, out of which 1 learner had it as their greatest motivation. lastly, the option; to expand business in the international marketreceived just 4 responses, out of which only 1 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 269 learner had it as their greatest motivation and 2 had it as their least motivation. from the above, we can deduce and conclude that the motivation for the nigerian chinese learner is more extrinsic than intrinsic. this shows that the representative population is motivated by the necessity to improve their socio-economic status. what this suggests is that, for the learner to keep up with these extrinsic motivations, their chinese learning experience has to be one that bolsters their motivations for taking up the course in the first place. subsequent tables will present and attempt to analyze the requisite communication skills the learners need to have so as to keep their motivations, and thus, meet their needs. table 2: language skills and related matters (learners’ appraisal of the skills that are most emphasized by the teachers in their lesson) skills excellen t very good satisfactor y unsatisfactor y speaking 15.4% 30.8 % 15.4% 23.1% reading 23.1% 38.5 % 23.1% 7.7% writing 15.4% 53.8 % 23.1% 7.7% pronunciatio n 38.5% 30.8 % 30.8% 7.7% vocabulary 30.8% 15.4 % 38.5% 15.4% grammar 7.7% 38.5 % 23.1% 15.4% examining chinese learners at confucius– nwankwere & korie 270 this table is in response to research question 2: are the learners’ motivations being maintained? table 2, above, reveals that in relation to the aspects of language skills, the chinese language teachers place the most focus on pronunciation, with a percentage of 38.5% of the students rating it as ‘excellent’, followed by vocabulary at 30.8%. then, reading comes third to 23.1% of the population. on the other hand, the speaking skill is least focused on with 23.1% of the population holding the view that it is ‘unsatisfactory’. at a close shot, under ‘unsatisfactory’, speaking is followed by vocabulary and grammar; core aspects of testing communicative competence, with 15.4% respectively of the population unsatisfied. in developing speaking skill in any language, targeting advancement in pronunciation is highly relevant. this is simply because speaking is closely related to pronunciation; by properly enunciating the phonemes, words, tones (especially in teaching chinese language) of a language, communication can be enhanced, and thus, a learner could be said to possess excellent speaking skills. it is however interesting to note from the table above that the skill with the highest focus is pronunciation, yet adversely, the skill with the least focus is the speaking skill. this presents a note of concern as to whether the stress being placed on proper pronunciation has any effect on development of the real-time speaking skill of the learners. as earlier stated, this table attempts to answer the rq2 (research question 2) about the learners’ motivations being maintained. if in a language program/experience, learners do not believe that enough focus is being given to necessary skills; it could weaken their motivations, and thus, affect negatively the learner’s experience. table 3 will show the level of effectiveness of the learners, from their own perception. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 271 table 3: language skills and related matters (the learners’ appraisal of their current level of effectiveness in the chinese language) skills excellent above average average poor grammar 0% 26.6% 60% 13.3% vocabulary 6.6% 40% 46.6% 6.6% listening 20% 33.3% 33.3% 13.3% speaking 6.6% 20% 53.3% 20% reading 20% 46.6% 26.6% 6.6% writing 13.3% 40% 33.3% 6.6% tone/pronunciation 26.6% 20% 40% 13.3% table 3 is analyzed only for the four communicative competence skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. this analysis is conveyed only on two ratings: above average (addition of the figures in ‘excellent’ and ‘above average’) and average and below (addition of the figures in ‘average’ and ‘poor’). thus, 53.3% of the learners hold their listening skill to be above average, while 46.6% hold same skill to be average and below. also, 66.6% take their reading skill to be above average, while 33.2% think their reading skill is average and below. furthermore, 53.3% agree that their writing skill is above average, while 39.9% are of the view that this skill is average and below for them. unfortunately, only 26.6% of the learners believe their speaking skill to be above average, while the greater percentage of 73.3% consider this skill average and below for them. this data simply buttresses the data in table two; the focus on pronunciation might not be reflected in the actual speaking skill of the learners. this goes to show that not enough focus has been examining chinese learners at confucius– nwankwere & korie 272 given to skills that are needed for effective communication of listening and speaking. table 4: language skills and related matters (the learners’ appraisal of the most demanding of the 4 language skills for them) skills frequency listening 6.6% speaking 60% reading 6.6% writing 26.6% total 99.8% having identified whether the learners’ motivations are being maintained and if their needs are met in tables 2 and 3 respectively, table 4 goes on to present the learners' perception of the most demanding of the four language skills, in relation to their motivations being maintained and their needs being met. if the learner is going to have the best language learning experience, more focus has to be placed on the skills which that learner find most demanding/challenging. this table, thus, analyzes the language skills that should be given more focus in order to achieve the needs of the learners; based on their demand. from the data in table 4 above, 6.6% of the representative population consider the listening skill to be the most demanding in their learning experience; 60% consider the speaking skill to be the most demanding; 6.6% note that the reading skill is the most demanding for them; and, 26.6% believe that the writing skill is the most demanding skill for them. with this in mind, the goal of the chinese course should be to satisfy these demands, by laying more emphasis where necessary. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 273 definitively, from the data presented in the tables above, one can deduce that speaking is the most relevant skill to the nigerian learners of chinese as a foreign language, yet the least focused on, even as our research supports the proposition that socio-economic factors, such as, securing a job and travel opportunity, are the major motivations for nigerian hsk learners of the chinese language as an fl in unizik (table 1). little wonder these learners feel that not much emphasis is placed on the important skill of speaking (table 2). this goes on to reflect itself in the current level of effectiveness as established by the learners which reveals that speaking and grammar skills rank in average compared to other skills (table 3). furthermore, among the four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing, the speaking skill ranks as the most demanding for most of the learners (table 4). thus, there is need to focus on this aspect of communicative competence to aid learners develop this important skill. in all, though there has been an improvement in the relevant skills acquired by learners in the programme within the years, more learner-centred efforts, such as activities, texts and a curriculum that bother on communicative competence should be employed to cater for the needs of the learners more effectively. 5. discussions and conclusions unlike many other language learning programmes which are designed to satisfy the four basic language skills needed for proper communication: listening, speaking, reading and writing [we first learn to listen; hear a language being spoken, then to speak; repeating what is heard, then to read; see the spoken language depicted symbolically in print, and finally, to write; reproduce these symbols on paper], the hsk is fundamentally designed to meet the needs of listening, reading and writing skills. little or no attention examining chinese learners at confucius– nwankwere & korie 274 is paid to the speaking skill. to this effect, it would be quite inadequate to measure a nigerian chinese learner’s speaking ability based on hsk levels, assessments and results. the hskk (hanyu shuiping kouyu kaoshi); the chinese proficiency spoken test, is specifically designed for this purpose, i.e., to satisfy the spoken requirement of chinese teaching and learning for these learners. conversely, the hskk is a relatively new test organized by hanban (the part of the chinese education ministry, also in charge of the confucius institutes; the hsk organizers) in the 2010s to assess learners’ pronunciations, tones, clarity, fluency, etc., in speech (cited from online source 'improvemandarin.com').however, the hsk has a wider influence and a longer history and serves as the yardstick for judging the ‘knowledge’ of chinese. hence, it is taken as the more important program/test as evident in the influx of students into the hsk program as against the seemingly obscure hskk. from our research, it can be implied that the need of the nigerian chinese learner in enrolling for the chinese program is for the sole purpose of communication, i.e., speaking and listening competencies, evidenced by socio-economic motivations like securing a job and travelling. still, a good number of these learners enroll for the hsk program, which is not designed to satisfy this need. this situation could be as a result of unfamiliarity of the learners with the hskk course (which is designed particularly to satisfy speaking need of learners) or a hyped-up hsk course. it is obvious that the inability of the hsk course to produce learners that have spoken communicative effectiveness is not a factor of the deficiency of the language teachers’ techniques nor the language program goals. put more appropriately, the hsk course/test is not designed for this purpose: hsk is more languagecentered than learner-centered. but ignorance of the right program awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 275 for satisfying their needs has led learners of chinese as a foreign language, that are both intrinsically and extrinsically motivated, to enroll for a chinese course (hsk) which is not intended to meet their needs. the researchers recommend that at the inception of enrolment into a chinese learning programme, the learner's needs/motivation(s) for this enrolment should be taken into account so as to ensure maximum teaching experience and learning effectiveness, and to focus on what the learner actually needs, not what the hsk goals/teachers speculate to be the learner’s needs. also, we proffer that a learner who is interested in learning chinese as a foreign language for the purpose of knowing how to read and write in chinese, .i.e., for academic or visual purposes, should opt for the hsk program/test. on the flip side, a learner whose need is to develop the productive skill of speaking especially in professional/work situations should focus their energy on the hskk program/test. hence, needs analysis should be conducted and applied on the programme. nevertheless, to attain a full and all round proficiency in the chinese language, a learner could also combine both language programs/tests, i.e., hsk and hskk. we, therefore, suggest that further research/studies be carried out on needs analysis of teaching chinese s a fl in confucius institute, unizik in relation to the hskk curriculum. we also recommend that the effect of social factors such as age, first language, native language, gender in relation to the motivations and needs of nigerian learners of chinese language is investigated (which is not the main focus of this current study). furthermore, we recommend a detailed study of teaching techniques in hskk program; adopted in classroom teaching, which is an aspect of pedagogy that plays a major role in learner effectiveness. examining chinese learners at confucius– nwankwere & korie 276 in conclusion, there should be a bilateral agreement between nigeria and china such that while nigerians are learning chinese as an fl in nigeria and abroad, the chinese teachers at unizik, are encouraged to learn igbo as a fl.this need calls for a well designed igbo fl course and a well implemented programme towards achieving this goal to inter-language and inter-cultural exchange. references anajemba, e.n. 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(2006). the study of language. fourth edition. pg. 194. cambridge university press zhao, g. (2016). contrastive study of english and chinese word order from the perspective of figureground theory---a case study of the moonstone and it's chinese version. journal of language teaching and research, vol. 7, no. 2, pp. 389-397. 23 speech therapy and its significance to dyslexics: a study of hopespring foundations, port harcourt enobong archibong ansa1 stephen anurudu2 university of port harcourt enobong_ansa@uniport.edu.ng1 steveanurudu@yahoo.com abstract speech therapy deals with brain stem activation for speech recovery. this study on speech therapy in dyslexics assessed the significance of therapy administration in speech recovery. the population for this study was derived from hopespring foundation school, port harcourt where reports for seven dyslexics were purposively selected; all selected samples were on therapy for either two and four years. adopting the usage-based theory to explain the function of the principles of neuroplasticity, the limited effectiveness in the cognitive progress as a factor of therapy administration was assessed. the information for each subject which formed the data of this study were got from a progress report sheet. the information retrieved were recorded and presented on tables, grid and percentages and interpreted descriptively. the data showed that the results of the dyslexic’s cognitive outcome were a function of the brain neurons and not age of the child. the study recommends a dysfunction based therapeutic intervention since intensity, specificity and frequency are factors that trigger a higher brain neural activation, such that, cognitive adjustment becomes much easier and better. keywords: dyslexics, speech therapy, speech recovery, brain neurons, neuroplasticity mailto:enobong_ansa@uniport.edu.ng mailto:steveanurudu@yahoo.com speech therapy and its significance to dyslexics ansa & anurudu 24 1. introduction human communication is encoded with symbols that are deduced with the application of given phonemic skills. when the phonemic skills are not developed, communication would be impeded and may lead to different forms of speech dysfunctions that affect speech production and reception. language disorder can affect all kinds of linguistic communication. phonemic disorder is one of the most prevalent characteristics of dyslexia. catts (1989) defines “dyslexia is a developmental language disorder that involves a deficit(s) in phonological processing” (p. 50) while adolf and hogan (2018) having reviewed other literatures on the meaning of dyslexia explain that it is a disorder based primarily on deficits in the phonological domain. it is easily manifest in the word reading level. additionally, volkman (2020) describes dyslexia as an immature development of some language areas in the brain concerned with reading. dyslexia, according to her, is not language bound but affects both speakers of symbolic languages and image language, as it is a loss in the brain network between the visual and audio cortex. she observes that the dysfunction is present from birth but can be changed if interventions such as motor programmes can be introduced to help create the connective network. in her study, she recommended a daily routine of this intervention and an introduction of memory games; identifying this as a factor that activates the brain’s mechanism, a notion related to the concept of neuroplasticity. conway (2017) wrote that the dyslexic brain can be rewired for effective speech communication. he pointed at the use of the multisensory method for language teaching. he specifically opined that that the functioning of the grey matters in speech recovery is essential. he further states that there is a mechanism known as neuroplasticity which explains the brain’s ability to create new awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 25 experiences and connections with intensive effort, irrespective of age. in his view, intervention programmes can be evaluated if effective after a week’s frequent practice. conway (2014), reporting on how to make the weaker cells strong as a strategy in speech activation, described three basic principles. these principles are intensity, frequency and specificity of instruction. he described that these principles function with a system identified as neuroplasticity and which is significant to the success of rewiring the brain and addressing learning difficulties. tobias (2020) expanded these principles of neuroplasticity to include: use it or lose it, use it and improve it, specificity, repetition matters, intensity matters, timing matters, salience matters, age matters, transference, and interference. she noted that these principles are not related to muscle strengthening but the rewiring of the brain. we change behaviour and form experiences by allowing the use of the weaker side of the body and when this activity occurs over time, the experiences become engrained in the brain to a point of automaticity and this can be accounted for as the functioning of neuroplasticity. of importance is eden’s (2016) position that there are no structures in the brain that was designed to read rather, we reorganise the brain organs designed for other things. she added that the brain networks with the sound, sight and auditory skills to perform reading. this network does not work for a dyslexic because they are incapable of encoding and decoding sounds and symbols relationship. it is worthy to note that according to hodge (n.d.), ‘neuroplasticity can occur as an adaptive mechanism to compensate and adjust for lost function and/or to maximise remaining functions in the event of brain injury.’ (par. 3) she notes researchers have studied the effectiveness of explicitness in teaching sounds and phonology to dyslexics and observed that time and adequate speech therapy and its significance to dyslexics ansa & anurudu 26 examples to recreate the brain activity, will lead to a successful intervention. according to research in eden’s view, after intervention, there is an increase in brain activities in the areas related to language. this provided an insight to the relationship between the brain and struggling readers and the value of the brain. she postulated that even adults with dyslexia can change their brains to become better readers. worthington (2019) added that interventions such as air writing overtime leads to an improvement in reading as reading sounds with their corresponding letters becomes automatic. he reported that researches have shown that the sensory-cognitive function or symbol imagery improves phonemic awareness. it goes beyond phonemic awareness to orthographic development for reading of sight words. with dyslexia, intervention changes the brain matters and stimulates the brain’s activity for reading. in this way, speech is entrenched and developed in the brain using a cognitive approach in assisting the learner which activates the learner’s cognitive process. therefore, speech therapy should not be valued as a task on muscle adjustment or speech patterning but a process of speech entrenchment and development. the study therefore examines the result of cognitive reconnections as a function of therapy administration. 1.1 statement of the problem understanding the brain and its functioning is essential in speech therapy delivery as the latter is not limited by age but the rate of recovery is determined by certain brain factors and volume of therapy administered. more so, training the brain on speech development requires an entrenched cognitive force to achieve the stabilisation of the disordered brain. however, interest has been awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 27 focused on achieving this feat with much less emphasis laid on the brain. thus, the debate on how and what works in the brain to help boost the cognitive process and the relation of this stem to age. interestingly, in nigeria, many have affirmed that early detection and therapeutic intervention is effective but without a specific identification of the function of the neural stems and required intensity of therapy which is not age dependent. thus, the challenge of effective speech therapy may be factored from the type of therapeutic plans and/or designs that are not aligned with the function and principles of neuroplasticity and should not be exclusive of young and adult learners. 1.2 aim and objectives of the study the primary aim of this study was to substantiate the relationship between speech therapy and recovery in dyslexia. the specific objectives include to: 1. examine the function of age in speech recovery by dyslexic 2. assess the effective function of the principles of neuroplasticity in dyslexia. 1.3 research questions guided by the objectives, the following questions were raised: 1. to what extent is speech recovery factored by age in dyslexia? 2. to what extent can neuroplasticity be determined as related to speech recovery among dyslexic? 2. theoretical framework 2.1 usage-based theory: a cognitive perspective bybee (2010) explained a cognitive process in speech development through usage-based theory. writing on the usage-based processes, tel:2010 speech therapy and its significance to dyslexics ansa & anurudu 28 several cognitive processes that influence the use and development of linguistic structure and which explain the functionality of the theory were identified. these include: (i) categorization: identifying tokens as an instance of a particular type (ii) chunking: the formation of sequential units through repetition or practice (iii) rich memory: the storage of detailed information from experience (iv) analogy: mapping of an existing structural pattern onto a novel instance, and (v) cross-modal association: the cognitive capacity to link form and meaning. thus, there is a strong “cognitive commitment” to explaining linguistic structure using this approach. as taylor puts it, “he general thrust of the cognitive linguistics enterprise is to render accounts of syntax, morphology, phonology, and word meaning in consonant with aspects of cognition which are well documented, or at least highly plausible, and which may manifest in non-linguistic forms” (taylor, 2002, p. 9). ibbotson (2013), explaining the scope of the usage-based theory as opined by langacker, noted that “the more a linguistic unit is established as a cognitive routine or “rehearsed” in the mind of the speaker, the more it is said to be entrenched”. schmid (2017) opined that that, entrenchment posits that our linguistic knowledge is continuously refreshed and reorganized under the influence of social interactions. it is part of a larger, ongoing process of lifelong cognitive reorganization whose course and quality is conditioned by exposure to and use of language, and by the application of cognitive abilities and processes to language (n. p.). for example, young infants are able to discriminate a wider range of sounds that are present in their native language than in a foreign language (aslin, pisoni, hennessy, & perey, 1981). once this tel:2002 tel:1981 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 29 entrenchment is established as a routine, it will be difficult to reverse. therefore, the cognitive ability of the child should be guided towards the actual phonemic reproduction of the target phoneme and through the guidance of a caregiver. it is by this means the use of the therapeutic measures is expected to lead to mastery of phonemic discrimination. this theory is adopted for the present study to explain the effectiveness of the therapeutic measures used with the dyslexic. 3. methodology this study employed a qualitative research method. data were collected from primary sources using an observation of the progress report for the dyslexics. the subject for this study were seven dyslexic pupils from ages 3 to 14 who were already on therapy taken from fifteen pupils with speech disorders in the selected sample site. the subjects were purposively selected to exclude those who had extra therapy sessions. the data were retrieved from the school’s progress report which contains details of their progress and identifiable condition, if any. analyses were descriptively done as results were presented on tables and charts. bybee’s usage based theory supported the cognitive changes identified. speech therapy and its significance to dyslexics ansa & anurudu 30 4. data presentation and analysis 4.1 data presentation table 1: interview report question response what is your opinion on the possibility of activating word reading skills in dyslexics? the dyslexic can learn to read if taught how regularly do you hold a therapy session? two times a week for a onehour intensive practice and an extra day for musical session. they are allowed to learn with their peers in your opinion, what factors do you think contribute to the activation of their reading skills? practice on sounds are you aware of a mechanism known as neuroplasticity? if yes, what is its function? no. do you think that there is a special organ for reading? yes, and the poor development of that part of the brain is responsible for this disorder how do the dyslexics learn? hmmm, for the dyslexics, they learn using sounds and images what method of therapy do you apply? no specific method but i engage them in sound and awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 31 word naming activities. sometimes, we include games. in your opinion, do you think that a child with dyslexia can become a normal reader? it is possible but the child may still be challenged by a few concepts even as an adult can dyslexia be overcome in adulthood? i don’t think so. the adult brain will be difficult to train table 2 cognitive report respondent id age years on therapy cognitive report a 11 4 no expressive ability but good reception (midinterruptionwithdrawal) b 3 2 average on expressive and receptive ability c 8 4 average on expressive but good receptive ability speech therapy and its significance to dyslexics ansa & anurudu 32 d 14 2 good expressive ability and above average receptive ability e 9 4 limited expressive ability and above average on reception f 11 4 average on expressive but poor receptive ability g 10 2 poor expressive and receptive ability (comorbid) table 3 subjects’ performance rating age years on therapy percentile rating 11 4 35% 3 2 45% 8 4 50% 14 2 66% 9 4 48% 11 4 39% 10 2 30% awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 33 figure 1: information grid chart 4.2 discussion of findings the results from this study showed that the human brain can be rewired by an understanding of the mechanism of neuroplasticity; a mechanism that is not age related and which is effective for cognitive reconnection. this position collaborates mohr’s (2017) view that measuring neuronal correlates of good (or poor) language recovery could help to identify patients who might benefit (or not) from a specific therapeutic method and can contribute to the development of effective neuroscience-based neurorehabilitation techniques. apart from exceptions from progress report on two subjects from the data presented (a and g) who had other stated factors – interruption and comorbidity that may be considered to have had a 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 age years on therapy percentile rating speech therapy and its significance to dyslexics ansa & anurudu 34 possible effect on the result of the intervention, the data explained that speech recovery is effective through practice as presented in table 3. all subjects received same pattern of therapy and had no extra therapy schedules. however, a and g were identified as exceptions as stated above. f was also listed as low (39%) though relatively close to the expected average of 40%. the cause of the difference for f is not discussed since it had no notable presentation. all other subjects scored above 40% in the test administered. as earlier reported by tobias (2020), when the first principle of neuroplasticity, intensity is not applied, the consequent effect is a resultant poor ability despite the years on therapeutic sessions. for instance, a who had same years of therapy as f is less productive. both subjects were identified as having no trait of comorbidity. the study accounts for this difference as a result of disconnection during therapy which does not align with the principle of intensity. respondent a’s report is observed as being influenced by periods of interruption which is not experienced by respondent f. furthermore, subject d with just two years of therapy has a high cognitive and percentage rating. from side notes on observation as obtained from the therapists, d is the most consistent dyslexic as regards responding to sessions. this correlates with ibbotson’s (2013) position on the effect of enrichment and entrenchment as essential when working on cognitive functioning. the frequency and repetitive implementation of encoding linguistic codes enriches the mind of the speaker; here, the learner. according to mohr (2017), the efficacy of intensive therapies can be explained by neuroscientific principles of learning and memory: high intensity and mass practice facilitates and enhances learning and cortical plasticity by correlated neuronal activity and by strengthening of synaptic contacts between neurons. from awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 35 this perspective, any intensive cognitive-behavioural intervention can maximize the effects of training-induced brain plasticity, which is ultimately a consequence of effective learning. similarly, multiple repetitions of stimuli or tasks applied during language training, as well as the imitation of language skills modelled by language therapists will enhance learning and re-structuring of residual language networks (par.6). more so, the result from the sample of this study signals the therapists’ low understanding of the cognitive connections that are activated using therapeutic interventions and poor knowledge of the mechanism responsible for this reconnection as well as the disadvantage of using general therapy methods for dyslexics. it is worthy to note that specificity is identified as an essential principle in speech recovery. each learner’s interest should be wired to specific needs. eden (2016) had pointed to the fact that apart from designing an intervention programme, it is essential to tailor such to the specific needs of the child/or learner. in the study, it was thus observed that the therapy used on the school was not designed for specific needsdyslexia. as presented in the therapist’s response in table 1, the dyslexic is not trained using dysfunction specific therapy but exposed to general speech therapy. if this was adopted, given that each child has had less than two years of therapy, a more enhanced speech performance would have been observed considering the duration of therapy and the effectiveness so far measured. from the data, as against upheld position on age and speech recovery, age was not identified as significant to the cognitive changes. given the opinion on language learning being age-bound, it would have been expected that subject d will lose active neural speech therapy and its significance to dyslexics ansa & anurudu 36 reconnection. respondent b who would be expected to have the most significant result had a score lower than d. thus, with reference to language learning being age bound; no result is dependent on the age of the subjects. an evaluation of the youngest and oldest subjects, ages 3 and 14 respectively, and with same years on therapy signified that there is no age limit in speech recovery even though there may be other unmeasured variables that would have influenced b’s performance, the presence of an above average score for d, tells that learning is a life-ling process. hence, on age relationship to the functioning of neuroplasticity, this study affirmed earlier works (tobias, 2019, eden, 2016) that learning to rewire the brain to form new codes/or experiences is a lifelong activity; not age dependent. projecting a relative fluency for the subjects who have had at least two years of therapeutic sessions and the actual identification of average ability for the subjects contradicts worthington’s (2019) observation and the principle of neuroplasticityby tobias (2020). more so, assessing the reported years on therapy for the subjects under study, it may be stated that the therapist may not understand the brain network principles. if knowledge were present, activities would have been designed specifically to rewire the brain on the deficit patterns for dyslexics therefore ensuring a re-organisation influenced by the desire to activate the cognitive process through a specific plan which will better help in the organisation, chunking, analogy, cross modal association of sounds as postulated in bybee’s theory for an effective usage productivity. agreed that dyslexics are phonemically deficit, it should be given that the deficiency is presented as an inability of mapping sounds to their corresponding letters. bybee identified this as a stage in cognitive processing. thus, juxtaposing neuroplasticity and cognitive processing, it is easy to understand the need to adapt some awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 37 major principles-specificity, intensity and frequency. in spite of the poor adaptation of these principles, it is still observed that there are active neural sockets activation. these connections account for the encoded skills that signalled a progress in cognitive conditioning of the subject. this accounts for the cognitive difference(s) in the progress for subjects of same ages and years of therapy-eleven years of age and four years of therapy. the intensity and duration for the first subject is interrupted and his cognitive progress is less than the latter subject who had four years of uninterrupted sessions. 5. conclusion speech therapy can be enhanced through therapy administration. all subjects in this study were above the above stated age yet identified with poor speech abilities either receptive, productive or both. however, earlier studies like this present study affirmed that dyslexics can acquire speech competence. the brain is elastic and can adjust to accommodate new experiences and skills. understanding this is essential to any recovery programme designed for the dyslexic. the communication system needs specific attention especially for developing language learners. giving away a learner with a speech dysfunction should be managed by significant attempt in creating specific activities that would relate to the cognitive functioning of the brain. this is as reported in earlier literatures and the observation of this present study that there are neural stems in the brain that can affect a wide range of developmental processes. therefore, there should be an acknowledgment on the functioning of the neural stems in enhancing the efforts of teachers, parents and linguists on improving the child and activities would be frequent, intensive and specific and tailored towards activation of the neural sockets than an attempt on strengthening the weak muscles. in all, it can be stated that among typical learners, there are speech therapy and its significance to dyslexics ansa & anurudu 38 atypical learners. in homes and schools, low interest on their differing speech levels has left the atypical child unconcerned about learning. this study has noted the significance of the concept of neuroplasticity in speech recovery for dyslexics and by its investigation recommends a multisensory linguistic tool for language teaching in order to meet the specific needs of each dyslexicbe they visual, auditory, developmental, etc as informed by perlstein (2020). references adolf, s. m. & hogan, t. p. (2018). understanding dyslexia in the context of developmental language disorders. language, speech, and hearing services in schools. 49 (4), 762-773. www.https://pubsasha.org/doi/10.1044/2018_lshssdyslc-18-0044 aslin, r.n., pisoni, d.b., hennessy, b.l., &, perey, a.j. (1981). discrimination of voice onset time by human infants: new findings and implications for the effect of early experience. child development 52: 11351145. barlow, j. a., & geirut, j. a. (1999). optimality theory in phonological acquisition. journal of speech, language and hearing research, 42 (6), 1482-1498. www.https//jslhr.ubs.asha.org bybee, j. (2010). language, usage and cognition. cambridge: cambridge university press. catts, h. w. (1989). defining dyslexia as a developmental language disorder. annals of dyslexia. 39, 50-64. www. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/bf02656900 http://www.https/pubsasha.org/doi/10.1044/2018_lshss-dyslc-18-0044 http://www.https/pubsasha.org/doi/10.1044/2018_lshss-dyslc-18-0044 http://www.https/jslhr.ubs.asha.org tel:2010 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/bf02656900 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 39 chard, d. j. & dickson, s. v. (1999). phonological awareness: instructional and assessment guidelines. intervention in school and clinic. eric institute of education sciences, 34, 261-270. conway, t. (2014). dyslexia-do you know the ‘principles of neuroplasticity’ that support learning. (video). youtube. https://www.nowpograms.com conway, t. (2017). dyslexia: conferences recording: ‘evidence based’, what it means, and dyslexia treatments. (video). youtube. https://www.dyslexiaida.org diamond, a. (n.d). phonological development in children: stages and overview. chapter 9/lesson 29. study.com blog. https://study.com/academy/lesson/phonology eden, g. (2016). dyslexia and the brain. understood team. (video). youtube. https://www.understood.org fenson, l., dale, p. s., bates, e., reznick, j. s. thal, d. &, pethick, s. j. (1994). variability in early communicative development. monographs of the society of research in child development. 59 (242), 1-189 hodge, m. (n.d.). what is neuroplasticity and why do parents and slps need to know. apraxiakids. https://www.apraxiakids.org/apraxia_library. horowitz-kraus, t. (2018). neuroplasticity in developmental disorders: the specific case of dyslexia. (video). youtube. https://www.youtube.com ibbotson, p. (2013). the scope of usage-based theory: hypothesis and theory article. in h. morten, & c. christiansen (eds). frontiers in psychology 4, 225 https://www.frontiersin.org kaplan, a. 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(video). youtube. https://amzn.to/2m3hm https://www.medicinenet.com/ tel:2017 https://doi.org/10.1037/15969-000 https://amzn.to/2m3hm awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 41 tobias, t. (2020). what is neuroplasticity? guidelines for stroke recovery. (video). youtube. https://amzn.to/2m3hm turton, m. (2013). what is neuroplasticity? in learning disability blog. www.getyourbreakthrough.com/blog/author volkman, j. (2020). reading & dyslexia: a neuroscientific perspective. (video). youtube. https://www.youtube.com worthington, p. (2019). changing the dyslexic brain: important updates for educators & parents in australia. (video). youtube. https://www.youtube.com yul-ifode, s. (2015). child language and communication disorders in nigeria. in i. kamalu & i. tamunobelema. issues in the study of language and literature: theory & practice. ibadan: krafts books limited. https://amzn.to/2m3hm http://www.getyourbreakthrough.com/blog/author https://www.youtube.com/ https://www.youtube.com/ 158 a comparative analysis of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo igbo okoli, chukwunonyelum esther1 obinna, nancy ngozi2 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka1 akanu ibiam federal polytechnic, unwana2 es.okoli@unizik.edu.ng1 nancyobinna2016@gmail.com2 abstract this research focuses on a comparative study of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo varieties of the igbo language. it aims at analysing how the perfective aspect marker is realized in the two igbo speaking communities as a case study. this study seeks to analyse the similarities and the differences among the different varieties, and to find out how closely related they are. the elicitation method was adopted using an interview technique as well as researchers’ knowledge of their dialects. the method of analysing the data was purely descriptive. twenty sentences written in the standard igbo were used as a guide by the researchers for data collection and were translated by informants in their different varieties of the language. the sentences were generated by the researchers. having collected and analysed the data, this research study shows the different ways the two selected dialects mark perfective aspect using the suffixes ‘-na/ne’ and ‘-wo’ respectively. it is observed that perfective marker in both dialects bears a high tone. the result shows that the selected speech communities are varieties of the igbo language, although there are little differences. we conclude, therefore, that different morphemes can be used to mark perfective aspect in igbo, depending on the speech community. keywords: perfective aspect, comparative study, dialects, elicitation method, aspect mailto:es.okoli@unizik.edu.ng1 mailto:nancyobinna2016@gmail.com awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 159 1. introduction nigeria as a heterogeneous nation with large number of cultures is made up of many languages of which the igbo language is one of the major languages. the igbo language comprises of numerous dialects and numerous speakers. the dialects of igbo are so large that they cannot be estimated, although some of the dialects are not mutually intelligible. the igbo language is spoken in the south east (anambra, enugu, imo, abịa and ebonyi) and south south (delta, rivers) regions of nigeria. the selected speech communities in orumba north local government area of anambra state and afikpo local government area of ebonyi state, are drawn from inland west igbo dialect cluster and waawa igbo respectively (ikekeọnwụ, 1987). every language has its grammar, that is, the rules of language that its speakers must abide with when using the language. aspect as a grammatical category expresses how an action, event or state, denoted by a verb, relates to the flow of time. it refers to the way an event is viewed internally and can be classified broadly as imperfective or perfective. the perfective aspect is used to describe an action as a complete event, while the imperfective aspect views an event as the process of unfolding or a repeated or habitual event (corresponding to the progressive/continuous aspect and habitual aspect). the igbo language marks perfective aspect with the suffix ‘-la’ attached to verb roots although the perfective marker varies according to the different varieties of the language. this paper is divided into four sections. the first section introduces the paper, while section two reviews some scholarly works on aspect. the third section handles the methodology, a comparative analysis of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo igbo – okoli & obinna 160 presentation and analysis of language data. section four summarizes and concludes the work. 2. literature review 2.1 aspect aspect is a grammatical category that reflects the perspective from which an action/situation is seen. it can be seen as complete, in progress, having duration, beginning, ending, or being repeated. comrie (1985) in onovbiona (2016) defines aspect as the different ways of viewing the internal temporal constituency of a situation. according to hornby (2010:72), aspect (grammar) is defined as the form of a verb that shows, for example, whether the action happens once or repeatedly, is completed or still continuing. he explains that aspect expresses action or being (or state) in respect of its inception, duration or completion. eyisi (2004:47) indicates that aspect is the form or category of the verb which shows inception, duration, continuity or completion. in other words, it is the form of a verb that indicates whether an action happened in the past but is still continuing or whether it has completely ended. hence, it involves an event that started in the past, continues till the completion of such an event. carter and mccarthy (2006:411) define aspect as the writer’s/speaker’s perspective on the time of an event. for biber et al (1999), aspect relates to considerations such as the completion or lack of completion of events or states described by a verb. the above definitions on aspect are related and they agree on the concept that aspect refers to how an event or action is to be viewed with respect to time, rather than to its actual location in time. in other words, aspect can be used to indicate whether the action is going on, has been completed or whether it is continuous and it is concerned with the time contained within a situation. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 161 2.1.1 perfective aspect according to carter and mccarthy (2006:415), perfective aspect is concerned with the speaker’s perspective on the relationship between one time frame and an event that takes place in another time frame. for greenbaum (1996) cited in adrina and salgado (2019), the perfect aspect is primarily used to place the time of one situation relative to the time of another situation. richards (2000:337) defines perfective aspect as (in grammar) “is a kind of aspect that indicates the relationship between a state or an event. the perfective aspect is used to refer to a state or an action which has taken place before the time of speaking, as well as to a state or an action (or series of actions) occurring in a period of time we imagine as continuing until the present or until a certain moment in the past (until now or until then), or that has just ended. the events and situations referred to by the perfective aspect have some relevance to the time of speaking (the present in the case of the present perfective, the past for past perfective and the future for the future perfective). in other words, the perfective aspect is used to indicate the completeness of an action, to see events as a whole. examples: 1) i have tidied my room. 2) she had just found a solution to the problem. the present perfective is formed by have/has + past participle, the past perfective is formed by had + past participle as can be seen in the examples above, while the future perfective is formed by will have + past participle. example: 3) we will have been together for ten years next month. among the three perfective aspects, the present perfective is frequently used and in this research study, the present perfective will a comparative analysis of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo igbo – okoli & obinna 162 be used. it can be used to express the association between actions that happened in the past and the present. examples: 4) professor wang has left for beijing for a conference. 5) i’ve closed the window. in example (4) above, has left expresses the action happened in the past, and the result is that professor wang now is not at the place where the utterance was made. it can be shown that present perfective is an aspect which is concerned with two time periods, of which one refers to sometime in the past, and the other refers to present time. aspect is often confused with the closely related concept of tense because they both convey information about time. while tense relates the time of referent to some other time, commonly the speech event, aspect conveys other temporal information, such as duration, completion, or frequency, as it relates to the time of action. emenanjo (1978) reveals that in igbo language, aspect is the appropriate grammatical category for referring to the igbo verbal system and not tense. he further states that the verb in the igbo language always has the perfective marker = (v)le/=(v)la in the underlying structure and the suffix is always high tone, irrespective of the tone class of the verb. for example: 6) ha ēriele yā. ‘they have eaten it’ 7) chikē azụọla ụlọ ahụ. ‘chike has bought that house’ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 163 according to obiamalu (2013), the perfective verb form in standard igbo has the following morphemic structure: e + cv + a + la. where e = a/e harmonic prefix, cv = verb root, a = open vowel suffix (ovs) and la = perfective suffix. example: 8) ibè à-zụ-ọ-la akwà ọhụrụ ibe agr-buy-ovs-pf cloth new ‘ibe has bought a new cloth’ obiamalu (2013) further argues that the open vowel suffix (ovs) in igbo which occurs in a variety of constructions such as imperative, perfective, conditional and subjunctive is an empty morpheme since it lacks semantic content but serves as a stem extender. his argument is based on three pieces of evidence which include that: a. the ovs does not occur in perfective constructions where the verb root has a cvv syllable structure. example: 9) ọ bịa-la 3sg come-pf ‘he has come’ b. the ovs does not occur where the verb root is a complex one (a verb with more than one root). example: 10) ike e-gbū-dà-la nkwụ ahụ ike agr-cut-fall-pf palm tree that ‘ike has cut down that palm tree’ c. in some dialects where the perfective is marked by the suffix -go and other phonologically related variants: -gwo, -wo, -gwe, the ovs does not occur. examples from ọnịcha dialect: 11) o gbū-gō ekē 3sg kill-perf python ‘s/he has killed a python’ a comparative analysis of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo igbo – okoli & obinna 164 12) o gō-gō ụnọ n’ ọnịcha 3sg buy-perf house at onicha ‘s/he has bought a house at onicha’ 2.1.2 perfective aspect in igbo perfective aspect indicates completion or termination of an event before a reference time. as has been mentioned above that the perfective aspect is marked in the standard igbo using the suffix ‘la’ though there are lots of variations in the varieties of the language, it is a verbal suffix that marks the end of a situation which indicates the completion of an event. examples of perfective aspect in the standard igbo: 13) ànyị à-rụcha-a-la ọrụ ahụ. 1pl pref-work-finish-ovs-perf work det ‘we have finished the work’ 14) ha à-ga-a-la ahịā. 3pl pref-go-ovs-perf market ‘they have gone to the market’ 15) a-zà-a-la m èzi. pref sweep-ovs-perf 1sg compound ‘i have swept the compound’ 16) ndị nkuzi à-kụ-ọ-la ụmụakwụkwọ ahụ ihe. teachers pref-flog-ovs-perf students det something ‘the teachers have flogged the students’ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 165 17) onyeisi ụlọ akwụkwọ à-chụ-ọ-la nwaakwụkwọ ahụ. head school pref-expel-ovs-perf student det ‘the headmaster has expelled the student’ 18) nwokē ahụ à-lụ-ọ-la nwaagbọghọ ahụ. man det pref-marry-ovs-perf lady det ‘the man has married the lady’ 19) ànyị è-nye-la ha ego hā. 1pl pref-give-perf them money poss ‘we have given them their money’ 20) a hụ-la m agadī nwokē ahụ. pref see-perf 1sg old man det ‘i have seen the old man’ 21) ha à-kwụ-ọ-la ụgwọ akwụkwọ hā. 3pl pref-pay-ovs-perf fee school poss ‘they have paid their school fees’ 22) ọ kpọ-ọ-la nwokē ahụ. 3sg call-ovs-perf man det ‘s/he has called the man’ 23) nwaànyị ahụ à-ga-a-la ọrụ. woman det pref-go-ovs-perf work ‘the woman has gone to work’ 24) a-zụta-la m ùde. pref-buy-perf 1sg cream a comparative analysis of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo igbo – okoli & obinna 166 ‘i have bought the cream’ 25) ha à-sa-a-la àkpà ha. 3pl pref-wash-ovs-perf bag poss ‘they have washed their bags’ 26) o hicha-a-la oche ahụ. 3sg clean-ovs-perf chair det ‘s/he has cleaned the chair’ 27) ànyị e-wète-la akwụkwọ ahụ. 1pl pref-bring-perf book det ‘we have brought the book’ 28) nwokē ahụ è-gosi-la ya ụlọ ha. man det pref-show-perf her/him house poss ‘the man has shown her/him their house’ 29) e-si-e-la m àgwà. pref-cook-ovs-perf 1sg beans ‘i have cooked beans’ 30) ọ rịgō-ō-la n’elu osisi. 3sg climb-ovs-perf on top tree ‘s/he has climbed the tree’ 31) nnà m à-ga-a-la n’ubì. father 1sg pref-go-ovs-perf prep farm ‘my father has gone to the farm’ 32) òbi a-mụ-ọ-la akwụkwọ ya. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 167 obi pref-study-ovs-perf book poss ‘obi has studied his book’ the above examples of perfective constructions show how the standard igbo marks perfective aspect. in this study, the equivalents of the above perfective constructions are obtained from the speech varieties of three selected igbo communities to ascertain the points of similarities and differences in perfective marking. 3. research methodology, data presentation and analysis this section focuses on the areas where the research work was conducted, the method of data collection, the instrument/tool used in collecting data, and the data presentation and analysis as was introduced earlier in section two. 3.1 method of data collection the research method adopted in this research study is data elicitation method. the technique used was interview where the informants translated the twenty (20) sentences written in standard igbo into their varieties. after audio recording, the researcher analysed the recorded data and identified the markers of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo igbo. in this research study, one native speaker was selected from each speech community to represent the research population. the informants who are adept speakers of their dialects were carefully chosen because they have spent greater part of their lives in their towns and are very familiar with their varieties. also, researchers’ knowledge of their dialects was applied. 3.1.1 tone and tone marking convention tone is the use of pitch levels to indicate semantic differences in lexical items and pitch patterns of grammatical constructions. igbo as a tone language, has two distinctive basic tones: high and low, as well as the tonal phenomenon known as downstep. the tone marking convention adopted in this research study is green and a comparative analysis of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo igbo – okoli & obinna 168 igwe’s (1963) tone marking system. here, the high tones are left unmarked, while the low tones (ˋ ) and downstep tones (-) are fully marked. example: a) isi ‘head’ b) ìsì ‘blindness’ c) isì ‘smell’ d) isī ‘to cook’ 3.2 data presentation and analysis the data collected from the three informants are presented in this section using the earlier stated twenty sentences. the method of data analysis is purely descriptive. 3.2.1 perfective aspect in the nanka variety of igbo examples: 33) àyị à-rụ-cha-a-na ọrụ ụhụ. 1pl pref-work-finish-ovs-perf work det ‘we have finished the work’ 34) phe è-jewe-ne aphịā 3pl pref-go-perf market ‘they have gone to the market’ 35) a-zà-a-na m mbala. pref sweep-ovs-perf 1sg compound ‘i have swept the compound’ 36) ndị nkuzi à-pịa-na ụmụ akwụkwọ ọhụ iphe. teachers pref-flog-perf students det something ‘the teachers have flogged the students’ 37) onyeishi ụnọ akwụkwọ à-chụ-ọ-na nwa akwụkwọ ọhụ head school pref-expel-ovs-perf student det ‘the headmaster has expelled the student’ 38) nwokē èhu à-nụ-ọ-na nwaàgbọhọ ọhụ. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 169 man det pref-marry-ovs-perf lady det ‘the man has married the lady’ 39) àyị è-nye-ne phe ego phe. 1pl pref-give-perf them money poss ‘we have given them their money’ 40) a-phụ-na m agadī nwokē èhu. pref see-perf 1sg old man det ‘i have seen the old man’ 41) pha à-kwụ-ọ-na ụgwọ akwụkwọ pha. 3pl pref-pay-ovs-perf fee school poss ‘they have paid their school fees’ 42) ọ kpọ-ọ-na nwokē èhu. 3sg call-ovs-perf man det ‘s/he has called the man’ 43) nwaànyị ịhụ è-je-e-ne ọrụ. woman det pref-go-ovs-perf work ‘the woman has gone to work’ 44) e-gōte-ne m ùde. pref-buy-perf 1sg cream ‘i have bought the cream’ 45) pha à-sa-a-na àkpà pha. 3pl pref-wash-ovs-perf bag poss ‘they have washed their bags’ 46) o phīcha-a-na oche èhụ. 3sg clean-ovs-perf chair det ‘s/he has cleaned the chair’ 47) àyị e-wè-te-ne akwụkwọ ọhụ. 1pl pref-bring-perf book det ‘we have brought the book’ 48) nwokē èhu è-goshi-ne yē ụnọ pha. a comparative analysis of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo igbo – okoli & obinna 170 man det pref-show-perf her/him house poss ‘the man has shown him/her their house’ 49) e-shi-e-ne m àgwà. pref-cook-ovs-perf 1sg beans ‘i have cooked beans’ 50) o ri-gbe-e-ne n’enu oshishi. 3sg climb-ovs-perf on top tree ‘s/he has climbed the tree’ 51) nnà m è-je-e-ne n’ ubì. father 1sg pref-go-ovs-perf prep farm ‘my father has gone to the farm’ 52) òbi a-mụ-ọ-na akwụkwọ yā. obi pref-study-ovs-perf book poss ‘obi has studied his book’ from the above data, it is observed that the perfective aspect is marked using the suffix ‘-na/-ne’. in the vowel system of the igbo language, there are two sets of vowels which can be described in terms of advanced tongue root. they include: +atr (e, i, u, o) and –atr (a, ị, ụ, ọ). for the + atr vowels, the tongue root is advanced for the articulation of the affected vowels, while the –atr vowels involve the retraction of the tongue root in their articulation. vowels within a given word harmonize with respect to the feature, advanced tongue root. it is also observed that if the vowels in the verb roots belong to the +atr group, the perfective marker ‘-ne’ will be suffixed whereas when the vowels belong to the –atr group, the perfective marker ‘-na’ will be attached to the verb root. the perfective markers ‘-na’/‘-ne’ express that the event has happened in the past. for example, in number ‘52’above, it means that ‘obi’ is not studying his book at the time the speech was made. also from the data, it is observed that the open vowel suffix does not occur where the verb root of the perfective constructions has a awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 171 cvv syllable structure (as in number 36) and where there is complex verb root (as in numbers 34, 39, 47 and 48), following obiamalu’s (2013) argument. there are some unconditional exceptions in the use of ovs in nanka dialect of the igbo language. for instance, there is absence of ovs in ‘39’ and ‘40’ which have neither a complex verb root nor cvv syllable structure. the tone of the perfective marker (na/ne) suffixed to the verb root does not change the tone of the main verb. 3.2.2 perfective aspect in the ehugbo variety of igbo 53) ayị a-rụdu-wo yaa ọrụ m̀ 1pl pref-work-perf det work det ‘we have finished the work’ 54) wo e-jege-wo ahịà 3pl prefgoperf market ‘they have gone to the market’ 55) a zà-wo m̀ ọgbọdọ ezi pref-sweep-perf isg compound ‘i have swept the compound’ 56) nde nkuzi e-ti-wo ụmụrụma ụlọekwụkwọ m ihe det teachers pref-flog-perf students det something ‘the teachers have flogged the students’ 57) onyeisi ụlọekwụkwọ à-chụlaga-wo nwatakịrị ụlọekwụkwọ m head school pref-expel-pref child school det a comparative analysis of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo igbo – okoli & obinna 172 ‘the head teacher has expelled the student’ 58) nwoke ̄ m ̀ a-lụ-wo nwaàgbọọgọ m man det pref-marry-perf lady det ‘the man has married the lady’ 59) ayị a-nio-wo wo ego wo 1pl pref-give-perf 3pl:obj money poss ‘we have given them their money’ 60) a-hụ-wo m ezenze nwoke m pref-see-perf 1sg old man det ‘i have seen the old man’ 61) wo a-kwụ-wo okpogo ụlọekwụkwọ wo 3pl pref-pay-perf fee school poss ‘they have paid their school fees’ 62) o ku-wo nwokè m 3sg call-perf man det ‘he /she has called the man’ 63) nwaanyị m e-jege-wo ọrụ woman det pref-go-perf work ‘that woman has gone to work’ 64) a-zụta-wo m manụ isì pref-buy-perf 1sg oil head ‘i have bought cream’ 65) wo a-sụ-wo ekpà wo awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 173 3pl pref-wash-perf bag poss ‘they have washed their bags’ 66) o husi-o (o husiwo) yaa oche m 2sg clean-perf det chair det ‘he/she has cleaned the chair’ 67) ayị e-wete-wo yaa ekwụkwọ m 1pl pref-bring-perf ? book det ‘we have bought the book’ 68) nwoke m e-gosio-wo ụlọ wo man det pref-show-perf house poss ‘the man has shown him/her their house’ 69) e-wu-wo m àgwà pref-cook-perf 1sg beans ‘i have cooked beans’ 70) o nyikooru-wo n’ elu osisi 3sg climb-perf on top tree ‘he/she has climbed a tree’ 71) nnà m e-jego-wo n’ ubi father 1sg pref-go-perf prep farm ‘my father has gone to farm’ 72) obi a-mụ-wo ekwụkwọ a obi pref-study-perf book poss ‘obi has studied his book’ a comparative analysis of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo igbo – okoli & obinna 174 it is observed that the perfective aspect in the ehugbo dialect of the igbo language is marked using the suffix ‘-wo’. when the perfective marker ‘-wo’ is used in a rapid speech, ‘w’ is deleted as in number 66. “wo” can also be used as a pronoun (3rd person plural pronoun or a possessive pronoun) as in numbers: 54, 61 and 65. it is observed that there is absence of open vowel suffix (ovs) in ehugbo dialect of the igbo language in line with obiamalu’s (2013:109) view that ovs does not occur in the varieties of igbo that mark the perfective aspect by the suffix -go and other phonologically related variants: gwo, -wo, -gwe. from the above data, it is also observed that ‘m’ can also serve as a determiner (53, 56, 57 58) as well as a pronoun (55, 60, 64, 69, 71). 3.2.3 the comparative analysis of the three varieties of igbo the two collected data will be compared using the following research questions. 3.2.3.1 research question 1 how does perfective aspect marked in nanka and ehugbo varieties of the igbo language? the table below shows how perfective aspect is marked in orumba north local government area with regard to the three selected towns. table 1: perfective markers the two selected dialects perfective markers nanka speech community ‘-na/-ne’ ehugbo speech community ‘-wo’ the above table shows that nanka speech community uses the suffixes ‘-na/ne’ to mark perfective aspect while ehugbo makes use of the suffix ‘-wo’. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 175 3.2.3.2 research question 2 what are the similarities in the two selected varieties? from the data above, it is observed that the markers of perfective aspect from the two selected speech communities express the same meaning, and it can also be used to show completed action. like in the standard igbo language, it is observed that the perfective aspect is marked in the two speech communities by suffixation. the suffixes which are attached to the verb roots comprise of the consonants: “n and w” and the vowels: “a, e and o”. in other words, the perfective markers in the above varieties of the igbo language are semantically the same. another similarity observed in the above data is that the perfective markers (na/ne and wo) from the two selected varieties have high tones irrespective of the tonal classes of the verbs and the tones of the perfective markers suffixed to the verb root do not change the tone of the main verb. 3.2.3.3 research question 3 what are the differences in the two selected speech communities? the difference between the varieties of the igbo language is that the “–na/-ne” suffix that marks perfective aspect in nanka variety is realised as “–wo” in ehugbo variety. 4. summary and conclusion this research study focuses on the comparative study of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo speech communities. in other words, this research aims at identifying the markers of perfective aspect in the two selected varieties of the igbo language. this study also reviews some scholarly works that have been done on aspect and its types. from the data analysis, it is observed that nanka variety uses either of the suffixes “-na” or “-ne” to mark perfective aspect, while a comparative analysis of perfective aspect in nanka and ehugbo igbo – okoli & obinna 176 ehugbo variety marks perfective aspect using the suffix “-wo”. it is also observed that “-wo” is a third personal pronoun in the ehugbo dialect. it was also found out that the ‘w’ in ‘-wo” can be elided or assimilated into ‘o’ when used in a rapid speech as in the case of example 66 and other instances. finally, we conclude that the two dialects used in this study are varieties of the igbo language and the perfective aspect in the above dialects is marked by suffixation. this study will contribute to the study of perfective aspect in igbo and serves as a base for further research on the perfective aspect. references adrina l. and salgado, m. 2019. aspect in the english language: a comparative analysis of form and meaning in traditional descriptive grammars. http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1678-460x2019350401. biber, d. 1999. longman grammar of spoken and written english. harlow: pearson education. carter, r. and mccarthy, m. 2006. cambridge grammar of english: a comprehensive guide. cambridge: cambridge university press. emenanjo, e.n. 1978. element of modern igbo grammar. ibadan: oxford university press. eyisi, j. 2004. a grammar of english: the student companion. awka, anambra: anthony publishers. green, m. m. and igwe, g. e. 1963. a descriptive grammar of igbo. berlin: akademieverlage. hornby, a. s. 2010. oxford advanced learner’s dictionary. 8th edition. new york: oxford university press. ikekeọnwụ, c. i. 1987. igbo dialect cluster: a classification. a paper presented at the department of linguistics and nigerian languages, university of nigeria, nsukka. http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1678-460x2019350401 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 177 onovbiona, i. b. 2016. tense and aspect in urhobo: a descriptive analysis. unpublished m.a thesis university of benin obiamalu, g. o. 2013. aspects of the mophosyntax of igbo functional categories: a minimalist approach. phd dissertation. hornby, a. s. 2010. oxford advanced learner’s dictionary. 8th edition. new york: oxford university press. richards, j.c. et al. 2000. longman dictionary of language teaching and applied linguistics (trans by guan yanhong). beijing foreign language teaching and research press. list of abbreviations pref: prefix ovs: open vowel suffix perf: perfective aspect poss: possession prep: preposition 3sg: third person singular 1pl: first person plural 3pl: third person plural 178 a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution obinwogu chinedu chinwe 1 vincent obobolo2 university of port harcourt presdo2000@gmail.com1, vincentobobolo@uniport.edu.ng2 abstract the past few decades saw a growing interest in the study of the relationship between language and law. this study attempts a systemic functional linguistic investigation of court judgement on dr orji uzo kalu’s indictment in a criminal case of corruption and money laundering. systemic functional linguistics (sfl), the world of experience has three different forms of representation each realized by three different process types. because different transitivity choices achieve different communicative effects, we expect the distribution process to vary according to domain, genre and context. the study explored the transitivity choices and patterns of language in relation to power in legal discourses. using halliday’s (1994) systemic functional linguistics (ideational metafunction) as a theoretical base, the paper explored the federal and the supreme court judgment texts randomly selected and retrieved from the courts’ website. the frequency of occurrence in the representation of ideational processes and participants were tabulated for the comparison of the processes in the analysed linguistic units. findings reveal that the verbal process was used mostly by the court judges, in different modes of speech such as; commanding, stating or asking. it shows that the process was used mostly by the court as a way of highlighting how linguistic investigation of legal document can represent the true ideology of mailto:presdo2000@gmail.com1 mailto:vincentobobolo@uniport.edu.ng2 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 179 the judgement to the reader, as well as the significance of the stance taken by the court throughout the whole judgement both at the federal the supreme courts. the study recommended for more research in the critical area of judicial interpretation as well as the involvement of forensic linguistic experts in the criminal justice system of nigeria. keywords: functional linguistics, ideational, judgement, process, discourse 1. introduction language generally is a means of communication which has a tremendous influence on the life of an individual. there are however variations in the use of language which shows their multiple dimensions; language of law or language in the legal system are part of it. language can be used to express sentiments, grief, attitude, comfort, points of view, which can be written or spoken. from a functional perspective, the relationship between language and society has been in existence in very early ages. according to halliday (1964, 1994) systematic functional linguistics has in recent times provided a scientific, informative, useful, and explanatory framework on the relationship between the internal structures of language, external relations associated with the phenomenon being analysed as well as the investigation of language as strategic meaning making resource. in halliday’s (1994) metafunctions, ideation revolves around people’s experience and perceptions of reality, physical material, as well as the symbolic interpretations of their experiences. the content of ideation is also concerned with not only the activities of the discourse, but also the individuals participating in the activities. looking at a real-life situation, the criminal or civil law system of a country can be taken into consideration. however, the a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution – obinwogu & obobolo 180 judgements of the court are part of the legal discourse. these documents contain decisions, rules, as well as statutes interpretations presented by the judge or the jury in meticulous case to case bases. these decisions are of high importance as they are made known to members of the public in the court or the media. looking at this from a legal discourse perspective, a court judgement originates from lawsuit filed, upon which the court takes a formal decision. moreover, the court may also pass a range of orders in terms of verdicts depending on the nature of the filed lawsuits; for example, they may sentence a party to prison in both criminal and civil matters and stipulate the duration or present a decision. thus, there is a need to critically evaluate the court decision in order to formulate precise and meticulous judgement texts which may not only be used as public accounts but also for legal education. the administration of the criminal justice system for political elites in nigeria has been widely criticized in recent times by the media. it is difficult to understand and comprehend the interpretations of some of these high-profile court judgement texts and establish the truth and differences in the decisions of related cases. it is also difficult to understand how ideologies and opinions are manifested in some of these high-profile legal documents however, this present study scrutinizes and analyses the relationship between language and ideology and how such relationship is represented in the analysis of the court text. through systemic functional linguistics developed by m. a. k halliday, an attempt is made to show how the judgement texts are working apparatus of ideology as well as meaning representations, which are not obviously recognized by the readers. a critical linguistic investigation of what lies underneath these texts is however essential. the ideational transitivity which is a meaningbased awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 181 linguistic analysis will describe not only the activities surrounding dr. kalu’s prosecution and court judgments, but also the individuals participating in the activities of the court case. 1.1 statement of the problem diverse studies have been conducted on the idiosyncratic nature of courtroom language especially in the area of interrogation and questioning of witnesses. the focus generally has always been on the syntactic and stylistic features of legal documents and court judgement texts. but to the best of my knowledge, none have looked at a court judgement of a distinguished senator of the federal republic in order to understand and comprehend the judge interpretations, from a systemic functional linguistic perspective. interest in this study, therefore, emerges from the need to reveal how linguistic tools are used to represent legal issues in the court and to identify the ideology behind such representation. again, with the dearth of literature present in the legal linguistics of developing countries and particularly in the nigerian context, the present study aims to fill these linguistic gaps and shed further light on the concept itself. halliday’s (1994) systemic functional linguistics is used as a theoretical base for legal text analysis in such a way that it is possible to say useful things about any text, including the complex and technical nature of court judgement of a distinguished senator of the federal republic. the aim of this study is to attempt a critical linguistic analysis of orji uzo kalu’s court judgments in order to examine the type of ideational process predominantly used in the analysis of orji uzo kalu’s court judgments and to examine the extent to which these processes have helped in the comprehension and understanding of the judgement text. a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution – obinwogu & obobolo 182 2.1 literature review 2.1.1 conceptual review 2.1.1.1 transitivity processes. according to matthiessen & halliday, (1997), the process constituent can be considered in the following manner: the transitivity process contains six functional processes. accordingly, the process is realized by the verb and is considered as the key element on which other element rely on. they are enumerated below:  material verbs many scholars have used the material process as a research paradigm. the material process is categorized into happenings and doings. the two main area of the material process are the agent (subject) and the goal or achievement. the actor is the one carrying out the process and usually a subject and the goal is the one getting affected by the process. the actor could be a human as well as an inanimate object. they are also referred to as a process that involves doings and happenings. in this process, participants are actors, goals, recipients, and clients. circumstances tell about the manner, place, and time periods of these happenings.  mental process the mental process connotes the senses and emotions. it has been divided into four sub types which include cognition, perception, affection, and desires. there is a psychological and philosophical association of the actors with their actions in this process. the mental process mainly talks about phenomenon and senser. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 183  relational process the relational process is linked to correlation or relationship between certain abstract objects. this process is used to explain the relationship between ideals and their beliefs. the relational process helps to define a relationship or connect a relationship between two concepts. relational process can be broken down into five subtypes: possessive, circumstantial, identifying, attributive, and intensive. for the possessive process, the participants can express their possession towards something. in the circumstantial scheme, the relative process is about pointing implicitly at someone’s wrongdoing, but not proving that unequivocally. in the identifying scheme, the participants can be changed, which may result to a shift in the grammatical role. the attribute mechanism does not require the participants to be reversed but it occasionally does.  verbal process halliday (2009) remarks that the verbal process is a process of saying which usually contributes to the creation of narratives by setting up distinctive dialogues and reported speech. there is always a correlation between mental and verbal processes. this is because the act of saying does not occur alone. there is a whole process of mental work behind and which is related to the mind. there are three participants of the verbal process which includes the sayer or the addresser in the verbal process of transitivity, the receiver or the addressee, or the entity targeted by the saying, and verbiage which is the content of what is said. the participants are called sayers who say something to the recipient, to whom something is being said or addressed, and the verbiage to which the utterances are being made. the verbal process consists of saying verbs such as sayer, verbiage, receiver, and target. receiver refers to the entity at the receiving end. a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution – obinwogu & obobolo 184 it involves the addressee, who is identified as an object by the saying.  behavioural process the behavioural process is a psychological process. it combines the elements of mental and material processes such as dreaming and stating. it coexists with behaviour. it falls in dimensions of material and mental processes. usually, behavioural processes are always intransitive and include only the participant as an agent. the main participant in this process is called a behaver. if there are two participants in a process, then the second one is coined as behaviour.  existential process existential process is the most complicated of all process verbs. it includes existential beings which are attributed to the subject’s role. the standard verb used is the “be” verb and any time you see a construction; you have got an existential cycle. the existential process does not have any representation because it has no distinctive features and signifies only the existence of an event or a material. this process explains an entity, an action, a state of being, an event or a subject. in an existential process, there is also only one actor and progressives are mostly prohibited. the existent is a literal process that is existentially understood. 2.1.1.2 courtroom discourse according to van dijk (1997), discourse analysis focuses on tangible articulated cases of conversations and does not concentrate on expressions which may be subjective and hence, misleading in the nature of goal or delineating from the target point. for this reason, the present study focuses on the case of dr orji uzo kalu’s court judgement and aims to extract information from the transcript awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 185 of the judgement text both at the supreme court and the federal high court. critical discourse analysis on the other hand helps to unveil ideologies, hidden philosophies, and limitations of the text. it perceives language as a social phenomenon and consequently can analyse language critically through an investigation of the cultural practices and ideologies of the society in relation to power. one significant observation about the courtroom discourses is in relation to the variations of power which have been shown to form the very foundation of the tenets of speech used within the text. it is easy to observe that during the court proceedings, all members are, to a certain degree, obliged differentially in the trial process. the power of the judge stands and is seen as the most effective and ultimate compared to that of the witnesses. another significant feature of the courtroom discourse is the sequence of story presentation. in this present study, which is a criminal case, the judgement text which is both written and spoken are built by connecting the presented evidence from both the prosecuting and the defence counsels. therefore, the judge not only acknowledges the contradicting stories but also chooses the very same to form his own ultimate ground for a final decision. in any given trial, a case is opened by presenting a summary of the proceedings to be followed and ends after the arguments of the prosecuting and defence counsel’s examination of all the witnesses are presented by the judge before a stance is reached. mellinkoff (1963), states that the language of the law is wordy, unclear, pompous, and dull. this is observed at the lexical level. power and ideology also play an important role in the moulding of courtroom judgements. this is because political groups and governmental institutions based on their status and domain use their own language and make colloquial generalizations and ideologies for their arguments a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution – obinwogu & obobolo 186 2.2 empirical review in its broadest sense, all areas where language and law intersect are referred to as legal linguistics or forensic linguistics. the 10th biannual conference of the international association of forensic linguistics (1994) enumerated four major areas of legal linguistics. it includes language and law, language in the legal process, language as evidence, research and teaching in forensic testimony. language and law are further grouped into comprehensibility of legal documents, analysis, interpretation and history of legal texts. others include multilingual matters in legal texts, discourse analysis of legal resources, language rights, power and law, media and law. the major focus of legal linguistics is the discovery of hidden truth and proper deliverance of justice in the legal system or setting. mcmenamin (2002) remarks that the relationship between language, crime and law can be detected, for instance, in the analysis of courtroom discourse, courtroom interpretation, comprehensibility of legal documents, police reports, police suspects interrogations, and police suspect statements. again, language is an evidence of truth. this means that the true potential of language can be used for investigation, deliverance of justice and the rule of law as well as to solve the problem of insecurity in a country. language scholars have embarked on various academic, scholarly works in the interpretation of legal documents, interpretation of semantic and pragmatic meaning in a legal context and ambiguity in court judgments. roger shuy (2006, 2007) wrote extensively on the application of linguistics in different court cases, especially in the area of discourse analysis and pragmatics. he has also appeared in various courts as an expert witness. the interests in the relationship between language, law and crime have recently progressed in the developing countries of the world. shuy has contributed immensely in series of books on his awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 187 experiences as an expert witness in and out of court. in europe and america, various aspects of linguistic interpretation of meaning in court judgments have been done. such interpretation ranges from ambiguity and vagueness in the criminal justice system. richland (2008) work helped in the understanding of legal discourse analyses through the micro-examination of transcripts of courtroom recordings. following the customs which have affected courtroom functioning, he concluded that social truths are primarily made through face-to-face interaction. furthermore, the author draws another conclusion that the recent advancements in the field of linguistic anthropological examination of language have also been central to forming and moulding point-of-views on legal discourse from ideologies to the basic semiotics. the most interesting progress in the study of the relationship between language and law is the 10th international conference held at the university of birmingham. it provided more opportunities for research than ever before. solan (1994,1998,2011) in his paper on ethical and moral issues in forensic linguistics discussed some interesting examples on how judges take advantage of linguistic ambiguity to flout the rule of law .he also looked at some american court cases where statute’ is susceptible to multiple interpretations either as a result of syntactic or lexical ambiguity. martin and rose (2003) explored how clause structures can be expressed through simultaneous strands of meanings. halliday (1994) exhibits these language meta-functions into three parts: ideation, interpersonal, and textual. despite its reputable importance, there is a dearth of the linguistic research of such a nature in the nigerian context to the best of my knowledge. the current paper attempts to study the ideational process verbs used by the judge that would explicate the direction of the ideology taken by each clause of the document. a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution – obinwogu & obobolo 188 2.3 theoretical framework 2.3.1 halliday systemic functional linguistics linguists study language in a systematic way just like it is in other fields of science. the scientific study of language operates in various levels of morphology, phonology, semantics, and pragmatics. the critical linguistic approach undertaken for this present study is based on the concept of halliday’s (1994) systemic functional grammar. it is the theory adopted as a model for a critical linguistic analysis of orji uzor kalu’s court judgements. halliday’s systemic functional linguistics is a theory of linguistics that looks at not only language, but other semiotic systems as a system of choices. according to coffin (2001), systemic functional linguistics, though primarily a linguistic theory, is also concerned with the effect of culture and society on language. the theory posits that all speakers are influenced by the economic/social system in which they live and by the roles they inhabit within these systems. gregory (1980) presented halliday’s developing and functional theory of language. language users are always privileged to make choices from a wide range of options in order to create a text which may be a written or spoken. it describes three metafunctions of language. from these three, the present study attempts to focus on the ideational meaning or representational clause. transitivity analysis entails the ideational meta-function. it shows the representational meaning of a text. transitivity analysis is applicable to the ideational mechanism. its major focus is on the language’s semiotic material and looks to the speaker’s grammatical decisions regarding his experiences. halliday and matthiessen (2013) assert that ideational meta-function observes the representation of the linguistic order that we impose on the flow of events as we experience them. the grammatical structure to which this meta-function refers is called transitivity. when analysing awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 189 language for its experiential functions, a clause is broken down into three functional elements of participant, process and circumstance. the participant element, usually the subject of the clause, can be termed as the actor, agent, goal, carrier or sayer of the clause. the process constituent, the central verb of the clause, can also be broken down into three separate elements and described as material, relational and projecting. the circumstance element can be referred to as the where, when, how, why, with whom or as what the process of the clause occurred. 3. methodology 3.1 research design the present study adopted the methodology of qualitative research. the text analyses are performed with the use of halliday’s (1985) metafunctions of language. the metafunction of ideation is used for the analysis of the discourse. through the application of the ideational function of systemic functional linguistics, clauses are selected from the court judgement text, in order to identify the ideological intents in the text as well as to realize the meaning and how reality is depicted in legal language. 3.2 research sample the research sample for the study is the original kalu’s case judgement transcript released by the court of nigeria on its official website. the purposive sampling technique is adopted in the selection of the clauses to be analysed. a total of 19 samples have been collected, covering and representing the two hundred and ninety-one (291) pages of the federal high court and fifty-one (51) pages of supreme court legal documents. a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution – obinwogu & obobolo 190 4. ideational processes in text table 1 and 2 below shows the comparison of the processes in the analysed linguistic units. moreover, the interpretation and discussion on the number of occurrences have also been included below. table 1 ideational process in federal high court judgment text s/n ideational processes in federal high court texts(pc for efcc &dcr) frequency of process count percentage of each process count 1 material process 110 19.6% 2 verbal process 210 37.5% 3 mental process 8 1.4% 4 relational process 100 17.8% 5 behavioral process 26 4.6% 6 existential process 105 18.7% total 559 prosecution counsel (pc for efcc), defence counsel (dc for respondents) awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 191 table 2 ideational processes in supreme court judgment text s/n ideational processes in supreme court texts(asc&cj) frequency of process count percentage of each process count 1 material process 10 3.14% 2 verbal process 146 49.8% 3 mental process 5 1.7% 4 relational process 96 32.7% 5 behavioral process 36 12.2% 6 existential process 0 0 total 293 advocate to supreme court respondents and appellants (asc) & cj findings from the table reveal that out of all the processes in the federal high court and supreme court judgement texts, the use of the verbal process is highest in percentage in comparison with other participants. the verbal process is a large category that makes use of different modes of speech such as commanding, asking and stating. this is the process used mostly by the court judges in delivering judgement where no external factor has an influence as well as showing the stance taken by the court on dr orji uzo kalu prosecution. a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution – obinwogu & obobolo 192 again, the behavioural process describes the psychological behaviour of the counsels to the respondents. the use of the process shows the speaker’s subjective stance to what is being said. therefore, their statements as presented by the judge show a high ratio of being biased than non-biased. advocates to the prosecution and defendants, the chief judge and advocate to the supreme court also made high use of relational process,32.7%+ 17.8%=50.5% in total showing attributes of being or having. this shows the speaker’s need for authentication which lowers their chances of being objective. finally, the existential processes are used mostly by the court in stating known facts especially as it relates to the constitution of the federal republic of nigeria 4.2 analysis of selected parts of the text the extract below presents selected examples from the text with detailed analysis and discussion. a total of 19 examples were randomly selected from the federal high court and supreme court judgement on dr orji uzo kalu’s prosecution. they fall into one or two categories in the table. the analysis of samples 1 to 12 below are selected randomly from the two hundred and ninety-one pages (291) federal high court judgement text, presented by justice m.b idris on the 5th day of december 2019. charge no: fhc/abj/cr/56/07. sample 1 (fhc): the defendants were charged before the court on a 107-count charge alleging the theft and laundering of 2.6billion naira (sample 1 fhc judgement text). sample 2 (fhc): the defendants were alleged to have committed the offences contained in the amended charge of july 2018 as follows. (sample 2 fhc) sample 1 above, judgement text from federal high court (fhc) clearly states something which has already been done and existed awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 193 for the purpose of providing information; hence this would come under the category of verbal process. sample 2 shows that there are various instances of verbal process in the federal judgement text where the thirty-nine (39) count charges were stated. sample 3(fhc); that you orji uzo kalu between 13th august, 2003 and 9th october, 2003 whilst being the executive governor of abia state within the jurisdiction of this honourable court did procure slok nigeria limited(a company owned by you and members of your family) to retain in its account domiciled with the first inland bank plc the sum of two hundred million naira on your behalf which formed part of the funds illegally derived from the treasury of abia state government through standard trust and you hereby committed an offence to section 17(c0 of the money laundering(prohibition) act, 2003 and punishable under section 16 of the same act “ sample 4(fhc); the counsel to the first defendant (chukwuka obidike) filled their final written address dated 19th of september. the sample 3 above being the first count charge against the defendant is a combination of both material process and the verbal process. the statement performs a material process within which; “orji uzo kalu” in line one is the actor, “procure” in line 2 is the process and “slok nigeria limited” also in line 2 is the goal. these lines which are also presented by the justice m.b idris mainly show the use of the verbal process in which the speaker delivers an unbending statement to the reader, clarifying the simple words as to what is and what shall be if it is proved beyond all reasonable doubt as stipulated in the law of the federal republic of nigeria. there are many other instances of count charges in the judgement text ranging from count 1 to 39. in all the count charges, there are more material and the verbal processes whose percentage frequency is represented a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution – obinwogu & obobolo 194 in the table above. sample 4 above represents that the counsel to dr. orji uzo kalu has filed various instances of opinions regarding the innocence of his client. sample 5(fhc); the 1st defendant submitted that the absence of a preliminary report nullifies the case of the prosecution. the leaned counsel to the 1st defendant argued that accusing the first defendant of laundering an amount of money which prevaricates from time to time is certainly clogging the possibility of proof beyond reasonable doubt and this is usually the result of improper and incomplete criminal investigation which the law frown at sample 6(fhc); the 1st defendants counsel submitted that incomplete investigation cast enormous doubt on the charge against the 1st defendant and ought to be resolved in favour of the 1st defendant the statement 5 is one of the examples of the counsel’s opinion on the findings of the efcc against dr. orji uzo kalu. through this verbal process, the benefit of doubt is given to the first respondent (dr. orji uzo kalu), signifying the relation of the efcc findings by attributing it to being ‘clogging the possibility of proof beyond reasonable doubt’ it can be said that the speaker through his words wants to emphasize the biased connotations that are being portrayed by the efcc, allowing not only the speaker but also the reader to give benefit of doubt to the first respondent which is dr. orji uzo kalu. sample 6 above is another instance of verbal and relational process as explained in sentence 5 above. sample 7(fhc); the first defendant urged the court to agree, that it is extremely unfair, unconstitutional and against established international practices for a defendant against whom a 107, 0r 112 or 34 or 39 count charge as the case may be, has been preferred, to be confronted with the petition against awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 195 him a clear two(2) years after the said petition was received and makes nonsense of the presumption of innocence as prescribed by section 36(5) of the constitution of the federal republic of nigeria 1999(as amended) sample 8(fhc);the learned counsel to the 1st defendant contended that during the material time of investigation, the 1st defendant was equally never confronted with the allegedly purchased drafts, cheques and other financial instruments which are the subject matter of the charge for his comments and/or explanation and he was never confronted with exh y12( termed suspicious transactions) to elicit his reaction or comment thereon, if any. behavioural process is seen in the chosen sample 7 above as the speaker uses the words, “extremely unfair, unconstitutional and against established international practices” to intensify the effects of the said petition by the efcc. the importance of “presumption of innocence” is depicted using relational process, where it shows the attributing “presumption” to the carrier which is “innocence” in sample 8, behavioural process is seen depicted in the line as the learned counsel to the defendant shows an unjust and unfair behaviour attributed to the efcc as regards to their investigation. in the line we see “…the first defendant was equally never confronted with the allegedly purchased drafts, cheques or other financial instruments which are the subject matter of charge” through the analysis of these lines, it can be predicted that the judge has shown unbiased attitude towards the respondents by taking in account the unethical doings of the efcc. there are many other instances of behavioural and relational process as seen in the case presented by the defence counsel. sample 9 (fhc); it is the argument of the prosecution that from their evidence before this court, they have clearly demonstrated a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution – obinwogu & obobolo 196 that the funds used to raise the drafts were withdrawals made from government house…he prosecution by circumstantial evidence adduced the manner/circumstances in which those funds were handled by the officials of abia state government sample10 (fhc). the prosecution in every criminal case must prove the guilt of the defendant with compelling evidence. it must be clearly and undoubtedly proved. in statement 9 above, relational process and behavioural process were detected. in the second and third line, it shows the relation of “funds used to raise drafts by the ex-governor” as the withdrawals made from the government house account. in the succeeding line, the attitude of the writer, in this case the justice m. d idris behaviour towards the 1st and 2nd defendant in the line” …. adduced the manner/circumstances “ shows the attitude of the prosecution counsel to the first respondent. existential and verbal process is evident in these lines of statement 10 above. through this statement, the reader is educated on what is, what exists and how the court will be handling a criminal case of that nature as stipulated in the constitution. it also gives the reader affirmation that nothing will go unclarified. this also shows the criminal justice system rules of the court in reaching a conclusion on the case. indeed, pages 96 to 115 of the orji uzo kalu’s judgement text explain how the prosecution must prove its case against the defendants beyond all reasonable doubts. existential and verbal processes were detected in these pages. sample 11 (fhc): from the totality of evidence led by the prosecution and by considering the ingredients of the offence above, it is clear that the 1st defendant did procure the 3rd defendant……………. the 1st and 3rd defendant are therefore guilty of counts 1 and 12 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 197 sample 12 (fhc): the defendants are no doubt first time offenders, and for this reason, i shall tamper justice with some mercy in line with the dictates of the law. the convicts are hereby sentenced as follows…….5, 12……yrs. imprisonment as the count progresses the sample in 11 above is taken from the commentary of justice m.b idris. it shows the use of the verbal process through which he simply states what should be. it can also be said to be a part of the existential process, as the speaker is affirming only what already exist. from pages 149 to 291 of the court judgement text, the judge recounts the arguments of the prosecuting and defence counsels using mostly the verbal process, existential process and material process. however, in the last statement 12, we see a combination of verbal and material process as in “the convicts are hereby sentenced as follows” below is the analysis of samples 13 to 17, selected randomly from the fifty-one (51) pages of the supreme court judgement text, presented by chief justice of the supreme court of nigeria at abuja, on friday 8th may, 2020. sc.622c/2019. sample 13, supreme court (sc) judgement text: on 31st october 2016 at the federal high court, lagos division, the appellant, and the 2nd and 3rd respondents were arraigned before the honourable, justice m.b idris-judge of the federal high court on several criminal allegations or charges sample 14(sc); the criminal justice act, 2015 under which the president, court of appeal issued the fiat/permission pursuant to section 396(7) ……. does not exist in the corpus of the laws of the federation of nigeria. sample 13 is a simple material process in which, “the appellants, and the respondents are the actors in the process, while “arraigned” is the process and appearing before the court represented by the a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution – obinwogu & obobolo 198 judge is the goal. in sample 14 above, relational process is depicted as “the permission does not exist in the laws of the federation of nigeria. sample15(sc): that a judge elevated or appointed to a higher court would cease to be a judge of the court from which he was elevated and would therefore lack the requisite jurisdiction to conclude his part heard matter in court from which he was elevated was/ is still extant. sample 16: the honourable m.b idris was on the 20th june, 2018, elevated to the court of appeal as justice of the court. on 22nd june 2018, the honourable, justice m.b idris took his oath as justice of the court of appeal and had from his said elevation ceased to be a judge of the federal high court sample 15 above is the commentary of the court in which a basic verbal and existential process can be seen. the court is stating in clear words through the chief judge what shall be done and what ought to be. it also conveys the limitations of the judgement of the federal high court by making sure that the reader, as well as the respondents know of the consequences of the directive given to the judge m.b idris to continue with a case after his elevation from the federal high court judge to the court of appeal. sample 1 and 16 above, clearly states something which has already been done and which only exists for the purpose of providing information, hence can be grouped as verbal process. again, in statement 16, we also see the use of relational process. at first, we see the relation of justice m.b idris as a judge of the court of appeal after his elevation. secondly, we also see the nullification of the relationship between him and the federal high court as “he ceased to be a judge of the federal high court” after his elevation as an appeal court judge. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 199 sample 17(sc); section 396(7) of the acja, pursuant to which the pca purported to act, cannot override the clear provisions of the constitution by donating power to a justice of the court of appeal to continue to sit as a high court judge for whatever purpose. the provision is inconsistent with sections 253 of the constitution. sample 18(sc); the national assembly, in view of the supremacy provision of the constitution, in section 1 therefore could not have intended that audacious insubordination to the constitution, or state of absurd fool hardiness of legislating into section 396(7) of the acja, 2015 sample 19(sc); i hereby allow this appeal. section 396(7) of the acja, 2015 is, in my own firm view, an unnecessarily gratuitous legislative interference with, intrusion into or an outright usurpation of the appointing powers of the executive arm consigned specifically to the president of the federal republic of nigeria by constitution in section 250(1) and 238(2) verbal process is also seen in sample 17 above, in which a statement has been stated explaining what is and what is not. it also portrays a relational process in which it nullifies the relationship between “section 396(7) of the acja” and “sections 253 of the constitution” by describing it as been inconsistent. in sample 18, we see the attitude of the writer, that is, the judge’s behaviour towards the provision of section 396(&) of the acja; in the line”…… “audacious insubordination and absurd fool hardiness of legislating” is used by chief judge to depict the effect of allowing the provisions of administration of the criminal justice act to override the express provision of the 1999 constitution. in sample 19, all the attributes such as “unnecessarily gratuitous or outright usurpation” are of one carrier who is identified a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution – obinwogu & obobolo 200 as “section 396(7) of the acja, 2015” which shows a negative relational process upon which the appeal is allowed. 5. conclusion taking cognizance of the results of all the evidences by the economic and financial crimes commission (efcc), respondents, and witnesses, we can infer that through the increased frequency of the verbal process usage by the court represented by the judge (justice m.b idris) at the federal high court, the stance of the court is represented as unbiased which resulted in sentencing dr. orji uzo kalu to 12yrs in prison.. the simple statement through which the court has projected its opinion shows that it is not affected by external forces other than the dictates of the constitution and other related judgements. on the other hand, the ideology of the judgement to the reader for supreme court judgement is significantly different. here we see through the analysis, an extensive usage of the relational and behavioural processes by the chief judge as well as the prosecution and defence counsel at the federal high court. at the federal high court, we see the aggressive attitude of the prosecution counsel towards the respondents and specifically respondent 1 by attributing the carrier, dr orji uzo kalu with negative features. again, the commentary and judgement by the supreme court also use same behavioural and relational process in order to attain a benefit of doubt in favour of both respondents (appellant and dr orji uzo kalu) by nullifying the judgement of the federal high court on technical grounds. however, the researcher concluded that the federal high court judgement is unprejudiced as it follows the specified rules given by the constitution whereas the true ideology of the supreme court judgement appears to be prejudiced. but in all, the two awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 201 judgement was unaffected by all except that which applies to the constitution. the above analysis has proved that halliday’s systemic functional linguistics is a veritable tool for uncovering the strategies that writers/speakers use to convince us of their viewpoints. the researcher also recommends for government to take proactive measures to address the abnormalities in the criminal justice system of nigeria. this will also go a long way to contribute its own quota towards solving the problem of insecurity in nigeria. the study recommends for more research in the critical area of judicial interpretation as well as the involvement of forensic linguistic experts in the court in particular and in the administration of the criminal justice system of nigeria in general. references coffin, c. (2001). theoretical approaches to written language – a tesol perspective. in burns, a. & coffin, c. (eds.), analysing english in a global context. routledge, pp. 93 122. gregory, m. (1980). the recent work of m. a. k halliday: language as social semiotic. applied linguistics, 1(1), 74-81. halliday, m. a. (1964). the linguistic science and language teaching. longman linguistics library halliday, m. a. k. (1989). spoken and written language (2nd ed.).oxford university press halliday, j., & johnson, h. (1994). the art and science of wine. mitchell beazley. halliday, m. a. (1994). language as social semiotic: the social interpretation of language and meaning. arnold. a critical linguistic analysis of court judgements on dr. orji uzo kalu’s prosecution – obinwogu & obobolo 202 hasan, m. (1984). a comparative study of the members of citizen advisory committees in two cities (master’s thesis, western michigan university). http://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/1494/ ` hoey, m. p. (1988). an introduction to functional grammar. michael halliday. mcmenamin, g (2002). forensic linguistics: advances in forensic stylistics. crc press martin, j. r & rose d. (2003). working within discourse: meaning beyond the clause. contimuum. https://doi: 10.11.11771095792650601700108. richland, j. b. (2008). arguing with tradition: the language of tradition in hopi tribal court. university of chicago press solan, l. (1993). the language of judges. university of chicago press. solan. l. (1994). judicial decisions and linguistic analysis: is there a linguist in court? brooklyn law school. https://brooklynworks.brooklaw.edu/faculty. solan, l. (1998). linguistic experts as semantic tour guides: forensic linguistics. https://doi.org/10:1558/sii;1998.5.2.87/ solan, l. (2010). the language of statutes. university of chicago press solan, l (2011) linguistic issues in statutory interpretation. in p. m. tiersma,l. m. solan(eds). oxford handbook of language and law. shuy, r. (2006). linguistics in the court room. a practical guide. oxford university press shuy, r. (2007). creating language crimes: oxford university press http://scholarworks.wmich.edu/masters_theses/1494/ https://doi/ https://brooklynworks.brooklaw.edu/faculty https://doi.org/10:1558/sii;1998.5.2.87/ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 203 van dijk, t. a. (1997). discourse studies: a multidisciplinary introduction: sage. 361 the practice and significance of “female father” among the igbo traditional society of nigeria: the ngwa community in view ugonna n. ofoha abia state university uturu chinyereugonna@gmail.com ugonna.ofoha@abiastateuniversity.edu.ng abstract the culture of patriarchy and ‘male child' dominance underpins a number of parents’ gender preferences for male children. the qualitative methodological approach involving ethnographic observations and oral interviews of informants were adopted and data were interpretatively analyzed. this study reveals that in ngwa land, the practice of female-father socially and culturally gives women the legal rights to have their own children especially male ones through various means. it also reveals an advanced knowledge on the diversities of igbo cultural practices. in spite of the disadvantages that follow this practice such as encouraging promiscuity, and even with the impact of western education and christianity, ngwa people and indeed the entire igbo community continue to resist any attempt to abolish this tradition. given the paucity of literature in this area of igbo culture, this study will avail readers and scholars better insight to the reasons, advantages and disadvantages of this practice. keywords – culture, patriarchy, inheritance, male child, female child mailto:chinyereugonna@gmail.com mailto:ugonna.ofoha@abiastateuniversity.edu.ng the practice and significance of “female father” among the igbo traditional society of nigeria ofoha 362 introduction individuals, groups, societies or even organizations are recognized by their cultural practices. culture is a way of life, especially, the general custom and beliefs of a particular group of people at a particular time. ngwa people as a group of igbo speaking clan have a number of cultural practices. notable among these cultural practices is that of ‘female father’. the geographical location of the ngwa people is captured in the following from ngwa community uk (april 1965:187, www.jstor.org/stable/1158231): the area covering the old aba division ngwa, is situated in the tropical rain forest of southern igbo plain in the present abia state of nigeria. it has a population of over one million people and an area of little over nine hundred square miles. the area is bounded on the north by the present umuahia zone, on the west by owerri and mbaise, on the east by ikotekpene and abak and on the south by ukwa.the important waterways are the imo river to the south and west, the aba or aza river that rises at abayi, and flows south through aba township into the imo river at a point near okpontu. around nsulu to the northeast, there are two minor rivers, the otamiri and the ohi. at no point does the land rise above an elevation of 50ft. the people are largely farmers, producing yams, cassava, cocoyam, maize and other tropical farm products. major rural industries include garri and palm produce in addition to akwete cloth weaving in which most women from ihie area were engaged. the old divisional headquarters was aba, a very important commercial and industrial center. center of major population concentration includes aba, mgboko, osisioma, umuoba, owerinta, nbawsi (nvosi) and okpu-alangwa. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 363 ngwa igbo as a patriarchal society and similar to all igbo tribes, believe in passing the family inheritance along the male line excluding the female. this socio-cultural belief leads to gender bias and prejudice. such prejudice towards one gender over the other has taken a deep toll in the history of ngwa land. in ngwa land, every male child is expected to have a male child who will perpetuate his name even long after he has joined his ancestors. this is reflected in the choice of such names as ahamefule (may my name never be lost), azubuike (legacy is strength). also in ngwa land, the wealth of a man goes to his male children, never to the female children. as captured by nmah (2011: 138), “…there is what is called ancestral land. the father gives it to his son. the son gives it to his own son. it is never paid for with money. any son that does not inherit an ancestral land is seen as having been disowned.” the absence of a male child in the family raises a problem of inheritance of the wealth of a man who is not survived by any male issue. in such scenario the man cannot pass on his property and it will revert to his brothers or other male relatives upon his death. amongst the ngwa igbo, a way out of this quandary, is the custom that allows woman to woman marriage. urama (2019:1) declares “that “male daughters,” “female husbands,” and same-sex marriage among women in igbo culture are cultural devised practices to solve the problems of impotency, barrenness, and male child succession or inheritance syndrome”. in the past, womanwoman marriage was a mark of wealth and for economic exploitation and was popular in parts of igboland in the second half of the 19th century as captured by ekejiuba (1967) and amadiume (1987). however, in most cases, women who married fellow women were either barren or had passed the childbearing age or have given up trying to have at least a male child of their own. marriage in igboland (ngwa igbo in focus), is regarded as futile and the practice and significance of “female father” among the igbo traditional society of nigeria ofoha 364 a woman unfulfilled if there is no male child. this belief, however, places a woman in a state where she has to accept cultural practices that will make her get a male child she can call her own. jean (1998) has outlined three circumstances under which women take wives as 1.) barren women take wives to gain rights over children produced 2.) rich women accumulate wives to gain prestige and wealth in the same way men do through polygyny and 3.) societies where women possess the right to have a daughter-in law, a woman without a son may take a wife to give her a nonexistent son. in such cases, woman to woman marriage acts as prerequisite for “female-father”. ‘female father’ is a practice whereby a daughter, wife or widow ‘marries’ a woman (and pays the bride wealth) through several channels depending on the circumstances, the woman so married has the opportunity to become pregnant through the husband of her female husband, if he is still alive or through a selected male relative for the purposes having children to perpetuate the family lineage and rights to inheritance of the woman who married her. the woman who pays the dowry, although a female, acts as a father to any child born by the wife she marries. the researcher observes that this culture is prevalent in all of igbo land. the same culture has been observed amongst various igbo groups like the igbo in okwelle clan of ideato in imo state, mbaise igbo also in imo state, and the ngwa igbo in abia state. the present study therefore examines this practice in ngwa igbo traditional society of nigeria where the husband of the female-father (that is the woman who goes to pay the dowry of another woman) is still alive and the she is either barren or have passed the age of childbearing without having a male-child, the wife ‘marries’ a woman, hands over the woman she married to her husband for another opportunity at attempting to awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 365 produce a male child. in this situation, the woman so married is not considered the wife of the man, but the wife of the woman who ‘married’ her even though she may meet the man with the consent of her female husband for procreation. she refers to her ‘female husband’ as her husband and may refer to the man as her father or uncle or any suitable nomenclature (oral interview, eze nwamara (2019). children born by her are forbidden from addressing her as mother. the wife of the female father may be addressed as aunt, sister or any suitable nomenclature by those children biologically born by her under this arrangement and while in the marriage, her female husband is addressed by the children as their mother. however, as ezinne ugonna, a native of osusu in isialangwa north lga who granted us an interview pointed out that in families where there is peace and rapport amongst members of the family, circumstances may change. the female husband may relinquish her control of the woman she married and allow her free interaction with her husband and even address her as nwunye di m or my husband’s wife. children born by her may address her as mother and rightfully so. her joy is more complete in the fact that her husband has male children of his own who will perpetuate the family name. she can also decide to treat her as her wife this implies that the woman she married have no rights to her husband, she will be solely her wife (wife to the female father) and not her co-wife. objectives of the study the objectives of the study were to examine 1. the practice of ‘female father’ in ngwa-igbo traditional society of nigeria 2. to ascertain the significances of ‘female father’ practice in ngwa-igbo. the practice and significance of “female father” among the igbo traditional society of nigeria ofoha 366 methodology the qualitative methodological approach involving ethnographic observations and oral interviews with 30 consultants was adopted. these consultants are born and bred in ngwaland and have lived over 40 years in ngwaland. they are comprised of farmers, elders, traditionally titled chiefs, village heads, educationists, traders, etc., aged 40-100 years. data used in this study were collected from 12obingwa, isiala ngwa , and osisioma local governments areas of abia state. the data collected were descriptively analyzed. review of literature woman-woman marriage is a prerequisite for implementing the female father practice and is not to be misconstrued as lesbianism. woman-woman marriage in ngwa land did not involve sexual relationship between the couple as opposed to lesbianism. lesbianism involves a relationship in which a woman is romantically or sexually attracted only to other women. duruamaku-dim (2019) asserts the lesbianism is simply the practice of a female having sex with a fellow as opposed to males. this is not the case with woman-woman marriage as practiced in ngwa land. several literature on woman-woman marriage. egodi, nwoko, jean, urama have touched this subject in diverse ways. while urama (2019) “values and usefulness of samesex marriage” discusses the importance of same-sex marriage, egodi (2006) “woman-woman marriage in igbo land” expresses a general view of the practice of woman womam marriage in igbo land. amadiume (1987) “male daughters and female husbands”, discusses concept of male daughters and the roles they play as female husbands to foster the family lineage while nwoko (2012) awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 367 “female-husband in the southeast of nigeria” focuses on the concept of female father in the south east. the present study extends all of these with a focus on female-fathers in ngwa land. female father in ngwa land in ngwa land, the family constitutes the basis for their sociological organogram, thus, the family is viewed as a sacred institution. family sometimes could refer to the nuclear family of a whole linage ‘onumara’ (that is extended family) and whenever an ngwa person talks of family ‘ezinaulo’, he is referring to both nuclear family and extended ‘onumara’ which includes even dead ancestors. the nuclear family unit ‘ezi’ is headed by the father ‘nna’, but in a compound where there are several nuclear family units it is referred to as ‘eziukwu’. ‘eziukwu’ consists of households whose members have a mutual and palpable decent through a patrilineal ancestor ‘umunna’ while ‘onumara’ is the largest extended family unit in ngwa land (b.c otuonye, informant 2019). the central reason for marriage in ngwa land is procreation. a marriage is said to be fruitless if for some reason they are not able to have children because children are believed to be a blessing from god ‘chukwu’ to every family. the women are often held responsible in a case of childlessness, it is assumed that her childlessness is as a result of her reckless lifestyle before marriage or as an inherited curse from her family. for this reason, before marriage is contracted in ngwa land, the families tend to make enquiries (ijụ ajụjụ) as he would look up to families whose history evidences good reproductivity. (b.c otuonye 2019) the present study focuses on the practice of ‘female father’ and its significance in ngwa, nigeria. it is the search for a male child that has made women engage in practices that will assure them of a male child. one of such practices is the female father. the practice and significance of “female father” among the igbo traditional society of nigeria ofoha 368 according to egodi (2006:3), “the over-riding goal for womanwoman marriage in igboland was for women to have children through other women for inheritance purposes.” this is also the driving force for woman-woman marriage in ngwa land. according to nwoko (2012) in the igbo world view, importance was attached to a male child more than a female or indeed any full grown woman. the obsession for a male child in every igbo family, and in africa generally stood as restriction to the efforts and further contributions of women. this cultural preference for the male child and restrictions against the female had hindered the development of women and denied them selfactualization. it is within this obsession for the male child that the ‘pregnancy’ or the concept of the female husband in igbo land was conceived. in the traditional igbo society and in line with the patriarchal traditions, a man’s genealogy and lineage were preserved in the personalities of his sons. according to this practice when a man was unable to have a male child, he appointed one of his daughters, in most cases the first daughter to stay back in the family and procreate. igwe (2009) writes about himself in the following: i hail from mbaise in imo state in southern nigeria. traditionally, in my community, marriage is taken to be a union between a man and a woman as the case may be. but there are circumstances where a marriage between a woman and a woman is permissible. in a situation where a woman has no son or no child, if the husband dies, it is culturally allowed for her to marry a wife. and in this case, she becomes the husband. like in every case of marriage, this awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 369 woman goes out, inquires and gets a wife of her choice. she pays her dowry and fulfills other traditional rites as it is done when a man is marrying a woman. after that, the woman brings her "wife" home and they start living together as "husband" and "wife." nobody frowns at it. to have children, both the "woman-husband" and "woman-wife" will agree to allow a man from the same village or neighboring town to sleep with the wife. the children born by the wife bear the family name of the woman-husband, not that of the man responsible for the pregnancy. i want to add here that the men who sleep with such wives in most cases are married men. and normally it is regarded as immoral, in fact it is a taboo for a married man to sleep with or "father" children from another woman. but in this case an act normally taken to be immoral is allowed. amadiume (1987) has inferred that a man who did not have a son could pass land and trees to his daughters if the daughters were recognized by the society. to her, this translation from femalehood to malehood of the female child and the rights of "sons" could only be accomplished and recognized through rituals. nwoko (2012) adds that the practice of female father or female husband confers on female children the same rights without rituals. the daughter so conferred with such rights goes for what nwoko refers to as ikonwanna, a male sex mate with whom to procreate. alternatively, the daughter with such conferred rights chooses for herself a younger female who she takes in as wife by performing the traditional rites and paying the necessary bride price. in ngwa land, this process occurs with a male member of the daughter’s family leading the marriage process. the male member speaks to the the practice and significance of “female father” among the igbo traditional society of nigeria ofoha 370 intending inlaws on behalf of the daughter who intends to pick a wife. a wealthy woman may take a wife as captured, in ngwa igbo. this occurs if she is barren or if her husband died without a male child to continue the family lineage. nwoko (year 2012) mentions the case in mbaise igbo where the female children of a family collectively paid the pride price of a younger woman after the demise of their father in the name of their eldest sister so that the new bride could procreate and raise male children to preserve the family lineage. regardless of the method, the reason for woman-woman marriage is for procreation, the young bride taken as wife is expected by her female husband to identify a well behaved young man from the kindred, but in most cases blood relation of the female husband as her bedmate. nwoko (2012) notes that this was of serious implications; firstly, it was believed that by so doing, the blood tie of that particular family was preserved; secondly, the family was sure that the young bride would not pollute the family by raising children fathered by miscreants, thieves or even persons with strange ailments. it was also to prevent the introduction of unwholesome and undesirable traits into the family if the woman-woman union is blessed with a child, the daughter who has been conferred with the rights of malehood, automatically became the female father. she becomes the sociological father of any resulting offspring. the children belonged to the lineage of her father, not to their biological father. “consequently, she played the role of the father, provider, protector and indeed all the functions and responsibilities enshrined in the patriarchal concept which included physical protection of the family and its territory, the male economic sphere, the spiritual sphere, the social sphere, etc”. the awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 371 same holds true where the woman who picks the wife is a barren wife or a widow who is unable to produce male children for her husband. among the people of ngwa, the female husband in theory enjoys equal status with her male kit and kin. among her female mates, the umuada, she is regarded as a man and okenwanyi or (nwaanyi politics) in recent times. she is treated like a man. her opinion is sought after and taken with high regards. the practice in ngwa is similar to what nwoko (2012:5) has outlined about other igbo areas, in any ceremony, she enjoyed equal privilege with her male counterparts and in some igbo communities like uguta, she could break kola nut, but only among her female folks. she also combined both secular and spiritual functions and obligations. she participated in secret rituals and sometimes associated with the male elders in communal rituals. similar to the oral interview by nwoko (2012), the female father’s limitations show up from the emotional and biological realities. while her wife went out in search of a bedmate, it was also expected that she had a male companion, usually known as dinwanna, who satisfied her erotic desires and supported her when the biological realities became inevitable. as is elsewhere in igboland, in ngwa, it was not expected of the female father at this time to get pregnant or seen openly with any man since as nwoko (2012) concludes, “she had crossed the maternal rubicon.” any offspring directly from her is considered illegitimate and an outcast and treated as such. unlike the children from her wife, her direct offspring will not enjoy or share from any communal inheritance. we discovered that in the three core areas of ngwa land, female father is a general practice. a situation where a barren woman or a woman without a male child goes out to marry a younger woman to have children with her husband on her behalf. this is because of the practice and significance of “female father” among the igbo traditional society of nigeria ofoha 372 the high value the ngwa people and igbo land in general place on children, especially on the male child. the people believe that male children are very indispensable for the continuation of the ancestral line and inheritance. mere (1973) concludes that the reality of family extinction cannot be ducked where children are not forthcoming. it is seen as an abomination when a family has no male child to carry on the ancestral line. this is expressed in names like nweze (child king), nwabueze (child is king), nwakaego (child is bigger than money). the family is the most fundamental and the primary social institution which must be sustained through the male child. on this note, every family seeks a way to have children especially male children and because adoption was not rampant like it is today, the female father relationship became the only option for most families. female father can also be seen as woman to woman marriage. in our interaction, we discovered that the marriage is contracted like in a normal marriage between a man and a woman but in this case, the woman in need of a child goes in search of a suitable girl to marry, and she can also talk to her friends to help in the search and wooing the girl, this is because most of the times, it is difficult for a girl to accept a marriage proposal from a fellow woman, for this reason, the searchlight is beamed on girls with a social disability, whose chance of getting their own husband is slim. these social disability include a girl who got pregnant out of wedlock (ime ọkwa), or already had a child – in this case, the girl will be married along with the child. a girl whose family finds it very difficult to fend for themselves, can also be a suitor like in the case of allen madukoma, a native of isiala ngwa whose wife was not able to conceive, she married victoria, a girl from umuojima whose father died long ago leaving his family to fend for awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 373 themselves. victoria was quick to consent to the marriage as that will ensure she gets a better life. we interviewed many cases of such marriages in our research, we got many similar cases but for this article we will only look at different situation that lead to such marriages. selected circumstances of female father in ngwa land here we will look at information gathered from natives in different areas in ngwa land. from ananaba’s family of ugwunabo in ngwa, their daughter nwanyidiya got married to mazi eze. the union produced nine daughters and no male child. she and her husband had already acquired lands and wealth over the years. after her husband passed on, she knew that neither she nor her daughters could inherit those properties, as tradition demands that right to inheritance rests on the male child. to ensure that their wealth will not be rubbished by their extended family and outsiders, she decided to marry a woman to have children for her. she went back to her hometown and married one of her sister ugochi, who in turn had male children. today, though nwanyidiya and eze are both dead, ugochi still lives in the compound with her children and control the entire wealth of mazi eze. ogechi is a wife to a woman, daa helen. daa helen married ogechi just to have male children to carry on the family’s ancestral line. ogechi told us that she wasn’t good in academics at all even though her family was well to do and tried everything possible to make sure she got basic education, all to no avail. she was the last daughter of her family but not the last child because her mother had twin boys after her. she admitted to have spent so many years in primary one that her parents were advised to withdraw her from school. she resorted to joining her parents in farm work, an endeavor she engaged in for many years. when her mates and the practice and significance of “female father” among the igbo traditional society of nigeria ofoha 374 friends started getting married and leaving to their new homes, she felt like she had been left behind. then, her family got a marriage proposal from daa helen of ituukpa. daa helen had been married for 15 years without a child. she contacted her friends from nearby villages who told her about ogechi. when ogechi’s family accepted daa helen’s marriage proposal, ogechi’s bride wealth was paid as per tradition. she is very happy and excited to share with us that she already has 2 sons and will have more. we discovered that this a general practice and totally acceptable in ngwa land. it helps to alleviate the pains of childlessness in families. it gives the wife of the female father room to be in her matrimonial home as she may not be able to find a good man of her own hence the saying ‘e mee nwanyi ka emere ibe ya, obi adi ya mma. (if a woman is treated like her mates, she feels happy). in ngwa and igbo land in general, at a point in a girl’s life, the society demands she has to leave her father’s house to her husband’s house. if she cannot find a man to marry her, she is subjected to all manner of indirect and even direct ridicule by her family and society at large. therefore, if a girl is not married for any reason at that stage, she doesn’t feel happy. this makes her accept any proposal of marriage whether from a male or from a female. despite all the advantages female father offers, we still find some disadvantage to it. one major incidence that gave rise to female father in ngwa is that women do not have rights to inheritance. in 2004, a long legal battle that challenged the age long tradition of the igbo custom that disinherits women from their father’s inheritance began in umuahia after the death of a certain ukeje. after a decade, the legal battle was concluded by the apex court, the supreme court in nigeria. the ruling would change the igbo world. women of igbo decent now have right to inherit their father’s property. however, despite this milestone ruling by the apex awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 375 court, little was expected to change in the igbo culture. the overwhelming resistance that met this ruling was widespread across the igbo community. igwe simeon osisi itodo, the traditional ruler of aji autonomous community in igbo-eze north local government area of enugu state, told vanguard that the supreme court ruling will not change the custom of ndigbo, and any effort to enforce it will bring chaos.” igwe christopher nnamani (2012) of likke iheaka, in igboeze south local government area of enugu state, who added his voice to the development, said the igbo custom that denies females’ right to their fathers’ property has been unfair, and needs to be changed. but he acknowledged that it would be difficult to introduce something new in place of the old custom.” despite the supreme court ruling in 2015, the igbo community still continues to resist any attempt to modify the standing tradition of disentitlement of women from their father’s inheritance and the average igbo woman does not anticipate inheriting any estate of her parents, based on the age-long customs that make male children statutorily entitled to such. therefore, many families still continue to seek ways to have their own male children who will inherit their property and perpetuate the family lineage. the researcher observes that this practice is only now more prevalent amongst the uneducated female in the society. modern day technology has provided alternative methods for women who seek to have their own children. though we gathered that amidst the joy and fulfillment the arrangement of female-father brings to the parties involved, it also has some disadvantages. there are cases where the wife refuses the man that was chosen for her thereby neglecting the instructions of her female-husband who has no choice but to tolerate her wife’s excesses because she needs an heir. there are cases where the wife the practice and significance of “female father” among the igbo traditional society of nigeria ofoha 376 is maltreated by the daughters of the family because she is an illiterate or mentally unsound. the mere fact that the wife so married does not usually make a choice of a male mate for herself encourages promiscuity especially when the male mate handed to her does not fulfill her desires. the wife so married may begin to feel like a lord and savior with an over-bloated ego especially if she successfully gives birth to male children that her female-husband could not. she may even begin to have overbearing influence even over her female-husband. sometimes, the bond between her and the husband of her female-husband (or di nwe ulo) may become stronger than the bond between that of the father of the house (di nwe ụlọ) and her female husband spurring jealousy in her female-husband with dire consequences if the family is not a peaceful one. there may be consequential stigma and ridicule of the children borne out of these kind of union. where care is not taken, strange genes may be introduced into a family that may lead to strange traits, sicknesses, etc. close relatives and even the larger community where these children are born, may make them objects of ridicule at a later time in life aided with the knowledge of the origin of such children. this scenario usually affects the self-esteem of such children. in the modern world, where lesbianism is taking hold, woman-woman marriage may encourage lesbianism leading to cases where women may marry for pleasure rather than for procreation. worse cases also include situations where the wife married by the female husband is also unable to conceive male children. in such cases, the quest for male child continues. cases of a futile search for a male child have been narrated by some of the respondents. such a family is regarded as a lost compound, ama nchiri echi.in conclusion, we suggest that ndị ngwa and igbo land in general heed to the court ruling which gives the girl child right of awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 377 inheritance as this will bring to an end the obsession for a male child which gives rise to different forms of marriages. references amadiume, i. (1987): male daughters and female husbands. new jersey: zed press. cadigan, r. j. (1998) woman-to-woman marriage: practices and benefits in sub-saharan africa. journal of comparative family studies. vol. 29. no. 1. duruamaku-dim j. u. (2019) self-concept and lesbianism tendencies of girls in senior secondary schools in cross river state: counselling implications for appropriate sexual orientation. calabar counsellor, 8(1),111-124 ekejiuba, f. (1967)omu okwei, the merchant queen of ossomari: a biographical sketch. journal of the historical society of nigeria. 3: no.4. egodi, u. (2006). woman-woman marriage in igboland. azodo, a.u. and eke, m. (eds.), gender and sexuality in african literature and film, trenton, n.j.: africa world press, 2006. garuba, o. (2021). the male-female inheritance war. retrieved from https://tribuneonlineng.com/the-male-femaleinheritance-war/, 17th february 2023. mere, a. (1973) social values heritage of the igbo ikenga, vol. 2 no. 1. nmah, p.e. (2011) spiritual dimension of land identity crisis in igboland of nigeria: an ethical reflection. unizik journal of arts and humanities vol 12 no 2, 2011 nwoko k.c (2012). female husbands in igbo land: southeast nigeria: the journal of pan african studies, vol.5, no.1, march 2012 https://tribuneonlineng.com/the-male-female-inheritance-war/ https://tribuneonlineng.com/the-male-female-inheritance-war/ the practice and significance of “female father” among the igbo traditional society of nigeria ofoha 378 urama, n.e. (2019). the values and usefulness of same-sex marriages among the females in igbo culture in the continuity of lineage or posterity. sage open april-june 2019: 1–9; journals.sagepub.com/home/go uchendu v.c (1965). concubinage among ngwa igbo of southern nigeria. cambridge university press, vol.35 no 2, april 1965 appendix: personal communication name age village date of interview chief b.c otuonye 80 obichukwu 1-isialangwa 17/3/2021 allen madukoma, 61 osusu 1-isialangwa 20/3/2021 victoria, 40 umuojima-isialangwa 20/3/2021 chief ananaba 85 obeguosisioma 8/3/2022 daa helen 60 ituukpa-obingwa 8/3/2022 ogechi 40 umuitiri-osisioma 8/3/2022 daa roseline 69 obeaja-osisioma 8/3/2022 dee ikechi 70 ovungwu-isialangwa 8/3/2022 deede agu 70 osusuisialangwa 8/3/2022 eli nwamkpa 87 umuobikwa-obingwa 13/4/2022 140 a study of the application of comparative theory in the igbo translation of motherless baby victor c. asadu1, emmanuela u. asadu2 university of nigeria, nsukka victor.asadu@unn.edu.ng1 emmanuela.asadu@unn.edu.ng2 abstract the linguistic and cultural multiplicities all over the world lead to some communication problems which hamper the transmission of socio-cultural ideas among nations. the quest to address these problems in order to fill these gaps in human communication and to ensure a continuous development of the existence of man resulted in the introduction of the services of translators and interpreters. translation studies in west african languages have come of age. here, we undertook a translation of cyprian ekwensi’s novel, motherless baby, into igbo language as nwa enwe nne. this study stresses the need to be faithful to the original author in the course of translating a text as well as ensuring that the said translation is done in such a way that the target audience will easily understand the meaning of the text. in the translation, we adopted the seven technical procedures of translation recommended by two canadians, j.p. vinay and j. darbelnet, who are well known propagators of the comparative theory of translation. the result of the study is that the comparative method of translation was found suitable for the re-expression of both the linguistic and extralinguistic elements encountered in the said novel. in addition, we realized an igbo text that not only promote igbo language and culture but also inculcates the dangers of unwanted pregnancy in mailto:victor.asadu@unn.edu.ng1 mailto:emmanuela.asadu@unn.edu.ng awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 141 the young and unmarried ones as reflected in the theme of the novel, motherless baby. keywords: language, translation, interpretation, culture, literature, communication 1. introduction the primary reason for translation is communication. two steps are involved in translation: understanding and re-expressing. according to delisle, “translation can therefore be defined as the operation by which the relevant signification of linguistic signs is determined through reference to meaning as formulated in a message which is then fully reconstructed in the signs of another language” (53). translation is playing a key role today during bilateral talks between different countries of the world. according to bassnetmcguire, “… translation came to be used as a weapon in both dogmatic and political conflicts as nation states began to emerge …” (47). many other human activities such as tourism, international trade, and cultural exchanges cannot be carried out effectively without translation and interpretation. the art of translation is evolving tremendously since the introduction of pedagogical translation in the academic world. marianne lederer buttresses this assertion in her book, la traduction aujourd’hui, where she opines thus: “plus l’on traduit, et plus on écrit sur la traduction. il n’est pas de jour sans que paraissent de nouveaux ouvrages” (9). [“the more we translate, the more people write about translation. no day passes without new publication on translation.” (our translation)]. meanwhile, given the fact that our study borders on literary translation, it is pertinent to know that culture is always embedded in literary works. according to nida “linguistic features are not the study of the application of comparative theory in the igbo translation of motherless babyasadu & asadu 142 only factors which must be considered. in fact, the cultural elements may be even more important” (130).this implies that any literary text is a product of the culture of a particular group of people. so, a translator is expected to penetrate the spirit and culture of the author of the original text to be able to produce a reliable translation. in other words, the translator should put self in the same atmosphere that the original author found self while writing the text to be able to get the same inspiration vis-à-vis the creative capacity needed to adequately transmit the author’s thoughts. for instance, there was a situation in the novel, efuru, where two friends were drinking wine together and one said: “if i take another glass, it will enter my eyes” (208). it is unfortunate that a french woman named marie-jo demoulin-astre translated the statement to her french readers as “si j’en prends un second verre, il pénétrera mes yeux” (228). although the translation literally means “if i take a second glass, it will enter my eyes”, it is important to note that the french people may not understand that the meaning of the statement is that ajanapu, the woman that made that statement, would become intoxicated if she took another glass of wine. so, the translator could not convey correctly the meaning of the statement because of cultural barrier. she does not know much about igbo culture, especially as it concerns manipulations of language. according to ajunwa, “translation has become a significant instrument for the spreading of culture: material, linguistic, political, economic, and religious as well as other forms of culture.” (10). meanwhile, apart from those words and statements that border on culture, it also behoves the translator to look out for polysemous words in the course of translation. this is because a word could have two or more meanings and if not properly handled, could mar the translation process. for instance, one observed that the statement, “chukwu tochie ego”, used by nkoli, a character in a awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 143 nigerian home movie entitled nkoli nwa nsukka, to show appreciation to a man who gave her some money gratis was misinterpreted by the man as “may god block the source of the money”. this is simply because the man is unaware that the verb, “tochie”, has two meanings in nsukka dialect, namely: replace and block. so, in the event of encountering polysemous words, a translator or interpreter is expected to possess contextual competence in addition to linguistic competence to be able to determine which of the words is suitable in that situation. we, therefore, undertook this work in order to show the need to make understandable to foreigners, the literary and cultural facts of the igbo tribe. in addition, we also intend to show the need to be faithful to the original author in the course of translating a text as well as ensuring that the said translation is done in such a way that the target population will easily understand the meaning of the text. it is worthy of note that translation is not a work on language and words, but a work on the message, which in other words implies the meaning. every translator must possess some knowledge adjudged very important and necessary for the success of any translation work: knowledge of the language of the source text, understanding of the subject, and mastery of the target language. these qualities are needed to achieve a good translation because a translation that is not clear to the reader is not faithful to the meaning. the problem that necessitated this study is that some translators who are alien to the culture of the target language, for instance, igbo, always make cultural mistakes and end up misleading others as a result of these mistakes. onuko cites gerding-salas’ emphasis on the negative impacts of lack of the necessary qualities expected of a translator thus: through experience i have learned that the consequences of wrong translations can be catastrophic especially if done by lay persons and study of the application of comparative theory in the igbo translation of motherless babyasadu & asadu 144 mistakes made in the performance of this activity can obviously be irreparable. just think of what could happen in cases of inadequacy in knowledge areas such as science, medicine, legal matters, or technology … it is quite clear that a poor translation cannot only lead to hilarity or to minor confusion, but it can also be a matter of life and death (13). in a similar vein, ajunwa cites ekundayo simpson as saying thus: … the translation of scientific and technical texts demands precision as certain errors on the part of the translator could bring about tragic consequences. the translator of directions for use of machines and instruments of any type, of methods of repairing aircrafts or complicated machines finds himself entrusted with the responsibility of attaining a level of exactitude which is higher than that required of a literary translator, for example. to say then that scientific / technical translation is often a matter of life and death is nothing but an undisputable truth (92). the objective of this study is to translate the novel, motherless baby, into igbo language while paying attention to those statements that have igbo cultural coloration. this study also aims at showing that a literary text is a product of the culture of a given people. in addition, another reason for translating this text into igbo is because igbo language is disappearing gradually as warned by unesco. one finds out that today’s young parents of igbo extraction hardly speak igbo to their children while at home. so, we are of the view that this translation will contribute immensely in sustaining the existence and survival of igbo language. lastly, this study aims at counseling the youths on the consequences of unwanted pregnancy. the study addresses the following questions: 1. in event of running into polysemous words or expressions in the course of translation, what can be done to find the exact message? 2. how can one translate the expressions that contain igbo cultural elements? awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 145 by the time these questions are addressed, the students of translation, especially the foreign ones, will definitely know how to translate works that have african cultural background. the significance of this study is that apart from being beneficial to the students of translation in widening their knowledge horizon as it concerns the task of literary translation, many other researchers around the world who are interested in african literature stand to benefit from this study because the novel, motherless baby, used as the tool for this study contains many african cultural facts. in addition, this study not only promotes igbo language and culture but also inculcates the dangers of unwanted pregnancy in the young and unmarried ones as reflected in the theme of the novel, motherless baby, which we translated as nwa enwe nne. meanwhile, our scope of study in this work is literary translation with special reference to linguistic translation as proposed by vinay and darbelnet. 2. methodology for our data collection, we studied the original text, motherless baby, and had it translated into igbo language as nwa enwe nne. the seven technical procedures in translation propounded by j. p. vinay and j. darbelnet were employed in the translation of the work. these seven technical procedures are embedded in the comparative theory of translation. 3. presentation of excerpts of the application of comparative approach in the igbo translation of motherless baby the seven translation techniques propounded by two canadians, j.p. vinay and j. darbelnet, were adopted in the translation of this work. study of the application of comparative theory in the igbo translation of motherless babyasadu & asadu 146 these seven translation techniques belong to the comparative approach in translation. they are as follows: loaning, carbon copying, literal translation, transposition, modulation, equivalence, and adaptation. in this section therefore, we discussed the meanings of each of these seven technical procedures of translation with some examples culled from our translation into igbo of the novel, motherless baby. here are some examples and few comments made in support of the methods applied: 3.1 loaning this is one of the seven technical procedures of translation. it means borrowing of words or expressions from one language and applying them in another language. proper nouns, geographical names, figurative expressions, and those special words that are non-existent in the target language belong to this category. here are some examples of loaning which we applied in the course of translating the novel, motherless baby, into igbo language: extract 1. motherless baby nwa enwe nne the pedrolites played reggae and they were the only band to challenge sonny okosun on sthe charts. one of their records “go, go, baby” made the gold disc and it was still climbing. whenever they came to town to play, they advertised in the newspaper and put ndị pedrolites na-agụ reggae, ha bụkwa naanị òtù egwu mara sonny okosun aka. otu n’ime egwu ha, “go, go, baby” gara ahịa, ọtụtụ mmadụ ka na-azụ ya. mgbe ọ bụla ha bịara n’obodo mepere emepe ịgụ egwu, ha na-agbasa ozi n’akwụkwọ mgbasa ozi bịazie manye posta n’obodo … awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 147 posters around the town … (11) comments: in this extract drawn from page 11 of the original text, one notices few examples of loaning of words like pedrolites, reggae, and posters in the target text as were presented in bold characters. meanwhile, it is observed that in the igbo version, the spelling of one of the loaned words, posters, underwent a kind of modification and was resultantly changed to posta. this particular action reminds us according to ajunwa, that “ … the loan words as they are called, more often than not, undergo some changes in their form, spelling and pronunciation.»(47). extract 2. motherless baby nwa enwe nne the speaker had come to eat akara that morning and to drink akamu from the woman who sold food to early traders. (18) onye na-ekwu okwu bịara ịta akara na ịṅ ụ akamụ n’ụtụtụ ahụ na nke nwaanyị na-eresi ndị ahịa ụtụtụ nri. comments: still as it concerns loaning, the words, akara and akamu, presented in bold characters were retained in the igbo version. the names of these two local dishes were retained in the igbo version just as they reflected in the source text in order not to betray the style of the author and to create local effects. akara is a local delicacy of fried balls which is common in igbo culture. it has no other name in igbo but akara. on the other hand, akamu is another local delicacy known study of the application of comparative theory in the igbo translation of motherless babyasadu & asadu 148 as pap in english language. it has no other equivalent name in the igbo dictionary, and this is the reason for the loaning. 3.2 carbon copying vinay and darbelnet used this idea to describe the word-for-word translation of compound words. this simply means borrowing the structure or the constituent elements of a particular sentence from one language and translating same word-for-word in another language. ajunwa posits that carbon copying (calque) could simply be referred to as loan or compound word translation (49). in the course of our translation, we applied carbon copying. here are some examples culled from our work: extract 3. motherless baby nwa enwe nne i shall return it to the water people, the spiritual church. (76) aga m ewegara ya ndị ụka mmụọ nsọ, ndị mmiri. comments: in this extract, the phrase, ‘the spiritual church’ is a compound noun loaned into igbo, which is the target language, and translated literally as ‘ụka mmụọ nsọ’. this is simply the technique of carbon copying at work especially given the fact that we see carbon copying as a translation of compound nouns or loaned words. extract 4. motherless baby nwa enwe nne she asked cautiously about the man, and she was told that his name was diri, an assistant ọ kpachapụrụ anya jụọ ajụjụ banyere nwoke ahụ. a gwaraya na aha ya bụ diri, osote onye isi awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 149 manager, and that he had just come on transfer from the kano branch. (64) nke e si na ngalaba dị na kano wedata ebe ahụ. comments: the phrase, ‘an assistant manager’, is a compound noun. this is the reason we resorted to carbon copying as a suitable method of transmitting the meaning implied in the source text into the target language. as a result, we arrived at ‘osote onye isi’ as a suitable translation in igbo language. extract 5. motherless baby nwa enwe nne he swam ashore and lived among hunter-fishermen for a long time. (88) o gwufere oke osimiri ga binyere ndị na-achụ nta akụ azụ ogologo oge. comments: this extract also contains a compound noun ‘hunter-fishermen’ carbon copied as ‘ndị na-achụ nta akụ azụ’ in the igbo version. it is worthy to remember that carbon copying implies the re-expression of compound words. 3.3 literal translation literal translation is simply a word-for-word translation of a complete sentence from one language (source language) to another (target language). longman dictionary of contemporary english describes literal translation as “a translation that gives a single word for each original word instead of giving the meaning of the whole sentence in a natural way” (828). here are few excerpts culled from the translation of motherless baby into igbo language: study of the application of comparative theory in the igbo translation of motherless babyasadu & asadu 150 extract 6. motherless baby nwa enwe nne pedro awoke in the hospital. (55) pedro tetara n’ụlọ ọgwụ. comments: literal translation normally takes place where there is a simple sentence. a simple sentence has a conjugated verb and gives only an idea as a result. so, the igbo version above has just a verb. extract 7. motherless baby nwa enwe nne they came into her office. (26) ha batara n’ụlọ ọrụ ya. comments: this extract exhibits once again a literal translation. it is because the original text is a simple sentence that we were able to translate it literally. 3.4 transposition in the following extract, we showcased transposition which is one of the seven technical procedures propounded by the theorists, j.p. vinay and j. darbelnet. ajunwa posits that “transposition refers to a translation technique by which a particular part of speech (grammatical category) in the source language is replaced by another in the target language, without altering the meaning of the source language sentence”(57). simply put, it implies a change of a grammatical category without altering the meaning of the message. here is an extract from our work showing the application of transposition: awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 151 extract 8. motherless baby nwa enwe nne hearing the words of the medicine-man, she felt suddenly lonely and in need of her mother. (65) ka ọ nụrụ okwu ndị a, ahụ jụrụ ya oyi, ọ chọwa nne ya. comments: in this translation, the phrase, ‘in need of’, is a group noun while the word, ‘chọwa’ that was adopted in the igbo version is a verb. so, the sentence, “hearing the words of the medicine-man, she felt suddenly lonely and in need of her mother.” underwent a noun/verb transposition when it was translated as “ka ọ nụrụ okwu ndị a, ahụ jụrụ ya oyi, ọ chọwa nne ya.” in igbo language. 3.5 modulation this translation technique simply means a change of point of view. it consists of transforming the structure of a statement made in the source language into a different structure altogether in the target language without affecting negatively the meaning of the message. in doing so, the message becomes much clearer to understand and direct to the point. here are examples drawn from our work: extract 9. motherless baby nwa enwe nne sleep suddenly overtook her and when she opened her eyes she was surprised to see that it was morning. (14) ụra buuru ya, ma mgbe o meghere anya ya, ọ tụrụ ya n’anya ịhụ na chi efola. study of the application of comparative theory in the igbo translation of motherless babyasadu & asadu 152 comments: given the fact that the essence of modulation is to make clearer an idea, we are of the opinion that “sleep suddenly overtook her …” is better understood if it is rendered as “ụra buuru ya…” instead of a literal but nonsensical rendition as “ụra gafere ya …”. meanwhile, ‘ụra buuru ya…’ is a very popular expression in igbo language and constitutes a suitable modulation in relation to the english version above. extract 10. motherless baby nwa enwe nne ever since that attack in the sitting room after ogbuka had left, she had never been herself again. a kind of illness had begun to eat her up. (77) o nwetachaghịzi onwe ya n’ihi na o nwere ụdị ahụ malitere ịrịa ya kemgbe ihe ahụ merenụ mgbe ogbuka bịara n’ụlọ ya mechara. comments: ascribing human characteristics to ‘illness’, which is abstract and inanimate makes this excerpt, “a kind of illness had begun to eat her up.”, drawn from the english version, very complex. this informs the reason for the application of the technique of modulation in the igbo version. by so doing, the message becomes much easier to understand for the target population. 3.6 equivalence this translation technique is applied in the translation of proverbs, idioms, and clichés which are usually fixed expressions by nature. according to eke, “it is not always that two languages correspond structurally and semantically. culture is one factor that plays on translation. when culture inhibits a word-to-word translation, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 153 translators find equivalent statements that can satisfy the same context”. here are examples of equivalent translations drawn from the english and our igbo version of motherless baby: extract 11. motherless baby nwa enwe nne his voice had the sharpness of a razor. his eyes were so red that ngozi felt sure he was drunk. (73) olu ya na-ada ka ogene, anya ya kpụ ọkụ n’ọnụ nke na ngọzị chere na mmanya na-egbu ya. comments: given the fact that in applying the technique of equivalent, it is expected of the translator to find the same contextual situation while applying stylistic and structural means that are completely different, we rendered the sentence, ‘his voice had the sharpness of a razor’, in igbo with consideration to the igbo culture. for instance, in the english culture, a sharp tone is compared to the sharpness of a razor. meanwhile, in igbo language, it is with the music instrument called ‘ogene’ that such a comparison is made, hence the translation, ‘olu ya na-ada ka ogene’. meanwhile, it would have been out of order to render it as ‘olu ya dị nkọ ka agọba’. extract 12 motherless baby nwa enwe nne chief mbaju christened him amaechi, which means in igbo, “who knows tomorrow?”(93) ichie mbaju gụrụ ya amaechi, nke pụtara, “echi dị ime”. study of the application of comparative theory in the igbo translation of motherless babyasadu & asadu 154 comments: in this extract, the clauses presented in bold characters are all proverbs. the statement, ‘who knows tomorrow?’ is a common adage all over the world. so, given the fact that equivalent, as a translation technique, is applied mainly in the translation of proverbs, idioms and clichés, we had to search for the equivalent of this english version in the igbo cultural milieu and arrived at ‘echi dị ime’, which also means ‘tomorrow is unpredictable’. 3.7 adaptation this translation technique is simply a re-creation in context. in other words, it means to change the context of the message in such a manner that it will make sense to the target population in relation to their culture. this technique is applied when a particular situation that obtains in the source language does not exist in the target language owing to cultural differences. here are examples of adaptation culled from our translation: extract 13. motherless baby nwa enwe nne she had achieved her ambition to become an accountant, had done her youth corps and was now an employee of the african continental bank as a cashier. (57) echiche ya ịbụ onye ndekọ ego n’ụlọ akụ abịala na mmezu. o feela ala nna ya ma nweta ọrụ n’african continental bank dị ka onye na-agụ ego. comments: in this excerpt, the term ‘youth corps’, alludes to an obligatory service to fatherland which every nigerian graduate under the age awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 155 of thirty is expected to render. it is a one year service whose aim is to inculcate the spirit of patriotism and loyalty to the nation on the participants as well as train them to become disciplined compatriots. meanwhile, within the first month of this service, the participants receive some basic military training. so, we adapted ‘ife ala nna’ as an adequate expression for this subject in igbo language. extract 14. motherless baby nwa enwe nne “come home, pedro. what have we done to you that you thus forsake us? your teachers are worrying. you’re now in class two secondary. three years and you will take your school certificate and start looking for university”. (53) "pedro, lọta. ọ bụ gịnị ka anyị mere gị mere i jiri gbakụta anyị azụ? obi erughị ndị nkụzi gị ala. ị nọzi n’ogo nke abụọ n’ụlọ akwụkwọ sekọndịrị. ọ fọdụrụ afọ atọ ka i lee ule ngwụcha sekọndịrị gị ma malite ịchọ mahadum ị ga-aga. " comments: according to longman dictionary of contemporary english: new edition for advanced learners, certificate “is an official paper stating that you have completed a course of study or passed an examination: a degree certificate” (261). the ‘school certificate’ is the certificate awarded to students at the end of their secondary education in nigeria and in other english speaking nations of west africa. meanwhile, given the fact that examinations are implied in the english version of the extract, ‘ule ngwụcha sekọndịrị’ is adjudged to be a veritable adaptation of the subject in igbo language. study of the application of comparative theory in the igbo translation of motherless babyasadu & asadu 156 4. conclusion in conclusion, to translate a text means to render the message contained in that particular text in a manner that it will be comprehensible to the people who speak the target language. more so, literary translation does not ignore cultural dimensions. there is always a link between language and culture. inasmuch as the translator should know the linguistic aspects of the two languages concerned, he is also expected to know the culture of the owners of the target language because ignorance of any of these two conditions can render the translated work meaningless. meanwhile, at the end of our study, we produced an igbo version of the novel, motherless baby, entitled nwa enwe nne, which took into cognizance the exigencies imposed by the characteristics of a nigerian novel, so that it could produce on the readers the same effects as it concerns information, beauty and other traits that the original text possesses. to date, most translated african novels were translated to other languages of the world by the europeans who are alien to african culture. it is worthy of note that literary works normally have cultural colorations. most of the time, they showcase the culture of a particular group of people. this is the reason why we recommend that a translator of a literary text should always penetrate both the spirit and the culture of the original author to be able to realize a worthy translation. also, the unesco warning that igbo language will go into extinction by 2025 if something is not done timely ought to be taken seriously by all and sundry of igbo extraction. we recommend therefore that igbo parents should encourage their wards to speak igbo at least while at home. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 157 references ajunwa, enoch. (2014). a textbook of translation – theory and practice. onitsha: enovic ltd. asadu, v. c. (2019). traduction française et igbo de motherless baby de cyprian ekwensi, unpublished phd thesis, nnamdi azikiwe university, awka. bassnet-mcguire, susan. (1980). translation studies. london: metheun. demoulin-astre, m. (1988). efuru roman nigérian. editions l’harmattan. eke, l.k. (2000). a handbook of translation practice (english french). abakaliki: willyrose & appleseed publishing coy. delisle, jean. (1987). translation: an interpretative approach. ottawa: university of ottawa press. ekwensi, cyprian. (1980). motherless baby. enugu: fourth dimension publishers. ikechukwu, i.f. (2006). « la traduction dans l’évolution de l’humanité ». la revue des francophones de calabar 6.1. 40 – 52. lederer, marianne. (1994). la traduction aujourd’hui: le modèle interprétatif. paris: hachette. longman dictionary of contemporary english: new edition for advanced learners. essex: pearson education limited, 2001. nida, e. (1974). the theory and practice of translation. brill: leyde. nwapa, flora. (1966). efuru. heinemann. onuko, t. (2014). traductologie et analyse du discours: une traduction anglaise de douceurs de bercail d’aminata sowfall. enugu: nep. vinay, j.p. et darbelnet, j. (1977). stylistique comparée du français et de l’anglais: méthode de traduction. paris: didier. 279 strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor, miracle uzochukwu south west university, china1, nnamdi azikiwe university, awka2 mu.okafor@unizik.edu.ng abstract teaching chinese as a foreign language is quite demanding and challenging, which, most times, poses difficulties in the effective teaching and learning of chinese language. local chinese teachers' (also referred to as non-native chinese teachers), teaching competence will leave a deep impression on the students. this kind of positive or negative impression will directly or indirectly affect chinese language acquisition. since nigeria is a multi-ethnic and multicultural country, there is need for local chinese language teachers, whose students are from diverse backgrounds, should engage in practices, training, and learning, either through structured, reflective, or self-directed approach, to establish a good image and demeanor that cannot only stabilize students' professional thoughts and achievements, enhance students' desire for knowledge, increase students' feelings of love for the language; but also, can improve the teacher’s sense of honor, pride, achievement, and fulfillment. however, recent studies have shown that local chinese teachers in nigeria lack adequate experience in teaching chinese as a foreign language (odinye, 2019; okafor, 2020), therefore, the objective is to provide strategies that will enhance the image and teaching quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria through descriptive methodology and review of literature. teacher motivation theory was highlighted. this paper mailto:mu.okafor@unizik.edu.ng strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor 280 will be useful in improving teacher performance, teaching quality and student learning outcomes. there is also recommendation on how local chinese language teachers can improve chinese language classroom teaching and learning. keywords: local chinese teachers, chinese language teaching motivation, teaching quality. 1. introduction as china continues to thrive in economy, science and technology, education, and development, the need for teaching and learning chinese language as a second or foreign language becomes significant for globalization. learning to speak chinese and understanding china’s cultural norms have become increasingly important because of the new opportunities that are occurring in the 21st century (xu et al., 2010). thus, confucius institutes serve as a platform for realizing this goal, since it supports, promotes, and facilitates chinese language and culture exchanges locally and internationally. according to gu et al. (2021), the news report released by international chinese language education conference (2019) showed that 550 confucius institutes and 1,172 confucius classrooms have been founded in 162 countries; more than 30,000 elementary and middle schools and more than 4,000 universities offered chinese language courses and more than 25 million people were learning chinese. there are 59 confucius institutes in africa (statista, 2018), currently 2 in nigeria. over 10,000 people in nigeria are learning chinese language and culture, either as a major, elective, for hsk (hanyu shuiping kaoshi) certification, for business, or leisure. such a tremendous increase in the number of chinese language education leads to an increase in demand for local chinese teachers to ease the burden on the native chinese teachers. the majority of the local chinese teachers enjoyed awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 281 scholarship either through hanban (now known as center for language education and cooperation), china scholarship council (csc), silk road / belt and road initiative, for a china / chinese related course. mostly master’s program in teaching chinese to speakers of other languages (mtcsol), which requires going back to home country to work as a local chinese teacher upon completion of the program. from the study by odinye (2016) on the “chinese language teaching and learning in nigeria”, nigeria had only two local chinese language teachers, one at confucius institute, university of lagos and the other at confucius institute, nnamdi azikiwe university. in 2019 the number of local teachers at both universities has increased to 9 (changbin & yinghui, 2021). of recent, the number of local chinese teachers in nigeria has increased to 30, due to the high demand for chinese language in nigeria, which led to the opening of more confucius classrooms (currently 24 in number), chinese studies departments (3), and chinese language training centers (12) across the country. local chinese teachers manage the students who are learning chinese in nigeria better, due to a better understanding of nigerian students and the nigerian educational system (wang 2017; okafor, 2020). unarguably, local chinese language teachers have many inherent advantages; they understand the local customs, the way of thinking of students, and the learning habits of students. they have no language barrier, unlike the native chinese language teachers. although they may not be as good as the native chinese language teachers in fluency and dissemination of chinese language and chinese culture, they can gradually overcome their shortcomings through planned and thorough continuing professional development (cpd). nigeria is a multi-ethnic and multicultural country, therefore local chinese language teachers, whose students are from diverse strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor 282 ethnic backgrounds, should engage in frequent training and learning, either through structured, reflective, or self-directed approach, to establish a good image and demeanor that cannot only stabilize students' professional thoughts, enhance students' desire for knowledge, increase students' feelings of love for the language; but also, can improve the teacher’s sense of honor, pride, and achievement. therefore, this research aims at sharing best practices for a chinese language teacher's professional development. 1.1 problem of research as the demand for chinese teachers keeps skyrocketing in nigeria, the quality of local chinese teachers becomes crucial, since chinese is now being studied as a degree program in 3 nigerian higher institutions, and as the time of this research, 5 universities are currently trying to start up bachelor's degree program in chinese studies. recent studies have shown that local chinese teachers in nigeria lack adequate experience in teaching chinese as a foreign language since the majority do not have a background in chinese studies (odinye, 2019; okafor, 2020), and those who do have, are faced with challenges of continuing professional and personal development (wang 2017). 1.2 purpose of research this research aims at giving strategies for enhancing the professional knowledge, skills, attitudes, and performance of local chinese teachers in nigeria. local chinese teachers' teaching attitude, language expression ability, and teaching ability will leave a deep impression on the students and will impact positively or negatively on the institution. therefore, there is a great need to initiate a formidable professional and personal development strategy for local chinese teachers, since they stay for a long time, unlike awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 283 native chinese teachers who are short-termed and also act as role models for the students learning the chinese language. 2. literature review 2.1 definition local chinese teachers can be referred to teachers of chinese language and culture who are not of chinese nationality rather they acquired the chinese language as l2 through professional training. local chinese teachers can as well be called non-native chinese teachers, therefore local chinese teachers and non-native chinese teachers are used interchangeably. according to yu (2018), the nonnative chinese teachers consist of two groups. one group is the chinese teachers of ethnic minorities in china who don’t take chinese as the mother tongue, and the other is the native chinese teachers overseas who don’t take chinese as the mother tongue. of recent, most of the local chinese teachers are products of btcsol (bachelors in teaching chinese to speakers of other languages) or mtcsol masters in teaching chinese to speakers of other languages). this program is established by chinese government and currently offered in 149 universities in china. (gu et al., 2021). to promote teaching of chinese language by non-natives, the center for language education and cooperation and the china scholarship council have been awarding scholarships for non-native chinese speakers to study btcsol, mtcsol, dtcsol programs in china with the aim of teaching chinese in their local countries. nevertheless, apart from mtcsol, there are other local chinese teachers who majored in chinese history, chinese philosophy, chinese cultural studies, china studies, chinese philology, chinese literature, etc. strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor 284 2.2 research on chinese language teaching motivation yuan et al., (2011) conducted research on 53 experienced chinese language teachers from thailand and south korea on their teaching motivation, concerning teaching goals and values. from their research, a factor analysis of responses to the questions concerning work values suggests that there are five distinct sets of basic wants or need： relationship orientation, extrinsic motivation, selfrealization, autonomy, and institutional support. the factor analysis of job rewards indicates seven factors, which partially overlap with these value factors, namely; professional position, relationship/ intrinsic rewards, extrinsic rewards, job/career satisfaction, reputation, good management, and self-esteem reward． zhang (2021) study on the relationship among teaching chinese as second language (tcsl), teachers' self-efficacy, students' learning motivation, and academic performance, examined the relationship among tcsl teachers' self-efficacy, foreign students' learning motivation, and academic performance in universities of mainland china. according to zhang (2021), there is a positive influence of teachers' self-efficacy on students' academic performance, largely because students' academic outcomes could be affected by some factors that include but are not limited to; motivation, students' iq level, teachers' teaching style, the relationship with teacher and peers, family background, study interest, etc. “if a teacher experiences a classroom as a safe, healthy, happy place with supportive resources and facilities for teaching and learning, he or she tends to perform or participate more than expected in the process of management, administration and improvement of school” (zainab 2020). in nigeria, ige (2020) research on the challenge of teacher motivation and way forward in nigeria, suggested the following as a way of enhancing teacher motivation for effective service delivery which includes: enforcement of the payment of awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 285 enhanced teacher's salary scale across the states and payment of allowance to teachers working in difficult terrains, provision of instructional materials for teachers; regular promotion of teachers; the reward of teachers by schools' administrators; recruitment of additional teachers; sponsoring of teachers to seminars, workshops, and conferences; full professionalization of teaching by government. 2.3 theories on teacher motivation teacher motivation theories revolve around these four theories; expectancy-value theory, achievement goal theory, selfdetermination theory, and self efficacy. expectancy-value theory cuts across various fields of study such as education, marketing, communications, health, and economics. it was simply meant to explain and predict an individual's attitude toward objects and actions. on education, with regards to teacher motivation, the expectancy-value theory looks at individuality and ability to complete tasks and succeed in it, by their expectation of how well they will do on the task, the extent to which they value the activity, and how useful they perceive the task. (eccles, 1983; wigfield &eccles, 2000). theoretical and empirical works have been done on teacher motivation using the expectancy theory and it has been shown that expectancy and values interact to predict important outcomes such as engagement, continuing interest, and academic achievement. (eccles, 1983; richardson & watt 2006; trautwein, 2012). expectancy theory is also a way to explore the extent to which students are maximizing their experiences in active learning classrooms, and this predicts that students will put more effort into activities that they simultaneously perceive to have value and at which they expect to succeed (cooper, et al., 2017). achievement goal theory is used in teacher motivation theory to analyze and strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor 286 improve classroom environments and teaching practices and how this will invariably impact positively on students learning and motivation (ames, 1992). according to yang (2021), self-determination theory is divided into three main categories: intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, and amotivation. where intrinsic motivation looks at activities done for their inherent interest and enjoyment, or in other words, for their own sake which reflects a high degree of selfdetermination. extrinsic motivation, on the other hand, concerns behavior done for external incentives or rewards, such as economic struggle, fame pursuit, and physical attraction. similarly, deci & ryan (2000), divided self-motivation theory into three major forms: autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, and amotivation. autonomous motivation is based on spontaneous purpose, interest, or volition, while controlled motivation, is based on behavior because of inner or environmental pressure. while a-motivation is simply lack of intention to conduct a behavior, means no motivation. researchers conducted in the past such as (deci, et al., 1982; hanand 2016; radel et al., 2010; yang, 2021) students' intrinsic motivation and determination were influenced significantly by the extent to which teachers were autonomous-supportive or controlling. 2.4 research on chinese language teachers teaching quality teachers are an important factor in determining the teaching effect, and the quality of teachers directly determines the success or failure of teaching (zhang, 2012). xiang (2015) states that to a great extent, the quality of teachers of chinese as a foreign language determines the success or failure of teaching chinese as a foreign language. in the teaching of chinese as a foreign language, students are the main awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 287 body, and the teacher is the guide. according to zhang (2008), the task of a teacher of chinese as a foreign language is to establish a cohesive and infectious atmosphere while imparting knowledge, so that students can consciously or unconsciously integrate, follow the steps of teachers, and complete the learning task conscientiously. meng (2011) suggests that the quality of a teacher of chinese as a foreign language includes two aspects: knowledge and ability. knowledge is the carrier of ability, source of cultivating ability and improving quality. basic theoretical knowledge is the basis for the formation of the ability to analyze, solve problems, and the ability to innovate. however, a person with knowledge does not necessarily have an ability. teachers with rich knowledge without ability are often clumsy in class, therefore, a good local chinese teacher should consciously cultivate their abilities in all aspects. amongst all other qualities, a qualified teacher of chinese as a foreign language, must have rich theoretical knowledge of linguistics, systematic and comprehensive understanding of language, guide teaching activities, and use linguistic knowledge to solve various problems encountered in the teaching process (liu, 2010; xiang, 2015). part of yu (2018) research on the professional identity of non-native chinese teachers in sri lanka, highlighted the need for a professional image of local chinese teachers, yu noted that the ideal professional image of chinese teachers must be able to provide the standard pronunciation and intonation for the students. a wellenhanced image and quality of local chinese teachers will undoubtedly result in professional identity. professional identity is associated with teachers' self-concept and self-image, which plays an important role in the teachers' teaching methods, professional development, and attitudes towards the changes in education. (zhang, 2006; yu, 2018). strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor 288 3.0 strategies on enhancing local chinese teachers teaching image and quality 1. bridging the gap between local chinese teachers and students (humanistic teaching approach). due to the shortage of chinese language practice environment, and the students' unbalanced development of listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills in chinese, some students tend to perform poorly in the language and to some extent, lead to loss of interest in the language. there is a need for adopting a humanistic teaching approach that is centered on competent, caring, loving, and lovable persons. according to kerlinger (1986), "to argue that good teaching boils down to a set of prescriptive behaviors, methods, or proficiency levels, that teachers must follow a new research-based teaching plan or evaluation system, or that decisions about teacher accountability can be assessed in terms of students passing some standardized or multiplechoice test is to miss the human aspect of teaching-the essence of what teaching is all about". humanistic teachers must be positive and supportive teachers, who could manage students without coercion and teach without failure (glasser, 1990). teachers should accept students for who they are rather than what they do or how much they achieve. all children and youth need to feel loved, understood, and valued (alfie, 2005). deiro (1996), affirms that teachers who genuinely care about their students have a significant impact on the students' attitudes, motivation, and behavior. if the local chinese language teacher parades him/herself as a god to be worshipped, it widens the distance between the teacher and student, which invisibly causes an ideological burden to students, forming a awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 289 dull/weak language learning environment. students' fear of their poor listening ability, saying incorrect words/ sentences, fear of sarcasm, fear of being scorned or laughed at by the teacher, will naturally lead to the situation of unwillingness to speak. of course, unwillingness to speak can be considered a major taboo in language learning. alfie (2005) rightly said that “unconditional teachers are not afraid to be themselves with students and to act like real human beings rather than controlling authority figures”. therefore, whether the relationship between teachers and students is properly handled or not is extremely important in teaching. therefore, for local chinese teachers to gain students' trust and love: a. teachers must have the consciousness of public relations, approach students, and greet students actively. b. local chinese language teachers should have the spirit of democracy. in teaching, there should be regard and respect for each other's views, establish correct democratic teaching ideas, make it clear that teachers and students are equal in personality and emotions, and teachers serve as a friend who explores the path of knowledge with students. c. in the language practice class, if the student makes a grammatical error or mistake in expression, the teacher should correct and discuss with students with an open mind to create a harmonious language training atmosphere. d. encourage students to express different ideas and opinions, thus encouraging students to use their strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor 290 brains to think about the problem, deal with the problem from their unique vision. through the above way, stimulate the desire of students to express themselves confidently. 2. absorb new knowledge and broaden their scope of knowledge. with the continuous development of society, science, and technology progress, knowledge is constantly updated. local chinese language teachers should always establish good ethics to constantly update and expand their knowledge. learning is endless, in teaching and learning, teachers constantly encounter new situations, new problems. to adapt to and solve these problems; a. they must keep learning by often paying attention to the teaching of the professional trends and the latest development trends such as words that appear on the chinese news media like cctv, cgnt or social new threads on wechat 微信, qq, douying 抖音, weibo微博, tencent 腾讯, etc., understand various professional characteristics and adapt it to suit their teaching models. participate in more academic seminars related to teaching chinese as a foreign language (tcfl), and absorb knowledge from them。 b. pay attention to the application of new knowledge, new theory, and a new method to further deepen their knowledge structure and scientific research ability. c. acquire computer knowledge, projector teaching, and the use of multimedia language teaching methods. make full use of modern technology. with the rapid awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 291 development of computer technology, slide, teaching film, video, and multimedia teaching technology, teachers should develop alongside. if teachers do not grasp and improve in this area, they cannot meet the needs of teaching development. d. understand students' diverse interests and discussion topics. strive to cultivate a variety of interests as well as have knowledge relating to the list of popular chinese and nigerian songs, sports competitions, social hot spots, the latest scientific and technological achievements, etc. by communicating with students about the topics they are interested in, one can shorten the distance or generation gap between teachers and students and establish a harmonious relationship. it can enable the students to learn the language spontaneously and unconsciously, and turn drudgery into pleasure. e. continuing professional development. motivating and inhibiting factors as regards teachers’ engagement in continuing professional development would provide valuable insights for the strengthening of teacher education (yang, 2021). to support the professional development and improvement of local chinese teachers in various countries, the confucius institute headquarters / hanban 国家汉办 has set up 1-4 weeks "foreign local chinese teachers' research and training project" to support local chinese teachers' research and training in china. the contents of the research courses include; chinese professional knowledge, chinese strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor 292 language teaching skills, chinese teaching methods, chinese language testing and evaluation, chinese teaching materials, chinese culture and national affairs, and comparison of chinese and foreign cultures. due to covid-19 pandemic challenges, hanban has set up a center for language and education cooperation (中外语言交流合作中心), which offers international chinese language teachers scholarship program (国际中文教师奖学金) to local chinese teachers, and as well organizes annual online training program for local chinese teachers. 3. study and understand students' learning differences and motivations: language acquisition studies suggest that certain factors affect second foreign language learners' language learning motivation and attitude. local chinese language teachers should be aware, as quickly as possible, of the individual characteristics of their students. as well as working towards meeting their individual needs. some of these factors include; a) the difference in purpose: in the process of teaching chinese as a foreign language, students with strong learning purposes and motivation, have high learning enthusiasm and are eager to learn chinese well. they can communicate with people in chinese well. therefore, the learning effect will be better. however, those students who learn chinese at the request of their parents or decided to study the language reluctantly, have no clear learning motivation, and their learning process is relatively slow and inefficient. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 293 b) personality differences: personality factors, language potential, and cognitive style have a direct impact on learning. students with a peaceful personality and good interpersonal relationships are more likely to form a good learning atmosphere. students who are not good at communicating with others are more mentally burdened and may find it more difficult to speak chinese. it is somehow impossible for a teacher to change the character of his students, but in the teaching process, teachers should guide the students according to the situation and help them develop their strengths and avoid their weaknesses. as far as classroom questioning is concerned, those students with a poor foundation and introverted personalities should be allowed to choose the easier questions to answer. c) age differences: the age factor does not only have a vital impact on pronunciation but also plays an important role in the speed of language acquisition. age also takes a significant role in the relationship between students' learning motivation and their academic performance (zhang 2021). most of the older adults forget more and need to learn longer. although (neufeld 1979; snow 1983; ellis 1985) claim that older adults are better learners because they start faster, they still (patkowski 1980; scovel 1981; harley 1986) are convinced that younger learners are at an advantage. krashen et al., (1979) conclude their research and came out with a fact that older are faster but younger are better. d) culture, religion, and ethnicity differences: language can best reflect the characteristics of national culture, and the strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor 294 cultural differences, different values, right and wrong standards, customs, religious beliefs, and social systems of different students can affect their acquisition of the chinese language. according to giles et al., (1977), one's ethnic group membership might also determine attitude and behavior towards other members of the groups, and these, in turn, might affect second language attainment. 4. language ability. language is an important means for teachers to carry out their work, which is very important for any teacher. the language here includes spoken language, body language, and, humor. a. spoken language: a local chinese language teacher should have a good command of spoken chinese. spoken chinese should be standard and clear, devoid of language transfer of the teacher’s mother tongue. b. body language: body language is also a kind of communication between people. a teacher's body language is also very important, the correct use of body language can activate the classroom atmosphere, fully mobilize the students' emotions, so that students can overcome all kinds of anxiety, and take the initiative to participate and speak boldly. this body language includes; smile, eye contact, gestures, body movement, posture, and nodding. c. humor: a local chinese language teacher should also have more humorous language ability. humor is a rare quality in the chinese language classroom. humorous language can break the boring situation in the awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 295 classroom, make the whole teaching process achieve harmony between teachers and students, increase interests, and optimize the classroom teaching effect. humorous evaluation language can promote the teaching process and make the transmission of chinese knowledge and information smoothly. 5. healthy classroom interaction: healthy classroom interaction is vital for improving teaching quality. flanders (1965), came up with a classroom interaction analysis scale that shows that direct and indirect influence of teacher talk can influence teaching quality positively. therefore classroom interaction can be categorized into a) direct interactions: giving facts and opinions about content, giving directions which students are expected to comply with, constructive criticism, and justifying authority. b) indirect interactions: builds and develops ideas suggested by students, encourages and praises students, accepts feelings and feedback from students. these qualities are necessary for local chinese teachers to possess: 6. knowledge of chinese culture: local teachers of the chinese language should have a certain knowledge of chinese culture, especially chinese customs, chinese historical development, geographical survey, chinese values, thinking mode, behavior norms, aesthetic taste, religious belief, etc. when teaching chinese culture, teachers should also have the awareness of cultural strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor 296 contrast, cultural induction, seeking common ground, and pluralistic coexistence while reserving differences. 7. whiteboard management: through teachers' whiteboard writing, students can deepen their understanding of the language, and consolidate what they have learned. the quality of whiteboard writing directly affects teaching impacts. teachers' whiteboard writing should be correct, planned, enlightening, and interactive. liu (2000) in his book “introduction to teaching chinese as foreign language”, puts forward these three requirements for proper whiteboard management: a. chinese characters must be correct and standard. the order of writing should be consistent with the teaching material, the shape should be beautiful, or at least correct, to give students the role of demonstration. b. whiteboard writing should be well designed. threefifths of the blackboard should be used to write new lessons. one fifth was used for temporary writing, the other one fifth was used to record students' wrong sentences. c. whiteboard writing should be bright and eye-catching, and color marker pens should be properly used to highlight the key points. in addition, pinyin should be written correctly with the appropriate tone-marks. this will be very helpful for beginners’ class. 8. good first impression: the first meeting and the first few awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 297 classes between a local chinese teacher and students, who are eager to learn the chinese language, play an important role in establishing the image of teachers in the minds of students. therefore, teachers' emotional input to students should start from the first class. students' first impression of teachers is very important. in the first few classes, the students will have a preliminary evaluation of the teacher. the teacher's teaching attitude, language expression ability, and teaching ability will leave a deep impression on the students. this kind of positive or negative judgment will affect the atmosphere of the classroom in the future. local chinese teachers should let students feel important, and then enhance their interest in learning, because, in the initial stage of learning, students' interest in learning is relatively high, their attention is relatively concentrated, and they accept new knowledge faster. also, a good image of a teacher which includes being neat, wearing decent clothes, elegant behaviour, good behavioural habits, etc., will leave a good first impression on the student, thus narrowing the psychological distance with students, so that students can accept the teacher which will result in accepting the teaching content. 9. the courage to innovate: the new century has put forward higher requirements for talents, and the cultivation of talents lies in teachers. teachers' creativity stimulates students' creativity. as far as chinese language students are concerned, chinese is an important tool for them to broaden their knowledge and improve their quality, and a necessary weapon in the battle of job hunting. language teaching should be "teacher-led and student-centered". to achieve this module; strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor 298 a. teachers should improve on their old teaching content and rigid teaching methods. in the teaching material construction, teachers should choose the appropriate language teaching material according to the actual situation of the students. teachers should compile the special skills training material with strong pertinence. b. minimize the cramming teaching method, prioritize learning, understanding,, and strengthen student's initiative exercise, through thought-provoking questions and logic. 4. recommendation on improving chinese language classroom learning to enhance the teaching and learning of chinese in the classroom, i propose a three-minute in-class presentation, role play, taking weekly notes, use of questions and answers strategy, constructive praise, and extracurricular activities. a. in-class presentation: acquiring listening and speaking skills in the process of learning a foreign language can be extremely challenging. acquiring chinese listening and speaking skills can only be accomplished through consistent practice. in classroom, there are few opportunities for classroom presentation for students because there is a limited amount of time in class and there are a significant number of students (on average, there are 40 students in each class). on the other hand, the instructor may choose to adjust the number of people speaking from the platform before each class based on the total number of students enrolled in that particular session. most times, there should be no constraints placed on the kind of speech that can be given or its subject matter. students should make the most of their free time to practice listening to and awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 299 speaking in the target language, as this is one of the most effective ways to develop their language skills. students typically have a fear of being unable to communicate effectively; hence, it is important for them to prepare in advance; the process of preparing is the process of practice. therefore, a speech that is only three minutes long will not only encourage students to practice and enhance their spoken chinese, but it can also expand students' understanding. b. role-play: the objective of the role play is to train the students' oral expression ability and to assist them in mastering the chinese expression ability of description, explanation, persuasion, inquiry, as well as other functional items. students are put in realistic scenarios in order to better grasp and comprehend the material being taught, as well as practice their vocal expression abilities and listening abilities through the use of role play. this type of learning approach is called immersive learning. in this process, teachers should seriously consider and attempt to solve the following problems: first, explain the characteristics of the role students want to play; second, some important problems of scene interpretation need to be prepared after role-playing exercises; and third, comments after roleplaying exercises must be in place at the appropriate time. the authors fraser et al. (1980) suggest using role play as a practical method to investigate students' pragmatic competency. c. write weekly notes: since writing in chinese is one of the most challenging aspects of the chinese language for students to master, teachers may assign their students to write weekly notes. the requirements can range from being very loose to very strict, the genre can range from being very easy to very tough, strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor 300 and the word count can range from being very few to very many. this writing method helps people steadily enhance their ability to write. students not only get more practice with grammar, but they also extend their vocabularies, master different writing methods, and develop their ability to think logically about language. d. question and answer: the practice of learning a language through question and answer sessions is highly significant. inspiring and guiding students to discover rules on their own, as well as correcting or supplementing errors or knowledge that is one-sided, by asking appropriate questions that are designed to arouse the thinking and discussion of students; trying to lead the problems step by step in the discussion in order to deepen the students' understanding of what they have learned; and asking appropriate questions that are designed to arouse the thinking and discussion of students. if the instructor is able to include this strategy into their lessons, it will not only help students become better listeners and speakers, but it will also give students a sense of accomplishment, which will, in turn, increase their interest in learning. e. praise that is given in a constructive manner: when students are praised by their teachers, it has the potential to increase both their self-esteem and their self-confidence. through the use of this method, the instructor has the potential to win the respect and friendship of the students. students can be encouraged in their work and their emotions can be effectively managed through the use of praise. students who are complimented on their work tend to participate more actively in class, which has a positive impact on the environment of the classroom as a awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 301 whole. the use of praise is an effective method for fostering learning in students, and teachers should make the most of this resource. constructive praise requires authenticity and must originate from the person offering it. when a student produces a nice sentence, publishes a decent article, or has a novel point of view, etc., it is imperative that the instructor praise all of these accomplishments. naturally, if children are not provided with positive appreciation, they will frequently acquire a negative attitude toward one another. f. extracurricular activities: the subject matter of the instructional material does not restrict itself just to the instruction of grammar and vocabulary. in addition to making extensive use of the textbook, giving after-school assignments, and reading brief articles, it is vital to integrate a variety of extracurricular activities in order to broaden the students' perspectives and increase their depth of knowledge. 5. conclusion just like the main character in a movie, teachers should have a sense of performance, deliberately shape their impression in front of students, and pay close attention to students' performance, to capture the response of each student to their teaching as soon as possible through the information conveyed by students. teachers should constantly strive to empower students by having them develop learning strategies which maybe help them to cope with the demands of class and, indeed, may help them to continue to learn on their own apart from the class. local teachers of the chinese language must strengthen their self-cultivation, strive to improve their knowledge level, and strengthen communication and cooperation with students and other teachers. at the same time, colleges, universities and strategies of enhancing the teaching image and quality of local chinese language teachers in nigeria okafor 302 government should also introduce corresponding measures to encourage the local chinese language teachers to participate in training and further study. to build a good and quality image of local chinese language teachers, there is a need to do more than the above. references alfie k, (2005). unconditional teaching. educational leadership 63: 20-24. changbin, h., & yinghui, w. 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(2011). a tree in the wood: a review of research on l2 chinese acquisition. second language research, 27(4), 559–572. 1 in search of solution: images of insecurity and their traditional management system in selected igbo novels edith ngozi onukawa abia state university, uturu onukawangozi@gmail.com; ngozi.onukawa@abiastateuniversity.edu.ng abstract insecurity is a major global challenge, and nigeria has had its share of it. current discussions are aimed at providing a better understanding of the drivers of insecurity as well as possible solutions or ways of mitigating it from a range of perspectives including language, culture and literature. literature not only mirrors societal challenges such as insecurity which is a fall out of social vices but also offers insights on ways to their traditional management system. this study, therefore, examines images of insecurity and the traditional approaches to the management system. more specifically, the study analyzes some igbo novels with the images of insecurity in order to identify some social vices which harbor images of insecurity and their traditional management systems. the study reports on data collected via primary and secondary sources. the study adopts the content analysis method to analyze the collected data from the selected igbo novels. the findings of the study include the following traditional management system such as mediation by elders, equal human rights, oath taking, establishment of indigenous security outfit, empowerment of the youths, communal bond application, use of cultural symbol, among others. the study advances that more researches on the management system of insecurity challenges in nigeria should be carried out. mailto:onukawangozi@gmail.com mailto:ngozi.onukawa@abiastateuniversity.edu.ng in search of solution onukawa 2 keywords: insecurity, traditional management system, igbo novels. 1. introduction all over the world, insecurity which is a fall out of social vices have been on the rise and africa as a whole of which nigeria is an integral part of it is not left out of this issue ravaging the globe. insecurity threatens the unity of nigeria, and has resulted in deaths of innocent citizens and foreigners alike, farmers, government officials, students, market women, security personnel and people from different works of life. in nigeria, this situation on ground has crippled a lot of socio-political and economic activities. this manifests in form of various crimes such as armed robbery attacks, incessant kidnappings, assassinations, ritual killings, ethnic clashes and other high-risk attacks to human life. nigerian government on its own part has put in efforts to curb this societal menace but all efforts put together have not yielded the much-desired results which is protection of lives and properties of citizens. extant studies focus on providing a better understanding of the causes of insecurity and how best to proffer lasting solutions through varied perspectives of which language, literature and culture are inclusive. this study focuses on literature as huge insights can be drawn from traditional management system of insecurity, which is a fall out of social vices. this is because literature mirrors the society. insecurity, being an age-long societal menace is represented and or portrayed in different literary works expressed in some indigenous languages and culture. this is a way of providing a bottom-up management strategy, and advance discussions on images of insecurity particularly in igbo cultural milieu. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 3 1.1 objective of the study the objectives of this study are as follows: 1. to examine images of insecurity in the selected igbo novels 2. to examine the traditional approaches suitable for the management system of these images of insecurity as represented in the selected igbo novels 2. traditional systems, literature and insecurity: a conceptual analysis traditional systems refer to tradition-based method of customs or belief systems running from generation to generation to manage issues. in the vanguard newspaper of 17 august, 2021, dapo akinrefon, writes with the caption “insecurity can easily be tackled through traditional methods”, the views of iba gani adams, the aare onakakanfo of yoruba land on the best way to handle insecurity challenges ravaging our country, nigeria and with particular reference to the yoruba people. adams boldly advocates that it is possible to adopt traditional methods to handle insecurity challenges in nigeria and with particular reference to the southwest region. he made this assertion during the ifa festival at alagbole, ogun state. he reiterates that until nigerians and yoruba people redirect their steps to the basic principles of “our being, we cannot make any meaningful progress as a race”. he further states that ifa divination is consulted in event of any important individual or collective decision is to be made. his position is that any race that fails to hold on to its culture, traditions and heritages cannot make success. our cultural heritage should be our binding force and not religion and politics. security simply means safety to the average man or woman in the street or protection from harm and risky situations (onifade (2013). for onukawa (2012), security is a basic psychological need in search of solution onukawa 4 for human beings. the igbo place high premium on security and do everything possible to ensure their security anywhere. avoidance of dangerous situations considered to be free from negative vibes in igbo traditional ethics is most paramount to them. insecurity is the opposite of security. to achumba (2013), insecurity means lack of safety or existence of danger; hazard; uncertainty; lack of trust; doubtful; inadequately guarded or protected; lack of stability; disturbed; lack of protection and unsafe. the importance of literature in every given society cannot be over-emphasized. it is a very useful mirror through which humans and the society are viewed. it consists of three genres, namely: the ignored in spicing our oral and written discourse. according to nwabueze (2004:6), cited in eze (2014), “indifference to literature is the bane of societies like nigeria. any society that abhors literature is incapable of humanistic thinking and cultural behaviours”. notable scholars have given their view on what should consist as igbo literature. to some scholars like emenyeọnụ (1978), igbo literature consists of literature written about the life and times of the igbo people in igbo language and english language by igbo scholars. to him, achebe’s things fall apart and other literary works of life about igbo world view and belief system are classified as igbo written literature. whereas to scholars like ugonna, madụka, emenanjọ and onyekaọnwụ, what determines igbo literature is the language in which the imaginary ideas are presented. therefore, igbo novels, the focus of this study are literature written in igbo language by igbo authors for the igbo people. the first igbo novel, written in igbo language by an igbo author, pita nwana, in 1933, an award-winning masterpiece that ushered in igbo written fiction, is omenuko, a biographical novel about a legend, igwegbe ọdụm, who hails from arọndizuọgụ in the present-day imo state, nigeria. after this remarkable outing, other authors followed suit awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 5 with various themes not only in fiction but also in drama and poetry to get us to the level we are in at the moment. 2.1 context of the study the issue of insecurity is on the increase in nigeria and this has attracted the interest of different scholars from different perspectives. some studies have focused on insecurity in nigeria. some of such studies include onifade, imhonopi & urim (2013), osawe (2015), okonkwo, onuigbo, eme & ekekwe (2019), zubairu (2020). onifade et al (2013) carried out research entitled “addressing the insecurity challenges in nigeria: the imperative of moral values and virtue ethics”. the objective of the study is to focus on the need to revive moral values and virtues within the socio-economic, political, religious and educational institutions in the country. they are of the view that nigerian leaders, politicians and all citizens must be forced to embrace moral values and virtues in all their conduct to enable them live by example and avoid heating up the polity capable of inciting violence which tends to disrupt peace and unity of purpose. the findings among other things include that the nigerian political leaders should clamp down on their quest for power by all means for no citizen’s blood worth being spilt just to gain power. the observation is that the security challenges in nigeria throws a very big moral challenge to all and sundry to imbibe the quality of high moral standards which places high premium on the lives of the citizenry thereby enhances equity, unity, justice and fair play in nigeria. osawe (2015) carries out the study on the “increase in wave of violent crime and insecurity: a threat to socio-economic development in nigeria”. within the framework of deprivation theory, the paper critically examines the issue of high rate of violent crimes in nigeria, its implication on socio-economic development. to him, the government should do all within her powers to ameliorate the rate of unemployment of the youths in the in search of solution onukawa 6 country in order to curb the rise in crime rate. okonkwo et al (2019) examine the recent security challenges in nigeria via the: “traditional rulers and community policing in nigeria: challenges and prospects”. they emphasize on the involvement of traditional rulers in community policing which seems to increase in tempo with the emergence of every new inspector general of police, all points to a rising appreciation of the place of traditional institutions in the search for peace and order. zubairu (2020) researches on the “rising insecurity in nigeria: causes and solutions”. the study reiterates the high level of insecurity issues in nigeria and tries to proffer solutions for its eradication. the findings reveal that causes of rising insecurity in nigeria include: the menace of unemployment and poverty, elite exploitation of ethnicity and religious differences, corruption, weak security apparatus, porous border, marginalization and inequality in the country, bad governance and poor leadership. the study concludes that solution to the issue of insecurity in nigeria range from opposing the aforementioned causes of insecurity. in the studies reviewed, the scholars delved into the issue of insecurity challenges from different perspectives. one scholar approached it from the angle of moral values and virtue ethics, the others looked at it from the causes and solutions effect, high rate of crime effect and the involvement of traditional institutions especially the traditional rulers as the custodians of the people’s culture and tradition. these studies are different from the present study in the sense that it discusses solution to insecurity challenges being sought through literature by identifying images of insecurity and the traditional approaches to the management with reference to selected igbo novels. 3. methodology awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 7 this study uses qualitative research approach and the thematic method of analysis of data. the technique of content analysis is used to analyze these data. the primary source of data is from the selected igbo novelsmmiri ọkụ e ji egbu mbe and ụkpana okpoko buuru by ubesie, t. u. the study focuses on images of insecurity as seen in the two literary texts while the secondary sources were derived from other library materials and the internet. at the end, images of insecurity challenges were identified through thematic approach from each of the texts as well as some traditional approaches to the management system of insecurity. after careful scrutiny of the texts, the expressions indicating the existence of images of insecurity challenges were identified just as the experience in nigeria broadly and in igbo land and culture of today. 4. synopsis of the selected igbo novels in this section, a summary of the selected literary texts were presented starting with the first novel, mmiri ọkụ ji egbu mbe (1974). 4.1 ‘mmiri ọkụ e ji egbu mbe’ ubesie’s novel mmiri ọkụ e ji egbu mbe (1974) is a fiction which centers on enyi, an orphan, whose parents-(ụzọdịmma and chinyere) death was as a result of the feud between chinyere (ụzọdịmma’s wife) and okafọ’s wife whose name was not mentioned. out of hatred, jealousy, and unestablished facts concerning his son, enyi’s (health issues, ụzọdịmma took laws into his hands to end okafọ’s life. justice took it course and ụzọdịmma was sentenced to death by hanging. shortly after, chinyere, enyi’s mother out of stomach ache, joined her husband leaving enyi, their only surviving son at the mercy of his uncle, ebuzo and his wife, nneka, as foster parents, as custom demands. enyi’s stay with them in search of solution onukawa 8 brought untold deprivation and hardship to him at a very tender age which made him to flee from their home to start a wild kind of life in the society. enyi’s abode becomes classroom block, and market places which exposes him to meet and join bad gang in the society. his nefarious activities gradually move from pickpocketing to armed banditry. his escapades took him to various cities like enugu, ndiabia and zengu. the robbery attack at maazi anagbọgụ’s house landed some of his gang members in prison while he, enyi escapes due to ill-health resulting to his being hospitalized. while waiting for his gang members to serve out their prison term, enyi relocates to his home town to become a terror to them. his people, being tired of his terrorizing activities, made him the chief security officer. he met his waterloo after the robbery attack at the bank at zengu. through the help of chukwudi, the young man enyi was nurturing to be a member of his gang, enyi was caught, tried at the law court and sentenced to five (5) years jail term. at the end of his imprisonment, he travels back to his home town as a rich man to squander the remains of his ill-gotten wealth. not too long, his state of bankruptcy makes him to have a rethink about his personality to face reality. he decides to venture into farming to maximize his god-given potentials and with the help of his community; enyi becomes a successful farmer and a figure to reckon with amongst his people. 4.2 ‘ụkpana okpoko buuru’ ubesie’s ụkpana okpoko buuru (1975) is a fiction about a town, ifite-amaeke which is characterized by insecurity challenges such as: armed robbery activities, drug addicts, bad leadership, kidnapping, assassinations and ritual killings. the perpetrators of these criminal activities branded themselves ‘ndi odogwu”. they awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 9 have no respect for constituted authority or anyone who dares to caution them to desist from these criminal activities. that was why they threw caution to the wind and defiled the advice of their king to stop dragging the name of their town to the mud instead they left their town, ifite-amaeke and encamped in the bush to form their own town named ifite ukwu from where they re-strategized to dethrone obi udeaja, the king of ifiteamaeke and crowned one of their members, okoye as the new obi, who will always give them his maximum support. the god of the land, (ọgba) warned them against using snake bite as a cover up whenever any of them is wounded during robbery attacks at their neighbouring townsụmụafa and agbagwu, but the warning fell on deaf ears until ọgba decided to be killing them truly by snake bites. after, a robbery attack at obi okoye’s, palace, they saw it as an abomination and summoned the entire town to a meeting. they give special title to their members who successfully returns from robbery adventure severally without being caught. it was during maazi ezekwe’s title giving ceremony in which maazi obijiọfọ, an upright and out-spoken man, who was asked to bless the kola nut for the occasion condemned in unequivocal terms the various atrocities previously committed in their town. this his boldness to openly challenge the activities of ‘ndi odogwu’ marks the beginning of a new way of life for maazị ezekwe and a very strong relationship ties with maazị obijiọfọ and at the same time the beginning of his (obijiọfọ’s) travails in the hands of ‘ndi odogwu’ ‘ndi odogwu’s first robbery attack on maazị obijiọfọ’s house with the intention to kill him was foiled by maazi ezekwe’s prompt information before hand, the outcome of which remains an unforgettable nightmare to ‘ndi odogwu for a long time. after this incident, obijiọfọ left ifite amaeke to ụmụarọ with his entire family where he was tracked down and killed by ‘ndi odogwu during a in search of solution onukawa 10 hunting episode with his sons but with an instruction to his sonsjideọfọ and obiọra in case of any eventuality to bury him with his gun. on their return to ifite-amaeke, jideọfọ and obiọra faced a lot of armed robbery, kidnapping and assassination attacks in the hands of ‘ndi odogwu’ until they (jideọfọ and obiọra) come to terms to deal decisively with them to broker permanent peaceful coexistence. however, ‘ndi odogwu’ of ifite-amaeke vows never to stop their notorious lifestyle. this time, they kidnapped kasie, an only child of his mother mgbafọ, from ụmụikenga, their neighbors and used his skin to beautify their musical instrument, edere regardless of the warnings from one of them, maazị ọnyịa to desist from such dastardly act capable of culminating into chaotic situation. war broke out between ifite-amaeke and ụmụikenga but not without obijiọfọ’s transfiguration to warn his sons about the impending danger, instructing them to flee from ifite-amaeke and ọgba’s warning, too. ‘ndi odogwu of ifite-amaeke together with their war lord, meenihu were completely wiped out from the face of the earth. after the war, a new ifite-amaeke emerged and is called, amaeke, ably led by jideọfọ and his brother, obiọra. 5. images of insecurity in the selected igbo novels in this section, the various images of insecurity challenges in the selected novels were identified: mmiri ọkụ e ji egbu mbe in ubesie’s mmiri ọkụ e ji egbu mbe, the following images of insecurity were identified:  hatred, quarrel and unestablished accusations abound (ụzọdịmma and okafọ).  inhuman treatment and denial of the basics of life (nneka). awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 11  pickpocketing, stealing and armed robbery in the society (enyi & his gang).  corruption tendencies in the society (ndụka’s case).  trapping a culprit through a closest associate (enyi & chukwudị). ụkpana okpoko buuru in ubesie’s ụkpana okpoko buuru, the following images of insecurity challenges were observed:  many criminal activities such as: armed robbery, kidnapping, assassination, ritual killing, drug addiction (all perpetrated by ‘ndi odogwu’ of ifite amaeke).  disobedience to constituted authorities at all levels (obi udeaja, elders, ọgba, the god of the land by ‘ndi odogwu’)  bad leadership fuels corruption (obi okoye instituted by ‘ndi odogwu’).  no place like home. home is the best (jideọfọ & obiọra).  war wipes off a nation. peace is better than war. (ifite amaeke & ụmụikenga 5.1 traditional management system from the forgoing, it is an indisputable fact that literature is the mirror with which people and the society are viewed. contemporary societal events have been predicted by fictional writers before such events come into physical manifestation. insecurity challenges are one of such situations already in place from the time past. this study identifies the traditional approaches to manage them whenever the need arises. just as insecurity challenges do not occur in vacuum without human agents propelling it, traditional approaches to the management of insecurity in the land cannot be achieved without the involvement of human beings as agents for accomplishment. in search of solution onukawa 12 some of the traditional approaches to the management of insecurity challenges present in the selected igbo novels include: mediation by elders, equal treatment, oath taking, empowerment of the youths into agricultural ventures, establishment of traditional security outfit, good leadership, communal bonding (ịgba ndụ), use of traditional symbols (ọmụ nkwụ), sound of the drum (ikoro) banishing or ostracizing the immoral persons amongst us, etc. and human agents designated for their accomplishments are parents and foster parents, family and friends, elders, age grades, traditional rulers, entire members of the community and government. let us take a quick look at them one after the other. 5.1.1 mediation by elders in our traditional igbo culture, it is not in our character to allow two warring parties to destroy themselves without intervention. our people say, okenye anaghị anọ n’ụlọ, ewu amụọ n’ọgbụ (an elder does not stay at home and watch the goat delivers in thither). if elders were able to mediate into the situation between the two families at the appropriate time, ụzọdịmma would not have taken laws into his hands to end okafọ’s life abruptly. all avenues for finding out the truth and settle the matter amicably were not fully explored so as to sanction the erring party to serve as a deterrent to others for future occurrences. war is an evil wind that blows no one any good. the war between ifite-amaeke and ụmụikenga completely closed up the generation of ‘ndi odogwu’ of ifiteamaeke because they bluntly refused to listen to the advice of wellmeaning elders in their town and the warnings from their god, ọgba. the ‘ndi odogwu’ of ifite-amaeke became the proverbial ụkpana (grasshopper) who refuses to adhere to the instructions to go into hiding while okpoko (another stronger insect) is around the corner, hence, it, ụkpana (grasshopper) ended up as food for the okpo awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 13 (another stronger insect), while the family of jideọfọ and obiọra, the sons of late maazị obijiọfọ who adhered to the advice of their father were ushered into a new town of amaeke. truth, our people say is life. we should endeavor to live in peace no matter what it will cost us. if this traditional approach is applied in the management of the insecurity challenges identified here, things would have turned out better for the benefit of all concerned. 5.1.2 equal treatment children are special gifts from god and as such should be handled with extreme care. parents or foster parents are the first agents of socialization of a child, therefore, bear the responsibility to see that the children god has placed in their care will not derail early in life as to negatively affect the society at large. when we bring up these children in love and provide them with the basic amenities of life such as shelter, food and education, they grow up to become blessings to the society they belong rather than being a curse. in mmiri ọkụ e ji egbu mbe, nneka, enyi’s uncle’s wife threw caution to the winds by the way she was maltreating enyi, the orphan. she constantly denied enyi of good nourishing food simply because he, enyi was not her biological son and this forced enyi out of the house to become a social misfit. the igbo people say, e buru nwa n’afọ ọ bụrụ sọ nke onye, mgbe a mụrụ ya amụ ọ bụrụ nwa ụwa niile (when a child is in the womb, it belongs to one person, but when born, it belongs to the society). again, otu onye anaghị azụ nwa (child upbringing is a collective responsibility). we therefore, advocate for equal treatment for every child irrespective of any biological accident of birth. in ụkpana okpoko buuru, maazị obijiọfọ brought up his two sonsjideọfọ and obiọra as tradition demands and they were able to maintain the led down precepts even after the demise of their father. such good moral upbringing will go in search of solution onukawa 14 a long way to curb these insecurity challenges which is a fall out of social vices. a child that is not well brought up grows up to become a social miscreant terrorizing the society at large. 5.1.3 oath taking the traditional rulers are said to be the custodians of our customs and traditions. whenever there is an issue in contention between individuals or entire community of jurisdiction, a means must be devised to find out the truth and one of such means is by oath taking. oath taking is a vital traditional approach to the management of insecurity in igbo land. this approach came into play in the life of enyi and obijiọfọ’s sons-jideọfọ and obiọra to ascertain the truth about a robbery incident. enyi was found guilty of the offence while the oath exonerated jideọfọ who took the oath on behalf of his brother, obiọra and the entire family. they use to say that, agbụrụ otu onye na-aṅ ụrụ iyi maara onwe ha (a kindred where one person can take an oath on behalf of others are truly trustworthy). 5.2 establishment of traditional security outfit another traditional approach to the management of insecurity in igbo land and culture is the establishment of an indigenous vigilante security outfit to take charge of the safety of the community. oftentimes, the vigilante group is constituted by those people with questionable character because the igbo do say that nkịta anaghị ata ọkpụkpọ a nyawara ya n’olu (the dog does not chew the bone hanged on its neck). this means that one is expected to safeguard tenaciously whatever is entrusted in one’s care. it is an abomination to go contrary to the expected societal norm because it is meant for preservation. the perpetrators of these dastardly criminal acts are already known to the members of the community. hand them over the security watch over the land with enough incentives and watch awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 15 sanity return to the land speedily. in mmiri ọkụ e ji egbu mbe, udenze, implored this method to track down enyi by making him the head of the local security outfit in his home community of ndiabia at some point and his people enjoyed some respite within this period before he joined his gang again at enugu. this is a very good traditional approach to curb the menace of insecurity challenges in our contemporary society. community policing, vigilante or any other indigenous security outfit formed at the local level will go a long way in ensuring a firm control of our insecurity challenges. anyone found guilty faces banishment or being ostracized from the community. at times, jungle justice is applied on very extreme cases. 5.3 empowerment of the youths: age grade system has been an age-long social institution practiced in every society of which igbo land is not an exception. they are fully involved in our traditional education activities and can also be a very useful tool for traditional approach to the management of insecurity challenges in our land. as the saying goes that ‘an idle mind is the devil’s workshop’, and that the youths of today are our hope and future leaders of tomorrow, engaging the youths in every society with meaningful means of livelihood should be paramount to the society where they belong. everybody must not go to school in pursuit of white-collar jobs which is no longer within reach except for the privileged political class and well to do who have the connections. unemployment is the root cause of poverty which gives birth to evil tendencies because the living must take good care of themselves. the youths must be gainfully employed at the local, state and federal levels to enable them to take care of their basic needs which is their fundamental human right. in search of solution onukawa 16 ‘ndi odogwu’ of ifite-amaeke do not believe in suffering before pleasure, therefore, failed to put to use their youthful strength by engaging in agricultural activities for the benefit of all. to them, armed robbery is the quickest and easiest means of being wealthy. they are likened to the youths of our present dispensation who engage in yahoo ventures, ritual killings and kidnapping for ransom to earn a living. people in diaspora are even afraid of coming home for fear of hoodlums spread everywhere. jideọfọ and obiọra his brother proves that there is no place like home. enyi ventured into farming later in his life and realized how he misused his potential youthful life. traditionally, the igbo people are predominately farmers but we abandoned it in pursuit of white-collar jobs. our large expanse of lands are wasting away and being used as hide outs for criminals as well as the so called herdsmen attacking innocent lives and properties to perfect their kidnapping activities. ‘ndi odogwu’ of ifite-amaeke is not left out in this type of lifestyle. our youths should be engaged in serious agricultural activities to earn a living instead of involving themselves in youthful exuberance of get-rich-quick syndrome very likely to cut short their lives. association with people of same interest is a motivating factor to watch one another’s back to dictate the culprit in the case of any eventuality. enyi’s association with chukwudi no doubt paved way for his arrest, trial and subsequent sentence to five (5) years imprisonment. 5.4 good leadership our traditional rulers are said to be the custodians of our customs and traditions; therefore, efforts should be made in the careful selection of the right persons. good leadership enhances peace and orderliness while bad leadership is a serious threat to peace and unity. we know our local routes and can easily block intruders as awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 17 well as deal mercilessly with them if they try to escape. obi udeaja of ifite-amaeke is an example of a good leader who was not allowed to complete his reign but was rather forced into exile while obi okoye is a clear example of a bad leader who supports as well as fuels the anarchy in the land. such leaders are not supposed to lead the people. peradventure such bad leaders do exists, the people will pass a vote of no confidence on them and they will be automatically dethroned. 5.5 communal bond (ịgba ndụ) in the igbo culture, we live a communal life that there is the belief system that we are one in a community and are not supposed to think evil against one another. but peradventure we harm one another purposefully or inadvertently through words of mouth and actions involving shed of blood, we have disorganized the cosmic nature of the universe and as such demands a sort of communal bonding amongst the parties involved to forestall future adverse effect and for peace to reign. in ụkpana okpoko buuru, ‘ndi odogwu’ of ifiteamaeke terrorized maazị obijiọfọ through armed robbery attacks and eventually ended up his life. they did not stop at that but also terrorized his children, jideọfọ and obiọra and their families greatly through armed robbery attacks, kidnapping and assassination. after the last incident of kidnapping and killing one of their daughters, the duo decided to fight to finish. when the heat from the reprisal attacks become too hot for ‘ndi odogwu and their families, they solicited for peace, hence the communal bonding for peaceful coexistence devoid of all forms of attacks. 5.6 use of cultural symbol in search of solution onukawa 18 in ifite-amaeke town, and the entire igbo land in reality, the tender palm frond (ọmụ nkwụ) is a revered cultural symbol. it is a symbol of peace as well as a warning sign to keep off someone’s property. any unauthorized intrusion is a violation of the rights of the individual owner or the community at large. any enemy attack from wherever the tender palm frond (ọmụ nkwụ) crosses will meet very strong opposition. in the event of the war that broke out between ifite-amaeke and ụmụikenga, due to the killing of kasie and the subsequent quarrel at the agụ river, the chief priest of their god, ọgba warned them of imminent war while they were celebrating their nnekeeji festival, and left them with the instruction to cross the tender palm frond (ọmụ nkwụ) in the land as seen in the following excerpt: mgbe ha na oriri na-eme, onye afa ọgba bịara sị ha gechie ọmụ n’obodo, na agha na-abịa. ha bidoro rụwa ụka. ihe ndi amaeke niile ji egechi ọmụ ma agha na-abịa bụ na ha nwere okwukwe na ndi agha si ebe e kechiri ọmụ bata, na ala obodo ga-eso lụsa ha ọgụ. as they were deeply engrossed with their celebrations, ọgba’s chief priest came and told them to cross the tender palm frond (ọmụ nkwụ) in the land, for war is approaching. argument ensued between them. the amaeke people do cross the tender palm frond (ọmụ nkwụ) in the event of war outbreak because they have the belief that if their attackers enter the land through such route, it is assumed that the entire land will join forces to fight for them. the sudden sound of gun shots in the land awakens the ifite-amaeke people from slumber to reality but their saving grace was that the ifite-ụnọ people already carried out ọgba’s directive. this automatically gave them victory over the ụmụikenga people as awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 19 maazị ọnyịa later explained to them as the reason behind their defeat. 5.6.1 sound of the drum the ikoro, (a traditional wooden gong) is another highly revered symbol in igbo land that people of the community are compelled to gather at its emergency sound especially in the night as it portends life or death situation that demands urgent attention. by this sound of the ikoro as advised by maazị ọnyịa, the ifite-amaeke people, highly populated by ‘ndi odogwu thought that the representative of ọgba, their god is summoning them for a meeting at that ungodly hour of the night to discuss further actions about the war between them and ụmụikenga, responded accordingly, but unknown to them, they have been ambushed by their enemies. 6. conclusion in this study, efforts have been made to substantiate the fact that insecurity is an ill wind that blows no one any good. it has been in existence over the years and has resulted to loss of lives and properties. people and the society do not exist in vacuum. just as other cultures all over the world do have their literature which mirrors the happenings around them, the igbo people are not left out. the igbo written literature has recorded the existence of images of insecurity challenges also prevalent in the present-day society. since government alone cannot curb the menace associated with these high-risk societal ills posing a serious threat to peaceful coexistence, efforts should be made to adopt the traditional approaches represented in the selected novels as x-rayed by this study. the study also advances that more researches be carried out from other perspectives in finding lasting solution to the management of insecurity in nigeria as a whole. the time to act is now. in search of solution onukawa 20 references achumba, i. c. ighomereho, o. s., & akpor-r. (2013). security challenges in nigeria and the implications for business activities and sustainable development . journal of economics and sustainable development, , vol.4, no.2, pp. 79-99. akinferon, d. (2021). insecurity can easily be tackled through traditional methods . vanguard, p. vanguardngr.com. august 17. emenyeonu, e. n. (1978). the rise of the igbo novel. ibadan: university press limited. mbah, b. m. & mbah, e. e. (2007). azuonye: lectures on igbo literature and stylistics. nsukka: university of nigeria press ltd . okonkwo, c. i., onuigbo, r. a., eme, o. i. & ekekwe, e. (2019). traditional rulers and community security in nigeria: challenges and prospects. international journal of humanities innovative social sciences & humanities research. 145-159. vol. 7, 2. onifade, c. i., imhonopi, d., urim, u. m. (2013). addressing the insecurity challege in nigeria: the imperative of moral values and virtue ethics. global journal of human social science , 52-63. vol. 13, issue 2. onukawa, m. c. (2012). propagation of igbo core values through igbo personal names. nsukka: paschal communications. osawe, c. i. (2015). increase wave of violent crime and insecurity: a threat to socio-economic develpoment in nigeria. iosr journal of humanities and social science, 123-133. vol.20 issue 1. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 21 ubesie, t. u. (1974). mmiri oku e ji egbu mbe. ibadan: longman nigeria limited. ubesie, t. u. (1975). ukpana okpoko buuru. london: oxford university press. zubairu, n. (2020). rising insecurity in nigeria: causes and solutions. journal of studies in social sciences , vol. 19, issue 4. 1 fictive motion in igbo: a cognitive linguistic approach charity o. mbah1 chinedu uchechukwu 2 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka, anambra state co.mbah@unizik.edu.ng1 c.uchechuku@unizik.edu.ng abstract this study investigates igbo fictive motion constructions of coextension paths within talmy's framework. fictive motion, as a cognitively universal phenomenon, expresses a static entity by using motion verbs and other dynamic linguistic structures. as a result, static and dynamic situations may be expressed alike. the effort of this paper is to investigate the existence of fictive motion in igbo language. it focuses on one of the fictive motion categories identified by talmy (2000) known as ‘coextension path’ with the aim of identifying fictive motion expressions in the igbo language in order to ascertain if it uses the same constructions that are used in talmy's model. however, talmy’s (2000) fictive motion framework was adopted in the analysis of the data drawn from the igbo novel ‘juo obinna’ by tony ubesie through the use of a corpus software known as antconc 3.4.0w (windows) 2014, and analyzed based on talmy's (2000) wa framework. the results of this study reveal that motion verbs are predominantly used in expressing igbo fictive motion. additionally, it establishes that igbo fictive motion can as well occur in serial verb constructions and the constructions are evident in coextension path. we therefore confirm that, like in other languages, igbo language has a fictive motion system. finally, this study is a contribution to the ongoing research on fictive motion in cognitive linguistics. mailto:c.uchechuku@unizik.edu.ng fictive motion in igbo – mbah & uchechukwu 2 keywords: cognitive linguistics, fictive motion, motion verbs and serial verb constructions. 1. introduction this study is an attempt to investigate fictive motion constructions in igbo language from a cognitive linguistic stand point, which considers language as both a mirror of the human mind and an instrument for construing and conveying information. cognitive linguistics is a radical school to study language, based on human experience of the world and the way we perceive and conceptualize it. it assumes that the relationship between language and reality is mediated by human cognition. it studies how linguistics phenomena, like metaphor, metonymy, motion, etc., are cognitively conceptualized. the concept of fictive motion has been utilized by cognitive linguists to refer to the dynamic descriptions of static scenes. motion is one of the most fundamental experiences in our daily life and also in our communicative needs. it refers to everyday experience in locomotion, event perception, and action. it is the basic category in the physics of the real world as well as in the cognitive processes of perception, control, memory, and in human linguistic conceptualization. the concept ‘motion’ is the fundamental mechanism in cognitive linguistics. the study of motion has attracted a great deal of attention in recent times because its study has revealed some noticeable differences which transcended many languages. different cognitive linguists have suggested various models for representing and understanding the semantics of motion. traditionally, motion is characterized as a source-path-goal configuration, that is, the direction in which we move from the awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 3 starting to the ending points. however, talmy rejects this idea, replacing it with his notion of figure-move-path-ground formula. he believes that the two concepts of figure and ground are more comprehensive than those suggested by fillmore: source, goal, location and path. talmy states that ‘the basic motion event consists of one object (the figure) moving or located with respect to another object (the reference object or ground)". the spatial relation between them is called path, and it may be enlarged and specified by what is called co-events. it is pertinent to distinguish between two types of motion: factive motion and fictive motion. zlatev (2014) argues that there are two ways of representing the concept motion as a cognitive process: one that limits the process as an actual perceived motion, and the other extends motion to be more ‘imaginary’ or abstract scenarios. in other words, actual motion verbs such as 'go', 'run', ‘walk’, ‘crawl’ and ‘climb’ express situations in which an animate agent physically moves from one location to another. however, fictive motion verbs express situations with no observable physical or real motion. rojo and valenzuela (2009) exemplified this distinction: 1. a) frodo climbed to the top of the hill b) the path climbed to the top of the hill in the first sentence (1a), frodo physically moves, changing his location from the bottom to the top of the hill. however, in the second sentence (1b), the path does not move in any physical way; instead, this sentence prompts the hearer for a conceptualization of the scene in which the path is scanned in a given direction. therefore, this study is concerned with this second type of motion. the goal of this paper is to investigate the existence of fictive motion in igbo language. the rest of this paper is organized as fictive motion in igbo – mbah & uchechukwu 4 follows. section two reviews some related literature. section three presents the data collection method. section four presents the data analysis. finally, section five summarizes and concludes the study. 2. literature review this section reviews the treatment of motion verbs in the literature and also presents the definitions of fictive motion that will be adopted for this work. 2.1 motion verbs motion verbs are verbs that express movement of some entity. in other words, they describe how a physical entity changes from one place in space to another place in space (matsumoto, 1996). for instance, ‘she drives to lagos from port-harcourt’ means that the driver starts her journey in port-harcourt and ends it in lagos. uwalaka (1988:94), in consonance with the above definition, asserts that motion verbs are verbs which denote activities that result in a change of location of some entity. o’grady and archibald (2008:203) define motion verbs as words that can describe movement through space or those verbs that express a kind of movement such as go, walk, and run. pablo and gutiérrez (2001) explain such verbs as words which describe the situation in which an object which is the figure moves with regard to a reference point which is the ground following a trajectory which is the path. furthermore, according to matlock (2004), motion verbs are verbs that show motion and action in the verb itself. for instance ‘peter runs along the river’. the verb ‘run’ is a motion verb which requires a subject to perform the action. also, matsumoto (1996) opines that motion verbs do not only denote actual changes of location of self – moving agents as in ‘this tourist goes from the station to the airport’ but are also used to describe immobile linear awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 5 entities as in ‘the highway runs through the mountains’. in this second sentence, there is no physical movement in the external world, but such expression reflects human conceptualization of linear entity; that is, the use of a motion verb mirrors visual or mental scanning along the path. 2.2 fictive motion fictive motion, which is the metaphorical motion of an object or abstraction through space, has become a subject of study in psycholinguistics and cognitive linguistics and as such has been defined by different authors both in the field of cognitive linguistics and also in the field of psycholinguistics. within the field of cognitive linguistics many authors have paid attention to the conceptualization of motion in english. also, fictive motion has received different labels in the previous linguistic literatures, such as fictive motion (talmy 1983, 1996, 2000, matlock and richardson 2004), abstract motion (langacker 1987, blomberg and zlatev 2014) or subjective motion (matsumoto, 1996). based on these different labels used to refer to this conceptualization of motion, the term ‘fictive’ is adopted to represent people’s imaginative ability since it is the preferred and accepted term in the field nowadays. these fictive expressions can only be conceptualized via the use of motion verbs. according to radden and dirven (2007), fictive motion is defined as the construal of a static scene as motional. they further explain that in physical motion, the moving object continually changes its location in time; whereas in fictive motion, our eyes mentally scan an imaginary path, as in the following examples: 2. a) the gate leads into the garden. b) the cliff drops down 600 feet. fictive motion in igbo – mbah & uchechukwu 6 like physical motion, fictive motion involves directionality. in sentence (2a), we mentally follow the path from the gate into the garden, while in sentence (2b) our eyes roam from the top of the cliff down to the sea. therefore, based on the above examples slobin (1996, and 2000), defines fictive motion as a motion in which a sentence prompts the hearer for a conceptualization of the scene in which the path is scanned in a given direction. he further posits that in fictive motion expressions, one cannot find any element which physically changes place and moves from one place to another. rather, the displacement that is found in fictive motion is ‘mental’, this means that the hearer, when reconstructing the scene evoked by the sentence, mentally traces a given object in a certain direction. as huumo (2005) puts it, in fictive motion expressions: … “the motion verb and the directional locatives reflect the direction of a mental scanning performed by the conceptualizer in building up the mental representation of the situation. the position of an elongated entity is represented gradually as if mentally proceeding along the entity”. in view of the above, talmy (2000) defines fictive motion as an implicit mental simulation of ‘movement’ through a construed scene. this implies that fictive motion is a linguistic phenomenon covering instances dynamically depicting such situations that are believed to be static and using language characteristic of the description of motion. owing to this fact, fictive motion allows the conceptualiser to subjectively impose a state change on what is otherwise understood as a stationary scene. that is, it is the imaginative ability of conceptualizing a static physical entity or scene as dynamic via the use of motion verbs. in harmony with talmy, núñez and marghetis (2014) refer to this phenomenon as a awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 7 cognitive mechanism through which we unconsciously (and effortlessly) conceptualize static entities in dynamic terms whereby the entities do not actually move anywhere. literally, motion, in these cases, is fictive, imaginary, and not real as exemplified below: (3) this fence goes from the plateau to the valley. in the sentence above, the doer of the verb go (i.e., this fence) does not actually move anywhere. the relation between the fence, the plateau and the valley is simply static, and there is no movement of the fence in reality. but linguistically, we may conceive and conceptualize it as a dynamic movement (moving from the plateau to the valley) which is represented by the motion verb 'go' and directional prepositions 'from…to…' . in addition to the above authors views, langacker (1987) explains that this spatial description is a dynamic conceptualization that structure description of static scenes such as “the mountain range goes from mexico to canada, and in so doing invokes a subjective scene of motion or state change. he further opines that in everyday conversation, people routinely use language about motion to describe static situations which is common practice when people are describing stationary spatial layouts. in talking about ‘a mountain range’, they use descriptions such as “the mountain range goes from mexico to canada or the mountain range follows the coastline”. also, in talking about ‘a trail’, they use expressions such as “the trail crosses an earthquake fault or a trail runs along the coastline”. even when talking about ‘a tattoo’, they use language such as “a tattoo goes down his back or the tattoo runs along his spine”. this construction, according to langacker (1987), features a subject noun phrase referent that lacks volition such as mountain range, trail, tattoo and a motion verb that convey no motion such as (go, follow and run). he further posits that constructions such as fictive motion in igbo – mbah & uchechukwu 8 “the mountain range goes from mexico to canada” were of interest to cognitive linguists because they appealed to the idea that meaning is conceptualization. based on this view, dynamic perceptual and cognitive processes are seen to motivate linguistic form. 2.3 types of fictive motion talmy (2000) classifies fictive motion into six categories. they are: emanation paths, pattern paths, frame-relative motion, advent paths, access paths, and coextension paths. 2.3.1 emanation paths this category is the fictive motion of intangible entity moving fictively from a source, which continues along its emanation path and terminates by hitting a distal object. that is, the motion of emanation paths does not include the factive (actual) movement of an entity. the movement is fictive and it does not involve any physical form, and therefore, what is conceived as fictively moving is an object rather than the observation of that object. thus, the emanation of fictive motion is characterized as [-animate],[movable]and[+emissive]/[+perceptible].the feature values of emanation path expressions are summarized as follows: a) factive motion of some elements need not be present for the fictive effect. b) the fictively moving entity is itself fictive. c) the fictive effect is observer-neutral. d) what is conceived as fictively moving is an entity. talmy further divide this emanation path into four subcategories: orientation paths, radiation paths, shadow paths, and sensory paths. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 9 2.3.1.1.1 orientation paths orientation paths are linguistically conceptualized and perceived as a continuous linear intangible entity that emerges away from the front of some object. this object can be conceived as either an intangible line in motion or an intangible abstraction that moves along an intangible line. orientation paths are further subdivided into five subcategories, depending on whether the front of entity is a face type or a point type, or whether the fictive motion of the intangible line is axial or lateral. these subtypes include: prospect paths, alignment paths, demonstrative paths, targeting paths and line of sight. 2.3.1.1.2 prospect paths it is the orientation of an object which a face-type front has relative to its surroundings and can be conceptualized and perceived as a fictive motion. the front face of the entity has a “prospect” which is characterized as if an intangible line emerges from the front and moves continuously away from the main object relative to the other object. the intangible line is referred to as a ‘figure’ which moves continually to the other object (“ground” or “reference object”) along a path indicated by directional adposition as the following example illustrates: (4) the cliff wall faces toward the valley. 2.3.1.1.3 alignment paths it refers to a stationary straight object with a point-type front. the straight object is linguistically conceptualized and perceived as an intangible entity that moves along the axis of the object, emerging fictive motion in igbo – mbah & uchechukwu 10 from its front end, and continuing straight along a prepositional path relative to some distal object. (5) the snake is lying toward the light. 2.3.1.1.4 demonstrative paths it involves a linear object with a point-type front from which an intangible line emerges. in demonstrative paths, the fictively moving line functions either to direct or guide someone’s attention along its path. (6) the arrow on the signpost pointed toward the town. 2.3.1.1.5 targeting paths an agent in targeting path intentionally sets the orientation of a front-bearing object so that the fictive line that is perceived as emerging from this front follows a desired path relative to the object’s surroundings. the fictive motion establishes a path along which the agent intends that a subsequent motion (either real or fictive) will travel. (7) i pointed my gun into the living room. 2.3.1.1.6 line of sight the concept ‘line of sight’ underlies some linguistic patterns and, according to talmy, it is also a component of perceptual structure. it is an intangible line which emerges from the visual apparatus located on the front of an animate or mechanical entity. it deals only with the lateral line of sight motion, that is, its shifts of orientation. (8) i slowly turned my camera toward the door. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 11 2.3.1.1.7 radiation paths this second type of emanation is the linguistic conceptualization of a radiation emanating continuously from energy source and moving steadily away from it. radiation paths differ from orientation paths, in that while, radiation paths are often possible to detect the presence of the radiation, orientation paths consist of the motion of a wholly imperceptible line. this type of emanation has only one conceptual or perceptual form viable for the sun (or fire/flashlight etc.) from the sun to an object as seen in example (10). such motions are generally perceived to be static, but linguistically they are conceptualized as dynamic processes in which the light moves from one place to another. (9) the sun is shining into the cave. however, talmy (2000:111) posits that in this type, the radiating event can be characterized as involving three entities such as: the radiator, the radiation itself, and the irradiated object. this radiating event then involves three processes such as: the emanation of radiation from the radiator, the motion of the radiation along a path, and the impingement of the radiation on the irradiated object, as illustrated in the sentence above. 2.3.1.1.8 shadow paths shadow path is a linguistic conceptualization (and perhaps also a perception) in which the shadow of an object, visible on some surface, fictively moves from that object to that surface. thus, the shadow can be linguistically conceptualized as the figure (the moving entity) and the object that carries the shadow as the source. the surface on which the shadow is located is described as goal. moreover, the predicate of shadow expressions can only be a motion fictive motion in igbo – mbah & uchechukwu 12 verb (like throw, cast, project, or fall), and a path preposition (such as into, onto, across or against). (10) the tree threw its shadow down across the valley. the active verb threw is used here, to refer to static shadow of the tree, as if it moved from the shadow-bearer (the tree) to the valley. 2.3.1.1.9 sensory paths this last type of emanation paths is the conceptualization of two entities: the experiencer and the experienced, along with something intangible moving in a straight path between the two, in one direction or in another. experiencer “emits a probe that moves from the experiencer to the experienced and detects it upon encounter with it”, whereas the experienced “emits a stimulus that moves from the experienced to the experiencer and sensorily stimulates that entity on encountering it”. thus, the direction can either go from the experienced (we) to the experiencer (the enemy). according to talmy, experiencer can be: a. non-agentive -permits both fictive directions i. the verb is lexicalized to take the experiencer as subject: • i can hear him all the way from where i’m standing. ii. the verb is lexicalized to take the experienced as subject: • the old wallpaper shows through the paint even to a casual passer-by. b. agentive -only permits experiencer as source • i looked toward the valley. c. lateral motion of the sensory emanation from an agentive experiencer • i slowly looked toward the door. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 13 sequel the above examples, sensory path can be described as moving from the 'experiencer' to the ‘experienced’ object. 2.3.2 pattern paths it involves the fictive conceptualization of some entity as moving through space. the fictive effect occurs when the physical entities factively exhibit some form of qualitative change, but these in themselves do not constitute the fictive motion. rather, it is the pattern in which the physical entities are arranged that exhibits the fictive motion. 2.3.3 frame-relative motion according to talmy (2000), a global frame of reference factively refers to an observer as moving relative to her surroundings. alternatively, it can be referred to by adopting a local frame around the observer as centre. within this frame, the observer can be represented as stationary and her surroundings as moving relative to her from her perspective. thus, frame-relative motion is a form of fictive motion in which the factively stationary surroundings are fictively depicted as moving. 2.3.4 advent paths this depicts a stationary object’s location in terms of its arrival or manifestation at the site it occupies. in advent path, the stationary state of the object is factive, whereas its depicted motion is fictive. the two main subtypes of advent paths are ‘site arrival’, which involves the fictive motion of the object to its site, and ‘site manifestation’, which is not fictive motion but fictive change/fictive manifestation of the object at its site. fictive motion in igbo – mbah & uchechukwu 14 2.3.5 access paths this shows a stationary object’s location in terms of a path followed by another entity to the point of encounter with the object. the factive representation is the object being stationary without any entity traversing the depicted path, while the representation of some entity traversing the depicted path is fictive, whether this is plausible or implausible. the fictively moving entity can be imagined as being a person, some body part of a person, or the focus of one’s attention, depending on the particular sentence. 2.3.6 coextension paths this is a depiction of form, orientation, or location of a spatially extended object in terms of a path over the object’s extent. this means that coextension path involves an extended object over which something is imagined to traverse. therefore, this category features a motion verb that is couple with a spatially-extended entity which is inanimate and incapable of self-movement. this further implies that fictive sense is the representation of some entities moving along or over the configuration of the object. the fictively moving object can be imagined as being an observer, or the focus of one’s attention, or the object itself. finally, of all the categories investigated by talmy, this study shall focus on the coextension path and its representation in igbo. 3. methodology this study is focused on the analysis of six (6) coextension fictive motion constructions in igbo using the tenets of talmy’s (2000) coextension fictive motion model. the data for the research study were extracted from the igbo novel ‘juo obinna’ through the use of a corpus software known antconc 3.4.0w (windows) 2014 and analyzed. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 15 the next section presents and analyses the data on coextension fictive motion constructions in igbo using talmy’s (2000) coextension fictive motion framework. 4. data presentation and analysis this section presents and analyzes the igbo fictive motion data extracted from the igbo novel ‘juo obinna’ using talmy’s coextension paths of fictive motion framework as was earlier explained in chapter two. the aim of this study is to understand the nature of fictive expressions in igbo. it attempts to then describe this phenomenon applying talmy's category of coextension to see if igbo uses the same constructions that are used in talmy's model, or whether there are other categories that can be used in igbo and absent in his categorization and vice versa. 4.1 igbo coextension of fictive motion examples: 11) ụ́zọ̀ áhụ̀ bànye-re ájálị́. road dem enter-rv(pst) ajali ‘the road entered ajali’ 12) ọ́hịá́ áhụ̀ dị́ yá n’ íhú rìgò-rò n’élú úgwū bush dem be him prep front climb.uprv(pst) prep top hill ‘the bush before him climbed on top of the mountain’ 13) ngbọ̀rọ̀gwọ̀ ósísí áhụ̀ bànyè-rè n’ímé íyī. root tree dem enter-pst prep-inside ocean ‘the tree’s root entered into the ocean’. fictive motion in igbo – mbah & uchechukwu 16 14) úgwú áhụ̀ ọ́ nà-èlé ànyā gáfè-rè ụ́munzè nà ájálị ́ mountain dem he be looking eye pass rv (pst) umunze and ajali ‘that mountain he was looking at passed across umunze and ajali’ 15) ụ́zọ̀ áhụ̀ gáfè-rè ànyị́ sì n’òwèrrè ézúkàlà wèré banye ajali road dem passrv (pst) us from prep owerre ezukala then enter ajali ‘that road that passed across us leads to ajali from owerre ezukala ’ 16) ndị́ sójà nnọ̀chì-rì ókpóró ụ́zọ̀ niile bànyèrè ájálị́. those soldier blockrv (past) pathway all enterrv(pst) ajali ‘the soldiers blocked all the pathways that lead to ajali’. in the above fictive motion expression, the extended stationary objects ‘ụzọ, ọhịa, ugwu, ngbọrọgwụ osisi’ do not physically move. in other words, the expressions in (11 16) describe static scene because the inanimate entities: ‘ụzọ, ‘road’, ‘ugwu ‘mountain’, ‘ọhịa, ‘bush’ and ‘ngbọrọgwụ osisi, ‘the tree’s root’ in the above examples cannot move or perform the action of ịba ‘ to enter’ ịrị ‘to climb’ and ‘ịgafe, ‘to pass/walk across’, this is because the above-mentioned motions depicted in (11 16) cannot take place, since our experience in the world enables us to know that the aforementioned inanimate objects cannot perform any physical awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 17 movement. instead what actually moves is our locus of visual or mental attention. from the above analysis, it can be seen that just like in english language, coextension category in the igbo language features a motion verb that is couple with a spatially-extended entity which is inanimate and incapable of self-movement. 4.2.1 igbo fictive motion categories and serial verb construction verb serialization is a syntactic phenomenon in which two or more verbs are put together in a single clause. that is, it is a sequence of verbs which act together as a single predicate, without any overt marker of coordination, subordination, or syntactic dependency of any other sort. trask (1993: 251-252) describes a serial verb construction (svc) as: “a construction in which what appears to be a single clause semantically is expressed syntactically by a sequence of juxtaposed separate verbs, all sharing the same subject or agent but each with its own additional arguments, without the use of overt coordinating conjunctions”. in serial verb construction, the two verbs must take the same tense markers. also, both verbs may tend to share the same argument. for example, the verbs may have the same subject or the object of the first verb may at the same time function as the subject of the second verb. in serial verb constructions, both verbs can function as independent verbs in a fictive motion sentences as can be seen in the examples below. 17) ụ́zọ̀ áhụ̀ rìgò-rò élú úgwū pụ̀tá òwèrrè ézúkàlà . road dem climb-pst up mountain come out owerre ezukala fictive motion in igbo – mbah & uchechukwu 18 ‘this road ascended the mountain and came out from owerre ezukala’ 18) úgwú áhụ̀ rịd́à-rà bànyé n’ímé òbòdò. mountain dem descendrv (pst) enter prep town ‘the mountain descended into the town’ 19) ụ́zọ̀ áhụ̀ gà-rà rúé ájálị,́ gáá áká ịk̀pà wèré pụ̀-tá òwèrrè ézúkàlà. road dem go-pst reach ajali, go hand left then come-out owerre ezukala ‘this road leads to ajali from owerre ezukala’ in examples 17 to 19, the subjects of the first verbs are the subjects of the second verb. in other words, the two verbs in each construction, share the same subject. hence, the subjects they share in the examples include: ụ́zọ̀, and úgwú respectively. from the data analyzed so far, it can be observed that verb serialization in igbo fictive motion sentences occur in coextension path category. also, it is observed that the above constructions can be broken into simple sentences. examples (17 to 19) are illustrated in (20a to 22c) respectively. 20. a) ụ́zọ̀ à rìgò-rò élú úgwū. road det climbrv (pst) up mountain ‘the road ascended the mountain’ b) ụ́zọ̀ à pùtà-rà òwèrrè ézúkàlà. road det come outrv (pst) owerre ezukala ‘the road came out from owerre ezukala’ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 19 21. a) úgwú à rị́dà-rà n’ímé òbòdò. mountain det descendrv (pst) prep town ‘the mountain descended into the town’ b) úgwú à bànyè-rè n’ímé òbòdò. mountain det enterrv (pst) prep town ‘the mountain entered the town’ 22. a) ụ́zọ̀ áhụ̀ gà-rà rúé ájálị.́ road dem go-pst reach ajali ‘this road reached ajali’ b) ụ́zọ̀ áhụ̀ gà-rà áká èkpè. road det gorv(pst) hand left ‘this road turned to the left’ c) ụ́zọ̀ áhụ̀ pùtà-rà òwèrrè ézúkàlà. road det come outrv(pst) owerre ezukala ‘this road came out from owerre ezukala’ 4.3 findings findings from this research show that talmy’s framework suffices to a great extent in describing igbo fictive motion expressions. it is observed that fictive motion exist in igbo. different dynamic linguistic forms (directional preposition and motion verbs) are used in describing static configurations in the language. motion verbs are predominantly used in expressing igbo fictive motion. also, it can be seen from the data presented that the igbo fictive motions can as well occur in verb serialization which is mostly limited to coextension path; though talmy did not include verb serialization in his fictive motion categories. fictive motion in igbo – mbah & uchechukwu 20 5. summary and conclusion this research study has investigated fictive motion in the igbo language from the cognitive linguistic point of view. the researchers carried out an examination of fictive motion in the igbo language by identifying the expressions that account for fictive motion in the language in order to analyze them. hence, this present study reveals extensively the coextension category of igbo fictive motion expressions. in the cause of the analysis, it is observed that motion verbs are predominantly used in expressing igbo fictive motion. we therefore conclude that like in other languages, fictive motion can be expressed in the igbo language. it is hoped that the present effort shall mark the onset of further work on this very interesting aspect of the igbo language. references blomberg, j. & zlatey, j. (2014). actual and non-actual motion: why experientialist semantics needs phenomenology (and vice versa). phenomenology and the cognitive sciences, 13, 395–418. ikekeọnwụ, c. i. 1987. igbo dialect cluster: a classification. a seminar paper presented at the department of linguistics & nigerian languages, university of nigeria, nsukka. langacker, r. w. (1987). foundations of cognitive grammar, vol. 1: theoretical prerequisites. stanford: stanford university press. matlock, t. 2004. the conceptual motivation of fictive motion. in g. radden & k.-u. panther (eds.), studies in linguistic motivation (pp. 221–248). berlin: mouton de gruyter. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 21 matlock, t. & richardson, d. c. 2004. do eye movements go with fictive motion? in forbus, k., gentner, d. and regier, t. (eds.): proceedings of the 26th annual conference of the cognitive science society, mahwah, nj, 909–914. matsumoto, y. (1996). subjective motion in english and japanese. cognitive linguistics 7(2): p. 183-226. núñez, r. & marghetis, t. (2014). cognitive linguistics and the concept(s) of number. oxford university press. o’grady, w. & archibald, j. (2008).contemporary linguistic analysis: an introduction. canada: pearson education. pablo, j. & mora g. (2001). directed motion in english and spanish.http:elies.rediris.es/elies11. (18 september, 2014). rojo, a. & valenzuela, j. (2009). fictive motion in spanish: travellable, nontravellable and path-related manner information. in j. valenzuela, a. rojo, & c. soriano (eds.), trends in cognitive linguistics: theoretical and applied models (pp. 244–260). frankfurt am main: peter lang. slobin, d. i. (1996). two ways to travel: verbs of motion in english and spanish. in masayoshi, shibatani & sandra, thompson a. (eds.), grammatical constructions:their form and meaning (195-219). oxford: oxford university press. slobin, d. i. (2000). verbalized events: a dynamic approach to linguistic relativity and determinism. in s. niemeier and r. dirven (eds.), evidence for linguistic relativity (pp. 107-138). amsterdam: john benjamins. talmy, l. (1983). how language structures space. in pick, h. l. and acredolo, l. p. (eds.): spatial orientation: theory, research, and application, new york, 225–282. fictive motion in igbo – mbah & uchechukwu 22 talmy, l. (1996). fictive motion in language and “ception.” in p. bloom, m. a. peterson, l. nadel, & m. f. garrett (eds.), language and space (211–276). cambridge, ma: mit press. talmy, l. (2000). toward a cognitive semantics, vol. i: concept structuring systems. cambridge, ma: mit press. trask, r. l. (1993). a dictionary of grammatical terms in linguistics. london: routledge. ụwalaka, m. a. (1988). the igbo verb: a semantico-syntactic analysis. wien: afro-pub. list of abbreviations det – determiner dem – demonstrative prep – preposition conj – conjunction rvpst – r + vowel marking past tense in igbo language 239 the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria: root causes, implications and way forward aghaegbuna haroldson uwaezuoke1 chinwe doris ojiako2 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka, anambra state, nigeria ha.uwaezuoke@unizik.edu.ng1 cd.ojiako@unizik.edu.ng2 abstract violence in nigeria has a negative implication for national integration and development. this paper, which anchors on realistic group conflict theory, and theory of justice, investigates issue of violence in nigeria. it first identifies the root causes of violence, followed by discussion of its implication, and finally suggests way forward. data evidences are from secondary source and current happenings in nigeria. among the root causes of violence identified are: ethnicity/multiculturalism, poverty, and religion. to remove fear and mutual distrust among the different ethnic nationalities, the nigerian government should first release all the freedom fighters held in prison custody and other confined places, and seriously consider the reasons for their agitations; all citizens of nigeria must be given equal opportunity rather than regarding some as first class citizens and some as second class citizens. government should be sincere in implementing the g3rs of genuine reconciliation, reconstruction and reintegration; and harken to the clamour for restructuring nigeria, make prices of commodities affordable, and punish indulgers in religious violence notwithstanding their ethnic affiliation. keywords: ethnicity, insecurity, multiculturalism, multilingualism, violence mailto:ha.uwaezuoke@unizik.edu.ng mailto:cd.ojiako@unizik.edu.ng the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria – uwaezuoke & ojiako 240 1. introduction the rate of violence in the world has become so alarming that it has occupied a centre stage in many discourses. afolabi (2009, p. 24) submits that liberia, sierra leone, cote d’ivoire and guinea-bissau were for decades crippled by conflicts and civil strife that have caused much violence and incessant killings. today, violent conflict has spread to so many other countries of the world like wild fire, including africa. apart from incessant killings, other aftermaths of violence are destruction of property, displacement of people internally, increase in small arms and light weapons, human and drug trafficking as well as illegal exploitation of natural resources and banditry (afolabi, 2009, p. 25; marc et al, 2015). a most recent development is russia’s invasion of ukraine, which has posed a threat of third world war. in nigeria, there is insecurity as people now live in fear of not being sure of what would happen next and who would be a victim of any violent situation or security challenge. it has become almost very difficult in nigeria for the citizens to travel on road from one part of the country to another for business transactions because of fear of being maimed, killed or kidnapped for ransom by terrorists and armed bandits. cases abound of how commercial buses and private cars are being hijacked and the passengers taken to unknown places with some ending up being killed or released on payment of ransom. there is no gainsaying that a lot of capital and human resources have been wasted in nigeria due to violence. violence is defined by oxford advanced learners’ dictionary of current english as ‘a violent behaviour that is intended to hurt or kill somebody’. the end result of any violence is, therefore, injury to someone or even death. violence can occur with an intention of forceful achievement of something or it can be a result of accumulated injury that has become very unbearable. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 241 when violence is not checked or properly handled, insecurity sets in and there would be lack of trust. according to oxford advanced learners’ dictionary of current english, insecurity is a noun derived from the verb “insecure”, which has to do with one not being confident about oneself or one’s relationship with others. insecurity is the inability to trust oneself as being safe in any situation or relationship/association/union with other people; the feeling by someone or group of not being protected. there are many facets of violence, and they are: domestic violence, ethnic violence, political violence, economic violence, and religious violence. domestic violence is defined as a kind of abusive behaviour in any intimate relationship that is used by one partner against another in order to gain or maintain power and control (us department of justice, 2023). this includes physical, sexual, emotional, economic, psychological or technological actions or threats of actions or coercive behaviour exhibited with the intent to influence an intimate partner. ethnic violence, according to mohapatra (2022), is a conflict that relates with one or all ethnic parties. the scholar points out that this kind of conflict is catastrophic and includes genocide, mass migrations, economic sufferings, and environmental damage. this view agrees with zaviršek and zorn (2011), who had earlier viewed ethnic conflict as being politically or socially motivated and involving one or more groups, and also noted that all ethnic conflicts have a common structure of social inequality. political violence is a form of violence relations and crisis of interest, goal and ambitions between individuals, groups, and political structures in the in the process of attaining power and keeping it (johnmary, 2012). it occurs with the struggle for power, and that is reflected by bozonelos et al (2022) who posit that political violence involves the use of physical harm which is motivated by political intentions. they further identify the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria – uwaezuoke & ojiako 242 those seeking to challenge the socio-political status quo as the perpetuators of this kind of violence. economic violence, in the opinion of ohlan (2021), represents a state of control over the capacity of an individual to obtain, utilize and keep up economic assets. for religious violence, it is a term that covers issues that have religion as either the subject or the object of violent behaviour (wellman and tokuno, 2004:291). sulaiman (2016) concurs with them where he refers to religious violence as a threat or actual implementation of acts which are capable of inflicting physical, emotional or psychological injury on a person or a group of persons for religious ends. notwithstanding all these kinds of violence, this paper focuses attention on ethnic, political, economic and religious violence in nigeria. it discusses the root cause(s) of violence in nigeria, the implications and way forward. next section treats the theoretical orientation that guides the study. 2. theoretical orientation this paper is anchored on sherif’s (1966) realistic group conflict theory (rgct) and rawls’ (1971; 1999) theory of justice. the realistic group conflict theory proposes that the existence of conflicting goals (i.e. competition) among differing social groups breeds intergroup conflict, but the existence of mutually desired superordinate goals attainable only through intergroup cooperation reduces conflict (jackson, 1993). the theory identifies the root cause of intergroup hostility as well as how the intergroup hostility could be resolved, and it adopts a holistic approach in dealing with the issue of intergroup behaviour. following from this theory, one group mores, norms, and routines are decisively affected by relationship with other groups (sherif & sherif, 1964), and the overall favourability of intergroup interactions is determined by reciprocal interests and goals of the groups involved (sherif & awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 243 sherif, 1979)1; such factors are identified by jackson (1993) as real or imagined threat to the safety of the group, economic interests, political advantage, military consideration, or social status. sherif notes that once a group engages in reciprocally competitive and frustrating activities to the extent that the gain of desired goals by one group results in the loss for the other group, this other group will become unfavourably stereotyped. continuing, the scholar says that the persistence of such stereotype would lead to a high degree of intergroup social distance. rawls’ (1971; 1999) theory of justice, on the other hand, is a theory of equity and fairness which proposes that peace is a product of a shared public conception of justice, and that for tranquillity to exist in any society, there should be equity and fairness in the distribution of goods. the theory is considered as a fair choice model in which individuals will hypothetically choose mutually acceptable principles of justice, equity, and liberty in their social interactions (ndeche & iroye, 2022). the absence of justice, equity, and liberty in social interactions eventually results into hostile relations. the theory of justice supports egalitarian society with specific political arrangements that will foster atmosphere of equal rights of individuals to the basic liberties, equal opportunities (rawls, 1971); and the principles of justice inherent in the theory guarantees the rights derived from these principles (rawls, 1999). the foregoing discussion of the realistic group conflict theory and the theory of justice indicates that the two theories have a point of convergence. they both support a harmonious relationship. 3. methodology 1 this is disclosed by jackson (1993) the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria – uwaezuoke & ojiako 244 this paper has relied on secondary source for data/information, especially from the newspapers and magazines. as there are frequent violent activities in nigeria, the paper also has relied on the recent happenings some of which are reported by the media. the data/information enable us to identify the root cause(s) of violence, followed by a discussion of the implication of violence and suggestions on way forward. the argument postulated in this paper are based on two theories: the realistic group conflict theory of sherif (1966), and rawls’ (1971; 1999) theory of justice. 4. root causes of violence in nigeria violence is viewed as an aftermath of things/society not working well with few persons being rich while majority of the people are poor, and there is no evenly distribution of the commonwealth of a nation, usually in an ethnically plural society (varshney, 2009). this suggests that ethnicity is one of the root causes of violence and insecurity. there are many multi-ethnic and multicultural nations, such as: nigeria, indonesia, former yugoslavia, and india. nigeria, for examples, has an estimated number of 450 languages; in indonesia, there are about 800 languages (translators without borders, 2022); while india has 22 constitutionally recognized languages and more than 99 non-scheduled languages (international mother language day, 2022). multi-ethnicity or multilingualism also leads to multiple cultures since language and culture hinge together. the link between them is clearly evident in mbalisi’s (2017) view on ethnicity as a social phenomenon involving interactions of a social group (referring to ethnic setting) with a communal character and not always homogenous. this view suggests that ethnicity deals with an ethnic group with common identity, the same social setting with the same or minor differing cultural traits. for example, the igbo people of nigeria are members awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 245 of the same communal setting within which are minor differences that result into different varieties of the igbo language and minor variations in igbo culture. onitsha igbo variety would realise the phoneme /l/ where owerri igbo variety realises /r/, as illustrated in (1). onitsha owerri (1) i. òlòma òròma ‘orange’ ii. ọlụ ọrụ ‘work’ iii. ala ara ‘breast/madness’ iv. alụ̄ arụ̄ ‘abomination’ likewise, other ethnic groups in the country; such as hausa, yoruba, efik, ibibio, ijaw, nupe, gwari, and so on, have some minor differences. the members of these individual ethnic groups are bonded by a common ancestry, language, belief system and tend to present a common front in struggling for the well-being of their members. one identified problem of ethnicity and multiculturalism is mutual hatred and distrust among members of the different ethnic groups (see also obi, 2017; ugochukwu & ogwudile, 2017; uwaezuoke, 2018). this problem is a result of conflicting goals (i.e. competition) existing among the differing ethnic groups that in turn breeds conflict as postulated by the realistic groups conflict theory. in a multi-ethnic and multicultural country, some of the indigenous languages gain popularity due to certain factors, such as: government language policy, the level of development of the language, the exposure of the speakers of the language, and the numerical strength of the speakers (uwaezuoke, 2018). this is the case with the igbo, hausa and yoruba languages in nigeria, which the national policy on education (npe) considers as majority languages; while other languages are regarded as minority the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria – uwaezuoke & ojiako 246 languages. the dominance of these three ethnic groups in nigeria has also led to the use of the acronym “wazobịa” (wa for yoruba, zo for hausa, and bịa for igbo; each meaning ‘come’) to represent the three major languages. this scenario is viewed with contempt by members of other ethnic groups. as a result of ethnicity and multilingualism/multiculturalism, most often, one hears such comments in (2) from people of different ethnic groups against one another. (2) i. shege nya-mịrị banza bastard give-water nonentity bastard igbo people useless ‘igbo, irresponsible people’ ii. ọmọ igbo, aje-okuta ma mo mi person igbo eater-stone neg drink water igbo man, eater of stone not drinks water ‘igbo man, eater of solid food without drinking water’ iii. ndị ofe mmanụ a abịa-kwa people soup oil this come-perf these oil soup people have come ‘these yoruba people have come’ iv. ndị mgbati mgbati a na aghụghọ people onomatopoeic these and cunny, crafty people yoruba these and cunny, crafty ‘these yoruba people and their craftiness’ awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 247 v. aboki a abịa-kwa my friends this come-perf foolish this have come ‘these foolish people have come’ vi. aboki metusa my friend pollute.perf. my friend have polluted ‘hausa man has polluted’ (2i) is a direct abuse of an igbo person by a hausa person. shege and banza are hausa words and they mean ‘bastard’ and ‘nonentity’ respectively, while nyamịrị is an adulterated form of an igbo expression nye m mmiri ‘give me water’. here, the igbo man is perceived as being irresponsible. for yoruba people, they perceive the igbo people as people that like eating solid food, and that they can do so without bothering to take water. so in (2ii), the expression is used by yoruba people to abuse the igbo people. in (2iii), ofe mmanụ ‘oil soup’ is used to refer to yoruba people based on the fact that they put plenty of oil in their soup. whenever an igbo person wants to refer to a yoruba person without mentioning the tribe, he/she would prefer to say ndị ofe mmanụ. mgbati mgbati is onomatopoeic sound produced by yoruba people whenever they speak the yoruba language. as used in (2iv), it refers to the yoruba people. aboki in (2v) means ‘my friend’ in hausa, but for the context it is used by igbo people, it derogatorily refers to someone who behaves abnormally. however, in 2(vi), it refers to the hausa tribe. unlike (2i,iii &vi), where all the words used are from the same language, hausa, igbo, and hausa respectively; there is mixture of codes from two languages in (2ii,iv&v). the yoruba and igbo the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria – uwaezuoke & ojiako 248 languages are combined in (2ii&iv), and in (2v) is a combination of the igbo and hausa languages. ethnicity and multiculturalism breeds nepotism and corruption, and leads to throwing of merit into the dustbin. once a member of an ethnic enclave gets into power, it most often becomes an opportunity to better the lots of the person’s ethnic nationality, even at the detriment of others. there is no justice as the people of different ethnic groups are not given equal opportunities. government policies and appointments are most often planned in such a way that a particular ethnic group is favoured. this instance is reported of buhari’s administration in nigeria by ede (2021) in the punch newspaper. ede reports that the governor of benue state, samuel ortom, had condemned president buhari’s lopsided appointments, nepotism and the acts of sectionalism which tends to divide nigeria more than ever. in a multicultural/multilingual nation, whatever policy being instituted by government is usually critically studied by members of other ethnic groups to ensure that it does not undermine their existence. leaders are also not considered for election based on their individual merits, but based on their language and ethnic affiliation. for example, in nigeria’s 2023 general election, despite that the outgoing president buhari is from the north, atiku and his many northern elites in the people’s democratic party (pdp) insisted that the president should be from the north instead of having it zoned to the south east that has not tested the office for long. likewise in the all progressives congress (apc), asiwaju bola ahmed tinubu, with the support of leaders of the party, insisted that it was his turn to become the president when it was a yoruba man who handed over to yar’adua/goodluck. peter obi seemed to have broken that jinx through his “obedient movement” that have supporters from all parts of nigeria. there is also imbalance in the distribution of the wealth of the nation among awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 249 members of the differing ethnic groups. this scenario has often resulted into series of agitations and violence from members of other ethnic groups not in power, as a way of attracting government attention. no wonder schneider and turshen (2011) had observed that political violence intertwines closely with economic violence because political status often determines economic opportunity, and further identify denial of citizenship or representation, wrongful detention or enslavement, forceful eviction, and statelessness as forms of political violence. violence has engulfed africa and, indeed, west africa. annan (2014) avers that the major challenge confronting west africa is how to end violent conflicts. in west africa, between 2011 and 2019, the number of violent events jumped from 581 to 3,617; and the number of associated fatalities surged too, rising from 3,361 recorded in 2011 to 11,911 in 2019 (gurría, 2020). also, the united states institute of peace (usip) in 2021 reported that terrorism and violent extremism are arguably africa’s greatest security threats in 2021. in africa and indeed west africa, including nigeria, violent situations are usually either ethnic, political, economic or religious. for example, in indonesia where, in 1998, the sara policy which forbids mobilisation or discussion of ethnic differences in the public realm lost its legitimacy giving room for horrendous group violence that took place on ethno communal lines (bertrand, 2004, p. 3). the former yugoslavia is another example, where there are ethnic and national identities with ethnic rivalries that so hobbled the balkans in the first half of the twentieth century (varshney, 2009). nigerian has had very ugly scenarios, as its foundation had been resting on violence and insecurity. the history of violence and insecurity in nigeria predates colonialism, and the ugly menace continues till today; it has, in fact, reached a crescendo. this is well captured by adebajo and ayodeji (2020), who inform that the origin of violence the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria – uwaezuoke & ojiako 250 and insecurity in nigeria dates back to pre-colonial period, which was characterised by uncertainty and fear among the people due to inter and intra-tribal conflicts that made captives to be fed into the slave trade industry. even the british colonisers did not help matters. in fact, the scenario during the colonial rule is explained thus: insecurity continued with colonialism and its characteristic oppressive rule. the manner in which the british colonisers conquered some parts of nigeria, particularly the north, created an environment of insecurity in the society. merging different ethnic groups existing independently further created atmosphere of tension and violence in nigeria (adebajo & ayodeji, 2020). nigeria as a country is bedevilled with disharmonious relationship and mutual suspicion existing among the different ethnic groups. this has become a cog in the wheel of progress of the country and has even threatened the country’s sovereignty. achebe reports on nigeria’s experience before 1970s. the social malaise in nigerian society was political corruption. the structure of the country was such that there was an inbuilt power struggles among the ethnic groups, and of course those who were in power wanted to stay in power. the easiest and simplest way to retain it, even in a limited area, was to appeal to tribal sentiments, so they were egregiously exploited in the 1950’s and 1960’s (achebe, 2012, p. 51). awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 251 from 1970 till today, nigeria has not stopped living with this bad experience. uwaezuoke (2021) blames the nigerian leaders whom he has described as non-nationalists, who are not bothered with how to unify the country and bring about the needed development. he notes that nigeria is addressed as “the giant of africa” without anything to show for it and has refused to develop amidst abundant human and mineral resources. he points out that the myopic nature of the nigerian leadership has made them to be so much bedevilled with ethnic sentiment that they could not harness the country’s abundant human and mineral resources for the good of the country, noting that hunger persists in nigeria with the citizens finding it hard to eke a living. it is for this same reason that kalu (1987, p. 192) had earlier canvassed for the leadership at the national level to be marked by competence for integrating diverse groups into a coherent national entity denominated in national consciousness. the nigeria/biafra war of 1967–1970 was a result of ethnopolitical rivalry which made the igbo to feel unsafe in the nigerian union and, therefore, had to seek for self-realisation. after the war, the head of state, general yakubu gowon, declared “no victor, no vanquished” and embarked on “rrr” policy of reconciliation, reconstruction and reintegration; but he was unfaithful with its implementation. for example, after the war, not minding the amount of money an igbo man declared, every igbo man was given only ₤20. neither had any government after gowon bothered to implement the policy. also, since the war, there has been a conspiracy by other major ethnic groups against an igbo man becoming a president of nigeria. the problem of ethnicity/multiculturalism has subsisted in nigeria and there have been a series of agitations by members of different ethnic nationalities for the dissolution of the nigerian union. the movement for the actualization of sovereign state of biafra the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria – uwaezuoke & ojiako 252 (massob) led by chief ralph uwazuruike, and later the indigenous people of biafra (ipob) led by mazi nnamdi kanu, have been agitating for a biafra nation. there is also the ijaw peoples movement (ipm) fighting for the emancipation of the ijaw nation. the activities of the niger delta militants in nigeria through mend (movement for the emancipation of niger delta) between 2006 and 2009 when they were granted amnesty cannot be easily forgotten. the insurgency of the islamic terrorist group, the boko haram, in nigeria erupted in 2009. this terrorist group has its base in the sambisa forest; and the group has been ravaging the north east region of nigeria. their main stock-in-trade is suicide bombing of public places, such as: churches, mosques, markets, public buildings, and so on. they also engage in kidnapping of school children as well as burning of houses and villages. through their terrorist activities, many villages have been overrun with scores of villagers killed or maimed or chased out of their villages to the internally displaced peoples’ camps (idpc). in april 14-15, 2014, the boko haram abducted 276 female students (mostly christians) of government girls secondary school, chibok, in borno state, nigeria. the amnesty international (2021) reports that irrespective of the escape or later release of most of these girls, more than 100 of them had remained in captivity. the situation has remained the same till 2022 (africanews.com, 30/7/2022). five other abductions of school children are reported by the amnesty international from december 2020 to march 2021, after that of the chibok in 2014; which are: the rounding up of 300 students of government science secondary school in kankara, kastina state, northwest nigeria and marching them to an unknown destination by hundreds of gunmen, who broke into seven of their dormitories and held them in captivity for six nights, from friday 11th december, 2020, until their release on 17th december, 2020; on 17th february, 2021, 27 students of awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 253 government science secondary school in kagara, niger state, were abducted by gunmen from their dormitory in the early hours of the morning, and were released on 27th february; hundreds of school girls were abducted from government girls secondary school, jangebe, zamfara state, on 26th february, 2021, and after four days in captivity, 279 students were released on 2nd march, 2021; in march 2021, two different schools were attacked in kaduna state, northwest nigeria, including the federal college of forestry mechanization where 30 students were seized on 11th march, 2021. the amnesty international notes: these attacks against schoolchildren, teachers and school buildings as a show a callous disregard for the right to life and the right to education by both the bandits and insurgents on one hand, and the nigerian authorities who have failed to end these horrifying attacks, on the other (the amnesty international, 2021). marama (2022) reports that the boko haram invaded kautikari village in chibok local government area of borno state and killed the traditional ruler’s son, mr bulama wadir, and two internally displaced persons (idps) being hosted in the community. he discloses that the community had on 1st january, 2022, been invaded with over 10 people mostly women and children abducted and largest churches razed. there is incessant violence between the fulani herders and farmers in the north west and north central parts of nigeria with many people killed and many wounded. the fulani herders raid unsuspecting villages, loot, kill and burn peoples’ houses as well as displace the villagers from their ancestral homes and farmlands. the raids sometimes witness a reprisal attack by the farmers. ojewale the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria – uwaezuoke & ojiako 254 (2021) writes that in the last decade, 1,412 incidence of conflict occurred in the northern region with 7,399 deaths recorded across the north central states of benue, plateau, kogi, nasarawa, niger, kwara and fct; pointing out that the escalating violence has deeply affected the local economy with nigerian government losing an estimated $13.7 billion in revenue annually. agbakwuru, (2021) reports the killing of 45 farmers and scores of people wounded at lafia, obi and awe local government areas of nasarawa state, nigeria. aljazeera news (2021, december) also reports on that and attributes the problem to struggle for rights of grazing and water as a result of drought, population growth, the expansion of sedentary farming into communal areas and poor governance. it notes that the conflict has taken a religious dimension as the herders are muslims, while the farmers are mainly christian (religious violence). joined to the herders/farmers conflict are the activities of armed bandits across north west and north central, who kill and abduct school children and travellers for ransom. olufemi (2021a) reports on how armed bandits attacked and killed people in niger and sokoto states in september 2021; they attacked muya local government area and sabon birni local government area killing people, abducting women and setting houses ablaze. they burnt people in their rooms and those who attempted to escape were slaughtered. similar incident occurred between july 31 and august 2, 2021, in maiyanga, kpachudu, kpetenvie, nche-tahu, tafi gana, dtv, zahwra and kishasha villages in bassa local government area, and riyon in mabouring local government area (olufemi, 2021b). on 13th may, 2022, there was the gruesome and coldblooded murder and burning of miss deborah samuel yakubu, a 22 year old christian and a 200 level student of shehu shagari college of education, sokoto, by angry muslim fundamentalists championed by her course mates. her sin was that she professed her awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 255 christian faith by attributing her doing well in an examination for a particular course to jesus christ’s miraculous intervention; a statement her killers termed “blasphemy”. st. francis xavier catholic church, owo, ondo state, was attacked by armed bandits in the early hours of sunday, 5th june, 2022, and over forty (40) worshippers were killed and many injured. the punch newspaper (2022, 13th july) reports that 18 catholic priests were kidnapped with three killed in 2022. the south eastern part of nigeria is not left out as so many innocent people have died in the hands of bandits. there are several cases of burning of inec offices and the police stations in the south-east. in both the western and northern nigeria, the igbo people have suffered a lot in the hands of youths of their host communities. cases abound of the burning of markets and looting of goods belonging to igbo traders even at a slightest provocation that might not have directly involved the igbo people. for example, there was the burning of dei dei international market, along kubwa-zuba express road, abuja by angry hausa/fulani youths on 18th may 2022. in 2020, the “end sars” protest was staged throughout nigeria, and beyond, by irate youths protesting against police brutality to nigerians. the slogan “end sars” was a mass demonstration throughout the major cities of nigeria as well as major cities of the world calling on the nigerian government to disband a unit in the nigerian police force known as the “special anti-robbery squad (sars)”. this unit of the force, inter alia, had had a long record of abuses on the nigerian people, and a lot of innocent citizens have died in their hands. the “end sars” protest was hinged on police brutality, but the fact is that these youths were fed up with poverty and hunger in the entire country as well as other forms of injustices being meted on citizens of nigeria by those at the helm of affairs. the nigerian youths had expected to the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria – uwaezuoke & ojiako 256 see the poverty level of nigerians reduced and the high cost of living remedied by the buhari’s administration. but rather than things getting better, nigeria’s condition gets worse every day. of course, prior to the election of president muhammadu buhari in 2015, the masses were fed up with the sixteen years of consecutive rule by the peoples’ democratic party (pdp), which made them to clamour for ‘change’. nigerians had felt that they had seen in buhari the messiah who would better the condition of nigeria and improve on the lives of the citizens, not knowing that the kind of change they will receive would be that of moving from the frying pan into the fire. akpen leva, the benue state, nigeria, can boss, explains nigerians’ disillusionment in the following manner: i am sorry to say that from the promises that were made, this government has taken us so many centuries backward. because, look at the issue of security, for instance, if you are fortunate to wake up, you don’t know what may happen the next day. even when you are travelling on the road, you’re travelling out of fear that maybe they will kidnap you and take you to the forest and if you’re not able to pay the ransom, maybe they will butcher you and so on. and this ransom is always in millions (ejembi, 2022). in addition to things getting worse in the country, innocent citizens were being framed up and extra judicially killed by the police special anti-robbery squad (sars) and men of the other law enforcement agencies without people getting justice in the end. the “end sars” protest, therefore, was a fight against all forms of negative things happening in nigeria as well as the poor economic awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 257 condition of the country (uwaezuoke, 2023). the protest led to the breaking of the correctional centres, burning/damaging of many police stations and some public establishments across nigeria (e.g. inec buildings), and killing of many police officers who were recognised to have aided the wasteful loss of lives of innocent nigerians. the protest also led to the death of many nigerians in the hands of the law enforcement agents. on tuesday, 5th july 2022, heavy armed bandits attacked the convoy of president mohammadu buhari in katsina as well as kuje correctional centre, abuja, and freed prisoners. another rampant cause of violence in nigeria is cultism/cult rivalry. a lot of different cult groups exist in nigeria and they rain havoc on themselves. different cult groups engage in cult wars. they attack themselves with dangerous and lethal weapons leading to death of so many individuals. on saturday, 26th february, 2022, a group of persons suspected to be cultists invaded umuogbuefi primary school, ebenebe, in awka north local government area of anambra state, nigeria, the venue of the burial ceremony of a member of another cult group. they shot sporadically at unsuspecting mourners and killed about 20 persons, while the corpse was sprawled on the ground. similarly, on saturday, 26th february, 2022, at mbacher council ward of katsina-ala local government area, benue state, a similar incident occurred where gunmen attacked and killed, at least, 9 mourners at the burial of a tax collector, zaki atser nor, in reprisal for the killing of some armed militia men loyal to slain benue’s militia warlord, terwase akwaza, alias gana on thursday 24th and friday 25th february, 2022, by troops of operation whirl stroke (opws) (ejembi, 2022). many of the numerous ethnic groups seem to have so much lost confidence in the entity called nigeria that they have continued to clamour for the restructuring of nigeria if they must continue to the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria – uwaezuoke & ojiako 258 co-exist as part of nigeria. (uwaezuoke, 2021). the implications of violence are discussed in the next section. 5. implications of violence and insecurity it is said that a house divided against its self can never stand. violence and insecurity have negative implication, which include: 1. retardation of development and growth – violence and insecurity retards development and growth. through violence, the economy is destroyed; and whatever is destroyed would require huge amount of tax payers’ money to rebuild. for example, during the “end sars” protest, the police stations burnt would need much money to be rebuilt. in addition to requiring huge sums of money to rebuild what have been damaged, the economy becomes crumbled as offices are not opened, and shops and markets remain closed for business. the incarceration of the leader of the indigenous people of biafra (ipob), mazi nnamdi kanu, by the nigerian government does not help matters in the southeast. it has led to ipob declaring “sit at home” every monday and any day mazi nnamdi kanu would go to court on the whole of the south east, and people obey the order for fear of being killed or wounded. all business and commercial activities are crippled on those days 2. death – death of many individuals is another implication of violence and insecurity. the incessant violence and insecurity in nigeria has claimed so many lives, while many were wounded or permanently maimed. for example, the lafia attack in 2021 claimed 45 lives; and 40 lives were lost during the attack on st. francis xavier catholic church, owo, ondo state. some of the people whose lives were lost awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 259 during violent situations are people who would have been useful and who would have contributed their quota in leading the country to greatness. 3. displacement of people – the invasion of villages and houses burnt with their occupants has made many villagers to flee for their dear lives. so many villages and communities have been abandoned in the north east, north west and north central where activities of the boko haram and armed banditry are very rampant. an example was the attack on muya local government area and sabon birni local government area killing people and burning houses. there are a lot of internally displaced people (idp) with so many internally displaced peoples’ camps (idpc) everywhere in the northern part of the country. 4. scarcity of food – violence in the north east, north west and north central has made farmers to be insecure and abandon their farmlands for fear of being attacked and/or killed by herders. the resultant effect is that food crops like yam, rice, etcetera, and vegetables and other agricultural products are no longer cultivated. this brings about scarcity of food; and where one manages to see food, it is always very expensive and unaffordable. 5. increase in crime/destruction of lives – violence leads to increase in the crime rate. most often, youths are the ones engaged in violent activities and they are given guns and other dangerous weapons by their sponsors. when the storm is over, it becomes difficult to retrieve those guns and dangerous weapons from the youths, who now use them to engage in various kinds of criminal activities. also, before the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria – uwaezuoke & ojiako 260 embarking of violent activities, the youths resort to taking illicit substances and other drugs that are dangerous to health. most often, they end up destroying their lives, and many becoming school drop-outs because of the effect of the illicit substances and hard drugs they had taken. 6. way forward from the discussion above, insecurity in nigeria has far-reaching implication to the development of nigeria. the country is divided along ethnic lines and a closer look at the different violent situations reveals that ethnic violence is more prevalent, and sometimes serves as a catalyst for other forms of violence. therefore, in order to solve the challenge of insecurity in nigeria, there must be a way of first integrating the different ethnic nationalities. ethnicity and multiculturalism may portray negative effect, but if properly managed could leads to positive development. nigeria should borrow a leaf from india, which is a multi-ethnic and multicultural country with diverse languages, but the government recognises all languages through the use of “accommodationistic” policy that accommodates various ethnic groups thereby making them to be at peace (manor, 1996). uwaezuoke (2021) suspects that ezeani (2015) might have had this kind of approach in mind where he points out the importance of peaceful co-existence to successful evolution of the state and also suggests that a nation without social harmony cannot develop beyond the level of her disunity, acrimony and instability. this idea is supported by the realistic group conflict theory and the theory of justice. government should begin with the release of all the freedom fighters held in prison custody and other confined places for championing the cause of self-determination for their ethnic nationalities. instead of arresting and locking-up these people, the reasons for their agitations should be seriously awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 261 considered and solved in such a way that every citizen from any part of the country would have a feeling of a sense of belonging. as a way of healing the past wounds, there is need for government to implement what this paper has termed the g3rs (i.e. genuine reconciliation, reconstruction and reintegration). secondly, government should consider the clamour for restructuring of nigeria to make the central government less attractive and the regions/state governments more attractive. the regions/states should be able to control their resources and to develop at their own pace. this will usher in healthy competition among the regions/states. thirdly, the nigeria police and other security operatives in nigeria should be reformed and reoriented to understand the dignified nature of human beings. they should be made to handle the nigerian citizens in a dignified manner as well as be seen to be discharging their responsibilities effectively so as to restore the lost trust from the common man. finally, government should pursue the principle of mutually desired superordinate goals for the country by living up to its responsibility of protecting lives and property of the entire nigerians and not a section of nigeria. no section of the country should be treated as first class citizens, while others are regarded as second class citizens. government should not turn deaf ears to instances of invasion, but swiftly intervene to ensure that those decimated return home as well as identify the families affected by violence and find a way of compensating them. above all, government should find a way of bridging the gap between the rich and the poor by making prices of commodities more affordable to ordinary citizens. the violence in a multi-cultural nigeria – uwaezuoke & ojiako 262 7. summary and conclusion this paper considered the issue of violence as one of the numerous challenges nigeria is faced with and, therefore, set out to examine its root cause(s) and implications. anchoring on the realistic group conflict theory and the theory of justice, it had also sought for a way forward for nigeria. it first identified many facets to violence in nigeria: domestic, ethnic, political, economic, religious and cultism; but maintained that ethnic violence is more prevalent. ethnicity/multilingualism/multiculturalism breed mutual hatred and distrust among different ethnic nationalities. there is usually imbalance in wealth distribution, poverty and neglect, poverty of leadership and corruption, and brutality on innocent citizens by security operatives. other violent situations in nigeria are terrorism, banditry, religious conflict, ethnic agitations and cultism/cult rivalry. violence leads to insecurity and retards development. it also leads to death, displacement of people, food scarcity, and increase in crime/destruction of lives. as a way forward, and in concordance with the realistic group conflict theory and the theory of justice, the paper suggests the creation of harmonious relationships among various differing ethnic nationalities in nigeria. government should provide favourable environment that would guarantee their cooperation and integration. this should start with the release of all the freedom fighters held in prison custody and other confined places, while the reasons for their agitations are seriously considered to accord a sense of belonging to citizens. government should implement the g3rs (genuine reconciliation, reconstruction and reintegration). it should consider the clamour for restructuring of nigeria, and make the central government less attractive and the regions/state governments more attractive with the regions/states allowed to control their resources and to develop at their own pace. the nigeria awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 2, 2022 263 police and other security operatives should be reformed and reoriented to understand the dignified nature of human beings with a view to handling the nigerian citizens in a dignified manner. government should live up to its responsibility of protecting lives and property of the entire nigerians and not a section of nigeria. nigerians should be treated on equal basis irrespective of tribe, language, religion, and etcetera. those who indulge in religious violence should be brought to book not minding their ethnic affiliation. finally, prices of commodities should be made affordable for the common man. when all these are done, nigeria would be a safer and a better place. references achebe, chinua. 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(2011). ethnic conflict. handbook of international social work: human rights, development, and the global profession, 190-195. in lynne m. healy and rosemary j. link (eds). online edition, oxford academic, 19 jan. 2012. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195333619.003.002 8 accessed 3 april 2023. http://dx.doi./org/10.4314/ujah.v19i2.3 http://www.acjol.org/index.php/jassd/article/download/1294/1277 http://www.acjol.org/index.php/jassd/article/download/1294/1277 https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195333619.003.0028 https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195333619.003.0028 107 documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo martha chidimma egenti1 joy ekpereamaka uche2 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka cm.egenti@unizik.edu.ng1 juche490@gmail.com2 abstract this study identified and documented the flora terms in the achi variety of igbo, and the values that these plants possess. data were elicited from fifteen native speakers of the variety (ages 40 82) through oral interviews using a checklist by okpoko and emeafor (2018). the use of simple descriptive approach was employed in analyzing the data. results showed that over fifty plants are indigenous to the achi community and these plants have nutritional, cultural and medicinal values. a careful observation revealed that, although the flora terms in achi share certain similarities with their standard igbo variants at the lexical and phonological levels, some flora terms like úgúgórìò and ňshígbú are unique to the achi community. it was also discovered that certain plant species are going into extinction. the young native speakers between the ages of 0 25 possess little or no knowledge about the identity and/or uses of the plants. the older generations who have this knowledge are dying without passing it on to the youths. although these plants serve nutritional, cultural, and medicinal purposes, the medicinal values are not fully appreciated by the indigenes. the study concluded that this aspect of achi culture is endangered and therefore, recommends that further studies be carried out in this area to create awareness about the important plant values in achi and the need to preserve them. further investigation should also be made into the medicinal properties to authenticate the findings and mailto:cm.egenti@unizik.edu.ng1 documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 108 to encourage people to increase their dependence on natural/herbal remedies. keywords: language documentation, language endangerment, flora terms 1. introduction language is the chief means by which human beings communicate. it plays a very important role in human endeavours. nwaozuzu (2017:1) considers language as one of the most fundamental aspects of human behaviour. according to her, “one of man’s greatest achievements is the development of language into a refined instrument of expression and communication”. it becomes a grave difficulty when this function of language is not carried out. in language studies, certain areas have become so familiar that they have almost been taken for granted. there are other areas however, that have not yet been given adequate attention in some languages, especially those that are new in the field of linguistics. one of such areas is documentary linguistics. documentary linguistics or language documentation is one of the emerging disciplines in the field of linguistics that arose as a response to the need of preserving, revitalizing, and sustaining world endangered languages. gippert, himmelmann, and mosel (2006) view documentary linguistics as being "concerned with the methods, tools, and theoretical underpinnings for compiling a representative and lasting multipurpose record of a natural language or one of its varieties". evidence shows that many languages are dying. emenanjo (2008) while quoting crystal (2002:2) observes that "there is agreement among linguists who have considered the situation that over half of the world's languages are moribund, that is, not effectively being passed on to the next generation...” there awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 109 exists the struggle of existence among languages. it is a case of "the survival of the fittest.” due to this competition, some languages have better chances of survival than others. some languages are at the verge of extinction while others have died already. such is the language situation in nigeria. a language is said to be endangered when its younger generation no longer use it due to one reason or another. an endangered language can also be regarded as one that has few surviving speakers such that it is in danger of falling out of use. it is important to note however, that not all languages are classified as being endangered. those languages which are not endangered are regarded as flourishing languages. with the emergence of documentary linguistics, a lot of works have been done where various aspects and culture of world languages have been documented. nigeria is not left out in this advancing development. in the igbo language, a lot of researchers are also working to document different aspects of the igbo language. okpoko and emeafor (2018) carried out a research on the indigenous plants and their uses among the nsukka people. nkamigbo and agu (2015) also conducted a documentation project on dirge songs among the amokwe orji people in udi. eme, mbagwu and mmadike (2016) documented some selected igbo proverbs as a way of preserving the igbo worldview and providing a tool for revitalizing the use of proverbs by the younger generation. in addition, mamah, eze, odeh and nwosu (2021) documented issues of greetings in enugu ezike variety of igbo. a host of other researchers have also made attempts to work on different aspects of the igbo language. it is sad to note however, that no attempt has been made to document the flora terms of achi igbo. this study seeks to fill that gap. the study therefore, is an investigation into the achi variety of igbo with the aim of examining, identifying, and documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 110 documenting its flora terms as well as the values that these plants possess. achi is the largest town in oji river local government area of enugu state, nigeria. it is made up of twelve villages. achi is blessed with rich vegetation; hence, plants are important parts that make up the fabric of the achi people. the plants serve different purposes ranging from socio-cultural, economic, to medicinal uses. sadly, the majority of the younger generation cannot identify these plants as they are called in the achi variety or state confidently their uses. the older generations who possess this knowledge are gradually dying without passing it to the youths. if efforts are not made to document this important aspect of the achi culture, it will completely go into extinction. flora basically denotes plants of various categories of a particular region. it also refers to all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. they are classified into native, agricultural/horticultural, and weed flora. for the purpose of this study, focus will be on the native flora of the achi speech community, with the aim of documenting the names they bear in achi and the various purposes they serve. the rest of the sections are structured as follows: the first part of section two presents an overview of language documentation while the second part discusses studies on language documentation. section three constitutes the methodology while section four comprises the data presentation and analysis. section five summarizes and concludes the study. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 111 2. a brief overview of language documentation language documentation has caught the interest of scholars over the years. it is important to note that language documentation and documentary linguistics are used interchangeably and in the course of this study, both terms would be used interchangeably. there are views and opinions concerning the concept of language documentation. some of them would be considered briefly. woodbury (2003) views documentary linguistics as that branch of linguistics which is concerned with the making and keeping of records of the world's languages and their patterns of use. he notes that documentary linguistics emerged while significant changes occurred as the study of language progressed. woodbury identifies endangerment as one of the factors that gave rise to the inquiry into documentary linguistics. he avers that language practices over the world are shifting at an alarming rate that it affects the world over 7000 languages. in his opinion, himmelmann (2006:1) considers language documentation as a "lasting multipurpose record of a language." he believes that language documentation should bear certain qualities and meet needs such as providing records that cover all aspects of a language including social and/or religious practices in a speech community. for him, language documentation should also serve a multipurpose such that both individuals and agencies of different categories can make use of the outcome. he adds that every language documentation project should be lasting, in that it can serve the present generation and generations to come. himmelmann also identifies endangerment as a reason for documenting languages. he however notes that "while language endangerment is a major reason for getting involved in language documentation, it is not the only one." whatever the reason may be for documenting a language, the usefulness of its outcome is important. austin (2008) documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 112 identifies some uses for the outcomes of documentation projects. he points out that they could be used for linguistic research, folklore, poetics, anthropology, oral history, education, and language revitalization. he adds that the outcomes of documentation output are not just for linguists but that the users include researchers from other disciplines as well as members of speaker communities. 2.1 studies on language documentation scholars and researchers have embarked on so many documentation projects in the bid to support seekers of endangered languages in their desire to preserve, revitalize or sustain the endangered languages. efforts have also been made by nigerian researchers to document nigerian languages and aspects of nigerian languages that are endangered. okpoko and emeafor (2018) carried out a documentation of the indigenous plants and their uses among the nsukka people. they discovered that the plants existing in nsukka are used for food, forage, sacred purposes, boundary demarcation, handcraft, medicinal and other utilitarian purposes. it was noted that due to globalization and urbanization, the knowledge of these indigenous plants and their uses are disappearing among the younger generation. in the same vein, aiyeola and bello (2006) carried out an investigation into the ethnobotanical potentials of common herbs in nigeria using enugu state as a case study. they collected a total of 96 plant species and found out that most of the species discovered are highly medicinal. diabetes in the study area had been controlled by the use of rauvolfia vomitoria, psidium guajava, and ocimum gratissimum. aiyeola and bello (2006:22) therefore recommended that more documentation be encouraged as "it is not enough to know what local people use plants for, but scientific and clinical validation of the claims is required". awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 113 another documentation project was carried out by nkamigbo and agu (2015). the documentation focused on dirge songs among the amokwe orji people of udi local government area of enugu state, nigeria. the performance of dirge songs in this community is an important aspect of the amokwe orji culture and it is a task carried out by elderly women. regrettably, the younger generation lack interest in the dirge songs due to the advent of christianity and civilization. it was concluded that dirge songs in amokwe orji are endangered as the very few old women who have knowledge of the dirge songs will soon die. in the bid to preserve a cultural aspect of the mbaise people that is on the verge of dying, uba (2015) carried out the first step of the documentation of erigwara mbaise, a cultural celebration peculiar to the people of mbaise in imo state, nigeria. this occasion is generally referred to as mbaise's style of celebrating christmas. it is called igba egwu ‘to dance’ and the celebration period lasts for eight days (25th december to 1st january), with the observance of two market weeks (eke ukwu and eke nta). the researcher noted among other things that the erigwara celebration is an avenue for the mbaise elders to introduce some of their cultural patterns to the young ones. according to her observations, this celebration is under threat of endangerment. the elders are encouraged to teach the youths this aspect of their culture and the need for preserving it. language documentation is an avenue through which endangered languages can be preserved, sustained or revitalized. it is in view of this objective that this study seeks to preserve an aspect of the igbo material cultureflora terms in achi igbo. 3. methodology simple elicitation method was used to collect primary data from the research consultants. a prepared checklist by okpoko and emeafor documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 114 (2018) was used to elicit the data. oral interviews were conducted and audio recordings of the interview sessions were made. relevant information was noted during the interview sessions. articles from journals and other texts relevant to the study of plants were consulted for the secondary data. a total of fifteen respondents who are between the ages of forty and eighty-two were consulted for the research. they were randomly selected from three out of the twelve villages in achi town. data for this research was analyzed using the simple descriptive method. for easy identification and pronunciation of the plant names, all tones are marked. the tone marking convention adopted is that proposed by nwachukwu (1995). according to this author, every syllable (high, step and, low) is marked in principle while in practice, only contrasting pitches or tones are marked leaving sameness unmarked. 4. data presentation and analysis in this section, the data are presented in a tabular format according to different agricultural classifications. in the tables, provision is made for the common names of the plants, botanical names, standard igbo names, names in achi, the uses of the plants and the part of plants used. after each table, an analysis is provided. table 1: fruit s/ n english name botani cal name stand ard igbo name name in achi use(s) of plant part used 1 lime citrus limon òròm á ńkị́rị́sị́ òròm á ńkị́rị́s hị́ a. anti worm b. it is also used as a natural juice from fruit. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 115 preservative (to preserve fresh akpụ). whole fruit. 2 paw paw carica papaya ọ́kwụ̀ rụ́ óyìbó ọ́kwụ̀ rụ́ bèkéè̀ a. anti malaria b. cure for typhoid fever. leaves leaves 3 avocad o persia ameri cana ùbé óyìbó ùbé bèkéè treatment of arthritis, hypertension and high blood pressure. seed 4 coconut cocos nucifer a ákị́ óyìbó ákụ́ bèkéè a. contains natural juice. fruit is eaten as a snack with breadfruit. b. shell is burnt to produce activated charcoal. c. used to produce brooms and baskets. fruit shell from fruit leaves (fronds ) documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 116 5 lemon citrus limon òròm á ńkị́rị́sị́ òròm á ǹkák wu ̣̄ juice mixed with water aids in weight loss and relieves arthritis. fruit from table 1, it can be observed that apart from the nutritional properties of the fruits (vitamins and minerals), they also have medicinal properties. fruits like lime, lemon, avocado and pawpaw contain properties that aid the body in losing weight naturally. they fight worms in the body, relieve the pain of arthritis, treat malaria/typhoid and help regulate one's blood pressure. coconut shells are burnt and ground to produce activated charcoal (a multipurpose natural remedy for different ailments). activated charcoal has proven to be an antidote for snake poison. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 117 table 2: vegetables s/ n engli sh nam e botanic al name standa rd igbo name name in achi use(s) of plant part used 6 basil (scen t leave s) ocimu m basilicu m ǹchụ́ān wụ̄ àhụ́g bè/ǹs hígbú ǹkụ́tā a. for detoxification . b.also used as vegetable for cooking. it adds flavour to food. leave s leave s 7 gard en egg solanu m melong ena áṅ àrà àhụ́h ā/ákụ̀ ọ́hē a. for making local sauce and for eating abacha. b. used as blood tonic. fruit leave s documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 118 8 pum pkin cucurbi ta spp ányụ́/ụ́ gbọ̀gụ̀lụ̀ ányụ́/ ụ́gbọ̀ gị̀rị̀ a. vegetable for cooking soup and yam pottage. b. the pumpkin is boiled and its filling is used to prepare yam porridge. c. seed is another specie of ègwúsí, used for cooking soup. leave s fruit seed 9 fruit ed pum pkin telfairi a occiden talis ụ́gụ̄ ụ́gu ̣̄ a. used as vegetable for soup and other foods. b. juice from crushed leaves serves as blood tonic. leave s 1 0 cam wood /red sanda l pteroca rpus mildbra edii ọ̀rá ọ̀há used to prepare oha soup. leave s awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 119 1 1 afric an salad gongro nema latifoliu m ụ̀tàzị ụ̀tàʒị ̀ a. used as vegetable for soup, and garnishing for other foods. b. used in the treatment of cough, intestinal worms, dysentery, diabetes and high blood pressure. leave s 1 2 bitter leaf vernoni a amygda lina ònúgbù òlígb è a. for cooking soup. b. anti diarrhoea leave s leave s 1 3 siam weed /chri stmas bush chromo lena odorata ábànị̀ dị̀ égwù ọ̀bị̀àr à ọ́hụ́u ̣̄ a. used for darkening black board. b. treatment for ulcer. c. used to stop bleeding. leave s leave s leave s documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 120 table 2 shows that vegetables are not just used for cooking soups or making other kinds of dishes. when properly washed and squeezed or blended, the juices from the vegetables serve as blood tonic and detoxifiers. in addition, the ọ̀bị̀àrà ōhụ́u ̣̄ 'siam weed/christmas bush' for example, is used to darken black board. it also has health benefits like treating burns, stomach ulcers and stopping bleeding. other vegetables like àhụ́gbè 'basil' and òlígbè 'bitterleaf', serve as detoxifiers and anti-diarrheal remedies. the basil plant/scent leaf is called ǹshígbú specifically because of its strong scent. it is used to improve the aroma and flavour of dishes. the garden egg fruit is called àhụ́hā while the leaf is called ákụ̀ ọ́hē. the garden egg leaves are used to prepare soup and yam porridge. table 3 root/tubers s/ n englis h name botanical name standard igbo name nam e in achi use(s) of plant par t use d 14 cassav a manihot esculenta ákpụ ́ jígb ọ́ọ̀ to produce garri, akpụ (swallow) , flour for akpụ and bread, tapioca for abacha. ro ot awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 121 15 white yam dioscorea cayennens is jí ọ́chá ńné jī a. boiled and eaten with oil or local sauce. b. boiled and pounded, to be eaten with soup. ro ot 16 water yam dioscorea alata m̀bànà/àb ànà m̀vụ̀ là a. boiled and eaten. b. good for diabetic patients. ro ot 17 three leaf /bitter yam dioscorea dumentori um ọ̀nà ọ̀là a. boiled and eaten. b. good for diabetic and hypertens ive patients. ro ot 18 sweet potatoe s ipomoea batatas ǹdùkú jí bèké è boiled or roasted and eaten. ro ot documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 122 19 cocoy am xanthoso ma sagittifoli um édè édè árọ̀ paste used as a thickener for soup. ro ot 20 indian cocoy am colocasia spp kòkó índìà/édè ọ́chá árụ́l á a. boiled and eaten with oil or as porridge. b. used to make achịcha (local delicacy). ro ot in table 3, the root and tuber plants are sources of energy and carbohydrate. their end products are used to prepare a variety of dishes and raw foods like garri, cassava flour, and yam flour. some like édè árọ̀ 'cocoyam' is used as a soup thickener when pounded. ọ̀là 'three leaf/bitter yam' is recommended for diabetic patients. generally, yam, some species of cocoyam, and sweet potatoes are boiled and eaten with oil, but they can also be fried, roasted or cooked into porridge. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 123 table 4: nuts s/ n engl ish nam e botan ical name stand ard igbo name nam e in achi use(s) of plant part used 2 1 bitte r kola garci nia kola ákị́ ílū úgúg órìò for treating cough and stomach ache. chewing it helps to deworm the stomach. seed 2 2 kola nut cola nitida ọ́jị́ ọ́jị́ used for welcoming visitors. it is also presented at various occasions at the start of a programme/cere mony. seed 2 3 grou ndnut arach is hypog aea àhụ́ék érē ọ̀pàp á a. roasted or boiled and eaten as a snack. b. paste is eaten with garden egg and presented to visitors at home and at occasions. seed documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 124 c. it is also for producing oil. 2 4 waln ut tetrac apidui m conop horu m ụ́kpà ụ́kpà kàlàtà a. chewed as a snack. b. good for the brain cells. seed in table 4, bitter kola 'úgúgórìò' is chewed as a remedy for cough. it also fights worms in the stomach. in addition, kola nut 'ọ́jị́' is presented to visitors, and it is usually broken to kick-start most occasions. it is also used to welcome visitors to one's home. in the absence of kolanut, garden egg and groundnuts can be used to welcome visitors. groundnuts 'ọ̀pàpá' and walnuts 'ụ́kpàkàlàtà' are eaten as snacks. walnuts are said to improve brain function. vegetable oil is produced from groundnuts. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 125 table 5 spices and food condiments s/ n englis h name botanica l name standa rd igbo name name in achi use(s) of plant part used 25 ethiopi an pepper xylopia aethiopic a ụ́dà ụ́dà a. for detoxificati on. b. when cooked with ụ̀tàzị ̀ leaves and drunk, it helps to treat gynaecolog ical issues like unhealthy colouration during menstruati on. seed seed 26 black pepper piper giuneens e ụ́zị́zá ḿkpụ́r ụ́ ụ́zụ́zá a. used as vegetable for soup and to spice food. b. used to cook leav es documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 126 food for a woman that has just been delivered of a child or put to bed (for detoxificati on). c. used as vegetable for soup. seed leav es 27 pepper capsicu m annum ósè ọ́sè to spice food and improve its taste. fruit 28 melon citrullus vulgaris ègwúsí àhụ́ èrè a. for preparing soup. b. used for producing oil. c. also used for making ògìrì. seed 29 african mango irvingia wombulu ọ̀gbọ̀n ọ̀ ọ̀gbọ̀l ọ̀ used for cooking soup. seed awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 127 30 african nutmeg mondora spp éhùrù éhùrù a. to spice food. b. boiled with the pod to make pepper soup for a woman that has just been delivered of a child or put to bed. serves as a detoxifier. seed 31 breadfr uit artocarp us communi s ụ́kwà ụ́kwà a. cooked as a meal. b. roasted and eaten as a snack with coconut seed seed 32 castor oil plant ricirius communi s ògìrì ọ́gwā for producing local condiment and for seed documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 128 producing oil 33 tallow tree afalia africana ísí ọ́chá ákpàr átā used as thickener for soup. seed 34 oil bean pentaclet hra macroph ylla ụ̀kpák ā àkpák ā a. has blood building properties. b. used as condiment for various local dishes. seed table 5 presents the plants that are used as food spices and condiments. in addition to spicing foods, they possess health properties which detoxifies and cleanse one's body system. oil bean 'àkpákā' helps in blood building and ethiopian pepper 'ụda' treats gynecological issues like black menstruation. ògìrì gotten from castor oil seed known as 'ọ́gwā' and melon seed 'àhụ́ èrè' are used as local condiments to improve the flavour of soups and other local dishes. ogiri goes through fermentation and because of this process, it contains probiotics (good microorganisms). other health benefits of ògiri include easy bowel movement, enhancement of the immune system, and regulation of blood sugar and improvement of gut health. àkpàrátā seed from 'tallow tree' is used as a soup thickener. when a woman gives birth to a child, meals are prepared for her with ethiopian pepper, black pepper and african nut meg to help relieve the pains of labour and help her heal. african mango seed 'ọ̀gbọ̀nọ̀' is used to prepare soup. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 129 table 6 cereals/grains/other plants s/ n english name botan ical name stand ard igbo name nam e in achi use(s) of plant part used 35 maize zea mays ọ́kà àkpà àkpà a. used for a variety of foods when processed. b. also used for preparing corn meal and corn flour. seed 36 millet millet tia thonni ngii ọ́kà nwá ájátá ńgị̄jị̄ a. for producing pap, and flour. b. when fried or roasted and pounded, it is used to prepare cocoyam porridge. c. used as food for birds. seed seed seed documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 130 37 plantain musa paradi siaca ójókō /jíókō ụ̀lè áká ńkụ́tā a. unripe plantain gives iron. b. treats diarrhea when eaten (boiled/roa sted) without oil. c. the peel when burned produces activated charcoal and is used for treating eczema. fruit fruit peel from fruit. 38 short plantain musa balbis iana únèrè ójíī ụ̀lè ụ́sụ́kp ọ̄ eaten raw when ripe. boiled and eaten when unripe. fruit 39 pepper fruit denn ettia tripeta la ḿmị̀m ị̀ ọ́rị̀ụ́h wū ̣ a. hot pepper is eaten alone or with garden eggs. fruit leaves awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 131 b. for treatment of burns 40 alligato r pepper afra monu m meleg ueta ósè ọ́jī ọ́hụ̀ ọ́sè ground paste mixed with pepper and other condiments is used to serve garden egg to visitors at occasions. seed documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 132 41 lemon grass cymb opogo n citratu s ǹché áwụ́lá ọ́gwū òchí īshī a. usually planted around the house to ward off snakes. b. treats headache when leaves are crushed and inhaled. c. the liquid from the boiled leaves when drunk, detoxifies the body and aids in weight loss. d. used to treat cough and catarrh. leaves leaves leaves leaves table 6 presents grains and other plants that are grown in achi. maize and millet when processed is used to produce pap and flour. awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 133 their seeds also serve as food for birds. unripe plantain is a major source of iron. fermented unripe plantain has also been shown to relieve stomach ulcers. when roasted or boiled and eaten without oil, unripe plantain is used to stop runny stomach and vomiting. activated charcoal used in treating skin infections like eczema is gotten from the burnt peel of plantain. when chewed and placed on the surface area, pepper fruit 'ọ́rị̀ụ́hwū'̣ is used to treat burns. pepper fruit and alligator pepper can be eaten with garden eggs and they are sometimes served to welcome visitors in the absence of kolanut. lemon grass 'ọ́gwū òchí īshī' is useful for the treatment of headache (when inhaled), for detoxification and for weight loss (when boiled and drunk). it is also interesting to note that lemon grass is planted in homes to ward off snakes. table 7: plants (woods) for building and construction s/n english name bota nical nam e stand ard igbo name name in achi use(s) of plant part used 42 palm tree elaei s guine ensis úkwù ńkwụ̄ úkwù ńkwū ̣ a. serve multipurposes. palm oil, kernel oil, broom, basket, local soap, local cinders fruit, leaves, stem, trunk. documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 134 and other products are gotten from different parts of this tree. b. wood from trunk is used to produce timber for furniture making. 43 raffia palm raph ia farini fera ńgwọ̀ ńgwọ̀ a. serves as an alcoholic drink. b. the wine is good for the eyes. stem 44 bamboo bam busa vulga ris ọ́tọ̄sị̄ àchàr à a. for making ladder and building stem awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 135 wooden fence. b. sticks are also used for firewood and to support buildings 45 mulberr y/iroko milic ia excel s ọ́jị̀ ọ́jị̀ for producin g timber used in making furniture of all kinds trunk 46 oak tree brac hyste gia euryc oma áchị́ áchị́ a. used as thickener for soup. b. treats diabetes and helps wound to heal faster. c. for producin g timber seed trunk documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 136 47 silk cotton ceib a perita ndra ákpụ́ ákpụ ́ used to produce wood (lintel) for supportin g walls. trunk 48 african tulip tree neub ouldi a laevi s ògírìsì ógìrìs hì used for boundary demarcat ion. trunk 49 tola priori a balsa mifer a ágbā ágbā used in making furniture. trunk 50 mahoga ny swiet enia ósísí màhọ́g ānị̀ óghùr ù used for producin g timber used in making furniture of different kinds. trunk table 7 presents plants that are used to produce woods and furniture of various kinds. iroko, oak, silk cotton, tola, mahogany, palm trees and others are used to produce timber for furniture of different kinds such as chairs, tables, shelves, skeletal roofing, window and door awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 137 frames, ladder, pillars for yam barns, and so on. the sticks from bamboo tree are also used to make ladder, local fence, pillar support in buildings, and firewood. tulip tree usually serves as boundary demarcation between two lands. the drink from raffia palm is said to improve eyesight. palm wine and other by-products are gotten from palm trees. it is argued that no part of a palm tree goes to waste because they are put to use in their different forms. products such as oil, local soap, potash, local cinders, brooms, baskets, kernel, and so on can be gotten from palm tree. it serves economic purpose too as these products can be sold to earn a living. some plants serve as forage for livestock. the leaves and twigs of the following plants are used as forage for goats, sheep, cows, and pigs: cassava, palm tree, breadfruit tree, pawpaw, pumpkin, potatoes, bamboo, bitter leaves, avocado, groundnut and cam wood leaves. handcraft items like brooms, baskets, local trays, chewing sticks, and walking sticks are gotten from palm trees, coconut trees, bitter leaf stalk, tola tree and so on. 5. summary and conclusion the exploration of the traditional uses of plants among the achi people reveals that there are a lot of indigenous plants that are grown in the community. based on the findings of this study, it is evident that there exist plants indigenous to the achi people and these plants have different cultural, nutritional, and medicinal values. some of the plant names identified are the same with the standard igbo names. others vary with the standard igbo variant lexically and phonologically. the study concludes that the terms for these floras are unique to achi as some of them like àhúgbè/ǹshígbú ńkụ́tā 'basil/scent leaves', àhụ́hā 'garden egg', jígbọ́ọ̀ 'cassava', úgúgórìò 'bitter kola', àhụ́ èrè 'melon', àkpààkpà 'maize', ụ́kpàkàlàtà 'walnut', and others are distinctive when compared with the standard documentation of flora terms in achi variety of igbo – egenti & uche 138 igbo or other variants of the igbo language. the study further concludes that this aspect of the achi culture is endangered as most of the young native speakers are not able to identify the plants or their uses. also, the older speakers who possess this invaluable knowledge are dying without passing it on. this study focuses on fifty flora plants which did not cover all the indigenous plants that can be found in achi community. what this means is that further studies are recommended. references agbedo, c.u. & omeje, g.o. (2010). linguistic strategies for safeguarding and reviving endangered languages in nigeria. in the nigeria linguistics festschrift series. no.8 (121128). agbedo, c.u. & omeje, g.o. (2008). endangered languages in nigeria: linguistic strategies for safeguarding and reviving them. in the nigeria linguistics festschrift series. no.7 (541-552). aiyeloja, a.a. & bello, o.a. (2006). ethnobotanical potentials of common herbs in nigeria: a case study of enugu state. educational research and review vol. 1 (1) 16-22. eme, c.a., mbagwu, d.u. & mmadike, b.i. (2016). igbo proverbs and loss of metaphors. prof. ezenwa-ohaeto resource center journal of arts and humanities (preorcjah) vol. 1 (1). emenanjo, e. n. (2008). how many nigerian languages are safe? in ndimele, o.m, i.i.l. udoh, & o. anyanwu (eds.). critical issues in the study of linguistics, languages and literatures in nigeria: a festschrift for c.m.b. brann. port harcourt: linguistics association of nigeria in collaboration with m&j grand orbit communications ltd, 553 570 awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 139 gippert, j., himmelmann, p. & mosel, u. (2006). essentials of language documentation. berlin: mouton de gruyter. himmelmann, p. (2006). language documentation: what is it and what is it good for? in gippert, j., himmelmann, p. and mosel, u. 2006. essentials of language documentation. berlin: mouton de gruyter. mamah, g.j., eze, j.u., odeh, b.e., & nwosu, i.j. (2021). documentation of endangered dialect of the igbo language: issues of greetings in enugu ezike dialect. journal of language teaching and research. vol. 12 (1) 120 126. nkamigbo, l. c. & agu, c.n. (2015). documentation of dirge songs among the amokwe orji people of nigeria. in nkamigbo, l.c. and asadu, f.o. (eds.) current issues in linguistics, languages and gender studies. nkpor: brystevand publishers. nwachukwu, p.a. (1995). tone in igbo syntax. studies in igbo linguistics 2. nsukka. nwaozuzu, g.i. (2017). dialects of the igbo language, nsukka: mekyno computer ventures. okpoko, p.u. & emeafor, o.f. (2015). indigenous plants and their uses among nsukka people. journal of tourism and heritage studies. vol. 7 (1) 40-57. ubah, e.d. (2015). documentations of erigwara mbaise: the first step. in nkamigbo, c.i. and asadu, f.o. (eds.). current issues in linguistics, languages and gender studies. nkpor: brystevand publishers. williamson, k. (1984). practical orthography in nigeria. heinneman educational books (nigeria) limited. 42 conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign language by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learners okoye chinenye loyce1, ezeudo chika2 & makinde peter oyewole3 nnamdi azikiwe university, awka clo.okoye@unizik.edu.ng1 chikaezeudo@gmil.com2 po.makinde@unizik.edu.ng3 abstract the present study is set out to compare the conceptualization of animal names in the learning of chinese as a foreign language (fl) by advanced igbo and yoruba speaking learners. the study will make use of language awareness (la) theory by hawkins (1984), in order to explore the importance of sociolinguistic competence in language learning. the notion is that possession of a huge quantity of vocabulary and knowledge of grammatical rules do not necessarily lead to the proficiency in a language, learners should be aware of the correct meaning of words in transferring intended meaning and use well-formed sentences along with society norms in order to avoid any misunderstanding, communication breakdown, or wrong judgements. the data contain a list of 60 animal names, presented in chinese, igbo, and yoruba with their english gloss. the objective is to examine some of the communicative features of the animal names, investigate how the animal names are conceptualized for better understanding of foreign language learning, and also determine the level of similarities and differences between the language groups and cultures in using animal names in terms of meaning. the results of mailto:clo.okoye@unizik.edu.ng mailto:08033264516.%20chikaezeudo@gmil.com mailto:po.makinde@unizik.edu.ng awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 43 the finding show that animal names can be helpful in vocabulary building; for derivation of noun, verbs and adjectives. they provide insights into how language determines the cognitive and sociocultural dimensions of a specific linguistic community. the study proves that animal names can be regarded as one possible means to learn the cultures of different people, the results prove that the semantic connotations of animal imagery used to describe human beings and their characteristics is of wide if not universal use. furthermore, the results show that some of the animal names in these languages have attained the status of national icon. this paper seeks to address the gap in the conceptualisation of animal names in the teaching/learning of chinese as foreign language by the advanced igbo and yoruba speaking learners. keywords: foreign language, learning/teaching, conceptualization of animal names, igbo, yoruba, chinese 1. introduction it has become increasingly evident that the awareness of the language structure may be necessary for students, but they need also the pragmatic awareness. pragmatic awareness includes such aspects as the knowledge about language use in the target culture, semantics, sociolinguistics and social psychology. thus, from the point of view of social interaction/sociolinguistics; language, interaction and culture are interrelated aspects that are central to language awareness activities for l2 learners (dufva, 1994). conceptualization of animal names for communicative purpose in different languages and cultures require pragmatic reasoning in order to understand them. bruner (1975:65) notes that “the primacy of syntax may be a valuable axiom for linguists, but the primacy of semantics is a better axiom for psychology’’. this is more so as conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign languages by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learnersokoye, ezudo & makinde 44 animal names are used with certain communicative aim that surpasses their linguistic form and meaning. animal names can be helpful in vocabulary building; for derivation of nouns, verbs and adjectives. they also provide insights into how language determines the cognitive and socio-cultural dimensions of a specific linguistic community. the current study is on the conceptualization of animal names in the learning of chinese as foreign language by igbo and yoruba l1 speakers. the study excludes the beginners and intermediate learners because conceptualization of animal names is better understood by the advanced learners of a fl. this is very timely as need for teaching/learning of chinese increased through the introduction of chinese studies at nnamdi azikiwe university by the establishment of confucius institute (ci) and the department of chinese studies in 2006 and 2013/2014 academic sessions respectively. since igbo, yoruba and chinese belong to different language families, scholars have tried to highlight those areas that constitute learning difficulties to l1 igbo and yoruba chinese learners. from the existing literature, it is obvious that few crosslinguistics studies were conducted between different languages such as the present study. hence the study will contribute to filling the gap in the literature on conceptualization of animal names in foreign language learners on the one hand, and enriching the crosslinguistic studies between languages like igbo, yoruba and chinese on the other hand. igbo is one of the three major indigenous languages of nigeria. the igbo live in the southeast of nigeria in the states of abia, anambra, ebonyi, enugu and imo, as well as in parts of delta and rivers states. igbo is classified as a niger-congo language (williamson and bleach 2000). the term ‘igbo’ refers to both the awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 45 people and the language. igbo is a tone language and like any other language is very rich in animal words. yoruba language is also one of the three major languages spoken in the south-western nigeria. yoruba language ‘has very many dialects with varying degree of mutual intelligibility’ (arokoyo 2010, akinlabi and adeniyi 2017). yoruba is a tone language; it is also a member of the benue-congo branch of the niger-congo language family. most recent classification by adeniyi (2010) classified yoruba dialects into seven (eastern yoruba, north–eastern yoruba, central yoruba, south-western yoruba, western yoruba, south-eastern yoruba and north-west yoruba). the standard yoruba is the form that every yoruba can speak and it serves as a common heritage of the yoruba people. igbo and yoruba were said to be related based on the fact that they are both tone languages and of the niger-congo language family. they are now different languages because they are no longer mutually intelligible and the original parent language, the protoyoruba/igbo language no longer exists. chinese on the other hand is the official language of the people’s republic of china and taiwan. it is one of the four official languages of singapore and one of the six official languages of the united nations. it belongs to the sino–tibetan language family. chinese include varieties from eight main dialect groups; putonghua (mandarin), yue (cantonese), wu (shanghainese), minbei (fuzhou), minnan (taiwanese), xiang, gan and hakka. the northern/mandarin dialect covers three fourths of china’s territory and includes two thirds of its population. standard chinese is known as ‘putonghua’ which literally means ‘common speech’. putonghua uses the dialect of beijing as the basis for its pronunciation. chinese is now one of the most widely used living languages; with more than conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign languages by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learnersokoye, ezudo & makinde 46 a billion native speakers worldwide yip and don (2016), cited in okoye (2021). the significance of this study is to contribute to raising teacher and student’s awareness in the cross-cultural differences in animal names between the three languages and cultures, improving the teaching/learning of chinese as fl, igbo and yoruba. this will enable the teachers/learners to understand the conceptualization of these animal names in their own culture and in the culture of others. also help in solving the misunderstanding caused by these differences and cope with metaphoric use of animal names in an easy way. moreover, this study is hoped to be a modest contribution to fill the academic gap in the area of conceptualizations of animal names in culture and cognition. 1.1 research questions the following research questions will help in guiding the current study; • what are some of the animal names in igbo, yorùbá and chinese lexicons? • how are these selected animal names conceptualized in these languages? • what similar/different cultural/world-views exists in these languages through the animal names? 2. literature review recent studies show a great surge of interest in the conceptualization and social significance of animal names. there have also been investigation on connotative meanings and correlations between animal names/expressions and human attributes. olátejù (2005) undertakes a study of animal metaphors in the yorùbá language with a view to highlighting the stylistic and awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 47 communicative potentials of these metaphors. both the domestic and wild animals involved in metaphors and their individual distinctive characteristic features which motivate their metaphorical interpretations are highlighted. the study also discusses the sources of animal metaphors, which are said to be located in three areas, namely: the yorùbá naming culture, animal characteristic habits and behaviour, and the yorùbá poetry. a two-dimensional approach is adopted: stylistic and cultural. the study notes that stylistically animal metaphors contribute to aesthetics and poetic elegance of literary texts through their lexical tones, which can be stylistically manipulated. further, animal metaphors are also used as a novel or additional mode of expression in both literary and routine communication. although olátejù’s work is an examination of animal metaphors in yorùbá, it informs the current study on the nexus between metaphor and culture. that is, metaphors are founded on culture and often serve as a good resource for the understanding of cultural beliefs. in his comparative study of animal-related proverbs in english and chinese, jie (2008) notes that some conceptual metaphors are universal and the universality can be found at the generic level; animals have their own features and cultural connotations in different languages. he concludes that it is only when people are acquainted with the cultural conventions and long customs can they begin to understand the cultural differences in animal proverbs between the two languages. according to him, there are cases where a particular expression is in correspondence with meaning and culture as noted in the example below: ‘you may lead a horse to the water, but you cannot make him drink’. in chinese, it also uses the same animal of “horse”. the proverb says,’ you may be acting in the best interests of the horse by taking conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign languages by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learnersokoye, ezudo & makinde 48 him to the trough, but if he doesn’t want to drink he is not going to’. this means that you can do your utmost to make a person share your views, yet there is a point beyond which he will not go. in this proverb, “a person who doesn’t want to accept others’ opinion” is understood in terms of “a horse that doesn’t want to drink”. the proverb applies to the conceptual metaphor of people are animals. metaphor • source --------------------target • a horse ----------------------a person the study concludes that the use of cih in analysing animal proverbs can help in overcoming difficulties in experimental works on proverbs and studying proverbs as utterances. the study of rashidi and ghaedi (2013) is on contrastive discourse analysis of persian and english animal proverbs. they aim at the analysis of the discoursal features of persian and english proverbs relating to cat, dog, and donkey and the thematic classes they belong to. they adopt busman’s (1995) model of prototype alongside schmitz’s (1983) isomorphism to full or lack of isomorphism between persian and english proverbs relating to animals. the findings reveal among other things that animal proverbs in english show that society, economy, politics, prototypes are much more dominant than law, belief or religion prototypes as found in an iranian context or themes on culture in general. also the social prototype falls into thematic categories of behaviour, working, experience, performance and way of life. furthermore, both cultures have a common working prototype collectively; in conclusion, the study observes that proverbs in both societies are treasures of wisdom. also, as it concerns similarities (full isomorphism), has to do with linguistic universals. since metaphor awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 49 is universal, and a lot of concepts are similar in both languages, the similarities in animal proverbs can be explained away by this fact. also, differences or lack of isomorphism are traced to differences in culture, beliefs and values of persian and english speakers. hence, translators have to be bicultural to understand and translate properly the heavy semantic load that is culture specific in some proverbs. liu’s (2013) work is a comparative study of english and chinese animal proverbs from the perspective of metaphors. the study is carried out from three (3) main aspects: the same animal produce the same association and metaphorical meaning; the same animal produce different emotions and associations; different animal produce the same association and metaphorical meaning. his findings show that animal proverbs are an important part of language, an indispensable element of culture. the comparison of the 3 types of animal proverbs shows the similarities and differences in living environment, language styles, religious beliefs, values, thinking mode and aesthetics of the two cultures. the researcher concludes that research has deepened the understanding of people in different cultures who exhibit similarities or differences of different cultures by employing similar or different proverbs. understanding this phenomenon is helpful for us to promote communications and overcome language exchange barriers. sameer’s (2016) study is a comparison of english and arabic proverbs on dogs and horses. the study uses elected model gathering approach of lakoff & turner (1989), and hsieh’s (2006) approach of semantic molecules. the focus is on a cognitive, social and pragmatic view in order to establish that metaphoric and metonymic –mappings are cognitive mechanism which yield sets of explicature and form the origin of implicature. the findings reveal that in both languages, the proverbs have the same functions and refer to the same intended meaning; thereby implying the same conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign languages by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learnersokoye, ezudo & makinde 50 mental mechanism, for metaphor and metonymy. hence, it can be said that both dogs and horses have nearly the same semantic molecules in both languages. they indicate the same contents, that is, dogs’ proverbs usually indicate something bad and scruffy while those containing horse expressions indicate something good and noble. okoye‘s (2021) study is on ‘a domain-based comparative analysis of igbo and chinese animal-related proverbs. the study employs both the conceptual metaphor theory (cmt) and cultural conceptual theory (cct) to investigate the cognitive mechanisms that are employed in the comprehension and the use of animal proverbs in igbo and chinese based on their metaphoric and sociocultural environments. the study concludes that it is only when people are acquainted with the cultural conventions and long customs can they begin to understand the cultural specificities in animal proverbs between the two languages. the present study is the conceptualization of animal names in the learning of chinese as a foreign language (fl) by igbo and yoruba speaking learners. the study will make use of the language awareness (la) approach by hawkins (1984). 3. research approach the research framework/approach adopted is language awareness (by hawkins 1984). it originated in the united kingdom. language awareness is neither a methodology nor a theory of learning. rather, it may be understood as a cover term for a wide range of approaches towards language learning and teaching that has been increasingly discussed and applied both within the li and l2 context during the past few years. the study will make use of language awareness (la) approach by hawkins (1984), in order to explore the importance of awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 51 sociolinguistic competence in language learning. the notion is that possession of a huge quantity of vocabulary and knowledge of grammatical rules do not necessarily lead to the proficiency in a language, learners should be aware of the correct meaning of words in transferring intended meaning and use well-formed sentences along with society norms in order to avoid any misunderstanding, communication breakdown, or wrong judgements. conceptualization of animal names for communicative purpose in different languages and cultures require pragmatic reasoning in order to understand them. this is so, as they show how different connotative meanings of animal names and correlations between them and human traits are culturally bounded. thus through language awareness approach, students in a foreign language classroom may be encouraged to think about the similarities and differences between languages. in this study, the conceptualization of animal names by foreign language learners reveals that it has become increasingly evident that learning of languages is not a matter of language only. matters of interaction and culture are integral elements of language learning/teaching. through this practical application of language awareness the level of language proficiency also increases. 3.1 methodology for the purpose of this study, sixty (60) animal names in igbo, yorùbá and chinese are collected and analyzed. the intention is to choose the most frequent animal names referred to in daily speech; this comprise of four-legged animals, birds, insects and amphibians. the study adopts a descriptive survey research design in the collection of both primary and secondary data. few adult native igbo, yorùbá and chinese speakers are used to generate primary data; also information was gotten from internet and libraries. since, conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign languages by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learnersokoye, ezudo & makinde 52 the researchers are l1 speakers of igbo and yorùbá languages; this enables us to employ our intuition/knowledge in generating primary data. the comparison was to give a detailed account of to what extent the igbo, yorùbá and chinese animal names share an underlying conceptualization and reflect different cultural beliefs. furthermore, the cross-cultural analysis was to highlight the different world views in the languages under study through animal names. 4. data presentation and analysis in the data in table 1 below, we present 60 animal names. some of these are selected for analysis. table 1: animal names in igbo, yoruba and chinese s/ n igbo yorub a chinese englis h gloss 1 ewu ewúré 羊yáng goat 2 ọ̀kụkọ ̀ adìe 鸡jī fowl 3 m̀gbàdà ẹgbín 羚 līng antelope 4 efi abo malu 牛niú cow 5 ị̀nyị̀nyà ẹṣ in 马 mă horse 6 ele àgbọ̀nrín 鹿lù deer 7 nkịtā ajá 狗gŏu dog 8 nkịtā ọhị̄ā ìkokò 鬣狗liè gŏu hyena 9 nwonogbō/bùusù/n wam̀ba ológbò 猫māo cat 10 atụrụ̄ àgùtàn 羊yáng sheep awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 53 11 èbùnè/èbùlè àgbò 公羊gōng yang ram 12 ezì ẹlédè 猪zhū pig 13 agwọ ejò 蛇shé snake 14 agụ̄ òwùrù amòtẹkù n 豹bào leopard 15 ǹgwèlè/ǹgwèrè alangba sìjiăoshé四 脚蛇 lizard 16 ejù/ejùnè/ejùlà ìgbín 螺luó snail 17 ọ̀dụ̀m kìnìún 狮子shīzi lion 18 enyi erin/àjàn àkú 大象dā xiāng elephant 19 àdakā elegbede 黑猩猩 hēixīngxin g chimpan zee 20 ọzọ̀dim̄gbā inaki, inoki 大猩猩 dà xīng xing gorilla 21 ènwè òbọ 猴子hóuzi monkey 22 eke erè, òjòlá 巨蟒 jùmăng python 23 tòlotòlo/tòrotòro tòlótòló 火鸡huŏjī turkey 24 ọ̀bọ̀gwụ̀ pẹpẹiyẹ 鸭yā duck 25 enyi nnụ̀nụ̀ ògòngò 鸵鸟tuó niăo ostrich 26 ndùrù/ndùli ẹyẹlé 鸽子gēzi pigeon 27 ọ̀sa ọkẹrẹ 松鼠 sōngshŭ squirrel conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign languages by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learnersokoye, ezudo & makinde 54 28 mbè ìjapá 龟guī tortoise 29 agụiyī ọni 鳄è crocodil e 30 awọ ̀ ọpọlọ 黾mĭn toad 31 m̀bàla/m̀bàra àkèré 蛤há frog 32 ùdènè/ùdèlè gunugu 鹫鸟jiù niăo vulture 33 arụrụ ikan, ikamudu 白蚁báiyĭ white ant 34 ùgò idì 鹰yīng eagle 35 agbịsị̀ tanpepe, kokoro dudu 蚂蚁măyĭ black ant 36 ụ̀kpànà ẹlẹtẹ 蜢mĕng grasshop per 37 anwụntà èfọn 蚊子wén zi mosquito 38 nkwọ àwòdì, àṣ á 鸢yuān kite 39 idìdè ekolo 蚯蚓qiūyĭn earth worm 40 òkoǹ gònò dakodako 螳táng praying mantis 41 ùdudō alántakù n 蜘蛛zhīzhū spider 42 akpị̀ àkeke 蝎子xiēzi scorpion 43 ìlòkòlòị̀bụbā labalábá 蝴蝶húdié butterfly 44 chịǹchị̀ ìdun 臭虫chòu chóng bed bug 45 aṅụ̄ oyin 蜂fēng bee awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 55 46 ijījī eṣ inṣ in 蝇子yíngzi house fly 47 m̀bụzụ ̀ ìrẹ 蟋蟀xī shuài cricket 48 òkpò aràn 虷gān worm 49 ụ̀chịchā/ọ̀chịchā áyán 蟑螂zhānglá ng cockroac h 50 ụsụ àdán 蝙蝠biānfú bat 51 òtù kpokpo akoko 啄木 鸟zhuómùn iăo wood pecker 52 azụ̀ ẹja 鱼yú fish 53 nyanwụrụedè kọlọkọlọ 狐狸húli fox 54 ugwùmagànà agemon, ògà 避疫bìyì chamele on 55 ìkwìkwiī òwìwí 猫 头鹰mīotóu yíng owl 56 ewii/ òke bèkeè ehoro 兔子tùzi rabbit 57 ọgbakụlụ tanisanko 蜈蚣 wúgong centiped e 58 esu okun 千足虫 qiānzúchón g milliped e 59 ndùrù/ndùli ẹyẹlé 鸽子gēzi pigeon 60 agụ òwùlù ìkookò 狼láng wolf conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign languages by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learnersokoye, ezudo & makinde 56 4.1. data analysis 4.1.1 semantic connotation of some selected animal names/expressions animal names/expressions explore the semantic interaction in the cultural backgrounds within different societies. there is an interconnection between semantic molecules and these animal names as they serve as semantic contributors in cultural domains, e.g. ‘cat’ for women in german (hsieh 2006). also, various acts of speech in the form of animal names/expressions reveal people’s thoughts. this, in essence demonstrates different mentalities as well as the igbo and yorùbá speakers’ group-centric and chinese speakers’ individualistic modes of thought. in igbo, yorùbá and chinese, the semantic connotation of the following animal names, such as; dog, goat, tiger and lion refers to a wide range of positive and negative associative meanings which most of the words inherently carry with them. igbo: nki̟ta (dog) in the igbo culture, “dogs” are variously perceived as taboo, a dirty animal, meat to quench hunger or as item for rituals, experienced, happy, faithful, enduring, patience etc ewu (goat) a stupid person, a lecherous man, a womanizer, seducer, adulterer, pervert, loser, fornicator, sensualist, wanton etc. o̟du̟m (lion) connotes strength, ruthless, fearless, and a bold person yorùbá: aja (dog), just as in the igbo language, dog is perceived as a promiscuous animal but in the hands of a hunter, just as in igbo and other cultures, dogs are useful animal based on their alertness, sightedness when it comes to hunting. ewure (goat) = semantically depicts stubbornness, a person could be said to be a goat if such a one is stubborn awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 57 e̟kùn (tiger); courageous, bold as in “ọmọ ekùn ni e” meaning a courageous person kìnìún (lion); is seen as the king of all animals, a very strong person. chinese: 狗gŏu (dog); from the socio-cultural point of view, the dog is useful for hunting, guarding the home; it is mainly kept outside the home, as it is considered to be a dirty animal. the word ‘dog’ in the cultures is perceived as rude and insultive. some of the positive connotations are, experienced, happy, faithful, enduring, patience etc. 羊yáng (goat); the chinese worldview about the word羊 connotes positive traits such as peace, success and auspicious, co-operate better under leadership, modest, obedient among its negative meanings are; timid, docile, lack will-power, weak, shy, like to depend on others, irresponsible etc. 狮子shīzi (lion) is perceived as powerful, courageous, and fierce. 4.2 animal names in metaphor animal metaphors map different metaphoric expressions from the source to the target domain. they are used to describe inferior or undesirable human traits and habits. kövecses (2002) notes that much of human behaviour seems to be metaphorically understood in terms of animal behaviour, that is, animals as metaphors for our fears, aspirations, and desires and our physical and emotional and spiritual connections with the animal’. this has implications in the people are animal conceptual metaphor in which the source domain of animals is mapped into the target domain of humans. the linguistics expressions related to animals get their meaning when ‘…animals were personified first, and then, the ‘human basics conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign languages by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learnersokoye, ezudo & makinde 58 animal characteristics’ were used to understand human behaviour’ examples: igbo: ńki ̟́tā gbọ́kátá ụ ̄jā, yá tàá àtà kà éwèé mārā nà ézē di ̟̀ yá ń’ọ́nụ̄. when the dog has barked for some time, it should try biting so that people will know that it has teeth. metaphor source --------------------target ńkí̟tā, a dog barking ----------------------a person’s idle threat barking is viewed as undesirable when it is not backed with attack on the enemy. it is pointless to make idle threats. hence, a person who makes excessive threats is seen as a dog barking if he/she does not attack. íhé ọ̀kụ́kọ ̄ bù ḿmírī àchụ́ di ̟̀ yá ḿkpà. that which the chicken is chasing under the rain is important. metaphor source --------------------target ọ̀kụ́kọ ̄, chicken ----------------------committed person the chicken is chasing that which is important under the rain. this is similar to a person who is committed to an important task, without minding the circumstances. yoruba: aja ti yoo sanu ki n gbo fere ode. the dog that will be lost never hears the hunter’s whistle. metaphor source --------------------target awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 59 aja, dog -----------a disobedient person this metaphorically means that a disobedient child/person will never take to correction. adie funfun ko mo ara re lagba. the white chicken does not realise its age. metaphor source --------------------target adie funfun, white chicken -----------an elderly person this means that an older person is supposed to respect himself. gbogbo alangba lo d’anu dele, a ko mo eyi t’inu nrun/ all lizards lie flat on their stomach, therefore it is difficult to determine which has a stomach ache. metaphor source --------------------target gbogbo alangba, all lizards -----------people with different problems meaning: everyone looks the same on the outside but all have different problems they are dealing with that you do not know about. ekùn ọkọ síjúwọlá meaning tiger, husband of sijuwola. metaphor source --------------------target ekùn, tiger -----------a strong, fierce, daring person metaphorically, sijuwola is predicated as ekun, the tiger for possessing a strong, fierce, daring attribute. chinese: 受伤的山羊不是快乐的山羊. shòushāng de shānyáng bù shì kùàilè de shòushāng. an injured goat is not a happy goat. conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign languages by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learnersokoye, ezudo & makinde 60 metaphor source --------------------target 受伤的山羊,an injured goat ----------------------a person denied justice act of injustice is a very objectionable act. the same goes for a person who has been denied justice, he/she will not be happy because of the bad treatment. 有劳得奖。yo ̆u láo de jiăng. a good dog deserves a good bone. metaphor source --------------------target 有劳得奖, a good dog ----------------------a good person being good is worth a reward. being good is a dog behaviour that is as desirable as is a similar human behaviour because both are worth a reward. 4.2.1 animal names in personal/given names some personal names are derived from animal names that traditionally convey symbol of strength, heroism, or greatness. some are nicknames given by friends or well-wishers in form of compliment for their achievements. examples; igbo: • ogbuagū – the killer of leopard. • lionodumking of animals, totemic animal for strength, agility, boldness, and courage, used in metaphor, adages, similes, and proverbs to illustrate positive energy and abilities like omekagu. (see okoye, uguru &okorji 2016) yoruba: unlike to the igbo language, yoruba does not have animal names in personal/given names, rather animal names in personal/given names awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 61 are metaphorically contextualized. therefore, the contextual situation/condition under which animal metaphors are used is of paramount importance. the usage and understanding of an animal metaphor involves some perception of attitudes, experiences or dispositions of both the speaker and the addressee. animal metaphors appear to be more difficult compared with ordinary metaphors. for example, when a child is called or referred to as ‘eranko’ (animal) the meaning that is immediately available to him is [human], only to discover later when being told or prompted that other meanings are possible, e.g. [stubborn; deserving beating with stick]. • amotekun • chinese: 龟 guī tortoise is the 9th of the 12 animals in the chinese zodiac. many parents try to give birth in a year of the monkey; they believe that this will make their babies clever. the saying, ‘your kid is like a monkey’, is perceived as praise’. it is considered as a symbol of wisdom, endurance, wealth and long life 望子成龙(hope a son/child will become a dragon, meaning ‘long for a child to succeed in life. 4.2.2 animal names in traditional folklore/tales in igbo and yoruba tales, tortoise is the trickster symbol which is always associated with cunny, wisdom, and fast thinking, intelligent, clever, an unreliable person, ingratitude. in chinese, the monkey is prominent in folklores. according to xin (2018), ‘this is because sun wukong (the monkey king) of the novel ‘the journey to the west ‘was able to freely go to the dragon palace and suppress the dragon king at his will, with fishermen praying to the wooden monkey figures-images of the monkey king for safe voyages. the common saying is ‘shihou (stone monkey) comes with blessings of conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign languages by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learnersokoye, ezudo & makinde 62 safety since ancient times. in the current age of internet, the monkey has become a popular icon in the internet of china, for example; youxi monkeys is ‘a hot comic figures on the internet used in qq chatting pictures, comics, animated short films and computer games. also in the screen art, the traditional monkey opera has been adapted to both big and small screens, in animation, paper –cutting art, and ink-wash painting, scientific and documentary films are also done about monkeys. also visible in new year paintings and also in the folk handicraft works used for blessings. simply put, the monkey exists everywhere’. 4.2.3 symbolic animal names in igbo and yoruba cultural worldviews, monkey known as ‘enwe’ and ‘ijapa’ is seen as the symbol of wisdom, longevity, cunning, clever, endurance, peace, patience, slow, steady, stable, security, orderliness. it does not react crazily or do anything on impulse. olátúnji (1984: 51) defines metaphor as a linguistic situation in which “an object, action or situation is described in a terminology proper to another”. among the yorubas, ijapa (tortoise) is described as a cunning and clever animal. there is a saying: ijapa ologbon ewe meaning tortoise is a crafty animal depicting tortoise as a wise animal. in igbo land, enwe (tortoise) is one of the animals that many communities hold sacred, worship as well as forbid anybody from harming or killing. according to nwokedi (2016); ‘the monkey is accompanied by a totemic belief, different communities in igboland have their totems which they regard as sacred animals, as such, and they don’t kill them. they are oral tradition handed down from the ancient generation to the next generation’ in parts of some states (lagwa in abor mbaise in imo, akpugoeze in oji-river in enugu state, akwa ibom and awka in anambra state), sclater’s monkey is not killed or eaten owing to social taboos… in akpugoeze, awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 63 monkeys are not harmed because they are considered the property of two shrines/deities. in lagwa monkeys are unharmed because they are said to protect the residents during the slave trade or war time, monkeys have totemic affiliation with the community, and for instance, the throne chair of the traditional ruler of lagwa is carved with the images of monkeys’. according to chinese belief, ‘龟gui’ (tortoise) is an auspicious animal; it is a symbol of good luck’. the tortoise is one of the four sacred creatures in chinese culture, others includes the phoenix, the dragon, and the ky-lin (unicorn likeness). chinese believe that the tortoise has the secrets of heaven and earth within its body. it is known to possess oracular powers; also the shell is believed to hold the mysteries of the future. that is why many consider it wise to wear a tortoise amulet for good luck. tortoise shells were used in ceremonies to predict the future during chinese’s shang dynasty (1766-1122 bc). it has remained the same millions of years; it rarely dies from disease and can go without food for more than a year. being one of the animals that has endured longest on earth, it is considered as a symbol of wisdom, endurance, wealth and long life. chinese people love monkeys for so many reasons; the monkey (with a big ‘m’) is the 9th of the 12 animals in the chinese zodiac. many parents try to give birth in a year of the monkey; they believe that this will make their babies clever. the saying, ‘your kid is like a monkey’, is perceived as praise’. xin (2018) also affirms that ‘the monkey is regarded as an intelligent, smart, lively and brave animal. in traditional chinese culture, the monkey is much adored and admired. there has been a kind of culture in china surrounding the monkey, which is an indispensable component of chinese culture and is seen in various aspects, including literature, arts, history, folk customs, and daily conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign languages by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learnersokoye, ezudo & makinde 64 life’. in the chinese zodiac, which is a very ancient part of chinese culture, the monkey is the ninth sign of the zodiac, called ‘shen hou’. ‘shen’ belongs to the metal element in the history of wuxing (meaning ‘five elements’, referring to wood, fire, earth, metal and water in traditional chinese philosophy and medicine, hence the name ‘jin hou’ as ‘jin’ means ‘metal’ in classical chinese literature’. fu (2018) notes that in chinese literature ‘monkey sounds like ‘high official’, in chinese. the chinese character ‘猴 hóu’, ‘monkey’ is pronounced the same as ‘候hou’, ‘high official’ and the association dates back hundreds of years into feudal times. also in ancient chinese painting, the imagery of monkey as mobility in animal painting was visible in the following; a monkey hanging a seal on a maple tree symbolizes getting promoted to a very high position with an official seal. a monkey riding on the back of another monkey symbolizes retaining a high official standing from one generation on to another. • a monkey riding a horse symbolizes getting promoted quickly. • furthermore, fu notes that in traditional chinese mythology, ‘the mythical monkey as a protecting god is all pervading and all powerful, many traditional homes use the images of the monkey (god) as a talisman of protection. 4.2.4 animal names in gender-biased language igbo, yoruba and chinese present the portrayal of women and men with negative meanings in genderbiased words/sentences such as; stupid, timid, docile, lacking will-power,, weak, shy, nagging, noisy like to depend on others, irresponsible etc. examples of animal names in such gender-biased language are presented below: igbo: awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 65 naakwa ka o ̟ku ̟ko̟ cackling like a hen. meaning noisy and constantly complaining. in igbo expressions meaning of hen is normally associated with noise, hence, a woman is compared with a hen, in relation to behaviour, in that ‘hen’ constantly produce a sound similar to the one produced by several women talking. o̟ na-eme ka ewu behaviour like a goat. meaning a stupid and foolish woman. agbo̟ ka nki ̟ta – barking like a dog, meaning a nagging woman. alaru u ̟la ka edi – to sleep like a sloth, meaning lazy and idle woman, ari ̟ ka éjùlà – to craw like a snail, used to refer to a sluggish. yorùbá: in yoruba language, the following animal names are gender-biased: aja (dog) promiscuity for a male ekun (tiger) – strong, fierce, daring male ‘ẹlédè’ (pig ) –used for a dirty male chinese: 她性格温顺善良尽享一只小绵羊.tā xingngé wēnshùn shànliáng, jùxiàng, yìzhī xiāo miányáng – she is as gentle as a sheep 牝鸡司晨‘pìn jī sī chén’ has the meaning, ‘a hen heralding the break of day’ that is, a woman ruling the house. also, women meddling in politics. the hen stands for the wife/women especially the inquisitive or talkative woman and a usurper, whereas the cock refers to the husband/men. 一馬不被兩鞍 a horse doesn’t have two saddles, meaning ‘a widow does not remarry’ conceptualization of animal names in the learning of foreign languages by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learnersokoye, ezudo & makinde 66 嫁雞隨雞，嫁狗隨狗; when a woman is married to a rooster, she has to stick with a rooster; when she is married to a dog, she has to stick with a dog 河東獅吼 lioness roar, meaning ‘having a shrewish wife’. 5. summary of findings and conclusion the study examined the conceptualization of animal names in the learning of fl by the advanced igbo and yoruba chinese learners. having done this, it establishes the semantic connotations of some selected animal names, animal names in metaphoric expressions, animal names in personal/given names, animal names in traditional folklores/tales, symbolic animal names and animal names in genderbiased expressions in igbo and yorùbá vis a vis chinese (fl). the comparison was to give a detailed account of to what extent the igbo, yorùbá and chinese animal names share an underlying conceptualization and reflect different cultural beliefs. furthermore, the cross-cultural analysis was to highlight the different world views in the languages under study through animal names. in conclusion, the study has been able to achieve the objectives of the study by answering the research questions. in answer to the first question, animal names have been established in the lexicons of igbo, yorùbá and chinese (see table 1 above). also for the second and third research questions, the conceptualization of animal names by igbo and yorùbá chinese learners have been highlighted; animal names are used semantically to connote both negative and positive attributes of humans. animal names are also used in metaphoric expressions, folklores, gender – biased languages, usually intended to satirize or rebuke. finally animal names reflect the different/similar cultural world-views and describe human characters. language awareness approach to fl teaching has awka journal of linguistics and languages, special edition 1, 2022 67 drawn the attentions of the teachers/students to the fact that conceptualization of animal names for communicative purpose and proficiency in different languages and cultures require pragmatic reasoning in order to understand them. finally, further research that involves broader based data across more languages is recommended in order to establish a more indepth results. however, it is hoped that this modest study has contributed to the expanding of knowledge about the topic under study and has provided a body of data for future research in the area. references akinlabi, a, &adeniyi, h. 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