Local initiative in Nigerian Languages
Hello beloved steemians welcome to another wonderful day God has made us to see. I hope you are blessed today. Am @peckypeace. I'm new in Steem Schools, I'm glad to join this family. I want be share with you some educational tips in our local language.
Let me start by the definition of local initiative in Nigerian languages; it is a mean of inclusion and mobilization for the national and regional support. Here, advised governments to take adequate initiatives to motivate teachers and learners to enable people speak their language (mother tongue).
Nigeria as a multilingual nation has over 515 languages. Out of these languages, 505 are still living indigenous languages, 8 are extinct while 2 are second languages (Grimes 2000:166). Apart from the three major languages, Hausa, Yoruba and lgbo, majority of languages are endangered, largely due to lack of use, especially as they have no orthographies.
This is an urgent need for many of these languages to be reduced to writing, so that they can be both properly used and avoid getting moribund.
Dominant
As generally observed, one of the languages in a bilingual aspect may become dominant in the sense of being more frequently used.
For some Nigerian languages, it can be presumed that the English language has become more dominant than their languages because they use English practically both in private and public and some may not be able to read their mother tongue.
Many feel ashamed when they speak their mother tongue especially In Akwa Ibom State.
Parent are no more speaking their languages to children because they feel it is barbaric. So many children do not know how to speak their mother tongue, some don’t have interest in speaking.
Parent assume Ibibio is inferior, that why they can’t speak with them. If they hear children speaking they scourge them. This is how language get extinct.
Your mother Tongue is your identity. Be proud to speak it. It can help you out of trouble.
Local attire
Some Nigerians do not love to wear their traditional fashion and style anymore. Yoruba is the first people with their traditional dress all the time. Yoruba people is known by their local dress and language. They speak their language to their children. Igbo, Yoruba, Hausa people are proud of their culture.
Let’s come to Ibibio culture (dress).
This is my personal view: I have realized that so many Ibibio’s have abandoned their local dressing. People are now wearing suits and cover shoes, forgetting about their culture of dressing. I would love to invite you to department of linguistics and Nigerian Languages, You wouldn’t see any of my lecturers on suits. All of them dressed with their local materials. Even married women, no more using of wrappers again. Is short, miniskirt, long trouser, which is reigning now?
Local dishes
Many dishes that would have make us healthy and strong have been dumped. Mothers have fail to introduce their local dishes to their children to eat. Like afang, editan, atama, etidot, mbooro, ukom, ekpan nkwukwu, uson ikpon, asiaiwa, nkon, etc. These are the local foods. Introducing noodles, fried rice others fried food which is not helping. And teach our children how to cook these local foods.
In conclusion, learn how to speak your mother tongue so that it will not get moribund. Our local language is our identity.
Thank you for going through this post. I also encourage you to adapt to your culture and not to inherent peoples culture (western culture). Develop your own culture.
By @peckypeace.