As we have already mentioned earlier, the origin of english language in nigeria makes it start from the colonial period. This must have been at some period before the atlantic slave trade. It is chosen to be the official language partially because people of some parts speak english because of the colonies ruled by the british which came to an end in the year 1960. English language map showing the use of the english language as a national, primary, or widely spoken language in countries around the world. However, nigerias most diverse feature is its people. In 1971, william tubman, liberias president of 27 years, died while in office. Lets bring some clear information to the history of english language in nigeria. The english pidgin, which bears no specific name, is estimated to be spoken by between a quarter and a fifth of the population in many official spheres much as in nigeria. Culture of nigeria history, people, clothing, traditions.
Nigeria s urban areas have grown steadily since independence from colonial rule was achieved in 1960. Nigeria, country located on the western coast of africa. From the 1500s to the 1800s, many people from the land now called nigeria and other parts of west africa were taken away and turned into slaves by europeans, and they were sent to work in the americas. It is chosen to be the official language partially because people of some parts speak english because of the colonies ruled. Prior to then, education was done informally, as children were taught tradition, culture, history, and the likes by their parents who were in turn taught by. However, nigeria s most diverse feature is its people. The history of mass communications is relatively short in the scope of world history. History of nigeria including historic regions, fulani and sokoto, british explorers, ss alburkah, trade and antislavery, british colonial rule, independence and secession, from oil wealth to disaster. The kings and chieftains were the custodians of tradition and gatekeepers of some significant events in the history of the people they preside over.
Books were not reproduced for the masses, however, until the invention of. We know, that such kind of people tries to bring some new knowledge to those. From the start of the 800 bc to 200 ad, the jos plateau followed the neolithic nok culture. This represents the very first news media that was published in nigeria and it was published in the southwest. The christian missionaries who came from great britain introduced formal western education to nigeria, just before the middle of the 19 th century.
In fact the trade union movement in nigeria has been described and documented as one of the oldest in black africa. This article examines the role of english in nigeria as a medium of communication, political activitiessocial and academic guidance from its historical perspective, and the duration of gradual transition to the present status of bilingualism and its democratization of language in conformity with national unification. However, over the years the two groups joined and the terms americo liberian and congo were used interchangeably. English is the official language of nigeria, a former british protectorate. English is the official language in nigeria was made so to unite the country linguistically and culturally. Oct 14, 2019 english is the official language of nigeria, a former british protectorate. The english language, like all languages, traces its ultimate ancestry to a time predating the written word. Hence, english nigeria has come to brigde the gap between our mother tongue and the queens language through extensive teaching and practical tips on. Today the english language could be named as one of the most widely used languages in the world. Rating is available when the video has been rented. Nigeria and the roles of english language from historical perspectives. It is a second language because nigerians already had their first language or mother tongue l1 before the incursion of this foreign language called english into the country. The use of the english language in nigeria dates back to the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century when british merchants and christian missionaries. It will also help them understand how poorly informed the british were when they arrived in this area of africa, believing that they were bringing civilization to the people already living there.
This was the first time the land was known as nigeria in any form. The history of english in nigeria dates back to early 19th century when the colony was ruled by british empire. Nigeriapolicy development facility phase ii pdf ii dai, an international development company. As a result of this, there are many levels of english language in nigeria. At that time the inhabitants of britain spoke a celtic language. History of english language in nigeria and top 10 uses problems. Nigeria has a long history, with its roots in early civilisations of distinguished artistry.
Nigerian english, also known as nigerian standard english, is a dialect of english spoken in nigeria. The first phase is from the beginning of the 15c to the end of 18th c. Nigeria history students britannica kids homework help. Nis history the nigeria immigration service nis is the government agency that has been charged with the responsibility of migration management in nigeria. The history of english language in nigeria has started many years ago. English is the official language of nigeria, used in all government interactions and in staterun schools. Since history relies heavily on written documents as records of the past, it follows logically that the roots of language must be prehistoric. Ironically, it is also nigeria s dominant language, with the use of english being taught at various levels of the nigerian educational system prenursery schools, nursery schools, primary schools, secondary schools and tertiary institutions of learning. Nigeria contains more historic cultures and empires than any other other nation in africa. By the year 2000 bc, almost all the parts of nigeria were inhabited with people who knew the basics of growing food plants and herding animals. Brief history of english language in nigeria library gurus.
English belongs to the indoeuropean family of languages and is therefore related to most other languages spoken in europe and western asia from iceland to india. History and importance of english language in nigeria. The paper integrates nigerias colonial history in the larger picture of her political and economic underdevelopment and in the process suggests new explanation for underdevelopment and structural inequality in nigeria linked to colonial legacy and makes some policy. Prior to then, education was done informally, as children were taught tradition, culture, history, and the likes by their parents who were in turn taught by their own parents. Advent of english language in nigeria global academic group. However, it is believed that the first intimate contact between the british and some ethnic groupings in nigeria was in southern nigeria. Nigeria middle school world history and world geography. Nigeria was not left out in the worlds history of slave trading. Infoplease has everything you need to know about nigeria. It appears to be the second language in lots of countries. It originated in the 1960s when england was in control and. By 3000 bce, the plateau people probably the bantu people who later.
The earliest known civilization, called nok, existed near the jos plateau possibly as early as 800 bc. In a country with more than 250 individual tribal languages, english is the only language common to most people. Nigeria has a diverse geography, with climates ranging from arid to humid equatorial. History of english language in nigeria the christian missionaries who came from great britain introduced formal western education to nigeria, just before the middle of the 19thcentury. Archaeologists have found ceramic artifacts from this period but do not know much about the culture.
Toyin falola and matthew heaton describe their project as a general background survey of the broad themes of nigerias history from the beginnings of human habitation to the early twentyfirst century p. In conclusion, we tried to give a brief history of english language teaching. Categories assignments tags brief history of english language in nigeria pdf, discuss the place of english language in nigeria, domestication of english language in nigeria, english as a second language in nigeria, factors that gave rise to nigerian english, history of english language in africa, history of english language pdf free download. Tubmans open door economic policy brought a great deal of foreign investment at heavy price, as the divide widened between the prospering americoliberians benefiting from such investment and the rest of the. Currently, english is the official language in most african countries, which are the former colonies of great britain. Online shopping for nigeria history books in the books store. History of the english language carsonnewman college. Nigeria s population needed to learn english to be able to. The paper integrates nigeria s colonial history in the larger picture of her political and economic underdevelopment and in the process suggests new explanation for underdevelopment and structural inequality in nigeria linked to colonial legacy and makes some policy. The people of the nok culture made terra cotta sculptures and. Its coast in the south is located on the gulf of guinea in the atlantic ocean.
In this lesson, learn about the history of the young country of nigeria, which gained independence from britain in 1960. The plateau area around jos was a meeting point for cultural influences from the upper niger valley where agriculture developed independently as early as 5000 bce and from egypt. History of english language in nigeria and top 10 uses. In nigeria, basic education has been influenced greatly by these curriculum changes. Southern nigeria can be divided into two broad societies, namely, western and eastern societies. English has been one of the major languages in the world. Pdf on jan 1, 20, oreoluwa solomon and others published history of english language in nigeria find, read and cite all the research. English especially the variety known as nigerian pidgin english functions as a lingua franca in this multilingual country.
The exact date that english language usage started in nigeria is not certain. This book by falola and heaton, two experienced and now famed collaborators, is a remarkable new addition to the growing library on a general history of nigeria. Pdf islamic education in northern nigeria abdalla u. Trade unionism in nigeria is as old as colonisation in nigeria. English language is the interconnecting language amongst nigerians from different geopolitical zones and different ethnicities.
English language is termed as nigeria second language, it is being used as a communication tool by everyone in the country. The spectrum of english in nigeria ranges from standard english through a more general english whose structures are. I history and development of mass communications lauriethomas lee encyclopedia of life support systems eolss books are the oldest of the media, with the first known book written in egypt around 1400 b. After the british government assumed direct control of the royal niger companys territories, the northern areas were renamed the protectorate of northern nigeria, and the land in the niger delta and along the lower reaches of the river was added to the niger coast protectorate, which was renamed the protectorate of southern nigeria. It is being taught in schools from the prenursery down to. The first english language literature in nigeria the real indigenous literature in english was pioneered by the legendary amos tutuola in the 1950s.
His debut, the palmwine drinkard, published by faber in london 1952, kind of served as a monumental link in the transition to the western literary tradition. Central nigeria is the least inhabited part of the country but has been gaining importance since the new capital of abuja was built there in the late 20th century. The origin of english language in nigeria and its importance. But it managed to affect the nigerian culture so much that people can still see its influence. The history of the english language really started with the arrival of three germanic tribes who invaded britain during the 5th century ad. Once english dominance was established, the land became known as the colony and protectorate of nigeria. Islam reached nigeria through the borno empire between 1068 ad and hausa states. English language is a worldwide language, and its the means of communication in over 30% of all countries in the world. The oed faces an increasingly uphill struggle in its attempts to capture world english.
Nigeria settintiong, the competence of its users depends solely on their level of education. The english language is the language of education in nigeria ndimele 2006. Brief history of curriculum development in nigeria under the influence of curriculum changes, nigeria s education system has undergone a series of developments beginning as far back as 1842. If thats not enough, click over to our collection of world maps and flags. Numerous ancient african civilizations settled in the region that is today nigeria, such as the kingdom of nri, the benin empire, and the oyo empire. Apr 22, 2020 a history of nigeria is an impressive book, the more so because its ambitions initially appear straightforward. Dai works on the frontlines of international development. Southern nigeria is the countrys most economically developed region. Check out our country profile, full of essential information about nigeria s geography, history, government, economy, population, culture, religion and languages. The english language and sustainable development in nigeria.
Additionally, loanwords and collocations have emerged from the native languages of nigeria, which come from the need to express concepts specific to the culture of the nation. It happened that nigeria came under british colonization and english became her lingua franca. Profiting from the weaknesses and strengths of its predecessors, it treats not only nigerian politics, administration and economy but focuses also on culture and social history. The history of english language in nigeria answers. This paper traces the history of english language in nigeria, is unique role in international politics and examines the manner in which it has come to assume a. A history of nigeria by toyin falola cambridge core. This is a brief history of english language in nigeria. The first ones, who was able to share the language among nigerian natives were the christian missionaries. The origin of english language in nigeria and its importance legit.
The history of nigeria explained in 6 minutes 3,000 years of. Nigerians enjoyed a few years of democracy before rule by various military. A brief history of liberia international center for. Since its formation in nigeria over a century ago, it has transited. Even though some of them are less important than others, each of them is important to understand the difficulties and problems of teaching another language. In spite of the series of curriculum developments over the years, the nigerian education sector. The nigerian mass media started out with the publication of iwe iroyin. East africa this is a large area encompassing uganda, kenya and tanzania. These tribes, the angles, the saxons and the jutes, crossed the north sea from what today is denmark and northern germany. This dictionary of nigerian english was stimulated by some enquiries from the oxford english dictionary on words of putative west african origin. Precolonial nigeria this is a group project to help students realize that there were welldeveloped cultures in africa long before the arrival of europeans.
Pdf on jan 1, 20, oreoluwa solomon and others published history of english language in nigeria find, read and cite all the research you need on researchgate. History of nigeria history of newspapers in nigeria. The history of nigeria can be traced to prehistoric settlers nigerians living in the area as early as 1100 bc. For much of liberias early history, the congos were classed below the americo liberians. History of curriculum development in nigeria peakng. Nigeriapolicy development facility phase ii pdf ii dai. Still, stylistic devices are painted with all bright national and cultural specifics. This article examines the role of english in nigeria as a medium of. Nigeria history the area that is now nigeria has been inhabited for thousands of years. Trace the history of english language in nigeria answers.
History of english language in nigeria the christian missionaries who came from great britain introduced formal western education to nigeria, just before the middle of the 19 th century. Brief history of curriculum development in nigeria under the influence of curriculum changes, nigerias education system has undergone a series of developments beginning as far back as 1842. Adequate mastery of english language is a prerequisite for migrating and studying in most institution in the western world. Pdf the functions of english in nigeria from the earliest times to. Since history relies heavily on written documents as records of the past, it follows logically that the roots. Pdf history of english language in nigeria researchgate. By examining key themes such as colonialism, religion, slavery, nationalism, and the economy, the authors show how nigeria s history has been swayed by the. A second language is one that comes after ones primary language. Meanwhile, before the coming of the colonial masters, british merchants and missionaries who arrived in africa earlier had gone a long way to introduce the english language into the area that.
History of english language in nigeria through civilization. Nigeria, july 2008 2 of slaves flowed north across the sahara for a millennium, ending only at the beginning of the twentieth century. When every guiding and holding factors are scrutinized, the history and role of the english language in nigeria is something noteworthy. Hundreds of languages are spoken in the country, including yoruba, igbo, fula, hausa, edo, ibibio, tiv, and english. Slave trade in nigeria the true history explained oasdom.
History of nigerian literature everythinliterature. Over the years, the nis has witnessed series of changes since it was extracted from the nigeria police force npf in 1958. The word literally has been at the heart of a debate between prescriptivist and descriptivist attitudes towards dictionaries and the english language in general so an analysis of the words. Each of the methods we examine above is another step in language teaching. Galadima and turaki christianity in nigeria 87 factors which have contributed in shaping and defining the nature of the nigerian church. The english language in nigeria reflects the uniqueness of african reality and african mentality in its own way and, in general, the linguistic picture of the world of nigerians. Much of precolonial history in nigeria is the result of stories handed down from generation to generation. History of nigeria history of newspapers in nigeria history of english language in nigeria. Nigeria simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Library of congress federal research division country profile. Within nigeria, slavery was widespread and bore social implications that are still evident. Apart from the first three years of a childs life in the primary school that was mentioned. They date back as far as the 5th century bc, when communities living around the southern slopes of the jos plateau make wonderfully expressive terracotta figures in a tradition known now as the nok culture, from the nigerian village where these. Mar 21, 2020 nigeria, country located on the western coast of africa.
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