Journal of Multidisciplinary Approaches in Science 7, Issue 1 (2019) 38-44

Journal of Multidisciplinary Approaches in Science (JMAS)

Journal homepage: https://jmas.biz/index.php ISSN: 2652-144X

The Role of in An ESL Context: A Case of Open Access

Ameen Akeem1,*, Noor Zainab Bt. Abdul Rasak2

1 School of Education, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310, Malaysia 2 Language Academy, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310, Malaysia

ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT

Pidgin has become a phenomenon over the years among different categories of users. Article history: It has become a very important medium of communication and it has helped to Received 15 March 2019 Received in revised form 19 June 2019 ameliorate the multilingual and multiethnic linguistic problems across the globe. Not Accepted 9 July 2019 minding its origin as an inferior language, pidgin has grown to become an equally Available online 23 July 2019 invaluable means of communication so much that in some places it has become creolized and decreolized. This paper thus intends to present the features and functions of pidgin which have made it assuming a position that is hitherto taken by other languages in the society. This paper in addition presents the processes involved in creolization and pidginization. Finally, the paper discusses the role of pidgin as a national language in Nigeria.

Keywords: Pidgin, Creole, National Language, Copyright © 2019 JMAS - All rights reserved Creolization. 1. Introduction Due to slavery and later free trade, about 11 million Africans were carried to the New World [4]. The results of the massive colonial and imperial intrusion in did indeed have linguistic consequences. For instance, since communication was a necessity, both between the slavers and their victims and among the enslaved themselves, a make shift type of language emerged in which each side used the grammatical structure of their native language while slavers, in addition, used vocabulary borrowed from the language of their masters: Portuguese, Dutch, English, etc. Consequently, reduced, contact languages came into existence. They are called and later Creoles. The purpose therefore here is to examine the concepts of Pidgins and Creoles, origins and functions.

2. Literature Review 2.1 Pidgin Etymologically, the term pidgin has been traced to Portuguese ocupacao, Yayo (South American) pidian, Portuguese pequeno and Hebrew pidjom. Creole, on the hand, has been linked to French Creole which itself derived from Portuguese crioulo and Spanish criollo.

______*corresponding author E-mail address:[email protected] (Ameen Akeem)

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Journal of Multidisciplinary Approaches in Science Volume 7, Issue 1 (2019) 38-44

A pidgin is a simplified form of a language. According to [13], pidgin and Creole lace certain linguistic features such as articles, grammatical inflections. [2] defined pidgins as simplified languages that occur from two or more languages. [7] added that a pidgin is nobody’s first language, has no native speakers and used as contact language. A pidgin is a marginal language which arises to fulfill certain restricted communication needs among people who have no common language. A Creole arises when a pidgin becomes the mother tongue of a speech community. These definitions satisfy a wide range of pidgin-creole scholars because they focus on the social and communicative role or these languages rather than the linguistic characteristics [10]. Linguistic features cannot be jettisoned entirely. Hence, according to [10], a small vocabulary drawn almost exclusively from one language in the contact situation, is characteristics of pidgins. So also is a structure which is less complex and less flexible than the structures of the languages in contact (p. 479). It needs to be stated that the vocabulary is not just drawn from any of the languages; it is drawn from the superordinate language, which is the language of the group with the most economic and political power and the language that has social prestige. One thing is further established here: the fact that the main vocabulary of a pidgin is usually that of the upper language points to the power relations that exist in pidginizing situations, and suggests that it is usually the lower or subordinate group which is required to do the major shifting and accommodation in such situation [10]. Morphological simplicity in pidgin and creoles can generally be taken to imply the following: a. A near-total absence of inflectional morphology b. Little or no derivational morphology c. A minimal amount of allomorphic variation d. Presence of reduplication:

2.2 Pidgin Types

By definition, a pidgin and creole cannot come into existence in a monolingual context [6]. Hence, one can distinguish different kinds of pidgin based on the structures in which they are used. a. Trade Pidgin: this refers to the type spoken among people in the market’s areas. This seems the crudest of it. It is not refined at all. b. Maritime pidgin: this is the kind of pidgin spoken by sailors. c. Workforce pidgin: this has to do with the kind of pidgin that takes place among people who work in offices together. Here, it is not entirely a means of communication but a means of relaxation or socialization. d. Tourism pidgin: this is the kind of pidgin used by tourists of different linguistic backgrounds.

Pidgin is thus characterized by • Linguistic simplification • A limited vocabulary

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Journal of Multidisciplinary Approaches in Science Volume 7, Issue 1 (2019) 38-44

• Reduction or eliminator of inflection morphology • Avoidance of consonant clusters and marked phonological segments • Limited stylistics range • Language mixture and convergence.

2.3 Spread of English Pidgin Pidgins are found spread across the globe. According to [4], certain areas where Pidgins and Creoles are found are: (1) The territories of the Caribbean: -where English Creole stands in a relationship to standard English as the official language. The countries here are all former plantation types. Examples are Jamaica, St. Lucia, Dominica, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, the Turks and Carcos Islands, etc. (2) West Africa: – where English is the official language. Examples are Cameroun, Gambia, , Nigeria, and . The countries in this category are all former fort situation (3) The Pacific: - where we have such countries as Australia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Island, etc. The situation here is that of mixture of fort type situation and plantation situation.

Table 1

PIDGIN PLACE OF SPEAKING Afro-Seminole Creole Texas and Oklahoma, USA and Mexico Bahamas Creole English Bahamas Belize Creole English: also called Belize Kriol. Aukaans Suriname Krio spoken in Sierra Lone Sierra Lone Nigeria Pidgin English Nigeria Sea Island Creole English Sea Island – Papua New Guinea New Guinea Source: [adapted from 13]. 2.4 Development of Pidgin Pidginization occurs very quickly, almost over a night but creolization takes approximately two generations for form [13]. Once a pidgin is formed, it develops and extends; “a marginal pidgin may develop into an extended pidgin or Creole, and may eventually DE-creolize into a continuum of post- Creole dialects” [10]. [11] identified five hypothetical processes in creolization and decreolization: Marginal Pidgin →Period of Nativization→Creolization→Decreolization → Dialect Marginal pidgins are meant for the most rudimentary forms of communication, and largely supplemented by gestures. If eventually, the marginal pidgins do not die out due to under use (as in the case of Korean Bamboo English), they go through a period of nativization. Here, the pidgins become more used among the natives rather than only between the native and non-natives. The next phase reveals increasing and massive influence from the superstrate language. The pidgin will become lexically related to the dominant language, at this stage of development.

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Journal of Multidisciplinary Approaches in Science Volume 7, Issue 1 (2019) 38-44

In the subsequent phase, speakers gain increased exposure to Standard English as a result of formal education and increased social mobility. Hence, the pidgin begins to decreolize. The result, according to [11], is “a wide range of varieties of English, some nearer to the Creole end of the spectrum, some nearer for the standard end.” A. It is my book. ------Standard B. Is maibuk. ------decreolised form

In the final stage, a decreolization process will go to become somewhat dialect of English through continuous and established uses. A clear example used is the Negro non-standard English in the USA. This process is further represented in the chart below: The Life Cycle Model of Pidgins and Creoles

Jargon Stable Pidgin Expanded Pidgin Creole

Post-Pidgin Lexifier

Continuum (English) Post-Creole Lexifier

Continuum (English) Fig. 1: Source: [6]. 2.5 Studies of Pidgin and Creole The questions that promote pidgin and creole studies revolve around the nature and interaction of the forces that have shaped these languages [6]. Although, in recent years, insights from other branches of linguistics as well as careful sociolinguistic studies have moved the field forward. Specifically, it is argued that three events took place and have helped to promote the studies of pidgin/creole: i. The publication of “Languages in contact” by Weinreich in 1953 laid the foundation for the study of the ways in which contact between languages has the power to change them. ii. The publication of “Syntactic structure” by Chomsky in 1957 provided the insight needed to explain how pidgin is acquired. It explains the role of the brain for language as providing the basis for universals. iii. The first international conference on creole studies at Mona, Jamaica in 1959 was the first to assemble those who studied creole languages. It provided avenue for scholars who worked on pidgins and creoles to converge and share ideas. It was after this conference that linguists began to recognize creole languages as objects of intellectual interest.

Another conference followed in 1968 and this led to the emergence of the book “pidginization and creolization of languages” in 1971 and edited by Dell Hymes. This book, more than any other, brought pidgins and creoles to the linguists’ wider attention.

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2.6 Pidgin in Nigeria

The Portuguese were the first Europeans to trade in Nigerian coastal area. From the mid-16th century, the British took over as major trading partners. With the abolition of the slave trade, British colonial interests shifted to agricultural produce. Later in 1842 and 1846 the first missionary stations were established in Badagry (near in the Southwest) and Calabar (in the South-south) respectively. They were mainly interested in spreading Christianity among the African pagans. In order to easily reach the population, the language of instruction was usually the mother tongue of the natives [8]. The British colonial government increasingly felt the need for Africans who were literate in English and would serve British colonial and trade interests as teachers, interpreters and clerks for local native courts and the trading companies. Therefore, missionary stations were ordered in the 1880s to teach English in their schools. In the long run, however, the missionary schools were unable to meet the demands for educated Nigerians, and the colonial government began to establish state schools from the turn of the century. Despite all these efforts, communication was indeed difficult between the Nigerians and the colonial masters. Thus, a means of easy communication had to be devised which was a simplified way of structuring and speaking English. The simplification could be seen in all the levels of a new contact language that emerged (Pidgin) [9]. Language is a powerful tool for the promotion of unity, national identity and the homogeneity of a people. For nationalism to thrive in any nation there must be an enabling environment facilitated through a common medium of communication: language. Pidgin plays a prominent role in Nigeria. [1] citing Kelechukwu notes that more than five million Nigerians speak Pidgin and that it is equally a second language for another seven million Nigerians. Its functions include Language of advertisement: more than any other language now, pidgin appears mostly used to drive home an important message about a product; Language of interlinguistic communication; Language of unity and language of new media: news and jingles are carried out in pidgin. Since Nigerian Pidgin plays very important roles in communication in Nigeria, it will be beneficial to give it more recognition in order to enhance the participation of all citizens in the economic, social and political development of the country. A national language refers to a language in which “major social institutions or functions are often carried out such as mass media, primary education, government debate and so on” [9]. As distinct from an official language, a national language is determined by its usage by speakers while an official language is recognized and assigned specific functions in a country constitution. A national language also implies “being common to a nation; that is being nationwide or wide spread” [12]. A national language does not need to be officialised especially in a monolingual setting. For instance, English is the national language of Britain. Nigeria pidgin is a national but not an official language. According to [12], it is a national language because: • It has to a high degree solved the intercommunication need among Nigeria’s numerous language groups as it is widely spoken (around 12 million speakers). • It is used extensively in inter –ethnic business transactions. • It is used in many media, particularly for advertisement and public awareness campaigns in radio, television and posters.

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As [3] pointed out, a language may be national by being spoken all over Nigeria, by being indigenous and by being declared ‘national’. Nigerian Pidgin could therefore be called a national language because it meets two of these requirements: 1) It is geographically spread all over Nigeria and spoken by Nigerians of different ethnic origins. 2) It is indigenous to Nigeria because it originated, is sustained and is expanding here in Nigeria. It needs to be added here that lack of a common indigenous language in Nigeria brings her nationhood into question. When a country uses a foreign language for its domestic affairs, then it is doubtful if it has really attained nationhood. [5] stated that there are three elements underlying a strong sense of personal identity: i. A sense that one belongs ii. A sense of being worthwhile iii. A sense of being able to contribute

A commonly spoken national language will enhance all the three elements. When an ethic group cannot speak the official language, they tend to develop language loyalty towards their ethnic group so as to preserve the loyalty. This in turn breads conflicts and division. 3. Conclusion The place and the use of Pidgin English world over are irrefutable. However, the problem that we still contend with is the attitude towards it. We need to realize that like other “full-fledged” languages, pidgin deserves recognitions and even prestige accorded other competing languages. By this, our multilingual problems may be minimised.

References [1] Azubike, I. (2003). Pidgin English: A Medium for Effective Communication. Vanguard Newspaper. [2] Britannica (2004). . Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/ 342377/lingua-franca [3] Elugbe, B.O. & Omamor, A.P. (1991). Nigerian Pidgin: Background and Prospects. Ibadan: Heinemann Educational Books. [4] Gramley, S. (2009). English Pidgins, English Creoles, and English. Retrieved from https://www.bing.com/search?q=functions+of+pidgin+in+nigeria+&pc=MOZD&form=MOZT SB [5] Hughes, S. (2002). Every day with Jesus. Lagos: Academy Press Plc. [6] Kouwenberg, S. & Singler, J.V. (2008). The Handbook of Pidgin and Creole Studies, Malden, MA: Blackwell. [7] Murphy, K. (2012). The Hawaiian Prosodic Imprint on Hawaii Creole English, Proceedings of the Annual Symposium about Language and Society,62-71. [8] Omoniyi, T. (2004). The acquisition and the use of English as a second language in Nigeria. In A. B. K Dadzie and Segun Awonusi (eds), Influences and Characteristics. Lagos: Concept Publications. [9] Patrick, L.P. (2005). Pidgins and Creoles as National or Official Languages, http://courses.essex.ac. uk/lglIg449/PCsAsNationalLanguage~.htm.

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[10] Rickford, J. R. (1977). The field of Pidgin-Creole studies: A review article on Loreto Todd's Pidgins and Creoles. London: Routledge and Kegan. Journal of Postcolonial Writing, 16: 2, 477 — 513ywords [11] Todd, L. (1974). Pidgins and Creoles. London and New York: Routledge. [12] Uguru, J. O. (2008). A Common Nigerian Language: A Prerequisite for National Identity and Development. Nsukka: University of' Nigeria Press Ltd. [13] Wardhaugh, R. (2006). An Introduction to Sociolinguistics. Blackwell Publishing, USA.

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