What is the language situation in Nigeria?

Though, not officially declared in the Nigerian constitution as the country’s official language, English is the dominant language in Nigeria. Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo, the three major languages, are predominantly spoken and used as a means of communication in the regions where they are localized.

What are the functions of language in Nigeria?

The functions of languages especially in multilingual contexts, such as Nigeria include roles relating to official use of language, being used as national language, media language of wider communication, international communication purposes, school subjects, judiciary functions, roles relating to national identity.

What are the 5 major languages in Nigeria?

The major native languages, in terms of population, are Hausa (over 49 million when including second-language, or L2, speakers), Yoruba (over 42 million including L2 speakers), Igbo (over 30 million, including L2 speakers) Fulfulde (15 million), Efik-Ibibio cluster (10 million), Kanuri (8 million), Tiv (15 million).

What are the four major languages currently spoken in Nigeria?

The official language is English, but it is spoken less frequently in rural areas and amongst people with lower education levels. Other major languages spoken include: Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, Fulfulde, Ibibio, Kanuri, and Tiv. Nigerian Sign Language, Hausa Sign Language, and Bura Sign Language are all used in Nigeria.

What are the problems of English language use in Nigeria?

Problems Facing Learners of English in Nigeria

• Accent and placement of stresses in spoken English.
• Late learning.
• Native language Interference.
• Lack of qualified teachers of English language.
• Faults in the curriculum and educational program.
• Non-English-speaking environment.
• Lack of reading culture in Nigeria.

What are the challenges of language in Nigeria?

Some of the main problems include a lack of qualified teachers due to the lack of incentive to learn or specialize in the African languages. The status of the languages are still low; they are conversational languages, widely spoken as such, but in secondary school, English is usually compulsory.

What are the 7 functions of English language?

Types of Language Function Michael Halliday (2003:80) stated a set of seven initial functions, as follows: Regulatory, Interactional, Representational, Personal, Imaginative, Instrumental and Heuristic.

What is the feature of language?

Language can have scores of characteristics but the following are the most important ones: language is arbitrary, productive, creative, systematic, vocalic, social, non-instinctive and conventional. These characteristics of language set human language apart from animal communication.

What are the top 3 languages in Nigeria?

The Top 10 Most Popular Nigerian Languages

• Hausa. Without any bias, Hausa is the most spoken language in Nigeria and is linked with the Islamic people in Nigeria.
• Igbo. Igbo is the second most spoken language in Nigeria with about 23 million natives of Igbo descent.
• Yoruba.
• Fulfulde.
• Kanuri.
• Ijaw.
• Pidgin English.
• Tiv.

What is the most popular language in Nigeria?

Hausa
Breakdown of Major Languages Spoken in Nigeria

How many languages and tribes are in Nigeria?

As a result, there are over 520 languages spoken in Nigeria, there still remain some major languages in states. Hausa, Urhobo, Fulfulde, Igbo, Yoruba, Ibibio, Edo, and Kanuri have most of the speakers in Nigerian states.

What is the official language of Nigeria English?

The official language in Nigeria is English. Nigeria is blessed with a diverse community of ethnic groups that each have their own dialects, however, the major local languages in Nigeria are Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa, all spoken in given parts of the country.

What kind of Sign Language do they use in Nigeria?

The other form of sign language used in Nigeria is the Bura Sign Language which is also an indigenous form of sign language. Bura Sign Language is used by members of the Bura ethnic group who reside in Kukurpu region of the country.

How many living languages are there in Nigeria?

Language in Nigeria. The number of languages currently estimated and cataloged in Nigeria is 521. This number includes 510 living languages, 2 second languages without native speakers and 9 extinct languages.

Where does Yoruba language come from in Nigeria?

Yoruba is spoken in South Western Nigeria, by a collection of people who are united in a common belief that the spiritual city of Ile-ife is their place of origin and that the Alaafin of Oyo is their spiritual leader. You will hear a lot of Igbo in the South Eastern part of the country, a region they call home.