A Survey on Awareness and Attitude towards Nigerian English

Introduction
The concept of a Nigerian English is one that has received, one could say, wide
acceptance among scholars of English. As far back as the late 60's and early 70's, cognisance had
already been taken of the particular brand of English which was being spoken in Nigeria.1
However, it is not quite clear whether the average Nigerian speaker of English is aware
that such a phenomenon as Nigerian English exists. There is also the question of the ability of the
average speaker of English in Nigeria to detect uses of English in Nigeria which defer from
standard usage. But then, the ability to detect such differences would depend on knowing that the
English spoken in Nigeria has its peculiarities. This paper has been written with the aim of
investigating if such an awareness exists among undergraduates of Nigerian universities, and to
see what would be the prevalent attitude of those of this group towards a Nigerian English. The
choice of this group for the purposes of this research is based on the fact that they are supposed
to be in the upper brackets of those who possess a superior grasp of English being that they are
more exposed to it. They should, therefore, be in a better position than most to give pertinent
answers to the questions being posed.
For the survey, a questionnaire was administered to undergraduates chiefly from the
faculties of Science, Veterinary Medicine, and Engineering. (The faculty of Arts was deliberately
avoided given that those in this faculty might already have had some formal exposure to the
issue.) 50 questionnaires were given out but the results are based on the responses of 48
respondents as two of the questionnaires were not returned.

Nigerian English
The development of English in the geographical area now known as Nigeria has been
traced back as far as the 16th Century, the era of the pre trans-Atlantic slave trade (Idiagbon,
2002). Formal learning of the language, however, would only begin in the early 19th Century.
This was with the arrival of the Christian missionaries who established schools in which English
featured prominently on the curriculum (Banjo, 1995:203). Thus, the colonial period witnessed a
more formalised development of the language. The contact between English and the Nigerian

1
Bamgbose (1971) already listed the characteristics of this variety of English, and his was not the first write-up on
the subject.

1
languages would give rise to an English with "a distinctive Nigerian flavour" (Bamgbose,
1995:9). English in Nigeria, as Adekunle (1995) points out, has had to survive in a multilingual
community. He adds that "the fortunes, functions and characteristic features of the English
language in Nigeria are the result of influences and pressures from social attitudes,
administrative guidelines and the sociolinguistic realities in the Nigerian speech community." All
these factors have defined what is today called Nigerian English.
The term 'nativization' has been used to describe the indigenization of English in Nigeria.
According to Bamgbose (1995), this "nativization of English in Nigeria is not limited to the
usual features of transfer of phonological, lexical, syntactic and semantic patterns of Nigerian
languages into English; it is also concerned with the creative development of English including
the evolution of distinctively Nigerian usages, attitudes and pragmatic use of the language." The
adaptation of the English language to the sociolinguistic realities of Nigeria is what has given
Nigerian English its marked characteristics at the phonological, lexical, semantic and syntactic
levels. These characteristics include the substitution of Nigerian language vowels and consonants
for English ones, replacement of stress by tone, pluralisation of some non-count nouns,
introduction of culture-specific vocabulary items, back formation, semantic shift, different verb-
preposition combinations and some Nigerian L1-induced syntactic structures" (Bamgbose,
1995:20).
Other aspects of nativization are the pragmatic use of English and creativity. Under
these two aspects, English is used to express cultural practices of the Nigerian environmen t
and the Nigerian world view. The pragmatic use of English as a second language is what
leads to expressions such as go well, well done, and sorry, (the last being used as an
expression of sympathy). In these three examples, it can be seen that a direct transfer has
taken place and English is being made to carry out functions which exist in the indigenous
languages. Consider, for instance, the Igbo term Ijeoma, and the Yoruba terms ẹkuise, and
pèlé. These are terms from which, respectively, it could be said that the previously
mentioned English lexical items have been translated. Creativity has also given rise to coined
expressions like been-to (one who has travelled overseas) (Bamgbose, 1995), on-seat (to be
at one's place of work) and bottom-power (the use by females of their physical attributes to
obtain favours).

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Attitude
"One of the major determinants of the pattern of human behaviour in society is attitude"
(Adekunle 1995). Attitude could be said to be a feeling or opinion, of like or dislike, about
something or someone, about groups, objects, ideas, etc. It could be an affinity for or an aversion
towards some identifiable entity. Attitude has a major role to play as regards the prominence or
otherwise which a language could attain in any society.
Two theories have been put forward in the study of attitude, the behaviourist theory and
the mentalist theory. According to the behaviourist theory, attitudes which people have towards
things can be observed. These attitudes, which are manifested in one's behaviour and conduct,
are responses to social situations. The mentalist theory, on the other hand, sees attitudes as
something internal. Attitudes, according to this theory, are built up within a person and are
subject to being aroused by stimuli.
There are different types of attitudes as regards language. We have attitudes towards
ethnicity by the speakers; attitudes towards language learning and teaching; attitudes towards
speech varieties, accents and supradialectal norms; attitudes towards language policy; attitude
towards ethnolinguistic minorities; attitudes towards language use; attitudes towards particular
languages; attitudes towards language type; attitudes towards the nativization of imported
languages; and attitudes towards indigenous languages.
Language attitudes in Nigeria, according to Adekunle (1995), are characterised by two
main influences. One of them is inward-looking, "integrative or identificational" and expresses
"the desire for cultural and language self-determination." This attitude is more inclined to the use
of the indigenous languages, seeing this as the best way to preserve local culture and achieve a
national identity. The other main influence is outward-looking and very favourable to the English
language. It regards the English language as a means for attaining modernization and tapping
into the Western technology.
The survey carried out for this paper was not meant to be a contrastive one between
English and the indigenous languages. But it could be said that the group to which the
respondents belong (in terms of age and social standing) is one that could be said to fall more or
less within the latter main influence. This group is generally inclined to all things 'western'
especially as regards style of dressing, music preferences, certain modes of behaviour and the use
of slang. This preference for things of an imported culture leads, of course, to certain attitudes

3
which will manifest themselves in terms of language use. Adegbite (2002) notes the positive
attitude which the undergraduate respondents of his study had towards English. It would not be
an exaggeration to say that this positive attitude towards English among undergraduates is a
generally accepted fact. The question which the present study seeks to consider is whether this
positive attitude is only as regards Standard English or whether it extends to Nigerian English
per se.

Results of the survey

Given their position as university undergraduates, the respondents belong, in theory, to a
group which is highly proficient in the use of English. As mentioned above, members of this
group tend to view English positively. The level of awareness as regards the existence of
Nigerian English appears to be quite high among members of the group under survey. 93.8
percent of the respondents agreed that there is such a phenomenon as Nigerian English. Of the 48
respondents, only three, representing 6.3 percent, responded negatively to this question.

Exis tence of Nigerian English

50

40

30

20
Frequency

10

0
yes no

Exis tence of Nigerian English

The level of awareness is further judged by the ability of the respondents to identify
utterances in English which are characteristically Nigerian. An average of thirty two respondents,
66.6 percent, identified correctly the utterances of the questionnaire which were typical of
Nigerian English as against those that were not (cf. Appendix, section 5). This accounts for more
than half of the correspondents. However, it is quite striking that 62.5 percent of the respondents
did not identify the utterance the chairman is not on seat as being an utterance typical of a
Nigerian speaker of English. In addition to this, an average of 12.8 respondents did not correctly

4
distinguish the utterances common to Nigerian usage from those of standard usage. This could be
due to the fact that while the respondents are aware of the existence of a Nigerian English, they
might not be in a position to actually define or state the characteristics of this variety of English.
Sections 2, 3 and 4 of the questionnaire were designed to elicit responses which would
indicate the attitude of the respondents towards Nigerian English. However, quite a few of the
responses to sections 2 and 3 were invalidated because some of the respondents chose all the
options (this could have been due to a misunderstanding of what was required by the
questionnaire). Thus the valid responses to section 2.1 (on whether Nigerian English is spoken
by everyone in Nigeria or only by some groups of persons) totalled 34, while those of section 2.2
were only 7 (this section was a follow up to the previous one: if Nigerian English is spoken only
by some groups of persons, are these persons educated or uneducated?). This latter figure, 7,
does not tally with the number of persons who chose the option that Nigerian English is spoken
only by some groups. 16 persons, 33.3 percent, agreed that Nigerian English is spoken by some
groups. But less than half of that number stated clearly if these groups are educated or
uneducated. Of this latter figure, 5 persons, a 10.4 percentage of the total number of respondents,
believe that Nigerian English is spoken by educated persons; while 2 persons, 4.2 percent of the
total sum, think that it is spoken by uneducated persons.
The option, of whether Nigerian English is educated or uneducated usage, was provided
as a means of eliciting the attitude of the respondents given that in the Nigerian social milieu a
lot of importance is given to education as a mark of status. (The insult bushman derives its
effectiveness in this milieu precisely from this fact.) However, the above mentioned figures in
themselves are not a very conclusive indicator of the attitudes of the respondents given the high
percentage of invalid responses. The number of invalid responses to section 2.2, a key question,
is 41, which is 85.4 percent of the total number of respondents. Nevertheless, the responses,
while not being conclusive in terms of indicating attitude, could be a clear indicator of a held
opinion. In choosing both the educated and the uneducated options, the respondents would seem
to express the opinion that this form of English cuts across all classes and is spoken by all in
Nigeria. Although only 37.5 percent of the respondents chose the option in section 2.1 that
Nigerian English is spoken by everyone in Nigeria, the over 80 percent of the responses
invalidated by the choice of the educated and uneducated options, gives the impression that most
of the respondents actually hold that view.

5
 This brings up the question of what exactly the respondents have in mind when they
speak about a Nigerian English. Section 3, as well as being a further means of eliciting attitude,
was also meant to draw out an answer to this question. The options given in section 3, in
response to the question of what is Nigerian English are: a) Pidgin English; b) English spoken by
Nigerians; c) The kind of English spoken in Nigeria;2 d) All of the above. 6 persons, representing
12.5 percent of the total number of respondents, either did not respond to this question or had
their response invalidated because they chose two options. But of the remaining 42 respondents,
6 persons, 12.5 percent, equated Nigerian English with Pidgin English; 9 of them, 18.8 percent,
thought that Nigerian English was that spoken by Nigerians; another 16, 33.3 percent, said it was
the kind of English spoken in Nigeria; and 11 persons, 22.9 percent, opined that the concept of
Nigerian English included Pidgin English and an English with a peculiar structure as spoken by
Nigerians.

What is Nigerian English

20

10
Frequency

0
Pid gin English Th e k ind o f Eng lish
En glish spok en by Ni All of the above

What i s Ni geri an E ngl i sh

A relatively high number of respondents quite correctly chose the option that Nigerian English is
the kind of English spoken in Nigeria. But the fact that 54.2 percent of all the respondents made
the choices they did would seem to indicate that, generally, persons of this group do not have a
clear idea of what constitutes Nigerian English.
Section 4 of the questionnaire is also aimed at eliciting responses which would indicate
the attitude of the sample group towards Nigerian English. This section of the questionnaire is
aimed at finding out what or who constitutes an authority for the correct usage of English for the
respondents. For the great majority, the British Broadcasting Service, BBC, is the authority. 39

2
Options b) and c) may appear, on the surface, to be similar; but b) refers to a Nigerian English which is called such
just because it is spoken by Nigerians and not due to any other particular characteristics in terms of structure and

6
persons, 81.3 percent, chose the BBC while 10 persons, constituting 20.8 percent, pointed to the
American organisation, the Cable News Network, CNN. There is an overlap here because seven
persons indicated both bodies as representing authorities for them. (It is noteworthy that the
Received Pronunciation of the BBC is still preferred by the majority over the more American
flavoured pronunciation of the CNN. This perhaps derives from the fact that the British influence
still lingers in the country in the wake of the colonial period.)
What could be an indication of the attitude towards Nigerian English is the fact that very
few of the respondents chose Nigerian broadcasters or Nigerian teachers of English as authorities
in the usage of English. 5 persons, 10.4 percent, pointed to Nigerian broadcasters as authorities;
and a similar number pointed to Nigerian teachers of English. Some of those who made these
choices - three persons in the former, and four in the latter group - did so in addition to the other
choices that they made. So, some, for instance, saw both the BBC and the Nigerian teachers of
English or the broadcasters as authorities. One person indicated a preference for the 'Royal
Pronunciation' (one imagines that this is a reference to Received Pronunciation); another placed
authority in 'general usage'; and a third thought language tapes on phonetic should be the
authority on usage. However, the large number of persons that chose the BBC over and above all
the other options would seem to indicate a general preference for Standard English which that
organisation uses for its broadcasts.

Authority for the usage of English

BBC

40 Nigerian
broadcasters
30
CNN
20
Nigerian teachers
10
Others
0

The respondents in their majority, judging from the above, may have shown a preference
for Standard English. But a look at the responses given in section 6 indicates that the variety of
English spoken by them is Nigerian English. In section 6, three commonly used utterances of

form. This was explained to various respondents who expressed a confusion on that count.

7
 Nigerian English were given followed by options which express the sense of the utterances as
understood in both Nigerian and Standard English. The first of these utterances was I will follow
you to your friend's house. The three options given were:
i) I will accompany you to your friend's house.
ii) I will go behind you to your friend's house.
iii) I will come to your friend's house afterwards.
Options ii) and iii) are more expressive of the sense in which the utterance would be understood
in Standard English. Whereas option i) is the sense in which the utterance is understood in
Nigerian English. 45 persons, 93.8 percent of the respondents, chose the first option. Two
persons chose option ii) and one respondent failed to answer the question.
The second utterance was: Sorry. I hope you are okay (on seeing someone stumble and
fall). And the options given were:
i) I apologise for causing your fall. I hope you are not hurt.
ii) I sympathise with you for having fallen. I hope you are not injured.
iii) Take it easy. I hope you have not injured yourself.
Option i) is Standard English while options ii) and iii) are Nigerian English. Only two persons,
4.2 percent, chose the first option. 24 persons picked option ii) and 22 persons preferred option
iii) - 50 and 45.8 percent respectively.
The third utterance, Tunde and I looked at ourselves, had as options
i) I looked at Tunde and he looked at me.
ii) I looked at myself and Tunde looked at himself.
iii) Tunde and I looked at each other.
Option ii) is the sense more expressive of Standard English. Again, only two persons chose this
option. The majority picked the other options. 6 persons, 12.5 percent picked option i) and 40,
83.3 percent chose option iii).
SENT1 SENT2
50 SENT3
30
50

40
40

20
30
30

20
20
10
Frequency

10
Frequency

Frequency

10

0 0 0
0 I will accompany y ou I will go behind yo u I apologise for caus I sympathise with y o Take it easy . I ho pe I lo oked at Tu nde an I lo oked at myself a Tu nde and I looked a

SENT1 SENT2 SENT3

8
Given the above results, it could be said that the variety of English in which the respondents
function is Nigerian English. Apart from the consistent 4.2 percent that chose the Standard
English options, all the respondents made choices which reflect Nigerian English usage.

Conclusion
One of the respondents in the survey for this paper, in his response, stated rather strongly
that there was no such thing as a Nigerian English. This was rather amusing given that all the
other choices which this individual made in responding to the questionnaire showed quite clearly
that the prevailing influence in his use of English was Nigerian. As mentioned earlier, the
adaptation of the English language to the sociolinguistic realities of Nigeria is what has given
Nigerian English its marked characteristics. It would therefore be quite odd if those growing up
under the influence of these same sociolinguistic realities were to show no sign of these
characteristics in their usage of English.
The majority of the respondents agreed that a Nigerian English exists. In most cases, they
were able to identify samples of this variety of English. However, at the same time, it was clear
that they do not have a clear idea of what constitutes Nigerian English or, better still, what the
defining characteristics of Nigerian English are.
In terms of attitude, there would appear to be a preference for Standard English. Most of
the respondents pointed to the BBC as constituting an authority in the usage of English for them.
Very few chose either the Nigerian broadcasters or teachers. Those that did choose Nigerian
authorities made double choices in that they chose the BBC as well. In this, one can see an
exemplification of the fact that the average undergraduate tends to have a positive attitude
towards things which come from the Western society - in this case, Standard English.
A determining element for deciding on the attitude of the respondents towards Nigerian
English would have been their responses to the question of whether those that speak Nigerian
English are educated or uneducated. But as we have seen, most of the respondents did not answer
this question properly. However, as pointed out above, although the responses were not
conclusive in terms of indicating attitude, they could be a clear indicator of a held opinion. In
choosing both the educated and the uneducated options, the respondents appear to express the
opinion that this form of English cuts across all classes and is spoken by all in Nigeria. This
could be read as a positive attitude.

9
 Thus, it could be said that the group which the survey covered has an awareness of the
existence of a Nigerian English. They would be unable to define its characteristics but, in most
cases, they can identify its usage. Their attitude towards it could be said to be positive.

10
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