I’ve noticed in current instances, makes an attempt by some Language popes within the Nigerian media to outlaw the utilization of sure English phrases on the grounds that they’re incorrect. As a matter of truth, some columnists and radio presenters specialising in a crude model of error evaluation in media reportage appear to take nice enjoyment of castigating individuals for utilizing sure phrases regardless that they’re attested in English. They’re just like the language prudes who change “It’s me” to “It’s I”, whereas each varieties are attested within the language. Or change send-off to ship forth, no matter which means! Within the Division of English, we do far rather more than finding out the elements of speech. We research speech/pragmatic acts, we do discourse evaluation (speaking of the verb do, sure, you are able to do a paper), we research variations in language use and such issues. We additionally do World Englishes, trying on the methods the English language continues to evolve. It’s because as  Sam Babatunde notes within the introduction to the pleasant Modern English Utilization: An Introductory Survey (2003, though newer editions should be out by now),  faraway from its native soil, the English language should put on a brand new garb. With respect to Nigerian English, readers can also wish to get copies of A Dictionary of Nigerian English by Wale Adegbite et al (2014). They may additionally wish to lookup Herbert Igboanusi’s Igbo English within the Nigerian Novel and  David Jowitt’s Nigerian English Utilization.   New Englishes: A West Africa Perspective is nearly canonical by now. You can do worse than get a replica!

I start with the phrase flag bearer, which the prescriptivists insist should be commonplace bearer or nothing else. A celebration’s flag-bearer is definitely its standard-bearer, though I discover the phrase candidate to be the extra broadly used. One would possibly say like Captain Absolute in Sheridan’s The Rivals: stop your impertinence. In native speaker, say British English, the phrases youth and the plural type youths are each attested. Nonetheless, the plural type youths tends for use in reference to males solely. The place female and male referents are supposed, youth tends for use. You’d observe that the Wikipedia web page on #EndSARS speaks of Nigerian youth (not Nigerian youths) protesting in 2020, as a result of the protesters included each women and men. That is additionally why it’s traditional to say the youth if female and male referents are supposed. I’m nonetheless open to the youths if it positive factors traction or whether it is taken to be the Nigerian model. However there’s actually no want to vary the youth to the youths on this sense and castigate the reporter/author.

It’s completely okay to say both of the next: “The council notes that/Council notes that…/The Authorities believes/Authorities believes….” That is 2022.  I’ve seen individuals altering expressway (e.g Lagos-Ibadan expressway) to freeway in media writing as a result of, as they assumed, freeway is British and expressway American. Nicely, each phrases are American contributions to world English, in contrast to the British motorway. Moreover, it’s fairly odd to assume that American English is sub-standard, or will be legislated out of media studies. The phrase kerosene shouldn’t be British. So why are the legislators not utilizing the British phrase paraffin? To remove American English from Nigerian media studies, you’d need to drop useless. As I’ve stated elsewhere: the English spoken in Nigeria is a mix of British, American and native English varieties. There is no such thing as a purpose to count on this to vary within the foreseeable future.

I’d not dismiss such varieties as “coming/arriving late to work” by saying that “arriving late at work” is the proper type. The reality is that arrive late to work is broadly attested within the language and is grammatical. If unsure, see: https://ludwig.guru/s/I+arrived+late+to+work. No language lord would final for 5 minutes in the event that they offered a paper at a Division of English. I’ve to say: a lot of this laws is because of restricted publicity to English. Nobody actually acquainted with how language, any dwelling language, works can be given to prescriptivism.  English, like different languages, is a dwelling organism and it’s exactly due to this undeniable fact that, as Babatunde (ibid) observes,  describing it presents daunting challenges. If description is a problem; in the event you can’t be right with out being present, simply how will you concentrate on grammar laws? Only in the near past, a Yoruba artiste got here up with a fricative not attested in Yoruba, “O ti zeh o.” Who is aware of if this “z” sound will grow to be completely acceptable in Yoruba some day? Time was when “It’s me” was regarded as ungrammatical (see Olu Tomori’s The morphology and syntax of present-day English). In any case, what’s grammatical is what customers discover acceptable in any language.

Having as soon as been given a public tongue lashing over the usage of the shape workplace holder, which the speaker insisted was “a hyphenated phrase”, I wish to be a part of Wole Soyinka in asking pretenders to the throne of Pontifex Maximus in literature (and language) issues to thoughts the thorns. The British authorities—and I’m vaguely conscious it does converse English—makes use of the shape workplace holder within the following web site (https://www.gov.uk/employment-status/office-holder) and I’ve learn speeches by the Prime Minister utilizing the identical type attested within the Macmillan dictionary. Webster in fact has officeholder as a result of as Bolaji Aremo informs us in his epochal ebook, An Introduction to English Sentences, compounds could also be written in hyphenated, stable or separate phrase varieties relying on particular person selection, though some compounds have acquired sure fastened varieties because of extended utilization. There are not any onerous and quick guidelines about this. To be pedantic in such issues is unquestionably not an excellent look.

I’ve by no means been a fan of prescription in language issues as a result of it’s a slippery slope. Furthermore, I haven’t been educated to be one. Generally it’s finest to depart nicely sufficient alone.

• Awolaja, PhD, is Editorial Web page Editor, Nigerian Tribune.

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