Nigerian Pidgin English: Multi-Prepositional Functionality of “Fo” Among Nigerian Staff of Ces in Manchaster

Abstract

Given its degree of neutrality and linguistic simplicity among the culturally and linguistically heterogeneous people of Nigeria, it can be rightly argued that Nigerian Pidgin English (henceforth NPE) is currently undergoing a shift towards creolization. In the past, NPE was regarded as "unruly jargon", "vulgar" and "broken English" mainly associated with a socioeconomically deprived set of people. The reason for this negative perception was in connection to its origin as mainly a trade language which distanced its speakers from the speakers of language of the educated class, the lexifier English. This implies that the typical speakers of NPE were those who had little or no formal education. Recently, Nigerians have adopted a change in nomenclature from NPE to "Naija" because of its expanding functionality. The term "Naija" as used by the speakers of NPE refers to "Nigeria" as a country. The change to the reformed name is an attempt to erase the negative perception and attitude people have towards NPE as "broken English", argued to be either inaccurate or derogatory. NPE has become so popular that it is now recognized as one of the four commonly spoken languages in Nigeria while it competes with Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba-the country's national languages (Emananjo, 1985). It now operates as a de facto lingua franca, a bridge between social classes and ethnicities even when it lacks a standard orthography. The reality is that NPE, which was considered to be a debased, bastardized, jargonized and intellectually inferior language in Nigeria, is gradually growing to the status of language of wider communication. Media houses

Mobilising Nigerian Pidgin English as a Second language for Communication and Instruction in Primary Schools in Ajegunle, Lagos

“…The predominance of the British colonization in the 17 th century and the amalgamation of the Norther and Southern Nigeria Protectorates into one nation, Nigeria, in 1914 (Eric, 2016) further fostered a common language (lingual-franca) for trades and businesses amidst the multi-ethnic, culture and language context as the case till today (Emike, Magaji, & Baidu, 2019). As much as the British reinforced English as the language of education, formality, and civilization, it does not maintain this status quo in the street, trade, and transactions of the common Nigerians (Ibrahim, 2016).…”

“…To be a successful musician, bloggers, and social media entertainer in Nigeria, and West Africa at large, one must converse in Pidgin. (Ibrahim, 2016). All Nigeria musicians, from classical to contemporary have used Pidgin or few words in it.…”