Bilingualism in Pluricentrism: Investigating the Conflict of Standards in English Pronunciation in Nigeria
Date
2016
Authors
Anyagwa, Carol Ngozi
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
International Conference on African Literature and the English Language,
Abstract
The English language in its many varieties embodies the legacy of European colonisation in
many African countries, with the consequence of making many Africans bilingual in English and their
indigenous languages. One controversial issue about bilingualism in Africa, however, has been the
question of accent; given that both endoglossic and exoglossic models exist for English
pronunciation. Obviously, on paper, many Anglophone African countries settle for the „prestige‟
accent of their colonial masters which, in former British colonies, is the Received Pronunciation
(RP). However, a close look at the accent of English spoken/ taught in a country like Nigeria shows
that what obtains is a hybrid accent manifesting not just local features but also pronunciation
features of more than one exoglossic standard. Using primary data collected from 100 teachers and
students of English in Lagos, Nigeria, the study reveals the confusion created by the coexistence
of these multiple pronunciation models in the country. The study, therefore, lends its voice to the
query about the rationale behind the adoption of exoglossic spoken models
for the teaching of English pronunciation in Anglophone African countries.
Description
Keywords
Accent , Exoglossic , Endoglossic , bilingualism , pluricentrism
Citation
Bilingualism in Pluricentrism: Investigating the Conflict of Standards in English Pronunciation in Nigeria. International Conference on African Literature and the English Language, 2016 pp1-25