Linguistic Strategies of Adaptation: Hausa in Southern Nigeria (original) (raw)

This paper presents the results of investigation on Hausa spoken in two cities of southern Nigeria, Ilorin and Ibadan, in which there are large Hausa communities and the Hausa language is widely used in communication. These cities are originally inhabited by Yoruba people. The linguistic analysis is supported by history of Hausa settlement in these areas which led to the establishment of Hausa neighborhoods or camps in these cities. The analysis focuses more on the changes that the language is facing as a result of new conditions of social interaction. The two patterns of linguistic behavior which reflect two different strategies of social functioning within multinational and multilingual community have been distinguished: co-existence in a multilingual society (as in the case of Hausa in Ilorin) and exclusiveness (Hausa in Ibadan). Language choice and language patterns are illustration of the ties that exist between the members of multilingual societies and determine their participation in the development of the city.