Language Death in Akoko-Edo: A Study of Some Students’ Attitude to Native Dialects in Akoko-Edo, Edo-State

Abstract:

Language is God’s special gift to mankind. Without language, human civilization, as we now know it, would have remained impossible. It is a carrier of civilization and culture, as human thoughts and philosophy are conveyed from one generation to the other through the medium of language. However, just like living things, languages die. Language death occurs when there are no more speakers of a particular language. In Edo-State, Akoko-Edo Local Government Area (LGA) to be precise, some indigenous dialects are about to go into extinction. Therefore, this paper examines the attitude of students to some native dialects in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area of Edo-State. The study used questionnaires to gather data on students’ perspective on why they think some native dialects in this particular part of the state are going into extinction. The results revealed that a considerable number of students’ attitude to their native dialects were not positive. The study revealed that various social phenomena have greatly affected some native dialects in Akoko-Edo Local Government Area. In the light of the results, the study recommends that necessary measures and awareness be created to sustain these threatened dialects. This is because young people constitute the future of the nation and if this trend is not checked, it will affect the coming generations.