LANGUAGE CHOICE IN MULTILINGUAL ENVIRONMENTS: A STUDY OF ZURU COMMUNITY OF KEBBI STATE, NIGERIA

YAHAYA A. ZUBAIR, PATRICIA SARAH ACHI

Abstract

This paper is a study of Language Choice in multilingual Zuru community of Kebbi State, Nigeria. It explores social interactions in a setting fraught with socio-political complexities, where participants cannot rely on a single inter-personal identification, but must instead navigate among various language options, all of which come loaded with social expectations and biases. The questionnaire and interview methods were used to elicit response from the respondents. The findings revealed that identity negotiation depends on various factors like the domain of interaction, the topic or purpose of discourse and the status of the interlocutors.

 

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