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DOI: 10.5923/j.linguistics.20150401.01
Abstract Identity formation is desirous among human beings and can come in different forms or through different actions
or activities. Social or cultural identity however, is achieved through behaviour and most importantly through linguistic
behaviour of groups or ethnicities that speak a common language and so express their culture and ethical values through their
unique language. Language on the other hand is pervasive and dynamic in the sense that it is prone, not only to extinction, but
also to growth and development. We therefore, find that while some languages that once served as identity markers for some
ethnic groups have gone into extinction, others are flourishing and absorbing other cultural groups. The English language is
one such dynamic language that has been prone to metamorphosis thus, producing several other variants in addition to
Standard English. It is this potential for dynamism and eligibility for change and adaptation to situations that has prompted
this survey into coinages that approximate to English but with adaptations to Local Social needs and situational variables in
University campuses. The aim is to decipher how these coinages serve not only social functions of identity formation but also
literary functions like the creation of a unique literary language for the expression of an aesthetic principle for a Nation.
Keywords Socio-linguistics, Oral Literature, Social Identity, Literary Identity, Nigerian Undergraduates, Student
Language, Social Dialects, Speech bunds, Unical, Crutech
traditional communities in modern day power-play and the considered as language that is creative and can pass for Oral
politics of globalization. To them, literary language provides literature created by and for the specific group and
the society with portraying their unique identity. These creations, therefore,
- Tacit forms of power which tries to reposition and more often than not, emanate from institutions of higher
restore power and importance to those speakers of learning but gradually permeate the wider society and
language groups, who, through consistent eventually get picked up by writers who use them for written
marginalization have tended to be obliterated in literary constructs. Writers like Late. Ken Saro Wiwa, the
terms of the global power-play characteristic of the Late Ezenwa Ohaeto, Gabriel Okara, Benson Tomoloju and
modern literacy dominated world. others have variously experimented with this kind of
language in their creative writings even though they ended
These same socio-linguistic constructs or literary
up being criticized for their failure to reach a wider audience
language specially created to reflect group social or cultural
because of the restrictive codes they employed. Despite this
needs could, therefore, be utilized for the creation of a social
situation, however, it can still be argued that their
identity for any class or group of people that create a unique
experiments accorded a distinctive African cultural identity
language of expression which serves to portray their
to the text and have been engendered specifically for and as a
uniqueness and identity.
response to the problem of language in African literature.
Applying this same argument to the African environment
This is the problem that could also be addressed through
that is prone to orality or orature, one finds that most literary
these coinages by students or more specifically what we here
constructs exist in Oral forms for the expression of ideas and
refer to as “student language.”
the sustenance of a cultural identity. Here it is manifest that
speech is dominated by proverbial expressions, witticisms,
riddles, aphorisms and in some cases long drawn out 2. Language and Literature
anecdotal narratives meant to educate and infuse African
knowledge systems into the younger generations. These This is the recurrent problem of language in African
speeches or talks are aesthetically constructed to solicit literature which Niyi Osundare (2004) re-echoed when he
appreciation of beauty and the impartation of knowledge and observed that “the problem of language which has dominated
are therefore unique to the African environment dominated African literature in the past fifty years is as a result of the
by Orality. What is worthy of note here is that in the recognition, amongst African Scholars and writers, of the
traditional context, all of these creations are carried on within centrality of language to literature.” The argument simply is
the ambit of a traditional language or socio-linguistic that a work of art is a cultural construct and as such stands to
ambience that is mutually intelligible to everyone operating the identity of its producers and must, therefore, be created
within the same familiar cultural milieu thus creating an from the political, economic, historical and cultural
identity that unifies and binds traditional communities antecedents of the people. It must also make use of a
together as well as defining their world view and ethical language or linguistic expressions that are indigenous to and
values. able to reflect these experiences.
However, by accident of our colonial experience, we have An Alien or foreign language, it is argued, cannot
a second language i.e. English or L2, foisted upon us which adequately reflect the social, political or cultural landscape
has become the major means of communication over and of a people since the alien vocabulary will not adequately
above our traditional or tribal languages. The big question express local ideas and belief systems indigenous to the
that now arises is, when we operate outside our familiar people. In this vein, Oral literature in African indigenous
traditional enclaves, how is meaning i.e. literary meaning or languages would be more helpful and appropriate since it
even social identity achieved within the new socio-linguistic would encompass analysis of the literary as well as artistic
context? This question is pertinent particularly when we aspects of individual creativity in each language and in the
realize that the communicator, whether in literary or social older forms or even new emergent forms. Since Oral
parlance, manipulates language and adapts the rhythms, literature can best be explicated as an inter-disciplinary
register, syntax and semantics of the new i.e. the English artistic endeavor, its study and in-depth analysis will better
language to suit the linguistic and cultural nuances of his flourish on a kind of mutual interchange between the several
native language which has conditioned his thoughts and disciplines of anthropology, socio-linguistics and folklore. It
ideological framework right from the onset. We, therefore, is for this reason that “student language” is being analyzed
find that social groups in the modern context tend to attempt from the perspective of socio-linguistics, since it is most
to maintain an identity that distinguishes them from other rewarding to combine insights provided in socio-linguistics,
groups or from their traditional society through language performance and ethnographic studies espoused by Scholars
distinctiveness either along age, tribal, gender, religious or like Richard Bauman, Dell Hymes, Rothenberg, Briggs and a
social lines. host of others. But the realities of our operational
In this sense, undergraduate students in different Nigerian environments today are different from our traditional
universities have often developed speech forms that are societies.
unique and specific to their needs and which can be Today, we the so-called educated elite are forced to
American Journal of Linguistics 2015, 4(1): 1-10 3
operate at two levels, since as bilinguals we think in our local purposes that satisfy the needs of this class of language users
dialects but express our thoughts and ideas in an alien or i.e. undergraduates from different social backgrounds living
foreign language. To surmount this predicament, writers and together and having the same needs and outlook on life and
even the Nigerian public, have variously adapted the English can, therefore, serve as a speech bund. The creative potential
language to their specific needs as necessitated by the derives from the way these coinages are manipulated by
operative situations they find themselves in. These individual users or groups on specific occasions and the fact
adaptations have been described as Africanization, that they soon permeate society through students’ interaction
Indigenization, Domestication etc. and consist simply of with people outside the confines of the University
coinages that serve to clarify meaning in given contexts and environment. Creativity is evident in the elevated and
are used by groups to create and sustain an identity while graphic representation of ideas which qualify these coinages
also projecting an aesthetic principle on which contemporary for consideration as a kind of Oral literature. As a result, they
traditional literary constructs can be built. The situation has, are easily adopted and adapted by the public and writers can
therefore, given rise to several varieties of the English also make use of these expressions to articulate the
Language in the Nigerian environment while Standard ideological standpoint of certain classes of people. The fact,
English still remains the general advocacy. however, remains that the coinages emanate from the
Despite this our peculiar predicament, however, one can University environment and are suffuse with undergraduate
sufficiently argue that the new varieties of English or culture that creates these social dialects for the entire
coinages as the case may be, which approximate to Standard community.
English do serve purposes of communication in their specific This is the domain of socio-linguistics as the cultural and
situations of use and can, therefore, be regarded as reflective situational behavior of undergraduate users of the English
of the continuous attempt to arrive at acceptable means of language has drastically affected the coinages that get
presenting African literature and identity to the outside world. absorbed into the literary language adopted for the
After all, to properly understand English Literature, Africans expression of thought and which as well has influenced the
have had to study and decipher the subtle nuances of the aesthetics of delivery in a very special way that is admirable
English language. Non-Africans who do not understand as a unique form of expression. These modes of expression
African languages can also learn these new forms or varieties or coinages have, in some quarters, been described as
in other to properly analyze African literature from this “Africanization” of the English Language or in other cases as
perspective, because the varieties are easily intelligible to “Domestication”. This “Domestication” or “Africanization”
Local indigenous speakers of African languages among as the case may be, seems to be what Achebe advocated
whom these varieties have been developed. Pidgin as a when he posited that
language is generally very intelligible just as the Warri - The African writer should aim to use the language in
dialect of English which forms of expression easily come a way that brings out his message best without
handy to aid the vivification of experience. Because of their altering the language to the extent that its value as a
peculiar origin, nature and contexts of use, these forms are medium of International exchange will be lost.
closer to Standard English and so can more easily be
Again, some Scholars have chosen to describe this process
understood than traditional Nigerian languages.
as “Indigenization” of the English language. There are as
such, outstanding writers like Chinue Achebe himself, Kofi
3. Methodology Awoonor and Okot P’Bitek who have succinctly indigenized
or domesticated the English language to their needs but their
Because of the peculiar experiences that we are approaches differ somewhat from the student’s crass or
inadvertently exposed to, I have adopted a literary and offhand coinages that approximate to transliteration. What
socio-linguistic approach to the analysis of undergraduate Achebe and others have done is to utilize African Oral
speech forms and coinages that attempt to establish social expressions like proverbs which they effectively build into
relationships between groups along lines of tribal affinity, Standard English to enrich the English language further
age, gender, status or religion. A Social dialect i.e. “student while the Student coinages entail allocation of different
language” is, therefore, identified on its socio-cultural meanings to English words dictated by specific contextual
relevance and literary merit and attempts are made to use of the words and the introduction of words from African
decipher the extent to which this “student language” has Traditional languages into English. Achebe’s usage is also
been influenced or how a socio-dialect has developed different from what writers like Saro Wiwa, Ohaeto and
according to group needs to enhance articulation of ideas and Tomoloju attempted to achieve with language within their
social experiences and for the expression of the school perceived socio-linguistic environments which is closer to
environment. I have also chosen a socio-linguistic and the student’s coinages.
literary approach specifically because undergraduate Socio-linguistics as a discipline, we all know, studies the
language or modes of expression are often unique and relationship between language and society; specifically why
creative and easily pass as literature of a particular class of and how different social contexts determine the way we
people. It can also serve as language coined for specific speak and how we relate to a cultural community.
4 Francis Mowang Ganyi et al.: Socio-Linguistics, Oral Literature as Language Socialization and Representation
of Identity among Young Nigerian Undergraduates: A Study of Unical and Crutech Slangs
Socio-linguistics, therefore, deals with the actual way we use CRUTECH students provides us with a socio-linguistic
or generate language production in specific situations i.e. in community that thrives on the creation and maintenance of
Macro or large scale and Micro or small scale conversation prestige which defines the identity of that community.
analysis. It has to do with the study or analysis of talk Identity itself can be perceived of as a rather complex
interaction. We, therefore, have here adopted, to some extent, structure of relationships defining a group of say
the method that has been described as the “Interactional professionals, social groups or close knit families. Tertiary
Socio-linguistics method” to study the relationships between institutions which are mostly situated in Urban or
the different social classes of students and the kind of cosmopolitan environments often times maintain a unique
language they use as well as the motivation behind it. This identity through language variation. This study, therefore,
method has also been described as “the social motivation of has attempted an analysis of these sources of variation as
language change”. well as the motivation for them among this social class
particularly as class and occupation have often been
identified as very important linguistic markers in society.
4. Social Class Variation in Language “Student Language” or “Student Dialect” can be considered
Use as powerful in-group markers that express group pride and
class solidarity as well as identity. In this vein, language is
Adopting this method provides an avenue to examine the
conceived of as a unique human ability, therefore, the ability
social factors or constraints that determine language use in
to develop or create language for specific communication
its contextual environment because, as we all observe, words
purposes and expression of cognitive experience is the most
are more functional in semantic contexts than at the lexical or
distinctive feature or attribute of human beings. For a
phonological levels. Generally, it is easy to observe that
language or linguistic expressions to be deemed as correct or
students create their own words or “language” which they
appropriate by a particular audience; in this case students of
use to denote or describe certain actions and/or conditions
the two Universities in Calabar; UNICAL and CRUTECH;
prevalent in the campus environment but which creations
the language must satisfy situational, contextual and a wide
soon permeate the social environment outside the academic
range of other social factors.
that created them. This tendency is explainable from the fact
We have, therefore, examined the ways by which
that as humans, we tend to create or innovate in language
language is realized and varies among this group depending
either to satisfy an aesthetic need or simply to capture objects
on audience and the contexts of usage because even though
or ideas in a veiled manner that is not immediately
we are all second language users of English as Nigerians, the
intelligible to people outside our immediate interactional
type of dialect used by Individuals or social groups
circle or social environment. As a socio-linguistic study, I
determines the class they belong to. Social class would,
have already defined our speech community to include the
therefore, determine an individual’s pattern of linguistic
Universities of Calabar (UNICAL) and Cross River
variation and social class could be said to be more pervasive
University of Technology (CRUTECH). Socio-linguistics
than geographical determinants of speech variation. In our
defines a speech community as “a distinct group of people
area of study, however, social class is not denoted by the
who use language in a unique and mutually acceptable way
level of literacy or illiteracy since we are dealing with
among themselves; sometimes referred to also as a “speech
undergraduates who are supposedly literate or have acquired
bund.”
a certain level of ability to read and write. Here, social class
To be part of a particular speech bund or speech
is instead determined by age, gender, discipline or even life
community, one must possess a certain degree of
style. Life style in the sense that certain students are regarded
communicative competence to enable him interact
as high class and some as low class in their social
intelligibly within that community which presupposes that
interactions, and their language will be mundane or ordinary.
those outside that speech community may find it difficult or
It is for this reason that Sandra Silberstein (2007) posits that
even impossible to understand the meaning of the special
codes or coinages members employ when communicating - People use language as a tool to mark their identity
with each other. In this case, the speech community of and membership to certain social categories, for
UNICAL and CRUTECH students which we have identified example, class, ethnicity, age and sex.
for our study has developed slang or jargon which serves The creation and maintenance of an identity could,
their special needs or priorities and also serves the immediate however, be a conscious or unconscious act as reflected in
community outside the University as a result of constant their dressing or manner of speech since speech is more
interaction with students who live among them. Literary difficult to control and therefore more reflective of one’s
production, therefore, makes for interaction between artists identity.
and audiences, thus, creating a community of practice which The development of several varieties of English is not
allows for a socio-linguistic examination of the relationship surprising because the assumption of International
between socialization, speech competence and identity. acceptability and intelligibility is also consequent upon the
Examining language socialization among UNICAL and proliferation of the language. Ekpe Brownson (2012)
American Journal of Linguistics 2015, 4(1): 1-10 5
therefore, points out that these non-standard contexts that we notice variations from
- The present status of English as a global language standard usage that can be regarded as creative and suitable
has led to the proliferation of many varieties of in the domain of Oral literature. For this reason, one
English all over the world which according to advocates the adoption of these expressions for their graphic
Achebe (1965:29) is the price a world and/or expressive potential in the communication of ideas
language…must pay in submission to many kinds of because these forms are easily understood by users in the
use. English as a global language has developed immediate environment within which the Universities are
many varieties which differ from the “Standard” to situated and can serve as the language for literary creativity.
the “Non-Standard” (P.43). Today, in Nigeria, there is no State that does not boast of a
Tertiary institution, some of which operate multi-campuses
It is, therefore, important to note at this point that in the
in several Local Government Areas of the States. The result
Universities of Calabar (UNICAL) and Cross River
is that every nook and cranny of the Country has been
University of Technology (CRUTECH), a Standard form of
penetrated by what can be described as “student or campus
English is taught to all Students and is made compulsory for
language,” a brand of linguistic expression peculiar to and
everyone and described as “English for Academic Purposes”
serving the needs of students as they attempt to create an
(GSS 1101). In spite of this attempt to maintain a fairly
identity that distinguishes them from the larger society. In
uniform standard of English on campuses, several varieties
this vein, they create language that is unique to them but
still exist which answer to the leisure and other
which is also expressive of the general ideological or
multi-dimensional needs of the students. It is these other
psychological mindset of the society. Since these
forms of usage or coinages that I have analyzed in the
expressions do not remain within the confines of the Tertiary
attempt to decipher their suitability for consideration and
institution, they exist as language or extant modes of
adoption as Oral literary expressions that portray the African
expression that define interaction in the general run of
Literary environment in an acceptable and intelligible
Nigerian public life.
manner.
For this reason, and also because of their aesthetic and
graphic potential for the vivification of experience and ideas,
5. Socio-Linguistics and Literature they can also be adopted for the expression of a literary
ideology in the Nigerian society. They in-fact can serve as
Ebi Yeibo (2011) has aptly submitted that Oral literature in the modern context, thus, helping to debunk
- As a result of the bilingual nature of African Nations, the erroneous impression that Oral literature is an ancient art
due to the historical accident of Colonialism, the form created in the past and handed down in a word fixed
problem of which language (i.e. indigenous or form. These creations represent the vibrant and dynamic
colonial language) to adopt for literary expression nature of Oral literature as an art form that is continually
has lingered on. being created and generated in our everyday lives and
interactions, sometimes without out consciously being aware
Furthermore, she asserts
of it. This is the potential of Oral literature that endears it to
- Every literary text is constructed with language. Traditional African users of language in a colourful and
Therefore it is imperative to determine how a creative manner even when serious subject is under
particular writer has utilized the potentials of discourse. The fluid nature of Oral literature allows for
language to negotiate meaning(s) for his text. several manipulations or adjustments as embellishments that
Perhaps we should note here, that it is not just a task for can reflect all shades of opinion and contextual variables. It,
writers alone but that of the end users of the literature to therefore, accommodates coinages whether old or new. This
determine which kind of language best explicates their potential of Oral literature if properly harnessed can
aesthetic and moral or psychological and cultural milieu. It adequately enhance the creation of a truly African nay
behooves all of us to examine the varieties of the languages Nigerian literary identity within the present day context of
at our disposal and to recommend one that best suits our globalization. After all K. Brooks (2010) has argued that “a
needs and portrays our identity adequately. Given this writer does not write in an intellectual vacuum,” while
scenario, it becomes imperative for us also to examine the Bronislaw Malinowski (1926) had earlier asserted that
varieties of English or linguistic coinages as they appear in “language is about its immediate environment,”
our Tertiary institutions to determine their suitability and pre-supposing that both writer and speaker are influenced
intelligibility for adoption as literary language. and so react to their environment in their communicative
From this perspective, one must first make a distinction constructs. Speakers or creators of a language, therefore,
between standard use of language as is employed by the provide writers with the linguistic and literary tools with
educated elite or upper classes of people e.g. University which they create an identity for their society since social
Lecturers, and Non-Standard usages as are employed in varieties exist because social systems work as an effective
casual or leisure conversation by ordinary users or even the influence on identity formation.
elite upper classes in less formal interactive contexts. It is in
6 Francis Mowang Ganyi et al.: Socio-Linguistics, Oral Literature as Language Socialization and Representation
of Identity among Young Nigerian Undergraduates: A Study of Unical and Crutech Slangs
6. Unical and Crutech Slangs as Oral application of the mind. Furthermore, Standard English itself
Literature and Socio-Linguistic Units sometimes becomes inadequate for the articulation of subtle
of Expression nuances in certain operational contexts. The easiest way out
for operators is therefore resort to coinages and borrowings
Language can be viewed as any sound or utterance that aptly describe such contexts in a condensed manner.
deliberately made to encode a message which can be Several words and phrases have, therefore, developed out of
intelligibly decoded to enhance communication between diverse interactional contexts to describe these peculiar
people operating within the same socio-linguistic situations. With time and continuous application, they
environment and possessing the same linguistic capacity to become stock phrases though with restricted use and
interpret the coded messages. Using UNICAL and dependent on variations as the context demands.
CRUTECH students as a case study, it is discovered that, Bean and Dagen (2011) in their book titled Best Practices
between them, several coinages exist which are mutually of Literacy Leaders: Keys to School Improvement posit that
intelligible and which they have introduced into their “Education underlies the struggle of all aboriginal
acquired English language vocabulary but with restricted communities to assert themselves and gain control over their
meaning and understood mainly by them and those close to lives in the present world of globalization. This, they argue,
them. Some of these words are derived from the local Efik can only be achieved through consistent initiatives in
language where the two Universities are situated, while, language development and conservation. Perhaps the legacy
others come from other Nigerian languages from where other that Nigerian Undergraduates can bequeath to their Nation is
students have come. this contribution towards the development and sustenance of
What happens simply is that, a group of students coin or a unique dialect which will not only sustain them as a distinct
borrow a word and allocate to it a meaning dictated by class but also meet the needs of the larger society.
particular situations or contexts. The meaning then spreads Undergraduates as a literate group will therefore provide the
after several usages and gets adopted by other students and leadership necessary for the proper functioning of a language
soon becomes a stock phrase amongst the student body. The policy that can sustain the progress of the dialect. The same
creative turn to the word, however, depends on situational Undergraduates can be seen as change agents to catalyze
and contextual variables as well as the user’s artistic and positive societal dispositions towards a consistent language
creative skills at oratorical or linguistic manipulation. These policy that can maintain National identity.
words, Ebi Yeibo (2011) has described as constituting Joshua Fishman et al (2001) on their part posit that the
among others, coinages, borrowings, transfer of rhetorical present global dispensation tends to favour what can be
devices from native languages, use of native similes and described as a mono-cultural or mono-linguistic model
metaphors and use of culturally dependent speech styles. which categorizes the world into modern or “civilized” and
Others include transliterations and the use of syntactic traditional or “primitive” peoples. In this context, the
devices and deviation. so-called traditional people and their languages are the
Most of what is in use here can, however, be classified endangered species. Michael Krauss (1995) therefore reports
simply as contextual meanings of lexical transliteration or that only about 600 languages spoken today are assured of
semantic extension or shifts. A number of phrases or being around in the year 2100 which is about 10% of the
coinages and their meanings have here been collected to present number of Oral languages.
serve as examples used by different groups of male and But a common language can evoke a sense of identity and
female students which can also serve as identity markers for continuity even in the midst of modern day existence where
these groups. They are by no means exhaustive but could people of all races are brought together in a globalized
serve as a starting point for a wider socio-linguistic study of system particularly in educational institutions.
student language in Nigerian Universities. What is admirable Skutnabb-Kangas et al (2009) in their own submission
about the use of these borrowed words or coinages is the easy realize the inadequacy of training provided for children in
blend with Standard English. Listeners easily decipher most indigenous multi-lingual societies to enable them fit
meanings within the context of use while themselves making appropriately into required educational demands and to
further associations that expand knowledge and experience. enable them succeed in school and out of school context.
The growth or prevalence of these coinages and They therefore argue for the rights of any racial entity or
borrowings is enhanced and facilitated by the fact that the group to develop a language that will maintain their identity.
University campus is a fertile breeding ground for all people; In a review of the book Social Justice through Multi-lingual
undergraduates and workers; of all classes and from different Education, Devi, Vasanthi (2009) posits that “the book is
ethnic communities. Because of this diversity, Standard also a powerful indictment of the sinister privileging of
English usage becomes inadequate at all times particularly languages like English that are marginalizing and decimating
when interaction with junior workers is necessitated. This humanities rich language resources. To this end, the
apart, even when students communicate among themselves, development of “student language” in Nigerian Educational
contextual or situational variables dictate choices of even the institutions is a welcome means of identity formation and
coined or borrowed words that will best portray a given maintenance not only within the University system but also
context or situation. This, in itself requires creative in the larger Nigerian Society.
American Journal of Linguistics 2015, 4(1): 1-10 7
The table below represents a cross-section of words and language,” usage of which distinguishes it as a variety of
their meanings within the two institutions. These constitute English that creates a bond or close knit relationship between
the vocabulary of what can be described as “student students in these two institutions.
CLASS/SOCIAL
WORD/PHRASE MEANING ORIGIN
GROUP/speechbund
Akata A white man Male/female Unknown
Jah runs Scampering for safety Male/female Rasta Farian
Amebo Gossip/rumor monger Male Yoruba
Runs Illegal achievement Male/female Unknown
Baffs Clothing Male/female Unknown
Cute dressing with designer
Baff-up Male/female Unknown
clothing
Aje/aje buta Rich and spoilt child Male/Female Yoruba
Aje pako Ordinary or middle class person Male/Female Warri
Nack To hit someone/to have hard sex Male Unknown
Kack To sit Male/female Unknown
Pam To steal or carry something Male Unknown
Kpai/Kpa To die/kill Male/Female Efik
Mud To die Male/Female Unknown
Awoof Love for free gifts Male/Female Unknown
Maga Stupid/Foolish person Male/Female Unknown
Pako Poor and unsophisticated person Male/Female Warri
Aristo Sugar daddy Female English
Kishi/Chedas/Bar/Akpalakpalaa Money Male/Female Nigerian languages
Eke Police Male/Female Igbo
Pepe-rested Rich and careless spender Male/Female Unknown
Aproko Male gossip Female Edo
Yarn To talk much/to tell lies Male/Female English
Crash To go to sleep Male/Female English
Bash Exciting party/feast Male/Female English
Job To trick someone/tell a lie Male/female English
Fash To ignore something Male/Female Unknown
Efizy To bluff/ show off Male/Female Unknown
All join All inclusive/everything Male/Female English
One has not eaten/There is no
Man no grind/grub Male English
food
Yawa/Gbagae Trouble is brewing Male/Female Unkown
Ojoro Playing Pranks Male/Female Yoruba
Chow/Lem Food Male/Female Unknown
Hail Greeting Male/Female English
Pale Father Male/Female Unknown
Male Mother Male/Female Unknown
Na wash To lie Male/Female English
Kpef Exaggerate Male/Female Unknown
Kpalasa guy One without identity Male/Female Unknown
Eyen Ekpo Tout Male/Female Efik
Dah Colleague/Friend Male/Female Efik
Yahoo boy/girl Internet/cyber thief Male/Female Computer Language
Hammer To succeed/make money Male/Female English
Fall hand To disappoint someone Male/Female English
8 Francis Mowang Ganyi et al.: Socio-Linguistics, Oral Literature as Language Socialization and Representation
of Identity among Young Nigerian Undergraduates: A Study of Unical and Crutech Slangs
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