Living Language
Every Language possesses a dual character; it is both a mean of communication and a carrier of culture. According to Ngugi Wa Thiong’O, a renowned African writer, “Language is a carrier of people culture. Culture is a carrier of people’s values. Values are carrier of people’s outlook or conscience and a sense of identity.” Language is not only a mean of communication but it is a reflection people values and identity. Through language, we can deduce the personality and the general perspective of the people. The diversity of the language reflects the multi-ethnicity nature of the world. Language portrays people identity; therefore to be without language is to be lost and to be without value.
It is however disheartening to know that many languages are dying each and everyday. The less popular ones are giving way to the out powering ones. To us in Africa, the imposition of a particular language on another can be seen as another act of colonization. It is a way of accepting the superiority of a particular group of people’s culture and value over the other. Just as stated by a prolific African writer, Chinua Ahebe, “Is it right that a man should abandon his mother’s tongue for someone else? It looks like a dreadful betrayal and it produces a guilt feeling….” Also Ngugi Wa Thiong’O and few other African writers have been seen to abandon the use of foreign languages in their writings, in favour of their mother tongues. Just as Nigeria is an example of multilingual nations. We have over 400 languages in Nigeria. The existence of these languages has helped us to understand the diversity and the differences of human race. We have been able to appreciate each other cultures and values. This is one of the factors that have being keeping us together as a nation, even admits political crises and tough times.
An attempt to create or impose a single language in a society will be an attempt to suffocate life out of the people. Every language reflects certain cultural values. The interaction and the integration of these cultural values, through language, brings about improvement to the human existence; it brings about a better world for us to live. Though there may be a unifying language, as a Lingua Franca or what is know as official language, This may be necessary for easy and smooth interaction in the society, yet the preservation of our cultures and values can best be achieved through the medium of language. Therefore, the need to maintain and preserve our languages can not be over-emphasized.