Domestication of English in Femi Osofisan’s Drama: A Sociolinguistic Perspective

Abstract

This essay examines linguistic manifestations of Nigerian English as a dialect of English in the plays of Femi Osofisan. The study provides reasons for language domestication and copiously highlights the sociolinguistic features of domestication of English in Nigeria. The discussion addresses some of the challenges posed by the domestication such as those of communication, acceptability, a standard variety, translation and codification. The values of domestication are also discussed. Some of the benefits include the emergence of a sociolinguistic model of English that is realistic and relevant to the needs of Nigerians such as the promotion of unity, deeper understanding and social interaction among the users of English. Such elements of the domestication of the English language are discussed from the lexical, syntactic and semantic perspectives. Nigerian English may sound exotic or incomprehensible to non-Nigerian speakers of English, yet it adequately conveys the message of the playwright to the target audience and thus meets the linguistic and socio-cultural needs of the people. Some of the advantages of domesticating the English language and its challenges are discussed.

Keywords: Osofisan, Language, Linguistics, Domestication, Drama