What language should Nigeria adopt as its national language CAR...

You speak well. It will take a long and hard process, probably costly to re-train each one of us and to print books, documents etc even governmental papers in all 3 major languages. You are right though, we do need to give this topic a serious consideration. It's a disgrace to depend on foreign language; no secret or security for a nation using another country's language to transact daily businesses.
Speaking English doesn't give us any respect either within or outside Nigeria either. Many times the Europeans or Americans still insult us as not speaking good English. Why speak the language at all. Let them learn any of our languages like we studied theirs right from Elementary schools to Universities and critique their own pronounciation or level of understanding in someone else's language. No pride or self esteem for Nigerians outside the country. All in government and all citizens of Nigeria need to consider this issue. We put too much worthiness in what is not ours and less in what's ours such as languages, culture etc. It's sad, but not too late. God that gave us that language expects us to thrive in it and use it gloriously. We should not just retain it and not use it thereby go into extinction, neither should we just throw it out of our systems but use it and refine our languages to the level of International acceptance. May the Lord help us all in our endevours.

Adaptation of languages should be the least of worries of a fraudulent contraption called nigeria.As we sleep and wake every single day so also different problems were born into the so-called nigerian state.Fundamental and monumental problems of ethnicity,tribalism,political inconsistencies,ideological incomparetibilty and the allmigthy curse of 'corruption' are more important to redress than a language,who says that nigeria will be better off speaking one language?,who says nigeria even want to be in one nation before talking of adopting a common language? my fear is that, if the above mention problems are continue to be pushed to the background,we might be postponing the doom days,it is not the way we speak english that make us mockery in the face of the world but the way we are and what we are.In England here a couple of month ago, nigerians came out on the street to demand the release of a state governor who had been arrested for money laundering and stealing of public money(your money and my money).The question is,....even if they are paid to do that,dont people have their own mind and brain any more. It is only in aplace called nigeria that thing like that happened.

Bose Obe wrote:

You speak well. It will take a long and hard process, probably costly to re-train each one of us and to print books, documents etc even governmental papers in all 3 major languages. You are right though, we do need to give this topic a serious consideration. It's a disgrace to depend on foreign language; no secret or security for a nation using another country's language to transact daily businesses.
Speaking English doesn't give us any respect either within or outside Nigeria either. Many times the Europeans or Americans still insult us as not speaking good English. Why speak the language at all. Let them learn any of our languages like we studied theirs right from Elementary schools to Universities and critique their own pronounciation or level of understanding in someone else's language. No pride or self esteem for Nigerians outside the country. All in government and all citizens of Nigeria need to consider this issue. We put too much worthiness in what is not ours and less in what's ours such as languages, culture etc. It's sad, but not too late. God that gave us that language expects us to thrive in it and use it gloriously. We should not just retain it and not use it thereby go into extinction, neither should we just throw it out of our systems but use it and refine our languages to the level of International acceptance. May the Lord help us all in our endevours.

there are two roles that any NL can play.it can feature as a subject in the school curriculum and as the medium of instruction in other subjects.such language therefore,verbal or non verbal is a means to an end.it is used to communicate ideas,thought,events etc., from one person to another.for the language to be useful the person to whom it is spoken should be able to internalise it and understand the message which is central.with the present multilingual situation in nigeria,having a unifying language is visibly a hard nut to crack.

Your idea of one language soud fantastic but it seems you don't get the compound problems in Nigeria. We have 100's of spoken dialects and tribes coupled with religious believes that are among our problems in that nation.
Introducing one language to a country like nigeria is going to be a big issue that will add to the current political/leadership turmoil in the nation.
Please i will like you to suggest which/what dialect/language to be used?

Nigerians should see themselves as belonging to a single geographical entity though with diverse languages. Any of the three major languages could be addopted without the feeling of rancour and sentiment. The use of foreign language in Nigeria shows that the country is under linguistic enslavement.

the materials are okbut you did not include the problems of multilingual nature of nigeria

I have a strong believe that we must be capable of solving specifically some of our numerous problems first (The task that makes us one large entity), after which we might be matured enough to see positively how it could be possible arriving at the language nature.

You should all speak english. I get so annoyed at ignorant foriegners speaking different languages.

I am not ignorant. You should speak English. It's the year 2007 and there's no excuse for not speaking the most important language in the world. Or do you want to remain a backward African backwater forever?

I haven't visited any African nation. Why would I want to go to a place where the people think the way to cure AIDS is to rape a virgin? Learn English, become civilised, educate your people, then possibly you might start attracting tourists and sustain a half decent economy without having to rely on handouts from Oxfam.

Omo Alade wrote:

People with minds and brain like you talk without thinking.

There's nothing wrong with my mind and brain. But I can't say the same about your AIDS ridden, virgin raping people. You've got a bit of a cheek really. Your third world crapholes rely on handouts from the civilised world. What do you ever do for yourselves?

When Nigeria stops executing RAPE VICTIMS by burying them up to their necks and inviting the pig ignorant men to throw stones at their heads, you'll be on your way to joining the civilised world. Until then, I hope western people stop throwing money at you.

We're not all as thick as Bono and Bob Geldoff.

BeetRoot wrote:

I haven't visited any African nation. Why would I want to go to a place where the people think the way to cure AIDS is to rape a virgin? Learn English, become civilised, educate your people, then possibly you might start attracting tourists and sustain a half decent economy without having to rely on handouts from Oxfam.

why are they debating this on the UK forum anyway? why should we care what language they use? But if they all spoke the same on, at least they could begin to start civilising themselves, and stop blaming all their woes on us and demanding handouts.

Omo, nobody has mentioned race.

I would have no problem with my 'closest blood' marrying somebody from any race, so long as they're not an uncivilised, superstitious, scrounging african who thinks that raping virgins is the way to cure AIDS. Or a backward Nigerian chauvanist who has taken part in the numerous stonings of women.

Show you proof? Are you joking? You claim to live in Nigeria?

"What language should Nigeria adopt as its national language?"

Two choices come to mind.

1) Baksheesh

2) Flim-flam

;-)

And you can beep me when you know what's going on in your own primitive country.

Laters Omo.

have you noticed that not one of these Nigerian patriots actually LIVES there? I wonder why that is?

Other countries hand out more generous welfare cheques.

Pidgin can be adopted as a national language. I believe anything else would lead to divisions among ethnic lines. However, any of the three major languages can be regionally adopted if the laws of what is "officially correct" can be modified. Let us consider english to be just another language as opposed to being the "official language". E.g. Senators can address the Senate with their mother tongues and interpreters can be used to translate their speech

Are you guys talking about Nigeria or AFRICA...if you are talking Nigeria which does not represent AFRICA talk about it...if this discussion is about AFRICA then talk about africa as a continent not Nigeria as Africa if you get my point.