The Use of Proverbial Ideophones in Anaang, Southern Nigeria

Itoro Michael

Abstract


This  research centres on Anaang1 proverbial ideophones and its relevance in communication in. Data for this work was gathered during several field trips undertaken to the four speech communities of Anaang to collect data on Anaang folklore, for the on-going research on the Lower Cross Languages Development Project  (LCLDP) sponsored by the Linguistics Department of the University of Uyo, for the documentation and revitalization of  the endangered  languages in the Cross River Area.  A vast number of data on proverbs were recorded during  interview with the people on a folk session. From the recordings, data on proverbial ideophones were elicited and used for this work. This paper adopts the theoretical framework of Speech Acts theory for analysis. It has been observed that Anaang proverbial  ideophones are rich in  the use of style and language, as well as  literal and contextual  techniques. The contents as well as the contexts are carefully selected to reflect the socio-cultural background of the people. The application of proverbial ideophone is a special skill in speech, and requires a clear  knowledge of the socio-cultural background of the people. This work is therefore, an invaluable foundation for cultural communication in Anaang, Southern Nigeria.

 


Keywords


Proverb, ideophone, Anaang, language, communication, culture.

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.7575/aiac.ijalel.v.3n.5p.72

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