Advances in Minority Language Research in Nigeria: Volume 1

Abstract

This volume is a collection of articles based on papers which have presented at the monthly Jos Linguistics Circle, held in the city of Jos in central Nigeria, together with an overview chapter surveying current linguistics research and language development in Nigeria. The twelve articles are all written by specialists in Nigerian languages and treat a wide range of subjects. General linguistics topics include phonetics (Biu-Mandara labiocoronals, interdental approximants in Bauchi, and the 'explosive bilabial nasal' of Ninkyop), phonology (vowel length in C'Lela and word-initial gemination in Cicipu), morphosyntax (focus strategies in Rigwe, tense/aspect/manner marking in Ukaan, and verbal nouns in Jukun) , semantics (of gt-Ma'in noun classes), and discourse (information structure encoded by verbal morphology in Central Kambari). Other chapters have sociolinguistic and interdisciplinary themes, including archaeology, Tarok oral traditions, and the use of Arabic script in presentday Nigeria. The focus is on the minority languages of Nigeria: many of the languages discussed are severely underdescribed despite their fascinating properties, and this book will be a valuable resource for africanists and typologists alike.