₦airaland Forum

Please that headline diminished the length of the blackout. It was for 5 straight hours. 3-8pm. Funny thing is the main terminal building had power. But not the departure gates.

craziebone:
this guy, i want you to know that i am taking real effort to over come my reluctance to respond to you.

Are you denying that there are some Igbo people here in Lagos who can speak Yoruba fluently that you are not going to know they are not Yoruba and when they switch to their own Igbo, still speak it like it is the only language they've ever spoken in their life? Are you denying such people exist? If they exist, why then do you think we can't have the same thing among Chinese americans or Latinos? Because they are 'foreign' languages? That they are foreign languages mean absolutely nothing! No language is greater than the other and you should stop putting anylanguage on a pedestal.

What if i tell you i speak A BIT of mandarin with the accent? You don't need to believe me as i have been applauded before by the chinese themselves. And for the british accent too, i have been applauded by friends and lecturers too.

To you, it seems accent is a big deal. What's the big deal in accents of foreign languages? Why do you find it so inconcievable that other people can speak foreign languages with the proper accent? It is the likes of you that will get jealous when you see other people having what you wish you had.


To find out that people can actually switch from English to another Language and back with the two accents, you need to watch Angels and Demons. Where that female scientist got angry with the general commander of the swiss gaurd for her confiscated journals.she was ranting in Italian as she walked into the commander's office and when she got there, she switched into English with the proper accent.

There is this movie by Jet Li. He was the anatgonist (boss) in the movie. It was about those terracota soldiers that were excavated sometime ago. I really cannot remember the story line anymore but in it, there is a lady who spoke impeacable mandarin and impeacable english, switching from one to the other with so much ease.

This may be my last response to you. Bye.

OK let's attack issues and not personalities. First of all your example of Yoruba speaking igbo people is not a generalisation. Most western (Nigeria's west) igbos speak igbo that a village raised igbo will scorn at. Most of them find out that the igbo they speak is far from what is spoken in the east. Most of them are sent to universities in the East and find out that people there "laugh" at them because of how they speak. Lemme give u an example, I grew up in Warri and will easily say I speak warri pidgin. But when I hear locals speak (I left warri 18 years ago) I can understand what they speak but the locals can tell I am not "local" as I speak what they would consider an antiquated version of their pidgin. I use slang and words that aren't in common use anymore. My questioning of your assertion was that Chinese Americans can switch to flawless Mandarin without detection. This is not true.

I speak a bit of Cypriot Greek and the Cypriots I've met have been impressed. Even applauded. But they still can tell an accent.

And no I do not worship accents. I am only put off when people (Nigerian radio OAPs) talk with an acquired accent and try to make us believe that's how they started speaking English. Esther Ogun is a typical example (you might know her as Maupe Ogun on Channels TV)

And I believe only native speakers can judge if someone speaks with a proper accent. Most Nigerians insist that "Nigerian accent" spoken in American movies aren't a true reflection of the Naija accent. Most non Nigerians believe that it is a true reflection of Nigerian accent. Have you heard the British guy that that talked about Nigerians praying when a plane had issues. I though it was a good attempt at mimicking our accent but if I was blindfolded I would still tell that nobi Naija person dey talk

In other discussions Sierra Leone pidgin is gaddem very similar to Waffi pidgin

Ugosample:
They actually do (not all though)
Though there will be a negligible differential tho, not 100 % but at least with 93% accuracy.

Believe me local mandarin speakers will be able to tell when a Chinese American switches. Just like local Nigerian speakers will be able to tell when a Nigerian American switches

craziebone:
if the lationo can switch between English and Spanish and speak each of the languages very well, and also the chinese american switch from english to mandarin and his accents are perfect, why can't an Africa switch between english and say Yoruba, Hausa or Igbo and still speak each language with the perfect accent?

Why should the African be seen as someone who is faking it when he switches from perfect english accent when he speaks english, to perfect Yoruba accent when he speaks Yoruba?

Do you understand Spanish or Mandarin well enough to say they speak it perfectly when they switch?

craziebone:
first of all, i have not said i speak pure british accent, go back to that post you quoted and you will see where i said "near british accent" and i also gave the reason why i have not perfected it.

It is absolutely possible to learn british accent from the speech part of intensive english if you can follow the diagrams of the human head + the way the tongue is positioned and also, if you follow the instructions on how to pronounce sounds. Using the dictionary to know what sounds are in a particular word, words you are not sure its pronounciation, can be very helpful too.

I did not say i used only the intensive english textbook. I also mentioned listening to the BBC, Aljazeera English and watching those tv series. The tv series i mentioned here are series in which they spoke standard british accent for the most part. If you have watched those movies before, you will know that they spoke british english for the most part. The only way i could have mentioned series in which they spoke british english, is if it is a deliberate step on my own part to select the series in which the speak the accent i want to learn. Did you hear me mention 24, prison break, legend of the seeker, et al? This is because i just want to focus on getting my prefered british accent.

As for the exact accent i want to perfect, it is the standard one. The same type you hear from Amapour, Pierce Morgan, Richard Quest, Khamal Santa Maria, Hazem Sika, Theresa May, George Osborne, David Cameron, the Queen herself, Zainab Badarwe, Russel Fuller, Ros Atkins, Femi Oke, Nigeria's minister of Environment, i think my accent is better than Kemi Adeosun's, etc.

Goodluck in your attempt. Nigerians will see you as forming, Brits will still struggle with your acquired British accent. And please disabuse your mind that you can can acquire a foreign accent from reading a book on Oral English. The Oral English book used in Australia is the same one used in South Africa and England. And none of them speak with the same accent. Professor Soyinka probably has authored loads of English books, taught in top schools in the UK and US and still doesn't speak with a British or American accent

craziebone:
that's not straightly true (in Jon Sow's voice).

I am Nigerian, from the north and born in Lagos. If not for my secondary and tertiary education, i wouldn't have been out of Lagos before. I also have never been out of the shores of Nigeria. I speak a near British accent because i made effort on my own part by using the Intensive English JSS1-SS3 and focussing on the speech part.

You know in that book, they will tell you how to position your tongue in such a way that the right sound is what you are going to pronounce if you follow their guide. I also listened more to the BBC world service radio, Aljazeera English and i watched TV series like Merlin, Pillars of The Earth, Spartacus, The World Without End, Borgias and finally, the altimate Game of Thrones. In these series, if you have watched them, they speak impeacable British accent for the most part. The only reason why i am not perfect speaking it already, is because i listened a bit to those who thought i was 'forming'. If i had known, i would have paid no attention to those who were only been intimidated even though they also could embark on a self improvement exercise and score a higher result than i could ever achieve perfecting my british accent.

You are not faking it if you speak with a foreign accent and have never been abroad before or you went there as a child. Yes, some people may be faking it, while others are on their way making real effort to perfect it and the reason they sound very terrible is either because they are still at the early stages of trying to perfect it or they are learning it the wrong way.

With the necessary and right help, and with the strength of character to ignore the likes of you (and i am not trying to get at you here, but only trying to make a point), who are either uncomfortable (to put it nicely) when you hear others do it well, or are ignorant to know that there is nothing wrong speaking a language like the native speakers would speak it; these people who now sound terrible, can become perfect.

There are times i would board a bus in Lagos and because i am not use to speaking anything but proper English to strangers, and i begin to converse with the conductor, people do begin to give me a kind of look. Many times i don't even notice they are giving me a kind of look because it is normal for me to speak that way outside of my house. When an arguement breaks out and i can see they are not getting me when i speak proper english, i sill just switch to pidgin english and because of the way i also speak the pidgin english, they will go like: "ehen, so you sabi talk like this na em you dey form Yankee"?

There are other times when i help my mother to sell beside the road; people would come to by and because i am not use to speaking the anyother language to strangers, i will speak i english and when i do, sometimes, i notice an attitude from them. When there is an arguement and i switch to Yoruba, they will go like: "o, o tie le so Yoruba". They all think i am forming.

Now, the message to alot of you guys is this: when someone speaks with a foreign accent, he is not trying to make a point of superiority as that person is only trying to make himself better. There is nothing wrong in speaking a language like the native speakers speak it. Also, when he speaks like that, he is not making a statement that he doesn't speak Nigerian languages especially his own native language fluently(i have got into this situation manytimes before where my own people are surprised when i speak differently). Like i said, they are only trying to make themselves better.

Have you ever listened to a latino switch from English to Spanish before, or a chinese american switch from american english to Mandarin? The switch is effortless and smooth. It is beautiful!

So pls you guys should understand it and allow us to be. We are only going about our normal activities to better ourselves. Pls understand it.

My guy, listen you are forming. There is absolutely NO WAY you can acquire a British accent by using Intensive English! How can Intensive English teach you British accent and not Australian or New Zealand accents? And what British accent have you got? Cockney? Scousers? Geordie? Mancunian? Brummie?

junnyjake:
[/b]


The bolded part goes to prove a point I was trying to make.


it's simple for u to know a Nigerian accent when u hear it, not same for foreigners caz as they meet with people from different parts of the country they become more confused.

You can hear those variations because youyou are Nigerian. But do you know loads of other Africans cannot tell them difference between a Ghanaian accent and a Nigerian accent? Can you for example accurately tell the difference between a Kenyan accent and a Ugandan accent? Can you tell the difference between an American accent and a Canadian accent? Between a French Cameroonian one and an Ivory Coast French accent?

junnyjake:
You are definitely proving my point, yes as an outsider there are certain sounds a Ghanaian makes in his speech that makes me pinpoint his nationality, same with someone with a British accent.

This is a point I was trying to make; it's difficult for an outsider to decipher where you from as a Nigerian depending only on your accent as his guide.

Here's an example, he heard a Nigerian speak with an igbo accent sometime ago, and he concluded that's a Nigerian accent, later he discovered that the hausas and the Yoruba people speak differently, wouldn't he be confused?

Or better still, Tell me what the Nigerian accent sounds like?

We aren't talking about pinpointing were in Nigeria you come from. We are talking about been able to say "He is Nigerian" based on one's accent. If anyone can say one is Nigerian because of one's accent then there IS a Nigerian accent. And if you may know, there are huge differences in accents in their UK. Try and listen to Steve Gerard speak and compare that with a Londoner or a Scouser. There IS a Nigerian accent with regional variations

junnyjake:
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I don't think there's anything like a Nigerian accent. Even the pidgin English we speak is not limited to Nigeria alone. A Yoruba accent is different from an igbo accent so is an Hausa accent different as well let alone other minor tribes with their individual accents as well.

From your post op, I can conclude that you are strictly talking about a foreign English accent.
I shouldn't be surprised caz some of our brothers who've had the opportunity to travel to places like Qatar, Mexico, Finland, Russia, Israel would come back and start forming a southern American accent.

Let me ask you a question, when you hear a Ghanaian speak can you tell he/she is from Ghana? Or when a British person speak can you tell he/she is from there UK?

Isn't anyone seeing the misnomer in these pics? Professional footballers none of whom can swim. See all of them walking around in baby floaters

pezeji:
Wetin concern Zuckerberg and whatsapp?

Na d guy get whatsapp na

GAZZUZZ:
it's a bad driving habit to blare horns indiscriminately, one of the reasons we fail driving tests outside the country. Unfortunately Lagos is not a normal society, a lot of impatient drivers, it is possible to drive without blaring horns only when the horn is not functional in lagos

This is my condition for the past 3 or 4 months now o. Lol! Horn has been dysfunctional and I really can't be bothered to fix it. Yet.

priceaction:
Is that a bottle of wine that the brother was holding and what was it used for in burial of a young man? Just curious.

Its part of the holy sacrament. The chalice bearing the body of Christ is held by the mother. The liquid in the bottle held by the brother will serve as the Blood of Christ

zicoraads:
Lemme ask this question, what can the iPhone do that my BlackBerry Z30 can't?

In a few days, BlackBerry will not be able to use whatsapp

Revolva:
Well anybody who has the money should buy but what annoys me is the way our ladies misuse this iphones around imagine a 20yea old gal is asking my friend for an iphone 6 on d first date....they guy run leave her for d resaurant after paying d bills

Many babe's are prostituting for high end device for show off na dem de snap selfie pass all the time dem no let IG rest with camera 360app

As for me iphones are not made for country like ours but anybody wey wan take him last saving buy ipone 6s or the latest iphone7 na plate of amalaa be dat

Can you explain what you mean by "not made for country like ours"?

Belosconi:
Can you use Apple Pay in Nigeria?
Can you use Apple's Siri in Nigeria?

Same way you can't use Google pay or widely use NFC in Nigeria

Fragilegirl:
A typical issue wif many android devices. Could b malware maliciously processing in d background. This is one of d reasons I stick wif my iOS.

I hope you know iPhones are also malware prone. With considerably greater consequences as most iPhone users rarely take measures to minimise the impact of of a malware attack because they incorrectly believe it is maleware proof

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-37192670

GenBloodykiIler:
bro i can't do without SwiftKey it makes life soo easy for me.
let's just say am an addict..

do you know that the choice of words i used far back 2014 are still stored in SwiftKey and each time i got another device I'll just synchronize
meehn try SwiftKey and you'll regret it no wonder Microsoft acquired it
do Samsung have cloud backup of choice of words?
if yes I'll give it a try

SwiftKey, best keyboard app ever made

Marlvin:
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Thats relatively so.

whats the solution?

Replace the screen.

tomiwa20:
IPhone 6 for sale 90k(negotiable) , 90% Clean, whatsapp 07066209163 for pics

Size of internal storage?

Marlvin:
Samsung Grand opening apps and dialling contacts itself, what could be the cause? pls

Screen dey touch

swankylay:
Thanks. Pls can u get me a link for the official rom link. I'll appreciate. I don't want to waste anoda 1.5gig downloading wrong one

Is your S4 i9500 or i9500?
http://dl2.top2android.ir/rom/

Go to that folder and look for the appropriate stock rom for ya device

Direct reaumabale downloads

kingreign:
Take a benz on long journeys, youd be Wowed at its performance and economy.
The benz i mentioned are small engines and they're very good economically.

On a long journey yes. But as a run about in Lagos which is what I think this thread talks about, I am certain that those benz will never match up a Japanese for economy. Performance is another conversation entirely

kingreign:
Mercedes C180 or C220 manual transmission wins it here. No brainer.

A benz maintainable, affordable and fuel efficient? Thought this was the strength of Japanese

YoungDaNaval:
What about Audi?

I tire! No Audi 80 B3, B4(Tiger face) or B5

lolademariam:
Suliat one ayetoro one

I'm not sure this is a proper English translation of that Suliat kan Aiyetoro kàn

Dentmoyin:
those ones for car stand na ghost dey buy am...awoof dey purge oo

I don't get you bro

onatisi:
Dis one na coup de ta you plan here ooo. Anyway if u cant beat them then u join them. So pls am invited to ur party.

No hard feelings or nothing bro, and not trying to be an efiko, but the correct phrase is Coup d'etat not coup de ta

farmer99:
just go buy ur car for Cotonou, shikena

How does this Cotonou thing work? I am interested in buying a very very specific model of a car.

The emotions this thread evokes! Watched every video here. Had a crush on ever youthful Mary Onyali. Time was when we were guaranteed a place in the Olympic finals for the sprints. Olapade Adeniken, Davidson and Osmond, Chidi Imoh. Oh my days! Honourable mention to the Namibian Nightmare Frankie "The Flash" Fredericks. That guy never ever allowed our sprinters drink water drop cup. Golden Era for sure. Thank you naptu2 for the memories

Wizzyblack3:
But she did not entirely bleach, just a change of skin with time. Growing old in money. It can happen to anybody.

Utter rubbish. Nobody gets this light naturally because they have come into money. Purely the effects of Hypo and Jik at work

Looks Roman. Greeks didn't dress like this with that red sash