₦airaland Forum

If you're fluent in your ethnic/tribal language and you insist on speaking English to your children, in their formative years (zero to eight years), you should be arrested and tried.

U are correct and I guess thisostly.happen I'm the Yoruba race or can I say educated Yoruba's

..

To the extent that their children can't speak their own language correctly

Tayorshd87:
U are correct and I guess thisostly.happen I'm the Yoruba race or can I say educated Yoruba's

..

To the extent that their children can't speak their own language correctly

Mostly across Southern Nigeria.

Mentally, a child who can speak his or her native language is more likely to develop cognitive flexibility, stronger sense of self and helps the child with cultural identity as we all belong somewhere, no matter how some parents wants to blur it.

I recall writing on "mother tongue and cognitive development in children" for my term paper back then, during one of my undergraduate's units: Child and Adolescent Psychology. I personally know being bilingual/multilingual expands one's capacity and having grown up speaking Igbo, Yoruba and English language fluently, today I can confidently and professionally offer therapy sessions in those languages.......why limit your child?

WoeBetide666:
If you're fluent in your ethnic/tribal language and you insist on speaking English to your children, in their formative years (zero to eight years), you should be arrested and tried.

What is uou married from another ethnic group?

Which language do you expect the child to hear?

JONSYN7154:
What is uou married from another ethnic group?

Which language do you expect the child to hear?

You can speak yours and your partner will speak theirs.

Tayorshd87:
U are correct and I guess thisostly.happen I'm the Yoruba race or can I say educated Yoruba's

..

To the extent that their children can't speak their own language correctly

It's very common amongst middle class people, and those living in urban areas.

JONSYN7154:
What is uou married from another ethnic group?

Which language do you expect the child to hear?

In inter-ethnic marriages, both parents should speak their native languages to their child/children as children have the capacity to learn and speak more than one language simultaneously.

Mindlog:
Mostly across Southern Nigeria.

Mentally, a child who can speak his or her native language is more likely to develop cognitive flexibility, stronger sense of self and helps the child with cultural identity as we all belong somewhere, no matter how some parents wants to blur it.

I recall writing on "mother tongue and cognitive development in children" for my term paper back then, during one of my undergraduate's units: Child and Adolescent Psychology. I personally know being bilingual/multilingual expands one's capacity and having grown up speaking Igbo, Yoruba and English language fluently, today I can confidently and professionally offer therapy sessions in those languages.......why limit your child?

We do see it as if , a child that can't speak English is an illiterate and can never be able to fit in the society or rather find his/her among the educated elite and successful people in life 🤔

My take

What's the economic benefit of speaking a Nigerian local language?

tensazangetsu20:
What's the economic benefit of speaking a Nigerian local language?

How about the social or psychological benefit? The ostracization most children face for not knowing their language will shock you.

WoeBetide666:
How about the social or psychological benefit? The ostracization most children face for not knowing their language will shock you.

.
Story for the gods. I can't speak my local language but I speak two languages very well. English and Spanish and I have gotten better opportunities for it. My children will also follow the same path and probably learn an Asian language like Chinese or Japanese.

WoeBetide666:
If you're fluent in your ethnic/tribal language and you insist on speaking English to your children, in their formative years (zero to eight years), you should be arrested and tried.

Abeg get lost!

Nowadays, most kids (whether rich or poor) prefer to speak English or pidgin even if their parents communicate with them in their local dialect. Walk around your neighborhood, go to the local markets, and you will understand me better. Is it right or wrong? Well...I feel it doesn't really matter. Growing up, there were acquaintances who used to pretend that they couldn't speak their dialect because kids who used to speak English were treated differently and revered compared to those who spoke their dialects or even pidgin.

We4all:
Nowadays, most kids (whether rich or poor) prefer to speak English or pidgin even if their parents communicate with them in their local dialect. Walk around your neighborhood, go to the local markets, and you will understand me better. Is it right or wrong? Well...I feel it doesn't really matter. Growing up, there were acquaintances who used to pretend that they couldn't speak their dialect because kids who used to speak English were treated differently and revered compared to those who spoke their dialects or even pidgin.

I doubt it's preference, I think it's the way they are raised. Parents have to be more deliberate in encouraging them, from a young age, to speak the language. And, teaching the child the language doesn't mean just speaking it. Parents have to tell stories, jokes, riddles, and sing songs to the child in the language.

What's the economical advantage? I would rather let them learn how to speak English and other Western languages so as to prepare them for global opportunities.

tensazangetsu20:
What's the economic benefit of speaking a Nigerian local language?

The child will learn English at school, so why not just speak the local language?

1Sharon:
The child will learn English at school, so why not just speak the local language?

It's not important. They are better off learning a second European or Asian language to prepare themselves for the competitive world ahead.

tensazangetsu20:
It's not important. They are better off learning a second European or Asian language to prepare themselves for the competitive world ahead.

Yeah you're right, but it's still nice to know their local language

Speaking the local language is good, but it depends on the area of residence. Better to grasp Chinese and Spanish before any Nigerian language. On the other hand, speaking the English language is sacrosanct.

Economics over everything else.

tensazangetsu20:
What's the economic benefit of speaking a Nigerian local language?

What's the economic benefit of speaking Spanish??

Kaczynski:
What's the economic benefit of speaking Spanish??

A job in the Chilean state bank as a Nigerian on student visa