Once again I’m back with part 4 of my series, 10 things I love about naija. Well part 4 of my series, is about the one thing I feel is the most unique thing about naija. Pidgin English, or broken english or whatever you want to call it is, in my opinion, the most unique aspect of the nigerian culture. With that being said I go continue this post with pidgin. Make I talk small history of pidgin english… if u no understand, then try follow, if u no fit try sef, then nothing for you..lol.
Pidgin english nah derivative of English, mixed with words and phrases from hausa, igbo, yoruba, and a couple of other major tribes. The funny thing be say the people wey speak am pass nah warferians… U don hear waferian (warri people) speak pidgin before? E be like say nah another language wey dem dey yarn sef. My cousin (also a waferian) dey always tell me say warfe pidgin dey like 3-5 years ahead of wetin the rest of naija dey yarn. Anyways, back to some correct facts about pidgin… the language nah native laguage for about 5 million nigerians, and about 75 millions people across west africa dey speak am as 2nd laguage. Countries including Ghana, Cameroon, and Senegal… even though Ghanians dey substitute “ole boy” or “ole girl” with “Charlie”…lol. The thing dey always weak me when I hear am… I dey always think say Charlie nah person wey dey the room with us…lol.
Some other things wey dey trip for pidgin nah the similarities with Carribbean yarns. Pidgin and jamaican patois get enough words in common including pikin, una, and some other ones like that. Persin even tell me say some of the yarns for pidgin get portuguesse decent sef. Example,”Sabi” for pidgin nah “to know”.. same as “Saber” for portuguesse mean “to know”… maybe nah all those slave trading wey those oyimbo people do wey dem come dash us one word.
Omo man… I no fit begin to even comprehend which kind person I go be if I no sabi yarn pidgin. I no fit coagulate my world without words like “koro koro”, “nyama nyama”, “ashawo” or yarns like “wetin dey happen?”, “how far?”, “no wahala”, my warri people go say “whish ones now?”… kai… my children must to learn pidgin.. by force by force….even if I have to send them to downtown ojuelegba grammar school for 3 years… all dis fone` no go fly for my house. They must to yarn pidgin well well… No “warer” or “poraro” yarns man.
Sometimes I no fit fully describe situation unless I explain am for pidgin… example describing a babe wey ugly well well… to fully describe this u gats to say “the babe wor wor dey shout with loudspeaker”… “u dey see the wor wor from long distance”…or you wan kowaciate about a fine babe wey get nice body, you go talk “omo the babe too set men… enough peak milk, and bakassi peninsula for boyz” …or maybe you want to rake one okada man wey no wan give you change, “You dey mad!!!… i swear to God if you no give me change, nah me and you go enter the same trouser”…Imagine saying that in regular english – “I swear to God, if you don’t give me my change, I’ll get into your pants”… the thing sef no carry weight… I might even get a slap sef to add to not getting my change…or maybe u dey try describe something brand new, you go yarn say the thing nah “tear rubber” or “chasis”. Where we dey get all these words from sef?, nah only God know. lol
Anyways, I thank God say I sabi yarn pidgin man, and ever since i enter yankee I dey feel pidgin more and more. Nah like the naija universal language wey all man wey grow up for naija fit understand… unless those wey no gree enter bus or okada for naija, or those wey dey form say dem no wan speak… *hiss*… foolish none-entities…lol. So as I dey conclude this post, I go switch am back to regular “correct” english as an educated man concerned.
For those that understand pidgin english, it’s truely an art in it’s own form. No pronouns, no verbs, no real sentence structures, no textbooks to learn pidgin english, no Rosetta Stone cds to learn it quickly. You either know it or you don’t. Pidgin English – one of the reasons I love my beloved country, Naija!
God Bless Naija, and God punish anyone wey no wan Naija to progress!
