Appreciating Nigerians Slangy Words by Ebuka Micheals. :EVERYDAY PEOPLE

Appreciating Nigerian Slangy words

 

This beautiful country has had a number of slangy words added to its Pidgin English making our expressions richer than some languages; although I think we are yet to hold a candle to English language, where new words seem to flourish just as a gravid frog dispenses its millions of tadpoles. Nevertheless, the country has made a huge mark in the contribution of slangy words which are being used by two-third of West Africans. Come to think of it, two-third of West Africans is probably Nigerians. Well, that’s a whole lot to me.

When formality meets fun, a word is born. It begins to grow and spread faster than wild fire can engulf the thick forest of the tropical California, when popular politicians and celebrities use it publicly. Considering the fact that our major leaders have a knack for introducing these words to us, I wouldn’t be surprised if Queen Elizabeth uses the expression ‘there is God oo’ as a means to express her utter sadness to what could perhaps be another harbinger of doom for the English people neither would I be surprised if Obama finishes his speech with these belly bursting phrase ‘I dey kampe’. Maybe we would have actually found something to laugh about, falling off our couches while watching the black American president drive Americans to a more contemporary Africa…lol

 

Nigerian leaders have gone wild in their grammar construction and communication tactics that the society no longer cares if it’s good or bad, correct or incorrect; what matters to the everyday Nigerians is the message behind the expression. These people are interested in what trends that can be used in their day-to-day communication.

 

Shall we take a ride through all the slangy expressions we have at the moment. The former head of state, Olusegun Obasanjo, had in his effort to assert his invincibility used ‘I dey kampe’. Late Yar’ Adua introduced ‘To God be the glory’.  Good luck came with ‘God bless Nigeria’. Well that sounds familiar to me…much like God bless America.  But then all of these can be used anywhere around many Anglophone countries except for the ‘I dey kampe’.

A lot of Nigerians weren’t so into these aforementioned expressions because no matter how much cultural relativism affects us Nigerians, we still value our indigenous words more than that of the western world. So, it was not a bit surprising when the whole nation went viral with Fashola’s ‘Eko oni baje’, Igbos will scream Senator Chimaroke Nnamani’s ‘Ebe ano’. Edo people will tell you Adams Oshiomole’s ‘go and die’. Ekiti people can’t stop explaining Omisore’s ‘the rices you saw in ekiti are aregbesola rices’. The popular PDP supporters will tell you to shape in or you shape out just like Edwin Clark told Obasanjo then.

 

Let us not forget the  NACDC officer that introduced ‘oga at the top’ syndrome which flooded Nigeria like hurricane Katrina flooded New Orleans or police officers at checkpoints using ‘roger us’, the ‘one chance’ slang our everyday bus drivers and the use of 419ers in place of fraudsters. This very jeering act of Lagosians reminding you that this is Lagos, especially when you have been mobbed, leaves a bitter taste in the victim’s mouth.

 

Should we even forget the two Nigerian sweethearts that have brought comic relief in to our crises-laden country? Those who always sweep us off our feet with words that provoke laughter capable of crushing our ribs? Of course their names are in your mind now. Who else if not our lady, Patience Jonathan  and Hon. Patrick obahiagbo . Surprisingly, they are both from the south. Google couldn’t help but be in awe of their unprecedented grammar, providing them to internet surfers at a click away with word for word accuracy. The higgyhagger, the crinkum crankum, the mombo jumbo when typed on Google, a face like this appears

 

 of course you know who owns the face. Our very own  grandiloquent Patrick.

 

Lady patience did contribute her own quota to the growth of W.S.P(Word/slang/phrase) in Nigeria… her classic  ‘There is God’, much rightly put, ‘There is gGod oo’ and ‘Na only you waka come?’

Just a few weeks ago, we were asking na only Oby Ezekwesiri waka come, as she joined the team of W.S.P trend setters by unleashing the latest one that infested Nigerian social network like an incurable viral disease—EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE.  This one is currently riding the crest of the wave and getting more popular by the day that soon an illiterate woman will ask you ‘wetin come be the empirical evidence wey go show you buy am for my shop?’ …lol. Also, I am sure a lot of you will demand for my empirical evidence after reading this.

 

Finally nollywood actors and actresses have also contributed immensely to the growth of the Pidgin English. The greatest percentage coming from the ever growing music industry of Nigeria, which has finally obtained superiority among its African contenders. Words like kolomental, kerewa, sample ekwe, kolombi your sister, boys are not smiling, nak you akpako, skelewu, jangilova, where is the koko, Oliver Twist, , dorobucci, oga boss, shoki, lookulooku, pack well, espeakilekwa, kpomkpi, biz girl and a whole lot more have begun trending. Right now, I think we should be getting ready to come up with the first edition our Pidgin English dictionary.

 

So, as we can see, there is absolutely no doubt that our country is enormously blessed. Amidst differences in languages and customs, we still manage to communicate with one another. We should applaud Nigerians for constantly bridging the gap between all the tribes in the country, thereby uniting the nation through communication even without knowing it.

Every Nigerian has a catch phrase or what I would like to call, their WSP trend.  The Yorubas will always say ‘omo..ah’, the Hausas  say ‘kai’, the Igbos will always scream ‘nnaa men!’. I would like to ask. What word can foreigners use to relate to us if not our own words?

Moreover, as we think about this, what is your own personal word?

You can let us in on your world of personal words.

By Ebuka Micheals