CONTRASTIVE ANALYSIS OF ENGLISH AND IJỌ SEGMENTALS AND SUPRASEGMENTALS

Abstract

The aim of this study is to examine the differences and similarities between English and Ijọ segmental phonemes and suprasegmental feature. The study uses contrastive analysis (CA) as its theoretical framework. CA is a good tool to find out difficulties which second language learners may encounter such that predictions are made. The use of this framework is, therefore, borne out of the fact that it facilitates second-language (L2) learning in that the features of learners’ first language (L1) and L2 are succinctly contrasted for a pedagogic purpose. Differences abound between English and Ijọ segmental phonemes and suprasegmental features. These differences notwithstanding, there are a few similarities between their phonemes. It is revealed that such differences are found more between the vocalic phonemes of the two languages than their consonantal phonemes; and their suprasegmental features are totally different from each other. Owing to these differences, it is predicted that Ijọ learners of English find it difficult to learn English phonemes, stress and intonation. However, these learners find it easy to learn areas where there are phonemic similarities between their L1 and the target language.

Chapter One

1.0 Introduction

1.1 Background to the Study

Language is as old as man, and it is inevitable because it is the means through which humans communicate,  translate, and transmit ideas into reality. And as such the  history of language  can be traced  as far back as the creation of man on earth.  Finnegan (2008:11) opines,  “A good  many people in all parts of the world  share a  belief that the origin of language can be traced to the Garden of Eden”.

Different  scholars  have  different  views  on  the  origin  of  language.  People  have different  ways  of explaining  why languages  change  or  differ  from  one  author.  The  Old Testament relates that before the tower of Babel all men and women spoke the same language and could understand one another. Eventually, human pride provoked God into confounding their communication with mutually unintelligible languages. However, language differences among people can be seen as a penalty for sinful behaviour.

Language differences can also be traced to the intermingling of people with different linguistic backgrounds in a particular location. But linguists believe the reason for numerous languages in the world is the natural change over time, the inevitable product of reshaping speech to meet changing social and intellectual needs, reflecting contact with people speaking other languages.

When groups move to new places and mix with speakers of different languages, there is an influence because their languages must adapt to new circumstances. The people will be forced to learn each other’s language to achieve a purpose. Such is so glaring in Nigeria when the colonial  masters came  into  the country and introduced  English,  which is used  as an official language today. Pidgin English is as a result of people moving from one place to the other to meet changing social and intellectual  needs. It is amazing that, with influences of

languages on each other, there are changes which occur. Naturally, there are differences and similarities between languages. The differences are always more than the similarities, but all languages are complete irrespective of the differences. They all perform the  same purpose which is communication.  Anagbogu,  Mbah and Eme (2010:26)  ask a  question: Does the language of a particular people perform the function they want it to perform? If it does, then it is complete. It is true that when a language performs the purpose which its speakers intend, such a language is complete; no language in the world is seen as superior to the other.

It is on this basis that we want to do a contrastive  analysis  of English and  Izon segmentals and supra-segmentals.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

The English language was introduced  into Nigeria by early European traders,  who first visited  the country in the 16th  century.  However,  Spencer  (1971:79)  avers  that it is difficult  to lay hold on evidence  available  to picture  in any form the nature  of African-

European contact in a linguistic point of view, but it is clear that it is from the  mercantile period  that  pidgin  of  West  Africa  came  into  existence.  In  order  to  trade  and  later  to administer and to teach Nigerians the Christian religion, these early Europeans, specifically the British, literally forced Nigerians to learn the English language.

However, the English language has been in Nigeria for decades now but it still poses problems to the ordinary man in Nigeria. Few among millions of Nigerians can speak English fluently. Even with difficulties of the language, Bamgbose (1971:65) opines that it is still the language  of  government,  business,  commerce,  education,  mass  media,  literature  and  for internal and external communications. Thus, the language is indispensable to the country.

Ijo is a large language group spoken in Rivers state, Bayelsa state, Delta state, Edo state and Ondo state. It is divided into East Ijo and West Ijo. East Ijo comprises  Nkoro,

Kalabari, Okrika and Ibani all spoken in Rivers state; and Nembe-Akassa spoken in Bayelsa state. Conversely, West Ijo is divided into inland Ijo, on the one hand, and Izon on the other.

Izon is the largest  language  of the Ijo group, and it comprises a large number  of dialects. While Ijo as earlier noted is a large language group spoken in the above mentioned states without dialects. All of inland Ijo and much of Izon are spoken in Bayelsa state, but Izon also extends into Delta state, Edo state and Ondo state with differences in phonology.

English and Izon are two different languages that do not have the same origin. The former is European while the latter is Niger-Congo. Also, they do not belong to  the same family. For languages to belong to the same family depends on the lexis,  morphology and phonology of the languages. Katamba (1989:79) avers that no two languages have exactly the same  phoneme  inventories  which  are  realized  by the  same  sets  of  allophones;  no  two languages  have  exactly  the  same  phonological  rules  regulating  the  deployment  of  their sounds.

Following the above assertion, the phoneme inventories of English and Izon differ. This difference is also applicable to tone and stress of the two languages and it constitutes a problem to Izon speakers trying to learn English as a second language (L2).

1.3 Research Questions

This research will provide answers to the following questions.

1.   What are the similarities between English and Izon phonemes?

2.   How do English and Izon phonemes differ?

3.   What are the difficulties encountered by Izon speakers trying to pronounce English speech sounds?

4.   How can the difficulties faced by Izon learners of English be predicted?

1.4 Purpose of the Study

The aim of this research is to mainly look at the differences and similarities between the segmentals and supra-segmentals of the English and Izon languages so as to find out areas in which Izon learners of English as a second language may encounter difficulties. When the difficult areas are identified, it will be possible for the teacher to emphasize those areas more in order to improve upon the performances of the students.

On this  note,  the  study will employ  contrastive  analysis  as a  predicting  tool  for analyzing  the  possible  difficulties  encountered  by Izon  learners  of  English.  Contrastive analysis in the words of Lado (1957:1) is a scientific description of language to be learned, carefully compared with the parallel description of the native language of the learner. And on the basis of this comparison, the learners’ problems are predicted.

1.5 Significance of the Study

This study to an extent will proffer solutions to difficulties which Izon speakers who learn English as a second language encounter. Because this research will expose the areas of difficulties possibly encountered by the native speakers of Izon who learn English as their L2, it will also equip the language teachers with ample information on how to  improve those predicted areas of difficulties in order to facilitate learning.

The focus of any research work is to primarily improve upon the existing knowledge and this study is bent towards this fact.

1.6 Scope of the Study

The areas to be covered  in this research  are segmentals  and  supra-segmentals  of English and Izon languages. The areas to be investigated are: English and Izon consonantal phonemes; English and Izon vocalic phonemes; English intonation, stress and Izon tone.

1.7 Limitation of the Study

This work seeks to investigate segmentals and supra-segmentals of English and Izon languages. The segmentals include: consonants and vowels, while the supra-segmentals are stress, intonation and tone. Izon has several dialects, but for the  purpose of this research, Kolokuma dialect is used because it is the standard dialect of the Izon language.

The research was unable to touch other areas of phonology of the two languages as a result of time and financial constraints.

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