Thread by @DigiAfricanLang

Okay, here’s another thread of things I think should exist in as many Nigerian languages as possible (many of them online, but some not). Please add yours.

Multimedia online dictionaries. Something like YorubaName.com but for words. Full lexical dictionaries. That have sound, are exhaustive, and can be added to. We’re working on one at YorubaWord.com. Imagine ALL Nigerian languages visible online in this way.

More name dictionaries. YorubaName.com, IgboName.com, EdoNames.com, etc. Eventually, it will become prudent to have them all under one umbrella (NigerianNames.com?). How many times have you had to ask people what their names mean?

The Odù Ifá. Multimedia. On apps. Online. Searchable and multimedia with video and audio. No need to let the knowledge die with the dying adult generations. Any other religious knowledge that used to just be oral. Get them all digitized.

A website like Genius.com for all musical albums that have ever been produced in Nigerian languages, with space for annotations and translations. So many references in Haruna Iṣọ̀lá’s songs I’d appreciate help with without having to ask my father.

Audiobooks of all published Nigerian language literature, from D.O. Fágúnwà to Adébáyọ̀ Fálétí to Onitsha Market Literature. eBooks too. Who has the rights? Who can do this? Is there willingness? Is there enough funds? If not for profit, can grants make digitizing them possible?

A digital library of much of the classic radio/tv shows from the 60s in BCOS and NTA. Zebrudaya, Ichoku, Ifá Olókun Asọ̀rọ̀dayọ̀, Baba Ṣùpọ̀ Kòṣeémání, Ẹńbáláyà, etc

A revised Yorùbá language bible. Nobody ever uses ‘lí’ for ‘ní’ anymore. Probably one in more contemporary language. Same for the Quran, though I’m not familiar with the translation efforts there.

Translations into Nigerian languages (as many as we can get) of both classics and contemporary literature, from Shakespeare to Ṣóyínká to Shọ́nẹ́yìn. And translations to English of classic Yorùbá texts from Ọdúnjọ̀ to Ọládàpọ̀. The work can be crowdsourced where necessary.

Enough entertainment materials for today’s kids: animations, learning apps/tools, educational tools on youtube, iTunes, etc. There’s VERY little you can find today online if you’re trying to raise a bilingual child.

A digital library of Yorùbá proverbs (perhaps with voice of someone pronouncing/explaining it). A digital library of Yorùbá drum patterns (I’m very passionate about this one). A digital library of folktales.

Manuals. Those that come with imported products, should certainly exist in the local languages. Don’t ask me which ones. Let the manufacturers ensure that the language(s) of the area they products are going are represented. I’m tired of reading Korean manuals in my tv.

There are plenty more, some needing government policy to implement. Some only needing individual or collective action. Some business decisions. But for our languages to thrive, there has to be a multifaceted approach to ensuring their revitalization.

Not to forget schools that use Nigerian languages as mediums of instruction. Not public schools and their underfunding. But schools with professionals behind them, with solid funding, a strong academic syllabus, strong work ethic, and a good business model.

What I found on visiting Wales in 2016 is that the Welsh-medium schools had begun to turn out better students than the English-medium ones. Dunno if that’s still the case.

I wrote about it here: ktravula.com/2016/03/a-nigh… and here ktravula.com/2016/02/a-nigh…