CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

1.1 Introduction

This chapter lays the foundation of the study by discussing the background, statement of the problem, aim of the study, Research hypothesis, significance of study, justification of study, and definition of terms.

1.2 Background to the study

Background information identifies and describes the history and nature of a well defined problem with reference to contextualizing existing literature. Here, we shall look at the historical, contextual, and scientific background of the study.

1.2.1Historical Background

English first arrived in Cameroon around the 16th century when the British together with the Dutch established slave depots at the coast of Bimbia. The language gained grounds in the 17th century. British missionaries, who came with the aim of evangelism to win souls for their religion, brought their language with them.

The 18th century saw the institution of colonialism, and even though the Germans were the earliest colonial powers in Cameroon, they had very little interest in enhancing their own language. Cameroon Pidgin English was born in the German owned plantations as Kouega (2007:6) says Pidgin English came into being in the slave trade years (1400-1800).  This variety spread very fast among the multiethnic workers who travelled home to the hinterlands.

After the defeat of Germany in WW1, Cameroon as a UN protectorate was partitioned between Britain and France. This meant a final consolidation of the English language in the country because English forms of education were institutionalized and English became an official language in Western Cameroon. Cameroon pidgin on the other hand was discouraged and thought of as an inferior variety.

1.2.2Contextual Background

Cameroon is a multi-lingual country with close to 260 national   languages, spoken by an estimated 28 million people in the 10 regions of the country. Out of these 260 national languages, English and French are the two official languages used for administrative purpose and education.

This sociolinguistics scenario is made even more complex by the existence of Cameroon pidgin English(CPE), which serves as a very important lingua franca.  Cameroon pidgin English has been used in Cameroon for several years now. As KOUEGA (2007:6) says, Pidgin English came into being in the slave trade years (1400-1800).     Cameroon Pidgin English has gained a lot of grounds in Cameroon as it is used in diverse degrees by both Francophones and Anglophones across the country as a lingua franca especially for trade. Today, most Cameroonians are multilingual and  able to speak at least two languages.

Pidgin English is spoken in eight regions of Cameroon. In the two English speaking regions (North West and South West), it has acquired L1 status for most children. In terms of status, CPE is still marginalized even by some educators who themselves are speakers of the variety. One reason for this linguistic prejudice is that CPE and English language are so similar, yet so different. This means that Cameroon Pidgin English poses a permanent threat to standard English.

This is manifested through linguistic features such as borrowings, code-switching , and code-mixing. It is not uncommon to hear a Cameroonian say I am going me nau ‘I have to leave now’ or I had to travel to Mamfe but I hear the roads are very bad wetti man go do? I have to go. I am going me and the ‘Nfo’ (the chief) is coming tonight are further examples of the influence of the two varieties on each other.

Although CPE was initially considered as the language of those who could not speak good English, this is not the case today, as many proficient English speakers find pleasure in speaking pidgin, even among them. It is therefore, no doubt that it is not only used by secondary school students or undergraduate University students in Cameroon during conversation with the uneducated public, but it has become a fascinating medium of casual exchange among students themselves.

Fisherman (1997) asserts that; “no language considered inferior is aptly logical”. This is because where two or more speech communities come in contact, a lingua franca or common language of communication emerges. He further points out that it is the social situation use popularly known as context that affects the morpho-syntactic pattern of a language. Since pidginisation, according to Hymes (1971:84), is a “complex process of Sociolinguistics”, we shall now consider the effects of Cameroon Pidgin English on students’ fluency in Cameroon.

1.2.3Scientific Background

According to the theory of monogenesis, in its most radical form, all pidgins and Creole languages of the world can be ultimately traced back to one linguistic variety. This idea was first formulated by Hugo Schuchardt in the late 19th century and popularized in the late 1950s and early 1960s by Taylor (1961) and Thompson(1961).

It assumes that some type of pidgin language, dubbed West African Pidgin Portuguese, based on Portuguese was spoken from the 15th century to the 18th century in the forts established by the Portuguese in the West African coast. This variety was the starting point of all the pidgin and Creole languages.

Usually, a pidgin language is a blend of the vocabulary of one major language with the grammar of one or more other languages.

The major languages are usually the languages of the former major colonial powers, for the case of Cameroon Pidgin English, we have English and French. In British Cameroon where it is mostly spoken English and the indigenous languages enrich the vocabulary of CPE.

Then with the birth of the federal republic of Cameroon in 1961, CPE further experienced French influence as well influence from the local languages of French speaking Cameroon. Thus as Schneider(1966:5) says, in the mid sixties, 85% of CPE terms came from English, 13% from indigenous languages, and 2% percent from other languages including French and Portoguese.

According to Ayafor (2000:2), this situation changed significantly by the early 70s where 80% of the  CPE lexicon was English based, 14% came from indigenous languages, 5 % from French and 1% from other languages. Such a drastic change can be attributed to the political evolution of the country, since Cameroon moved from a federation to a unitary state in which both Francophone and Anglophone had freedom of movement. As Ferai ( 1980:46) points CPE is no longer perceived exclusively as a Lingua Franca of the Anglophone population, but as a language with a possible national dimension.

This is because its influence is felt in almost every part of the country, in urban as well as rural areas. CPE is used in Churches, market places , motor parks, streets, schools etc. In fact, this “no man’s” language continues to be very present in the daily socioeconomic lives of the Cameroon people, serving as a bridge between Cameroonians of various walks of life.

1.3 Statement of the Problem

The English language is one of the official languages in Cameroon and it is used in all areas of administration, media, education etc, but it is very pertinent to note that Pidgin English, which originated out of necessity, or to be used as an emergency language among people (especially between the white merchants and African natives) who don’t share a common language, yet have a need to interact, has become an impediment to students’  Spoken and written English in Cameroon, worse of all, including higher education students. This has made them Competence impaired in English   Language, which is taught from elementary to tertiary levels. This is thus a major problem which cannot be ignored.

1.4 Aim of the Study

1. To identify the effects caused by the use of Cameroon Pidgin English on the use of English language of students in Cameroon.
2. To show the extent to which Cameroon Pidgin English influences the English competency of students in Cameroon.
3. To give possible proposals in order to avoid some contingencies caused by Cameroon Pidgin English

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