AN ETHNOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS OF SELECTED SPEECH EVENTS IN KAJJU

This study entitled “An Ethnographic Analysis of Selected Speech Events in Kajju” examines different communicative events and how the Jju speakers deploy both the linguistic elements and the cultural resources available to them to produce successful communicative engagements. The motivation for this study stems from the view held by some linguists that every language is sufficient to express the communicative needs of its speakers; therefore, an examination of Jju, the language of Bajju people in Southern Kaduna, their speech events and world views would provide an empirical basis for generalisation. The data for this study were sourced from selected live events though surreptitiously using recording gadgets (devices) from which the transcription was made for presentation. A total of five events that underpin the social reality of virtually every human society were covered. Dell Hymes' Speaking Grid was adopted as the theoretical and analytical framework. The choice of this model was based on the fact that the power dynamics of the people are locked up in their relations and how language steeped on social events are the windows through which they can be appreciated. From the study, we found out that the in-group identities of a people are defined by their participation in certain speech events. Also, the cultural beliefs of the Bajju people reflect some degree of similarities with other indigenous people of the Southern Kaduna. The study concludes that research of this nature should be encouraged for cultural reorientation at a time such as this when younger generations of native speakers of many minority languages do not make up the list of active speakers of their native languages.