Don calls for greater rapprochement between Nigeria, Brazil on language
By Henry Oladele
A Professor of Linguistics, Portuguese and Translation Studies, Tayo Ajayi, on Tuesday called for greater rapprochement and collaboration between Brazilian and African linguists and anthropologists in order to deepen studies related to African heritage in Brazil.
Ajayi made the call while delivering the 109th Lagos State University (LASU) Inaugural Lecture Series, at its main campus at Ojo.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Ajayi is from the Department of Foreign Languages, Faculty of Arts, LASU.
The lecture had the theme: ‘Inter-linguistic Interactions and Resultant Phenomena: Agglutinative and Inflectional Languages.
He said: “The practitioners of Afro-Brazilian religion and other interested parties could be encouraged to visit Nigeria to get to know the Yoruba people, culture and language better.
“With these efforts, we believe that in the future, the study of African languages such as Yoruba, will take its rightful place in Brazilian awareness and in the Brazilian society.”
Ajayi added that the Brazilian Government could include African languages in its programme of postgraduate scholarships abroad for Brazilian students.
He also said that the Nigerian Government could incentivise Brazilian students interested in the Yoruba Language through scholarships administered in Nigeria.
He said that the Nigerian Government could also send language teachers to Brazil as part of its current cultural and technical exchange programme.
“The Nigerian government would pay the remuneration and the Braziliam government would pay the expenses in Brazil.
“This is aimed at not losing the characteristics of the original Yoruba Language in songs, chants, ‘orikis’ and casual conversations, among others,” he said.
He added that it was necessary to emphasise that Yoruba was neither the first nor second language of Brazilians.
“Yoruba is today a specialised contact language, spoken in environments relating to Afro-Brazilian religious and cultural context.”
Ajayi also noted that some Brazilians studied Yoruba Language for specific purposes.
“One thing is certain: Of the African languages, Yoruba is the most widely spoken and the most visible in Brazil today,” he said.(NAN) www.nannews.ng
Edited by Ijeoma Popoola
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