The Department of
Linguistics and Nigerian Languages, University of Uyo, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State,
Nigeria, announces a Mother Language Competition
to mark the 2013 International Mother Language Day.
The International Mother
Language Day is a day set aside by the United Nations to celebrate linguistic
and cultural diversity. This was motivated by the killing of four students in
Bangladesh in 1952 for their campaign to
use their mother tongue, Bangali, as the official language. Since 1999,
following UNESCO’s proclamation of February 21st as the International Mother Language Day, the
idea has been to sensitize public opinion towards mother tongue use on this day. The celebration also promotes mutual respect
based on love of one’s mother tongue. It is in this spirit that we present this
platform for expression in the mother tongues of Nigeria, following the theme
for 2013, which is ‘The Book’.
The Department is
organizing this competition to mark the 2013 International Mother Language Day,
which comes up on Thursday 21st February, 2013. The competition
comes in two categories: essay and translation. Category A is an essay on ‘Publishing
in Nigerian Languages’, while Category B is the translation of part of the ‘Universal
Declaration of Linguistic Rights’ into any Nigerian language. The entries will
be read on the 21st February, 2013; to celebrate the day and create
an awareness of the status of the many lesser resourced languages of Nigeria.
CATEGORY A – ESSAY
Write an essay on the
topic ‘Publishing in Nigerian Languages’, in your mother tongue and provide an
English translation.
CATEGORY B - TRANSLATION
Translate
the following passage into your mother tongue.
UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF LINGUISTIC
RIGHTS
Article 1
1.
This Declaration considers as a language community any human society
established historically in a particular territorial space, whether this space
be recognized or not, which identifies itself as a people and has developed a
common language as a natural means of communication and cultural cohesion among
its members. The term language proper to a territory refers to the language of
the community historically established in such a space.
2.
This Declaration takes as its point of departure the principle that linguistic
rights are individual and collective at one and the same time. In defining the
full range of linguistic rights, it adopts as its referent the case of a
historical language community within its own territorial space, this space
being understood, not only as the geographical area where the community lives,
but also as the social and functional space vital to the full development of
the language. Only on this basis is it possible to define the rights of the
language groups mentioned in point 5 of the present article, and those of
individuals living outside the territory of their community, in terms of a
gradation or continuum.
3.
For the purpose of this Declaration, groups are also deemed to be in their own
territory and to belong to a language community in the following circumstances:
i.
when they are separated from the main body of their community by political or
administrative boundaries;
ii.
when they have been historically established in a small geographical area
surrounded by members of other language communities; or
iii.
when they are established in a geographical area which they share with the
members of other language communities with similar historical antecedents.
4.
This Declaration also considers nomad peoples within their areas of migration
and peoples established in geographically dispersed locations as language
communities in their own historical territory.
5.
This Declaration considers as a language group any group of persons sharing the
same language which is established in the territorial space of another language
community but which does not possess historical antecedents equivalent to those
of that community. Examples of such groups are immigrants, refugees, deported
persons and members of diasporas.
SUBMISSION
Competitors may take part in either one
or the two categories, and more than one entry in each category may be
submitted, provided different languages are used. For electronic submissions,
send both word and pdf versions. Deadline for submission is February 19, 2013. Submit your contribution with a short biodata following the guide and
format below, to:
The Office of the Head of Department, Linguistics
and Nigerian Languages, University of Uyo.
Professor Imelda Udoh
Head
Department of Linguistics and Nigerian Languages
University of Uyo, Uyo
Akwa Ibom State
Nigeria
Head
Department of Linguistics and Nigerian Languages
University of Uyo, Uyo
Akwa Ibom State
Nigeria
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