Investigating the use and perception of West African Pidgin English among West African university students in Northern Cyprus

Abstract

INVESTIGATING THE USE AND PERCEPTION OF WEST AFRICAN PIDGIN ENGLISH AMONG WEST AFRICAN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN NORTHERN CYPRUS

This study sought to establish the usage of Pidgin English among University students from three West African countries studying in Eastern Mediterranean university, North Cyprus. A sample of 129 students from Nigeria, Cameroon, and Ghana was selected and surveyed to determine the use of Pidgin English. Findings show that the self-assessment of respondents in respect to the use of West African Pidgin English was “good” when observed on the scale of “excellent” to “very poor”. Most respondents watch Pidgin English comedy video clips, converse on the telephone using pidgin, read social media posts that are written in Pidgin English and chat on social media with Pidgin. Findings also show that the perception of respondents towards Pidgin English was generally positive. Majority of them accedes that the language is underrated but easy to learn and it is worth to be recognized internationally.