La Créolisation: Processus, Dimensions, Et Contraintes: Le Cas Du Pidgin Nigérian,

A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in French and Francophon Intercultural Studies, University of Regina. vi, 111 p. Nigerian Pidgin evolved as a result of language contact with the colonialists and foreign traders. It is one of the fast-growing languages in Nigeria, it is the only language that has no native speakers, making it a unifying language. In spite of the fact that Nigerian Pidgin is probably the language with the highest population of users in Nigeria, it does not enjoy official recognition and is excluded from the education system. It lacks prestige because it is seen by some Nigerians especially the elites as a “bad” form of English and associated with a socially deprived and uneducated set of people. This current status of the Nigerian Pidgin has motivated us in this study to consider these crucial questions: Why is the Nigerian Pidgin still not considered a national language, despite its popularity among the Nigerian population (According to the current statistics, it is estimated that over 75% of the population speak it? Could this be as a result of the negligence shown by the government? If Nigerian Pidgin were considered a national language, what are the economic, social and political importance? Would it eventually become a creole? The objective of this research is to describe the current state of pidgin in Nigerian society, in order to: identify the stages that can lead to the creolization of pidgin in the Nigerian context, determine the reasons why pidgin is yet to gain an official recognition, despite its popularity among the population, present advantages associated with the recognition of pidgin in the country. This study will also examine the processes the pidgin has to go through before becoming a creole and the things that could hinder it from gaining the creole status.