WhatsApp as a Vector of Language Change: Indications from Igbo Aboriginal Students in South-Western Nigerian Universities
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33423/jhetpv26i1.8171Keywords:
higher education, Igbo language, WhatsApp, language endangerment, Nigeria, youth, BiafraAbstract
Social media, especially WhatsApp, are increasingly shaping language use among young Nigerians at the expense of indigenous languages. This study examines the effect of WhatsApp on the use of the Igbo language among Igbo university students in southwestern Nigeria and how it may contribute to the endangerment of the Igbo language. The study draws on Media Ecology Theory, Technological Determinism Theory, and a mixed-methods approach combining quantitative surveys and interviews to examine how students engage with language on WhatsApp and whether the platform nurtures or undermines linguistic sustainability. Findings show that WhatsApp holds vast potential for the development of the Igbo language, which is currently neglected. The use of the Igbo language is principally confined to cultural or domestic contexts, while English language and Nigerian Pidgin are used in everyday media discussions. The absence of user consciousness that WhatsApp offers language-specific features contributes to the decline. Also, this reduces the intentional use of digital conversations, which hastens endangerment. The study concludes that the absence of deliberate effort to place the language in digital platforms, such as WhatsApp, increases the risk of extinction. It recommends the growth of online-centered language groups and university-centered programmes to accelerate the prominence and usage of the Igbo language.
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