INTERNATIONAL VS. AFRICAN LANGUAGES: THE INFLUENCE OF ARABIC AND ENGLISH ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE HAUSA LANGUAGE IN THE HAUSA DIASPORA IN SUDAN

Abstract

The author discusses an under-researched topic of the language situation in African Sudan with its language diversity and richness of cultures with the focus on Sudanese Hausa. The author also highlights main sociolinguistic rights and obligations of the Hausa population in Sudan. Their native language endures impact of major international languages, such as Arabic and English, affecting Hausa vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, and writing system. Furthermore, the article is addressed the problem of the changes in the field of linguistic identity and loyalty to the mother tongue of Sudanese Hausa speakers, as well as their mother tongue development in the face of the above-mentioned influences and means for the language preservation. The author represents a dilemma of key advantages and disadvantages in using native African languages as opposed to global international languages in terms of the communication, education, and trade opportunities of the African population. The author addresses the problem of changes in the Hausa vocabulary and linguistic identity of Hausa speakers, and demonstrates the main functions of the Hausa language in Sudan, identifying some of the challenges to the development and preservation of the Hausa language.