The concept of the Hausa nation from an ethnolinguistic perspective

Abstract

The paper investigates the concept of the Hausa nation from a linguistic perspective. Using ethnolinguistic methodology, which enables the study of the relationship between language and culture, it focuses on the encoding of the NATION (as well as the similar concept HOMELAND) in the Hausa language. Phrases, words, and expressions demonstrate how the idea is perceived by the community and how the concept is reflected in the ‘linguistic worldview’. Attention is paid to the terms that are cultural keywords, petrified phrases and proverbs that manifest the patterns of national identification. The paper concludes that the concept of ‘nation’ in Hausa is encoded with reference to the national community, which has no state of its own. According to the manner in which it is conceived, two ethnolinguistic profiles of the homeland can be identified: one motivated by ethnic (language) identity; the other by state (Nigerian) identity.