GirlZOffMute —Are Nigeria's diverse cultures a blessing or curse?

DW (English)

How well do you know about your culture? Nigeria, for example, has more than 250 ethnic groups, making it one of Africa's most diverse countries. But are those different cultures and traditions a blessing or curse? DW's Girlz Off Mute, teen reporter Angel Unigwe, spoke with her school peers to know how well they understand their culture.#GirlZOffMute #DWAfrica #77Percent

Transcript

00:00Hi, I'm Angel Onyechi Unigwe in Lagos, Nigeria.

00:08Today we are discussing culture.

00:11With more than 250 ethnic groups, Nigeria is a land with diverse cultures.

00:16But how much do young people in Nigeria know about their culture?

00:19Come with me as I give my microphone to some of my peers in Starbrite Private School to

00:24share their thoughts on culture.

00:30Today we are discussing culture, but first, tell us what ethnic groups you are from.

00:34I'm from the Hausa ethnic group.

00:36Igbo and Ambari States.

00:38I'm from Yoruba Eketa States.

00:40I'm Nambia and I'm from Bayasa States.

00:43So what do you like about your culture?

00:46I like our language.

00:47Our language is a really easy thing to learn once you get to know it.

00:51It is a really like, it's a unique language.

00:53I like the attire, because we girls, we love to be too fast, so those red bits complement

00:57our culture, they complement our dressing, they complement everything about us.

01:01I like the way we tolerate each other, I like the way they have taught us to respect people

01:06that are not only older than us, but also our age mates.

01:10Language is one of the most important aspects of our culture, but many young Nigerians speak

01:16English more than our native language, right?

01:20So which is more important to us as teenagers, our native language or English?

01:26I'm gonna say both, because if we go to our village now, you'll hardly see them speak

01:30English over there, so you have to speak your native language over there to interact with

01:34one another.

01:35English, because we were colonized by the British, and so most people nowadays speak

01:40English, so we also need English to interact with people in this city.

01:43I'll say English, because we Nigerians, we're now modernized.

01:48We speak English everywhere, they even adapt the American accent or British accent, anything.

01:53I don't know what it's called, but we love speaking English, so I think English is the

01:59best one.

02:00I'll say both.

02:01The reason why I'm saying both is because my parents would just say, you say both because

02:05they want you to build up those two languages, so they'll say Yoruba to me and my siblings

02:12and English to me and my siblings in the house, so my parents would call me in Yoruba, then

02:17I'll do answer in English.

02:18I would actually say our native language, so that we can pass it on from generations

02:23and it won't die.

02:24Here in Nigeria, who would you pick as your cultural icon and why?

02:29I'm gonna say my mom, because my mom taught me everything I know about my culture.

02:33She taught me our mode of dressing, how to speak our language, how to cook our cultural

02:38food and the festivals we do.

02:40I'll say Peter Dutchie, because he's our Igbo icon.

02:44That man portrays Igbo, our culture, really well.

02:47Check the way he dresses, check his mode of conduct, everything about him showcases our

02:52culture.

02:53I'll say my family members, because my family members are the ones that taught us everything.

03:00My brothers, my sisters, my mom and dad, grandmas, they're my cultural icon.

03:05You've heard it all from my peers.

03:07Let's hear from a teacher involved in teaching the pupils about culture.

03:12With the free flow of information worldwide, would you say some aspects of the Nigerian

03:17culture are under threat?

03:19I would say yes.

03:21Let me use language as a case study.

03:24Most people find it very difficult to interact in their local dialects.

03:29If you cannot speak it, how will you teach it?

03:31If I cannot pass on my culture, my tradition to my children, how will my children be able

03:38to pass it on to the next generation?

03:41Most of the parents we have these days want to emulate a modern language, like speaking

03:48English at home and all that.

03:50Nigeria is making progress in its call for European countries to return back our famous

03:56bronzes.

03:57What are young Nigerians likely to learn from our culture when these bronzes are returned

04:01back to Nigeria?

04:02Without a past, there will be no present.

04:07So our forefathers had reasons to mould these artefacts.

04:12So if these artefacts are brought back, it will prompt us to want to know the reason

04:17behind each of the bronze or the artefact.

04:20We want to know the story behind it, the reason why it was created or made.

04:25So it's very, very important that they are all returned back to Benin Kingdom.

04:32We have been discussing culture.

04:35Culture is essential for young people as it will likely define their identity and affect

04:40their future.

04:42For Girls of Mute from Lagos, Nigeria, I am Angel Oninetunigwe.

Category

Transcript

Recommended