WORD FORMATION STRATEGIES IN IBIBIO

ABSTRACT

One of the vital aspects of linguistics study is the exploration of words, how words are formed, altered and restructured within a language. This work delves into the word formation strategies within the context of the Ibibio language, shedding light on the processes adopted for the creation of new words in the language and how existing words evolve over time, the aim and motivation of this study is to understand the nature of word formation processes in Ibibio, this will contribute to the linguistics documentation of the Ibibio language. The Ibadan word list was used as a guide in the collection of data (words from the Ibibio language) from a competent native speaker of the language. The study employed the use of the Dixon basic linguistics theory for the analysis of the study. These data collected were carefully analyzed by properly transcribing them, seeing them in their raw (phonetic) form. With these, we were able to arrive at the processes in which words are formed in Ibibio which includes: Af ixation and compounding. The word formation strategies in Ibibio language are of great importance as they give insight in the structure of the language. The analysis of the data revealed to the collected reveal that Ibibio word formation strategies uses majorly compounding and af ixation in formations of words, Af ixation majorly occur as prefix and suf ix are less predominant. Compounding process in Ibibio involves the putting together of two or more fully fledged words to form a new word, most times; the compounded words do not retain their original meaning, except for a few. Compound words in the Ibibio language enhance its expressive power by concisely conveying complex meanings. They often capture cultural virtue, specialized vocabulary, and specific contexts that might require lengthy phrases or sentences in other languages. Understanding compound words contributes to a deeper appreciation of the rich linguistic heritage of the people.