NAN-H-43
Igbo
Enugu, March 14, 2017(NAN) Mrs Adaobi Ibe, a retired lecturer, has urged Igbo parents to always communicate in the indigenous language with their children as a measure to keep Igbo culture alive.
Ibe, a former lecturer at Eha Amufu College of Education, Enugu, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Enugu on Tuesday.
She said it was necessary for every Igbo child to be conversant with his or her language so as to have knowledge of the culture.
She expressed concern that most Igbo parents hardly spoke the language to their children at home.
“It is disgraceful that most Igbo parents hardly speak their Language to their children both at home and outside.
“With the way things are going, I am beginning to get worried and scared that our culture might go into extinction, if nothing is done about it now.”
She urged the state and local governments in the South-East to embark on public sensitisation on the importance of speaking Igbo Language in families.
She added that without the knowledge of the language among the upcoming generations, many things would go wrong.
Ibe noted that most herbs used in the treatment of different ailments in Igbo communities could only be identified by their native names.
“If nothing is done to bring back the language fully, most of the herbs beneficial to man in Igbo society will be lost,” she said. (NAN)
OJI/NKO
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Edited by Nkechi Okoronkwo
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