10/07/2025
The Igbo language is not a single, uniform tongue but rather a complex cluster of over 45 dialects spoken across Southeastern Nigeria.
These dialects such as Owerri, Onitsha, Nsukka, Ohuhu, Ngwa, and Arochukwu can differ significantly in pronunciation, vocabulary, and even grammar, making mutual intelligibility across distant communities a challenge.
To address this linguistic diversity, Igbo scholars and linguists in the 1960s and 1970s spearheaded efforts to develop a standardized form of the language, known as Igbo Izugbe, meaning "General Igbo." This standard variety drew elements from central dialects, particularly those of the Owerri and Umuahia zones, and was formally adopted for use in education, broadcasting, publishing, and official communication.
Igbo Izugbe has since become the version taught in schools and used in literature, religious texts, and national examinations. Without this unifying standard, effective inter-dialectal communication among Igbo speakers from different regions especially in formal or academic contexts would remain difficult due to significant lexical and syntactic variation across dialects.
But Igbo is not alone in this experience.
Other major Nigerian languages face the same challenge of dialectal variation. The Yoruba language, spoken across Southwestern Nigeria, exists in many dialects including Egba, Ijebu, Oyo, Ekiti, and Ondo. To promote cohesion, a standardized form largely based on the Oyo dialect was developed by Christian missionaries in the 19th century and is now widely used in education and religious texts.
Hausa language spoken in Northern Nigeria also comprises various dialects such as those spoken in Kano, Katsina, Sokoto, and Zazzau. Over time, a standard version know as Standard Hausa also emerged and is now used extensively in formal settings.
The Fulani people speak Fulfulde, a language that stretches from Nigeria to Senegal and Cameroon. It contains numerous regional dialects, but a more unified written form has been adopted for official and educational use. Similarly, the Kanuri language spoken in Nigeria’s Northeast includes dialects like Yerwa Kanuri and Manga Kanuri. Despite these internal differences, Standard Kanuri serves as the accepted form in media and schooling.
This pattern of creating a standard language from diverse dialects is not unique to Nigeria; it is a global phenomenon.
In the Arab world, for instance, dozens of dialects such as Egyptian, Levantine, Gulf, Maghrebi, and more can differ so widely that native speakers often struggle to understand each other. To ensure pan-Arab communication, Modern Standard Arabic (MSA), derived from Classical Arabic, is taught in schools, used in literature, and employed in official discourse.
A similar story unfolds in China, where the term “Chinese” actually refers to a broad family of dialects or distinct languages including Cantonese, Hakka, Shanghainese, and Hokkien. To create a cohesive linguistic identity, the Chinese government standardized Mandarin (Putonghua) based on the Beijing dialect, which is now the national language and the medium of instruction throughout the country.
In India too, “Hindi belt” encompasses a rich array of dialects such as Awadhi, Braj, and Bhojpuri. Though each maintains its own heritage, Standard Hindi, derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi, was adopted for formal and official communication across much of northern India.
Swahili, spoken across East Africa, is another excellent example. While regional variations like Mombasa Swahili and Zanzibar Swahili exist, a standardized form based on the Kiunguja dialect of Zanzibar was adopted and is now taught in schools and used in administration in countries such as Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda.
In Europe, the same linguistic logic applies. German is spoken in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, but dialects such as Bavarian and Swiss German can differ greatly. To maintain a unified national and cultural identity, these countries rely on High German (Hochdeutsch) as their standard language for education, media, and official communication.
Italy followed a similar path. Before its unification in the 19th century, the peninsula was home to numerous dialects including Sicilian, Neapolitan, and Venetian. However, the modern Italian language was standardized based on the Tuscan dialect, particularly the form used by literary figures like Dante Alighieri. Today, this standardized Italian is spoken throughout the country and serves as the foundation of Italy’s national identity.
In all these cases, the creation of a standard language has proven essential for education, administration, and unity, while still preserving the beauty and heritage of local speech. The story of Igbo Izugbe is, therefore, one chapter in a much larger global story.
