A SYNTACTIC CONTRASTIVE ANALYSIS OF ENGLISH AND YORUBA

LANGUAGE: A RE-EXAMINATION

Dr. Olalere Waheed Raji

Abstract
Contrastive Analysis (CA) is the technique for which yield the fullest description of either
determining the similarities and differences language and then translating these two
between two or more languages with the descriptions into a form which is model neutral.
principal aim of pinpointing their implications Again, less attention should be paid to the
for language teaching and learning. CA posits
description of L1 than to L2 since the latter is
that all errors made by a second language
learner are attributed to nterference between what is to be learnt. This is what is called
the structures of the source and the target “contact analysis”. We should be more
language. This paper, therefore, examines the concerned with what the teacher does with the L2
contrastive study of English and Yoruba at the than with what linguistic knowledge (the L1) he
syntactic level with a view to determining the enters the learning situation”
possible problem areas which the Yoruba Note that we are not saying here that the
speakers learning English will have in the L1 does not affect the learning of L2; rather, we
course of learning the language. The paper mean that since the learner has already got a
concludes that the theoretical linguist benefits better knowledge of the L1; attention then should
from CA because it provides evidence for his
instead be more on the L2 which he is just
theory of language and language acquisition.
learning.
For comparison, utterances (in the two
Contrastive Analysis
languages) are not compared as strings of sound,
It is a branch of language which is
or graphic substances, but rather as structures
concerned with the study of different languages
(word, phrase, clause, sentence). Any structure
with the aim of bringing out their differences.
represents an unlimited number of possible
C.A is a linguistic enterprise aimed at producing
realizations; that is, if the structure is a sentence
inverted (i.e contrastive, not comparative) two
it is the basis of many utterances”.
valued typologies (a C.A is always concerned
What is basic from the explanations
with a “pair” of languages) and founded on the
given above is the fact that C.A. studies two
assumption that languages can be compared. C.A
languages with the major aim of showing the
is more interested in differences rather than their
differences that exist between them. C.A. is
likeness.
useful in that it brings out areas of differences
It should be stated that any comparative
between two languages and establishes how the
analysis involves two steps. A ‘description’ and
differences between the two languages can result
‘comparison’ in the order listed above. The most
into errors in the course of learning L2. C.A
effective materials (for teaching an L2) are those
studies all the aspects of language in order to
based upon a scientific description of the
establish observable differences between the
language to be learnt, carefully compared with a
languages under study. Since we are learners of
paralled description of the native language of the
English, we are going to do a contrastive study of
learner.
English and Yoruba to establish syntactic
The description of the L1 and L2 data
differences between the two languages.
could be done independently using the models
(Transformation Grammar, Case Grammar etc),

Journal of Qualitative Education, Volume 8 No. 1, May, 2012, ISSN: 0331 – 4790
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Dr. Olalere Waheed Raji
The Contrastive Analysis (CA) Approach: It is the acquisition of second language habits. The
based on the premise that languages are different assumption here is that it is the first language
and that because of these differences, the second habits which tamper with and hinder the
language learners will encounter difficulties. acquisition of the second language habits.
This basic practice of Contractive Analysis is to Though CA has been found to be ‘a
first write a description of a particular subset of useful preliminary to the development of good
each language to be compared (i.e. descriptions teaching materials’, it has been criticized on a
of the phonology, morphology or syntax). One number of grounds: it has been argued that
then compares these two subsets noting the language is not a habit acquisition phenomenon
differences and similarities. From this but an active mental process governed by specific
comparison, a prediction is made as to what the rules which enable the learner to generate and
learners will find difficult (or easy) to learn. understand new utterances.
While Birdsong (2006) is outstanding In addition, transfer theory has been
for his systematic exposition of the approach, found to be inadequate because the task and
quite a remarkable number of linguists had settings employed in transfer experiments are
earlier demonstrated similar contrastive largely irrelevant to crucially important
awareness. He asserted that CA owes its origin educational concerns and cannot therefore be
to the problem of interference which had been validly extrapolated to serve a real theory of
confronting L2 learners of English. language learning.
The idea of contrasting a pair of As a result of the criticism leveled
languages is guided by the following theoretical against transfer theory, alternative explanations
assumptions: have been proposed to replace it. Two of such
1. Language learning is habit formation. alternatives are George’s “Cross Association
2. An old habit (that of using one’s first Theory” and new mark’s and Rebel’s “Ignorance
language), hinders or facilitates the Hypothesis”. Cross-Association Theory explains
formation of a new habit (learning a typical errors of interference in terms of the
second language) depending on the redundancy of the second language e.g the fact
differences or similarities, respectively that English has two words-woman and wife-for
between the old and new. Dornyei the one German word “afraid” in interference
(2005) said transfer theory which error for the L1 German learner of English.
originates from behaviourist psychology Adegbija (1989) argued that this kind of
holds that previous learning habits redundancy identified in English will only
influence the acquisition, performance constitute a learning problem if the L1 does not
and relearning of a second habit. When show a corresponding redundancy.
previously acquired task enhances Ignorance hypothesis, on the other hand
learning of a subsequent task, “Proactive seeks to explain L2 learners errors in terms of
Facilitation” or Proactive Transfer” is ignorance of the rule involved in a given
said to have occurred. situation. But this hypothesis has been
On the other hand, when previously discredited on the ground that there are instances
established task interfering with the acquisition of ignorance which do not necessarily result in
of a subsequent task “proactive” inhibition in interference.
second or foreign language, language learning The above has shown part of the counter
has occurred. This is the instance of a previously arguments presented to defend the position of
established first language habits interfering with CA.

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 A Syntactic Contrastive Analysis of English and Yoruba Language: A Re-Examination
The Relevance of C.A to Educational differ fundamentally when it comes to number
Practices making. While English has four plural pronouns;
There are eleven areas for which CA is you (subject) you (object); they (subject) and
significant and applicable. These are teaching, them (object), Yoruba has six of such plural
evaluating the language and culture context of a pronouns; the usual plurals eyin (subject), yin
textbook, preparing new teaching materials, (object), awon (they), won (them) and the
supplementing inadequate materials, diagnosing honorific plural pronoun eyin (you, singular
difficulties, testing pronunciation, testing object pronoun).
grammatical structures, testing vocabulary, The Yoruba people are noted for their
cultural understanding, research design and high sense of respect for elders and (constituted)
general understanding. authorities and thus it is reflected in their
language. So, it is usual to hear a Yoruba
Syntax: Syntax is a branch of language which is speaker addressing an elder person or a young
concerned with how the rules of grammar are person in position of authority as “eyin” instead
applied in the ordering of words to form phrases, of the usual “iwo”. A Yoruba learner of English
clauses or sentences. There is no doubt that the might then be tempted to import this culture of
rules of grammar of both English and Yoruba are his people into English, and unacceptable
different. Hence, there are bound to be structure like; ‘They are calling them’, ‘I saw
differences in how the rules are applied and the them yesterday’ instead of ‘He/she is calling
outcomes of such application. him/her’ and ‘I saw him/her yesterday’ are often
First, in English an adjective comes produced. The learners with time grow out of
before the noun it modifies in attributive this.
position. This is however, not the case in Again, Yoruba does not distinguish
Yoruba where the adjective follows the noun. gender. The same pronoun “O” is used to mark
So, while English has the following attributive both English ‘he’ and ‘she’. As for the objects of
modification. ‘he’ and ‘she’ a wide range of pronouns is
i. Red cloth is good available to the speaker to choose from I, un, a e,
ii. The tall boy is gone e, u. The choice of any of these is determined by
iii. Some Stubborn students were the vowel ending of the verb (of the sentence)
punished. which precedes, the object (pronoun). None of
Yoruba has the following variants of the above; the object pronouns above identified specific
i. Aso pupa dara gender.
ii. Omo giga naa tilo In Yoruba, therefore, context plays a
iii. Awon omo ile iwe buruku kan jiya significant role in determining the gender unlike
The adjectives are underlined in the in English where the gender is overtly stated.
sentences above Aso, Omo and Omo ile iwe are Consider thse:
the nouns in sentences (iv), (v) and (vi) O wa lanaa He/She came him/here yesterday
respectively. Mo ri i I saw him/her
The pronominal system of English Won fun un lowo They gave him/her money
distinguished three persons (1st, 2nd and 3rd ) two O lojo He/she is cowardly
O mo’we He/she is brilliant
numbers (singular/plural) and two gender
O bu u dada You insulted him/her very well.
(masculine and femine). Yoruba too,
distinguishes three persons and number but does
Still on pronominal, English
not have gender distinction. The two languages
distinguishes between reflexive pronouns and

Journal of Qualitative Education, Volume 8 No. 1, May, 2012, ISSN: 0331 – 4790
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Dr. Olalere Waheed Raji

reciprocal pronouns. Thus, distinction is missing The children like each other (one another)
in Yoruba Reflexive pronouns which show what We know one another
nouns do to themselves while reciprocal English and Yoruba also differ in the
pronouns show what nouns do to others and what area of plural marking in nouns Morphemes ‘s’,
others do to them in return. The reflexive ‘es’ or ‘en’ are added to nouns to get their plural
pronoun ends in suffix ‘self’ or ‘selves’ forms depending on the ending of such nouns.
depending on the number of the pronoun. Some English nouns however do not take any
Reciprocal pronouns are ‘each other’ and ‘one plural morpheme, that is, they remain as they are
another’. ‘Each other has preference if the nouns in the singular, some have their internal vowels
under reference are not more than two while ‘one changed to reflect plurality. For examples,
another’ is used when the nouns are more than book+s = books, bag+s = bags, tomato+es is
two. Yoruba has the reflexive pronouns “ara re” tomatoes, potato +es, is potatoes, ox+en is oxen,
(yourself), “ara mi” (myself), ara wa (ourselves), child +ren is children, man is men, woman is
ara yin (yourselves), ara won (themselves) and women, sheep is sheep.
ara re (himself/herself).
Yoruba does not have this kind of direct
In Yoruba, “ara won” which can mean pluralization rather than pluralizing the noun
themselves, each other or one another is the directly, Yoruba puts the plural mark (a word)
pronoun which a Yoruba learner of English is being the noun to be pluralized. The word that is
exposed to. When there is need for the learner to commonly used to do this is “awon”, which
make distinctive use of either reflexive or ordinarily is a plural pronoun. So in Yoruba,
reciprocal pronoun, the learner is confused since pluralization is done in the following way:
his knowledge of another tongue is not sufficient Awon + omo Awonomo children
to help him do this. Semantically ambiguous Awon + iwe Awon iwe books
utterances are thus common among Yoruba Awon + isu Awonisu yams
speakers of English. Consider the sentences Awon + obinrin Awon obinrin women
below:
Won na ara won From the above, it can be seen that
They beat themselves Yoruba has a single plural marker ‘awon’. The
Awon omo yen feran ara won pluralization process in English thus appears
The children like themselves complex to the Yoruba learners of English.
A mo ara wa Wrong application of plural markers of English is
We know ourselves what results ‘sheep’ can thus be pluralized as
‘sheeps’ ‘tomato’ as tomatos, children as ‘childs’
The Yoruba examples stated above show how etc.
the expressions are made in the language and the In the area of preposition, English has a
English translations show how they are realized large number of prepositions each of which is
in English. Thus, this type of error is very used to establish appropriate relationship
common among ‘young’ learners of English. The between it (the preposition) and the noun it
reason for the errors as stated earlier is the wrong governs. Just as there are single preposition,
use of a reflexive pronoun where reciprocal there are equally compound ones. In fact, it can
pronoun should be used. The correct English even be said that apart from verbs, prepositions
versions of the examples should be: pose a great challenge to Yoruba L1 learners of
They beat each other (one another) English. The reason for this is that Yoruba has

Journal of Qualitative Education, Volume 8 No. 1, May, 2012, ISSN: 0331 – 4790
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A Syntactic Contrastive Analysis of English and Yoruba Language: A Re-Examination

smaller number of prepositions, which are used

to express all the meaning relations that the
many (more) English prepositions are used for. References
Appropriate choice of prepositions is, therefore, Abbc, V. (1965). Audio-lingual methods in
difficult to make because Yoruba often uses a modern language teaching. In a guide to
single preposition to express different meaning modern language teaching methods. Brian,
relations. London: Cassel and Company
In English, for instance, the prepositions
between and among are used to signal a Adegbija, E. (1989). Teaching English in
relationship of division or sharing between two Nigeria: The Importance of the Pragmatic
or more persons, things or groups and sharing to and Sociolinguistic Context. Language
each or more than two persons respectively. Culture Curriculum 2
Yoruba uses a single preposition laarin to signal Allen, J.P.B. & S.P. Corder, Eds. (1974).
the two relationship above. Laarin can equally Techniques in applied linguistic. London:
have the meaning of ‘within’. It is therefore not Oxford University Press.
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ii. There is division within the robbers
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iii. Between Lagos and Abeokuta, there are overview. Language Learning 56 (SI):9-
several checkpoints. 49.

Conclusion Breitenstein, P.H. (1978). The application of

From the foregoing, it is shown that the contrastive linguistics. English Language
information provided by CA is of tremendous Teaching Journal.
value to the teacher in predicting potential
problem areas of interference between L1 Brown, H. (1980). Principles of language
systems and L2 systems. This is coupled with learning and teaching. Eaglewood Cliffs,
the fact that the theoretical linguist can benefit N.J.: Prentice Hall, Inc.
from CA because it can provide evidence for his
theory of language and language acquisition. Chomsky, (1965). Aspects of the theory of
For example, transformational grammar posits a syntax. Cambridge, Massachusetts. The
common deep structure and universals for related NIT Press.
languages. It is argued that transformational
changes affect only the structure of the
languages in question.

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 Dr. Olalere Waheed Raji
Dornyei, Z. (2005). The psychology of the
language learner: Individual differences
in second language acquisition. Mahwah,
NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Dornyei, Z. (2009). The psychology of second

language acquisition. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.

Dr. Olalere Waheed Raji

Department of Languages (English)
Al-Hikmah University,
Ilorin.

Journal of Qualitative Education, Volume 8 No. 1, May, 2012, ISSN: 0331 – 4790