"Speak Your Language to Your Children," Soyinka Urges Africans

Poetry Foundation

On a visit to the University of Ilorin, Nobel Laureate Professor Wole Soyinka delivered a message that cuts to the heart of Africa’s cultural survival: speak your language to your children.

Soyinka’s words come at a time when many African households, especially in urban centers, are drifting further from indigenous languages in favor of English, French, or other foreign languages. While these colonial tongues still dominate government, education, and media, the gradual fading of mother tongues in the home signals something more troubling—an erosion of cultural memory.

During his engagement at the university, Soyinka emphasized his support for the Centre for Cultural Studies and Creative Arts and pledged to implement its core plans. His backing is not only symbolic but practical—showing that art, language, and education are inseparable in the quest to preserve African identity.

The call to speak one’s language to children is not just about vocabulary—it’s about worldview, rhythm, and rootedness. Languages carry histories and philosophies that are impossible to fully translate. When a child learns their native tongue, they are not just learning how to speak; they are learning how to belong.

Soyinka’s warning arrives at a crucial moment. Across Africa, languages are dying at an alarming rate. In some countries, even local names are disappearing from birth registries and school rosters. This disconnect, often masked as progress, leaves future generations with little emotional or historical connection to their ancestry.

By reminding parents and educators to return to their linguistic roots, Soyinka is not defending nostalgia. He is defending continuity. African languages must be heard not only in rituals and festivals but at dinner tables, on playgrounds, and in classrooms. To lose them is to forget where we come from. To speak them is to say: we still remember.