Intellectualization of the Hausa Language: The Role of Terminology Development

Abstract

The Hausa language has over the years consolidated its gains in the areas of Non- Controlling Domains (NCD) of the home and as a lingua franca. It has also consolidated itself in the Semi-Controlling Domains (SCD) which includes religion, politics and entertainment, but its in-road in education a subdomain of Controlling Domains (CDs), which is essential for it to be an intellectualized language, is slow. Hausa language despite its status cannot be referred to as an intellectualized language because of its inadequacy in providing a complete education in any field from nursery to the university. The inadequacy is manifest in the shortage of primary schools in Hausa, which will serve as the basic foundation for teaching learners in their mother tongue.  The purpose of this paper is to use qualitative and qualitative data to show the benefits of terminology development in the intellectualization of Hausa language and also suggest ways for the establishment of a unified terminology bank to be used for the development of teaching and learning resources for the teaching of all subjects from primary up to university level.