SOCIOLINGUISTIC TERMINOLOGIES USED BY TRICYCLE OPERATORS IN LAFIA METROPOLIS

Résumé

The paper is an analysis of the sociolinguistic terminologies used by tricycle operators in the Lafia metropolis in Nasarawa State, Nigeria. The ethnography of communication theory was applied as a frame of analysis with the use of primary method based on participatory observation by using recording and informal interview to acquire data. The data were primarily sourced within Lafia metropolis, the main area of the focus of them paper. The analysis was basically by qualitative explanation and description of the data used and the findings reveal the nexus between language and the environment in which it is used. Keke operators in Lafia have developed unique linguistic nuances that are sociolinguistically tied to their occupational environment, social environment and, equally, their educational background.