The Current Situation and Endangerment Level of Sakun
History
There is little work on Sakun before Michael Thomas's 2014 dissertation. His dissertation also includes little information on this history of the language, however he mentions the rich multi-lingisitic regional history. Most people in the region speak 4-5 languages, with Sakun speakers in particular speaking anywhere from 2-7 (4-5). The multilingualism has been increased with the community's practice of polygamy, which draws women from many surrounding communities (6).
The languages in contact with Sakun according to Thomas's dissertation include major contact languages (specifically English, Fulfulde, and Hausa) as well local languages like Kamwe and Margi (4).
Current Classification
As of 2014, when Thomas's dissertation was published, Sakun was still being taught to children as their first language indicating the language was not moribund. In fact, this dissertation reports that some people claim the children are the best tellers of traditional stories (4). Additionally, I was unable to find Sakun on UNESCO's Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger, a potential indication the language's vitality.
However, there are some factors that are worrying. Many websites like the Endangered Language Project and Glottolog classify Sakun as vulnerable with at least 20% certainty based on available evidence (keep in mind that there is not much documentation of the language, so evidence is scarce, meaning the situation could be much worse). Another worrying factor noted in Thomas's dissertation is the beginning of language shift, which is the process of shifting from primarily using one language to primarily using another, from Sakun to Hausa (4).
Factors Causing Vulnerability
Sakun faces a lot of pressures from macro and micro-level factors as they are defined by Grenoble and Whaley in their article "Toward a Typology of Language Endangerment". Some of the macro-level factors (those found across a variety of languages) are things like language contact. Some of the micro-level factors (those that affect a specific community) are things like terrorism and economic opportunity (28). All of these factors are found at the local level, defined by Grenoble and Whaley as factors that the community comes into frequent contact with (39).
According to Thomas's 2014 dissertation, factors that cause Sakun's vulnerability include:
- Increased contact with Hausa (macro-level)
- Hausa is becoming very utilized in many domains of Sakun society. Out of 200 speakers survery, 157 spoke Hausa as well as Sakun (5). The increased usage of Hausa has lead to the Sakun language incorporating aspects of Hausa into it, most notable the Hausa's easily recognizable "loan" words (4).
- Area enlistment on UNESCO's world heritage site (micro-level)
- The Sakun community has recieved a place on the UNESCO World Culture site. While this is a great honour, it has increased contact with the outside world. Since the enlistment, there has been increased infrastructure development and visitation by outsiders, creating more of a need to speak one of the major contact languages (3-4).
- Population Pressures (micro-level)
- Despite Sakun's growing infrastructure, many youths are leaving the local area for more work opportuinites (4). This depature from the local community results in decreased necessary usage for Sakun and increased necessary usage of major contact languages. Consequently, many of the Sakun diaspora do not speak their heritage language.
- Education (micro-level)
- Education is a major player in teaching and preserving language. This becomes an issue when the majority of educators come from outside the Sakun community and do not speak the language (4), meaning children are required to use a major contact language for educational purposes instead. The need for this is increased if they leave the community for further schooling.
Another factor at play for the vulnerability of Sakun is terrorism. In 2014, there was an attack on the Sakun community that resulted in murders and absolute destruction of the landscape and certain cultural aspects (Lau). Worst case scenario, continued instances like these result in language extinction due the destruction of the Sakun population. Best case scenario, the Sakun population pulls through and continues the fight to maintain their language and culture with a smaller population.
Government Language Policy
Nigerian policy is very supportive of minority languages and does not prohibit language development, which is good in Sakun's case. However Nigeria's policy is a bit of a blessing and a curse. There is a policy requiring both English and the mother-tongue be taught in schools, however, because of Sakun's lack of written materials, it is substitued with Hausa, which is worrying considering the already present encroachment of Hausa on the Sakun language (Thomas, Building Community Participation into Documentation Design: Lessons Learned in Sakun (Sukur) 69).
Consensus
With all of this mind, two of these threats create the biggest threats. The first is the increased contact with Hausa. Hausa is increasing on many different domains, both through national policy and daily life, to the point where it is rooting itself in the Sakun language. While Sakun is not in a super dangerous situation yet, it is a worrying thought going forward. The second threat is the terrorism. This terrorism threatens to destroy the whole culture of the Sakun people. This is particularly worrying because culture and language are entertwined, without one the other ceases to exist.