scholarly journals Towards Development of an Indigenous African Language-based Programming Language

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ezekiel K Olatunji ◽  
John B Oladosu ◽  
Odetunji A Odejobi ◽  
Stephen O Olabiyisi

Programming languages based on the lexicons of indigenous African languages are rare to come by unlike those based on Asian and / or European languages. It is opined that an African native language-based programming language would enhance comprehension of computer-based problem solving processes by indigenous students and teachers. This study intends to attempt a design and implementation of an African native language-based programming language using Yoruba as case study. Yoruba is the first language of over 30 million people in the south-west of Nigeria, Africa; and is spoken by over one hundred million people world-wide. In preparation towards actual implementation of a prototype of the intended programming language, a mini token recognizer has been developed in QBasic. Keywords— Native language-based programming languages, Yoruba language, Digital divide, Information and communication technology, prototype implementation. 

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-5
Author(s):  
Ezekiel K. Olatunji ◽  
John B. Oladosu ◽  
Odetunji A. Odejobi ◽  
Stephen O. Olabiyisi

AbstractThe development of an African native language-based programming language, using Yoruba as a case study, is envisioned. Programming languages based on the lexicons of indigenous African languages are rare to come by unlike those based on Asian and / or European languages. Availability of programming languages based on lexicons of African indigenous language would facilitate comprehension of problem-solving processes using computer by indigenous learners and teachers as confirmed by research results. In order to further assess the relevance, usefulness and needfulness of such a programming language, a preliminary needs assessment survey was carried out. The needs assessment was carried out through design of a structured questionnaire which was administered to 130 stakeholders in computer profession and computer education; including some staffers and learners of some primary, secondary and tertiary educational institutions in Oyo and Osun states of Nigeria, Africa. The responses to the questionnaire were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The analysis of the responses to the questionnaire shows that 89% of the respondents to the questionnaire expressed excitement and willingness to program or learn programming in their mother tongue-based programming language, if such a programming language is developed. This result shows the high degree of relevance, usefulness and needfulness of a native language-based programming language as well as the worthwhileness of embarking on development of such a programming language.


2002 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 134-137
Author(s):  
Stefan Elders

The central claim of Ideophones and sound symbolism in Atlantic creoles is that ideophones constitute a relevant category in Atlantic creoles, and that they show both functional and substantial correspondences with ideophones in African languages. The book consists of two main parts: a critical review of the literature on ideophones (Introduction; Chap. 1, “Previous treatment of ideophones and sound symbolism in the literature”; Chap. 2, “Characterization of ideophones: towards a cross-linguistic prototype”), and an etymological database of ideophones in the Atlantic creoles (Chap. 3, “The use of ideophone in the Atlantic creoles and their tentative etymologies”). Two appendices present data sources and the approximate number of ideophones in some languages. The study is based on the available literature, supplemented by data on Atlantic creoles, African languages, European languages, and two Asian languages that was obtained either from specialists on certain languages or from first-language speakers.


Author(s):  
Ezekiel Kolawole Olatunji ◽  
John. B. Oladosu ◽  
Odetunji A. Odejobi ◽  
Stephen O. Olabiyisi

<p>Most of the existing high level programming languages havehitherto borrowed their lexical items from human languages including European and Asian languages. However, there is paucity of research information on programming languages developed with the lexicons of an African indigenous language. This research explored the design and implementation of an African indigenous language-based programming language using Yoruba as case study. Yoruba is the first language of over 30 million people in the south-west of Nigeria, Africa; and is spoken by over one hundred million people world-wide. It is hoped, as established by research studies, that making computer programming possible in one’s mother tongue will enhance computer-based problem-solving processes by indigenous learners and teachers. The alphabets and reserved words of the programming language were respectively formed from the basic Yoruba alphabets and standard Yoruba words. The lexical items and syntactic structures of the programming language were designed with appropriate regular expressions and context-free grammars, using Backus-Naur Form (BNF) notations. A prototype implementation of the programming language was carried out as a source-to-source, 5-pass compiler. QBasic within QB64 IDE was the implementation language. The results from implementation showed functional correctness and effectiveness of the developed programming language. Thus lexical items of a programming language need not be borrowed exclusively from European and Asian languages, they can and should be borrowed from most African native languages. Furthermore, the developed native language programming language can be used to introduce computer programming to indigenous pupils of primary and junior secondary schools.</p>


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cut Nabilah Damni

AbstrakSoftware komputer atau perangkat lunak komputer merupakan kumpulan instruksi (program atau prosedur) untuk dapat melaksanakan pekerjaan secara otomatis dengan cara mengolah atau memproses kumpulan intruksi (data) yang diberikan. (Yahfizham, 2019 : 19) Sebagian besar dari software komputer dibuat oleh (programmer) dengan menggunakan bahasa pemprograman. Orang yang membuat bahasa pemprograman menuliskan perintah dalam bahasa pemprograman seperti layaknya bahasa yang digunakan oleh orang pada umumnya dalam melakukan perbincangan. Perintah-perintah tersebut dinamakan (source code). Program komputer lainnya dinamakan (compiler) yang digunakan pada (source code) dan kemudian mengubah perintah tersebut kedalam bahasa yang dimengerti oleh komputer lalu hasilnya dinamakan program executable (EXE). Pada dasarnya, komputer selalu memiliki perangkat lunak komputer atau software yang terdiri dari sistem operasi, sistem aplikasi dan bahasa pemograman.AbstractComputer software or computer software is a collection of instructions (programs or procedures) to be able to carry out work automatically by processing or processing the collection of instructions (data) provided. (Yahfizham, 2019: 19) Most of the computer software is made by (programmers) using the programming language. People who make programming languages write commands in the programming language like the language used by people in general in conducting conversation. The commands are called (source code). Other computer programs called (compilers) are used in (source code) and then change the command into a language understood by the computer and the results are called executable programs (EXE). Basically, computers always have computer software or software consisting of operating systems, application systems and programming languages.


2019 ◽  
pp. 167-174
Author(s):  
Agu B.G. ◽  
Eya G.M.

Students are accessed using paper and pen on cognitive abilities in Nigeria. This method of assessment encourages different forms of examination malpractices. The threat of examination malpractices on the validity of examination outcomes has resulted in some examination bodies adopting different methods of examination. One of such methods is the computer based test (CBT). Using survey research method, this study investigated the levels of competency in computer literacy skills possessed by senior secondary school students. Three research questions and one hypothesis guided the study. Problems encountered by the students and prospective methods of enhancing computer based test (CBT) acceptance in Nigeria were also documented. A total of 310 copies of the questionnaire were administered to students who participated in the 2015 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) at Afrihub Information and Communication Technology (CBT) centre, Institution of Management and Technology (IMT), Enugu and Godfrey Okoye University, Enugu and 237 representing 76% were adequately completed and found usable. The findings revealed among others that majority of the respondents confirmed that CBT can curb examination malpractice. Majority of candidates were also found to prefer CBT to the paper and pencil test (PPT). The mean, standard deviation and Pearson‟s Correlation Analysis showed that the respondent is preference for CBT were sensitive across gender. While improving electricity was identified as critical in enhancing CBT examinations, poor ICT skills on the part of students and the invigilators were also identified as the major problems facing the implementation of JAMB CBT examination in Nigeria.


Author(s):  
Haun Saussy

We often hear that certain words or texts are “untranslatable.” At the root of this judgment lies an exaggerated respect for the native language, which must not be altered by contact with other languages. Against this superstition, it is here argued that translation is one of the great movers of change in language, and accomplishes this precisely through the rendering of difficult and unidiomatic texts. At another level, a purported ethics of translation urges that translations should be “foreignizing” rather than domesticating: this too evidences a normative idea of the integrity of the language and culture of the foreign text. Against such defences of purity, a sense of both language and translation as inherently hybrid, and literary language in particular as macaronic, should open to examination the historical individuality of encounters that every translation records. Examples from Western European languages indicate how this hybridity is to be understood.


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