The Impact of Oral Tradition on Contemporary Children’s Fiction in Nigeria

This 12-page paper was presented in September 2004 at the 29th International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) Conference, in Cape Town, South Africa. It discusses the impact of oral tradition on children's fiction in Nigeria and examines how oral tradition can be used to foster reading on the part of the African child. Research findings suggest that African children can be stimulated to read if they are first told a story.

The paper defines oral tradition as: "verbal arts or oral literature, customs, belief and other institutions, arts including games, as well as musical instruments." The paper discusses:

• The importance of oral tradition in children’s literature;
• The impact of oral tradition on contemporary children’s fiction in Nigeria (‘contemporary’ referring to the late 1980s to 2004); and
• How oral tradition can help stimulate African children to read.

Research sought to examine written prose based on linguistic and cultural differences of children authors based on the way they tell their stories. Text was used from children between the ages of seven to fifteen. Several pieces were included from the Nigerian indigenous language (Yoruba).

Several findings from this research include:

• If asked to make a choice, African children would prefer a storytelling session to reading a book.
• Other media like films, television, and radio should consider adopting the method of telling stories from books.
• Writers of African children’s books should write stories that are lively and close to the narrative techniques of oral storytelling.
• Story telling should be encouraged especially in the primary and lower secondary schools.