Introduction
1.1 General Background
Language is the fabric that ties every member of the society together. It is an instrument used by man for specific purposes. The focus of this research is to shed light on how noun phrases are formed in Migili language. Migili is a Nigerian language spoken in Obi Local Government Area of Nasarawa State.
The first chapter of this research focuses on the genetic classification of Migili language, the scope and organization of study, theoretical framework, data collection, that is that government and binding theory.
According to Winkler (2007:l05) “Syntax is the branch of linguistics that is concerned with the principles by which the phrases and words of a language are combined to make sentences”. In other words, syntax is a sub-field of linguistics that studies the arrangement of words in a sentence.
1.2 Historical Background of Migili
Migili refers to the name of a language and also a group of people. The Migili people constitute about 96% of the total population of Agyaragu in Obi Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, Nigeria. The language is spoken by about 18,000 speakers.
History has it that different tribes such as Migili, Alago and Eggon settled at Kororofa kingdom in Taraba State. It was said that a man named Akuka was denied the right to the throne and as a result had to leave Kororofa together with some other members of the Migili tribe to a place called Ukari and later to Lafia region. Some of them moved to Abuja (FCT), Minna in Niger State and Kubacha in Kaduna state.
The Eggon tribe is a close neighbour of the Migili with some of them having the knowledge of Migili language. Today, Migili language has various alternate names like; Ligili, Jijili, Koro of Lafia, among others.
1.3 Socio-Cultural Profile
Like most communities around them, the socio-cultural background of the people of Migili include: Occupation, Religion, Festival, Mode of dressing, Marriage etc.
1.3.1 Occupation
The Migilis are predominantly farmers. Yam is the major cash crop that is being produced in the area. Some other agricultural produce include: guinea corn, maize, millet, groundnut and beans. However, they also engage in weaving and artistic works.
1.3.2 Religion
The Migili people are predominantly Christians. Before the coming of the missionaries, the Migilis were traditionally religion worshippers who has beliefs in ancestral gods. By the coming of Christianity, a lot of people who were traditional worshippers became converts and embraced Christianity.
1.3.3 Festival
One major festival in Migili land is the Odu masquerade festival. The Odu masquerade is dressed in colourful masks and displays spectacular dancing skills and beautiful dance steps. According to the people, Odu was the god of war and it is believed that he helped the people win battles equipping them with magical and spiritual powers.
1.3.4 Mode of Dressing
The people of Migili are fashionable people. There are people who still preserve the tradition of their ancestors and their rich culture. In the olden days, both male and female were usually seen wearing bracelets, cowries, beads. Another distinguishing feature of the Migili’s was the plaiting of head by both men and women.
Nowadays, civilization has played a significant role in the mode of dressing of the people as most of them especially the younger ones now dress in western fashion.
1.3.5 Marriage
Before the coming of the missionaries into the Migili society, marriage was done by the father of the boy approaching the mother of the girl (from birth) and paying a token amount of money to her parents. Once this has been done the girl was said to be betrothed and will continue to live with her parents until she gets about fifteen (15) years of age. The boy pays his first installment of her dowry and farms for the father-in-law once every year.
Today, wedding are done in churches and unlike before women are free to choose their groom and are not mandated to marry from their society alone.
1.4 Genetic Classification
According to Greeberg (1966:8), African languages belong to various families, and there are four main groups.
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