Ubang, a farming community located in the southern region of Nigeria in Cross River State, has an interesting form of communication that is inherently influenced by gender.
BBC Pidgin has revealed that men have a language (Ofe) that is entirely different from that spoken by women (Araseke).
It further revealed that it is unlawful for either sex to speak the language not assigned to their sexes by their ancestors. In fact, such people are considered an anomaly in the community if that happens. Regardless, they understand themselves clearly.
The community lies in an isolated area that is geographically nestled between two mountains in Obudu Local Government Area of Nigeria. The community is made up of three villages: Ofambe, Okiro and Okwersing
A community leader, Oliver Ibang, said: “If you are a male speaking the female language, they will address you as an abnormal child. And if you are a female speaking the language of the male, they will address you as as an abnormal child.”
To unravel the mystery behind this elevated system of communication, there are a series of myths about how the Ubang community got their language. One resonates more as explained by the community chief describing how their language came to be: “God created Adam and Eve and they were Ubang people.
“God’s plan was to give each ethnic group two languages, but after creating the two languages for the Ubang, he realised there were not enough languages to go around. So he stopped. That’s why Ubang has the benefit of two languages: we are different from other people in the world.”
The Ubang language has been sustained by oral tradition for several years lacking greatly in documentation, and like many languages that are endangered, can lead to the loss of identity and culture. Nevertheless, the community is not threatened by the extinction of their language. Chief Ibang said: “If the language dies, that means that people of Ubang are no more existing.”