THE Bayero University Kano (BUK) has organised an international conference on Hausa studies in honour of the contributions of a Polish scholar, Nina Pawlak, who has so far spent 50 years researching and teaching Hausa and other African languages.
This is just as Pawlak said she devoted her entire academic career to the study of Hausa language as a means of promoting understanding between African and European nations.
Pawlak, a professor of Linguistics at the University of Warsaw Poland was reported to have supervised the Ph. D theses of BUK scholars, Hafizu Miko Yakasai and Isah Yusuf Chamo. She also served as an external examiner for Yakubu Magaji Azare, another BUK professor.
The two-day conference which opened on Tuesday is hosted by the Centre for Research in Nigerian Languages, Translation & Folklore, BUK in collaboration with the departments of Nigerian Languages and Linguistics & Foreign Languages.
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While declaring the conference open, BUK vice-chancellor, Muhammad Yahuza Bello, described Pawlak as a prolific scholar who has dedicated her life to the study and teaching of Hausa language.
Bello said, “I am honoured and excited to deliver to you, the gratitude of this university for your unending support; for our many scholars you have trained, supervised, assessed and supported; for the collaborations you have nurtured and sustained; for the books and publications we have exchanged, and for the hosting and visits.
“I also extend to you the gratitude of our students and scholars for the knowledge you produced; and the gratitude of our entire society for the work you have done to keep our language and heritage on top of the chart – alive, well and evolving,” he said.
In her response, Pawlak said she devoted her entire academic career to the study of Hausa language as a means of promoting understanding between African and European nations.
She further disclosed that: “After my retirement next year, I intend to write a Hausa – Polish dictionary for learners of the Hausa Language in Poland, my country.”
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