Interdental Fricative Substitution in Nigerian English: An Orthographic Analysis of Twitter/X Posts

This study examines how the substitution of the interdental fricatives /θ/ and /ð/, a well- documented feature of Nigerian English pronunciation, is represented orthographically in informal Twitter/X posts. Nigerian English speakers typically realise /ð/ as [d] and /θ/ as [t], since these sounds are absent from the phonemic inventories of most Nigerian indigenous languages. Using a qualitative descriptive design, this study analyses fourteen publicly accessible Twitter/X posts and replies, purposively sampled for non-standard spellings that reect this substitution, such as dis for this, dat for that, and ting for thing. The analysis reveals that the substitution is represented consistently across word-initial demonstratives and function words, with occasional variation, including a labiodental realisation in non for nothing, and instances of variation between standard and substituted spellings within the same post. The study argues that Twitter/X orthography functions as a written record of a well-established phonological process in Nigerian English, extending previous research that has focused mainly on spoken data. The ndings contribute to a growing body of scholarship on the relationship between Nigerian English phonology and computer-mediated writing.

Keywords: Interdental Fricatives Nigerian English Orthographic Representation Twitter/X Phonological Substitution Computer-Mediated Communication

Author

• Enitan Jamiu Ajape
  Department of English and Literary Studies
  University of Abuja, Abuja, Nigeria
  ajapejamiu65@gmail.com
  07038737997