ABSTRACT
In the previous two editions of the book, the reading text for this strand was a 1998 article by Charles Alobwede d’Épie entitled ‘Banning Pidgin English in Cameroon’. Alobwede’s article focused on negative attitudes towards Cameroon Pidgin amid fears that it was causing a decline in English language standards, and lamented attempts to ban it particularly in education, given that it was spoken by around 70 per cent of the population. irteen years on, Atechi explores the issues anew. He nds that the situation has become more complex, with Cameroon Pidgin still being stigmatised even by its own users, but also very much in use alongside Cameroon English, even on university campuses. However, it appears that the nature of Cameroon Pidgin is changing as increasing numbers of its younger users also have exposure to more standard forms of English.
