Translations during the First Niger Expedition

The “discovery” of the course and mouth of the Niger River in 1830 by the Lander brothers inspired many attempts by Europeans to penetrate and exploit the territory. One such attempt was the 1841 Niger expedition, “which also laid the foundation for future CMS missionary work on the banks of the Niger” (Ekechi 1972: 1). This expedition was organized in response to Thomas Fowell Buxton’s ideas that

the best way to stop the slave trade and regenerate Africa was to establish legitimate commerce with the African rulers: by introducing commerce, civilization and Christianity, “a blow would be struck at the nefarious traffic in human beings, from which it could not recover”. (Ekechi 1972: 1)

In preparation for the 1841 Niger Expedition, J. F. Schön, a German clergyman and linguist, was charged by the CMS Parent Committee in London to train interpreters and himself acquire “the languages he considered most essential” (Ajayi 1965: 127), and he chose Hausa and Igbo. Schön (1840) presents his personal motivation for studying Igbo:

I made first choice of the Ibo language for the following reasons. From the journals of Mr. Laird (an English merchant interested in the opening up of the Niger Delta) and Oldfield (an English explorer) I experienced that the last Niger expedition [of 1832] came much in contact with chiefs and people of the Ibo nation. I also learned from Ibo people that their language is very extensively spoken and understood at the entrance of the River, and even by the people of Fernando Po, and the great number of Ibos located in Sierra

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Leone seemed to be an additional reason why attention should be paid to their language.³³

He alongside Samuel Ajayi Crowther, an ex-Yoruba slave, now clergyman and linguist who was also part of the 1841 expedition, learned the mixed version of Igbo spoken among the freed slaves in Sierra Leone called Isuama. Oraka (1983: 20), however, observes that Isuama is a derogatory name given to village communities located in the more barren areas surrounding Isu and Nkwerre and that probably most of the emancipated Igbo slaves came from that area. Bersselaar (1998: 69) also adds that Isomas was a derogatory term used by the Ikwere to refer to other Igbo groups in the 1950s. Be that as it may, assigning Schön to study Igbo “marked the beginning of the scientific study and systematic reduction into writing” of Igbo (Ogharaerumi 1986: 168).

By 1840, while still at Freetown, Schön had translated potions of the Bible, which included the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer and the Parable of the Prodigal Son and he repeatedly read same to the Igbo in Sierra Leone “and have had the pleasure to perceive that they are understood by them” (Schön 1840).

Shortly before leaving Sierra Leone for the 1841 expedition, Schön recruited Simon Jonas as his Igbo interpreter. Jonas, an Igbo recaptive living in Sierra Leone at the time, was, in the words of Ogharaerumi (1986: 173), “a competent Igbo mother-tongue speaker, proved to be useful to Schön and others during the expedition”. Despite such preparations, Schön’s work on Igbo was cut short by two events. One, within eight weeks after the expedition entered the Niger in August 1841, 43 out of the 145 Europeans and a handful of Africans in the team died. So, the expedition was called off in October of the same year to avoid more deaths (Ogharaerumi 1986: 173). The abrupt end of the expedition, however, does not mean that it did not have its successes, for, as reported by Walker (1931: 29),

experience was gained that was of value in later efforts. The river was proved to be a great highway, navigable for hundreds of miles; the riverside peoples

33 Schön to Local Committee, Sept. 25, 1840, CMS CA10/175/13.

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were found to be friendly, and there was obviously great opportunity if only the deadly climate could be overcome.

Later developments validated this optimism.

The second factor that discouraged Schön’s work on Igbo was his discovery of the limitations of his expertise in Igbo. In his journal entry of August 25, 1841, Schön writes that he tested his proficiency in Igbo but was

not a little mortified today, by observing that the dialect of the Ibo language on which I had bestowed so much labour in Sierra Leone, differs widely from that spoken and understood in this part of the country. It never escaped my observation, that a great diversity of dialects existed: but I must blame myself much for not making stricter inquiries about that which would be most useful for the present occasion. (Schön and Crowther 1970: 47)

Undaunted, he went on, on another occasion, to read his translation of “Address to the Chiefs and People of Africa” to the Obi of Aboh. He reports in his journal of August 27, 1841, that “[i]nstead of its exciting his curiosity, he soon felt tired” and interrupted the reading. A disillusioned Schön concludes that “[p]erhaps the style of my translation was not sweet enough for his ears, and my tongue not sufficiently Ibonized” (Schön and Crowther 1970:

55).

Incidentally, although the Obi of Aboh was disappointed in Schön’s Igbo, he is reported to have been excited with Simon Jonas’ Igbo. In his journal entry of August 28, 1841, Schön records that he “opened the English Bible and made Simon Jonas read a few verses to him [the Obi] and translate them into Ibo” (Schön and Crowther 1970: 60). The unencouraging reception of Schön’s Igbo might have made him ask Jonas to read instead. Interestingly, the Obi’s reaction to Jonas was different:

[the] Obi was uncommonly taken with this. That a White man could read and write, was a matter of course; but that a Black man – an Ibo man – a slave in times past – should know these wonderful things too, was more than he could ever have anticipated. (Schön and Crowther 1970: 60)

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The Obi’s excitement might also be attributed to Jonas’ Igbo. Jonas was an Igbo recaptive who learnt his Igbo in the Igbo heartland before he was captured and sold into slavery. So, his choice of words and accent might have been clear to and well understood by the Obi, unlike Schön who must have spoken Igbo with a German accent. Secondly, Jonas’ style of translation must also have been different. Be that as it may, the Obi

seized Simon’s hand, squeezed it most heartily, and said, “You must stop with me: you must teach me and my people. The White people can go up the river without you: they must leave you here until they return, or until their people come. (Schön and Crowther 1970: 60)

Frustrated with Igbo, Schön shifted attention to Hausa. He observes, in his journal entry of September 14, 1841, that “Haussa is now, to these parts of Africa, what French is to Europe, I cannot see why that should not become the standard”, and that

[t]he Hausa, too, does not labour under the same difficulties as do other languages. It is rich and admits of additional number of words being formed legitimately; and the influence which Mohammedanism has gained over the people in the interior has supplied it with many religious terms and words which we sought for in vain among the vocabularies of Pagan nations. (Schön and Crowther 1970: 120)

In other words, Schön’s attraction to Hausa was also hinged on the fact that the population of Hausa speakers was more since Hausa also serves as the lingua franca in the North, and that Hausa already has developed terms for religious concepts with its contact with Islam.

This should not suggest that Igbo lacked terms for religious concepts, but that the concepts are markedly different from the Christian ones the missionaries were intent on introducing. For instance, in his journal entry of August 26, 1841, Schön writes on the Igbo deity Tshuku (today spelt Chukwu), which he believes is the Igbo word for God: “Their notions of some of the attributes of the Supreme Being are, in many respects, correct, and their manner of expressing them striking” (Schön and Crowther 1970: 50). However, he also writes about a certain “subject on which they are generally agreed – but which, I am sorry to say, I shall have no opportunity of pursuing any further”, which is

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their common belief that there is a certain place or town in the Ibo country in which “Tshuku” dwells, and where he delivers his oracles and answers inquiries. Any matter of importance is left to his decision, and people travel to the place from every part of the country. (Schön and Crowther 1970: 52-53)

This conceptualization of Chukwu³⁴ is contrary to the Christian conceptualization of the Supreme God and was apparently one of the frustrations of Schön.

Despite his pioneering efforts in Igbo language studies and IBTs, Schön got some criticisms.

For instance, Beyerhaus (1959: 130 – 132), as cited in Ogharaerumi (1986: 170), “declares that Schön’s work in Igbo at this period was worthless outside Sierra Leone because it lacks thoroughness and has inadequate understanding of the dialectal complexities of the language”. Ogharaerumi (1986: 193) adds that

Schön did not study the type of Igbo that was spoken on the Niger. He studied a type of mixed language of various Igbo dialects, spoken at Sierra Leone […]

Schön’s residual knowledge of Igbo was, therefore, based on an impure form of the language.

Schön discontinued his study of and translations into Igbo, yet he remained the major voice, indeed the sole authority in Igbo language studies at the time. As demonstrated shortly, his opinions at the time on matters concerning Igbo language were final.

In a letter addressed to the Lay-Secretary to the CMS, Schön reflects on his experience during the 1841 expedition and makes suggestions for future missionary activities, some of which apparently influenced the CMS’ next lines of action. He acknowledges his limitations as a non-native Igbo and suggests that better work can be done only with native agency.

Commenting on Igbo, he observes that

34 As expatiated in Chapter 4, despite the fact that Chukwu was not the same concept as the Christian Supreme God, this concept is appropriated and used in representing the Christian God in Bible translations before it was later replaced with Chineke.

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I have paid some attention to this language, have collected a considerable Vocabulary, and also attempted some translations into it; but deem it proper to defer the publication of them, until I shall have had another opportunity of correcting them by the assistance of Natives, and of collecting more information on the various dialects spoken by the Ibos. (Schön and Crowther 1970: 355)

Beyond the linguistic limitation, Schön’s suggestion is also hinged on the threat to health that the environment posed to Europeans, as evidenced in the deaths recorded during the 1841 expedition and the fact that the expedition had to be called off. Hence, Schön insists that “[t]he work must chiefly be carried out by native agency”. Later in the report, he suggests that it would be easier to convert natives if they are evangelized to by fellow natives, because

the nations in the interior acknowledge the superiority over themselves of their own country people who have received instruction, and are willing, nay anxious, to see them return, and to be instructed by them in the habits of civilized life, and especially in the truth of the Gospel. (Schön and Crowther 1970: 361)

Thus, the fact that there is a general enthusiasm among the recaptives in Sierra Leone to join the missions should be banked on, and some of the recaptives trained and sent into the mission fields.

Schön also emphasized the need for evangelism to be done in the native languages: “It appears to me obvious, that not much good can be expected to result from Missionary Labours unless the various nations are addressed in their own languages, and portions of the Sacred Volume are put into their hand” (Schön and Crowther 1970: 358). Regarding the suggestion in some quarters that English be used instead, in the belief that it would eventually displace the native languages, Schön agrees that this would have eased the work of the missionaries as “the laborious work of executing Translations, and of forming new terms and expressions for Religious purposes, would be unnecessary” (Schön and Crowther 1970: 358). Besides, it would have been easier to effect this among a people

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whose language has no written tradition: “it could be effected with less inconvenience in Africa, where the language has less hold on the minds of the people than it has on those whose languages have long since been reduced to writing, and who possess an extensive literature in it”. However, Schön insists that imposing English is impracticable, as there is no precedence to support the position. He observes that in multilingual Sierra Leone where the multilingual nature of the society makes it easier for English to be introduced, English has not displaced the native languages of the recaptives, as “the children of the Liberated Africans speak the language of their parents with fluency and correctness” (Schön and Crowther 1970: 358).

In addition to these, Schön stresses the need for data on languages to be collected directly from the natives, as against the second-hand information from “travellers”:

You must collect all information from the lips of the Natives. Things which you take for settled and fixed, you find to be wrong by the next inquiry […] In the vocabulary collected by travellers, I often found whole sentences given for single words; the pronouns connected with the substantives and verbs;

and no regards paid to the distinction of gender, of numbers, tenses. (Schön and Crowther 1970: 360)

In other words, to better understand and use the Igbo language effectively, the missionaries were here advised to learn the language directly, first hand, from the native speakers, and not make decisions about the language based on second-hand linguistic data got from non-native speakers.

All of this notwithstanding, Schön’s attitude towards the native African agents in Sierra Leone was not all positive, for he nursed a lot of reservations. For instance, in his journal entry of August 28, 1841, he goes beyond keeping a journal of happenings during the expedition to giving suggestions reflecting his personal attitude to the native Africans:

West Indian people may in many respects be better qualified than the liberated Africans of Sierra Leone: they [the liberated Africans of Sierra Leone] have seen more of European habits; are better acquainted with

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agricultural labours; and have a much greater taste for European comforts, if that be considered an acquisition. But it must not be overlooked, that there are many things which would prove a drawback, rather than a help. The high wages they have been accustomed to receive, and the high notions which they have imbibed of their own importance, have, I am afraid, rendered them, in a great measure, unfitted for Africa. Add to this, that many may carry a recollection of the driver’s lashes with them; and many more have a disposition to inflict them on others: so that the one would not feel disposed to co-operate heartily with England, and the other would little recommend the civilization system by his conduct. (Schön and Crowther 1970: 63)

He was not alone in having this negative attitude towards the African missionaries, a factor that later became pervasive and led to the purgation of the African missionaries at the Niger mission that was later established, and also affected Bible translation activities. This is discussed in more detail shortly. Meanwhile, the CMS Parent Committee resolved on February 22, I842

that further measures should be adopted, in order to train Natives in Sierra Leone with a view to their being employed as teachers of their countrymen, and in order also to fix the most considerable native dialects and make translations into those dialects for missionary purposes. (Quoted in Walker 1931: 30)

Nevertheless, it took over a decade for this policy to be implemented.

It is pertinent to comment on the orthography situation during this period. The earliest writings in Igbo were done by missionaries “who had little or no expertise in linguistic description” (Bamgbose 1978; 1). Being unfamiliar with some of the sounds they encountered in the language, these missionaries represented the sounds with “values in English or some other European language of the Roman alphabet”, an outcome of which was representing the eight vowels of Igbo with the five vowel letters of English. This effort was laden with errors and inconsistencies (Bamgbose 1978: 1).

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Meanwhile, in 1848, the CMS had produced its Rules for Reducing Unwritten Languages in Alphabetical in Roman Characters. With Reference Especially to the Languages Spoken in Africa³⁵. However, feeling that an alphabet “should be presented in a more complete form, and that the scientific principles should be explained upon which it was constructed”

(Lepsius 1863: iii), the CMS requested that Professor Richard Lepsius, a German linguist, produce a standard alphabet for use in the missions. A conference was convened in this respect, at which Schön represented the interest of Hausa and Igbo. In other words, the information on which Lepsius represented Igbo in the orthography was got from Schön. In the postscript of Lepsius (1863: 311), the author states that he “conversed orally with”

some “learned gentlemen, who had long resided in the respective countries and were practically acquainted with their languages”. Although he mentions J. F. Schön as the resource person that provided information on Hausa and Igbo, it has been demonstrated that Schön’s stay in Igboland was very short. Whatever the case may be, Lepsius published his standard alphabet in 1855, and a second edition in 1863. The revised version is partly updated with data from Samuel Crowther and J. C. Taylor’s works³⁶ (Lepsius 1863: 276).

This became the orthography used by the missionaries in Igboland up till 1930 when a new orthography was introduced, with serious implications for Bible translation into Igbo.