A Socio-Pragmatic Investigation of Sound Communication in Ejagham Culture — Okang Ntui Ogar, Lucy Mishina Ushuple, and Jude TerkaaTyoh

ABSTRACT: This paper examines the intricate nature of sounds in the Ejagham culture,identifies the sources of these sounds, and explores how they serve as a means offorewarning and communicating events and situations within the Ejagham socio-culturalcontext. Sounds are everywhere and are nested in the sociocultural experience of a society.No society exists without sounds, and they serve as communication tools, helping humanslearn to interact and understand their cultural and natural environment. This paper adoptsthe interdisciplinary approach of sound studies to drive its analysis. The paper employed asurvey method approach in data collection, utilizing oral interviews and participantobservation. Thirty participants were selected using the purposive Sampling technique. 10females and 20 males. Other participants' demographic information includes traditionalists,farmers, traditional rulers, and the elites. The findings of this work revealed that differentsounds heard in an Ejagham socio-cultural context are very significant and hold withinthem a socio-cultural interpretation that reflects the understanding of the world aroundthe people who perceived them. The findings show that the sounds include birds, animals,and traditional instruments. The Ejagham people interpret these sounds as representationsof events and happenings around them. These sounds, therefore, are used as a system ofcommunication independent of speech. This article aims to highlight the uniqueness ofEjagham sound ecology and the crucial role these sounds play in communication withinEjagham society.KEYWORDS: Communication, Ejagham, Sound, Environment, and Ethnography.