Renowned poet and literary critic, Professor Niyi Osundare, has emphasised that the future of African literature rests on the preservation and promotion of indigenous languages, despite the dominance of European languages on the continent.
Speaking exclusively with PrimeStar News recently, Osundare expressed concern that African languages continue to suffer neglect due to the failure of political leadership across the continent.
He stressed that language is not only a natural heritage but also a political instrument requiring deliberate planning and investment.
“The indigenous languages are suffering. The problem is, again, because we don’t have thoughtful leaders in Africa. Language is not just natural. It is also political. There is something called language engineering,” he said.
Recalling an old policy that required Nigerian children to learn the language of their immediate environment along with two others, Osundare lamented that such initiatives had been abandoned.
The award-winning poet, who has written in both Yoruba and English, explained that he deliberately publishes works in his mother tongue alongside English translations to keep the Yoruba language alive in literature adding, “English is not my mother tongue. The idea often comes to me in Yoruba and you have to render them in English, just like Achebe did in Things Fall Apart.”
Quoting Ghanaian writer Kofi Awoonor, Osundare remarked: “A man who has two languages has two souls,” highlighting the spiritual and cultural depth that bilingualism confers.
He revealed that his works, translated into about 12 languages including Serbian, have received global recognition recalling with pride how Serbian translators once requested that the first poem in one of his anthologies be in Yoruba, and rejected the English version in favour of the original.
Despite this progress, Osundare acknowledged the challenges of promoting indigenous languages in societies battling poverty and survival pointing out, “How can you talk about language now to people who are hungry? They won’t even understand you.”
Still, he insisted that token efforts, such as publishing in Yoruba alongside English, remain vital in affirming the continued relevance of African languages stressing the need to let people know this language lives.
Speaking further, Osundare rejected the notion of literature as art for art’s sake, insisting that African writers cannot detach their creativity from the realities of their environment.
Recalling how his third collection of poetry tackled the idea directly, he affirmed “Art for Ass sake is what I called Art for Art’s sake,” stressing that art which focuses only on itself loses touch with the human condition.
Osundare noted that critics often describe his work as “too political,” but he maintained that every writer’s existence is already political.
“My presence in this world is political. The kind of work we produce depends upon the circumstances under which we were born and where we live. I don’t think it is possible for an African writer to say, I only write for the artistic role. No,” he said.
He illustrated the point with his own experience. “I was in my house for six days without electricity. I had to write about NEPA,” he recounted, underscoring how everyday struggles shape artistic expression.
For Osundare, true art must combine beauty and utility. Drawing from Yoruba philosophy, he explained: “The Yoruba know the gravity of beauty. They also know the necessity, Ewa, Iwulo, the two have to come together. One and primary sake that art has is human.”
The celebrated poet concluded that literature, particularly in Africa, must be deeply responsive to social realities while upholding aesthetic value.
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