Bayero University, Kano (BUK) has organised a two-day international conference on Hausa studies in appreciating of the contribution of a Polish scholar, Nina Pawlak, who has spent 50 years researching and teaching Hausa and other African languages.
Ms Pawlak, a professor of Linguistics at the University of Warsaw, Poland, supervised the PhD theses of BUK scholars Hafizu Miko Yakasai and Isah Yusuf Chamo and served as external examiner for Yakubu Magaji Azare, another BUK professor.
The two-day conference which opened on Tuesday was hosted by BUK’s Centre for Research in Nigerian Languages, Translation & Folklore, in collaboration with the Departments of Nigerian Languages and Linguistics & Foreign Languages.
While declaring the conference open, BUK vice chancellor, Professor Muhammad Yahuza Bello, described Pawlak as a prolific scholar who had dedicated her life to the study and teaching of Hausa language, and expressed the university’s appreciation for her contributions.
“I am honoured and excited to deliver to you the gratitude of this university for your unending support; for our many scholars you have trained, supervised, assessed and supported; for the collaborations you have nurtured and sustained; for the books and publications we have exchanged; and for the hosting and visits.
“I also extend to you the gratitude of our students and scholars for the knowledge you produced; and the gratitude of our entire society for the work you have done to keep our language and heritage on top of the chart – alive, well and evolving,” he said.
In her response, Professor Pawlak said she devoted her entire academic career to the study of Hausa language as a means of promoting understanding between African and European nations.
“After my retirement next year, I intend to write a Hausa-Polish dictionary for learners of the Hausa language in Poland, my country,” she said.
