Roland Obi Unveils IboLang to Support Python Programs in Igbo Language

By Nnamdi Odumody

Igbo is the principal native language of the Igbo people, an ethnic group in South Eastern Nigeria and parts of Delta, Rivers and Edo States in the South South and Kogi and Benue States in the North Central. The language has over 50 million speakers in Nigeria and the Diaspora.

Igbo has over 20 dialects though dialect leveling appears to be occurring as Igbo Izugbe (General Igbo) evolves. A standard literary language was developed in 1972 based on the Owerre (Isuama) and Umuahia dialects though it omitted the nasalization and aspiration of those varieties. Languages such as Ika, Ikwerre, Ogba and Ekpeye are broadly considered as dialects of Igbo. Igbo is recognized as one of the three major languages in Nigeria and is a minority language in Equatorial Guinea.

Other Igbo speaking communities can be found in the USA (Staunton, Virginia where there is an Igbo Farm Village; St Simons Island, Georgia) Jamaica, Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago, etc mainly due to the diasporas of current and past dispensations.

UNESCO predicted that half of the 7000 plus languages spoken in the world today will be extinct by 2025. It is estimated that one language dies every 14 days.

Roland Okeke Chimaobi, a software developer, with skills in Python and Java programming is out to make sure that this prediction doesn’t come to pass, for Igbo language, with his programming language IboLang which is a full extension of Igbo language in Python. With IboLang, you can write and run Python programs in Igbo: IboLang acts like Python3, and plays like Python3, maintaining all the Python syntax and methods. Users can use it to learn programming in their native Igbo language.

Igbo is an indigenous language popularly spoken in Nigeria, Ibolang is a full extension of the Igbo language in Python. With Ibolang, you can write and run python like programs in Igbo

Ibolang acts like python 3 and plays like python 3, it maintains all the python syntax and methods. user could use it to learn programming in their native language.

IboLang is already up for beta; link is github.com|ORC-1|ibolang.

Brands which want to conquer the Igbo market with personalized technology solutions targeted to Igbo users and speakers, in their native language, should leverage the opportunity IboLang provides.

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