ENGLISH LOANWORD IN KOLOKUMA

This paper discusses the phonology of Kolokuma-English loanwords. Kolokuma is a Norh-Central Ijoid-Lect, within the Niger Congo Phylum. It is spoken in the Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area of Bayelsa State. The objective of this study is to investigate and examine how loanwords from English are adapted in Kolokuma using the Optimality Theory. The study showed that the language does not allow consonant clusters in the onset or coda positions. It also showed that closed syllables are prohibited in the language. It was further demonstrated that open syllables, simplex and voice assimilation are achieved through coda adjustment, cluster simplification and neutralization strategies, using the markedness and faithfulness constraint interactions in Optimality Theory