Humanities & Social Sciences 12 (2016 9) 3025-3036 ~ ~ ~ УДК 811.432.56 Written Literature in an African Language: An Examination of Interrogative Sentences in Fбgъnwа’s Novels Tиmнtọ́pẹ́ Olъmъyмwбa and Alбdésanmн Ọmọ́bọ́lб Agnes*b aDepartment of Linguistics and Languages Adйkъnlй Ajбsin University, Аkщngbб-Аkуkу, Nigeria b Received 01.03.16, received in revised form 05.05.16, accepted 27.06.16 Fбgъnwа is no doubt a great Yorщbб novelist, who has impressively extended the frontiers of the Yorщbб literary heritage due to his skill as a story-teller and his linguistic competence in the use of Yorщbб language. <...> In his effort to teach these morals and expand the reader’s knowledge and understanding about the messages contained in the novels, Fбgъnwа shows great skills in the use of interrogative sentences. <...> Introduction African Languages are numerous, genetically related and diverse in nature. <...> Grimes (1996) puts the number of African languages at 2,035. <...> The African languages are classified into the following: language phyla: Afroasiatic, Nilo-Saharan, Niger-Congo and Khoisan. <...> Yorщbб people in Nigeria are estimated to be about 43 million. <...> They occupy a large area in the South-West geopolitical zone of Nigeria extending through Lagos, Тgщn, Ọ̀ yọ́, Тndу, Ọṣun, Иkмtм, Kwara, Kogi and Edo States. <...> Yorubб is also spoken in the republics of Benin, Department of Linguistics and Nigerian Languages Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria Tиmнtọ́pẹ́ Olъmъyмwб and Alбdйsanmн Ọmọ́ bọ́ lб Agnes. <...> Written Literature in an African Language: An Examination. <...> Yorщbб language was reduced to writing by Bowdich (a British diplomat in the Gold Coast) in 1817. <...> The standardization of the language began mainly through the efforts of the Church Missionary Society (CMS) in 1875. <...> However, the publication of the compilation: the serial of Ìtаn Иmi Ṣẹgilọlб Ẹlẹyinjъ-ẹgẹ́ Elẹ́gbẹ̀rъn ọkọ lбнyй (The life Story of Ṣẹ̀gilọlб Ẹlẹ́yinjъ-ẹgẹ́, the wife to a thousand husbands) in July, 1930 by I. B. Thomas, marked the birth of Yorщbб novel writing, Тgъnṣнnа (1992:15). <...> Eight years after, Daniel Orтwọlй Fбgъnwа, another novelist, came to the scene. <...> He graduated in 1924 and later became a teacher at the same school in 1925. <...> It <...>