A Sociolinguistic Study of Language Choice Patterns in Yoruba-Hausa Bilingual Communities in Ilorin

Ilorin, the capital of Kwara State, presents one of the most linguistically complex urban environments in Nigeria, where Yoruba, Hausa, and Arabic-influenced varieties coexist in a historically layered sociolinguistic space. This study investigates language choice patterns in Yoruba-Hausa bilingual communities in Ilorin, North Central Nigeria, using a systematic sociolinguistic survey and ethnographic observation design. Data were collected from 120 bilingual participants stratified by neighbourhood, age, religion, and occupation through structured language use questionnaires, matched guise experiments, and conversational recordings in four contrasting community settings. The study applies Fishman's domain theory, Scotton's markedness model, and diglossia theory to analyse the social meanings and functional distribution of Yoruba and Hausa language choices. Existing literature on Ilorin sociolinguistics has documented its unusual linguistic history but has rarely employed systematic quantitative methods to map current language choice patterns at the community level. This research fills that empirical gap. The study examines how religion, neighbourhood ethnolinguistic composition, commercial activity type, and interlocutor identity predict language choice, and whether generational differences are reshaping the established Yoruba-Hausa diglossia. Findings are expected to reveal that religion is the strongest predictor of language choice, with Hausa associated with Islamic religious domains and Yoruba with family and traditional cultural domains, while English increasingly dominates formal institutional contexts. Recommendations will address language documentation needs and language policy for educational institutions in Ilorin's complex multilingual environment. Keywords: language choice, Yoruba-Hausa bilingualism, Ilorin, domain theory, sociolinguistics.