Generic structure and pragmatic acts in Yoruba traditional weddings in Southwestern Nigeria

This paper investigates the generic structure and pragmatic acts (practs) in Yoruba traditional weddings from southwestern Nigeria. Three purposively selected weddings are qualitatively analysed, using the Generic Structure Potential and a modified form of the pragmatic act theory. The study reveals that the practs of praying, instructing, pleading and counselling are deployed within nine structural elements. These practs incorporate psychological and non-verbal acts as well as contextual features such as reference, metaphor, shared situational and cultural knowledge. The paper shows that the generic structure and pragmatic functions of utterances offer valuable insights into the procedure and discourse of Yoruba traditional weddings.