Article http://dx.doi.org/10.26855/jla.2026.06.001

Cross-cultural Comedy: Unpacking Sociolinguistic Dynamics in Nigerian, South African, and African American Stand-up Performances

TOTAL VIEWS: 1530

Idowu James Adekunle

Department of English, University of Ibadan, Oyo State, 200005, Nigeria.

*Corresponding author: Idowu James Adekunle

Published: January 20,2026

Abstract

Stand-up performance represents a global cultural practice that bridges ritual, drama, theatre, and contemporary performance, reflecting the sociological realities of everyday life. It provides critical evaluations of culture, politics, economy, religion, and power relations through humour and satire. While previous studies have largely emphasized its entertainment and therapeutic value, limited attention has been given to its intercultural and sociolinguistic dimensions across different societies. This study addresses that gap by examining stand-up comedy within Nigerian, South African, and African American contexts. Drawing on selected works of linguistic scholars from each society, the research explores how comedians’ lexical choices shape cultural narratives and audience engagement. The names of stand-up comedians whose’ works were examined were: Ayo Makun (AY), Bright Okpocha (Basket Mouth), Godwin Komone (Gordons), Nigeria; Trevor Noah, Riaad Moosa, David Kau, South Africa; Eddie Murphy, David Chappelle, Richard Pryor. The comedians were purposively selected based on way how the comedians’ linguistic and rhetorical choices construct cultural narratives and negotiate social identities in their live recording videos. Performance Theory, as articulated by Richard Schechner, provides the analytical framework for investigating the sociolinguistic strategies employed in stand-up routines. Data were analyzed through performance-based methods, highlighting the interplay of language, identity, and cultural dynamics in shaping stand-up comedy as a site of critical discourse.

Keywords

Stand-up comedy; Sociolinguistics; Performance; Dynamics; Culture

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How to cite this paper

Cross-cultural Comedy: Unpacking Sociolinguistic Dynamics in Nigerian, South African, and African American Stand-up Performances

How to cite this paper: Idowu James Adekunle. (2026). Cross-cultural Comedy: Unpacking Sociolinguistic Dynamics in Nigerian, South African, and African American Stand-up Performances. Journal of Literature Advances3(1), 1-16.

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.26855/jla.2026.06.001