The Language Challenge!

I am sure many people have heard of the language challenge by Sugabelly! I decided to sign up. I initially wanted to write out what I spoke about before I posted it but I decided against it. Please do not crucify me, my Yoruba is far from perfect but it will get there:) (Hard to believe but I have faith!)

If you want to join, here are the rules:

1. It DOES NOT MATTER how well you can speak your language. The goal is to speak regardless. So don’t worry if you don’t speak that well or you have to include lots of English words. ALL language levels are welcome.
2. Video posts or Audio posts are strongly preferred. This is because the point is to hear and enjoy the spoken language. Written posts are frowned upon but will be accepted too. ^_^
3. Please always provide a translation for your readers of other ethnicity's! Translations should be in English and can be in the form of captions under a video post, or written transcripts for audio and written posts.
4. Please tag each participating post as – language challenge – and post the link in sugabelly's comments so she can link to it and make all of them easy to find.
5. Please encourage other Nigerian bloggers to post in Nigerian languages.

Enjoy the clip!

Olaoluwatomi Speaking Yoruba

Transcript- Not word for word!
Good afternoon and welcome to this program. What I am doing today was organized by Sugabelly. If you go to her blog you will see a more detailed explanation. Sugabelly wants all Nigerians who can speak their native languages to record on their blogs in their native languages- Yoruba, Hausa and even pidgin English. If you can speak Etsako or any of the numerous languages we speak in Nigeria, it will be nice.

I can speak about a lot of things but as you can see I cannot speak Yoruba too well. I learnt to speak Yoruba as an adult, I learnt it where i first worked. I understood Yoruba more like understanding the gossip but not speaking it as well. I first worked in Ogbomoso were Yoruba was spoken predominantly. Though English was spoken most of the people spoke Yoruba, the patients we treated so it was important to speak Yoruba which was widely spoken.

When I first started work there, I was laughed at a lot when I spoke.  Comments were made to the effect that was I not a Yoruba girl, why can’t I speak Yoruba. When I spent a year there, my Yoruba improved. Now its been a while since I last spoke Yoruba, that is why I am hemming and hawing. My twin laughs at my Yoruba and also my friends. But I tell them that if I do not speak, how will I improve?
Yesterday I got home late because I travelled. I spent 6hours on the road because of traffic and it was raining also. I was to have gotten on the 6pm bus but I left on the 4pm bus because I finished what I went to do early. I got home at 11:20pm and I was really tired.

Now I would like to tell you what I like to do. I love to read and one of my favorite books is Ake by Wole Soyinka ( I am sure I pronounced Ake terribly) who was the first African (sorry first Nigerian) to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. *I think South Africa has the claim to the title. If you read the book you will enjoy it and laugh a lot because he is an author who writes very well.

Now my mouth is dry and if I continue you will no longer hear my words or i’ll burst into laughter. I hope my Yoruba did not irritate you but made you laugh. If we continue to do this we will improve our native language skills and become better speakers. Have a Nice weekend, Bye bye!

* Big Faux Pas --------Wole Soyinka is indeed the first African to win the Nobel Prize in Literature

Comments

  1. Adeoluwa - NBB10:07 PM

    Nice try. Your Yoruba is not that bad :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Olaoluwatomi8:42 AM

    Thanks NBB, I have been encouraged! I'm aiming for perfect though:)

    ReplyDelete
  3. La Reine11:07 AM

    Your comment on my blog made it sound like we are the same. Whereas, you might be my Oga!
    Here's to aiming for the sky :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. La Reine11:46 AM

    Ah, and you said 'Yoruba mi rusty gan' as well.
    If yours is rusty, what on earth is mine?? Lol

    ReplyDelete
  5. Olaolwatomi4:42 PM

    La Reine LOL at your comments. I guess it depends on who is assessing you, I'll admit that once I heard you speak I had an acute sense of gratification that my Yoruba indeed had improved! Ask my friends who constantly ask me to speak english instead of yoruba when I open my mouth to speak what should be my mother tongue. I blame them for infusing me with an inferiority complex about my spoken yoruba and that is why I want to encourage you to continue to speak, You will soon be better than me:)
    Thanks for stopping by!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Ms. Yellow Sisi Unspoken6:59 AM

    wow i really love yours and you have that yoruba tone in it that make it sound so sweet felt like i was listening to a yoruba orator/movie :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. olaoluwatomi6:22 PM

    @Ms Yellow Sisi Unspoken- Thanks a bunch now you are making me blush:) Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  8. tunmi3:28 AM

    You sound like a Yoruba radio personality, from back in the day. Your Yoruba is gooooooddddddd!!! When was the last time I heard "l'ori eto yi" or "gb'iyanju". You got the vernacular and the intonations. You can speak it well, go on s'oun :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Olaoluwatomi2:41 PM

      Thanks Tunmi. Ori mi n wu o! Its quite a compliment as I never understood any of the yoruba on radio when I was growing up and it was frustrating! Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete

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