Yoruba

An understanding of Yoruba will grant you access to a wide variety of Yoruba-speaking cultures across the globe. Yoruba is the native language of the Yoruba people, an official language of Nigeria, and is widely spoken in Togo, Benin, and Sierra Leone. It is also a prominent language for communities in Brazil, Venezuela, Cuba, Trinidad, Tobago, Puerto Rico, and Haiti. Yoruba is a language of significant interest to linguists. The skills demonstrated by mastery of less commonly taught languages such as Yoruba are valuable to employers and graduate programs, and fluency in Yoruba itself is sought by government agencies and international non-governmental organizations.

Báwo ni? [bá-wo-ni]: “How are you?”

Department:
Department of African Cultural Studies

Advisor:
Andrew Bartsch, apbartsch@wisc.edu

Intro Class:
AFRICAN 371: First Semester Yoruba

Contact Andrew Bartsch, apbartsch@wisc.edu, for details.

“In the classes that I have taught, it’s really interesting how the students came to class as strangers and by the semester is over they are friends. It’s amazing how language fosters friendships.”