When SUNDAY PUNCH called to arrange an interview with one of the foreign students, Cara, it was surprising when she answered on the other end in almost accent-less Yoruba: Mo ni ipade ni aago mejila, sugbon aago meji dara (I have a meeting by 12 noon, but 2 ‘O‘ clock is okay).
On getting to the interview venue where the Americans were waiting, the reporter greeted them in the English Language, but they replied in Yoruba, saying they were fine and ready for the interview. They introduced themselves in their Yoruba names: Abike, Kolawole, Kayode, Titilayo and Akinwumi, which they individually picked from a list given to them of Yoruba names and their meanings before they embarked on their journey to Nigeria.
They said they chose to study Yoruba, a language that some have predicted might be extinct by the next century. Their school, the University of Wisconsin, Madison, in the United States, has a special program for Yoruba which the students started taking in their first year. The program, they explained, is tailored for first year, first semester students only. This, they said, was because Yoruba was an interesting and rich language.
According to Cara, choosing Yoruba out of all the languages available for study in her school was for many reasons. For instance, when she was in the junior high school, she travelled to Angola with an NGO whose mission was to build schools and provide teacher training to rural villages. Travelling around Angola changed her world view and implanted in her a desire to return to Africa one day. While there, she also noticed she had a flair for languages when she picked up the local language spoken in Angola easily. Some years later, when she was picking courses in her first year in the university, she picked Yoruba language and culture class, knowing she would do something with the skills in future.
As for Kevin Barry, ”I chose to study Yoruba because it was available at my university in America (University of Wisconsin, Madison) and it sounded interesting. I am also very interested in music, particularly drums and percussion, and had studied a small bit of Yoruba music in the Diaspora (in Cuban and Brazilian music). I have also always wanted to come to Africa. I love learning about new people and cultures and I believe language can break down any barrier.”
They knew that to learn the language properly, they would have to leave the classroom for the environment where the language is being spoken by native speakers. They said that their proficiency in the Yoruba Language had since improved.
What was their preconceived notion about Africa and Nigeria in particular, we asked. According to Kegan O‘Neil (self named Kolawole) who had visited Northern African country of Morocco, public opinion about Africa in many places is, unfortunately, very negative; but he thinks Nigeria is such an interesting country with a huge economy.
The students had three Nigerian teachers who visited the United States of America occasionally to lecture them. For O‘Neil, there are some culturally shocking things that can be difficult, like adapting to another culture, compared to the American culture which he described as being more individualistic and quieter.
”It wouldn‘t have been easy if I wasn‘t living in the University of Ibadan. I really enjoy serenity, but whenever I step out of the gate, people stare at me endlessly and everything can be really rowdy.”
For Lauren, coming to Nigeria was not her first time out of the United States, but it‘s her first to Africa and although she didn‘t have a preconceived impression about Africa or Nigeria, she was warned about coming to Nigeria. However, she said, she believed that her team had been very fortunate as they have had good Nigerian teachers who had taught them good things about Nigerians and their culture.
She also said they initially had problems with their home institution which did not want them to visit Nigeria for various reasons, one of which was security problem. But they ultimately listened to their Nigerian lecturers and knew that it‘s not everything you listen to in the news that is accurate.
After a series of vaccinations, which included the ones for malaria, polio, yellow fever, tuberculosis, etc., they embarked on their journey to Nigeria in September 2009 to enable them to learn better a language they have been studying. Their program is being sponsored by the United States Government via an educational grant.
Fixed into different adoptive or host families, they have settled into the Nigerian system and one would not have been able to tell the difference between them and Nigerian youths if not for their skin colour. They each said that their host families were perfect for them and that they rather fit into the. The host families were picked for them after they had each completed a questionnaire about their personalities to determine where they would fit in best.
According to Kelly Moses, ”They did a good job, as each host family really fits each person.” Lauren added, ”Yeah, they did a good job; and I think all of us love our host families. I have five older sisters and they are grown and out of the house; so, right now, I am an only child.”
”Now that you have stayed in Nigeria for over a year, what will you say about the country and the bad publicity it‘s been receiving in the Western press,” SUNDAY PUNCH asked. Kegan, who has been to many countries, said most people they had met were good, except for a few bad ones who give the country a bad name.
When asked if they had developed romantic relationships with Nigerians, Lauren said she had a boyfriend back in the States; Kelly said he was open to possibilities. Kegan said the same, Caroline said she ”is taken” and Kevin said he was available.
When asked if anything had shocked them culturally about Nigeria, Kelly Moses said it was the power supply system. ”The fact that electricity isn‘t constant and can be seized at the whims of some people is not something we are used to,” he said. For O‘Neil, ”Nigeria is difficult for a vegetarian that I am.” He said he depended mostly on foreign foods. He also said that amala and obe ila (okro soup) is one of his favorite meals. For Lauren, she loves amala and abula, which her adoptive mother prepares for her. For 22-year-old Barry who goes by the name Kayode, ”Nigerian youths have a higher moral code, though there are a lot of similarities between youths in Nigeria and America, but gender rules are different in Nigeria than in U.S.”
Kevin said he was surprised that Nigerians ”don‘t seem to embrace their culture very much. If I speak Yoruba, they laugh at me and they say speak English and I ask them why.” He continues: ”I think a lot of youths have their eyes set on the western culture and they want to go over there and they want to trade in their own culture.”
Some of the students expressed the desire to return to Nigeria after their program, while Lauren, Kegan and Kelly said they have no definite plans to come back immediately. As for Cara, she thinks that she might take time to fit in back with the American culture; while Kevin said it was compulsory for him to come back ”because I have made some really good friends in Nigeria and I‘m available.
“Mo fe omoge to re‘wa, to tun gbon” (I want a beautiful girl who is mature) he said
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