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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Culture & Society

My customers taught me Yoruba – London trader, ‘Olakunle Oshodi’

From The Punch · () English

Summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Interview Named sources Context piece
  • An Iraqi trader in London says he learned Yoruba through conversations with Nigerian customers at Woolwich Market.
  • He has traded pepper, fruit, cosmetics and hair products, and says about 95% of his customers are Yoruba.
  • A customer gave him the Yoruba name Olakunle Oshodi, which he has used while building the connection over about three years.

An Iraqi trader at London’s Woolwich Market learned to speak Yoruba from the customers who came to buy from him. About 95 per cent of his customers are Yoruba, he says, and their everyday conversations gradually became his language lessons.

He initially sold pepper and fruit, but now trades in cosmetics and hair products. Whenever customers spoke Yoruba, he asked them to explain unfamiliar words. Listening, asking questions and joining their conversations helped him learn little by little.

I think Yoruba is a sweet language.

· Olakunle OshodiHe explains why he became interested in learning Yoruba from his customers.

He says he grew especially fond of the language because of the way it sounds. “I think Yoruba is a sweet language,” he says, adding that regular contact made it easier to pick up. He has been learning for about three years and says he has never visited Nigeria or had any family connection to the country.

One of his customers also gave him the name Olakunle Oshodi. He describes Yoruba customers as warm and playful, saying they joke and laugh with him at the market. Speaking their language, he says, became a way to connect with them more closely.

Yoruba people are lovely.

· Olakunle OshodiHe describes the warmth and humor he experiences in his interactions with Yoruba customers.
About this summary

Originally published by The Punch. Summarized and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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