Yorùbá
Why Yorùbá
Yorùbá is a West African language spoken mainly in Nigeria, Benin and parts of Togo and Sierra Leone. Yoruba is also spoken in areas of Brazil, Cuba, Venezuela, Trinidad, Tobago, and Haiti. The language has influenced the societies and economies of West Africans, and the Diaspora in a variety of ways. It is noteworthy that Yorùbá religious practices in the Western Hemisphere, such as Candomblé, Santeria have their roots in Yorùbá religion. There are over 20 million speakers of Yorùbá in West Africa, and other parts of the world.
Studying Yorùbá at the University of Kansas prepares you for careers in developmental practices, humanitarian services, language learning and education, translation and interpretation, travel, business or diplomatic career in Africa.
Yorùbá at KU
The African and African American Studies Department at the University of Kansas offers four level courses in Yorùbá. The first year introduces learners to the geography of the Yorùbá speaking area, society, and culture with an emphasis on some essential elements of Yorùbá linguistic and communicational competences. This course is especially appropriate for students planning to travel to Nigeria. Learners at this level are exposed to more developed Yorùbá language structures (aiming the acquisition of higher linguistic, lexical, aural, and oral skills) through a progressive and practical study of cultural and literary themes. The intermediate level focuses on culturally contextualizing Yorùbá grammatical and communicative skills, hence the course's emphasis on advanced Yorùbá speaking, listening, reading and writing skills.
For more information about our Yorùbá course offerings, and our African and African Diasporic Language Minor see the AAAS Yorùbá Language Flyer (.pdf)