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“Made in Africa, for Africa.”

Why a good language instructor is key to really get a culture

Our first professor, Arsénio,
during a CouchSurfing event

Two years ago, when we first saw a position in Mozambique, we didn't know much about the country. A little bit more than a year later, when we first set foot in Maputo, after consulting many encyclopedias, studying several academic articles and international development reports, and reading local websites, blogs and newspapers, we had much more information, but not necessary a full understanding of the people and customs. The only Mozambican we had met up to that point was a lovely woman who chatted with us about some basics for a couple of hours during our SKWID (Skills for Working in Development) training. And that was it.

But to live and specially work in a country, you need much more than that. At this point a good language instructor becomes essential. People think a language professor is there to tell you how to say this or that, explain some grammar rules, and correct your mistakes. And to be honest, that was what many language instructors were doing in Mozambique. But a good language instructor is, more than anything, a cultural interpreter.

Cristina, my favorite Portuguese professor
in the whole world

He or she can quickly become what in Anthropology we call a "key informant," the go-to person for anything you don't understand. Why do people behave in a certain way? What's the best way to approach this subject in this situation? Would it be correct to do this or that? A good language instructor / cultural interpreter has a good grasp of the whys and hows of their culture and can explain and answer these and million other questions about the hidden dimensions of a culture and the puzzling behaviors of its people.

We were lucky when eventually we were able to have classes with two such wonderful instructors. Arsénio had training in Linguistics and came from a very traditional style of lecturing-teaching, but had a wealth of information when it came to work relationships and communication that was eye-opening. Unfortunately, he soon left for a job abroad.


After much running around, we found Cristina Chilaule*, another wonderful professor. Not only did she have a strong work ethic, but she was able to adapt immediately to our specific needs of working professionals who needed to reach a certain communication standard quickly. More importantly, she became a window to a part of Mozambican culture we had no idea about. Because she came from a completely different background, she was able to introduce us to different aspects of the local culture and give us invaluable insights into everyday life. She even managed to teach Fadi some grammar, a never-before achieved feat! (Fadi learns languages by osmosis and had so far done without any grammar).

Definitely, a highlight of our time in Mozambique.


*If you happen to be in Maputo and in need of a Portuguese professor, contact her at chilaulecristina@gmail.com

Community participation and consultation: talking to the chefes

After the initial meeting with local leaders and the workshop I wrote about the other day, it was time to meet with the different representatives of the community to inform them about the project, evaluate their interest, answer their questions and doubts, and ask for their input.


Here is how the meeting went:

Initially we were concerned about not being inclusive enough, but as it turned out, there was a fair amount of women present and the age range was also broad enough.

The report back from the team was that the meeting went well and there was enthusiasm for the project.





The discussion was conducted in Changana*, a Bantu language spoken in Southern Mozambique and one of the most common languages in Maputo together with Portuguese.

What were they saying? Not sure, but it looks like it was funny.

Representatives from VSO, the city and Cruz Vermelha Moçambique.

Where did all this take place? In the neighborhood of Chamanculo C, a part of Maputo outside of the cement city.

 Below are a couple of photos** taken around the neighborhood.

 

 

* If you want to learn some Changana, check some everyday vocabulary here.

** Photos by Elizabeth Kuttner.

The Polyglot Dilemma: Which language do you choose to communicate?

My Move to Mozambique? Minha mudança à Moçambique? Mi mudanza a Mozambique?
English? ¿Português? ¿Español?

The first consideration is always which language to use for the blog, as every option has its pros and cons:

* English serves in many cases as the lingua franca.

* Spanish would be easier and would reach family and friends who don't read English that easily. Plus it would serve to link and (hopefully) help to bridge that huge knowledge gap that sadly separates both continents.

* But I'll be working in MZ and I need to start using my very rusty Portuguese and bring it to an appropriate level of work-related correctness.

In all likelihood I'll be switching from one to the other, according to the mood, or the topic, or the language I've in my head at the moment. And I'll be mixing and Spanglish-izing, or Portuñol-izing, and even Engluese-izing things, butchering each language in the process. For that, I apologize to native speakers.

Using Google Translate or any other automatic translation tool will be enough to give you an idea of what the posting is about (use the button included on the right side to pick your language).

If you do know the language, in particular Portuguese, feel free to correct my writing. In no way will I get offended. On the contrary, I'll appreciate it enormously. Pointing out factual mistakes or any other inaccuracy, also appreciated.

Disclaimer.- If, initially, the postings in Portuguese seem to be a tad erratic and pointless it's because I'm following the advice I often give my students: there's no better way to learn a language than actually using it. As I haven't written in Portuguese in 20+ years, I will use any excuse to ramble in Portuguese about everything and anything even mildly related to the move to MZ. I apologize in advance.

Key combinations for funny symbols

On a related, multilingual note, I've been figuring out key combinations to be able to write in Portuguese. The c cedilha and the circumflex accent, at least on a Mac, are as follows:

Ç shift + option + c

ç option + c

ÂÔÊ option+i+[capital vowel]

â ô ê option+i+vowel

ãõ option + n
à option + `

And, while we're at it, we might as well learn the combination for Spanish symbols:

á é í ó ú option + e + vowel

ñ option + n + n

¡ option + 1

¿ shift + option + ?

Until later! ¡Hasta luego! ¡Até logo!