why do people say jjc Africans smell??

my pastor (born and raised in 9ja) said in a sermon one sunday that whenever he returns from a trip back home, he takes 5 showers to wash off the smell. almost everyone laughed becuz they knew what he was talking about.


some time ago, i heard 2 AA girls on a train talking about how bad newly arrived africans smell.


i haven't noticed any smell from JJC africans to the U.S.
what is this smell that pple are talking about? just curious

i don't know either but probably mostly food. i know this girl in my old school who used to smell like naija food.and she is nigerian american lol i kinda liked the smell but i felt a little sad because i knew most ppl wouldn't appreciate that. kinda like a mixture of fish and soup. llolol maybe i smell like that sometimes i don't know haha after eating amala and gbegiri ati ewedu

kinda like the indian people smell that comes from their food/ ingredients.

i'm not sure thought but that's just what i think

It's not so much an 'African smell'.

Some of the guys (men and women) that 'smell' are those who have not acquired the good habit of using deodarants. Some simply can't afford it. Sometimes it's the lingering odour from having indulged in a steamy dish of pounded yam and the heavily spiced soup that usually goes with it. What some people don't realise is the fact that some of our spices do have very powerful odours, which the 'uninitiated' can't fully appreciate and which follows us evrywhere we go. That's until we've had a good wash and sprayed that perfume or whatever it is that we like to spray on ourselves.

It's just like the lingering smell of garlic on the breath of someone whose just had a heavily spiced Asian meal and forgotten to rinse out there mouth and pop a mint or something in it.

Unfortunately a lot of the newly arrived guys-the illegal ones anyway-can't afford to attend to their personal hygiene. Others who do are not aware that the smell from the food can linger with them for the whole day. And it is a problem which can't really be ignored. It's just that there's really no nice way to tell your paddy that s/he smells of crayfish without coming across insensitive!

So it's not an 'African thing' per se.

quote from oyinda:

« #1 on: Today at 12:24:12 AM »

i don't know either but probably mostly food. i know this girl in my old school who used to smell like naija food.and she is nigerian american lol i kinda liked the smell but i felt a little sad because i knew most ppl wouldn't appreciate that. kinda like a mixture of fish and soup. llolol maybe i smell like that sometimes i don't know haha after eating amala and gbegiri ati ewedu

kinda like the indian people smell that comes from their food/ ingredients.

i'm not sure thought but that's just what i think

but we eat naija food abroad and there's no smell- not that i know of.

maybe not using deodorant does have something to do with it.

i know when i got off the plane here in nigeria i was imediatly struck by the "smell" but i have to say it was BO. some people here i have tried to talk into wearing deoderant start off on this whole "its all posioned and the evil ones use it to kill/cripple/maime us" i have gotten used to smelling others BO but i do demand anyone who comes to my house use at least collogne if thet refuse deoderant/antipersperant

there are different african smells
some from stinky foods, some from BO

but africans do smell(not all but ALOT), Truth be told

Lol, there is a smell, sometimes its B.O, which people have even abroad. I must say its probably not always the food, because many of us eat the same food abroad (although maybe we dont flush our bodies out with enough water). Whenever I come back from Nigeria I do notice a musty smell all over my clothes which I have to wash at least twice to get rid of, but I dont smell it while in Nigeria.

I think it may have something to do with the generator fumes in the heat, it also hits you as soon as you get off the plane.

@poster

Funny how you say "The African Smell" because after reading your post and other posts, the INDIANS and PAKISTANESE(sp?) came to mind. And to them, it's all about "the natural smell" which is acceptable in their societies

^ well, my pastor is African not indian/pakistani. the 2 AA girls on the train were talking about Africans, not indians/pakistanis.

Yes its true, some Indians/Pakastanis also have a strong smell.

most residential africans in uk dnt smell

unlike yall in america that sinks alot like sjeeyz

but most say most jjc do cuz of lack of deodorants and stuff

as for food i dnt agree with that

whoever believes that need to wash up with acid soap

Epi:

@poster

Funny how you say "The African Smell" because after reading your post and other posts, the INDIANS and PAKISTANESE(sp?) came to mind. And to them, it's all about "the natural smell" which is acceptable in their societies

Exactly my sentiment!!!

Maybe in the case of the Paki/Indians, peeps here in the US already are aware of Curry and its scent. So they wouldnt necessarily attribute it to body odor but lingering odor from food. I find that it irritating in any case.
In the African case, if U come out smelling like Ogbonno or egusi , most wont know what the hell the odor is or where it even came from. So it is natural that they attribute it to body odor.

In any case one should always have a high standard of personal hygiene (2 baths a day at least), use deodorant ALWAYS, mouthwash etc. BO as a result of lack of hygiene or diet is still BO and it is irritating!!!

FYI, Some white folks I have met take only one bath a day ( and thats at night). Once they take a bath at night , they wake up in the morning and zoom off to work or to school

African Smell? Lmao! You learn something new everyday.

The "African Smell" I have always encountered in the U.S. and Naija is body odour. I mean overwhelming funk. it was sooo overwhelming on the airplane ride to Naija, and in various places- I would gag (and still do).

Some people just don't believe in Soap. my in-laws help supposedly washes, but he doesn't use soap- so he reeks!

WHO DOESN'T SMELL? Stench is not a respecter of race. I work part-time as a cashier, and gosh do people smelllllllllll? Ranging from the Americans to Mexicans to AA's, a dirty man will always be a dirty man especially the smokers. I have my lysol with me to spray and disinfect the area after they have killed me finish with their stench. Just this week, I made myself nauseous because I was holding my breath. So who doesn't smell?

stillwater:

WHO DOESN'T SMELL? Stench is not a respecter of race. I work part-time as a cashier, and gosh do people smelllllllllll? Ranging from the Americans to Mexicans to AA's, a dirty man will always be a dirty man especially the smokers. I have my lysol with me to spray and disinfect the area after they have killed me finish with their stench. Just this week, I made myself nauseous because I was holding my breath. So who doesn't smell?

Oh My Dinner is gone oh.
Ewwwwwwwww.

You smell it when you hit the airport in Lagos and I used to go to a Nigerian church in Chicago which I will not name and one particular day I opened the door and was hit with the smell of overwhelming body odor. I don't think it is because they are dirty because if anything Africans take more showers than the average American. The body odor comes from sweating like everybody else but not using deodorant.

agathamari:

i know when i got off the plane here in nigeria i was imediatly struck by the "smell" but i have to say it was BO. some people here i have tried to talk into wearing deoderant start off on this whole "its all posioned and the evil ones use it to kill/cripple/maime us" i have gotten used to smelling others BO but i do demand anyone who comes to my house use at least collogne if thet refuse deoderant/antipersperant

What's BO?

body odor

pcicero:

What's BO?

BO= body odor. i think

quote by outstrip:
« #17 on: Yesterday at 09:40:25 PM »

You smell it when you hit the airport in Lagos and I used to go to a Nigerian church in Chicago which I will not name and one particular day I opened the door and was hit with the smell of overwhelming body odor. I don't think it is because they are dirty because if anything Africans take more showers than the average American. The body odor comes from sweating like everybody else but not using deodorant.

hmmmm,  so it's just a musty smell?




when i was very young, i remember hearing AAs say that whites smell like "wet dogs." 

WHO DOESN'T SMELL? Stench is not a respecter of race. I work part-time as a cashier, and gosh do people smelllllllllll? Ranging from the Americans to Mexicans to AA's, a dirty man will always be a dirty man especially the smokers. I have my lysol with me to spray and disinfect the area after they have killed me finish with their stench. Just this week, I made myself nauseous because I was holding my breath. So who doesn't smell?

Still you can pesin with laughter na wa o

FYI, Some white folks I have met take only one bath a day ( and thats at night). Once they take a bath at night , they wake up in the morning and zoom off to work or to school Shocked

what's wrong with taking shower once a day?
i think if you are fat and sweaty, you might need to wash more. otherwise, once a day is enough for most people.

There is a particular smell I usually associate with Nigeria, not neccesarily a bad thing but it just has this distinct smell.

I can't really say I associate it with Nigerians sha. The Bo is just BO. The Nigerians I am surrounded by do not walk around with BO except the few here and there at church

oyinda.:

what's wrong with taking shower once a day?
i think if you are fat and sweaty, you might need to wash more. otherwise, once a day is enough for most people.

Thank you oo. I used to fringe when I hear of that showering at night thing and not doing so in the morning.
But man, that's what it is. College be kicking people's asses, lack of adequate sleep, etc. Who has time to be showering up and down when you're gonna be up in 3 hrs?

oyinda.:

i don't know either but probably mostly food. i know this girl in my old school who used to smell like naija food.and she is nigerian american lol[b] i kinda liked the smell but i felt a little sad because i knew most ppl wouldn't appreciate that[/b]. kinda like a mixture of fish and soup. llolol maybe i smell like that sometimes i don't know haha after eating amala and gbegiri ati ewedu

kinda like the indian people smell that comes from their food/ ingredients.

i'm not sure thought but that's just what i think

Oyinda, you're too funny!!! LOL @"I kinda liked the smell". Appreciate it ke? That just came out funny.

lagos airport did have this weird smell.
it was hot and humid as hell so i dont blame them. but i honestly do think its a lack of deoderant.
even in port harcourt airport it hit you as soon as you hopped off the plane. it was humid and then inside the airport was EXTRA humid and had a weird stench. i wont say it stunk, but it wasnt exactly pleasent either.
kinda like wet dog. lol
but like someone else said, you dont notice the smell until you leave nigeria.
when i got back to the states all my clothes and all my belongings had this weird stench. it wasnt a smelly smell of body odor or anything, t was kinda like pollution/gasoline kinda smell in all my clothes. i guess the air was dirty wherever i was. i had to wash my clothes twice some even 3 times.

ikeyman00:

most residential africans in uk dnt smell

unlike yall in america that sinks alot like sjeeyz

but most say most jjc do cuz of lack of deodorants and stuff

as for food i dnt agree with that

whoever believes that need to wash up with acid soap

Ode i dont have a smell but when im in a crowd full of Americans and smell some african smell, i know its a stinky immigrant like you around. wash up nikku and USE DEODORANT, africans like you give people like me a bad/stinky name

lmfao

There's nothing like AFRICAN SMELL as far as I'm concerned.

It's body odour maybe from some people

The smell me I know is of the Chinese, they got a general body odour.

Not all smell thou but majority smells::: kinda of odour male/female

quote by sjeezy8

« #27 on: Yesterday at 11:18:13 PM » 

Ode i dont have a smell but when im in a crowd full of Americans and smell some african smell, i know its a stinky immigrant like you around. wash up nikku and USE DEODORANT, africans like you give people like me a bad/stinky name

lmfao

well evry group has their smell, i guess. a lot of chinese woman smell like powder- like a nice sweet powder or talc.
white pple- i can't stand next to them when they are wet.  (not tryna sound racist or anything)

I'd say the average cleanest person would have a smell, if they didn't use deodorant.

Sweating, allowing it to dry on your skin, sweating again can lead to unpleasant odours. Often, it's the clothes that smell, not the wearer.

Not limited to Africans though.

chiogo:

But man, that's what it is. College be kicking people's asses, lack of adequate sleep, etc. Who has time to be showering up and down when you're gonna be up in 3

U are not the only one in college so dont use that as an excuse

Weather u are fat or lepa, the truth is that once U hit the road on ur daily chores, ur sweat pores start acting up. It is only natural that u take time to unclog them.