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Hero (m)
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Akata?
« on: May 14, 2006, 04:43 AM » |
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Some folks have told me that it's a negative title for black-Americans and it means Cotton Pickers, and others say it's a word of respect, meaning Wild Cats, in reference to our 60's Black Panther movement. So which one is it, in your opinion?
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sade511 (f)
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My parents told me it means some type of wild animal. They was like its bad to call people that but they still do.
You know Nigerians are they call every non african person akata even if they white.
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Hero (m)
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My parents told me it means some type of wild animal. They was like its bad to call people that but they still do.
You know Nigerians are they call every non african person akata even if they white.
Are you sure about the bolded part? I've only heard it addressed to us black-americans. I personally find it rather disrespectful. We have appropriate titles and should be referred to as such, and not Wild Cats, Wild Animals or Cotton Pickers; whatever the case may be. To me, being referred to as an Akata is just as bad as being referred to as a Nigger. Today I had to personally school a young Nigerian kid I met at this party on that fact. He's a recent immigrant to the US, and I'm sure I got my point across to him very well.  |
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Jakumo (m)
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Hero I also have no idea what the word AKATA means, but I do know that is is a term of hatred and belittlement just like the "n" word as you correctly guessed. Nigerians generally consider other Nigerians from different tribes as their own to be sub-human. Yorubas for example refer to Hausas from the north of Nigeria as " GAMBARIS", and a story has circulated for years about a Yoruba woman who had witnessed a multiple-fatality car accident on a highway, and was then asked how many people died. Her reply was that no human people died, but that a bunch of GAMBARIS were shredded in the wreck.
Whether that story is actually true or not, it captures beautifully the mindset of THE MAJORITY of Nigerians towards folks from their own country who happen to speak a language different from their own. The effect of that mentality can be extrapolated to give an accurate picture of the enormous chip-on-the-shoulder that many Nigerians continue to have in their relationship towards blacks in the diaspora.
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Rhodalyn (f)
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i know Akata to mean a very Ugly person!
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sade511 (f)
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Yeah. . well maybe not all Nigerians but the ones that I know do.
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sade511 (f)
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My parents told me it means some type of wild animal. They was like its bad to call people that but they still do.
You know Nigerians are they call every non african person akata even if they white.
Are you sure about the bolded part? I've only heard it addressed to us black-americans. I personally find it rather disrespectful. We have appropriate titles and should be referred to as such, and not Wild Cats, Wild Animals or Cotton Pickers; whatever the case may be. To me, being referred to as an Akata is just as bad as being referred to as a Nigger. Today I had to personally school a young Nigerian kid I met at this party on that fact. He's a recent immigrant to the US, and I'm sure I got my point across to him very well. |
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Rhodalyn (f)
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oh right! i get it now  |
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chinani (f)
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Akata is not related to the N word & isn't as bad. It's neutral. And what do you expect us to say in Naija? "O bu African American"? Er, that doesn't make sense. Pidgin (in every country) is different from the "dominant" languages and when the sounds/word are similar to the words in the original languages, meanings are erased, inverted or ignored. Also think about the nature of West African languages. Use Igbo & Yoruba for example. In both languages words are spelled the same but mean different things b/c our languages are tonal. So anyone who tells you it has a definite meaning one way or another is misinformed.
What I'm trying to say is that AKATA means African American in Nigerian pidgin in the same way that Bekee or Onecha (bad spelling sorry!) means English or White person in Igbo. I would not call "Samuel" Akata b/c I call people by their name etc. etc. but if someone asks "What is Samuel?" or "What race is Samuel?" or "Is Samuel such-and-such" then I say "He is Akata." the same way I might say "He is Chinese."
I don't see how that is disrespectful. It does not originate from negativity that's an urban American legend. If someone chooses to use it in the negative way, I cannot be accountable for that. Remember, some people sneer when they say "He's Nigerian. . ." so should we stop them from calling us that (Nigerian, African, or whatever)?
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chinani (f)
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As you can deduce from the posts some people use akata in only a negative sense, in the same way people might say "Blacks and Mexicans". Blacks is not derogatory. Neither is Mexicans, but the voice intonation and context makes it negative. Other people using it in only a positive sense. Others use it to be positive or negative. Like I have friends who live in Naija but go to college here and their moms use akata to mean "ghetto girl". But they only use the word for girls. But that's in their region. Others use it to mean "thug". Others use it to mean AfroAmerican.
It does not mean cotton picker. We (Nigerians) don't have a word for "cotton". Can anyone provide a translation for cotton?
I also heard it means "fox" in Yoruba. Am not Yoruba though. But let's not forget, Nigeria & West Africa is made up of tonal languages. This means that if osa (LH) is squirrel and osa (LL) is community then someone who does not know or understand the language could ttake a offense to being called "one of the community"
Same goes for ekwerekwe mean secret and ekwerekwu means conspiracy the untrained ear can not distinguish and can corrupt the message.
It's likely that akata -- don't forget some people say nkata -- started as a Yoruba word but once it becomes a loan word in other languages (i.e. Bini, Igbo, Hausa) and enters into Nigerian pidgin and now West African pidgin -- people say it in Togo, Senegal & the Gambia -- the original meaning is ignored. No one in The Gambia is like "You know that means ---- in Yoruba right?" They don't care. That's how pidgin & loan words work.
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mochafella (m)
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it means Cotton Pickers That's a new one. I didn't realise Cotton-picking was a big thing in Naija. |
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GL (f)
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Hero I also have no idea what the word AKATA means, but I do know that is is a term of hatred and belittlement just like the "n" word as you correctly guessed. Nigerians generally consider other Nigerians from different tribes as their own to be sub-human. This is not true at all. Nigerians don't consider other people, not to talk of other Nigerias, to be sub-human. I don't know anything about the akata stuff, but I know that it is normal for every tribe to have terms they use to refer to other tribes. This doesnt necessarily imply hatred or belittlement, though individuals may use those terms, or any words for that matter, to imply such. Some people (Warri people, I think) call Sierra Leonans "Saro" and this doesn't imply hatred or belittlement at all. We call whites "Oyinbo" and that doesnt imply anything negative. |
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ldollier (f)
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please is akata an igbo word?
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chinani (f)
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please is akata an igbo word?
No. |
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Eastcoast (f)
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I understand akata to mean a nigerian living abroad that imitates white/african americans and kind of disses other nigerians
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chinani (f)
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@Eastcoast
I've heard it used in that context too.
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Eastcoast (f)
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This is the way i always hear it being used around me.
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Nia
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I believe akata is a semi-negative term, although not as bad as the "N" word. I, too, disagree with the use of the word. My understanding of the explanation of the word is that an akata is a very aggressive fly or insect, like the ones that are continuously buzzing in your ears while you're trying to fling it away with your hand. It supposedly comments on the idea that African Americans are aggresive, like an akata.
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Drusilla (f)
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Akata or Ajereke are words calling African Americans names basically.
Ajereke sorta means like SUGAR.
i.e. the same way you know that someone having a little sugar in his blood, is not a compliment in the African American community.
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Drusilla (f)
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To be more specific, they are not compliments but kind of like secret jokes at the African Americans expense.
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aloib (f)
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i think its just a slang naijas call black americans, no oofence meant i think
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diddy4 (m)
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Akata is not related to the N word & isn't as bad. It's neutral. And what do you expect us to say in Naija? "O bu African American"? Er, that doesn't make sense. Pidgin (in every country) is different from the "dominant" languages and when the sounds/word are similar to the words in the original languages, meanings are erased, inverted or ignored. Also think about the nature of West African languages. Use Igbo & Yoruba for example. In both languages words are spelled the same but mean different things b/c our languages are tonal. So anyone who tells you it has a definite meaning one way or another is misinformed.
What I'm trying to say is that AKATA means African American in Nigerian pidgin in the same way that Bekee or Onecha (bad spelling sorry!) means English or White person in Igbo. I would not call "Samuel" Akata b/c I call people by their name etc. etc. but if someone asks "What is Samuel?" or "What race is Samuel?" or "Is Samuel such-and-such" then I say "He is Akata." the same way I might say "He is Chinese."
I don't see how that is disrespectful. It does not originate from negativity that's an urban American legend. If someone chooses to use it in the negative way, I cannot be accountable for that. Remember, some people sneer when they say "He's Nigerian. . ." so should we stop them from calling us that (Nigerian, African, or whatever)?
you said every thing i wanted to say. this is basically the meaning of akata. it doesnt mean the n word or any other stuff y'all think it means. kapish. |
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chinani (f)
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Akata or Ajereke are words calling African Americans names basically.
Ajereke sorta means like SUGAR.
i.e. the same way you know that someone having a little sugar in his blood, is not a compliment in the African American community.
I lost you Drusilla.  What's the significance of having sugary blood? Doesn't it make you sweet? ********************************************************************************* Thanks for the backup Diddy! |
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Drusilla (f)
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Chinani,
What you can be responsible for is for respecting other people. The negativity of a word is not based on the speakers perception of the word but rather on the listeners perception of it.
Adulawo is our race. (Means Black Person)
Feel free to say that the person is "Adulawo-American".
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Drusilla (f)
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Chinani,
No, having sugar in one's blood usually indicates softness or cowardliness.
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chinani (f)
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No, having sugar in one's blood usually indicates softness or cowardliness.
OIC. I've never heard that before. It's very interesting. I'd have thought it was a compliment. Where does that concept come from? Do you know? What you can be responsible for is for respecting other people. The negativity of a word is not based on the speakers perception of the word but rather on the listeners perception of it. You have a point. It is my responsibility to respect others. And, negativity can come w/ the perception (listening) of the word. But I think that negativity can be dissipated when a better understanding of the word it brought forth. It's like a member of the African Diaspora being offended by the word "niggardly". But when he/she learns what it means, then he/she need not be offended. This is what I meant. If the word is not born out of negativity why should it be taken as such? Adulawo is our race. (Means Black Person) Feel free to say that the person is "Adulawo-American".
Interesting. What language is Adulawo? |
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Drusilla (f)
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OIC. I've never heard that before. It's very interesting. I'd have thought it was a compliment. Where does that concept come from? Do you know? No, I do not. It is just an ebonic expression. You have a point. It is my responsibility to respect others. And, negativity can come w/ the perception (listening) of the word. But I think that negativity can be dissipated when a better understanding of the word it brought forth. It's like a member of the African Diaspora being offended by the word "niggardly". But when he/she learns what it means, then he/she need not be offended. This is what I meant. If the word is not born out of negativity why should it be taken as such? The problem is that in America, a recent AID to a senator was forced to step down and give up his job, when he used the word: Niggardly. Did the people in Washington, D.C. not have dictionary's available to them, when he was forced to step down? Words can be offensive no matter how much you try to explain them away. Interesting. What language is Adulawo?
English. |
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chinani (f)
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The problem is that in America, a recent AID to a senator was forced to step down and give up his job, when he used the word: Niggardly.
Did the people in Washington, D.C. not have dictionary's available to them, when he was forced to step down? Well that is unfair and nonsensical. I can't be expected to play to the lowest common sense especially when I can not anticipate when my English will be judged by not English standards. English But the word "akata" is not English. That's just the thing. People say it when they're not speaking English. |
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Drusilla (f)
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Well that is unfair and nonsensical. I can't be expected to play to the lowest common sense especially when I can not anticipate when my English will be judged by not English standards. In this case, the English standard for the word Niggardly or anything close to it, is widely known. So no matter how much the speaker would claim ignorance, it did not fly. But the word "akata" is not English. That's just the thing. People say it when they're not speaking English. Oh. Pidgen speakers are incapable of understanding English words. So it is not possible for them to ever say or speak an English word. I also have some land for sale. |
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food4tot (f)
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Adulawo, English?
Where did you get that word from?
LOL, its Yoruba.
adudulawo but pronounced adulawo meaning "dark-skin"
the preceeding "a" is like the english "er"/"or" at the end of maker or actor
Dudu means Black/Dark
Awo means Skin
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