₦airaland Forum

I stumbled across a video of a white woman who can speak Urhobo fluently like someone who grew up in the village. She was speaking it with pride and all the features of a native speaker were there. I don't know her or where she grew up but I found the video fascinating. I am aware that there are many whites that can speak Yoruba, Hausa and Igbo. But this is Urhobo, a language that many of its people hardly speak (refer to my post on the dearth of Urhobo language), and so it is very intriguing. See video below:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lf5glkJddSE



Urhobo people: Speak Urhobo today! Learn Urhobo if you can't speak it yet! Be proud of your culture and identity! Don't let someone else be proud of it on your behalf!

Urhobo Wadoo!!! Mesiaghware o!


**NB: Urhobo is a language spoken by the Urhobo/Isoko people of Delta State, Nigeria.

Area roll call:

Sanchez01
Efewestern
Opharhe
Onosprince
DBriteLitehouse
Scionofurhobo
Caringguy
Leriebloom
Igholize
DavidEsq
Fifthcolumnist
Efeski
Sevantex
mulattoclaroo
Daphey
Amberon
Mavor
Afriifa
K9ine
Nairaman66
Drstainlex
Erumena
Akoko11
BraniacX
Sexina851
LKO
Gmacnoms
Dragon3
Basilovie

Her business our dialect

Oghene biko ooo

Urhobo rẹ ganre! Matty, me nenuvwe siaghware!

Shame on Efe


He kept claiming Warri\Urhobo in the house

But all the dude speaks is


Hausa!!!

NwamaziNwaAro:
Shame on Efe


He kept claiming Warri\Urhobo in the house

But all the dude speaks is


Hausa!!!

Lol. Sadly, he is not alone. Many Urhobo youths barely understand the language. Speaking it is even a different thing entirely.

We are working hard to undo the damage done to us by colonialism and negative attitudes towards our language.

Sanchez01:
Oghene biko ooo

Urhobo rẹ ganre! Matty, me nenuvwe siaghware!

Lol. Emuna muoshor vwe?

See as she de collobi the Urhobo like say na for village she grow up. No single foreign accent!

fratermathy:
Lol. Emuna muoshor vwe?

See as she de collobi the Urhobo like say na for village she grow up. No single foreign accent!

I'm telling you! Better fear grip me! The accent is so pure that without the video you would think the person talking is your everyday Urhobo woman.

Sanchez01:
I'm telling you! Better fear grip me! The accent is so pure that without the video you would think the person talking is your everyday Urhobo woman.

Do you understand the language?

fratermathy:
Lol. Sadly, he is not alone. Many Urhobo youths barely understand the language. Speaking it is even a different thing entirely.

We are working hard to undo the damage done to us by colonialism and negative attitudes towards our language.

Warri as a meeting point for all Deltans have played a more destructive role in this regard. The annoying thing is seeing them give excuses like 'I was brought up in Warri and you know the only embraced thing is pidgin'.

It's a sorry case, particularly when the only thing such persons carry us nothing but just the name, and can't even dialogue in Urhobo for two minutes stretch before falling back to some other language.

Ishilove:
Do you understand the language?

Perfectly

In her words, 'now, I'm putting the (first) meats in the soup. They are all called assorted meats. I'll also add the beef. All the meats (beef+assorted) are all assorted. It's all good.' Oma brooku' (a slang and a way of saying I'm tired).

I still can't believe my ears. You know, I'm a typical Urhobo man if you take away the alcohol and excess love for women

Sanchez01:
Warri as a meeting point for all Deltans have played a more destructive role in this regard. The annoying thing is seeing them give excuses like 'I was brought up in Warri and you know the only embraced thing is pidgin'.

It's a sorry case, particularly when the only thing such persons carry us nothing but just the name, and can't even dialogue in Urhobo for two minutes stretch before falling back to some other language.

the fault is actually from our parents, you can hardly seen an itsekiri youth that can't speak there language, are we not in the same warri together? , in fact itsekiri always name there children with there itsekiri language but that can't be said with urhobo, uvwie is the worst, hardly do you see someone speaking it, only the elders but I can hear very well but can't speak the dialect.

this is wat development cause, almost all of urhobo land is fast becoming town, from warri to orerokpe to abraka to agharo to sapele to ughelle etc so they think the only way out is to master pidgin and forget about our root.

cc: fratermathy

Sanchez01:
Perfectly

In her words, 'now, I'm putting the (first) meats in the soup. They are all called assorted meats. I'll also add the beef. All the meats (beef+assorted) are all assorted. It's all good.' Oma brooku' (a slang and a way of saying I'm tired).

I still can't believe my ears. You know, I'm a typical Urhobo man if you take away the alcohol and excess love for women

See as you dey confess sey you like woman. I will disboyfriend you

Ishilove:
See as you dey confess sey you like woman. I will disboyfriend you

LMAO!

Sanchez01:
LMAO!

You think I'm joking?

Sanchez come and take your love ring. I'm not doing again

Hilarious! I couldn't stop myself from laughing. She was busy speaking the urhobo with a serious face. This is a wake-up call to our urhobo brethren.

Efewestern:
the fault is actually from our parents, you can hardly seen an itsekiri youth that can't speak there language, are we not in the same warri together? , in fact itsekiri always name there children with there itsekiri language but that can't be said with urhobo, uvwie is the worst, hardly do you see someone speaking it, only the elders but I can hear very well but can't speak the dialect.

this is wat development cause, almost all of urhobo land is fast becoming town, from warri to orerokpe to abraka to agharo to sapele to ughelle etc so they think the only way out is to master pidgin and forget about our root.

cc: fratermathy

True oo.. Uvwie own na worst pass

Efewestern:
the fault is actually from our parents, you can hardly seen an itsekiri youth that can't speak there language, are we not in the same warri together? , in fact itsekiri always name there children with there itsekiri language but that can't be said with urhobo, uvwie is the worst, hardly do you see someone speaking it, only the elders but I can hear very well but can't speak the dialect.

this is wat development cause, almost all of urhobo land is fast becoming town, from warri to orerokpe to abraka to agharo to sapele to ughelle etc so they think the only way out is to master pidgin and forget about our root.

cc: fratermathy

You're very correct. A portion of the blame goes to the parents. I heard Uvwie is worse truly and you have just confirmed it. It's sad.

Ishilove:
You think I'm joking?

Sanchez come and take your love ring. I'm not doing again

Haba na. So I cannot joke again?

You know it's only you

it really pains me that I can't speak fluently.. but I dey try in terms of understanding sha

Nicho118:
it really pains me that I can't speak fluently..
but I dey try in terms of understanding sha

The most important thing is that you have identified the issue and you acknowledge that it bothers you. I'm sure you will pick up the language with time and dedication. Just try and watch Urhobo movies on YouTube if you have the data. Look for Okpetu Landlord and Okpetu Tenant to watch. The movies feature some normal Nigerian actors like Chinwetalu Agu, Bishop Ime, among others and Urhobo is spoken alongside English. There are others where only Urhobo is spoken -Oma is one. These movies are subtitled as well so they'll help you learn fast.

You can also complement your learning by watching Urhobo Cartoons, also on YouTube, and watching or listening to Urhobo music. These things will help you pick up with time.

Just keep up the interest so that our generation can undo the problem that exists today. Urhobo is not inferior to any language! It is ours and ours alone! If we don't learn to love and speak it, who will do so for us?

fratermathy:
The most important thing is that you have identified the issue and you acknowledge that it bothers you. I'm sure you will pick up the language with time and dedication. Just try and watch Urhobo movies on YouTube if you have the data. Look for Okpetu Landlord and Okpetu Tenant to watch. The movies feature some normal Nigerian actors like Chinwetalu Agu, Bishop Ime, among others and Urhobo is spoken alongside English. There are others where only Urhobo is spoken -Oma is one. These movies are translated as well so they'll help you learn fast.

You can also complement your learning by watching Urhobo Cartoons, also on YouTube and watching or listening to Urhobo music. These things will help you pick up with time.

Just keep up the interest so that our generation can undo the problem that exists today. Urhobo is not inferior to any language! It is ours and ours alone! If we don't learn to love and speak it, who will do so for us?

I can also read and write it a little..
it's a working progress o

Sanchez01:
You're very correct. A portion of the blame goes to the parents. I heard Uvwie is worse truly and you have just confirmed it. It's sad.

Uvwie is almost an extinct language! Okpe even fares better than Uvwie.

However, Uvwie's case is not as bad as Erhowa (Eruwa) in Isoko South. That dialect is basically extinct. Once the few persons from the colonial period who can speak Erhowa die, so does the dialect! Infact, Erhowa's case has been tagged as being almost irredeemable. The dialect is sandwiched between Ijaw and Isoko, with influences from other Urhobo dialects like Uwherun. The generation from the late colonial/early post colonial period can, at best, speak a highly diluted version of Erhowa. The younger generation only speak English and Pidgin!

fratermathy:
Uvwie is almost an extinct language! Okpe even fares better than Uvwie.

However, Uvwie's case is not as bad as Erhowa (Eruwa) in Isoko South. That dialect is basically extinct. Once the few persons from the colonial period who can speak Erhowa die, so does the dialect! Infact, Erhowa's case as been tagged as being almost irredeemable. The dialect is sandwiched between Ijaw and Isoko, with influences from other Urhobo dialects like Uwherun. The generation from the late colonial/early post colonial period can, at best, speak a highly diluted version of Erhowa. The younger generation only speak English and Pidgin!

most people from uvwie now speaks urhobo as their first language

Nicho118:
I can also read and write it a little..
it's a working progress o

You are making good attempts and that is commendable.

Biko nabor vwro fiotor!

Nicho118:
I can also read and write it a little..
it's a working progress o

the easy way out is to stay in any typical urhobo village for a month or two, you gonna catch up ..me no too sabi but I they try..

Nicho118:
most people from uvwie now speaks urhobo as their first language

Even with the Urhobo that they are said to be speaking, how many Uvwie youths can speak it?

Many of them speak Pidgin and English and prefer to do so than speaking Urhobo or Uvwie!

Sanchez01:
You're very correct. A portion of the blame goes to the parents. I heard Uvwie is worse truly and you have just confirmed it. It's sad.

uvwie case tire me, thank God urhobo didn't relent. we just introduce our general urhobo to them since there language they hard them.. in Catholic mass it's urhobo they speak and uvwie indigenes understand very well, in fact all uvwie indigene understand urhobo but we don't understand uvwie that much.

I hope they do something about this.

Efewestern:
the easy way out is to stay in any typical urhobo village for a month or two, you gonna catch up ..me no too sabi but I they try..

You also need to select the villages o. Make sure the integrity of Urhobo in the village is still present because in many villages, Pidgin is becoming the main thing now.

Go with villages in Southern/Eastern Urhoboland. Leave those villages near Warri; those ones have been compromised.

fratermathy:
Even with the Urhobo that they are said to be speaking, how many Uvwie youths can speak it?

Many of them speak Pidgin and English and prefer to do so than speaking Urhobo or Uvwie!

actually the few that knows how to speak there language speak urhobo as there first language, even okpe speaks general urhobo as there first language.

my fear is that those dialect are going extinct .

Sanchez01:
Haba na. So I cannot joke again?

You know it's only you

Oh Sanchez, na you biko

Efewestern:
actually the few that knows how to speak there language speak urhobo as there first language, even okpe speaks general urhobo as there first language.

my fear is that those dialect are going extinct .

I am more concerned with the youths. I'm aware that the ekpakos can speak Urhobo quite well. The youths, on the other hand, may not fall within the reach of your assertion. They are the ones who will pass Urhobo down to the next generation so I take their apathy towards the language as a threat to Urhobo ethnic identity.