NYC Wolof Language Classes in Manhattan

Wolof language

Spoken in: Senegal, the Gambia, Mauritania
Region: West Africa
Total speakers: 3.2 million (mother tongue) 3.5 million (second language)
Language family: Niger-Congo

Wolof is a language spoken in Senegal, Gambia, and Mauritania, and it is the native language of the ethnic group of the Wolof people. Like the neighboring language Fula, it belongs to the Atlantic branch of the Niger-Congo language family. Unlike most other languages of Sub-Sarahan Africa, Wolof is not a tonal language.

Wolof is the most widely spoken language in Senegal, spoken not only by members of the Wolof ethnic group (approximately 40 percent of the population) but also by most other Senegalese. Wolof dialects may vary between countries (Senegal and the Gambia) and the rural and urban areas. "Dakar-Wolof", for instance, is an urban mixture of Wolof, French, Arabic, and even a little English spoken in Dakar, the capital of Senegal.

"Wolof" is the standard spelling, and is a term that may also refer to the Wolof ethnic group or to things originating from Wolof culture or tradition. As an aid to pronunciation, some older French publications use the spelling "Ouolof"; for the same reason, some English publications adopt the spelling "Wollof", predominantly referring to Gambian Wolof. Prior to the 20th Century, the forms "Volof", and "Olof" were used.

Compared to other African languages, Wolof has had a relatively large influence on Western European languages. Banana is a Wolof word in English, and the English word yam is believed to be derived from Wolof/Fula nyami, "to eat food." Hip or hep (e.g., jazz musicians' now cliched "hip cat") is believed by many etymologists to derive from the Wolof hepicat, "one who has his eyes open". Some etymologists reject this, however, and in late 2007 adopted the pun "to cry Wolof" as a general dismissal or belittlement of etymologies they believe to be based on "superficial similarities" rather than documented attribution.

Please email us to schedule a first private class in Wolof.

Group classes are also available, please check our New Schedule!

If you do not find the language you are looking for, please let us know via email.

Afghani Language Classes	Gaelic Language Classes	Polish Language Classes
Arabic Language Classes	German Language Classes	Portuguese Language Classes
Bengali Language Classes	Greek Language Classes	Romanian Language Classes
Berber Language Classes	Gujarati Language Classes	Russian Language Classes
Bulgarian Language Classes	Hausa Language Classes	Spanish Language Classes
Catalan Language Classes	Hindi Language Classes	Swahili Language Classes
Chinese Language Classes	Hebrew Language Classes	Swedish Language Classes
Croatian Language Classes	Igbo Language Classes	Tagalog Language Classes
Czech Language Classes	Indonesian Language Classes	Tamil Language Classes
Danish Language Classes	Italian Language Classes	Thai Language Classes
Dutch Language Classes	Japanese Language Classes	Tibetan Language Classes
Esperanto Language Classes	Korean Language Classes	Turkish Language Classes
Finnish Language Classes	Mongolian Language Classes	Ukrainian Language Classes
French Language Classes	Nepali Language Classes	Vietnamese Language Classes
Farsi Language Classes	Norwegian Language Classes	Welsh Language Classes
Fulani Language Classes	Pakistani Language Classes	Wolof Language Classes

Language classes and translation/interpretation services:

Langua World 261 west 35th street suite 203 New York NY 10001

917 673 2396 - 212 643 2907

Check our My space profile!