West Africa

Wolof

The everyday language of Senegal, spoken far beyond the Wolof ethnic group and written both in Latin script and in Wolofal, the Arabic-script tradition of the Sufi brotherhoods.

Family: Niger–Congo (Atlantic)
Script: Latin (and Wolofal in Arabic script)
Speakers: ~12 million speakers
Spoken in: Senegal, Gambia, Mauritania

The course

Five units, one word at a time

0/5 mastered

Unit 1

Greetings

Greetings open with peace and end with family.

Salaam aleekum — Peace be with you (hello)
Nanga def? — How are you?
Maangi fi rekk — I am here / I'm fine
Jërëjëf — Thank you
Ba beneen — Goodbye (until next time)
Dalal jamm — Welcome in peace

Unit 2

People and family

The words of the household and the neighbourhood.

Yaay — Mother
Baay — Father
Xale — Child
Xarit — Friend
Nit — Person
Jigéen — Woman

Unit 3

Numbers one to ten

Wolof counts in fives: six is literally five-one.

Benn — One
Ñaar — Two
Ñett — Three
Ñeent — Four
Juróom — Five
Fukk — Ten

Unit 4

Food and the market

Enough for Marché Sandaga.

Ndox — Water
Lekk — To eat / food
Marse — Market
Ñaata la? — How much is it?
Dama bëgg — I want
Dafa jafe — It is expensive / difficult

Unit 5

Everyday phrases

The small words that make you sound at home.

Waaw — Yes
Déedéet — No
Su la neexee — Please (if it pleases you)
Fan? — Where?
Xamuma — I don't know
Baal ma — Forgive me / excuse me

How to sound right

Doubled letters are long: 'jamm' holds the m.
Teraanga — the famous Senegalese hospitality — is a Wolof word, not a slogan.
The full greeting exchange asks after peace: Nanga def? Maangi fi rekk.

The audio button in lessons uses your device's speech engine, which rarely has a native African voice. Treat it as a rough guide and trust the written pronunciation hints and the coach instead.