Our series on laughter continues. Humor is an integral part of Ivorian culture. We laugh together and about everything. Everything is an excuse to make jokes, to make fun of oneself, to deride politicians. This joie de vivre of the Ivorian people is present within the diaspora. This allows you to overcome all the most difficult situations and moments.
“ Ah yes, when we say Côte d’Ivoire, it’s the elephants, we like to go for it. Come on, go for it! » Women’s basketball final of the last Paris Olympics. The Blues are facing the Americans. They are elbow to elbow. And an Ivorian supporter with a fertile mind brings us live her match.
Shouts of joy arise from the audience. “ Yeah ! Come on Blues! The rooster has grown like an elephant » she says, laughing. She compares the rooster, the emblem of France, to the Ivorian national football team, the Elephants, victorious in the last African Cup of Nations. Final score: United States victory67 to 66.
Derision, the engine of humor in Ivory Coast
“ There is an Ivorian humor which is linked to the linguistic particularities of Côte d’Ivoire ” according to Mamane, columnist on RFI and who has been organizing the Abidjan Capital of Laughter Festival. “ In this humor, we take up many elements of nouchiwhich is the slang spoken throughout Côte d’Ivoire. Then, certain particularities of the Dioula, the Baoulé, the Bété. This is what makes Ivorian humor unique. And we can say that there is a “Babi State of Mind”, a state of mind of Abidjan, where everything is taken in derision. For example, there is an expression: “You’re going to read the time/you’re going to read the time.” We make the mistake on purpose, we say: “You will read the time”. It means, “You will pay the consequences of what you did.” And today, there are terms like “go”, like “enjailler”… »
Who doesn’t speak Nouchi? Even the Ivory Coast ambassador in Paris seizes it: “ We are giving here the opportunity to all our brothers, all our sisters, to come so that we can have fun, as we like to do in Ivory Coast, so that we can party and celebrate brotherhood. through football. »
Also readWay of speaking! Little lesson in nouchi!
Humor unites Ivorians
“Enjailler”, a word which means “to party”, has entered the dictionary, and it is not the only one. French is enriched by its Ivorianisms. And zouglou, an urban musical genre, draws on this language. Marie-Clémence Adom, professor of modern literature at the University of Abidjan, deciphers: “ In Zouglou, the reactions of the word also effectively arise from certain linguistic manipulations, always in the direction of self-deprecation. »
“ First gaou is not gaou, oh » sings Mamane. We part with this famous refrain of Magic System, First Gaouthat comedian Mamane sings so well. “ This is someone who was fooled once. They say :”If you’ve been fooled once, it’s okay. But if you get fooled twice, you’re really stupid… », Explains the presenter.
In a country marked by ethnic and linguistic differences, humor helps unite Ivorians beyond their differences.
Also readIvorian humor