The official language of the United Arab Emirates is Arabic. The first official language of the Republic of Rwanda is Kinyarwanda. These are two of the most difficult languages for a native English speaker to learn. I am definitely a word person, but even after 7 months in Rwanda, I still only barely follow the simplest of Kinyarwanda conversations. The only conversation I can semi-successfully have (besides “How are you?” “I’m fine”) is the one I have while bargaining with moto-taxis (I’ll provide a sample conversation translated to English so you can follow it).
Me: Union Trade Center
Moto-taxi driver: Five hundred.
Me: No! Three hundred.
Moto-taxi driver: (rambling in Kinyarwanda)
Me: (making noises like I am following what he’s saying)
Moto-taxi driver: Four hundred.
Me: You’re expensive! Three hundred.
Moto-taxi driver: Okay…
Me: Let’s go!
In Dubai, the only word I learned in Arabic was “hello,” which sounds strikingly like goodbye in Kinyarwanda. Not knowing Arabic is not a big deal in Dubai, however, as only 25% of the population is local. The remaining 75% are expatriates and speak mostly English.
Rwanda is pushing for everyone to learn English, but it is a slow and grueling process. I’m trying to expedite this process, at least for the students who fall under my tutelage. Slowly by slowly Rwandans will learn English and be able to communicate on a more global scale.
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