How to Speak Beninese French - Part III

Now that we have mastered the grammar of Beninese French and seen some of its vocabulary nuances, it is time to add the twists and turns of language that make Beninese French so distinctly Beninese.

Here are some tricks for transforming standard French into something that is truly Beninese:

Greetings are essential and can be elaborate.
In France: Bonjour. (Hello.)
In Benin: Bonjour. Comment ca va? Et la fatigue d'hier? Et ton mari? Et ton enfant? (Hello. How are you? How is your fatigue from yesterday? How is your husband? How is your child?)
*Note: Some greetings are specific to Benin, such as bonne arrivee (happy arrival). Also, the Beninese switch from bonjour (good morning) to bonsoir (good evening) at noon, whereas the French switch at sunset.

Add extra precision to any statement.
In France: Ta jupe est jolie. (Your skirt is pretty.)
In Benin: La jupe que tu portes la, c'est bien jolie. (The skirt that you're wearing there, it's very pretty.)


Constantly check for comprehension.
In France: Hier je suis allee voir mon pere. (Yesterday I went to see my father.)
In Benin:  Tu vois mon papa, non? Hein? Tu vois qui c'est, non? Ou bien? Hein? Hier la, d'accord, ce que j'ai fait hier la, c'est que je suis allee voir mon papa. Hein? Tu as compris, non? Ou bien? Hier la, je suis allee voir mon papa. C'est ca, hein. (You know who my dad is, don't you? Right? You know who he is, don't you? Or do you? Ok? So yesterday then, ok, what I did yesterday then, it's that I went to see my dad. Ok? You understand, right? Or do you? Yesterday then, I went to see my dad. That's what I did, ok.


Add "la" ("there") wherever necessary to help your listener follow.
In France: J'aime ta chemise. (I like your shirt.)
In Benin: Ta chemise la, ce que tu portes la, j'aime ca trop. (Your shirt there, the one you're wearing there, I love that too much.)

The Beninese are direct. French notions of politeness are unnecessary, meaning there is no need to use the conditional tense, to phrase a request as a question, to use the polite form of you (vous), or to say please.
In France: Pourriez-vous me preter ton stylo, s'il vous plait. (Could you please lend me your pen?)
In Benin: Donne-moi ton bic. (Give me your pen.)


However, to soften the abruptness of a demand, you can add "ou bien".
In Benin: Tu vas me chercher de l'eau. Ou bien? (You're going to go get me water. Or will you)

Another tip: as you speak, roll your r's instead of doing the throaty 'r' you hear in France.

Now, to put it all together, here's an example of how to tell a student to share a lesson we learned in class with his parents.

Tu vas faire quelque chose, d'accord? Ce que tu vas faire, la, tu vas faire ca a la maison. D'accord? Tu as compris? Quand tu vas quitter ici, tu vas a la maison, non? Ou bien? Quand tu vas a la maison, c'est la que tu vas aller faire la chose. D'accord? Ce que tu vas faire, la, tu vas chercher ton papa. D'accord? Et tu vas chercher maman aussi. D'accord? Donc tu vas chercher les deux parents. Tu es bien d'accord? Tu as compris, non? Ou bien? Ah hun. Donc quand tu as papa devant toi et tu as maman devant toi, tu vas leur dire quelque chose. D'accord? Et c'est quoi tu vas leur dire? Ce que tu vas leur dire, la, c'est que a partir de ce soir, ils vont dormir sous moustiquaire. Tu es bien d'accord? Tu as compris? Ou bien tu n'as pas compris? Ce que tu vas leur dire, la, c'est que ce soir la, et demain soir la, et tous les soirs, tes parents la, eux, tes parents la, eux ils vont toujours dormir sous moustiquaire. C'est ca, non? Ils vont toujours dormir sous moustiquaire. C'est bon, non? Tu es d'accord, non? Tu vas le faire, non? Ah hun. C'est bon. C'est bon comme ca.

(You're going to do something, ok? What you're going to do, there, you are going to do that at home. Ok? You understood? When you are going to leave here, you are going home, aren't you? Aren't you? When you go home, that's where you're going to go do the thing. Ok? What you're going to do, there, you are going to find your dad. Ok? And you are going to find your mom, too. Ok? So you are going to find both parents. Do you agree with that? You understood, didn't you? Don't you? Good. So when you have dad in front of you and you have mom in front of you, you are going to tell them something. Ok? And it's what that you are going to tell them? What you are going to tell them, there, it's that as of tonight, they are going to sleep under mosquito net. You agree with that? You understood? Or you didn't understand? What you're going to tell them, there, is that tonight, there, and tomorrow night, there, and every night, your parents, there, them, your parents, there, them, they're always going to sleep under mosquito net. That's it, isn't it? They're always going to sleep under mosquito net. That's good, isn't it? You agree, don't you? You'll do it, won't you? Good. That's good. It's good like that.

Et voila! There you have it, the three part course to speaking Beninese French. Du courage!