FOTE

It's finally here! Your unofficial guide to the word foté. The word foté is the Susu word for white. It can be used to reference anything white; a t-shirt, a bird, etc. However, this seemingly innocent little word has been adapted for another, rather more sinister purpose. The most popular use is to scream it at strangers. This includes, Americans, Europeans, Asians, basically anyone who is not from Africa. Although, this can get a little tricky, because even African Americans are referred to as foté by the people here. Aside from the time I've spent in other regions of Guinea, I haven't gone a single day here without hearing that word. It can also be used to note disdain for someone's beliefs, cultures, or practices. For example, I was using flashcards (generously provided by Kelly Barb) to help young children learn addition. An adult walked past, looking suspiciously at the cards and told me that I was teaching them the foté way to do math, and that I needed to stop. So I did, and we did the foré version of math, using a stick to draw lines in the sand.

I would say about 50 percent of the time people here don't use foté to insult people. Kids are thrilled to see a white person, and I there is a slug-bug like game. Whoever spots the white person first wins. They even turn the word into a chant, and will holler it until you are out of sight. The other fifty percent of the time, adults use it to mock the foreigner for their language, their way of living, or to laugh at them when they make a mistake. EH FOTÉ – if I had a penny for every time I heard that....

Common phrases using the word foté include

fote xui – Foté xui, as far as I can tell, is any language that didn't originate in Africa. French, the official language of the country, is considered a “foté language” and I've heard parents rebuke their kids for using it. Obviously English is a “foté language” as are many, many others. I can't tell you how many times I've been asked me to stop speaking a foté language because “it isn't good.” Strangely enough, I've never heard Arabic referred to as a “foté language” even though it definitely didn't originate in Guinea, or in Africa. I know this is because they are Muslim, and Arabic holds tremendous importance for them, but as far as this writer is concerned, Arabic meets the “foté language” requirements.

foté kike – Kike means month. So foté kike, is the foreigners month, or, the Gregorian calendar as opposed to the foré kike, or lunar calendar. Now, the Gregorian calendar, which was introduced here hundreds of years ago, is used for everything except religious holidays. These are tracked using the Lunar Calendar. No one ever knows exactly when a holiday will be, because they wait for the text message from the head Imam in the capital saying he's seen the full moon. I doubt there are more than five people in my village who could tell you what lunar day it is. Nevertheless, they continue to refer to it as the foreigners calendar.

foté taa – The land of the white people! As far as I've been able to tell, this includes America, Europe, Asia, bacially anywhere outside of Africa. Whenever they see a photograph, they ask if it is foté taa. I had a National Geographic with a feature on India, and was asked if that was foté taa. Once again, I have to wonder why Mecca isn't considered foté taa, but I haven't been able to get a straight answer out of anyone.

There you have it. Everything you ever wanted to know about the word foté and more! If you have any questions, this foté will do her best to help answer them!