‘‘Learning Shikomori and French at the same time: it’s possible’’ is the theme of a conference held at the French Alliance Center in Moroni this Thursday 3 November, 2022 at 4p.m. “Café littéraire” is one of the cultural activities organized by the French Center every month. The honorary guests were Dr. Abdou Djohar, a writer and linguist and Mrs. Maroita Hadji, vice president of KomLink. “I am moved by the fact that many young people came to our conference to listen and back the Comorian language” Mrs. Hadji said. She is one of the Comorians who were born in France and tried to learn their mother tongue: Shikomori. KomLink is an organization led by a group of entrepreneurs from the archipelago of Comoros living in France. Their aim is to build their projects together and develop an entrepreneurial culture within the Comorian diaspora. KomLink is located in Vitry-sur-Seine in the French Department 94.
According to Dr. Abdou Djohar, many things have been done about the Comorian language (Shikomori). He named Mr. Chamanga and many other authors who wrote about the Comorian language. He suggests the Comorian government to take action right now. He thinks that Shikomori is a Bantu language which consists of four sister dialects: Shingazidja which is close to Shimwali and Shindzuwani that is close to Shimaore. “Teaching our kids Shikomori language before any other language will help them to master easily other foreign languages” he said. The small illustrated dictionary-Le Petit Kamusi- in 4 languages (Shikomori, French, Arabic and English) was exhibited and put on sale during the conference. It is the new book published by Mr. Chamanga who teaches Shikomori at INALCO (institut national des langues et civilisations orientales) in Paris. It costs 15,000 KMF (€30). Will the Comorian government be aware of our cultural heritage and support our linguists and Shikomori backers? Wait and see.
Chami Mouzawar
Contributing writer
