When locals discover that tourists and foreigners have made efforts to learn their regional dialects, they are often delighted. However, mastering a completely different language requires consistent practice and dedication. Arieh Smith, a Caucasian man known on TikTok as Xiaoma (@xiaomanyc), recently left Nigerians amazed by speaking fluent Yoruba, one of the country’s three prominent languages.
While shopping for clothing in a Nigerian store, Xiaoma asked the shopkeeper in English, “Where are these clothes from?” Upon hearing the response, “Nigeria,” he immediately switched to Yoruba, asking, “Do you speak Yoruba?” The shopkeeper, initially stunned, turned towards him with a jaw-dropping reaction. Impressed by his fluency, she responded in Yoruba, “Yes, I do.”
Another customer in the store, equally astonished, approached Xiaoma to shake hands. “Yeah, I do speak some Yoruba,” Xiaoma repeated, continuing the conversation entirely in the local language. The shopkeeper exclaimed, “Good, good,” clearly delighted by his linguistic skills.
The encounter became even more exciting when the other customer pulled out his phone to record Xiaoma speaking Yoruba. Xiaoma obliged, sharing a traditional Yoruba greeting. As the conversation continued, he revealed that he was American, which further impressed the locals. The man expressed his pride, saying in English, “I’ve never seen anything like this. You make me so proud.”
During the interaction, Xiaoma not only conversed but also shopped, tried on clothes, and bargained with the shopkeeper, all in Yoruba.
On his website, Xiaoma shared that his passion for learning new languages began with his fascination for Chinese. Growing up in New York City, he only spoke English, but frequent visits to Chinatown sparked his interest in other languages. “The lights, smells, tastes — it was just wild. I dreamed about someday being able to speak this amazing, intricate, seemingly exotic language, but I never actually thought it was possible to really get fluent,” he recalled.
Xiaoma’s journey from being a self-proclaimed “language idiot” to a polyglot who can speak multiple languages is truly inspiring. His dedication to embracing different cultures through language continues to astonish and delight people around the world.
