What is Nouchi [1] [fr]? Let's start with what it is not: it is not Creole and it is not a dialect. Nouchi is a coded language that originated in the 70's on the streets of Abidjan, the capital city of Côte d'Ivoire. It's a mix of French language and West African idioms. The purpose of the coded language was to protect communication between street hustlers away from the police forces. The language has grown and evolve so rapidly that many Ivorian politicians have incorporated [2] [fr] some of the most popular expressions in their speeches. Here is a video of the Ivorian president Ouattara speaking Nouchi [fr]:
Blogger Behem from Abidjan lists the top 10 most-used expressions in Nouchi. Here are his top two [3] [fr] :
1) Ya Foye : Foye signifiant Rien en Malinké, Ya Foye veut tout simplement dire « Il n’y Rien » dans le sens de « Rien à Signaler » « Tout va bien ». [..]
2) Etre enjaillé : Etre enjaillé de quelque chose signifie « Aimer » cette chose. On peut être enjaillé d’une musique, d’une petite go (Jeune demoiselle), d’une situation.
1) Ya Foye: Foye means Nothing in Malinke language, Ya Foye simply means “There is nothing new”, “Nothing to report” or “Everything is fine.” [..]
2) Being enjaillé: Being enjaillé with something means “being love” with something. One can be “enjaillé” with a music, a Go (a young lady in Nouchi) or a situation.