What Toubab Means To Me

Webster tells me it's pretty straightforward: toubab means foreigner or white person

However, when kids say it in a loud (often incessant) voice, it means "I am annoying and want to disrespect you." (For children to address adults in public is seen as rude, so for me to acknowledge the shouts of toubab, even if I wanted to, would be allowing the kids to disrespect me. Big no no.)

If the person knows my name and chooses to say toubab instead- I don't know what it means, but it makes me feel weird. Like they are choosing to talk about the color of my skin instead of just calling me Fatty. (The latter being my nickname and way more funny and simply better). Short for Fatimata: my village name.

Generally, being referred to as toubab doesn't feel good. However, culturally speaking it isn't derogatory. Like so many other things in life here, I am unable to express my true feelings to my friends in the village, so they simply know that I "don't like" being called toubab. Oh well, I have two years to discuss this cultural term and perhaps my first project will be to wipe it out.