Program of African Studies

“Reclaiming the Tongue” is a video series curated by journalist and poet, Wana Udobang. For the series, Wana enlisted the help of prolific food bloggers and scholars, Ozoz Sokoh (Kitchen Butterfly), Neema Syovata (Modern African Table) and Iquo Ukoh (1Q Food Platter), to explore the complex ways in which history, geography, memory, colonization, relationships and more, become part of a dish’s recipe. This series will be released over the course of February, so subscribe to the PAS Youtube channel for notifications as the videos are released.

Curator Wana Udobang explains the series: “The aftermath of slavery and colonization is often spoken about in connection to the violence done to the political, social and economic fabric of the African continent but very little of these repercussions are ever connected to food. The one thing that is and has always served as a system of survival.

Being Nigerian and part of a wider continental and diasporic community, food has always played a central role in our consciousness. Food for us is history, memory, lineage, placemaking, belonging, healing, celebration, mourning, resistance and ritual. Food is our love language. Food is in fact my love language.

Our culinary histories have been made complex by many things. From invasions and wars, to settler colonizers, border creations, migrations and climate catastrophes. Though we have relied heavily on oral traditions, a lack in other forms of documentation has wreaked its own consequences on the erasure of our food histories.

With the power of social media, the last decade has witnessed the rise of West African cuisine, home cooks, food bloggers and food historians. Whether it was British chef Jamie Oliver’s interpretation of Jollof rice resulting in the viral sensation Jollofgate or the fufu and soup trend on tick tock, the world can’t seem to get enough. And as our food gains more visibility, what does it mean for us and our participation in our own food culture.

This is part of what makes the theme of this video series “Reclaiming the tongue” very pertinent. It speaks to the work of decolonizing our food, tracing origin stories, connecting memories as well as local and global border erasure.

Our speakers through their own works in academia, social media, blogging and art share recipes as they speak about their quest to navigate foodways and connectedness.

I belong to the Ibibio people of in Akwa-Ibom state based in southern Nigeria quite known for our vast assortment of soups and stews. When we feed our friends and family, we say a phrase that translates to “eat till it bleeds through your nose”. This for us is a kind of permission to eat unapologetically till your heart’s content. This series, is your invitation to feast.”