Work and Money

The first African language school in east London has opened its doors to anyone wanting to learn Yoruba, Twi, Ga, Ibo, Swahili, Zulu, Wolof, Hausa or Amharic.

"The primary source of any culture is the language," says the African Language School’s website – illustrating how the school hopes to connect young people with their African heritage, as well as helping people who want to better understand African culture.

The school is based at the Newham African Caribbean Resource Centre in Plaistow, and headed by Colin Robinson, a former music manager and promoter.

Rick Duncan, who has helped to found the school, told BBC London: "A lot of people are cut off from their culture. Language is very important as an identifier of culture."

Rick Duncan from the Language School

Back to which roots?

At the enrolment evening for the school it became clear that for black Britons originally from Jamaica and the Caribbean, it was difficult to figure out which African language represented their original culture.

The mother tongue on these islands is English because the black population was displaced from across Africa many generations ago.

As a result, Rick Duncan told BBC London, a number of people from the Caribbean were choosing to learn the Ethiopian language, Amharic, because they identified with Ethiopia's connection to Rastafarianism.

The school is part of the Caribbean African Reunion project, which seeks to reunite people born on the African continent with their families in the Caribbean, Europe and the Americas.

Watch interviews from the African Language School’s enrolment evening by clicking on the video link above.

angela.saini@bbc.co.uk