Travel Vocabulary

Here are a few things that you may come across if traveling to Senegal or the Gambia.

afra - grilled meat, or grilled meat stall (Gambia)

benechin - rice baked in a thick sauce of fish and vegetables (Gambia)

cadeau - gift, tip, bribe or a hand-out (Senegal)

dash - bribe (noun); also used as a verb ‘You dash me something …’ (Gambia)

Ecowas - Economic Community of West African States

factory - fortified slaving station

garage - bus and bush-taxi station (Gambia)

harmattan - the light winds from the north which carry tiny particles of sand from the desert, causing skies to become hazy from December to February

IMF - International Monetary Fund

latcheri - pounded millet

mafé - thick brown groundnut sauce

ndeup - ceremonies where people with a mental illness are treated and healed (Senegal)

occasion - lift (noun), or place in a car or bus (often shortened to occas) (Senegal)

palava - meeting place

Quran - Islamic holy book (also called Koran)

Ramsar - an international convention primarily concerned with the conservation of wetland habitats and associated wildlife

salon du thé - tea shop (Senegal)

tampon - stamp (eg, in passport) (Senegal)

ventilé - room with a fan (Senegal)

Thanks to Lonely Planet’s The Gambia & Senegal; 2nd Edition.