Learn about Foreign Language & Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships which support students taking African languages (Amharic, Arabic, Somali, Swahili, Wolof, Yoruba and Zulu) and area studies coursework.
Language Programs
The Center for African Studies provides FLAS Fellowships for the study of African languages and works closely with the Department of World Languages and Cultures, which provides African language instruction.
African language instruction at Howard University is done in the Department of World Languages and Cultures, which offers courses in Amharic, Arabic, Somali, Swahili, Wolof, Yoruba and Zulu, at the university and abroad. The Center for African Studies offers fellowships to graduate and undergraduate students who wish to study these languages. Below find a list of the African Languages courses offered a Howard.
Foreign Language & Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships support students taking African languages (Amharic, Arabic, Somali, Swahili, Wolof, Yoruba and Zulu) and area studies coursework. The Fellowships are supported through a grant from the U.S. Department of Education Title XI Program. Find out more about FLAS fellowships.
Below see the African languages study abroad programs at Howard University that include Swahili, Yoruba and Zulu. There are also opportunities for study abroad in the Amharic and Wolof languages. For more information, please contact Dr. Leonard Muaka, Chair of the Department of World Languages and Cultures at leonard.muaka@howard.edu.
The Howard African Language Summer Institute is an annual program dedicated to increasing students’ proficiency in the 7 African languages that Howard offers at the Department of World Languages and Cultures.
African Language Summer Study Abroad Programs
New Study Abroad Summer Program - Akan Twi!
Howard University Akan Twi Language & Cultural Immersion in Ghana (HUATG) is a 3-week study abroad program for immersion in both the language and the culture of the Akan people in Ghana. Using instruction and experiential learning of Akan culture within varying Akan communities, participants in HUATG may look forward to receiving 140 credit hours in Akan Twi language and culture while in the embracing country of Ghana.
Go to Program PageMore Info
Africa Languages Translation Initiative
In anticipation of the Biden Administration’s US-Africa Leaders Summit, Africa Languages Translation Initiative (ALTI) has produced translations of the Biden Administration’s U.S. Strategy toward Sub-Saharan Africa into Amharic, Swahili, Yoruba and Zulu with the goal of facilitating engagement with diverse audiences around the important issues strategic to US-Africa relations.
Learn more
African Languages Courses at Howard
Amharic
Amharic 001 - Elementary I
Amharic 002 - Elementary II
Amharic 003 - Intermediate I
Amharic 004 - Intermediate II
Amharic 190 - Independent Study
Arabic
Arabic 001 - Elementary I
Arabic 002 - Elementary II
Arabic 003 - Intermediate I
Arabic 004 - Intermediate II
Arabic 040 - Intensive Grammar Review
Arabic 050 - Oral Expression I
Arabic 051 - Oral Expression II
Arabic 190 - Independent Study
Arabic 191 - Independent Study
Somali
Somali 001 - Elementary I
Somali 002 - Intermediate I
Somali 003 - Intermediate II
Swahili
Swahili 001 - Elementary I
Swahili 002 - Elementary II
Swahili 003 - Intermediate I
Swahili 004 - Intermediate II
Swahili 040 - Intensive Grammar Review
Swahili 050 - Oral Expression I
Swahili 052 - Reading and Writing Workshop
Swahili 100 - Contemporary Swahili Literature in Translation
Swahili 190 - Independent Study I
Swahili 191 - Independent Study II
Twi (Akan Twi)
Akan 001 - Elementary I
Wolof
Wolof 001 - Elementary I
Wolof 002 - Elementary II
Wolof 003 - Intermediate I
Wolof 004 - Intermediate II
Wolof 190 - Independent Study
Yoruba
Yoruba 001 - Elementary I
Yoruba 002 - Elementary II
Yoruba 003 - Intermediate I
Yoruba 004 - Intermediate II
Zulu
Zulu 001 - Elementary I
Zulu 002 - Elementary II
Zulu 004 - Intermediate II
Student Experiences
African Language Summer Institute at Howard
The African Language Summer Institute is hosted by the Department of World Languages & Cultures and the Center for African Studies at Howard University. The program is available to Howard and non-Howard students.
Learn more about the Institute.