A polyglot in the making, how learning languages became the obsession of this Moroccan woman

In 2020, and during the Covid-19 pandemic, many, while observing the lockdown, tried to entertain themselves. Locked home in her village near Biougra, a city in the Chtouka Ait Baha province of the Souss-Massa region, Noura El Merras felt enormous boredom. She had a lot of time to kill, time she used to learn new languages, to become today almost four years on, a polyglot in the making.

It all started, when the 24-year-old decided to cut down on social media and instead do something productive with her time. And being a huge fan of Turkish soap operas, she decided to start with the Turkish language. «I did not have any Instagram or Facebook account so I had a lot of time on my hands and, out of the blue, I figured I should learn a new language and I started with Turkish», Noura told Yabiladi over the phone.

Already fluent in Tashelhit, her mother tongue, French and English, through the US Embassy English Access Program, Noura’s knack for languages started with Turkish. Then this led her to Spanish, a language she was more familiar with.

But Noura’s way of learning these languages was not traditional at all. «I have not used books simply because I did not have any books in Turkish or Spanish. I couldn’t find any», she recalled.

Fond of new challenges

Instead, the young woman used a fun and interesting way of learning, through watching movies, series, and YouTube videos. After months of learning Turkish and Spanish, Noura started having a new obsession: Chinese.

«In Inzegane, we have this huge market, its name is written in Tifinagh, Spanish and English, which I could read. But then there were some characters that I couldn’t read, and it was Chinese», Noura recalled. «And then, I said to myself 'I can read all these languages but not Chinese', which prompted me to learn the language», Noura said.

Fond of new challenges, the young graduate, started learning the language using her own tried and true method, watching series and YouTube videos. «Chinese is one of the easiest languages to learn, the grammar is so easy compared to other languages. What is difficult about Chinese is the writing and the pronunciation as well», she enthusiastically remembered.

Now on to learning Russian, Noura has decided to share her passion for languages on social media. By April 2022, she started her own Instagram page Let us be Polyglots, making videos and short sketches and teaching Tashelhit, French, English, Turkish, Chinese and Russian.

Noura, who currently works at a call center, uses her spare time to learn languages, all sorts of languages. A tradition she wants to spread on her platform. That is why, she does not stick to one teaching content online. «I don’t want to stick to one thing. Even though a lot of people are telling me to stick to one language, like English, I can’t. Personally, whenever I see the same things over and over, I get bored», she argued.

The young woman, who studied applied computer science, is also proud to teach the language of her forefathers, Tamazight, which is gaining more interest online. «I have noticed that there are more and more people trying to learn the language. I even get DMs of people asking me if I do private lessons in Tashelhit», she proudly said.

Noura plans to make more fun and entertaining content online, teaching the languages she masters and learn from the comfort of her own village Tin Lcaid Ali. «Here, it feels so good, I can do things that I love and at the same time greet my neighbors. I just love my douar», said the woman who works remotely.

From her small village, Noura has bigger dreams for her polyglot journey. The young woman is planning to get certified and launch in the future her own online language lessons. As for now, Noura is busy preparing for her next goals, learning Hindi and Japanese.