Home


Welcome to Yorùbá Yonder, a collection of diasporic stories about international travels cultivating worldly perspectives from a Yorùbá-Nigerian globetrotter.


So what happens when you have a childhood spanning three continents, starting school in Nigeria, continuing in the UK and finishing in Japan? Well, you pursue an equally international career and continue navigating life through seeing things with your own eyes, living the mantra:


             - Àwòrán kan sàn jù ọrọ ẹgbẹ̀rún lọ
                             - A picture is worth a thousand words
                                                          - 百聞は一見にしかず

And what is it I saw visiting numerous countries throughout our amazing world? Well, there are many places with several interesting and wonderful aspects distinguishing them from anywhere else. By expanding our horizons, we can appreciate the world for its diversity. In discovering the various distinctions, I certainly found great pleasure! However, when we look deeper into other cultures, we can recognise even more aspects that are similar to our own. By enjoying these diasporic stories, I also hope you will see that we do not have to just concentrate on our differences. We all have more in common than initially meets the eye, more similarities than differences, and this makes us part of one human community.


Abíọ́dún ‘Abbey’ Ọlátòkunbọ̀  Abdul | SFHEA 

Abíọ́dún (pronounced A-byaw-doon) is Yorùbá-Nigerian writer and UNESCO Global Poetry Slam Champion 2022. Her expressive writing includes life essays and diasporic travel stories posted on Yorùbá Yonder, through which she additionally conceived the decolonising/internationalising YNAD Talks event series. She is penning a 3-part autoethnographical memoir-polemic series encompassing her schooling across Yorùbá-Nigeria, Scots-Britain and Japan (achieved through a Japanese Government scholarship) with nuanced views on identity, ideology, social framework and prejudice - Stained Glass Eyes: Race, Family and Multiculturalism. Book 1 is nearing publication and Book 2 is part of her PhD research funded by a Faculty of Arts scholarship. She also writes short stories centring Yorùbá culture as well as poetry on social justice and topics celebrating our common humanity. Her work has been published in anthologies; she writes/podcasts for literary magazines, performs at literary festivals/events, delivers writing workshops; and presents at academic conferences. As an innovator in the creative writing field seeking to support greater inclusion of diverse creatives, she also founded the Global Majority Writers (GMW) collective which has grown to over 250 members worldwide.


More about the UNESCO Global Poetry Slam here




Blessed Melanin, God-sculpted Blackness 

The mask, a fence, a gatekeeper, 
protection, deflection, yet visual invitation 
I see you, you see me 
Through a mesh, through a lens 

Dark eyes, full of light 
Dark nose, inhaling light air 
Dark mouth, rounded contours 
closed but poised for action: 
sonic, verbal, culinary, breath 

Facial shield sieves youthful repose, 
hearing quietly, seeing intently 
Virgin knowledge steadily forming, 
forging wisdom’s foundations



After winning various poetry awards throughout childhood, I still enjoy composing poems, stories and life writing pieces focusing as ever on social justice and topics celebrating our common humanity. These have been included in various anthologies and resulted in specially commissioned pieces.




Summary:
*Writing on Air 2026, Chapel FM Spring Writing & Spoken Word Festival 
*Crown of Blood: A Yorùbá Adaptation of Macbeth, Opening Symposium, Utopia Theatre

Commissioned poem: Hope-ward Bound 

This poetry commission marks a significant milestone for violinist and composer Vinthya Perinpanathan, as it is the first project that integrates her electronic music practice with her so-far exclusively acoustic contemporary compositional practice. Vinthya is also engaging in a personal artistic shift—from a binary view of cross-cultural (Sri Lankan/South Asian - European) composition to a more holistic, humankind-centred approach that embraces the idea of music as a universal language and promotes unity. Abíọ́dún Abdul’s commissioned poem, ‘Hope-ward Bound’, takes the form of a reflection on humanity, as seen from an external, possibly extraterrestrial, perspective. ‘Hope-ward Bound’ explores and challenges societal constructs, including but not limited to: 
- shared struggles across identities 
- unity 
- humanitarianism and the essence of being human 

Using ‘Hope-ward Bound’ as inspiration, Vinthya will compose a musical work for soprano (Elisabeth Hetherington) string quartet (ADAM Quartet), and electronics, to be premiered at the String Quartet Biennale 2026, Muziekgebouw Concert Hall, Piet Heinkade 1, 1019 BR Amsterdam, Netherlands on Wednesday 28th January 2026 (2:15-3:30pm performance). 




Summary: 
‘From Africa to Europe to Asia in One Childhood: Unravelling Complex Narratives through Autoethnography’ paper presentation (pending) 
School of English PGR Symposium 2026, University of Nottingham, UK 
‘Dismissed with Prejudice: Racial Narratives from Low-Diversity Regions’ paper presentation (pending) 

University of Roehampton, Grove House, Adam Room GH003 (10am-3pm)

My upcoming presentation ‘Dismissed with Prejudice: Racial Narratives from Low-Diversity Regions’ will be delivered at the University of Roehampton during the Justice Interrupted: Race, Ethnicity & Resistance Symposium in November 2025. 


My presentation captures an in-depth account of how racism affects isolated Black lives through memoir/hybrid life writing within autoethnographical stories of my family’s unique experiences whilst a Yorùbá-Nigerian secondary school student in Scots-Britain. The fallout of few lawyers of colour in Scotland means that people of colour often have no option but to engage with white lawyers whose own racist bias bleeds into the services they are being paid for. A source from the West of Scotland Regional Equality Council (WSREC) which supports ethnic minorities in cases of discrimination have recounted scenarios where rather than helping the BAME clients who retain them, white lawyers instead assist their fellow white opposition against their BAME clients. When approaching the Law Society regulatory body to report such professional misconduct, BAME complainants have encountered the ‘old white men’s club’ closing ranks to ‘protect their own’, dismissing the complainants’ grievances with extreme prejudice. 

Several studies show that such systemic injustice leads to racism-induced mental stress can have a debilitating physical effect at a cellular level, triggering a variety of illnesses. But considering the continuous manifestation of interrupted justice generation after generation, to what extent can ‘sterile’ research ‘objectively’ presented have a significant effect on the wider ethnic majority population to enact any real change? This research project aims to comprehend wider cultural experience than fact and reportage allow, exploring the opportunities and limits of the principal autoethnography genre and effectiveness of hybrid writing for race-related content involving the legal system in low-diversity regions, pushing back against our injustices being ‘Dismissed with Prejudice’.





This expressive verse exploration and Yorùbá poetry forms celebration is the third of award-winning Yorùbá-Nigerian writer, poet and lecturer Abíọ́dún Ọlátòkunbọ̀ Abdul’s event series focusing on cultural and social themes related to Yorùbá/Nigeria/Africa/Diaspora: YNAD Talks.

First immerse yourself in an interactive learning session where we’ll separate the limericks from the haikus before exploring Yorùbá poetic styles, rich with insightful verses and emotive expression. Then it’s time to get creative, trying your hand at Oríkì, weaving your words into Ẹ̀sà, finding your way around Ìjálá, and more. See how we can transpose ‘call and response’ as well as our oral literature tradition into written illustration. Let’s shape our thoughts and heighten our wellbeing as we infuse some Yorùbá flavour with English poetry compositions rich in descriptions, impressions & viewpoints to elevate your wellbeing. In sharing your work afterwards, you’ll enlighten and inspire others to embrace their creative flow. 

Yes, whilst trying delectable Nigerian snacks and enjoying uplifting Nigerian music, come wax lyrical with us in this YNAD Talk ‘Spice Up Your Poetry!: Adding Yorùbá Flavour to English Composition’ this Black History Month at rm A21 (The Council Room), Trent Building, University of Nottingham (UP Campus), NG7 2RD.

...see full YNAD Talks event list here




Decolonise/Internationalise the pen on the road from English Literature to World Literature using more of your mother tongue; in my case Yorùbá. Explore the array of free resources available to take your Yorùbá language skills to the next level!


There’s something for every age group and ability level. Some of my favourites are: 



…check out the full list here



GMW is an initiative born out of my frustration of stumbling upon various opportunities for writers of colour in a range of genres I rarely write in. Just because such opportunities didn’t apply me didn’t mean they couldn’t benefit other writers of colour I’d met in different forums. GMW was therefore how I collated my scattered women writer/artist friends of colour from across the UK and beyond to ‘share the love’ as it were! Since December 2022 has organically grown beyond its initial purpose into a friendship space for GMW women to: 
- support/celebrate each other’s writing/arts-related projects 
- share various writing/arts-related events and opportunities 
- coordinate meetups during literary/art events 

From 40 of my initial writer/artist buddies, we are now 188 members strong and growing through constant referrals to other writers/artists wanting to benefit from the GMW community. 



Members Testimonials

“It is a superhighway of hot off the press writing events, commissions and so much more” Jackee Holder 

“This is an amazing group. I feel honoured to be part of GMW.” Nelissa Mendy 

“I have always desired to be amongst likeminded creatives. I am delighted to be here, a virtual home, and look forward to seeing your faces in person.” Ọmọ́bọ́lá Osamor

From poets to novelists; crime writers to romance writers; AfricanFuturists to AfroFuturists; fantasists to journalists, memoirists to autoethnographers; playwrights to filmmakers; actresses to academics; novices and scholars; you name it, we have them! All genres and related initiatives are welcome. 

For more details, send a message through the Yorùbá Yonder contact page

Check out my other related sites:

*What Colour Are Your Senses: educational project promoting intercultural intelligence in Japan (...through the Notting Hill Carnival!)


*Global Roots - British Shores: youth group workshops on the importance of exposing and challenging racism through writing, arts and media


*The Scottish Racism Project: research articles focusing on race relations in Scotland.





No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Comments (Atom)

Bambara Lens

Blessed Melanin, God-sculpted Blackness  The mask, a fence, a gatekeeper,  protection, deflection, yet visual invitation  I see you, you see...

  • Signs of Diaspora
    African Global Migration  Embarking on studies and a career abroad was to expand my understanding of the world. But not everyone is able to ...
  • Purple Girl
    purple girl in a purple world You know, I’d like to understand what’s led me to liking the colour purple so much. My preferred colourful Nig...
  • Tummy Pudge: Internalised Feminism (abridged)
    Glorious tummy pudge ‘You  know, I really don’t like going out dancing these days. Last time, my clothes didn’t fit right and everyone could...