Western Africa
Video Chat with People from Senegal
Senegal sits on the westernmost tip of mainland Africa, and a video chat with someone there could take you to busy Dakar, to the island town of Saint-Louis with its long metal bridge, to the beach resorts of the Petite Côte around Saly, or to the green, river-laced Casamance in the south. French is the official language, used in offices, newspapers and most writing. Wolof is what you'll hear in markets, taxis and family kitchens across much of the country, and Pulaar, Serer, Jola and Mandinka are widely spoken too. English is less common, but plenty of younger adults know some and enjoy practicing it.
Senegal stays on GMT all year, so 8 PM in Dakar is mid-afternoon in New York and the same hour as London in winter. Food is a wonderful opener: thiéboudienne (fish with tomato rice), yassa chicken with onions and lemon, and cold bissap juice. So are mbalax music, the national football team and laamb, the traditional wrestling that fills stadiums. Ask about teranga, the Wolof word for hospitality that Senegal is proud of. If French will be your shared language, a quick look at our French page helps.
Senegal at a glance
| Flag | 🇸🇳 |
|---|---|
| Official name | Republic of Senegal |
| Capital | Dakar |
| Region | Africa · Western Africa |
| Official language | French |
| Currency | West African CFA franc (Fr, XOF) |
| Calling code | +221 |
| Time zone | Greenwich Mean Time (Africa/Dakar) |
How to say hello
A few words of French make a great first impression, even if you switch to English right after.
| Language | Phrase | Say it | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| French | Bonjour, ça va? | bohn-ZHOOR, sah VAH | Hello, how's it going? |
| Wolof | Na nga def? | nah-ngah DEF | How are you? |
| Wolof | Maa ngi fi rekk. | mahn-gee fee REK | I'm fine (the usual reply) |
| Wolof | Jërëjëf! | JEH-reh-jef | Thank you! |
Tips for chatting with people from Senegal
- Open with a Wolof "Na nga def?" even if you switch to French or English right after; a stranger making the effort usually gets a big smile.
- Greetings are not rushed in Senegal. Asking how someone is, and how their family is doing, before jumping into questions comes across as warm and polite.
- If your French is rusty, keep sentences short and type tricky words in the text chat; seeing a word spelled out often helps more than hearing it again.
- Ask about the Lions of Teranga's last match or a big wrestling bout; sport is one of the easiest ways to get a lively conversation going.
Only meet people from Senegal
Omlet matches you Worldwide by default. To meet only people from Senegal, use the country filter, the only filter Omlet has:
- Open Omlet and press Country on the control panel.
- Search for Senegal and select it.
- Press Start. Press Next to meet someone else from Senegal, or switch back to Worldwide any time.
Your first day is free: you add a card through Stripe to start it, and nothing is charged that day. When the 24 hours end, the country filter costs $3 one time, charged to that card, unless you cancel before then in Settings (if you cancel, you can still pick a country until the day ends). It's not a subscription, and it stays unlocked on that device and browser. It doesn't carry over to other devices or browsers, and clearing your browser data removes it. There's one free day per device, home network and card. Payment goes through Stripe, so Omlet never sees your card number.
The filter works both ways, and matching can be slower when fewer people from Senegal are online. Chatting itself is free, and Worldwide matching never costs anything.
Your own country is detected automatically and shown to the people you meet as a flag.
Neighboring countries
Senegal borders 5 countries. Curious about the people next door? Meet them too: