Walloon- the Immigrant's Language (part 1)

With Cletus Fontaine, Margaret Monfils, Harlin Mercier, Harvey LeFevre, Jane & Larry Bournoville
Several native Walloon speakers share how they learned the language. It was common for multiple generations of Belgian immigrant families to live in the same home, so children grew up speaking Walloon. Many did not speak English when they started school, putting them behind other students. Parents began to discourage children from speaking Walloon, contributing to the language becoming endangered today. Efforts are now underway to teach and preserve the language.

[@preppysquirrel9712]

My father was of Walloon Belgian and French decent, and grew up in Greenbay Wis. When I was in 8th grade we had a social stories class where we were to do a presentation on one of our Heritages. I picked Belgian because it was so uncommon in the Southern USA, and there would be no duplicate. We were to bring a dish from home representing the cuisine of that nationality/ culture. We decided to make a big pot of chicken booyah. We did not know how to spell it, so my mom asked the chefs at the country club. English, German, and French, and none of them knew how to spell it and had never heard the term. We decided to call it Poulet au Pot instead. The teacher had several kids bringing food on the same day.
I gave my report, and the teacher corrected me when I said my grandparents spoke Belgian. Sue insisted it was either French or Flemish. I answered back that I had always been told that my Grand father spoke Belgian and my Grand mother spike French and Belgian and Onieda. The teacher insisted my Grandfather spike Flemish then. I let it rest.
We had the meal after all reports were given and a Polish kid had the same darned pot of soup. You would have thought it was made in the kitchen when ours was.
My dad asked how it went and I told him Walloons speak Dutch and chicken Booyah was Polish.
He said Walloons spike Belgian not French ir Flemish/Dutch, and that there were alot of Polish peiple in Greenbay so there was likely some cultiral exchange. I have suspected since then that the name Booyah might originate from a Polish word or something.
It was when I was in college that I learned that Wallonian was a separate language locally known as Belgian in Wisconsin.