You won't find Chichewa classes at Auburn, but you may bump into Daniel Brownfield, a speaker of one of Malawi's most prevalent languages.
The son of two Auburn alumni, Brownfield, freshman in exercise science, grew up with three siblings in the southeastern African nation of Malawi alongside the Lomwe people.
"It's the culture I grew up in, the people I almost feel most comfortable around, maybe even more than Americans," Brownfield said.
Since 1999, Brownfield's parents have worked four to five year terms with the Independent Missions Board teaching English and Christianity.
Between terms, the family would return to Auburn for periods of six to 11 months.
The family has focused on the Lomwe, a group of about 4 million people living in Malawi and Mozambique. Brownfield grew up speaking English and picked up the Lomwe's language, Chichewa.
"I sat in the village and listened to them until their words made sense," Brownfield said.
Brownfield moved to Auburn from Malawi last summer, and although he has settled into a new routine, he said some adjustments have been difficult.
"I'll find myself grabbing my arm when I shake hands with people," Brownfield said. "It's part of most Bantu cultures that came of a tradition to show friendship, that I'm not threatening."
While arm-grabbing may seem odd to Americans, Brownfield said short shorts seem odd to him because he is used to a more formal culture.
Brownfield said it just takes small adjustments.
"You can learn to be socially adept in a different culture perfectly fine," he said. "As long as you're respectful around people, it doesn't matter."
Although Brownfield said some assume he could be socially inept because he was home-schooled and raised in Malawi, his childhood had many similarities with a typical American upbringing.
After morning classes, Brownfield would spend the afternoon with kids from the village and give them Kool-Aid sent in care packages from mission sponsors in the U.S.
"We'd play soccer for three or four hours in the afternoon," Brownfield said.
Before high school course work became too demanding, Brownfield would take short trips with his father to meet new people by teaching and spreading the message of Jesus.
"We'd park the car under the supervision of a local chief or at a school," Brownfield said. "Then we'd take our jungle hammocks, go out to where the road stops and keep hiking."
Brownfield sometimes browses through pictures and news of Malawi and Mozambique, though he said it makes him nostalgic. Brownfield also said he sometimes stops, looks around campus and is happy to be a part of life here.
"It's an equilibrium," Brownfield said.
Although he said he misses being surrounded by macadamia farms and coffee estates, there are a few things he has gladly welcomed into his daily life.
"These are my top three: root beer, electricity and hot water," Brownfield said. "In that order."
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