Viral TikToker Teaches Catalan to Moroccan Family, Charms Catalonia

With over 180,000 subscribers, Ayoub Borbata has become famous on TikTok thanks to his videos that already have hundreds of thousands of views. In these videos, which have a good dose of humor and tenderness, the young man immortalizes the process of learning new Catalan words by his mother nicknamed Montserrat, or his father nicknamed Vicenç, or his sisters nicknamed Dolors and Mercè.

Ayoub surprises with his Catalan accent, but what could be more normal for him who arrived in the Catalan town of Arbúcies (Girona) at the age of seven. "When a child comes to study here, it’s as if he was born in the city. We Moroccans speak Catalan very well. People think we don’t understand the language. They tell me I’ve broken a lot of prejudices," he confides to Nius Diario. Ayoub acknowledges that his mastery of the language should not be surprising.

"I didn’t have much trouble learning Catalan thanks to the teachers I had. It’s true that Catalan is more difficult for the older ones," adds the 23-year-old TikToker who is proud to have allowed members of the Moroccan community to understand Catalan. "A lot of people meet me on the street and tell me they’re trying to learn Catalan thanks to me. They find it easier," continues Ayoub, who cites his mother, who has never been to school but is gradually learning to speak Catalan.

The adventure began last summer after Ayoub broke his knee and meniscus while working as a forestry worker in Italy. Upon his return to Spain, he began posting these videos. "I had nothing to do and I recorded two videos to entertain myself. They quickly went viral, one getting 700,000 views," he explains. And he adds: "I didn’t expect this success and I wasn’t looking for it either. I didn’t know people would like it, because this content is unique."