Ndau language
Encyclopedia
Ndau is one of the Shona
dialects. It is spoken by people from the region of Chipinge
(Zimbabwe
). Some of its vocabulary is very similar to that of Ndebele and often this dialect can sound very different from that of basic Shona.
Reading the Ndau phrase below (Lord's Prayer), differences from the Shona language are relatively minor, but certainly present:
Baba edu ari mudenga, ngariremeredzwe zina renyu. UMambo hwenyu ngahuuye. Kuda kwenyu ngakuitwa munyika kudai ngomudenga. Tipei ngeiri zuva kurya kwedu kunotamika nyamashi. Tirekererei ndaa dzedu kudai tisu takarekerera avo vane ndaa kwetiri. Usatipinza mukuedzwa, asi tinunure kuno uwo wakashata.
The equivalent paragraph in 'Standard Shona' is:
Baba vedu vari kudenga, ngariremekedzwe zita renyu. UMambo hwenyu ngahwuuye. Kuda kwenyu ngakuitwe panyika sokudenga. Tipei nhasi kudya kwedu kwakaringana. Tiregererei zvatinokutadzirai sezvatinoregerera avo vanotitadzira. Musatipinze mukuedzwa, asi tinunure kuno wakaipa.
(1) Mainstream Shona "Akatizira and the Ndau version Akafohla, 'L' is used.
(2) Mainstream Shona "kuridza tsamwa and the Ndau version kuxapa, 'X' is used.
(3) Mainstream Shona "Kurara and the Ndau version Kuqambaya, 'Q' is used.
Shona language
Shona is a Bantu language, native to the Shona people of Zimbabwe and southern Zambia; the term is also used to identify peoples who speak one of the Shona language dialects: Zezuru, Karanga, Manyika, Ndau and Korekore...
dialects. It is spoken by people from the region of Chipinge
Chipinge
Chipinge is a town in southeastern Zimbabwe in the province of Manicaland near the Mozambique border. The town lies in a valley in the southern Eastern Highlands. One of Zimbabwe's most famous landmarks, the Birchenough Bridge is located on the Sabi River 62 km from Chipinge...
(Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
). Some of its vocabulary is very similar to that of Ndebele and often this dialect can sound very different from that of basic Shona.
Reading the Ndau phrase below (Lord's Prayer), differences from the Shona language are relatively minor, but certainly present:
Baba edu ari mudenga, ngariremeredzwe zina renyu. UMambo hwenyu ngahuuye. Kuda kwenyu ngakuitwa munyika kudai ngomudenga. Tipei ngeiri zuva kurya kwedu kunotamika nyamashi. Tirekererei ndaa dzedu kudai tisu takarekerera avo vane ndaa kwetiri. Usatipinza mukuedzwa, asi tinunure kuno uwo wakashata.
The equivalent paragraph in 'Standard Shona' is:
Baba vedu vari kudenga, ngariremekedzwe zita renyu. UMambo hwenyu ngahwuuye. Kuda kwenyu ngakuitwe panyika sokudenga. Tipei nhasi kudya kwedu kwakaringana. Tiregererei zvatinokutadzirai sezvatinoregerera avo vanotitadzira. Musatipinze mukuedzwa, asi tinunure kuno wakaipa.
Alphabet
While the mainstream Shona language excludes L, Q and X from its alphabet, it is not the same with the Ndau language as shown by the examples below:(1) Mainstream Shona "Akatizira and the Ndau version Akafohla, 'L' is used.
(2) Mainstream Shona "kuridza tsamwa and the Ndau version kuxapa, 'X' is used.
(3) Mainstream Shona "Kurara and the Ndau version Kuqambaya, 'Q' is used.