Northern Ndebele language
Encyclopedia
The Northern Ndebele language, isiNdebele, or Ndebele is an African language belonging to the Nguni group of Bantu languages
, and spoken by the Ndebele or Matabele people of Zimbabwe
. It is commonly known as Sindebele.
IsiNdebele is related to the Zulu language
spoken in South Africa
. This is because the Ndebele people of Zimbabwe
descend from followers of the Zulu leader Mzilikazi
, who left KwaZulu
in the early nineteenth century during the Mfecane
.
The Northern and Southern Ndebele languages are not variants of the same language; though they both fall in the Nguni group of Bantu languages, Northern Ndebele is essentially a dialect of Zulu, and the older Southern Ndebele language appears to be the first Nguni language to reach the very Southern parts of Africa. The shared name may be due to contact between Mzilikazi's people and the original Ndebele, through whose territory they crossed during the Mfecane
. Either way, the shared name is only indicative of the most tenuous links - though it is not coincidental, neither is it deeply significant (cf. Ladin and Ladino).
a is pronounced like a in father; e.g. abantwana (children)
e is pronounced like e in bed; e.g. emoyeni (in the air)
i is pronounced like ee in see; e.g. siza (help)
o is pronounced like o in bone; e.g. okhokho (ancestors)
u is pronounced like oo in soon; e.g. umuntu (person)
c is made by placing the tip of the tongue against the front upper teeth and gums, the centre of the tongue is depressed and the tip of the tongue is drawn backwards. The resulting sound is similar to the sound used in English to express annoyance.
Some examples are cina (end), cela (ask)
The q sound is made by raising the back of the tongue to touch the soft palate and touching the gums with the sides and tip of the tongue. The centre of the tongue is depressed and the tip drawn quickly away from the gum. The resulting sound is like the "pop" heard when quickly removing the cork from a bottle.
Some examples are qalisa (start), qeda (finish)
The x sound is made by placing the tongue so that the back of the tongue touches the soft palate and the sides and tip of the tongue touch the gums. One side of the tongue is quickly withdrawn from the gums.
Some examples are xoxa (discuss), ixoxo (frog)
Bantu languages
The Bantu languages constitute a traditional sub-branch of the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 250 Bantu languages by the criterion of mutual intelligibility, though the distinction between language and dialect is often unclear, and Ethnologue counts 535 languages...
, and spoken by the Ndebele or Matabele people of 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...
. It is commonly known as Sindebele.
IsiNdebele is related to the Zulu language
Zulu language
Zulu is the language of the Zulu people with about 10 million speakers, the vast majority of whom live in South Africa. Zulu is the most widely spoken home language in South Africa as well as being understood by over 50% of the population...
spoken in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. This is because the Ndebele people of 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...
descend from followers of the Zulu leader Mzilikazi
Mzilikazi
Mzilikazi , also sometimes called Mosilikatze, was a Southern African king who founded the Matabele kingdom , Matabeleland, in what became Rhodesia and is now Zimbabwe. He was born the son of Matshobana near Mkuze, Zululand and died at Ingama, Matabeleland...
, who left KwaZulu
KwaZulu
KwaZulu was a bantustan in South Africa, intended by the apartheid government as a semi-independent homeland for the Zulu people. The capital, formerly at Nongoma, was moved in 1980 to Ulundi....
in the early nineteenth century during the Mfecane
Mfecane
Mfecane , also known by the Sesotho name Difaqane or Lifaqane, was a period of widespread chaos and warfare among indigenous tribes in southern Africa during the period between 1815 to about 1840....
.
The Northern and Southern Ndebele languages are not variants of the same language; though they both fall in the Nguni group of Bantu languages, Northern Ndebele is essentially a dialect of Zulu, and the older Southern Ndebele language appears to be the first Nguni language to reach the very Southern parts of Africa. The shared name may be due to contact between Mzilikazi's people and the original Ndebele, through whose territory they crossed during the Mfecane
Mfecane
Mfecane , also known by the Sesotho name Difaqane or Lifaqane, was a period of widespread chaos and warfare among indigenous tribes in southern Africa during the period between 1815 to about 1840....
. Either way, the shared name is only indicative of the most tenuous links - though it is not coincidental, neither is it deeply significant (cf. Ladin and Ladino).
Pronunciation
Pronunciation of Ndebele words is relatively easy in comparison to many languages because the vowels are quite constant, with each vowel having basically one sound, and the accent is usually on the penultimate syllable.Pronunciation of vowels
There are five basic vowel sounds; a, o, u are very constant and e and i have only slight variationa is pronounced like a in father; e.g. abantwana (children)
e is pronounced like e in bed; e.g. emoyeni (in the air)
i is pronounced like ee in see; e.g. siza (help)
o is pronounced like o in bone; e.g. okhokho (ancestors)
u is pronounced like oo in soon; e.g. umuntu (person)
Click sounds
In Ndebele there are three click sounds c, q and x.c is made by placing the tip of the tongue against the front upper teeth and gums, the centre of the tongue is depressed and the tip of the tongue is drawn backwards. The resulting sound is similar to the sound used in English to express annoyance.
Some examples are cina (end), cela (ask)
The q sound is made by raising the back of the tongue to touch the soft palate and touching the gums with the sides and tip of the tongue. The centre of the tongue is depressed and the tip drawn quickly away from the gum. The resulting sound is like the "pop" heard when quickly removing the cork from a bottle.
Some examples are qalisa (start), qeda (finish)
The x sound is made by placing the tongue so that the back of the tongue touches the soft palate and the sides and tip of the tongue touch the gums. One side of the tongue is quickly withdrawn from the gums.
Some examples are xoxa (discuss), ixoxo (frog)
See also
- Matabele
- Southern Ndebele languageSouthern Ndebele languageThe Southern Ndebele language is an African language belonging to the Nguni group of Bantu languages, and spoken by the amaNdebele . There are two dialects of Southern Ndebele in South Africa:* the Northern Transvaal Ndebele or Nrebele...
- Provinces of ZimbabweProvinces of Zimbabwe|Zimbabwe is divided into 8 provinces and 2 cities with provincial status:-See also:*Districts of Zimbabwe*Municipalities of Zimbabwe*List of provincial governors of Zimbabwe*ISO 3166-2:ZW-External links:*...
- Matabeleland NorthMatabeleland NorthMatabeleland North is a province in western Zimbabwe. It borders the provinces of Midlands and Mashonaland West to the east and northeast respectively, and the province of Matabeleland South and the city of Bulawayo to the south. Its northern border is defined by the Zambezi river, while its...
- Matabeleland SouthMatabeleland SouthMatabeleland South is a province of Zimbabwe. It has an area of 54,172 km² and a population of approximately 650,000 . Gwanda is the capital of the province.-Geography:...
- BulawayoBulawayoBulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe after the capital Harare, with an estimated population in 2010 of 2,000,000. It is located in Matabeleland, 439 km southwest of Harare, and is now treated as a separate provincial area from Matabeleland...