Introduction to Swahili

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INTRODUCTION TO SWAHILI BASIC VOCABULARY, NOUN & VERB STRUCTURES Swahili is a continually changing language that is still growing which resulted from the great Swahili culture that was established along the east African coast. Grammatically it is one of the African Bantu group and most of the words are of this origin with about a third of all words coming from Arabic – Swahili derives from the Arabic word for Plain. Many words have been incorporated from English especially words of a more technical nature. Swahili and English are the two official languages of Tanzania but Swahili is far more widely spoken and is most people’s second language after their tribal language. The dialect of Swahili spoken in Mtwara is very different from that spoken in Kenya and is influenced by the local tribal language, Makonde. English is not widely spoken. It must be remembered that many people speaking Swahili are relatively poor and illiterate so it remains a language that is largely spoken and heard not written and read and so there can be many variations in spelling, usage etc. This guide has been written by a fluent Swahili speaker and adjusted after the experiences of several years’ worth of volunteers. It is tailored to the experiences of volunteers in their first weeks and months in Tanzania, it is not an exhaustive guide but a starting point for study and a quick reference when in country. There are no exercises for you to do so practice your own using the grammar rules and the Nicholas Awde dictionary and use the interactive CD to get a better understanding of the sounds of Swahili. Practice makes perfect which is hard to do but the more you know before departure the more things will make sense when you arrive. The most important things to concentrate on are the basic words, the greetings and the basic verb structure. The nouns are a bit complicated so do not worry about them too much, try and develop a good working level of useful Swahili rather than learning everything. Bahati Njema! 1

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Basic guide to everyday Swahili with grammar notes

Transcript of Introduction to Swahili

Page 1: Introduction to Swahili

INTRODUCTION TO SWAHILIBASIC VOCABULARY, NOUN & VERB STRUCTURES

Swahili is a continually changing language that is still growing which resulted from the great Swahili culture that was established along the east African coast. Grammatically it is one of the African Bantu group and most of the words are of this origin with about a third of all words coming from Arabic – Swahili derives from the Arabic word for Plain. Many words have been incorporated from English especially words of a more technical nature. Swahili and English are the two official languages of Tanzania but Swahili is far more widely spoken and is most people’s second language after their tribal language. The dialect of Swahili spoken in Mtwara is very different from that spoken in Kenya and is influenced by the local tribal language, Makonde. English is not widely spoken. It must be remembered that many people speaking Swahili are relatively poor and illiterate so it remains a language that is largely spoken and heard not written and read and so there can be many variations in spelling, usage etc.

This guide has been written by a fluent Swahili speaker and adjusted after the experiences of several years’ worth of volunteers. It is tailored to the experiences of volunteers in their first weeks and months in Tanzania, it is not an exhaustive guide but a starting point for study and a quick reference when in country. There are no exercises for you to do so practice your own using the grammar rules and the Nicholas Awde dictionary and use the interactive CD to get a better understanding of the sounds of Swahili. Practice makes perfect which is hard to do but the more you know before departure the more things will make sense when you arrive.

The most important things to concentrate on are the basic words, the greetings and the basic verb structure. The nouns are a bit complicated so do not worry about them too much, try and develop a good working level of useful Swahili rather than learning everything. Bahati Njema!

CONTENTS PageAlphabet, Pronunciation & Important Words 2Greetings 3Questions & Grammar 5Verbs 6Nouns 10Adjectives 12Numbers 13Time 14Other Points 16Noun Vocabulary 17

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Verb Vocabulary 19General Vocabulary 21Alphabet and PronunciationSwahili is written in the Roman alphabet and pronunciation is generally the same as in English but there are the following exceptions - listening to the CD ROM will give you the best idea:

A - Pronounced aah, as in ‘far’ or a as in ‘man’E - Pronounced between eh as in ‘bed’, and é in ‘café’ I - Pronounced eee as in ‘Lima’ or ‘Swahili’O - Pronounced oh as in ‘Promise’ or ‘Mambo’U - Pronounced oo as in ‘Fool’Dh - Pronounced th as in ‘that’Ng’ - A guttural sound a bit like in ‘finger’

R and L are interchangeable so Laura could be Raura, Laula or Raula.

NB: Unlike English, all syllables end in a vowel – this is what allows Swahili to flow fluently and quickly in conversation. Each vowel in a word is sounded separately; for example, saa (watch) is pronounced sa-a.

Important Words

Hello Jambo See you later Baadaye Welcome Karibu Thank-you Asante What is your name? Jina lako nani? My name is… Jina langu… Please Tafadhali Excuse-me Samahani Yes Ndiyo No Hapana But Lakini OK Sawa And Na Is/Are Ni Or Au Perhaps Labda Because Kwa sababu Good Nzuri, safi, njema Bad Mbaya Sorry Pole Very Sana No Problem Hakuna matatizo What is this? Hiki nini?

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Today Leo Tomorrow (also good night) Kesho Good Night Usiku Mwema GreetingsConversations almost always start with a series of greetings – this is much more emphasized than in English. It is important to offer greetings out of courtesy, and to reply appropriately when greeted. Combinations of greetings are used to inquire about someone, including asking about their health, work, school or home – almost anything that they are strongly associated with.

There are two forms of greetings which fall into a ‘system’ and then a series of other greetings. They may seem complicated to start with but understanding how greetings work will greatly assist you in understanding Swahili as a whole.

Habari?Habari literally means ‘news’ and there is a huge variety of greetings that use this as their core but they are actually incredibly simple and versatile to use when you have got the basics. Essentially people will ask for the news of your day, family, work, evening or any other thing that seems interesting. One thing to bear in mind is that the answers are all very basic and generally it is bad manners to say that anything is bad so even if you cannot understand exactly what has been asked of you then you just say it is good. Easy.

Common Habari greetings:

Habari? How is it?Habari gani? How are things?Habari yako? How are you?Habari zenu? How are you lot? (Pl)Habari za leo? How is your day?Habari za asubuhi? How is your morning?Habari za mchana? How is your afternoon?Habari za jioni? How is your evening?Habari za usiku? How is your night?Habari za nyumbani? How is your household?Habari za kazi? How is work?Habari za safari? How was your journey?

Generally when greetings are for anything else it will always be Habari za …One other point is that often the habari will be dropped from the question and so they might say, Za asubuhi instead of the full sentence.

There are several positive responses to use to these greetings:

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Safi, Nzuri, Salama, Njema

And a negative response is Mbaya. To say it is very good/bad you use sana after the response i.e. Safi sana. Or if it is just good then it is Safi tu.

JambosThe most basic greeting in Swahili is to say Jambo and is the greeting you are most likely to hear as a tourist (volunteers are banned from using it). What jambo means in Swahili is an issue or problem so effectively it is the reverse of saying ‘Alright’ in English. There are many greetings that use jambo as a base but also have the negative person marker i.e. you don’t have a problem. So these greetings take the form of a question and an answer. So to greet an individual you would say:

Hujambo? You don’t have a problem? Sijambo. I don’t have a problem.

So the following greetings apply:Greeting Response

Individual Hujambo? SijamboGroup Hamjambo?

HatujamboTo inquire after an individual Hajambo? HajamboTo inquire after a group Hawajambo?

Hawajambo

A slight variation on this but possibly the greeting that you will use most of all is to say Mambo. Mambo is the plural of Jambo and literally means ‘problems’ yet it has just become a word used in greetings. This is a greeting used for people your own age or younger and generally all children will say it to you. The correct response is Poa which means ‘cool’ but again is just a greeting. There are also a number of other words now used like bomba and fresh instead of poa. Also mambo might be followed by vipi, or just vipi with out the mambo.

The other extremely common greeting and one that is important to get right is Shikamoo. It is a respectful greeting to anyone older than oneself and should always be used to those older! The response is Marahaba.

There are some other greetings that can be used:

Greeting Response MeaningAs-salaam aleykum Aleykum as-salaam Peace be with you

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Salama Salama Peace (also safe)Nzima Nzima Just means good

You must know the following:

Habari… Safi Very general greetingHujambo/Hamjambo Sijambo/Hatujambo How are you? (S/Pl)Shikamoo Marahaba For older peopleMambo Poa For children/youths

Questions

Who? Nani?What? Nini?Where? Wapi?When? Lini?Why? Kwa nini?How? Vipi?Which? Gani?How much/many? Ngapi?

How much money? Shilingapi?What time (is it)? Saangapi?

According to Swahili sentence structure, the above words come at the end of the sentence; i.e. Unataka nini? = What do you want? Also Swahili is different to English in the sense that if you ask someone, ‘You have not seen Laura, have you?’ the reply is, ‘No, I have not seen Laura’. In Swahili the answer is, ‘Yes, I have not seen Laura.’ Which is actually the more logical answer.

GrammarIt is worth understanding these terms before going further:

Verb: a verb is an action: walk, speak, hit.Noun: a noun is a thing, object or person: car, tree, child.Tense: a tense is when something happens: in the future, present or past.Subject: the subject is the person or thing doing the verb: I hit, Laura drove.Object: is the person or thing that has the verb act on it: I hit Laura, Laura drove the car.Marker: the marker is the word that shows the tense, subject or object.Prefix: a word or part of a word that goes in front of the item in question.

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Suffix: a word or part of a word that goes after the item in question.

Sentence StructureThe most noticeable thing with Swahili is that there are far fewer words in a sentence than in English. This is because instead of having different words for the subject, object and tense markers they are all merged into one word which allows the language to flow more easily. This will all make sense when we have looked at each aspect of the sentence in turn.

VerbsThe verb stem is the core of the sentence. In Swahili all verbs work as ‘to have’ rather like the ‘avoir’ verbs of French which is generally the reverse of English. So in English ‘I am hungry’ is ‘I have hunger’ in Swahili.

The ‘infinitive’ of a verb is the way a verb is said or stated. In English if the verb stem is ‘want’ then the infinitive is ‘to want’. In Swahili the same verb stem for want is taka and the infinitive is ku, and so it is written kutaka.

Subject and Tense MarkersFor the moment we will only use the present tense, the present tense marker is – na -. In Swahili the subject and tense marker is in the same order as in English which is:

Subject Tense VerbI do wantNi na taka

But the Swahili sentence is one word and so it is: Ninataka.

1st Person Singular I Ni-2nd Person Singular

You U-

3rd Person Singular

He/She/It A-

1st Person Plural We Tu-2nd Person Plural You M-3rd Person Plural They Wa-

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So some examples are as follows:

You are leaving U-na-tokaHe is laughing A-na-chekaThey are walking Wa-na-tembea

TensesIn Swahili there are far fewer tenses than in English which means you can grasp them quite quickly and also they are more regular than in English. In English the perfect tense is I have done, she has seen, the past tense is I talked , we went. In Swahili the Perfect tense is used much more than in English and is used most of the time for actions in the past. There is no imperfect tense in Swahili – in English the is when ‘was’ or ‘where’ are used.

There is only one future tense in Swahili. In English you can say, ‘I am going to eat’. The same does not apply in Swahili: the verb to go, kuenda, means to go and not to do something in the future.

Tense MarkerPerfect -me-

Past -li-Present -na-Future -ta-

The sentence structure is the same as before but with different tenses:

I have done Ni-me-fanyaYou (pl) talked M-li-ongeaHe likes A-na-pendaThey will sleep Wa-ta–lala

Object MarkersThis is where a Swahili sentence differs to an English one as the object comes before the verb.

English Subject Tense Verb ObjectI will hit him

Swahili Subject Tense Object VerbNi ta m piga

1st Person Singular Me -ni-2nd Person Singular You -ku-3rd Person Singular Him/Her/It -m-

1st Person Plural Us -tu-2nd Person Plural You -wa-3rd Person Plural Them -wa-

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Now we can make more complex sentences:

I like you Ni-na-ku-pendaYou lot will see them M-ta-wa-onaI planted it Ni-me-m-panda

So brought together these are the different components in a basic sentence:

Subject Tense Object VerbNi ni pendaU me ku takaA li m onaTu na tu lalaM ta wa ongea

Wa wa fanya

Irregular VerbsUnfortunately it is not all that straight forward as there are some irregular verbs and they happen to be some of the most common ones used. So far all of the verbs we have used have been just the stem i.e. ona instead of kuona. Irregular verbs keep the ku when used, so for example, ‘I will eat’ becomes Nitakula. Common irregular verbs are: Kula to eat, Kunywa to drink, Kwenda to go (note there is no u anymore).

NegativesIn Swahili the negative requires a different subject and tense marker. They fit into the sentence in exactly the same way as the positive markers. Well, apart from the present tense which is a bit different. If you have learnt your Jambo greetings then you already know the negative subject markers.

Negative Subject Markers

1st Person Singular

Si-

2nd Person Singular

Hu-

3rd Person Singular

Ha-

1st Person Plural Hatu-2nd Person

PluralHam-

3rd Person Plural Hawa-

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Tense Negative Tense Marker

Perfect -ja-Past -ku-Future -ta-

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So the following are some examples

I did see him. Ni-me-m-ona. I did not see him. Si-ja-m-onaThey will not like him. Hawa-ta-m-penda I have not understood Si-ja-alewa.

The present tense does not follow the same rules. The negative subject markers are the same but the tense marker does not appear after the subject marker. Instead, the last letter of the verb stem becomes an - i.

I like Ni-na-penda I do not like Si-pend-iHe does not smile Ha-chek-iWe won’t do it Hatu-fany-i

Passive VoiceThe passive voice can easily be learnt and will double your verb vocabulary in an instant. The passive voice is used to describe when a verb is acted against/on someone or something. It is formed by adding a letter ‘w’ to the verb stem before the final vowel. It is easiest understood by seeing it in action.

To hit Ku-piga To be hit Ku-pigwaTo love Ku-penda To be loved Ku-pendwa

Modal VerbsModal verbs include the words ‘should’, ‘could’ and ‘may’. The most common by far in Swahili is ‘should’. This is formed by adding the subject marker to the verb stem needed without a tense marker, and changing the final vowel to an ‘e’. The negative is formed by adding ‘si’ after the subject marker as well. For example:

I should go Ni-endeWe should win Tu-shindeYou shouldn’t leave U-si-ondoke

The Conditional and Connective TensesThe conditional tense introduces a new form of tense marker into verb grammar, but the previous rules still apply. The marker for conditional present tense is ‘nge’ and its negative equivalent is ‘singe’. For example:

If I were to want Ni-nge-takaIf you were tall U-nge-kuwa mrefuIf they don’t like Wa-singe-pendaIf he didn’t want A-singe-taka

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The connective tense often acts as a simpler version of the conditional tense, and uses the markers ‘ka’ for ‘and’, and ‘ki’ for ‘if’:

And I want Ni-ka-takaIf I want Ni-ki-taka

PronounsPronouns are generally used more in Swahili than in English. It is common for a sentence to start with a pronoun, even when not needed. For example: Mimi, ninakwenda translates as Me, I am going.

Me MimiYou WeweHim/Her YeyeUs SisiYou NyinyiThem There is no Swahili equivalentPronouns are not used instead of the subject markers but as an addition to them.

NounsIn English there are no real noun classes – there are irregularities but that is a different thing. In Swahili there are a number of noun classes. Depending on which class the noun is in depends on how the noun behaves and changes. The most common way in which a noun changes in English is when we are looking at the quantity. In English the plural is (generally) marked by the addition of an s/es at the end of a word i.e. Car, Cars or family, families. In Swahili the first letter/s of the noun marks whether it is in plural or negative. The table below gives the three most common noun groups.

Group Singular

Plural English

1. People. M/Wa M- Wa-M-toto Wa-toto Person/peopleM-zungu

Wa-zungu

White person/people

2. Plants, objects. M/Mi M- MiM-ti Mi-ti Tree/treesM-fuko Mi-fuko Bag/bags

3. Inanimate objects. Ki- Vi-

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Ki/ViKi-tu Vi-tu Thing/thingsKi-biriti Vi-biriti Match/matches

.Other groups are not used in the same way:

4. Generally begins with N and has many plant and animal names. The singular and plural are the same:

Cow/s: Ngombe, Snake/s Nyoka, Postal Letter/s: Barua

5. This Ma- class is a general class when there is no singular prefix. So: car Gari, Cars Ma-gari. Exercise book Daftari, Exercise books Ma-daftari

The only rare variation is when the noun is monosyllabic and then the singular prefix is ji-. Eye Ji-cho, Eyes Ma-cho.

6. This is the group for substances or abstract nouns. As with English there is no singular/plural.

Love: Upendo, Flour: Unga, Sand: Mchanga, Fire: Moto, Water: Maji.

7. Just for one word derived from Arabic.

Place: Pahali/Mahali

8. The verbal-noun class, which is where nouns are derived from verbs, there are no plurals.

Singing: Kuimba, Writing: KuandikaIt is important to note that in Swahili there is no definite article – essentially you cannot say ‘the’ or ‘a/an’.

So nyumba means: house, a house and the house.

PossessivesA possessive is the way of saying who the noun belongs to, in English this is shown by prefixes like my car, your love, his baby. In Swahili there is a suffix that follows the noun. The Swahili suffix is slightly more complicated as there is a stem where the first letter/s change to match the noun class. Many of these will be familiar from some of the greeting and basic phrases.

1st Person Singular My/mine -angu2nd Person Singular Your/yours -ako3rd Person Singular His/her/hers/its -ake

1st Person Plural Our/ours -etu2nd Person Plural Your/yours -enu

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3rd Person Plural Their/theirs -ao

And the noun classes’ prefix to the stem.

Noun Class Prefix Examples1. M/Wa- W- M-toto w-ako, your child

Wa-toto w-angu, my children2. M/Mi- W/Y- M-fuko w-ake, his bag

Mi-fuko y-etu, our bags3. Ki/Vi- Ch/Vy- Ki-tabu ch-ako, your book

Vikombe vy-ao, their cups 4. N- Y/Z- Ndisi y-angu, my banana

Ng’ombe z-enu, your (pl) cows5. Ma- L/Y- Gari l-etu, our car

Ma-gari y-ao, their cars6. U- W/Z Upendo w-ako, your love

No Plural

ConjunctivesSimilar to possessives is the conjunctive. In English we have two ways of expressing ownership, one is by saying ‘of’ ie the people of Tanzania. More commonly is the use of an apostrophe at the end of the noun, usually followed by an ‘s’ i.e. Laura’s eyes. In Swahili there is only one method which is similar to ‘of’ and again it is dependant on the class of the noun. This time the stem is the letter ‘–a’ which is preceded by the noun prefix. The examples explain it best.

The people of Tanzania Wa-tu w-a TanzaniaThe book of the teacher (the teacher’s book) Ki-tabu ch-a mwalimuThe eyes of Laura (Laura’s eyes) Ma-cho ma-a LauraAdjectivesAdjectives are words that describe nouns – tall, expensive, good etc. In Swahili the adjective is again dependant on the noun that it describes, again the first letters of the adjective change to match the noun class, taking on the same first letter/s. Unlike English the adjective follows the noun, car fast and not fast car.

Noun Class Swahili English1. M/Wa- M-tu m-lefu Tall person

Wa-toto wa-fupe Short children2. M/Mi- M-fuko m-zuri Good bag

Mi-koba mi-zuri Good wallets3. Ki/Vi- Ki-tabu ki-zuri Good book

Vi-tu vi-zito Heavy chairs

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The word ‘all’ is formed again by matching the noun prefix (as with possessives) to a stem, this time the stem is ‘– ote’.

All people Wa-tu w-oteAll cars Ma-gari l-oteAll books Vi-tabu vy-ote

‘Any’ is formed by saying the prefix twice before the stem (with no consecutive vowels added).

Any people M-tu wow-oteAny car Gari lol-oteAny book Ki-tabu choch-ote

DemonstrativesDemonstratives are used to distinguish between nouns, in English it is very straightforward with four words used – this, these, that and those. In Swahili, however, the noun classes come into play again as each noun class has its own set of demonstratives. It is not a terrible thing to get them mixed up as generally you will be understood so concentrate on learning the first three noun classes.

Noun Class Demonstrative

This These That Those1. M/Wa Huyu Hawa Yule Wale2. M/Mi Huu Hii Ule Ile3. Ki/Vi Hiki Hivi Kile Vile4. N Hii Hizi Ile Zile5. Ma Hili Haya Lile Yale6. U Huu Hizi Ule ZileThis person M-tu huyu, These cups Vi-kombe hiviComparativesComparatives are used, as the name suggests, to compare different things in conjunction with an adjective. For example, Tim is better than Laura. In Swahili the word kuliko acts in the same way as ‘than’ in English. Ni precedes the adjective, in the negative it is si.

Tim is better than Laura Tim ni m-zuri kuliko LauraHe is not taller then me Yeye si m-lefu kuliko mimi

SuperlativesA superlative is the most that an adjective can be and is equivalent to adding –est to an English adjective i.e. tallest, fastest. In Swahili it is formed like a comparative but uses the word ‘all’ –ote, with a prefix to match the adjective.

We are best of all Sisi ni wa-zuri kuliko w-ote

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Numbers and Ordinals

0 - Sufuri/Ziro 20 - Ishirini1 - Moja 30 - Thelathini2 - Mbili 40 - Arubaini3 - Tatu 50 - Hamsini4 - Nne 60 - Sitini5 - Tano 70 - Sabini6 - Sita 80 - Themanini7 - Saba 90 - Tisini8 - Nane 100 - Mia moja9 - Tisa 1,000 - Elfu moja10 - Kumi 10,000 - Elfu kumi11 - Kumi na moja 100,000 - Laki moja12 - Kumi na mbili 1,000,000 - Millioni moja13 - Kumi na tatu

In Swahili, the numbers between ten and twenty are formed by literally saying ‘ten and one’ (meaning eleven), ten and two, ten and three etc. The same is true with all larger numbers

44 arubaini na nne593 mia tano tisini na tatu305726 laki tatu elfu tano mia saba na ishrini na sita

Ordinals denote rank and placement associated with numbers, i.e. first, second and third etc. They are formed by putting the letter ‘a’ and the appropriate prefix (according to the noun class of the object) in front of the number in question. The only exceptions are the words for ‘first’ and ‘second’. To find the prefixes see the section on possessives.

First -a kwanzaSecond -a piliThird -a tatuFourth -a nneFifth -a tanoSixth -a sitaSeventh -a sabaEighth -a naneNinth -a tisaTenth -a kumi

Time

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Time/Hour/ Saa Monday JumatatuDay Siku Tuesday JumanneMinute Dakika Wednesday

JumatanoWeek Wiki Thursday AlhamisiMonth Mwezi Friday

IjumaaYear Mwaka Saturday JumamosiSecond Sekondi Sunday Jumapili

Yesterday Jana Quarter Robo Today Leo Half NusuTomorrow Kesho Minute

DakikaNow Sasa Less KasoroLater Baadaye

Saa is an Arabic word that can mean hour, time, clock or watch. It is the same origin as the Surname Saatchi which is Arabic for clock smith.

Telling the time in Swahili is made difficult by the use of a different system. As the Swahili zone is equatorial the length of the day is roughly equal throughout the year, sunrise and sunset is at about six o’clock. The Swahilis start the day with sunrise and so seven o’clock is one o’clock to the Swahilis. It is difficult to learn, but is made more simple by taking six away from the number that you would say in English and translating into Swahili. The number is stated in the same way, whether am or pm.

6am Saa kumi na mbili7am Saa moja8am Saa mbili9am Saa tatu10am Saa nne11am Saa tano12pm Saa sita1pm Saa saba2pm Saa nane3pm Saa tisa4pm Saa kumi5pm Saa kumi na moja

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6pm Saa kumi na mbili

When asking the time it is common to say Sasa saangapi?

The reply is formed as follows:

1100 hrs Saa Tano1115 hrs Saa tano na robo1120 hrs Saa tano na dakika ishirini1130 hrs Saa tano na nusu1145 hrs Saa sita kasoro robo1150 hrs Saa sita kasoro dakika kumi

Bado Not yetAlafu After

Approximate times of day

0600-1200 Morning Asubuhi1200-1700 Afternoon Mchana1700-2000 Evening Jiono2000-0600 Night Usiku

Other Points

-niAdding –ni to the end of a word has two purposes. Firstly if addressing a group then many words can be made into the plural by adding the ni. For example shikamoo-ni, pole-ni, asante-ni.

The other use is to say inside something. So in the school is shule-ni or in the bedroom chumba-ni.

MzunguMzungu means a white person but does not have a racist connotation, indeed it is used very often to call a white person. It literally means ‘He who wanders around’. Indeed, it is not at all rude to refer to anyone by their trade, tribe, age or size.

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MoneyThe unit of currency in Tanzania and all Swahili countries is the Shilling or in Swahili Shillingi. When asking someone how much something costs there are two ways: Bei gani? Which is ‘What price?’ and Shillingi Ngapi? ‘How many Shillings?’ Shillingi ngapi is usually contracted to Shilingapi? One of thing that is contracted is shillingi ishirini, twenty shillings, to shingshirini.

Twende!Formed from the verb to go, kuenda, twende means ‘lets go’.

Lion KingHakuna matata is most famous because of the Lion King films but you will not hear it in Mtwara as the local equivalent is Hakuna matatiso or more commonly Hamna shida. Hakuna literally means he does not have and hamna means you (pl) don’t have. Matata, matatiso and shida all mean problems/worries. Hamna is used generally to say there is nothing in the sense if you went to a shop and asked for champagne, the answer would be Hamna.

Where is something?If you ask someone where something is, the Swahili is …iko wapi? The answer could be hapa here, pale there or kule. Kule means over there and the higher the pitch it is said in the further away it is. Nearby is karibu and far away is Mbale.

Left KushotoRight KuliaStraight ahead Moja kwa moja (literally meaning one by one)

Noun Vocabulary

Class 1 – M/Wa (in singular form)

Person Mtu Prisoner MfungwaChild Mtoto Vagrant MhuniSon/Daughter Mwana Midwife MkungaMan Mwanaume Farmer MkulimaWoman Mwanamke Nurse MwuguziHusband Mume Sorcerer MchawiWife Mke Weaver MfumiFiancée Mchumba Cook MpichiElder Mzee Preacher MhubiriWhite Person Mzungu Blacksmith MhunziAfrican Mwafrika Tenant Mpangaji

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Christian Mkristo Traveller MsafiriMuslim Mwislamu Craftsman MsanaaIndian Mhindi Scientist MtaalamuGuest Mgeni Musician MtribuTourist Mtalii Judge MwamuziResident Mkaaji Fisherman MvuviIll Person Mgonjwa Lawyer MwanasheriaDead Person Mfu Mason MashiKind " Mhisani Teacher MwalimuGreedy " Mlafi Student MwanafunziGrumpy " Mgomvi Hunter MwindajiVery Old " Mkongwe Thief MwiziGenerous " Mpaji Baker MwokajiLazy " Mvivu Liar MwongoIntelligent " Mwanagavu Drunkard MleviJealous " Mwivu Poet MshairiMadman Mkichaa Lover MpenziEnglish Mwingereza Seducer MtongoziAmerican Mmarekani Victim MteswaSwahili Mswahili Gossiper MpayukajiTanzanian Mtanzania Slave MtumwaChinese Mchina Coward Mwoga

Class 2 – M/Mi (in singular form)

Bag Mfuko Coffee bush MkahawaJuice Mchuzi Baobab tree MbuyuGame Mchezo Tea tree MchaiWhip Mjeledi Mangrove MkandaaScissors Mkasi Cashew tree MkoroshoMat Mkeka Ebony MpingoTin Mkebe Tree MtiWallet Mkoba Cassava MuhogoRegion Mkoa Sugar cane MuaNecklace Mkufu Millet MtamaSpear Mkuki Election MchaguoDoor Mlango Belt MkandaFire Moto Example MfanoFootball Mpira Range MfikoRiver Mto Series Mfulizo

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Page 19: Introduction to Swahili

Pillow Mto Proclamation MgamboLever Mtambo Distribution MgawoMosque Msikiti Collision MgonganoLuggage Mwamba Support MhimiliLight Mwanga Inspection MkaguoLoad Mzigo Contract MkatabaCopy Mwigo Vigil MkeshaSquare Mraba Obstacle MkingamoCircle Mviringo Meeting MkutanoLine Msafa Help MsaadaCross Msalaba Test MtihaniFishing Line Mshipi Style MtindoTrap Mtego Summons MwalikoGas Mvuke Miracle MwujizaSeason Msimu Muscle MusuliEnd Mwisho Body MwiliMonth Mwezi Tail MkiaYear Mwaka Mouth MdomoBread Mkate Back MgongoUncooked Rice Mchele Leg MguuSpinach Mchicha Arm Mkono

Verb Vocabulary

To Be Able Weza To Dance ChezaTo Abandon Acha To Decrease PunguzaTo Abuse Tukana To Deliver PelekaTo Accept Kubali To Despise DharauTo Accuse Shtaki To Dig ChimbaTo Be Afraid Ogopa To Draw ChoraTo Agree Patana To Dream OtaTo Be Angry Kasirika To Drink NywaTo Answer Jibu To Drive EndeshaTo Arrive Fika To Be Drunk LewaTo Ask Uliza To End IshaTo Awake Amka To Enter IngiaTo Be* Kuwa To Explain ElezaTo Bear Offspring

Zaa To Fail Shindwa

To Begin Anza To Fall AngukaTo Believe Amini To Farm Lima

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Page 20: Introduction to Swahili

To Bite Uma To Fight PiganaTo Boil Chemsha To Find TafutaTo Be Born Zaliwa To Finish MalizaTo Break Vunja To Fish VuaTo Bring Leta To Fly RukaTo Build Jenga To Follow FuataTo Burn Choma To Forget SahauTo Bury Zika To Forgive SameheTo Be Busy Shughulika To Get PataTo Buy Nunua To Give PaTo Call Ita To Go KwendaTo Care For Tunza To Be Happy FurahiTo Carve Chonga To Harvest VunaTo Catch Daka To Have* KunaTo Change Badili To Hear SikiaTo Choose Chagua To Help SaidiaTo Clean Safisha To Hire KodiTo Climb Panda To Hit PigaTo Close Funga To Hold ShikaTo Come Kuja To Hope TumainiTo Congratulate

Pongeza To Hug Kumbatiana

To Cook Pika To Imagine WazaTo Cool Poa To Increase ZidiTo Cry Lia To Joke TaniaTo Cut Kata To Judge HukumuTo Damage Haribu To Kill ChinjaTo Knock Gonga To Show OnyeshaTo Know Jua To Shut FungaTo Be Late Chelewa To Sit KaaTo Laugh Cheka To Sleep LalaTo Learn Jifunza To Speak OngeaTo Leave Ondoka To Stand SimamaTo Lift Beba To Start AnzaTo Like Penda To Steal IbaTo Lie Danganya To Stop SimamaTo Listen Sikia To Suffer UmwaTo Live Ishi To Swear TukanaTo Lose Potea To Sweep FagiaTo Make Tengeneza To Swim OgeleaTo Marry Oa To Take ChukuaTo Meet Kuta To Taste OnjaTo Mistake Kosa To Teach FundishaTo Mix Changanya To Tell AmbiaTo Move Sogea To Thank ShukuruTo Need Hitaji To Think FikiriTo Open Fungua To Throw LushaTo Pay Lipa To Be Tired Choka

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Page 21: Introduction to Swahili

To Place Weka To Travel SafiriTo Play Cheza To Try JaribuTo Prevent Zuia To Turn PindaTo Rain Onyesha

mvuaTo Understand Elewa

To Read Soma To Use TumiaTo Receive Pokea To Wait SubiriTo Remember Kumbuka To Walk TembeaTo Repair Tengeneza To Want TakaTo Rest Pumzika To Wash

(clothes)Fua

To Return Rudi To Wash (people)

Oga

To Ridicule Dhikika To Watch TazamaTo Rot Oza To Wear VaaTo Rub Futa To Win ShindaTo Run Kimbia To Withdraw ToaTo Say Sema To Work Fanya kaziTo Sell Uza To Worship AbuduTo Sew Shona To Write Andika

* To Be ‘Kuwa’ – The present tense is different, formed using the word ‘ni’, meaning is/are. The negative form is ‘si’. For example:

Mimi ni mwalimu I am a teacher.

To Have ‘Kuna’ – The past and future tenses are formed using the verb Kuwa. For example: I will have good luck Nitakuwa na bahati nzuri

I had a lot of money Nilikuwa na pesa nyingi

General Vocabulary

Food and Drink Chakula na Vinywyaji

Bread Mkate WaterMaji

Butter Siagi MilkMaziwa

Eggs Mayai Tea ChaiRice (cooked) Wali Coffee

Kahawa Maize flour porridge Ugali Beer Bia

Biscuits Biskuti Soft Drink SodaPeanuts Karanga Spirits

PombeCashew Nuts Korosho

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Page 22: Introduction to Swahili

Sugar Sukari TomatoNyanya

Salt Chumvi Onions VitunguuPepper Pili pili Cabbage

KabejiSauce Mchuzi Okra

Barmia SpinachMcicha

Soup Supu Coconut MnaziCarrot -

KarotiFish Samaki Aubergine BiringaniShark Papa Potatoes ViaziSquid Ngisi Salad SaladiOctopus Pweza Vegetable

MbogaLobster Kamba kochi Fruit

MatundaPrawn KambaCrab Kaa

Knife KisuChicken Kuku Fork UmaGoat Mbuzi Spoon

KijikoBeef Ngombe Plate SahaniLamb Kondoo Glass GlasiDuck Bata Cup Kikombe

Bottle ChupaLemon Ndimu Table

MezaMango Embe Chair KitiOrange ChungwaBanana NdiziPineapple Nanasi Papaya Paipai

Other Useful Vocabulary

Country Nchi Car GariTown Mji Bicycle

BaiskeliVillage Kijiji Motorbike

Piki pikiStreet Bara-bara Aeroplane

NdegeAddress Anwani Ship MeriHouse NyumbaniShop Duka Clothes Nguo

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Page 23: Introduction to Swahili

Garden Bustani ShoesViatu

Farm Shamba Hat KofiaMosque Msikiti Coat

KotiChurch Kanisa Shirt

ShatiSchool Shule Trousers

SirwaliCollege Chuo cha elimu Watch

SaaMarket Sokoni Room

Chumba WorkKazi

Kitchen Jikoni Business BiasharaToilet Choo Holiday SikukuuDoor MlangoWindow Dirisha Machine Mashine Key UfunguoBalcony Baraza Telephone

Simu

Mother MamaSun Jua Father

BabaMoon Mwezi Gran

BibiStars Nyota Grandpa BabuSea Bahari Aunt

ShangaziRiver Mto Friend

RafikiLake ZiwaClouds MawinguRain MvuaIce BarafuWind UpepoTree MtiGrass NyasaSand Mchanga

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