|
traditional
Xhosa dancing |
isiXhosa: Molo…., Unjani?
A country which has eleven official languages is quite unique
and shows the cultural diversity. Not that all of these
languages are spoken by a majority of people though.
IsiXhosa (19%) Afrikaans (14%) and English (8%) are still
amongst widely most spoken ones. Besides these three main
languages Ndebele, Sepedi, Sesotho, Swati, Xitsonga, Setswana,
Tshivenda and Zulu are the other official languages.
In everyday business or tourism life, Cape Town is mainly
English speaking, yet in the Western Cape the most commonly
spoken language is Afrikaans, by 58,6% of the population.
English is the mother language for 20,1% of the people and
20,3% speaks Xhosa.
The city of Cape Town is officially tri-lingual (English,
Xhosa and Afrikaans).
Walking through the streets of Cape Town, you often hear
black Africans speaking Xhosa with its magical clicking
sounds. Most black Capetonians speak English at work and
school, yet their pride in their mother tongue is very strong.
| 'Madiba
is the clan where Nelson Mandela belongs
to' |
|
Clan names are of great importance to Xhosa people, a Xhosa
will tell you that they feel great pride in the ancestral.For
example, Madiba is the clan of whic Nelson Mandela is a
member. Zizi is the clan name of Thabo Mbeki. Bhele, Hlathi,
Hlahla, Jola, Jwarha, Maduna are all examples of other clan
names.
For every visitor and most white and colored Capetonians,
Xhosa is completely inaudible and hard to learn.
As one appreciates in any culture, and especially in South
Africa with its difficult past, people take big pleasure
on hearing a foreigner trying to speak a few simple words
in their language.
Often a smile in appreciation will most likely be the response;
an answer in English will most likely follow depending on
the quality of your effort. It is a nice start for a conversation
and almost a first step in getting to know a culture.
A first start:
| |
|
English |
Xhosa |
 |
|
Hello |
Molo |
| |
How are you
|
Unjani |
| |
I am well |
Ndiphilile |
| |
Thank you |
Enkosi |
| |
|
Are you well |
Uphilile |
 |
|
My name is |
Igama lam ngu |
| |
No |
Aye |
| |
Yes |
Awe |
| |
Thanks, you too |
Nawe |
| |
Goodbye |
Hamba kakuhle |
A modest sentence to learn might be: 'Sam
siNgesi si ngcono kancinci kune isiXhosa',
Which means: 'Meaning: 'My English is a little bit better
than isiXhosa'.
But remember, one can initially always start with learning
to say 'Molo' and 'Unjani'…
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