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Kwanyama or Cuanhama is a national language of Angola and Namibia. It is a standardized dialect of the Ovambo language, and is mutually intelligible with Oshindonga, the other Ovambo dialect with a standard written form.

The entire Christian Bible has been translated into Kwanyama and was first published in 1974 under the name Ombibeli by the South African Bible Society. Jehovah's Witnesses released the modern translation of the new testament, the New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures in Kwanyama in 2019, both printed and electronic online version.

Phonology

/t/ and /d/ are dentalized when followed by a front vowel /i/. An /s/ sound can only occur in loanwords.

Tones

Kwanyama has two tones : high and low.

Grammar

Verbs

Verbs are inflected for two tenses: present and non-present. There is a mandatory subject concord before verbs, indicating person, tense, and negation. Verbs are divided into two categories, active and stative, each of which have different subject concords. The future tense in active verbs is indicated by inserting the auxiliary ka after the nonpast subject concord.

Another way to negate a verb is to add the prefix ha- before the verb stem (ex. okwiimba 'to sing' -> okuhaimba 'to not sing').

References

1. Kwanyama at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
2. Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
3. Ombibeli, 1974, front page
4. "Jehovah's Witnesses Release the New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures in Kwanyama". Jw.org. 20 August 2019.
5. A Beginners Guide to Oshikwanyama (PDF). Peace Corps.

Bibliography

• Crane, Thera; Lindgren-Streicher, Karl; Wingo, Andy (2004). Hai ti! A Beginner's Guide to Oshikwanyama (PDF).
• Halme, Riikka (2004). A Tonal Grammar of Kwanyama. pp. 12-18.
• Zimmerman, W.; Hasheela, P. (1998). Oshikwanyama Grammar. Windhoek: Gamsberg Macmillan.

Further reading

• Turvey, B. H. C. (1977) Kwanyama-English Dictionary; compiled by B. H. C. Turvey; edited by W. Zimmermann and G. B. Taapopi. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press ISBN 0854943153 (based on the work compiled by George Tobias & Basil Henry Capes Turvey, 1954)

External links

• Language map of Namibia
• Grammar and vocabulary (in Spanish)
• PanAfrican L10n page on Kwanyama
• Omalinjongameno Ōngeleka. (Services of the Church in Kwanyama Authorised for Use in the Diocese of Damaraland, 1957) digitized by Richard Mammana 2015

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