Misplaced Pages

Zulu language: Difference between revisions

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.
Browse history interactively← Previous editContent deleted Content addedVisualWikitext
Revision as of 02:40, 25 April 2009 editBeno1000 (talk | contribs)Pending changes reviewers3,659 editsm Subject prefixes← Previous edit Latest revision as of 11:37, 10 December 2024 edit undoBilljones94 (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users123,986 editsNo edit summaryTags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit Advanced mobile edit 
(887 intermediate revisions by more than 100 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{short description|Nguni language of eastern South Africa and neighbouring countries}}
{{Infobox Language
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2021}}
|name=Zulu
{{Infobox language
|nativename=isiZulu
| name = Zulu
|familycolor=Niger-Congo
| nativename = ''isiZulu''
|states={{flagicon|South Africa}} ] <br> {{flagicon|Zimbabwe}} ] <br> {{flagicon|Malawi}} ] <br> {{flagicon|Mozambique}} ] <br> {{flagicon|Swaziland}} ]
| pronunciation = {{IPA-zu|isízṳːlu|}}
|region=], ], ]
| states = ], ]
|speakers= First language - 10 million
| region = {{Plainlist|
Second language - 16 million
* ] and southern ]; scattered communities elsewhere
|rank=69
}}
|fam2=]
| ethnicity = ]
|fam3=]
| speakers = ]: {{sigfig|12.104600|2}} million
|fam4=]
| date = 2013–2017
|fam5=]
| ref = e27
|fam6=]
| speakers2 = ]: {{sigfig|15.700000|2}} million (2002)<ref name=e27/><br/>Total: {{sigfig|27.804600|2}} million<ref name=e27/>
|fam7=]
| speakers_label = Speakers
|fam8=]
| familycolor = Niger-Congo
|fam9=]
| fam2 = ]
|fam10=Zunda
| fam3 = ]
|nation={{flagicon|South Africa}} ]
| fam4 = ]
|agency=]
| fam5 = ]
|iso1=zu|iso2=zul|iso3=zul}}
| fam6 = ]
| fam7 = ]
| fam8 = ]
| fam9 = ]-]
| fam10 = ]
| fam11 = ]
| dia1 = KwaZulu Natal Zulu
| dia2 = Transvaal Zulu
| dia3 = Qwabe
| dia4 = Cele
| nation = {{RSA}}
| agency = ]
| script = ] (])<br />]<br />]
| sign = ]
| iso1 = zu
| iso2 = zul
| iso3 = zul
| glotto = zulu1248
| glottorefname = Zulu
| guthrie = S.42
| lingua = incl.<br />varieties 99-AUT-fga to 99-AUT-fge
| map = South Africa Zulu speakers proportion map.svg
| mapcaption = Proportion of the South African population that speaks Zulu at home
{{div col}}
{{legend|#EDF8E9|0–20%}}
{{legend|#BAE4B3|20–40%}}
{{legend|#74C476|40–60%}}
{{legend|#31A354|60–80%}}
{{legend|#006D2C|80–100%}}
{{colend}}
| notice = IPA
}}
{{Infobox NC name||||||root=Zulu|person=umZulu|people=amaZulu|language=isiZulu|country=]}}'''Zulu''' ({{IPAc-en|'|z|uː|l|uː}} {{respelling|ZOO|loo}}), or '''isiZulu''' as an ], is a ] language of the ] spoken and indigenous to ]. It is the language of the ], with about 13.56 million native speakers, who primarily inhabit the province of ] in ].<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.worlddata.info/languages/zulu.php | title=Zulu speaking countries | website=www.worlddata.info | access-date=2024-08-16}}</ref> The word "KwaZulu-Natal" translates into English as "Home of the Zulu Nation is Natal". Zulu is the most widely spoken ] in South Africa (24% of the population), and it is understood by over 50% of its population.<ref>Ethnologue 2005</ref> It became one of ] in 1994.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Carter|first=Phillip M.|title=Languages In The World: How History, Culture, and Politics Shape Language|publisher=Wiley|year=2016|isbn=9781118531280|pages=139}}</ref>


According to ], it is the second-most widely spoken of the ], after ].{{efn|Ethnologue estimates (calculated between 2000 and 2015):
'''Zulu''' (called ''isiZulu'' in Zulu), is the ] of the ] people with about 10 million speakers, the vast majority (over 95%) of whom live in ]. Zulu is the most widely spoken home language in South Africa (24% of the population) as well as being understood by over 50% of the population (Ethnologue 2005). It became one of ] in 1994 at the end of ]. As with many Bantu languages, it is written using the Latin alphabet due to ].
* ]: 98 million (L1: 16 million, L2: 80 million)<ref>, ''Ethnologue'' (18th ed., 2015): "47,000,000 in Tanzania, all users. L1 users: 15,000,000 (2012), increasing. L2 users: 32,000,000 (2015 D. Nurse). Total users in all countries: 98,310,110 (as L1: 16,010,110; as L2: 82,300,000)."</ref>
* Zulu: 27 million (L1: 11 million, L2: 16 million)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/zul|title=Ethnologue: Zulu|publisher=Ethnologue|access-date=2017-03-05}}</ref>
* ] 9 million (L1: 7 million, L2: 2 million)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/sna|title=Ethnologue: Shona|access-date=2017-03-06}}</ref>}} Like many other Bantu languages, it is written with the ].

In ], the language is often referred to in its native form, ''isiZulu''.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.sahistory.org.za/article/zulu|title=Zulu|last=sahoboss|date=2011-04-03|work=South African History Online|access-date=2018-06-17|language=en}}</ref>


== Geographical distribution == == Geographical distribution ==
[[File:South Africa Zulu speakers density map.svg|thumb|upright=1.2|Geographical distribution of Zulu in South Africa: density, of Zulu home-language speakers.
{{Div col|small=yes|colwidth=10em}}
{{legend|#ffffcc|&lt;1 /km<sup>2</sup>}}
{{legend|#ffeda0|1–3 /km<sup>2</sup>}}
{{legend|#fed976|3–10 /km<sup>2</sup>}}
{{legend|#feb24c|10–30 /km<sup>2</sup>}}
{{legend|#fd8d3c|30–100 /km<sup>2</sup>}}
{{legend|#fc4e2a|100–300 /km<sup>2</sup>}}
{{legend|#e31a1c|300–1000 /km<sup>2</sup>}}
{{legend|#bc0026|1000–3000 /km<sup>2</sup>}}
{{legend|#800026|&gt;3000 /km<sup>2</sup>}}
{{div col end}}]]


Zulu migrant populations have taken it to adjacent regions, especially ], where the ] (]) is closely related to Zulu.
Zulu belongs to the South-Eastern group of ] (the ] group).


], the predominant language in the ], is often considered ] with Zulu, as is ].<ref name="NorthernNdebeleBlog">NorthernNdebele.blogspot.com ''NorthernNdebele.blogspot.com''</ref><ref>{{cite conference |url=http://www.aclweb.org/anthology/C10-1115 |title=Ukwabelana – An open-source morphological Zulu corpus |last1=Spiegler|first1=Sebastian |last2=van der Spuy|first2=Andrew |last3=Flach |first3=Peter A.|date=August 2010 |publisher=Tsinghua University Press |book-title=Proceedings of the 23rd International Conference on Computational Linguistics |pages=1020 |location=Beijing, China}}</ref>
The language is widely spoken in ] (81% of the province's population are Zulu first language speakers), ] (26%) and ] (21%). It is also spoken in some other African countries, with significant Zulu-speaking populations in ] and ]. ], spoken in ], ] and the Nguni language formerly spoken in ] are all closely related to Zulu and developed from nineteenth century Zulu migrant populations. ], the predominant language in the ], and Zulu are also mutually intelligible.


Maho (2009) lists four dialects: central KwaZulu-Natal Zulu, northern Transvaal Zulu, eastern coastal Qwabe, and western coastal Cele.<ref name="Guthrie"/>
== History ==


==History==
The Zulu presence in South Africa dates from about the fourteenth century AD. Much like the ] who had moved into South Africa during earlier waves of the ], the Zulu assimilated many sounds from the ] and ] languages of the country's earliest inhabitants. This has resulted in the preservation of ]s in Zulu and Xhosa, (the sounds are unique to Southern and Eastern Africa except for the ] ] ceremonial language) despite the extinction of many San and Khoi languages.
The Zulu, like ] and other ], have lived in South Africa for hundreds of years. The Zulu language possesses several ] typical of Southern African languages, not found in the rest of Africa. The Nguni people have coexisted with other Southern tribes like the San and Khoi.


Zulu, like all indigenous Southern African languages, was an ] until contact with missionaries from Europe, who documented the language using the ]. The first grammar book of the Zulu language was published in ] in 1850 by the Norwegian missionary ].<ref>Rakkenes, Øystein (2003) ''Himmelfolket: En Norsk Høvding i Zululand'', Oslo: Cappelen Forlag, pp. 63-65 </ref> The first written document in Zulu was a Bible translation that appeared in 1883. In 1901, ] (1871-1946), a Zulu from Natal, created the ], the first native educational institution in South Africa. He was also the author of ''Insila kaShaka'', the first novel written in isiZulu (1933). Another pioneering Zulu writer was ], author of several historical novels of the 19th-century leaders of the Zulu nation: ''U-Dingane'' (1936), ''U-Shaka'' (1937), ''U-Mpande'' (1938), ''U-Cetshwayo'' (1952) and ''U-Dinizulu'' (1968). Other notable contributors to Zulu literature include ] and, more recently, ]. Zulu, like most indigenous Southern African languages, was not a ] until the arrival of missionaries from Europe, who documented the language using the ]. The first grammar book of the Zulu language was published in ] in 1850 by the Norwegian missionary ].<ref>Rakkenes, Øystein (2003) ''Himmelfolket: En Norsk Høvding i Zululand'', Oslo: Cappelen Forlag, pp. 63–65</ref> The first written document in Zulu was a Bible translation that appeared in 1883. In 1901, ] (1871–1946), a Zulu from Natal, created the Ohlange Institute, the first native educational institution in South Africa. He was also the author of ''Insila kaShaka'', the first novel written in Zulu (1930). Another pioneering Zulu writer was ], author of several historical novels of the 19th-century leaders of the Zulu nation: ''U-Dingane'' (1936), ''U-Shaka'' (1937), ''U-Mpande'' (1938), ''U-Cetshwayo'' (1952) and ''U-Dinizulu'' (1968). Other notable contributors to Zulu literature include ] and, more recently, ].


The written form of Zulu was controlled by the ] of ]. This board has now been disbanded and superseded by the that promotes the use of all eleven official languages of South Africa. The written form of Zulu was controlled by the Zulu Language Board of ]. This board has now been disbanded and superseded by the ]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.pansalb.org.za/ |title=pansalb.org.za |access-date=17 December 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071217141039/http://www.pansalb.org.za/ |archive-date=17 December 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> which promotes the use of all eleven official languages of South Africa.


==Contemporary usage== ==Contemporary usage==
English, Dutch and later ] had been the only official languages used by all South African governments before 1994. However, in the ] ], the Zulu language was widely used. All education in the country at the high school level was in English or Afrikaans. Since the fall of apartheid in 1994, Zulu has been enjoying a marked revival. Zulu-language television was introduced by the ] in the early 1980s and it broadcasts news and many shows in Zulu. Zulu radio is very popular and newspapers such as ''isoLezwe'',<ref></ref> ''Ilanga''<ref></ref> and ''UmAfrika'' in the Zulu language are available in ] province and ]. In January 2005 the first full-length feature film in Zulu, '']'', was nominated for an ].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.brandsouthafrica.com/south-africa-fast-facts/arts-facts/oscars-261005&grqid=VQcz2QAd&s=1&hl=en-ZA|title=Oscar nomination for SA film – Brand South Africa|publisher=brandsouthafrica.com|date=2005-01-26|access-date=2020-08-21}}</ref>


The mutual intelligibility of many ] has increased the likelihood of Zulu becoming the ] of the eastern half of the country.
English, Dutch and later Afrikaans had been the only official languages used by all South African governments before 1994. However in the ] ] the Zulu language was widely used. All education in the country at the high-school level was in English or Afrikaans. Since the demise of apartheid in 1994, Zulu has been enjoying a marked revival. Zulu-language television was introduced by the ] in the early 1980s and it broadcasts news and many shows in Zulu. Zulu radio is very popular and newspapers such as , and UmAfrika in the Zulu language are available, mainly available in ] province and in ]. Recently, the first full length feature film in Zulu, '']'', was nominated for an ].


In the 1994 film '']'', in the "]" song, the phrases ''Ingonyama nengw' enamabala'' (English: ''A lion and a leopard spots''), ''Nans' ingonyama bakithi Baba'' (English: ''Here comes a lion, Father'') and ''Siyonqoba'' (English: ''We will conquer'') was used. In some movie songs, like "This Land", the voice says ''Busa leli zwe bo'' (''Rule this land'') and ''Busa ngothando bo'' (''Rule with love'') were used too.
South African ] requirements no longer specify which South African language needs to be taken as a second language, and some people have made the switch to learning Zulu. However people taking Zulu at high-school level overwhelmingly take it as first language: according to recent statistics, Afrikaans is still over 30 times more popular than Zulu as a ''second'' language. The mutual intelligibility of many ] languages, has increased the likelihood of Zulu becoming the ] of the Eastern half of the country although the political dominance of Xhosa-speaking people on national level militates against this really happening. (The predominant language in the ] and ] is Afrikaans - see the map below.


The song '']'' is a South African hymn originally written in the Zulu language that became popular in North American churches in the 1990s.
In the 1994 film ], in the ] song, the phrases ''Ingonyama nengw' enamabala'' (English: ''A lion and a leopard come to this open place''), ''Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba'' (English: ''Here comes a lion, Father'') and ''Siyo nqoba'' (English: ''We will conquer'') were used. In some movie songs, like "This Land", the voice says ''Busa Le Lizwe bo'' (''Rule this land'') and ''Busa ngothando bo'' (''Rule with love'') were used too.


The remix of the 2019 worldwide hit '']'' contains lyrics in Zulu language.
== Phonetics ==
{{IPA notice}}
{{Expand-section|date=June 2008}}


===Vowels=== ===Standard vs Urban Zulu===
] Zulu as it is taught in schools, also called "deep Zulu" (''isiZulu esijulile''), differs in various respects from the language spoken by people living in cities (Urban Zulu, ''isiZulu sasedolobheni''). Standard Zulu tends to be ], using derivations from Zulu words for new concepts, whereas speakers of Urban Zulu use ] abundantly, mainly from English. For example:

{| border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4" class="wikitable" {| class="wikitable"
!IPA
!Example (IPA)
!Example (Written)
!Meaning
!Notes
|- |-
! Standard Zulu
|
! Urban Zulu
|
! English
|''-siza''
|"help"
|This vowel is pronounced somewhat like ''ease'' in ].
|- |-
| ''umakhalekhukhwini''
|
| ''iselula''
|
| mobile(cell) phone
|''umuzi''
|"village"
| Somewhat like English vowel in the word ''loom''.
|-
|
|
|''umgibeli''
|"passenger"
| e is {{IPA|e}} when the following syllable contains an "i" or a "u", or final
|-
|
|
|''-pheka''
|"cook"
| e is {{IPA|ɛ}} everywhere else
|-
|
|
|''umakoti''
|"bride"
| o is {{IPA|o}} when the following syllable contains an "i" or a "u", or final
|-
|
|
|''ogogo''
|"grandmother"
| o is {{IPA|ɔ}} everywhere else
|-
|
|
|''-dida''
|"puzzle"
| Is pronounced somewhat like ''mama'' in English.
|- |-
| ''Ngiyezwa''
| ''Ngiya-andastenda''
| I understand
|} |}
This situation has led to problems in education because standard Zulu is often not understood by young people.<ref>{{cite book|last=Magagula|first=Constance Samukelisiwe|title=Standard Versus Non-standard IsiZulu: A Comparative Study Between Urban and Rural Learners' Performance and Attitude|year=2009|publisher=University of KwaZulu-Natal|location=Durban}}</ref>


==Phonology==
Vowels are lengthened in the penultimate syllable.

===Vowels===
]
The vowel system of Zulu consists of five vowels.


===Consonants===
{| class="wikitable" {| class="wikitable"
! &nbsp;
!]
!]
!]
!]
!]
!]
!]
|-
| ''']'''
| style="text-align:center;"|{{IPA | pʰ&nbsp;p&nbsp;ɓ&nbsp;b}}
| style="text-align:center;" |{{IPA | tʰ&nbsp;t&nbsp;&nbsp;d}}
| &nbsp;
| &nbsp;
| style="text-align:center;"|{{IPA | kʰ&nbsp;k&nbsp;&nbsp;ɠ&nbsp;ɡ}}
| &nbsp;
| &nbsp;
|-
| ''']'''
| style="text-align:center;"|{{IPA | m}}
| style="text-align:center;" |{{IPA | n}}
| &nbsp;
| style="text-align:center;" |{{IPA | ɲ}}
| style="text-align:center;"|{{IPA | ŋ}}
| &nbsp;
| &nbsp;
|-
| ''']'''
| style="text-align:center;"|{{IPA | f&nbsp;&nbsp;v}}
| style="text-align:center;"|{{IPA | s&nbsp;&nbsp;z}}
| style="text-align:center;"|{{IPA | ʃ}}
| &nbsp;
| &nbsp;
| style="text-align:center;"|{{IPA | h&nbsp;&nbsp;ɦ}}
| &nbsp;
|- |-
!
| ''']'''
! ]
| &nbsp;
! ]
| &nbsp;
! ]
| style="text-align:center;" |{{IPA | tʃ&nbsp;&nbsp;dʒ}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| &nbsp;
! ]
| style="text-align:center;" |{{IPA | kx}}
| {{IPA link|i}}
| &nbsp;
|
| &nbsp;
| {{IPA link|u}}
|-
|- style="text-align:center;"
| ''']'''
! ]
| &nbsp;
| {{IPA link|ɛ}}
| &nbsp;
|
| &nbsp;
| style="text-align:center;"|{{IPA | j}} | {{IPA link|ɔ}}
|- style="text-align:center;"
| &nbsp;
! ]
| &nbsp;
|
| style="text-align:center;"|{{IPA | w}}
| {{IPA link|ä|a}}
|-
|
| ''']'''
| &nbsp;
| &nbsp;
| &nbsp;
| style="text-align:center;" |{{IPA | l}}
| &nbsp;
| &nbsp;
| &nbsp;
|-
|''']'''
| &nbsp;
| &nbsp;
| &nbsp;
| style="text-align:center;" |{{IPA | ɬ&nbsp;&nbsp;ɮ}}
| &nbsp;
| &nbsp;
| &nbsp;
|} |}


{{IPA|/ɛ/}} and {{IPA|/ɔ/}} are pronounced and , respectively, if the following syllable contains the ]] vowels {{IPA|/i/}} or {{IPA|/u/}}.<ref>{{Cite web|title=PHOIBLE 2.0 -|url=https://phoible.org/inventories/view/147#tipa|access-date=2020-10-10|website=phoible.org}}</ref> They are {{IPA|}} and {{IPA|}} otherwise:
{| border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4" class="wikitable"
* ''umgibeli'' "passenger", phonetically {{IPA|}}
!IPA
* ''ukupheka'' "to cook", phonetically {{IPA|}}
!Example (IPA)

!Example (Written)
There is limited ] in Zulu, as a result of the contraction of certain syllables. For example, the word ''ithambo'' {{IPA|/íːtʰámbó/}} "bone", is a contraction of an earlier ''ilithambo'' {{IPA|/ílítʰámbó/}}, which may still be used by some speakers. Likewise, ''uphahla'' {{IPA|/úːpʰaɬa/}} "roof" is a contraction of the earlier ''uluphahla'' {{IPA|/ulúpʰaɬa/}}. In addition, the vowel of the penultimate syllable is allophonically lengthened phrase- or sentence-finally.
!Meaning

!Notes
===Consonants===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+Zulu phonemes {{Citation needed|date=December 2023}}
|- |-
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" |
|
! rowspan="2" | ]
|
! colspan="2" | ]/]
|''umama''
! rowspan="2" | ]
|"my/our mother"
! rowspan="2" | ]
|This consonant is pronounced as in ].
! rowspan="2" | ]
|- |-
! {{small|]}}
|
! {{small|]}}
|
|''unina''
|"his/her/their mother"
| This consonant is pronounced as in ''nine'' in ].
|- |-
! rowspan="5" | ]
|
| ! {{small|plain}}
|
|''inyoni''
| {{IPAlink|ᵏǀʼ}}
|"bird"
| {{IPAlink|ᵏǁʼ}}
| This consonant is pronounced as in ] vignette.
| {{IPAlink|ᵏǃʼ}}
|
|
|- |-
| ! {{small|aspirated}}
|
|
| {{IPAlink|ᵏǀʰ}}
|''ingane''
| {{IPAlink|ᵏǁʰ}}
|"child"
| {{IPAlink|ᵏǃʰ}}
| This consonant is pronounced as in ''sing''.
|
|
|- |-
| ! {{small|nasalised}}
|
|
| {{IPAlink|ᵑǀ}}
|''ipipi''
| {{IPAlink|ᵑǁ}}
|"pipe for smoking"
| {{IPAlink|ᵑǃ}}
| This consonant is pronounced as in ''speech''.
|
|
|- |-
! {{small|slack-voiced oral}}
|
|
|
| {{IPAlink|ᶢǀʱ}}
|''-pheka''
| {{IPAlink|ᶢǁʱ}}
|"cook"
| {{IPAlink|ᶢǃʱ}}
| This consonant is pronounced as in ''pin''.
|
|
|- |-
! {{small|slack-voiced nasal}}
|
|
|
| {{IPAlink|ᵑǀʱ}}
|''itiye''
| {{IPAlink|ᵑǁʱ}}
|"tea"
| {{IPAlink|ᵑǃʱ}}
| This consonant is pronounced as in "step".
|
|
|- |-
! rowspan="2" | ]
|
! {{small|modally voiced}}
|
| {{IPAlink|m}}
|''-thatha''
| {{IPAlink|n}}
|"take"
|
| This consonant is pronounced somewhat as in English "top".
| {{IPAlink|ɲ}}
|
|
|- |-
! {{small|slack-voiced}}
|
| | {{IPAlink|}}
| {{IPAlink|n̤}}
|''kumnandi''
|
|"it is delicious"
|
| This consonant is pronounced as in English "skill".
| ({{IPAlink|ŋ̈}})
|
|- |-
! rowspan="4" | ]
|
! {{small|plain}}
|
| {{IPAlink|pʼ}}
|''ikhanda''
| {{IPAlink|tʼ}}
|"head"
|
| This consonant is pronounced somewhat like c in "cat".
|
| {{IPAlink|kʼ}}
|
|- |-
| ! {{small|aspirated}}
| | {{IPAlink|}}
| {{IPAlink|tʰ}}
|''-bhala''
|
|"write"
|
| This consonant is pronounced more or less as in English ''bed'', but fully voiced.
| {{IPAlink|kʰ}}
|
|- |-
! {{small|slack-voiced}}
|
| | {{IPAlink|}}
| {{IPAlink|dʱ}}
|''idada''
|
|"duck"
|
| This consonant is pronounced more or less as in English ''duck'', but fully voiced.
| {{IPAlink|ɡʱ}}
|
|- |-
! {{small|implosive & modal voice}}
|
| | {{IPAlink|ɓ}}
|
|''ogogo''
|
|"grandmother"
|
| This consonant is pronounced somewhat like in ''go'', but fully voiced.
| {{IPAlink|ɡ}}
|
|- |-
! rowspan="2" | ]
|
| ! {{small|plain}}
|
|''ubaba''
| {{IPAlink|tsʼ}}
|"my/our father"
|
| This consonant is pronounced with implosion.
| {{IPAlink|tʃʼ}}
|-
| | {{IPAlink|k𝼄ʼ}}
|
|''ukuza''
|"to come"
| This consonant is pronounced with implosion.
|-
|
|
|''ifu''
|"cloud"
| This consonant is pronounced more or less as in English ''fun''.
|-
|
|
|''-vala''
|"close"
| This consonant is pronounced as in English ''very''.
|-
|
|
|''isisu''
|"stomach"
| This consonant is pronounced as in English ''say''.
|-
|
|
|''umzuzu''
|"moment"
| As in English "zoo"
|-
|
|
|''ishumi''
|"ten"
| This consonant is pronounced as in English ''shall''.
|-
|
|
|''-hamba''
|"go"
| This consonant is pronounced as in English ''hand''.
|-
|
|
|''ihhashi''
|"horse"
| This consonant is pronounced as in English ''ahead''.
|-
|
|
|''-lala''
|"sleep"
| This consonant is pronounced as in English ''leaf''.
|-
|
|
|''-hlala''
|"sit"
| This consonant is pronounced as in Welsh ''Llanelli''.
|-
|
|
|''-dla''
|"eat"
| This consonant is ] form of ɬ.
|-
|
|
|''utshani''
|"grass"
| This consonant is pronounced as the English ''chin''.
|-
|
|
|''uju''
|"honey"
| This consonant is pronounced as the English ''jump''.
|-
|
|
|''umklomelo''
|"prize"
| This consonant varies by speaker.
|-
|
|
|''uyise''
|"his/her/their father"
|This vowel is pronounced as in ''yes'' in ].
|-
|
|
|''wela''
|"cross"
| This vowel is pronounced as in ''wall'' in ].
|-
|}

===Click consonants===

One of the most distinctive features of Zulu is the use of ]s. This feature is shared with several other languages of Southern ], but is almost entirely confined to this region. There are three basic clicks in Zulu:
* '''c''' - ] (comparable to a sucking of teeth)
* '''q''' - ] (comparable to a bottle top 'pop')
* '''x''' - ] (comparable to a click one may do for a walking horse)
These can have several variants such as being ], ] or ] so that there are a total of about 15 different click sounds in Zulu. The same sounds occur in ], where they are used more frequently than in Zulu.

{| border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4" class="wikitable"
!{{pronounced|ˈ
!Example (IPA)
!Example (Written)
!Meaning
!Notes
|-
|
|
|''icici''
|"earring"
| |
|- |-
! {{small|slack-voiced}}
|
|
|
|
|''ukuchaza''
|
|"to explain"
| |
|
|
|- |-
! rowspan="2" | ]
|
! {{small|voiceless}}
|
| {{IPAlink|f}}
|''isigcino''
| {{IPAlink|s}}
|"end"
| {{IPAlink|ɬ}}
|
| {{IPAlink|ʃ}}
| {{IPAlink|x}}
| {{IPAlink|h}}
|- |-
! {{small|slack-voiced}}
|
| {{IPAlink|v̤}}
|
| {{IPAlink|z̤}}
|''incwancwa''
| {{IPAlink|ɮ̈}}
|"sour corn meal"
| |
|
| {{IPAlink|ɦ̥}}
|- |-
! colspan="2" | ]
|
|
|
| ({{IPAlink|r}})
|''ingcosi''
| {{IPAlink|l}} {{IPAlink|l̤}}
|"a bit"
| |
|
|
|- |-
! rowspan="2" | ]
|
! {{small|modally voiced}}
|
|
|''iqaqa''
|
|"polecat"
| |
| {{IPAlink|j}}
| {{IPAlink|w}}
|
|- |-
! {{small|slack-voiced}}
|
|
|
|
|''iqhude''
|
|"rooster"
| |
|-
|
|
|''uMgqibelo''
|"Saturday"
| |
|- |
|
|
|''inqola''
|"cart"
|
|-
|
|
|''ingqondo''
|"intelligence"
|
|-
|
|
|''ixoxo''
|"frog"
|
|-
|
|
|''ukuxhasa''
|"to support"
|
|-
|
|
|''ukugxoba''
|"to stamp"
|
|-
|
|
|''inxeba''
|"wound"
|
|-
|
|
|''ingxenye''
|"part"
|
|-
|} |}


# The plain voiceless plosives, affricates and clicks are realised phonetically as ejectives {{IPAblink|pʼ}}, {{IPAblink|tʼ}}, {{IPAblink|kʼ}}, {{IPAblink|tsʼ}}, {{IPAblink|tʃʼ}} {{IPAblink|kxʼ}}.
===Tone===
# When not preceded by a nasal, {{IPA|/ɠ/}} is almost in complementary distribution with {{IPA|/k/}} and {{IPA|/kʰ/}}. The latter two phonemes occur almost exclusively root-initially, while {{IPA|/ɠ/}} appears exclusively medially. Recent loanwords contain {{IPA|/k/}} and {{IPA|/kʰ/}} in other positions, e.g. ''isekhondi'' {{IPA|/iːsekʰoːndi/}} "second", ''ibhayisikili'' {{IPA|/iːbajisikiːli/}} "bicycle".
# The ] consonants are ]s. These have a lowering effect on the tone of their syllable.
# The consonant {{IPA|/ŋ/}} occurs in some dialects as a reduction of the cluster {{IPA|/nɡ/}} when it is not in stem-initial position, and is therefore always slack-voiced.
# The trill {{IPA|/r/}} is not native to Zulu and occurs only in expressive words and in recent borrowings from European languages.


The use of ]s is one of the most distinctive features of Zulu. This feature is shared with several other languages of Southern Africa, but it is very rare in other regions. There are three basic articulations of clicks in Zulu:
Like the great majority of other ] and African languages, Zulu is ]. It is conventionally written without any indication of tone, despite the fact that tone is distinctive in Zulu. For example, the word for priest and teacher is ''umfundisi'', but they are pronounced with a different tone depending on the meaning.
* ] {{IPA|/ǀ/}}, comparable to sucking of teeth, as the sound one makes for "tsk tsk".
* ] {{IPA|/!/}}, comparable to a bottle top "pop".
* ] {{IPA|/ǁ/}}, comparable to a click that one may do for a walking horse.


Each articulation covers five click consonants, with differences such as being slack-voiced, ] or ], for a total of 15.
Zulu is also known for having depressor consonants, which lower a high tone in the same syllable. For example, the verbs ''ukuhlala'' "to live" and ''ukudlala'' "to play" should both contain a high tone on the penultimate syllable. However, the tone on the penultimate syllable of ''ukudlala'' is low as a result of the depressor consonant .


===Phonotactics===
]


Zulu syllables are canonically (N)C(w)V{{Clarify|reason=context gives examples where initial syllable consists of only V, cf. umpetshisi and impoko|date=August 2020}}, and words must always end in a vowel. Consonant clusters consist of any consonant, optionally preceded by a ] nasal consonant (so-called "prenasalisation", described in more detail below) and optionally followed by the consonant {{IPA|/w/}}.
==Grammar==


In addition, syllabic {{IPA|/m̩/}} occurs as a reduction of former {{IPA|/mu/}}, and acts like a true syllable: it can be syllabic even when not word-initial, and can also carry distinctive tones like a full syllable. It does not necessarily have to be homorganic with the following consonant, although the difference between homorganic nonsyllabic {{IPA|/mC/}} and syllabic {{IPA|/m̩C/}} is distinctive, e.g. ''umpetshisi'' {{IPA|/um̩pétʃiːsi/}} "peach tree" (5 syllables) versus ''impoko'' {{IPA|/ímpoːɠo/}} "grass flower" (3 syllables). Moreover, sequences of syllabic ''m'' and homorganic ''m'' can occur, e.g. ''ummbila'' {{IPA|/úm̩mbíːla/}} "maize" (4 syllables).
Some of the main grammatical features of Zulu are:


Recent loanwords from languages such as English may violate these constraints, by including additional consonant clusters that are not native to Zulu, such as in ''igremu'' {{IPA|/iːgreːmu/}} "]". There may be some variation between speakers as to whether clusters are broken up by an ] or not, e.g. ''ikhompiyutha'' {{IPA|/iːkʰompijuːtʰa/}} or ''ikhompyutha'' {{IPA|/iːkʰompjuːtʰa/}} "computer".
* Constituent word order is ].
* Morphologically, it is an ] language.
* As in other Bantu languages, Zulu nouns are classified into fifteen ] (or '']''), with different prefixes for singular and plural. Various parts of speech that qualify a noun must agree with the noun according to its gender. These agreements usually reflect part of the original class that it is agreeing with. An example of this is the use of the class 'aba-':


===Prosody===
::'''B'''onke '''aba'''ntu '''aba'''qatha '''ba'''sepulazini '''ba'''yagawula.


====Stress====
::''All the strong people of the farm are felling (trees).''


Stress in Zulu words is mostly predictable and normally falls on the penultimate syllable of a word. It is accompanied by an allophonic lengthening of the vowel. When the final vowel of a word is long due to contraction, it receives the stress instead of the preceding syllable.
:Here, the various agreement that qualify the word 'abantu' (people) can be seen in effect.


Lengthening does not occur on all words in a sentence, however, but only those that are sentence- or phrase-final. Thus, for any word of at least two syllables, there are two different forms, one with penultimate length and one without it, occurring in complementary distribution. In some cases, there are morphemic alternations that occur as a result of word position as well. The remote demonstrative pronouns may appear with the suffix ''-ana'' when sentence-final, but only as ''-ā'' otherwise. Likewise, the recent past tense of verbs ends in ''-ile'' sentence-finally, but is reduced to ''-ē'' medially. Moreover, a falling tone can only occur on a long vowel, so the shortening has effects on tone as well.
* Its verbal system shows a combination of temporal and aspectual categories in their finite paradigm. Typically verbs have two stems, one for Present-Indefinite and another for Perfect. Different prefixes can be attached to these verbal stems to specify subject agreement and various degrees of past or future tense. For example, in the word ''uyathanda'' ("he loves"), the Present stem of the verb is ''-thanda'', the prefix ''u-'' expresses third-person singular subject and ''-ya-'' is a filler used in short sentences.
:Suffixes are also put into common use to show the causative or reciprocal forms of a verb stem.
* Most property words (words which are encoded as adjectives in English) are represented by things called relatives, such is the sentence ''umuntu ubomvu'' ("the person is red"), the word ''ubomvu'' (root ''-bomvu'') behaves similarly to a verb and uses the agreement prefix ''u-'', but there are subtle differences, for example, it does not use the prefix ''ya-''.


Some words, such as ideophones or interjections, can have stress that deviates from the regular pattern.
=== Nouns ===


====Tone====
The Zulu noun consists of two essential parts, the prefix and the stem, though the prefix can be analysed further. Using the prefixes, nouns can be grouped into noun classes, which are numbered consecutively, to ease comparison with other ]. So, for example, the nouns '''abafana''' (boys) and '''abangane''' (friends) belong to Class 2, characterised by the prefix '''aba-''', whereas '''isibongo''' (surname) and '''isihlahla''' (tree) belong to Class 7, characterised by the prefix '''isi-'''.


Like almost all other ] and other ], Zulu is ]. There are three main ''tonemes'': low, high and falling. Zulu is conventionally written without any indication of tone, but tone can be distinctive in Zulu. For example, the words "priest" and "teacher" are both spelt ''umfundisi'', but they are pronounced with different tones: {{IPA|/úm̩fúndisi/}} for the "priest" meaning, and {{IPA|/úm̩fundísi/}} for the "teacher" meaning.
Each noun class has a well-defined grammatical role, as well as a more loosely defined semantic one. The ] of the noun, whether singular or plural, is determined by the prefix; thus, all noun classes can be organised into singular and plural pairs. For example, all nouns of Class 7 (prefix '''isi-''', eg. '''''isigqoko''' (hat)'') have plurals from Class 8 (prefix '''izi-''', eg. '''''izigqoko''' (hats)'').


In principle, every syllable can be pronounced with either a high or a low tone. However, low tone does not behave the same as the other two, as high tones can "spread" into low-toned syllables while the reverse does not occur. A low tone is therefore better described as the ''absence'' of any toneme; it is a kind of default tone that is overridden by high or falling tones. The falling tone is a sequence of high-low and occurs only on long vowels. The penultimate syllable can also bear a falling tone when it is long due to the word's position in the phrase. However, when it shortens, the falling tone becomes disallowed in that position.{{clarify|reason=What happens to it?|date=December 2016}}
'''Examples:'''


In principle, every ] has an inherent underlying tone pattern which does not change regardless of where it appears in a word. However, like most other Bantu languages, Zulu has ], meaning that the pattern of tones acts more like a template to assign tones to individual syllables, rather than a direct representation of the pronounced tones themselves. Consequently, the relationship between underlying tone patterns and the tones that are pronounced can be quite complex. Underlying high tones tend to surface rightward from the syllables where they are underlyingly present, especially in longer words.
{| class="prettytable"
! Singular
! Plural
|-
| '''umu'''ntu (person)
| '''aba'''ntu (people)
|-
| '''u'''gogo (grandmother)
| '''o'''gogo (grandmothers)
|-
| '''i'''gama (name)
| '''ama'''gama (names)
|-
| '''in'''hlanzi (fish)
| '''izin'''hlanzi (fish)
|}


====Depressor consonants====
Classes 14 ('''ubu-''') and 15 ('''uku-''') form an exception to this rule, as they have no corresponding plural classes (if necessary, plurals of Class 14 are formed from class 6. nouns of Class 15 have no plural forms).


The breathy consonant phonemes in Zulu are ]s or depressors for short. Depressor consonants have a lowering effect on pitch, adding a non-phonemic low-tone onset to the normal tone of the syllable. Thus, in syllables with depressor consonants, high tones are realised as rising, and falling tones as rising-then-falling. In both cases, the pitch does not reach as high as in non-depressed syllables. The possible tones on a syllable with a voiceless consonant like ''hla'' are {{IPA|}}, and the possible tones of a breathy consonant syllable, like ''dla'', are {{IPA|}}. A depressor does not affect a syllable that's already low, but it blocks assimilation to a preceding high tone so that the tone of the depressor syllable and any following low-tone syllables stays low.
Furthermore, the class of the noun determines the forms of other parts of speech, i.e. verbs, adjectives, etc - their prefixes are derived from those of the substantive classes, and will be in agreement with them.


===Phonological processes===
'''Examples:'''


====Prenasalisation====
:'''um'''fana '''om'''khulu (large boy)
:'''isi'''hlahla '''esi'''khulu (large tree)


Prenasalisation occurs whenever a consonant is preceded by a homorganic nasal, either lexically or as a consequence of prefixation. The most notable case of the latter is the class 9 noun prefix ''in-'', which ends in a homorganic nasal. Prenasalisation triggers several changes in the following consonant, some of which are phonemic and others allophonic. The changes can be summed as follows:<ref>Rycroft & Ngcobo (1979) ''Say it in Zulu'', p. 6</ref><ref>''Zulu-English dictionary'', C.M. Doke & B.W. Vilakazi</ref>
In terms of semantics, groups of similar nouns belong to similar noun classes. For example, names and surnames are only found in class 1a. Designations of persons which are derived from verbs (e.g. singer, from ''sing'') are commonly in class 1, abstract concepts (e.g. beauty) in class 14, loanwords in classes 9 and 5, and nouns derived from the infinitives of verbs (e.g. eating, from ''eat'') in class 15.


{| class="wikitable"
The following table gives an overview of Zulu noun class, arranged according to singular-plural pairs.
! Normal

! Prenasalised
{| class="prettytable"
! Rule
!Class
!Singular
!Plural
|- |-
| {{IPA|/pʰ/}}, {{IPA|/tʰ/}}, {{IPA|/kʰ/}}
|1/2
| {{IPA|/mp/}}, {{IPA|/nt/}}, {{IPA|/ŋk/}}
|um(u)-<small><sup>1</sup></small>
| Aspiration is lost on obstruents.
|aba-<small><sup>2</sup></small>, abe-<small><sup>3</sup></small>
|- |-
| {{IPA|/ǀʰ/}}, {{IPA|/ǁʰ/}}, {{IPA|/ǃʰ/}}
|1a/2b
| {{IPA|/ᵑǀ/}}, {{IPA|/ᵑǁ/}}, {{IPA|/ᵑǃ/}}
|u-
| Aspiration is replaced by nasalisation of clicks.
|o-
|- |-
| {{IPA|/ǀ/}}, {{IPA|/ǁ/}}, {{IPA|/ǃ/}}
|3/4
| {{IPA|/ᵑǀʱ/}}, {{IPA|/ᵑǁʱ/}}, {{IPA|/ᵑǃʱ/}}
|um(u)-<small><sup>1</sup></small>
| Plain clicks become breathy nasal.
|imi-<small><sup>2</sup></small>
|- |-
| {{IPA|/ɓ/}}
|5/6
| {{IPA|/mb/}}
|i-
| Implosive becomes breathy.
|ama-, ame-<small><sup>4</sup></small>
|- |-
| {{IPA|/f/}}, {{IPA|/s/}}, {{IPA|/ʃ/}}, {{IPA|/ɬ/}}<br />{{IPA|/v/}}, {{IPA|/z/}}, {{IPA|/ɮ/}}
|7/8
| {{IPA|}}, {{IPA|}}, {{IPA|/ntʃ/}}, {{IPA|}}<br />{{IPA|}}, {{IPA|}}, {{IPA|}}
|is(i)-<small><sup>5</sup></small>
| Fricatives become affricates. Only phonemic, and thus reflected orthographically, for {{IPA|/ntʃ/}}.
|iz(i)-<small><sup>5</sup></small>
|- |-
| {{IPA|/h/}}, {{IPA|/ɦ/}}, {{IPA|/w/}}, {{IPA|/wʱ/}}
|9/10
| {{IPA|}}, {{IPA|}}, {{IPA|}}, {{IPA|}}
|iN-<small><sup>6</sup></small>
| Approximants are ]. This change is allophonic, and not reflected in the orthography.
|iziN-<small><sup>6</sup></small>
|- |-
| {{IPA|/j/}}
|11/10
| {{IPA|/ɲ/}}
|u-
| Palatal approximant becomes palatal nasal.
|iziN-<small><sup>6</sup></small>
|- |-
| {{IPA|/l/}}
|14
| {{IPA|/l/}} or rarely {{IPA|/nd/}}
|ubu-
| The outcome {{IPA|/nd/}} is a fossilised outcome from the time when {{IPA|/d/}} and {{IPA|/l/}} were still one phoneme. See ].
|(ama-)<small><sup>7</sup></small>
|- |-
| {{IPA|/m/}}, {{IPA|/n/}}, {{IPA|/ɲ/}}
|15
| {{IPA|/m/}}, {{IPA|/n/}}, {{IPA|/ɲ/}}
|uku-
| No change when the following consonant is itself a nasal.
|
|} |}


====Tone assimilation====
<small><sup>1</sup></small> '''umu-''' replaces '''um-''' before monosyllabic stems, e.g. '''<u>umu</u>ntu''' (person).


Zulu has tonic ]: high tones tend to spread allophonically to following low-tone syllables, raising their pitch to a level just below that of adjacent high-tone syllables. A toneless syllable between a high-tone syllable and another tonic syllable assimilates to that high tone. That is, if the preceding syllable ends on a high tone and the following syllable begins with a high tone (because it is high or falling), the intermediate toneless syllable has its pitch raised as well. When the preceding syllable is high but the following is toneless, the medial toneless syllable adopts a high-tone onset from the preceding syllable, resulting in a falling tone contour.
<small><sup>2</sup></small> '''ab-''' and '''im-''' replace '''aba-''' and '''imi-''' respectively before stems beginning in a vowel, e.g. '''<u>ab</u>ongameli''' (president).


For example, the English word ''spoon'' was borrowed into Zulu as {{lang|zu|isipunu}}, phonemically {{IPA|/ísipúnu/}}. The second syllable {{lang|zu|si}} assimilates to the surrounding high tones, raising its pitch, so that it is pronounced {{IPA|}} sentence-finally. If tone pitch is indicated with numbers, with 1 highest and 9 lowest pitch, then the pitches of each syllable can be denoted as 2-4-3-9.<ref>''Zulu-English Dictionary'', Doke, 1958</ref> The second syllable is thus still lower in pitch than both of the adjacent syllables.
<small><sup>3</sup></small> '''abe-''' occurs only in rare cases, e.g. in '''abeSuthu''' (the Sotho) or '''abeLungu''' (the Whites, the Europeans).


====Tone displacement====
<small><sup>4</sup></small> '''ame-''' occurs only in one instance, namely '''amehlo''' (eyes) the plural of '''iso''' (eye; originally: '''ihlo''').


Depressor consonants have an effect called ''tone displacement''. Tone displacement occurs whenever a depressor occurs with a high tone, and causes the tone on the syllable to shift rightward onto the next syllable. If the next syllable is long, it gets a falling tone, otherwise a regular high tone. If the penultimate syllable becomes high (not falling), the final syllable ] and becomes low if it was not already. Tone displacement is blocked under the following conditions:
<small><sup>5</sup></small> '''is-''' and '''iz-''' replace '''isi-''' and '''izi-''' respectively before stems beginning with a vowel, e.g. '''<u>is</u>andla/<u>iz</u>andla''' (hand/hands).
* When the syllable has a long vowel.
* When the following syllable also has a depressor consonant.
* When the following syllable is the final syllable and is short.


Whenever tone displacement is blocked, this results in a depressor syllable with a high tone, which will have the low-tone onset as described above. When the following syllable already has a high or falling tone, the tone disappears from the syllable as if it had been shifted away, but the following syllable's tone is not modified.
<small><sup>6</sup></small> The placeholder '''N''' in the prefixes '''iN-''' and '''iziN-''' for '''m''', '''n''' or no letter at all, i.e. in classes 9 and 10 there are three different prefixes, though only one per noun stem. Examples:


Some examples:
iN- = i-: '''i'''Mali (money)
* {{lang|zu|izipunu}} "spoons", the plural of {{lang|zu|isipunu}} from the previous section, is phonemically {{IPA|/ízipúnu/}}. Because {{IPA|/z/}} is a depressor consonant, tone assimilation is prevented. Consequently, the word is pronounced as {{IPA|}} sentence-finally, with a low tone in the second syllable.
iN- = im-: '''im'''pela (truth)
* {{lang|zu|izintombi}} "girls" is phonemically {{IPA|/izíntombí/}}. {{IPA|/z/}} is a depressor, and is not blocked, so the tone shifts to the third syllable. This syllable can be either long or short depending on sentence position. When long, the pronunciation is {{IPA|}}, with a falling tone. However, when the third syllable is short, the tone is high, and dissimilation of the final syllable occurs, resulting in {{IPA|}}.
iN- = in-: '''in'''hlanzi (fish)
* {{lang|zu|nendoda}} "with a man" is phonemically {{IPA|/nʱéndoda/}}. {{IPA|/nʱ/}} is a depressor, but so is {{IPA|/d/}}, so tone displacement is blocked. Consequently, the pronunciation is {{IPA|}}, with rising pitch in the first syllable due to the low-onset effect.


====Palatalization====
<small><sup>7</sup></small> Rare, see above.


] is a change that affects labial and alveolar consonants whenever they are immediately followed by {{IPA|/j/}}. While palatalization occurred historically, it is still productive and occurs as a result of the addition of suffixes beginning with {{IPA|/j/}}. A frequent example is the diminutive suffix {{lang|zu|-yana}}.
=== Verbs ===


Moreover, Zulu does not generally tolerate sequences of a labial consonant plus {{IPA|/w/}}. Whenever {{IPA|/w/}} follows a labial consonant, it changes to {{IPA|/j/}}, which then triggers palatalization of the consonant. This effect can be seen in the locative forms of nouns ending in {{lang|zu|-o}} or {{lang|zu|-u}}, which change to {{lang|zu|-weni}} and {{lang|zu|-wini}} respectively in the locative. If a labial consonant immediately precedes, palatalization is triggered. The change also occurs in nouns beginning in {{lang|zu|ubu-}} with a stem beginning with a vowel.
In contrast to the noun, the Zulu verb has a variable number of components, which are arranged in sequence according to a defined set of rules. Examples of these include:


The following changes occur as a result of palatalization:
* a subject prefix (SP), which agrees with the subject of the sentence
* a temporal morpheme, which indicates the ] of the verb
* an object prefix (OP), which agrees with the object of the sentence
* the verb stem (VS), which carries the underlying meaning of the verb
* a suffix, which can signify various aspects of the verb (e.g. tense or ])


{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
The verb stem and the suffix are always present, but the other parts are optional, i.e. their presence depends on the function of the verb in the sentence.
! Original<br />consonant

! Palatalized<br />consonant
==== Simple verb stems ====
! Examples

Simple verb stems are ones to which no suffixes are attached that would alter the basic meaning of the verb. Examples include:

{|
|'''-w-'''
|to fall
|- |-
| {{IPA|pʰ}}
|'''-dl-'''
| rowspan="2" | {{IPA|ʃ}}
|to eat
| style="text-align: left;" |
* {{lang|zu|impuphu}} → {{lang|zu|impushana}} (diminutive)
* {{lang|zu|izipho}} → {{lang|zu|ezisheni}} (locative)
|- |-
| {{IPA|tʰ}}
|'''-enz-'''
| style="text-align: left;" |
|to make, to do
* {{lang|zu|umuthi}} → {{lang|zu|umshana}} (diminutive; also {{lang|zu|umthana}})
|- |-
| {{IPA|p}}
|'''-nqamul-'''
| rowspan="3" | {{IPA|tʃʼ}}
|to break
| style="text-align: left;" |
* {{lang|zu|umtapo}} → {{lang|zu|emtatsheni}} (locative)
|- |-
| {{IPA|t}}
|'''-os-'''
| style="text-align: left;" |
|to cook, to roast
* {{lang|zu|ikati}} → {{lang|zu|ikatshana}} (diminutive)
|- |-
| {{IPA|bʱ }}
|'''-siz-'''
| style="text-align: left;" |
|to help
* {{lang|zu|intaba}} → {{lang|zu|intatshana}} (diminutive)
|}
* {{lang|zu|ingubo}} → {{lang|zu|engutsheni}} (locative)

* {{lang|zu|ubu-}} + {{lang|zu|-ani}} → {{lang|zu|utshani}} ({{lang|zu|ubu-}} + vowel)
==== Complex verb stems ====

Complex verb stems are derived from simple verb stems by attaching various suffixes, thus changing the meaning. Thus, we can take the stem '''-enz''' (to make, to do) and apply a few common suffixes to get different shades of meaning. E.g.:

{|
| -enz-
|to make, to do
|- |-
| {{IPA|b}}
| -enz'''an'''-
| rowspan="2" | {{IPA|dʒ}}
|to do something together
| style="text-align: left;" |
* {{lang|zu|isigubhu}} → {{lang|zu|isigujana}} (diminutive)
|- |-
| {{IPA|d}}
| -enz'''ek'''-
| style="text-align: left;" |
|to be doable i.e. possible
* {{lang|zu|incwadi}} → {{lang|zu|incwajana}} (diminutive; also {{lang|zu|incwadana}})
|- |-
| {{IPA|m}}
| -enz'''el'''-
| rowspan="2" | {{IPA|ɲ}}
|to do something for someone
| style="text-align: left;" |
* {{lang|zu|inkomo}} → {{lang|zu|inkonyana}} (diminutive)
* {{lang|zu|umlomo}} → {{lang|zu|emlonyeni}} (locative)
|- |-
| {{IPA|n}}
| -enz'''is'''-
| style="text-align: left;" |
|to bring someone for doing something
* {{lang|zu|inyoni}} → {{lang|zu|inyonyana}} (diminutive)
|- |-
| {{IPA|mp}}
| -enz'''iw'''-
| rowspan="2" | {{IPA|ntʃʼ}}
|to be made, to be done
| style="text-align: left;" |
|}
* {{lang|zu|inswempe}} → {{lang|zu|inswentshana}} (diminutive)

|-
==== Subject prefixes ====
| {{IPA|nt}}

| style="text-align: left;" |
In Zulu, a subject prefix corresponds to the ] of ], such as ''I'' or ''he''. Unlike personal pronouns, however, Zulu subject prefix cannot stand alone, but must be attached to a verb. Zulu does possess a set of independent personal pronouns; however, these are only used to emphasise the subject to whom they refer.
* {{lang|zu|umkhonto}} → {{lang|zu|umkhontshwana}} (diminutive)

|-
An example with the subject prefix '''si-''' and the personal pronoun '''thina''' (both meaning '''we'''):
| {{IPA|mb}}

| rowspan="2" | {{IPA|ndʒ}}
{|
| style="text-align: left;" |
|'''Si'''hamba manje.
* {{lang|zu|ithambo}} → {{lang|zu|ethanjeni}} (locative)
|'''We''' are going now.
|- |-
| {{IPA|nd}}
|'''Thina''' '''si'''hamba manje.
| style="text-align: left;" |
|'''''We''''' are going now.
* {{lang|zu|isondo}} → {{lang|zu|isonjwana}} (diminutive; also {{lang|zu|isondwana}})
|} |}


==Orthography==
There is a unique subject prefix for each ] and each noun class.
Zulu employs the 26 letters of the ]. However, some of the letters have different pronunciations than in English. Additional phonemes are written using sequences of multiple letters. Tone, stress and vowel length are not indicated.


{| class="wikitable"
{|
! Letter(s)
|
! Phoneme(s)
{| class="prettytable"
! Example
! colspan="3" | initial SP
|- |-
! a
!Person
| {{IPA|/a/}}
!Singular
| '']'' {{IPA|/ámáːnzi/}} "water"
!Plural
|- |-
! b
|1st
| {{IPAslink|ɓ}}
|ngi-
| '']'' {{IPA|/úɓaːɓá/}} "my/our father"
|si-
|- |-
! bh
|2nd
| {{IPAslink|b}}
|u-
| '']'' {{IPA|/úɠubâːla/}} "to write"
|ni-
|- |-
! c
!Class
| {{IPAslink|ǀ}}
!Singular
| '']'' {{IPA|/îːǀíːǀi/}} "earring"
!Plural
|- |-
! ch
|1/2
| {{IPA|/ǀʰ/}}
|u-
| '']'' {{IPA|/uɠúǀʰaːza/}} "to fascinate/explain"
|ba-
|- |-
! d
|1a/2b
| {{IPAslink|d}}
|u-
| '']'' {{IPA|/íːdaːda/}} "duck"
|ba-
|- |-
! dl
|3/4
| {{IPAslink|ɮ}}
|u-
| '']'' {{IPA|/úɠuːɮá/}} "to eat"
|i-
|- |-
! e
|5/6
| {{IPA|/e/}}
|li-
| '']'' {{IPA|/îːɓéːle/}} "breast"
|a-
|- |-
! f
|7/8
| {{IPAslink|f}}
|si-
| '']'' {{IPA|/íːfu/}} "cloud"
|zi-
|- |-
! g
|9/10
| {{IPAslink|ɡ}}
|i-
| '']'' {{IPA|/úɡóːɡo/}} "grandmother"
|zi-
|- |-
! gc
|11/10
| {{IPA|/ᶢǀʱ/}}
|lu-
| '']'' {{IPA|/isíᶢǀʱiːno/}} "end"
|zi-
|- |-
! gq
|14
| {{IPA|/ᶢǃʱ/}}
| colspan="2" | bu-
| '']'' {{IPA|/umúᶢǃʱiɓéːlo/}} "Saturday"
|- |-
! gx
|15
| {{IPA|/ᶢǁʱ/}}
| colspan="2" | ku-
| '']'' {{IPA|/uɠúᶢǁʱoːɓa/}} "to stamp"
|}
|
{| class="prettytable"
! colspan="3" | non-initial SP<sup>-</sup>
|- |-
! h
!Person
| {{IPAslink|h}}
!Singular
| '']'' {{IPA|/úɠuháːmba/}} "to go"
!Plural
|- |-
! hh
|1st
| {{IPAslink|ɦ}}
| -ngi-
| '']'' {{IPA|/îːɦáːʃi/}} "horse"
| -si-
|- |-
! hl
|2nd
| {{IPAslink|ɬ}}
| -wu-
| '']'' {{IPA|/uɠúɬaːla/}} "to sit"
| -ni-
|- |-
! i
!Class
| {{IPA|/i/}}
!Singular
| '']'' {{IPA|/ímíːni/}} "daytime"
!Plural
|- |-
! j
|1/2
| {{IPAslink|dʒ}}
| -ka-
| '']'' {{IPA|/úːdʒu/}} "honey"
| -ba-
|- |-
! rowspan="2" | k
|1a/2b
| {{IPAslink|k}}
| -ka-
| '']'' {{IPA|/îːkáːti/}} "cat"
| -ba-
|- |-
| {{IPA|/ɠ/}}
|3/4
| '']'' {{IPA|/uɠúːza/}} "to come"
| -wu-
| -yi-
|- |-
! kh
|5/6
| {{IPA|/kʰ/}}
| -li-
| '']'' {{IPA|/îːkʰâːnda/}} "head"
| -wa-
|- |-
! kl
|7/8
| {{IPAslink|kx}}
| -si-
| '']'' {{IPA|/umukxómeːlo/}} "prize"
| -zi-
|- |-
! l
|9/10
| {{IPAslink|l}}
| -yi-
| '']'' {{IPA|/úɠuláːla/}} "sleep"
| -zi-
|- |-
! rowspan="2" | m
|11/10
| {{IPAslink|m}}
| -lu-
| '']'' {{IPA|/ímaːlí/}} "money"
| -zi-
|- |-
| {{IPA|/mʱ/}}
|14
| '']'' {{IPA|/úmʱáːma/}} "my/our mother"
| colspan="2" | -bu-
|- |-
! mb
|15
| {{IPA|/mb/}}
| colspan="2" | -ku-
| '']'' {{IPA|/ímbuːɓé/}} "lion"
|}
|}

The non-initial subject prefixes (SP<sup>-</sup>) are used when a further prefix is attached to the SP, for example in the negative of certain tenses.

==== Object prefixes ====

In Zulu, the object prefix is used to designate the ] or ] of a verb (formal Zulu does not distinguish between these two cases). Just like the subject prefixes, object prefixes cannot stand independently, but must be attached to a verb stem. Independent personal pronouns can be used in conjunction with object prefixes as well, serving, again, to shift the emphases of the sentences.

Examples with the OP '''-m-''' (him/her/it) and the personal pronoun '''yena''' (him/her/it):

{|
| Ngi'''m'''bona.
| I see '''him'''.
|- |-
! rowspan="2" | n
| Ngi'''m'''nika isipho.
| {{IPAslink|n}}
| I give '''her''' a gift.
| '']'' {{IPA|/úniːna/}} "his/her/their mother"
|- |-
| {{IPA|/nʱ/}}
| Ngi'''m'''bona '''yena'''.
| '']'' {{IPA|/nʱéndoːda/}} "with a man"
| I see '''''him'''''.
|}

There is a unique object prefix for each person and noun class.

{| class="prettytable"
! colspan="3" | Object prefixes
|- |-
! nc
!Person
| {{IPA|/ᵑǀ/}}
!Singular
| '']'' {{IPA|/íᵑǀwáːᵑǀwa/}} "sour corn meal"
!Plural
|- |-
! ng
|1st
| {{IPA|/ŋ(ɡ)/}}
| -ngi-
| '']'' {{IPA|/ínɡáːne/}} "child"
| -si-
|- |-
! ngc
|2nd
| {{IPA|/ᵑǀʱ/}}
| -ku-
| '']'' {{IPA|/íᵑǀʱoːsí/}} "a bit"
| -ni-
|- |-
! ngq
!Classe
| {{IPA|/ᵑǃʱ/}}
!Singular
| '']'' {{IPA|/íᵑǃʱoːndo/}} "brain"
!Plural
|- |-
! ngx
|1/2
| {{IPA|/ᵑǁʱ/}}
| -m-
| '']'' {{IPA|/íᵑǁʱéːɲe/}} "part"
| -ba-
|- |-
! nj
|1a/2b
| {{IPA|/ɲdʒ/}}
| -m-
| '']'' {{IPA|/îːɲdʒá/}} "dog"
| -ba-
|- |-
! nk
|3/4
| {{IPA|/ŋk/}}
| -wu-
| '']'' {{IPA|/íŋkoːmó/}} "cow"
| -yi-
|- |-
! nq
|5/6
| {{IPA|/ᵑǃ/}}
| -li-
| '']'' {{IPA|/íᵑǃóːla/}} "cart"
| -wa-
|- |-
! ntsh
|7/8
| {{IPA|/ɲtʃ/}}
| -si-
| '']'' {{IPA|/îːɲtʃé/}} "ostrich"
| -zi-
|- |-
! nx
|9/10
| {{IPA|/ᵑǁ/}}
| -yi-
| '']'' {{IPA|/íːᵑǁeːɓa/}} "wound"
| -zi-
|- |-
! ny
|11/10
| {{IPAslink|ɲ}}
| -lu-
| '']'' {{IPA|/íɲoːni/}} "bird"
| -zi-
|- |-
! o
|14
| {{IPA|/o/}}
| colspan="2" | -bu-
| '']'' {{IPA|/úːpʰoːndo/}} "horn"
|- |-
! p
|15
| {{IPAslink|p}}
| colspan="2" | -ku-
| '']'' {{IPA|/îːpíːpi/}} "pipe for smoking"
|}

=== The imperative ===

'''Formation of the ]:'''
{| class="prettytable"
|
! without object
! with object
|- |-
! ph
! Singular:
| {{IPA|/pʰ/}}
| (yi) - VS - a
| '']'' {{IPA|/uɠúpʰeːɠa/}} "to cook"
| OP - VS - e
|- |-
! Plural: ! q
| {{IPAslink|ǃ}}
| (yi) - VS - ani
| '']'' {{IPA|/íːǃaːǃá/}} "polecat"
| OP - VS - eni
|}

The only exception to this is the common verb stem -z-, ''to come'', whose singular and plural imperative forms are '''woza''' and '''wozani''' respectively.

'''Examples:'''
{| class="prettytable"
|
! colspan="2" | without object
! colspan="2" | with object
|- |-
! Stem ! qh
| {{IPA|/ǃʰ/}}
! Singular
| '']'' {{IPA|/îːǃʰúːde/}} "rooster"
! Plural
! Singular
! Plural
|- |-
! r
| valign="top" | -dl-
| {{IPAslink|r}}
| Yidla!
| '']'' {{IPA|/iːrésiːpʰi/}} "recipe"
''Eat!''
| Yidlani!
''Eat!''
| '''Yi'''dle (inhlanzi)!
''Eat '''it''' (the fish)!''
| '''Yi'''dleni (inhlanzi)!
''Eat '''it''' (the fish; inhlanzi: cl. 9; OP: -yi-)!''
|- |-
! s
| valign="top" | -enz-
| {{IPAslink|s}}
| Yenza!
| '']'' {{IPA|/isíːsu/}} "stomach"
''Do''
| Yenzani!
''Do!''
| '''Kw'''enze!
''Do '''this'''!''
| '''Kw'''enzeni!
''Do '''this'''!''
|- |-
! sh
| valign="top" | -siz-
| {{IPAslink|ʃ}}
| Siza!
| '']'' {{IPA|/îːʃûːmi/}} "ten"
''Help!''
| Sizani!
''Help!''
| '''M'''size!
''Help '''him'''!''
| '''M'''sizeni!
''Help '''him'''!''
|}

=== The infinitive ===

'''Formation of the ]:'''

:Aff.: uku - (OP) - VS - a
:Neg.: uku - nga - (OP) - VS - i

'''Examples:'''

{| class="prettytable"
! Verb stem
! Infinitive
! Meaning
|- |-
! t
| -w-
| {{IPAslink|t}}
| ukuwa
| '']'' {{IPA|/îːtíːje/}} "tea"
| to fall
|- |-
! th
|
| {{IPA|/tʰ/}}
| ukungawa
| '']'' {{IPA|/úɠutʰáːtʰa/}} "to take"
| not to fall (''cf.'' note)
|- |-
! ts
| -dl-
| {{IPAslink|ts}}
| ukudla
| '']'' {{IPA|/íːtswaːjí/}} "salt"
| to eat
|- |-
! tsh
|
| {{IPAslink|tʃ}}
| ukungadli
| '']'' {{IPA|/útʃaːní/}} "grass"
| not to eat
|- |-
! u
|
| {{IPA|/u/}}
| ukuyidla
| '']'' {{IPA|/úɓusûːɠu/}} "night"
| to eat it (e.g. inhlanzi, the fish; OP: -yi-)
|- |-
! v
|
| {{IPAslink|v}}
| ukungayidli
| '']'' {{IPA|/uɠúvaːla/}} "to close"
| not to eat it
|- |-
! rowspan="2" | w
| -enz-
| {{IPAslink|w}}
| ukwenza
| '']'' {{IPA|/uɠúweːla/}} "to cross"
| to do
|- |-
| {{IPA|/wʱ/}}
|
| '']'' {{IPA|/wʱúːtʰâːndo/}} "It's love."
| ukungenzi
| not to do
|- |-
! x
| -os-
| {{IPAslink|ǁ}}
| ukosa
| '']'' {{IPA|/íːǁoːǁo/}} "frog"
| to roast
|- |-
! xh
|
| {{IPA|/ǁʰ/}}
| ukungosi
| '']'' {{IPA|/úɠuǁʰáːsa/}} "to support"
| not to roast
|}

Several sound changes occur, when two vowels occur together. These include:

{|
| '''-nga-'''
| →
| '''-ng-'''
| before vowels
|-
| '''uku-'''
| →
| '''uk-'''
| before '''o'''
|-
| '''uku-'''
| →
| '''ukw-'''
| before other vowels - this sound change occurs automatically in speech.
|}

Note: Furthermore, the suffixe '''-a''' will be found with verb stems which end in '''w''', never '''-i'''; e.g.: uku-nga-w-''a''.

=== The present ===

'''Formation of the ]:'''

:'''Aff.:''' SP - (ya) - (OP) - VS - a
:'''Neg.:''' a - SP<small><sup>-</sup></small> - (OP) - VS - i

The form '''-ya-''' is found when:

* the verb is the last word in the sentence
* the verb contains an object prefix, and the object follows the verb
* the speaker wants to emphasise the factuality of the statement.

'''Examples:'''
{|
| Uyahamba.
| He is going.
|-
| Uhamba ekuseni.
| He is going in the morning.
|-
| Akahambi.
| He is not going.
|-
| Uyangisiza.
| He is helping me.
|- |-
! rowspan="2" | y
| Ungisiza namhlanje.
| {{IPAslink|j}}
| He is helping me today.
| '']'' {{IPA|/újiːsé/}} "his/her/their father"
|- |-
| {{IPA|/jʱ/}}
| Akangisizi.
| '']'' {{IPA|/jʱintómbazâːne/}} "It's a girl"
| He isn't helping me.
|- |-
! z
| Usiza uyise. <br>Uyamsiza uyise.
| {{IPAslink|z}}
| He is helping his father. <br>
| '']'' {{IPA|/umúzuːzú/}} "moment"
|} |}


Reference works and older texts may use additional letters. A common former practice was to indicate the implosive {{IPA|/ɓ/}} using the special letter {{lang|zu|ɓ}}, while the digraph {{lang|zu|bh}} would then be simply written as {{lang|zu|b}}. Some references may also write {{lang|zu|h}} after letters to indicate that they are of the depressor variety, e.g. {{lang|zu|mh}}, {{lang|zu|nh}}, {{lang|zu|yh}}, a practice that is standard in ] orthography.
==== The participial form ====


Very early texts, from the early 20th century or before, tend to omit the distinction between plain and aspirated voiceless consonants, writing the latter without the {{lang|zu|h}}.
'''Formation of the ]:'''


Nouns are written with their prefixes as one orthographical word. If the prefix ends with a vowel (as most do) and the noun stem also begins with a vowel, a hyphen is inserted in between, e.g. {{lang|zu|i-Afrika}}. This occurs only with loanwords.
:'''Aff.:''' SP<small><sup>P</sup></small> - (OP) - VS - a
:'''Neg.:''' SP<small><sup>P</sup></small> - nga - (OP) - VS - i


==Morphology==
In the participial form, the subject prefixes (SP) '''u-''', '''ba-''' and '''a-''' of the classes 1, 1a, 2, 2b and 6 become '''e-''', '''be-''' and '''e-''' respectively (SP<small><sup>P</sup></small>). The participial form is used, among others:
{{main|Zulu grammar}}
Here are some of the main features of Zulu:


* Word order is ].
* to indicate simultaneity
* Morphologically, it is an ].
* in subordinate clauses with certain ].
* As in other Bantu languages, Zulu nouns are classified into ] or '']'' (16 in Zulu), with different prefixes for singular and plural. Various parts of speech that qualify a noun must agree with the noun according to its gender. Such agreements usually reflect part of the original class with which it is agreeing. An example is the use of the class "aba-":
* with certain auxiliary verbs.


::{{lang|zu|'''B'''onke '''aba'''ntu '''aba'''qatha '''ba'''sepulazini '''ba'''yagawula}}.
'''Examples:'''


::''All the strong people on the farm are felling (trees).''
{|
| Ukhuluma ''edla''.
| He talks ''while he eats'' (''Eating'', he talks).
|-
| Ngambona ''engasebenzi''.
| I saw ''that he was not working''
|}


:The various agreements that qualify the word "abantu" (people) can be seen in effect.
==== The subjunctive ====


* Its verbal system shows a combination of temporal and aspectual categories in their finite paradigm. Typically verbs have two stems, one for present-undefinite and another for perfect. Different prefixes can be attached to these verbal stems to specify subject agreement and various degrees of past or future tense. For example, in the word {{lang|zu|uyathanda}} ("he loves"), the present stem of the verb is {{lang|zu|-thanda}}, the prefix {{lang|zu|u-}} expresses the third-person singular subject and {{lang|zu|-ya-}} is a filler that is used in short sentences.
'''Formation of the ]:'''
:Suffixes are also put into common use to show the causative or reciprocal forms of a verb stem.
* Most property words (words encoded as adjectives in English) are represented by relatives. In the sentence {{lang|zu|umuntu ubomvu}} ("the person is red"), the word {{lang|zu|ubomvu}} (root {{lang|zu|-bomvu}}) behaves like a verb and uses the agreement prefix {{lang|zu|u-}}. however, there are subtle differences; for example, it does not use the prefix {{lang|zu|ya-}}.


===Morphology of root ''Zulu''===
:'''Aff.:''' SP<small><sup>S</sup></small> - (OP) - VS - e
The root can be combined with several prefixes and thus create other words. For example, here is a table with some words constructed from the roots -{{lang|zu|Zulu}} and {{lang|zu|-ntu}} (the root for ''person/people''):
:'''Neg.:''' SP<small><sup>S</sup></small> - nga - (OP) - VS - i


{|class="wikitable"
In the subjunctive, the subject prefix '''u-''' of classes 1 and 1a (SP) becomes '''a-''' (SP<small><sup>S</sup></small>). The subjunctive is used
! Prefix !! {{lang|zu|-zulu}} !! {{lang|zu|-ntu}}

* in wishes and polite requests
* in sequences of requests
* with certain auxiliary verbs

'''Examples:'''

{|
| Ngamtshela ''ahambe''.
| I told him ''he should go''.
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|'''um(u)'''}} || {{lang|zu|um|italic=no}}{{lang|zu|Zulu}} (a Zulu person) || {{lang|zu|umu|italic=no}}{{lang|zu|ntu}} (a person)
| Woza lapha ''uzame'' futhi!
| Come here and ''try it'' again!
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|'''ama, aba'''}} || {{lang|zu|ama|italic=no}}{{lang|zu|Zulu}} (Zulu people) || {{lang|zu|aba|italic=no}}{{lang|zu|ntu}} (people)
| Umane ''ahleke''.
| He only ''laughs''.
|}

=== The perfect ===

The ] describes the recent, although what is meant by 'recent' depends on the speaker. In the colloquial language, the perfect is often preferred to the preterite.

'''Formation of the perfect:'''

:'''Aff.:''' SP - (OP) - VS - e/ile
:'''Neg.:''' a - SP<sup>-</sup> - (OP) - VS - anga

The long form in '''-ile''' is found when the verb is the last word in the sentence or clause, otherwise the short form in '''-e''' is used, with the '''-e-''' accented.

'''Examples:'''
{|
| Sihambile.
| We went.
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|'''isi'''}} || {{lang|zu|isi|italic=no}}{{lang|zu|Zulu}} (the Zulu language) || {{lang|zu|isi|italic=no}}{{lang|zu|ntu}} (culture, heritage, mankind)
| Sihambe izolo.
| We went yesterday.
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|'''ubu'''}} || {{lang|zu|ubuZulu|italic=no}} (personification/Zulu-like tendencies) || {{lang|zu|ubu|italic=no}}{{lang|zu|ntu}} (humanity, compassion)
| Asihambanga.
| We did not go.
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|'''kwa'''}} || {{lang|zu|kwa|italic=no}}{{lang|zu|Zulu}} (place of the Zulu people) || –
| Asimbonanga.
| We have not seen him/her.
|}

==== The stative ====

A range of Zulu verbs indicate a change of state or a process, which tends towards some final goal (cf. ]). To indicate that this final state has been achieved, the ], which is related to the perfect, is used.

'''Formation of the stative:'''

:'''Aff.:''' SP - VS - ile
:'''Neg.:''' a - SP<sup>-</sup> - VS - ile

'''Examples:'''
{|
| Uyafa.
| He is dying.
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|'''i(li)'''}} || {{lang|zu|i|italic=no}}{{lang|zu|zulu}} (the weather/sky/heaven) || –
| Ufile.
| He is dead.
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|'''pha'''}} || {{lang|zu|phe|italic=no}}{{lang|zu|zulu}} (on top) || –
| Ngiyalamba.
| I am becoming hungry.
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|'''e'''}} || {{lang|zu|e|italic=no}}{{lang|zu|zul}}{{lang|zu|wini|italic=no}} (in, at, to, from heaven) || –
| Ngilambile.
| I am hungry.
|- |-
| Siyabuya.
| We are turning back.
|-
| Sibuyile.
| We have returned.
|} |}


==Sample phrases and text==
Note that the form verbs with certain endings, the ending '''-ile''' is not used. These are:
The following is a list of phrases that can be used when one visits a region whose primary language is Zulu:


{| class="prettytable" {| class = "wikitable"
|+
! Verb stem
! Stative ! Zulu
! English
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Sawubona}} || ''Hello'', to one person
| -al-, -el-
| -ele |-
| {{lang|zu|Sanibonani}} || ''Hello'', to a group of people
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Unjani?}} / {{lang|zu|Ninjani?}} || ''How are you (sing.)? / How are you (pl.)?''
| -an-, -en-
| -ene
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Ngiyaphila}} / {{lang|zu|Siyaphila}} || ''I'm okay / We're okay''
| -am-, -em-
| -eme
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Ngiyabonga (kakhulu)}} || ''Thanks (a lot)''
| -ath-, -eth-
| -ethe
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Ngubani igama lakho?}} || ''What is your name?''
| -as-, -es-
| -ese
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Igama lami ngu...}} || ''My name is...''
| -aw-<small><sup>1</sup></small>
| -ewe
|}

<small><sup>1</sup></small> This is a unique case, namely the irregular passive '''-bulaw-''' from '''-bulal-'''.

=== The preterite ===

The ] is used to indicate the distant past, the past preceding the perfect, and as a narrative perfect.

'''Formation of the preterite:'''

:'''Aff.:''' '''SP + a''' - (OP) - VS - a
:'''Neg.:''' a - SP<sup>-</sup> - (OP) - VS - anga (''cf.'' the perfect tense)

In the affirmative, because of the merger of the SP with a following '''a''' in the spoken language, the following subject prefixes result for the preterite:

{| class="prettytable"
!Person
!Singular
!Plural
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Isikhathi sithini?}} || ''What's the time?''
|1.
|nga- |-
| {{lang|zu|Ngingakusiza?}} || ''Can I help you?''
|sa-
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Uhlala kuphi?}} || ''Where do you stay?''
|2.
|wa-
|na-
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Uphumaphi?}} || ''Where are you from?''
!Class
!Singular
!Plural
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Hamba kahle}} / {{lang|zu|Sala kahle}} || ''Go well / Stay well'', used as goodbye. The person staying says "{{lang|zu|Hamba kahle}}", and the person leaving says "{{lang|zu|Sala kahle}}". Other translations include ''Go gently'' and ''Walk in peace''.<ref></ref>
|1/2
|wa-
|ba-
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Hambani kahle}} / {{lang|zu|Salani kahle}} || ''Go well / Stay well'', to a group of people
|1a/2b
|wa-
|ba-
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Eish!}} || ''Wow!'' (No real European equivalent, used in ]) (you could try a semi-expletive, such as ''oh my gosh'' or ''what the heck''. It expresses a notion of shock and surprise)
|3/4
|wa-
|ya-
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Hhayibo}} || ''No! / Stop! / No way!'' (used in South African English too)
|5/6
|la-
|a-
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Yebo}} || ''Yes''
|7/8
|sa-
|za-
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Cha}} || ''No''
|9/10
|ya-
|za-
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Angazi}} || ''I don't know''
|11/10
|lwa-
|za-
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Uyasikhuluma isiNgisi na?}} || ''Do you speak English?''
|14
| colspan="2" | ba-
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Ngisaqala ukufunda isiZulu}} || ''I've just started learning Zulu''
|15
| colspan="2" | kwa-
|}

'''Examples:'''
{|
| Sahamba.
| We went.
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Uqonde ukuthini?}} || ''What do you mean?''
| Asihambanga.
| We did not go.
|- |-
| {{lang|zu|Ngiyakuthanda.}} || ''I love you''
| Asimbonanga.
| We did not see him/her.
|} |}


The following is from the preamble to the ]:
==== The consecutive ====


'''Formation of the consecutive:'''

:'''Aff.:''' '''SP + a''' - (OP) - VS - a
:'''Neg.:''' '''SP + a''' - nga - (OP) - VS - a

The consecutive is used to describe a sequence of consecutive events in the preterite, and differs from it only in the negative.

'''Examples:'''
{| {|
|
| Wavuka wagqoka wahamba.
{{lang|zu|Thina, bantu baseNingizimu Afrika, Siyakukhumbula ukucekelwa phansi kwamalungelo okwenzeka eminyakeni eyadlula; Sibungaza labo abahluphekela ubulungiswa nenkululeko kulo mhlaba wethu; Sihlonipha labo abasebenzela ukwakha nokuthuthukisa izwe lethu; futhi Sikholelwa ekutheni iNingizimu Afrika ingeyabo bonke abahlala kuyo, sibumbene nakuba singafani.}}
| He woke up, dressed, and went out.
|- |}
'''Translation:'''
| Wabaleka wangabheka emuva.
{|
| He ran away and did not look back.
|
We, the people of South Africa, Recognise the injustices of our past; Honour those who suffered for justice and freedom in our land; Respect those who have worked to build and develop our country; and Believe that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, united in our diversity.
|} |}


=== The future I === == Counting in isiZulu ==


=== Counting from 1 to 10 ===
'''Formation of the ] I:'''
The digital numerical counting etiquette on the fingers begins with the little finger of the left hand to the left thumb and then continues with the right-hand thumb towards the right little finger. Starting with a closed left hand, each finger is extended with each subsequent number from one to five. Once the left hand is open, then counting continues on the right hand with each finger opening in turn. It is noteworthy that in isiZulu, the names for the numbers six to nine reflect either the anatomical name of the digit (six, {{lang|zu|isithupha}}, means "thumb"), action (seven, {{lang|zu|isikhombisa}}, means "the one that points out"), or position/placement (eight or {{lang|zu|isishiyagalombili}}, means "two remaining", and nine or {{lang|zu|isishiyagalolunye}}, indicating "one remaining").<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Ayonrinde|first1=Oyedeji A.|last2=Stefatos|first2=Anthi|last3=Miller|first3=Shadé|last4=Richer|first4=Amanda|last5=Nadkarni|first5=Pallavi|last6=She|first6=Jennifer|last7=Alghofaily|first7=Ahmad|last8=Mngoma|first8=Nomusa|date=2020-06-12|title=The salience and symbolism of numbers across cultural beliefs and practice|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/09540261.2020.1769289|journal=International Review of Psychiatry|volume=33|issue=1–2|pages=179–188|doi=10.1080/09540261.2020.1769289|issn=0954-0261|pmid=32527165|s2cid=219605482}}</ref>


{| class="wikitable"
:'''Aff.:''' SP - zo - (OP) - (ku) - VS - a
!IsiZulu
:'''Neg.:''' a - SP<sup>-</sup> - zu - (ku)- (OP) - VS - a
!English

The marker of the future tense is the prefix '''zo-''' in the affirmative and the corresponding '''zu-''' in the negative. The form is constructed from the auxiliary verb '''uku-za''' (or with the auxiliary '''uku-ya''') and the infinitive of the verb. So, '''ngiza ukusiza''' (''I am coming to help'') = '''ngizosiza''' (''I will help''), or, alternatively '''ngiya ukusiza''' (''I am going to help'') = '''ngiyosiza''' (''I will help'') - English (as well as French and others) has had a similar development, whereby the verb to go has become the marker of the future tense. To form the negative, the auxiliary verb is negated and then merged with the following verb, thus '''angizi ukusiza''' = '''angizusiza'''.
In the case of monosyllabic verb stems, as well as those that begin with vowels, the prefix '''-ku-''' is added to the stem – this becomes '''-k-''' before '''o''' and '''-kw-''' in front of other vowels.

'''Examples:'''
{|
| Ngizokuza.
| I will come.
|- |-
|{{lang|zu|Kunye}}
| Angizukuza.
|One
| I will not come.
|- |-
|{{lang|zu|Kubili}}
| Ngizokwakha.
|Two
| I will build
|- |-
|{{lang|zu|Kuthathu}}
| Angizukwakha.
|Three
| I will not build.
|- |-
|{{lang|zu|Kune}}
| Ngizomsiza.
|Four
| I will help him.
|- |-
|{{lang|zu|Isihlanu}}
| Angizumsiza.
|Five
| I will not help him.
|}

=== Other tenses ===

Other forms, such as the ], the future II, the progressive forms or the conjunctive forms are somewhat complicated. They are formed with single or double uses of the auxiliary verb '''-ba-''', ''to be'', but in practical usage are abbreviated further.

==Phrases==
The following is a list of phrases that can be used when visiting a region where the primary language is Zulu.

{|
|- |-
|{{lang|zu|Isithupha}}
| Sawubona ||| ''Hello,'' to one person
|- |Six
| Sanibonani || ''Hello,'' to a group of people
|- |-
|{{lang|zu|Isikhombisa}}
| Unjani? / Ninjani? || ''How are you (sing.)? / How are you (pl.)?''
|Seven
|- |-
|{{lang|zu|Isishiyagalombili}}
| Ngisaphila / Sisaphila || ''I'm okay / We're okay''
|Eight
|- |-
|{{lang|zu|Isishiyagalolunye}}
| Ngiyabonga (kakhulu) || ''Thanks (a lot)''
|Nine
|- |-
|{{lang|zu|Ishumi}}
| Ngubani igama lakho? || ''What is your name?''
|Ten
|}

==Months==
'''Months in Zulu'''
{| class="wikitable"
|- |-
! English !! Zulu
| Igama lami ngu... || ''My name is...''
|- |-
| January || {{lang|zu|uMasingana}}
| Isikhathi sithini? || ''What's the time?''
|-
| Ngingakusiza? || ''Can I help you?''
|- |-
| February || {{lang|zu|uNhlolanja}}
| Uhlala kuphi? || ''Where do you stay?''
|- |-
| March || {{lang|zu|uNdasa}}
| Uphumaphi? || ''Where are you from?''
|- |-
| April || {{lang|zu|uMbasa}}
| Hamba kahle / Sala kahle || ''Go well / Stay well'' (used as goodbye)
|- |-
| May || {{lang|zu|uNhlaba}}
| Hambani kahle / Salani kahle || ''Go well / Stay well'', to a group of people
|- |-
| June || {{lang|zu|uNhlangulana}}
| Eish! || ''Wow!'' (No real European equivalent, used in ]) (you could try a semi-expletive, such as ''oh my God'' or ''what the fuck''. It expresses a notion of shock and surprise)
|- |-
| July || {{lang|zu|uNtulikazi}}
| Hhayibo || ''No! / Stop! / No way!'' (used in ] too)
|- |-
| August || {{lang|zu|uNcwaba}}
| Yebo || ''Yes''
|- |-
| September || {{lang|zu|uMandulo}}
| Cha || ''No''
|- |-
| October || {{lang|zu|uMfumfu}}
| Angazi || ''I don't know''
|- |-
| November || {{lang|zu|uLwezi}}
| Ukhuluma isiNgisi na? || ''Do you speak English?''
|-
| Ngisaqala ukufunda isiZulu || ''I've just started learning Zulu''
|- |-
| December || {{lang|zu|uZibandlela}}
|} |}


==Sample text== ==Oral literature==


===Proverbs===
(From the preamble to the ])
In 1912, Franz Mayr, an Austrian missionary in southern Africa from 1890 until his death in 1914,<ref> ''Five Hundred Year Archive (FHYA)''. Retrieved July 14, 2024.</ref> published a collection of 150 proverbs in Zulu with an English translation.<ref>Mayr, Fr. (1912). . ''Anthropos''. 7: 957-963.</ref> The proverbs include:
*"''Inhlwa aibanjwa ngekanda isavela''." "The winged termite is not caught by its head as soon as it appears (i.e. wait till you have heard the whole story before you judge or even answer)."
*"''Aku 'qaqa lazizwa ukunuka''." "No polecat ever smelt its own stink (i.e. nobody recognises his own faults)."
*"''Aku'nkwali epandela enya''." "There is no partridge that scratches for another (i.e. everyone looks after his own interests)."
*"''Ikot'eyikotayo''." "The cow licks the one that licks her (said of people who help one another)."


] also included a selection of Zulu proverbs with English translations in his '','' first published in 1884.<ref>Colenso, John W. (1884). ''''. Natal. pp. i-xv. See also the , pp. 725-728.</ref> Here are some of those proverbs:
''Thina, bantu baseNingizimu Afrika, ''
*"''Iqina lipum'embizeni.''" "The buck has jumped out of the pot (i.e. it has escaped the hunter just when he thought he had it)."
''Siyakukhumbula ukucekelwa phansi kwamalungelo okwenzeka eminyakeni eyadlula; ''
*"''Izubela ladhl'indhlovu.''" "The wood-shaving killed the elephant (by striking it in the eye; used of a small matter producing a very serious result)."
''Sibungaza labo abahluphekela ubulungiswa nenkululeko kulo mhlaba wethu; ''
*"''Aku'mmango ungena'liba.''" "There is no hill without a grave (i.e. death is everywhere)."
''Sihlonipha labo abasebenzela ukwakha nokuthuthukisa izwe lethu; futhi ''
''Sikholelwa ekutheni iNingizimu Afrika ingeyabo bonke abahlala kuyo, sibumbene nakuba singafani.''


===Tales===
'''Translation:'''


In 1868, ] published a collection of traditional Zulu tales told by storytellers in the ]; the book includes the Zulu text accompanied by an English translation.<ref>Callaway, Henry (1868). ''''.</ref> The stories include the Tale of Uhlakanyana, a long cycle narrating the adventures of the famous ];<ref>, pp. 3-40.</ref> the story of the Zulu hero Usikulumi and his family;<ref>, pp. 41-72.</ref> the story of Usitungusohenthle who was carried away by pigeons;<ref>, pp. 78-85.</ref> and the legend of the mythical bird that gave milk,<ref>, pp. 99-104.</ref> along with an account of the very real ] bird, called ''inhlamvu'' in Zulu.<ref>, pp. 135-140.</ref>
We, the people of South Africa,
There are many cannibal stories, including ''Itshe Likantunjambili'', "The Cannibal's Cave;" ''Intombi Namazimu'', "The Girl and the Cannibals;" "Umbadhlanyana and the Cannibal;" and ''Amazimu,'' "Cannibals," along with an appendix on cannibalism.<ref>, pp. 140-141, 142-152, 154-155, 155-158, and 158-164.</ref> Women are the main characters in many of the stories, such as ''Ugungqu-Kubantwana,'' the popular folktale of the old woman who must seek a pond of clear water;<ref>, pp. 164-176.</ref> the tale of Princess Umkxakaza-Wakogingqwayo;<ref>, pp. 181-217.</ref> the tale of Princess Umdhlubu;<ref>, pp. 237-253.</ref> and the tale of Princess Untombi-Yapansi,<ref>, pp. 296-317.</ref> along with the story of ''Ununana-Bosele'', the woman who defeated a swallowing monster in the form of an elephant.<ref>, pp. 331-335.</ref> Some stories, like ''Ubongopa-Kamagadhlela'',<ref>, pp. 221-237.</ref>
Recognize the injustices of our past;
feature numerous songs in Zulu, for which Callaway provides the lyrics but not the music.
Honor those who suffered for justice and freedom in our land;
Respect those who have worked to build and develop our country; and
Believe that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, united in our diversity.


In 1870, Callaway published ''''<ref>Callaway, Henry (1870). ''''.</ref> which also contains Zulu texts and English translations, including ''Unkulunkulu'', "The Tradition of Creation,"<ref>, pp. 1-104.</ref> along with lengthy Zulu testimony regarding ancestor worship, dream interpretation, divination, and medicine.
==Common place names in Zulu==


===Riddles===
Zulu place names usually occur in their ''locative'' form, which combines what would in English be separate prepositions with the name concerned. This is usually achieved by simply replacing the i- prefix with an e- prefix (for example, 'eGoli' translates literally as 'to/at/in/from Johannesburg' when iGoli is simply Johannesburg), but changes in the name can also occur (see Durban below). The locatives are given in brackets.


Callaway's 1868 collection of Zulu texts also contains 12 riddles in Zulu with an English translation.<ref>, pp. 364-374.</ref> The riddles include:
* South Africa - iNingizimu Afrika / uMzansi Afrika
*"''Kqandela ni inkomo e hlatshelwa 'zibayeni zibili (intwala, ngokuba umuntu u ya i tata engutsheni, ka namandhla oku i bulala ngesitupa si sinye; uma e nga hlanganisi izitupa zozibili, a i kcindezele, i fe''." "Guess ye an ox which is slaughtered in two cattle-pens (a louse, for a man takes it out of his blanket, but he cannot kill it with one thumb; but only by bringing the two thumbs together, and squeezing it between them that it may die)."
* Durban - iTheku (])
*"''Kqandela ni indoba e nga lali; ku ze ku se i mi, i nga lele (insika a i lali, ngokuba i y' ema njalo, i linde indhlu)''." "Guess ye a man who does not lie down; even when it is morning he is standing, he not having lain down (a pillar does not lie down, for it stands constantly and watches the house)."
* Johannesburg - iGoli (])
There are six Zulu riddles reported in the ''Folklore Journal'' of the South African Folklore Society in 1880.<ref>Carbutt, Mrs Hugh Lancaster. (1880). "Six Zulu Riddles". ''Folklore Journal of the South African Folklore Society''. 2: 60-61.</ref> Here are two of them:
* Cape Town - iKapa (])
*"''Ngi tshele ibizo le'nyoka ende e dhlula izinyoka ezinye? (indhlela).''" "Tell me the name of the longest snake? (a road)."
* Pretoria - iPitoli (ePitoli)
*"''Ngu bani oma njalo a ngez'a hlala pansi? (ishilahla).''" "Who is it that stands always and never sits? (a tree)."
* Pietermaritzburg - uMgungundlovu (eMgungundlovu)
* Ladysmith - uMnambithi (eMnambithi)
* Overseas - phesheya


===Songs===
==The 'Zulu'/'isiZulu' debate==
]In 1920, Madikane Čele contributed Zulu song lyrics and music to ] book ''''.<ref>Burlin, Natalie Curtis; Simango, C. Kamba; Čele, Madikane (1920). ''''. pp. 57-76.</ref> Zulu texts and English translations, plus commentary, are provided for "''Iga'ma Le 'Mpi,''" "A Song of War;"<ref>, pp. 63-66.</ref> "''Iga'ma La Bantwa'na,''" "A Song of Children" (lullaby);<ref>, pp. 66-68.</ref> "''Iga'ma Lo Kusi'na,''" "A Dance-Song;"<ref>, pp. 68-71.</ref> "''Iga'ma Lo Ta'ndo,''"<ref>, pp. 71-76.</ref> "A Love-Song," along with the music for the songs.<ref>, pp. 133-149.</ref>
The Zulu language is called 'isiZulu' in Zulu, 'isi-' being the prefix associated with languages (e.g., isiNgisi = English, isiXhosa = Xhosa, isiBhunu = Afrikaans, isiJalimane = German, etc.).


==Zulu words in South African English==
The root word ''Zulu'' can take many other forms in Zulu, each with a different meaning. Here is a table showing how the meanings of two roots - ''Zulu'' and ''ntu'' - change according to their prefix.
] has absorbed many words from the Zulu language. Others, such as the names of local animals ({{lang|zu|]}} and {{lang|zu|]}} are both Zulu names) have made their way into standard English. A few examples of Zulu words used in South African English:


* ] (from {{lang|zu|umuthi}}) – medicine
{|border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4" class="wikitable"
* donga (from {{lang|zu|udonga}}) – ditch ({{lang|zu|udonga}} means "wall" in Zulu and is also the name for ditches caused by soil erosion)
! Prefix !! -zulu !! -ntu
* {{lang|zu|]}} – conference (it means "an item of news"' in Zulu)
|-
* {{lang|zu|]}} – chief right handman or leader
| '''um(u)''' || um''Zulu'' (a Zulu person) || umu''ntu'' (a person)
* songololo (from {{lang|zu|isongololo}}) – millipede
|-
* {{lang|zu|]}} – compassion/humanity.
| '''ama, aba''' || ama''Zulu'' (Zulu people) || aba''ntu'' (people)
|-
| '''isi''' || isi''Zulu'' (the Zulu language) || isi''ntu'' (culture, heritage, mankind)
|-
| '''ubu''' || - || ubu''ntu'' (humanity, compassion)
|-
| '''kwa''' || kwa''Zulu'' (place of the Zulu people) || -
|-
| '''i(li)''' || i''zulu'' (the weather/sky/heaven) || -
|-
| '''pha''' || phe''zulu'' (on top) || -
|-
| '''e''' || e''zul''wini (in, at, to, from heaven) || -
|-
|}


==See also==
Some prefer to call Zulu isiZulu in English as per the Zulu name for the language.{{Fact|date=July 2007}} This is similar to the practice of calling ] Kiswahili, but many languages are not called by their native names in English, like German (which is Deutsch in German) and Japanese (which is Nihongo in Japanese).
{{Portal|South Africa|Languages}}
* ]
* ]
* ] – a Zulu-based ] spoken in ]
* ]
* ]


==Notes==
==Zulu words in South African English==
{{notelist}}

] has absorbed many words from the Zulu language. Others, such as the names of local animals ('']'' and '']'' are both Zulu names) have made their way into standard ]. A few examples of Zulu words used in South African English:

* ''']''' (from ''umuthi'') - medicine
* ''']''' (from ''udonga'') - ditch (udonga actually means 'wall' in Zulu)
* ''']''' - conference (it means 'an item of news' in Zulu)
* ''']''' - chief or leader
* '''Shongololo''' (from ''ishongololo'') - millipede
* ] - compassion/humanity


==References== ==References==
{{Reflist}}
<references />


==See also== == Sources ==
* – ({{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140703223945/http://www.lmp.ucla.edu/Profile.aspx?LangID=23&menu=004 |date=3 July 2014 }}).


==Bibliography==
* ] (the ethnic group)
{{Refbegin|30em}}
* ] Zulu
* Canonici, Noverino, 1996, ''Imisindo YesiZulu: An Introduction to Zulu Phonology'', University of Natal
* ]
* Canonici, Noverino, 1996, ''Zulu Grammatical Structure'', University of Natal
* ] culture
* {{Cite thesis
* ]
|last=Wade
* ] - a Zulu-based ] spoken in ]
|first=Rodrik D.
* ]
|date=1996
* ]
|title=An Investigation of the Putative Restandardisation of South African English in the Direction of a 'New' English, Black South African English

|chapter=Structural characteristics of Zulu English
== Sources ==
|place=Durban
* -
|publisher=University of Natal
|chapter-url=http://www.und.ac.za/und/ling/archive/wade_pre.html
|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081013143757/http://www.und.ac.za/und/ling/archive/wade_pre.html
|archive-date=13 October 2008
}}
{{Refend}}


== Books == ==Further reading==
{{Refbegin|30em}}
* Dent, G.R. and Nyembezi, C.L.S. (1959) ''Compact Zulu Dictionary''. Pietermaritzburg: Shuter & Shooter. ISBN 0-7960-0760-8
* {{cite book|last=Colenso|first=John William|title=First steps in Zulu: being an elementary grammar of the Zulu language|publisher=Davis|location=Martizburg, Durban|year=1882|edition=Third|url=https://archive.org/details/firststepsinzulu00coleuoft}}
* Dent, G.R. and Nyembezi, C.L.S. (1969) ''Scholar's Zulu Dictionary''. Pietermaritzburg: Shuter & Shooter. ISBN 0-7960-0718-7
* Dent, G.R. and ] (1959) ''Compact Zulu Dictionary''. Pietermaritzburg: Shuter & Shooter. {{ISBN|0-7960-0760-8}}
* Dent, G.R. and ] (1969) ''Scholar's Zulu Dictionary''. Pietermaritzburg: Shuter & Shooter. {{ISBN|0-7960-0718-7}}
* Doke, C.M. (1947) ''Text-book of Zulu grammar''. London: Longmans, Green and Co. * Doke, C.M. (1947) ''Text-book of Zulu grammar''. London: Longmans, Green and Co.
* Doke, C.M. (1953) ''Zulu-English Dictionary''. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press. ISBN 1-86814-160-8 * Doke, C.M. (1953) ''Zulu–English Dictionary''. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press. {{ISBN|1-86814-160-8}}
* Doke, C.M. (1958) ''Zulu-English Vocabulary''. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press. ISBN 0-85494-009-X * Doke, C.M. (1958) ''Zulu–English Vocabulary''. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press. {{ISBN|0-85494-009-X}}
* Doke, C.M. (2014) '' {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220813131220/https://witspress.co.za/catalogue/english-isizulu-isizulu-english-dictionary/ |date=13 August 2022 }}''. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press. {{ISBN|978-1-86814-738-0}}
* Nyembezi, C.L.S. (1957) ''Learn Zulu''. Pietermaritzburg: Shuter & Shooter. ISBN 0-7960-0237-1
* Nyembezi, C.L.S. (1970) ''Learn More Zulu''. Pietermaritzburg: Shuter & Shooter. ISBN 0-7960-0278-9 * ] (1957) ''Learn Zulu''. Pietermaritzburg: Shuter & Shooter. {{ISBN|0-7960-0237-1}}
* ] (1970) ''Learn More Zulu''. Pietermaritzburg: Shuter & Shooter. {{ISBN|0-7960-0278-9}}
* Wilkes, Arnett, ''Teach Yourself Zulu''. ISBN 0-07-143442-9
* Wilkes, Arnett, ''Teach Yourself Zulu''. {{ISBN|0-07-143442-9}}
{{Refend}}


==External links== ==External links==
{{interwiki|code=zu}} {{interwiki|code=zu}}
{{Wikibooks|Zulu}} {{Wikibooks|Zulu}}
{{Wikivoyage|Zulu phrasebook|Zulu|a phrasebook}}
*
{{commons category}}
*
*{{WALS|zul|Zulu}}
* incl. sound file
*{{UDHR|zuu|Zulu}} <!-- Leave the Яг 639-3 as is. That's how OHCHR named it -->
===Grammars===
* *
* incl. sound file
*
* (from Wiktionary's )
*

===Courses===
*
* {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160728025632/http://www.memrise.com/course/82/zulu-with-dingani/ |date=28 July 2016 }}
*
*

===Grammar===
*


===Dictionaries=== ===Dictionaries===
*
{{wiktionarylang|code=zu}}
*
*
*


===Newspapers=== ===Newspapers===
* *
*
*Ilanga
*UmAfrika *UmAfrika
*


===Software=== ===Software===
* , , , and in Zulu * , , , and in Zulu
* Project to translate Free and Open Source Software into all the official languages of South Africa including Zulu * Project to translate Free and Open Source Software into all the official languages of South Africa including Zulu
* *


===Literature and culture=== ===Literature and culture===
* *


{{Languages of Lesotho}}
{{Languages of South Africa}} {{Languages of South Africa}}
{{African Union languages}} {{Languages of Swaziland}}
{{Languages of Mozambique}}
{{Narrow Bantu languages (Zones N–S)}}


{{Authority control}}
]
]
]


{{DEFAULTSORT:Zulu language}}
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]

Latest revision as of 11:37, 10 December 2024

Nguni language of eastern South Africa and neighbouring countries

Zulu
isiZulu
Pronunciation[isízṳːlu]
Native toSouth Africa, Lesotho
Region
EthnicityZulu
SpeakersL1: 12 million (2013–2017)
L2: 16 million (2002)
Total: 28 million
Language familyNiger–Congo?
Dialects
  • KwaZulu Natal Zulu
  • Transvaal Zulu
  • Qwabe
  • Cele
Writing systemLatin (Zulu alphabet)
Zulu Braille
Ditema tsa Dinoko
Signed formsSigned Zulu
Official status
Official language in South Africa
Regulated byPan South African Language Board
Language codes
ISO 639-1zu
ISO 639-2zul
ISO 639-3zul
Glottologzulu1248
Guthrie codeS.42
Linguasphere99-AUT-fg incl.
varieties 99-AUT-fga to 99-AUT-fge
Proportion of the South African population that speaks Zulu at home   0–20%   20–40%   40–60%   60–80%   80–100%
This article contains IPA phonetic symbols. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Unicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, see Help:IPA.
Zulu
PersonumZulu
PeopleamaZulu
LanguageisiZulu
CountrykwaZulu

Zulu (/ˈzuːluː/ ZOO-loo), or isiZulu as an endonym, is a Southern Bantu language of the Nguni branch spoken and indigenous to Southern Africa. It is the language of the Zulu people, with about 13.56 million native speakers, who primarily inhabit the province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. The word "KwaZulu-Natal" translates into English as "Home of the Zulu Nation is Natal". Zulu is the most widely spoken home language in South Africa (24% of the population), and it is understood by over 50% of its population. It became one of South Africa's 12 official languages in 1994.

According to Ethnologue, it is the second-most widely spoken of the Bantu languages, after Swahili. Like many other Bantu languages, it is written with the Latin alphabet.

In South African English, the language is often referred to in its native form, isiZulu.

Geographical distribution

Geographical distribution of Zulu in South Africa: density, of Zulu home-language speakers.   <1 /km   1–3 /km   3–10 /km   10–30 /km   30–100 /km   100–300 /km   300–1000 /km   1000–3000 /km   >3000 /km

Zulu migrant populations have taken it to adjacent regions, especially Zimbabwe, where the Northern Ndebele language (isiNdebele) is closely related to Zulu.

Xhosa, the predominant language in the Eastern Cape, is often considered mutually intelligible with Zulu, as is Northern Ndebele.

Maho (2009) lists four dialects: central KwaZulu-Natal Zulu, northern Transvaal Zulu, eastern coastal Qwabe, and western coastal Cele.

History

The Zulu, like Xhosa and other Nguni people, have lived in South Africa for hundreds of years. The Zulu language possesses several click sounds typical of Southern African languages, not found in the rest of Africa. The Nguni people have coexisted with other Southern tribes like the San and Khoi.

Zulu, like most indigenous Southern African languages, was not a written language until the arrival of missionaries from Europe, who documented the language using the Latin script. The first grammar book of the Zulu language was published in Norway in 1850 by the Norwegian missionary Hans Schreuder. The first written document in Zulu was a Bible translation that appeared in 1883. In 1901, John Dube (1871–1946), a Zulu from Natal, created the Ohlange Institute, the first native educational institution in South Africa. He was also the author of Insila kaShaka, the first novel written in Zulu (1930). Another pioneering Zulu writer was Reginald Dhlomo, author of several historical novels of the 19th-century leaders of the Zulu nation: U-Dingane (1936), U-Shaka (1937), U-Mpande (1938), U-Cetshwayo (1952) and U-Dinizulu (1968). Other notable contributors to Zulu literature include Benedict Wallet Vilakazi and, more recently, Oswald Mbuyiseni Mtshali.

The written form of Zulu was controlled by the Zulu Language Board of KwaZulu-Natal. This board has now been disbanded and superseded by the Pan South African Language Board which promotes the use of all eleven official languages of South Africa.

Contemporary usage

English, Dutch and later Afrikaans had been the only official languages used by all South African governments before 1994. However, in the Kwazulu bantustan, the Zulu language was widely used. All education in the country at the high school level was in English or Afrikaans. Since the fall of apartheid in 1994, Zulu has been enjoying a marked revival. Zulu-language television was introduced by the SABC in the early 1980s and it broadcasts news and many shows in Zulu. Zulu radio is very popular and newspapers such as isoLezwe, Ilanga and UmAfrika in the Zulu language are available in Kwazulu-Natal province and Johannesburg. In January 2005 the first full-length feature film in Zulu, Yesterday, was nominated for an Oscar.

The mutual intelligibility of many Nguni languages has increased the likelihood of Zulu becoming the lingua franca of the eastern half of the country.

In the 1994 film The Lion King, in the "Circle of Life" song, the phrases Ingonyama nengw' enamabala (English: A lion and a leopard spots), Nans' ingonyama bakithi Baba (English: Here comes a lion, Father) and Siyonqoba (English: We will conquer) was used. In some movie songs, like "This Land", the voice says Busa leli zwe bo (Rule this land) and Busa ngothando bo (Rule with love) were used too.

The song Siyahamba is a South African hymn originally written in the Zulu language that became popular in North American churches in the 1990s.

The remix of the 2019 worldwide hit Jerusalema contains lyrics in Zulu language.

Standard vs Urban Zulu

Standard Zulu as it is taught in schools, also called "deep Zulu" (isiZulu esijulile), differs in various respects from the language spoken by people living in cities (Urban Zulu, isiZulu sasedolobheni). Standard Zulu tends to be purist, using derivations from Zulu words for new concepts, whereas speakers of Urban Zulu use loan words abundantly, mainly from English. For example:

Standard Zulu Urban Zulu English
umakhalekhukhwini iselula mobile(cell) phone
Ngiyezwa Ngiya-andastenda I understand

This situation has led to problems in education because standard Zulu is often not understood by young people.

Phonology

Vowels

Zulu vowel chart, from Wade (1996)

The vowel system of Zulu consists of five vowels.

Front Central Back
Close i u
Mid ɛ ɔ
Open a

/ɛ/ and /ɔ/ are pronounced and , respectively, if the following syllable contains the vowels /i/ or /u/. They are and otherwise:

  • umgibeli "passenger", phonetically
  • ukupheka "to cook", phonetically

There is limited vowel length in Zulu, as a result of the contraction of certain syllables. For example, the word ithambo /íːtʰámbó/ "bone", is a contraction of an earlier ilithambo /ílítʰámbó/, which may still be used by some speakers. Likewise, uphahla /úːpʰaɬa/ "roof" is a contraction of the earlier uluphahla /ulúpʰaɬa/. In addition, the vowel of the penultimate syllable is allophonically lengthened phrase- or sentence-finally.

Consonants

Zulu phonemes
Labial Dental/Alveolar Postalveolar Velar Glottal
central lateral
Click plain ᵏǀʼ ᵏǁʼ ᵏǃʼ
aspirated ᵏǀʰ ᵏǁʰ ᵏǃʰ
nasalised ᵑǀ ᵑǁ ᵑǃ
slack-voiced oral ᶢǀʱ ᶢǁʱ ᶢǃʱ
slack-voiced nasal ᵑǀʱ ᵑǁʱ ᵑǃʱ
Nasal modally voiced m n ɲ
slack-voiced (ŋ̈)
Plosive plain
aspirated
slack-voiced ɡʱ
implosive & modal voice ɓ ɡ
Affricate plain tsʼ tʃʼ k𝼄ʼ
slack-voiced
Fricative voiceless f s ɬ ʃ x h
slack-voiced ɮ̈ ɦ̥
Liquid (r) l
Semivowel modally voiced j w
slack-voiced
  1. The plain voiceless plosives, affricates and clicks are realised phonetically as ejectives [], [], [], [tsʼ], [tʃʼ] [kxʼ].
  2. When not preceded by a nasal, /ɠ/ is almost in complementary distribution with /k/ and /kʰ/. The latter two phonemes occur almost exclusively root-initially, while /ɠ/ appears exclusively medially. Recent loanwords contain /k/ and /kʰ/ in other positions, e.g. isekhondi /iːsekʰoːndi/ "second", ibhayisikili /iːbajisikiːli/ "bicycle".
  3. The slack-voiced consonants are depressor consonants. These have a lowering effect on the tone of their syllable.
  4. The consonant /ŋ/ occurs in some dialects as a reduction of the cluster /nɡ/ when it is not in stem-initial position, and is therefore always slack-voiced.
  5. The trill /r/ is not native to Zulu and occurs only in expressive words and in recent borrowings from European languages.

The use of click consonants is one of the most distinctive features of Zulu. This feature is shared with several other languages of Southern Africa, but it is very rare in other regions. There are three basic articulations of clicks in Zulu:

  • Denti-alveolar /ǀ/, comparable to sucking of teeth, as the sound one makes for "tsk tsk".
  • Postalveolar /!/, comparable to a bottle top "pop".
  • Lateral /ǁ/, comparable to a click that one may do for a walking horse.

Each articulation covers five click consonants, with differences such as being slack-voiced, aspirated or nasalised, for a total of 15.

Phonotactics

Zulu syllables are canonically (N)C(w)V, and words must always end in a vowel. Consonant clusters consist of any consonant, optionally preceded by a homorganic nasal consonant (so-called "prenasalisation", described in more detail below) and optionally followed by the consonant /w/.

In addition, syllabic /m̩/ occurs as a reduction of former /mu/, and acts like a true syllable: it can be syllabic even when not word-initial, and can also carry distinctive tones like a full syllable. It does not necessarily have to be homorganic with the following consonant, although the difference between homorganic nonsyllabic /mC/ and syllabic /m̩C/ is distinctive, e.g. umpetshisi /um̩pétʃiːsi/ "peach tree" (5 syllables) versus impoko /ímpoːɠo/ "grass flower" (3 syllables). Moreover, sequences of syllabic m and homorganic m can occur, e.g. ummbila /úm̩mbíːla/ "maize" (4 syllables).

Recent loanwords from languages such as English may violate these constraints, by including additional consonant clusters that are not native to Zulu, such as in igremu /iːgreːmu/ "gram". There may be some variation between speakers as to whether clusters are broken up by an epenthetic vowel or not, e.g. ikhompiyutha /iːkʰompijuːtʰa/ or ikhompyutha /iːkʰompjuːtʰa/ "computer".

Prosody

Stress

Stress in Zulu words is mostly predictable and normally falls on the penultimate syllable of a word. It is accompanied by an allophonic lengthening of the vowel. When the final vowel of a word is long due to contraction, it receives the stress instead of the preceding syllable.

Lengthening does not occur on all words in a sentence, however, but only those that are sentence- or phrase-final. Thus, for any word of at least two syllables, there are two different forms, one with penultimate length and one without it, occurring in complementary distribution. In some cases, there are morphemic alternations that occur as a result of word position as well. The remote demonstrative pronouns may appear with the suffix -ana when sentence-final, but only as otherwise. Likewise, the recent past tense of verbs ends in -ile sentence-finally, but is reduced to medially. Moreover, a falling tone can only occur on a long vowel, so the shortening has effects on tone as well.

Some words, such as ideophones or interjections, can have stress that deviates from the regular pattern.

Tone

Like almost all other Bantu and other African languages, Zulu is tonal. There are three main tonemes: low, high and falling. Zulu is conventionally written without any indication of tone, but tone can be distinctive in Zulu. For example, the words "priest" and "teacher" are both spelt umfundisi, but they are pronounced with different tones: /úm̩fúndisi/ for the "priest" meaning, and /úm̩fundísi/ for the "teacher" meaning.

In principle, every syllable can be pronounced with either a high or a low tone. However, low tone does not behave the same as the other two, as high tones can "spread" into low-toned syllables while the reverse does not occur. A low tone is therefore better described as the absence of any toneme; it is a kind of default tone that is overridden by high or falling tones. The falling tone is a sequence of high-low and occurs only on long vowels. The penultimate syllable can also bear a falling tone when it is long due to the word's position in the phrase. However, when it shortens, the falling tone becomes disallowed in that position.

In principle, every morpheme has an inherent underlying tone pattern which does not change regardless of where it appears in a word. However, like most other Bantu languages, Zulu has word tone, meaning that the pattern of tones acts more like a template to assign tones to individual syllables, rather than a direct representation of the pronounced tones themselves. Consequently, the relationship between underlying tone patterns and the tones that are pronounced can be quite complex. Underlying high tones tend to surface rightward from the syllables where they are underlyingly present, especially in longer words.

Depressor consonants

The breathy consonant phonemes in Zulu are depressor consonants or depressors for short. Depressor consonants have a lowering effect on pitch, adding a non-phonemic low-tone onset to the normal tone of the syllable. Thus, in syllables with depressor consonants, high tones are realised as rising, and falling tones as rising-then-falling. In both cases, the pitch does not reach as high as in non-depressed syllables. The possible tones on a syllable with a voiceless consonant like hla are , and the possible tones of a breathy consonant syllable, like dla, are . A depressor does not affect a syllable that's already low, but it blocks assimilation to a preceding high tone so that the tone of the depressor syllable and any following low-tone syllables stays low.

Phonological processes

Prenasalisation

Prenasalisation occurs whenever a consonant is preceded by a homorganic nasal, either lexically or as a consequence of prefixation. The most notable case of the latter is the class 9 noun prefix in-, which ends in a homorganic nasal. Prenasalisation triggers several changes in the following consonant, some of which are phonemic and others allophonic. The changes can be summed as follows:

Normal Prenasalised Rule
/pʰ/, /tʰ/, /kʰ/ /mp/, /nt/, /ŋk/ Aspiration is lost on obstruents.
/ǀʰ/, /ǁʰ/, /ǃʰ/ /ᵑǀ/, /ᵑǁ/, /ᵑǃ/ Aspiration is replaced by nasalisation of clicks.
/ǀ/, /ǁ/, /ǃ/ /ᵑǀʱ/, /ᵑǁʱ/, /ᵑǃʱ/ Plain clicks become breathy nasal.
/ɓ/ /mb/ Implosive becomes breathy.
/f/, /s/, /ʃ/, /ɬ/
/v/, /z/, /ɮ/
, , /ntʃ/,
, ,
Fricatives become affricates. Only phonemic, and thus reflected orthographically, for /ntʃ/.
/h/, /ɦ/, /w/, /wʱ/ , , , Approximants are fortified. This change is allophonic, and not reflected in the orthography.
/j/ /ɲ/ Palatal approximant becomes palatal nasal.
/l/ /l/ or rarely /nd/ The outcome /nd/ is a fossilised outcome from the time when /d/ and /l/ were still one phoneme. See Proto-Bantu language.
/m/, /n/, /ɲ/ /m/, /n/, /ɲ/ No change when the following consonant is itself a nasal.

Tone assimilation

Zulu has tonic assimilation: high tones tend to spread allophonically to following low-tone syllables, raising their pitch to a level just below that of adjacent high-tone syllables. A toneless syllable between a high-tone syllable and another tonic syllable assimilates to that high tone. That is, if the preceding syllable ends on a high tone and the following syllable begins with a high tone (because it is high or falling), the intermediate toneless syllable has its pitch raised as well. When the preceding syllable is high but the following is toneless, the medial toneless syllable adopts a high-tone onset from the preceding syllable, resulting in a falling tone contour.

For example, the English word spoon was borrowed into Zulu as isipunu, phonemically /ísipúnu/. The second syllable si assimilates to the surrounding high tones, raising its pitch, so that it is pronounced sentence-finally. If tone pitch is indicated with numbers, with 1 highest and 9 lowest pitch, then the pitches of each syllable can be denoted as 2-4-3-9. The second syllable is thus still lower in pitch than both of the adjacent syllables.

Tone displacement

Depressor consonants have an effect called tone displacement. Tone displacement occurs whenever a depressor occurs with a high tone, and causes the tone on the syllable to shift rightward onto the next syllable. If the next syllable is long, it gets a falling tone, otherwise a regular high tone. If the penultimate syllable becomes high (not falling), the final syllable dissimilates and becomes low if it was not already. Tone displacement is blocked under the following conditions:

  • When the syllable has a long vowel.
  • When the following syllable also has a depressor consonant.
  • When the following syllable is the final syllable and is short.

Whenever tone displacement is blocked, this results in a depressor syllable with a high tone, which will have the low-tone onset as described above. When the following syllable already has a high or falling tone, the tone disappears from the syllable as if it had been shifted away, but the following syllable's tone is not modified.

Some examples:

  • izipunu "spoons", the plural of isipunu from the previous section, is phonemically /ízipúnu/. Because /z/ is a depressor consonant, tone assimilation is prevented. Consequently, the word is pronounced as sentence-finally, with a low tone in the second syllable.
  • izintombi "girls" is phonemically /izíntombí/. /z/ is a depressor, and is not blocked, so the tone shifts to the third syllable. This syllable can be either long or short depending on sentence position. When long, the pronunciation is , with a falling tone. However, when the third syllable is short, the tone is high, and dissimilation of the final syllable occurs, resulting in .
  • nendoda "with a man" is phonemically /nʱéndoda/. /nʱ/ is a depressor, but so is /d/, so tone displacement is blocked. Consequently, the pronunciation is , with rising pitch in the first syllable due to the low-onset effect.

Palatalization

Palatalization is a change that affects labial and alveolar consonants whenever they are immediately followed by /j/. While palatalization occurred historically, it is still productive and occurs as a result of the addition of suffixes beginning with /j/. A frequent example is the diminutive suffix -yana.

Moreover, Zulu does not generally tolerate sequences of a labial consonant plus /w/. Whenever /w/ follows a labial consonant, it changes to /j/, which then triggers palatalization of the consonant. This effect can be seen in the locative forms of nouns ending in -o or -u, which change to -weni and -wini respectively in the locative. If a labial consonant immediately precedes, palatalization is triggered. The change also occurs in nouns beginning in ubu- with a stem beginning with a vowel.

The following changes occur as a result of palatalization:

Original
consonant
Palatalized
consonant
Examples
ʃ
  • impuphuimpushana (diminutive)
  • iziphoezisheni (locative)
  • umuthiumshana (diminutive; also umthana)
p tʃʼ
  • umtapoemtatsheni (locative)
t
  • ikatiikatshana (diminutive)
  • intabaintatshana (diminutive)
  • inguboengutsheni (locative)
  • ubu- + -aniutshani (ubu- + vowel)
b
  • isigubhuisigujana (diminutive)
d
  • incwadiincwajana (diminutive; also incwadana)
m ɲ
  • inkomoinkonyana (diminutive)
  • umlomoemlonyeni (locative)
n
  • inyoniinyonyana (diminutive)
mp ntʃʼ
  • inswempeinswentshana (diminutive)
nt
  • umkhontoumkhontshwana (diminutive)
mb ndʒ
  • ithamboethanjeni (locative)
nd
  • isondoisonjwana (diminutive; also isondwana)

Orthography

Zulu employs the 26 letters of the ISO basic Latin alphabet. However, some of the letters have different pronunciations than in English. Additional phonemes are written using sequences of multiple letters. Tone, stress and vowel length are not indicated.

Letter(s) Phoneme(s) Example
a /a/ amanzi /ámáːnzi/ "water"
b /ɓ/ ubaba /úɓaːɓá/ "my/our father"
bh /b/ ukubhala /úɠubâːla/ "to write"
c /ǀ/ icici /îːǀíːǀi/ "earring"
ch /ǀʰ/ ukuchaza /uɠúǀʰaːza/ "to fascinate/explain"
d /d/ idada /íːdaːda/ "duck"
dl /ɮ/ ukudla /úɠuːɮá/ "to eat"
e /e/ ibele /îːɓéːle/ "breast"
f /f/ ifu /íːfu/ "cloud"
g /ɡ/ ugogo /úɡóːɡo/ "grandmother"
gc /ᶢǀʱ/ isigcino /isíᶢǀʱiːno/ "end"
gq /ᶢǃʱ/ uMgqibelo /umúᶢǃʱiɓéːlo/ "Saturday"
gx /ᶢǁʱ/ ukugxoba /uɠúᶢǁʱoːɓa/ "to stamp"
h /h/ ukuhamba /úɠuháːmba/ "to go"
hh /ɦ/ ihhashi /îːɦáːʃi/ "horse"
hl /ɬ/ ukuhlala /uɠúɬaːla/ "to sit"
i /i/ imini /ímíːni/ "daytime"
j // uju /úːdʒu/ "honey"
k /k/ ikati /îːkáːti/ "cat"
/ɠ/ ukuza /uɠúːza/ "to come"
kh /kʰ/ ikhanda /îːkʰâːnda/ "head"
kl /kx/ umklomelo /umukxómeːlo/ "prize"
l /l/ ukulala /úɠuláːla/ "sleep"
m /m/ imali /ímaːlí/ "money"
/mʱ/ umama /úmʱáːma/ "my/our mother"
mb /mb/ imbube /ímbuːɓé/ "lion"
n /n/ unina /úniːna/ "his/her/their mother"
/nʱ/ nendoda /nʱéndoːda/ "with a man"
nc /ᵑǀ/ incwancwa /íᵑǀwáːᵑǀwa/ "sour corn meal"
ng /ŋ(ɡ)/ ingane /ínɡáːne/ "child"
ngc /ᵑǀʱ/ ingcosi /íᵑǀʱoːsí/ "a bit"
ngq /ᵑǃʱ/ ingqondo /íᵑǃʱoːndo/ "brain"
ngx /ᵑǁʱ/ ingxenye /íᵑǁʱéːɲe/ "part"
nj /ɲdʒ/ inja /îːɲdʒá/ "dog"
nk /ŋk/ inkomo /íŋkoːmó/ "cow"
nq /ᵑǃ/ inqola /íᵑǃóːla/ "cart"
ntsh /ɲtʃ/ intshe /îːɲtʃé/ "ostrich"
nx /ᵑǁ/ inxeba /íːᵑǁeːɓa/ "wound"
ny /ɲ/ inyoni /íɲoːni/ "bird"
o /o/ uphondo /úːpʰoːndo/ "horn"
p /p/ ipipi /îːpíːpi/ "pipe for smoking"
ph /pʰ/ ukupheka /uɠúpʰeːɠa/ "to cook"
q /ǃ/ iqaqa /íːǃaːǃá/ "polecat"
qh /ǃʰ/ iqhude /îːǃʰúːde/ "rooster"
r /r/ iresiphi /iːrésiːpʰi/ "recipe"
s /s/ isisu /isíːsu/ "stomach"
sh /ʃ/ ishumi /îːʃûːmi/ "ten"
t /t/ itiye /îːtíːje/ "tea"
th /tʰ/ ukuthatha /úɠutʰáːtʰa/ "to take"
ts /ts/ itswayi /íːtswaːjí/ "salt"
tsh // utshani /útʃaːní/ "grass"
u /u/ ubusuku /úɓusûːɠu/ "night"
v /v/ ukuvala /uɠúvaːla/ "to close"
w /w/ ukuwela /uɠúweːla/ "to cross"
/wʱ/ wuthando /wʱúːtʰâːndo/ "It's love."
x /ǁ/ ixoxo /íːǁoːǁo/ "frog"
xh /ǁʰ/ ukuxhasa /úɠuǁʰáːsa/ "to support"
y /j/ uyise /újiːsé/ "his/her/their father"
/jʱ/ yintombazane /jʱintómbazâːne/ "It's a girl"
z /z/ umzuzu /umúzuːzú/ "moment"

Reference works and older texts may use additional letters. A common former practice was to indicate the implosive /ɓ/ using the special letter ɓ, while the digraph bh would then be simply written as b. Some references may also write h after letters to indicate that they are of the depressor variety, e.g. mh, nh, yh, a practice that is standard in Xhosa orthography.

Very early texts, from the early 20th century or before, tend to omit the distinction between plain and aspirated voiceless consonants, writing the latter without the h.

Nouns are written with their prefixes as one orthographical word. If the prefix ends with a vowel (as most do) and the noun stem also begins with a vowel, a hyphen is inserted in between, e.g. i-Afrika. This occurs only with loanwords.

Morphology

Main article: Zulu grammar

Here are some of the main features of Zulu:

  • Word order is subject–verb–object.
  • Morphologically, it is an agglutinative language.
  • As in other Bantu languages, Zulu nouns are classified into morphological classes or genders (16 in Zulu), with different prefixes for singular and plural. Various parts of speech that qualify a noun must agree with the noun according to its gender. Such agreements usually reflect part of the original class with which it is agreeing. An example is the use of the class "aba-":
Bonke abantu abaqatha basepulazini bayagawula.
All the strong people on the farm are felling (trees).
The various agreements that qualify the word "abantu" (people) can be seen in effect.
  • Its verbal system shows a combination of temporal and aspectual categories in their finite paradigm. Typically verbs have two stems, one for present-undefinite and another for perfect. Different prefixes can be attached to these verbal stems to specify subject agreement and various degrees of past or future tense. For example, in the word uyathanda ("he loves"), the present stem of the verb is -thanda, the prefix u- expresses the third-person singular subject and -ya- is a filler that is used in short sentences.
Suffixes are also put into common use to show the causative or reciprocal forms of a verb stem.
  • Most property words (words encoded as adjectives in English) are represented by relatives. In the sentence umuntu ubomvu ("the person is red"), the word ubomvu (root -bomvu) behaves like a verb and uses the agreement prefix u-. however, there are subtle differences; for example, it does not use the prefix ya-.

Morphology of root Zulu

The root can be combined with several prefixes and thus create other words. For example, here is a table with some words constructed from the roots -Zulu and -ntu (the root for person/people):

Prefix -zulu -ntu
um(u) umZulu (a Zulu person) umuntu (a person)
ama, aba amaZulu (Zulu people) abantu (people)
isi isiZulu (the Zulu language) isintu (culture, heritage, mankind)
ubu ubuZulu (personification/Zulu-like tendencies) ubuntu (humanity, compassion)
kwa kwaZulu (place of the Zulu people)
i(li) izulu (the weather/sky/heaven)
pha phezulu (on top)
e ezulwini (in, at, to, from heaven)

Sample phrases and text

The following is a list of phrases that can be used when one visits a region whose primary language is Zulu:

Zulu English
Sawubona Hello, to one person
Sanibonani Hello, to a group of people
Unjani? / Ninjani? How are you (sing.)? / How are you (pl.)?
Ngiyaphila / Siyaphila I'm okay / We're okay
Ngiyabonga (kakhulu) Thanks (a lot)
Ngubani igama lakho? What is your name?
Igama lami ngu... My name is...
Isikhathi sithini? What's the time?
Ngingakusiza? Can I help you?
Uhlala kuphi? Where do you stay?
Uphumaphi? Where are you from?
Hamba kahle / Sala kahle Go well / Stay well, used as goodbye. The person staying says "Hamba kahle", and the person leaving says "Sala kahle". Other translations include Go gently and Walk in peace.
Hambani kahle / Salani kahle Go well / Stay well, to a group of people
Eish! Wow! (No real European equivalent, used in South African English) (you could try a semi-expletive, such as oh my gosh or what the heck. It expresses a notion of shock and surprise)
Hhayibo No! / Stop! / No way! (used in South African English too)
Yebo Yes
Cha No
Angazi I don't know
Uyasikhuluma isiNgisi na? Do you speak English?
Ngisaqala ukufunda isiZulu I've just started learning Zulu
Uqonde ukuthini? What do you mean?
Ngiyakuthanda. I love you

The following is from the preamble to the Constitution of South Africa:

Thina, bantu baseNingizimu Afrika, Siyakukhumbula ukucekelwa phansi kwamalungelo okwenzeka eminyakeni eyadlula; Sibungaza labo abahluphekela ubulungiswa nenkululeko kulo mhlaba wethu; Sihlonipha labo abasebenzela ukwakha nokuthuthukisa izwe lethu; futhi Sikholelwa ekutheni iNingizimu Afrika ingeyabo bonke abahlala kuyo, sibumbene nakuba singafani.

Translation:

We, the people of South Africa, Recognise the injustices of our past; Honour those who suffered for justice and freedom in our land; Respect those who have worked to build and develop our country; and Believe that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, united in our diversity.

Counting in isiZulu

Counting from 1 to 10

The digital numerical counting etiquette on the fingers begins with the little finger of the left hand to the left thumb and then continues with the right-hand thumb towards the right little finger. Starting with a closed left hand, each finger is extended with each subsequent number from one to five. Once the left hand is open, then counting continues on the right hand with each finger opening in turn. It is noteworthy that in isiZulu, the names for the numbers six to nine reflect either the anatomical name of the digit (six, isithupha, means "thumb"), action (seven, isikhombisa, means "the one that points out"), or position/placement (eight or isishiyagalombili, means "two remaining", and nine or isishiyagalolunye, indicating "one remaining").

IsiZulu English
Kunye One
Kubili Two
Kuthathu Three
Kune Four
Isihlanu Five
Isithupha Six
Isikhombisa Seven
Isishiyagalombili Eight
Isishiyagalolunye Nine
Ishumi Ten

Months

Months in Zulu

English Zulu
January uMasingana
February uNhlolanja
March uNdasa
April uMbasa
May uNhlaba
June uNhlangulana
July uNtulikazi
August uNcwaba
September uMandulo
October uMfumfu
November uLwezi
December uZibandlela

Oral literature

Proverbs

In 1912, Franz Mayr, an Austrian missionary in southern Africa from 1890 until his death in 1914, published a collection of 150 proverbs in Zulu with an English translation. The proverbs include:

  • "Inhlwa aibanjwa ngekanda isavela." "The winged termite is not caught by its head as soon as it appears (i.e. wait till you have heard the whole story before you judge or even answer)."
  • "Aku 'qaqa lazizwa ukunuka." "No polecat ever smelt its own stink (i.e. nobody recognises his own faults)."
  • "Aku'nkwali epandela enya." "There is no partridge that scratches for another (i.e. everyone looks after his own interests)."
  • "Ikot'eyikotayo." "The cow licks the one that licks her (said of people who help one another)."

John Colenso also included a selection of Zulu proverbs with English translations in his Zulu-English Dictionary, first published in 1884. Here are some of those proverbs:

  • "Iqina lipum'embizeni." "The buck has jumped out of the pot (i.e. it has escaped the hunter just when he thought he had it)."
  • "Izubela ladhl'indhlovu." "The wood-shaving killed the elephant (by striking it in the eye; used of a small matter producing a very serious result)."
  • "Aku'mmango ungena'liba." "There is no hill without a grave (i.e. death is everywhere)."

Tales

In 1868, Henry Callaway published a collection of traditional Zulu tales told by storytellers in the Colony of Natal; the book includes the Zulu text accompanied by an English translation. The stories include the Tale of Uhlakanyana, a long cycle narrating the adventures of the famous Zulu trickster figure; the story of the Zulu hero Usikulumi and his family; the story of Usitungusohenthle who was carried away by pigeons; and the legend of the mythical bird that gave milk, along with an account of the very real honeyguide bird, called inhlamvu in Zulu. There are many cannibal stories, including Itshe Likantunjambili, "The Cannibal's Cave;" Intombi Namazimu, "The Girl and the Cannibals;" "Umbadhlanyana and the Cannibal;" and Amazimu, "Cannibals," along with an appendix on cannibalism. Women are the main characters in many of the stories, such as Ugungqu-Kubantwana, the popular folktale of the old woman who must seek a pond of clear water; the tale of Princess Umkxakaza-Wakogingqwayo; the tale of Princess Umdhlubu; and the tale of Princess Untombi-Yapansi, along with the story of Ununana-Bosele, the woman who defeated a swallowing monster in the form of an elephant. Some stories, like Ubongopa-Kamagadhlela, feature numerous songs in Zulu, for which Callaway provides the lyrics but not the music.

In 1870, Callaway published The Religious System of the Amazulu which also contains Zulu texts and English translations, including Unkulunkulu, "The Tradition of Creation," along with lengthy Zulu testimony regarding ancestor worship, dream interpretation, divination, and medicine.

Riddles

Callaway's 1868 collection of Zulu texts also contains 12 riddles in Zulu with an English translation. The riddles include:

  • "Kqandela ni inkomo e hlatshelwa 'zibayeni zibili (intwala, ngokuba umuntu u ya i tata engutsheni, ka namandhla oku i bulala ngesitupa si sinye; uma e nga hlanganisi izitupa zozibili, a i kcindezele, i fe." "Guess ye an ox which is slaughtered in two cattle-pens (a louse, for a man takes it out of his blanket, but he cannot kill it with one thumb; but only by bringing the two thumbs together, and squeezing it between them that it may die)."
  • "Kqandela ni indoba e nga lali; ku ze ku se i mi, i nga lele (insika a i lali, ngokuba i y' ema njalo, i linde indhlu)." "Guess ye a man who does not lie down; even when it is morning he is standing, he not having lain down (a pillar does not lie down, for it stands constantly and watches the house)."

There are six Zulu riddles reported in the Folklore Journal of the South African Folklore Society in 1880. Here are two of them:

  • "Ngi tshele ibizo le'nyoka ende e dhlula izinyoka ezinye? (indhlela)." "Tell me the name of the longest snake? (a road)."
  • "Ngu bani oma njalo a ngez'a hlala pansi? (ishilahla)." "Who is it that stands always and never sits? (a tree)."

Songs

Photograph of Madikane Čele in Zulu clothing, holding a spear (assegai)

In 1920, Madikane Čele contributed Zulu song lyrics and music to Natalie Curtis Burlin's book Songs and Tales from the Dark Continent. Zulu texts and English translations, plus commentary, are provided for "Iga'ma Le 'Mpi," "A Song of War;" "Iga'ma La Bantwa'na," "A Song of Children" (lullaby); "Iga'ma Lo Kusi'na," "A Dance-Song;" "Iga'ma Lo Ta'ndo," "A Love-Song," along with the music for the songs.

Zulu words in South African English

South African English has absorbed many words from the Zulu language. Others, such as the names of local animals (impala and mamba are both Zulu names) have made their way into standard English. A few examples of Zulu words used in South African English:

  • muti (from umuthi) – medicine
  • donga (from udonga) – ditch (udonga means "wall" in Zulu and is also the name for ditches caused by soil erosion)
  • indaba – conference (it means "an item of news"' in Zulu)
  • induna – chief right handman or leader
  • songololo (from isongololo) – millipede
  • ubuntu – compassion/humanity.

See also

Notes

  1. Ethnologue estimates (calculated between 2000 and 2015):
    • Swahili: 98 million (L1: 16 million, L2: 80 million)
    • Zulu: 27 million (L1: 11 million, L2: 16 million)
    • Shona 9 million (L1: 7 million, L2: 2 million)

References

  1. ^ Zulu at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024) Closed access icon
  2. ^ Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
  3. "Zulu speaking countries". www.worlddata.info. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
  4. Ethnologue 2005
  5. Carter, Phillip M. (2016). Languages In The World: How History, Culture, and Politics Shape Language. Wiley. p. 139. ISBN 9781118531280.
  6. Swahili, Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015): "47,000,000 in Tanzania, all users. L1 users: 15,000,000 (2012), increasing. L2 users: 32,000,000 (2015 D. Nurse). Total users in all countries: 98,310,110 (as L1: 16,010,110; as L2: 82,300,000)."
  7. "Ethnologue: Zulu". Ethnologue. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
  8. "Ethnologue: Shona". Retrieved 6 March 2017.
  9. sahoboss (3 April 2011). "Zulu". South African History Online. Retrieved 17 June 2018.
  10. NorthernNdebele.blogspot.com NorthernNdebele.blogspot.com
  11. Spiegler, Sebastian; van der Spuy, Andrew; Flach, Peter A. (August 2010). "Ukwabelana – An open-source morphological Zulu corpus". Proceedings of the 23rd International Conference on Computational Linguistics. Beijing, China: Tsinghua University Press. p. 1020.
  12. Rakkenes, Øystein (2003) Himmelfolket: En Norsk Høvding i Zululand, Oslo: Cappelen Forlag, pp. 63–65
  13. "pansalb.org.za". Archived from the original on 17 December 2007. Retrieved 17 December 2007.
  14. isolezwe.co.za
  15. ilanganews.co.za
  16. "Oscar nomination for SA film – Brand South Africa". brandsouthafrica.com. 26 January 2005. Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  17. Magagula, Constance Samukelisiwe (2009). Standard Versus Non-standard IsiZulu: A Comparative Study Between Urban and Rural Learners' Performance and Attitude. Durban: University of KwaZulu-Natal.
  18. "PHOIBLE 2.0 -". phoible.org. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
  19. Rycroft & Ngcobo (1979) Say it in Zulu, p. 6
  20. Zulu-English dictionary, C.M. Doke & B.W. Vilakazi
  21. Zulu-English Dictionary, Doke, 1958
  22. Zulu English Dictionary
  23. Ayonrinde, Oyedeji A.; Stefatos, Anthi; Miller, Shadé; Richer, Amanda; Nadkarni, Pallavi; She, Jennifer; Alghofaily, Ahmad; Mngoma, Nomusa (12 June 2020). "The salience and symbolism of numbers across cultural beliefs and practice". International Review of Psychiatry. 33 (1–2): 179–188. doi:10.1080/09540261.2020.1769289. ISSN 0954-0261. PMID 32527165. S2CID 219605482.
  24. Reverend Father Franz Mayr Five Hundred Year Archive (FHYA). Retrieved July 14, 2024.
  25. Mayr, Fr. (1912). "Zulu Proverbs". Anthropos. 7: 957-963.
  26. Colenso, John W. (1884). Zulu-English Dictionary. Natal. pp. i-xv. See also the 1905 edition, pp. 725-728.
  27. Callaway, Henry (1868). Nursery Tales, Traditions, and Histories of the Zulus.
  28. Callaway 1868, pp. 3-40.
  29. Callaway 1868, pp. 41-72.
  30. Callaway 1868, pp. 78-85.
  31. Callaway 1868, pp. 99-104.
  32. Callaway 1868, pp. 135-140.
  33. Callaway 1868, pp. 140-141, 142-152, 154-155, 155-158, and 158-164.
  34. Callaway 1868, pp. 164-176.
  35. Callaway 1868, pp. 181-217.
  36. Callaway 1868, pp. 237-253.
  37. Callaway 1868, pp. 296-317.
  38. Callaway 1868, pp. 331-335.
  39. Callaway 1868, pp. 221-237.
  40. Callaway, Henry (1870). The Religious System of the Amazulu.
  41. Callaway 1870, pp. 1-104.
  42. Callaway 1868, pp. 364-374.
  43. Carbutt, Mrs Hugh Lancaster. (1880). "Six Zulu Riddles". Folklore Journal of the South African Folklore Society. 2: 60-61.
  44. Burlin, Natalie Curtis; Simango, C. Kamba; Čele, Madikane (1920). Songs and Tales from the Dark Continent. pp. 57-76.
  45. Burlin 1920, pp. 63-66.
  46. Burlin 1920, pp. 66-68.
  47. Burlin 1920, pp. 68-71.
  48. Burlin 1920, pp. 71-76.
  49. Burlin 1920, pp. 133-149.

Sources

Bibliography

  • Canonici, Noverino, 1996, Imisindo YesiZulu: An Introduction to Zulu Phonology, University of Natal
  • Canonici, Noverino, 1996, Zulu Grammatical Structure, University of Natal
  • Wade, Rodrik D. (1996). "Structural characteristics of Zulu English". An Investigation of the Putative Restandardisation of South African English in the Direction of a 'New' English, Black South African English (Thesis). Durban: University of Natal. Archived from the original on 13 October 2008.

Further reading

External links

Courses

Grammar

Dictionaries

Newspapers

Software

Literature and culture

Languages of Lesotho
Official languages
  • English
  • Sesotho (national language)
Non-official languages
Languages of South Africa
Official
West Germanic
Southern Bantu
Sotho–Tswana
Nguni
Tswa–Ronga
Venda
Recognised
unofficial languages
mentioned in the
1996 constitution
Indigenous
Foreign
Religious
Other
LGBTQ slang
Other
Languages of Eswatini
Official languages
Non-official languages
Immigrant languages
Immigrant languages
Languages of Mozambique
Official language
Indigenous languages
Immigrant languages
Sign languages
Narrow Bantu languages (Zones N–S) (by Guthrie classification)
Zone N
N10
N20
N30
N40
Zone P
P10
P20
P30
Zone R
R10
R20
R30
R40
Zone S
S10
S20
S30
S40
S50
S60
  • The Guthrie classification is geographic and its groupings do not imply a relationship between the languages within them.
Narrow Bantu languages by Guthrie classification zone templates
Template:Narrow Bantu languages (Zones A–B)
Template:Narrow Bantu languages (Zones C–D)
Template:Narrow Bantu languages (Zones E–H)
Template:Narrow Bantu languages (Zones J–M)
Template:Narrow Bantu languages (Zones N–S)
Categories: