Kinyarwanda language
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Kinyarwanda is the chief spoken language in Rwanda. It is also spoken in the east of DRC and in the south of Uganda (Bufumbira-area). Kinyarwanda is a tonal language of the Bantu language family (Guthrie D61). Kinyarwanda is closely related to Kirundi spoken in the neighboring country, Burundi and to Giha of western Tanzania.
The inhabitants of Rwanda and Burundi belong to three different ethnic groups (Although the validity of the ethnic nature is debatable; see [link]): Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa (a pygmy people). The fact that these ethnic groups share the same language is assumed to be the result of the Hutu outnumbering the latter two groups (see Hutu for a more complete historical perspective).
Pronunciation
a [ɑ]
b [b/β]
c [c]
d [d]
e [e]
f [f]
g [ɡ]
h [h]
i [i]
j [ʤ]
k [k]
l [l]
m [m]
n [n]
o [o]
p [p] (only stands alone in foreign loanwords)
r [ɾ]
s [s]
t [t]
u [u]
v [v]
w [w]
y [j]
z [z]
sh [ɕ]
nt [nh]
mp [mh]
nk [ŋx]
cy [kj]
jy [ɡj]
ny [ɲ]
'ki' and 'ke' can be pronounced interchangeably as [ki] and [ke] or [ci] and [ce] according to speaker's preference
A vowel at the end of a word followed by a word starting with a vowel often follows a pattern of omission (observed in the following excerpt of the Rwandan anthem) in common speech, though the orthography REMAINS THE SAME.
e.g. 'Reka tukurate tukuvuge ibigwi wowe utubumbiye hamwe twese Abanyarwanda uko watubyaye berwa, sugira, singizwa iteka.' would be pronounced as 'reka tukurate tukuvugi bwigwi wowu tubumiye hamwe twesa banyarwandu ko watubyaye berwa sugira singizwi teka.'
Grammar
Nouns
Kinyarwanda has a number of different noun classes.
Sing./Pl.
u-mu-/a-ba-
u-mu-/i-mi-
i-(ri)-/a-ma-
i-ki- (i-gi-)/i-bi-
i-n-/i-n-
u-ru-/i-bi-
a-ka-/u-tu-
u-bu-/u-bu-
u-ku-/a-ma-
a-ha-/a-ha-
When proceeded by a demonstrative, a the first vowel prefix is dropped. (e.g. umu --> mu) The u-mu-/a-ba- group is used for words representing humans.
Verbs
All Kinyarwanda verb infinitives begin with 'gu-' or 'ku-' (morphed into 'gw-' or 'kw-' before vowels). To conjugate, the infinitive prefix is removed and a prefix agreeing with the subject takes its place. Then a tense infix can be inserted.
Noun Prefix | Subject Prefix
Sing./Pl. | Sing./Pl.
u-mu-/a-ba- | a-/ba-
u-mu-/i-mi- | u-/i-
i-(ri)-/a-ma- | ri-/a-
i-ki- (i-gi-)/i-bi- | ki- (morphs to cy- before vowels)/bi-
i-n-/i-n- | i-/zi-
u-ru-/i-bi- | ru-/bi-
a-ka-/u-tu- | ka-/tu-
u-bu-/u-bu- | bu-/bu-
u-ku-/a-ma- | ku-/a-
a-ha-/a-ha- | ha-/ha-
The prefixes for pronouns are as follows.
I = n-
you (sing.) = mu-
he = y-/a-
she = y-/a-
we = tu-
you (pl.) = u-
they (human) = ba-
Tense markers include the following.
-Ø- | Present
-ra- (morphs to -da- when preceded by 'n' | Present Progressive - to be doing
-za- | Future - will do
-racya- | to still be doing
The past tense can be formed by using the present and present progressive infixes and modifying the apect marker suffix.
Example translations
| Yego | Yes | |||||||||||||||
| Oya | No | |||||||||||||||
| Ndabizi | I know | |||||||||||||||
| Simbizi | I don't know | |||||||||||||||
| Amazi | Water | |||||||||||||||
| Ndashaka amazi | I want water | |||||||||||||||
| Urushaka ikawa | Do you want coffee? | − | Bite Byawe? | How are you? (Informal) | ||||||||||||
| Witwa nde? | What is your name? | |||||||||||||||
| Toilete iri hehe? | Where's the bathroom? | |||||||||||||||
| Nitwa… | My name is… | |||||||||||||||
| Amahoro | Peace | |||||||||||||||
| Murakoze | Thank you | |||||||||||||||
| Amakuru | How are you? (formal) | |||||||||||||||
| Nimeza | (I'm) fine | |||||||||||||||
| Igicucu | Stupid person | − | Nkunda abaturage b'u Rwanda | I like Rwandan people | − | Ndi... | I am... | − | Abana | Children | − | Igiparu | Good conversation | − | Inka | Cow |
| Muraho | Hello | − | Murabeho | Bye | ||||||||||||
| Ijororyiza | Good night | |||||||||||||||
| Mwaramutseho | Good morning (Did you wake up well?) | |||||||||||||||
| Inyenzi | Cockroach(es) | |||||||||||||||
| Umupanga | Machete | |||||||||||||||
| Izuba | sun | |||||||||||||||
| Ingurube | Pig | |||||||||||||||
| Inzu | House | |||||||||||||||
| Itsembabwoko | Genocide | |||||||||||||||
References
- Jouannet, Francis (ed.) (1983). Le Kinyarwanda, langue bantu du Rwanda. Paris: Société d’Études Linguistiques et Anthropologiques de France (SELAF).
- Kimenyi, Alexandre (1980). A Relational Grammar of Kinyarwanda. University of California Press.
- Habumuremyi, Emmanuel et al. (2006). IRIZA-STARTER 2006: The 1st Kinyarwanda-English and English-Kinyarwanda Dictionary. Kigali: Rural ICT-Net
External links
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