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Tjwao Dialect
Tjwao (formerly Tshwao) is an endangered Khoe language spoken by fewer than 8 people in the Tsholotsho District of Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ..., all over 60 years of age. A slightly larger group of 100 have passive or partial knowledge of the language. It is the only Khoisan language in Zimbabwe, where "Koisan" is an officially recognised language in the constitution. Tjwao belongs to the Tshwa (Tsoa-Kua) cluster of East Kalahari Khoe languages. It is very similar to the varieties of Ganade noted by Westphal and Traill. Although mentioned by scholars for several decades, documentation of the language only began in 2012. References Languages of Zimbabwe Khoisan languages Endangered languages of Africa {{Zimbabwe-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zimbabwe
file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia to the north, and Mozambique to the east. The capital and largest city is Harare, and the second largest is Bulawayo. A country of roughly 16.6 million people as per 2024 census, Zimbabwe's largest ethnic group are the Shona people, Shona, who make up 80% of the population, followed by the Northern Ndebele people, Northern Ndebele and other #Demographics, smaller minorities. Zimbabwe has 16 official languages, with English, Shona language, Shona, and Northern Ndebele language, Ndebele the most common. Zimbabwe is a member of the United Nations, the Southern African Development Community, the African Union, and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa. The region was long inhabited by the San people, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Khoe Languages
The Khoe or Khoi ( ) languages are the largest of the non- Bantu language families indigenous to Southern Africa. They were once considered to be a branch of a Khoisan language family, and were known as Central Khoisan in that scenario. Though Khoisan is now rejected as a family, the name is retained as a term of convenience. The most numerous and only well-known Khoe language is Khoekhoe (Nama/Damara) of Namibia. The rest of the family is found predominantly in the Kalahari Desert of Botswana. The languages are similar enough that a fair degree of communication is possible between Khoekhoe and the languages of Botswana. The Khoe languages were the first Khoisan languages known to European colonists and are famous for their clicks, though these are not as extensive as in other Khoisan language families. There are two primary branches of the family, ''Khoekhoe'' of Namibia and South Africa, and ''Tshu–Khwe'' of Botswana and Zimbabwe. Except for Nama, they are under pressure ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tshwa Language
Tsoa, Tshwa or Tshuwau, also known as Kua and Hiechware, is an East Kalahari Khoe dialect cluster spoken by several thousand people in Botswana and Zimbabwe. One of the dialects is Tjwao (formerly spelled 'Tshwao'), the only Khoisan language in Zimbabwe, where "Koisan" is a language officially recognised in the constitution. Dialects Tsoa–Kua is a dialect cluster, which is still poorly studied but seems to include: *Tsoa, also known as Hiechware and as various other combinations of Hio-, Hie-, Hai- + Chwa, Tshwa, Chuwau, Tshuwau + -re, -ri; also as Sarwa, Sesarwa (the Tswana name), Gǁabakʼe-Ntshori, Tati, and Kwe-Etshori Kwee. Zimbabwean Tjwao apparently belongs here. *Kua, also spelled Cua and Tyhua. That is, both Tsoa and Kua may be pronounced something like , and it's not clear that they are distinct dialects. *Cire Cire , spoken in the area around Nata in Botswana. Phonology The following inventory is of the Kua dialect: The Cire-cire (not cited) dialect has ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tsholotsho District
Tsholotsho, originally known as Tjolotjo, is a Districts of Zimbabwe, district in Matabeleland North province in Zimbabwe. Its administrative centre is at Tsholotsho business centre which is located about 98 km north-west of Bulawayo. Districts around Tsholotsho include Lupane District, Lupane, Hwange District, Hwange, Umguza District, Umguza, and Bulilima District, Bulilima. The Nata River, Manzamnyama River separates Tsholotsho from Bulilima District, whilst the Gwayi River separates it from Umguza and Lupane districts, and the Hwange National Park separates it from Hwange District. History The area was a favourite of the elephant herds and had attracted early ivory hunters. The area was occupied by the Kalanga people, Bakalanga and San people, San people before Mzilikazi and his Ndebele people arrived here. The name "Tsholotsho" (old spelling "Tjolotjo") being derived from the San word "Tsoro o tso" meaning the head of an elephant. Among the pre-Mzilikazi chiefs of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Khoisan Language
Khoisan ( ) or () is an umbrella term for the various indigenous peoples of Southern Africa who traditionally speak non-Bantu languages, combining the Khoekhoen and the Sān peoples. Khoisan populations traditionally speak click languages. They are considered to be the historical communities throughout Southern Africa, remaining predominant until Bantu and European colonisation. The Khoisan have lived in areas climatically unfavorable to Bantu (sorghum-based) agriculture, from the Cape region to Namibia and Botswana, where populations of Nama and Damara people are prevalent groups. Considerable mingling with Bantu-speaking groups is evidenced by prevalence of click phonemes in many Southern African Bantu languages, especially Xhosa. Many Khoesan peoples are the descendants of an early dispersal of anatomically modern humans to Southern Africa before 150,000 years ago. (However, see below for recent work supporting a multi-regional hypothesis that suggests the Khoisan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
East Kalahari Khoe
The Khoe or Khoi ( ) languages are the largest of the non- Bantu language families indigenous to Southern Africa. They were once considered to be a branch of a Khoisan language family, and were known as Central Khoisan in that scenario. Though Khoisan is now rejected as a family, the name is retained as a term of convenience. The most numerous and only well-known Khoe language is Khoekhoe (Nama/Damara) of Namibia. The rest of the family is found predominantly in the Kalahari Desert of Botswana. The languages are similar enough that a fair degree of communication is possible between Khoekhoe and the languages of Botswana. The Khoe languages were the first Khoisan languages known to European colonists and are famous for their clicks, though these are not as extensive as in other Khoisan language families. There are two primary branches of the family, ''Khoekhoe'' of Namibia and South Africa, and ''Tshu–Khwe'' of Botswana and Zimbabwe. Except for Nama, they are under pressure f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ganade Language
Shua , or ''Shwakhwe'', is a Khoe language (Central Khoisan) of Botswana. It is spoken in central Botswana (in Nata and its surroundings), and in parts of the Chobe District in the extreme north of Botswana. There are approximately 6,000 speakers (Cook 2004) and approximately 2,000 out of those 6,000 speakers are native speakers. The linguistic variety spoken in the township of Nata in northeast Botswana is highly endangered and spoken fluently only by adults over about thirty years of age. The term ''Shwakhwe'' means people (''khwe'') from the salty area (''shwa''). Phonology Consonants * // is only phonemic in the Tsʼixa and Danisi dialects. Vowels Shua has the five vowels , and three nasal vowels . Syntax Unlike most Khoisan languages, but like Nama, the most neutral word order is SOV, though word order is relatively free. As with most Khoisan languages, there are postpositions. There is a tense-aspect marker ''ke'' which often appears in second position in a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Languages Of Zimbabwe
Many languages are spoken, or historically have been spoken, in Zimbabwe. Since the adoption of its 2013 Constitution, Zimbabwe has 16 official languages, namely Chewa, Chibarwe, English, Kalanga, Koisan, Nambya, Ndau, Ndebele, Shangani, Shona, sign language, Sotho, Tonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa. The country's main languages are Shona, spoken by over 70% of the population, and Ndebele, spoken by roughly 20%. English is the country's lingua franca, used in government and business and as the main medium of instruction in schools. English is the first language of most white Zimbabweans, and is the second language of a majority of black Zimbabweans. Historically, a minority of white Zimbabweans spoke Afrikaans, Greek, Italian, Polish, and Portuguese, among other languages, while Gujarati and Hindi could be found amongst the country's Indian population. Deaf Zimbabweans commonly use one of several varieties of Zimbabwean Sign Language, with some using American Sign ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Khoisan Languages
The Khoisan languages ( ; also Khoesan or Khoesaan) are a number of Languages of Africa, African languages once classified together, originally by Joseph Greenberg. Khoisan is defined as those languages that have click languages, click consonants and do not belong to other African language families. For much of the 20th century, they were thought to be Genetic relationship (linguistics), genealogically related to each other, but this is no longer accepted. They are now held to comprise three distinct language family, language families and two language isolates. All but two Khoisan languages are indigenous to southern Africa; these are classified into three language families. The Khoe languages, Khoe family appears to have migrated to southern Africa not long before the Bantu expansion. Ethnically, their speakers are the Khoekhoe and the San people, San (Bushmen). Two languages of eastern Africa, those of the Sandawe people, Sandawe and Hadza people, Hadza, were originally also cl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
