Tonga language (Zambia and Zimbabwe)
| Tonga | |
|---|---|
| Zambezi | |
| Chitonga | |
| Native to | Zambia, Zimbabwe |
| Ethnicity | Tonga, Kafwe Twa? |
Native speakers |
1.5 million (2001–2010 census)[1] one of the key lingua francas in Zambia and parts of Zimbabwe and Mozambique) |
| Dialects |
Plateau Tonga
Valley Tonga (We)
Leya
Mala
Ndawe
Dombe
|
|
Latin (Tonga alphabet) Tonga Braille | |
| Official status | |
Official language in | Zimbabwe |
Recognised minority language in | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 |
toi – inclusive codeIndividual code: dov – Dombe (derogatory synonym) |
| Glottolog |
tong1318[2] |
M.64[3] | |
The Tonga language, Chitonga, of Zambia and Zimbabwe, also known as Zambezi, is a Bantu Language primarily spoken by the Tonga people in those countries who live mainly in the Southern and Western provinces of Zambia, and in northern Zimbabwe, with a few in Mozambique. The language is also spoken by the Iwe, Toka and Leya people, perhaps by the Kafwe Twa (if that is not Ila), as well as many bilingual Zambians and Zimbabweans. It is one of the major lingua francas in Zambia, together with Bemba, Lozi and Nyanja. The Tonga of Malawi is not particularly close.
The Tonga speaking inhabitants are the oldest Bantu settlers, with the Tumbuka, a small tribe in the east, in what is known as Zambia. There are two distinctive dialects of the Tonga, Valley Tonga and Plateau Tonga. Valley Tonga is mostly spoken in the Zambezi valley and southern areas of the Batonga (Tonga People) while Plateau Tonga is spoken more around Monze district and the northern areas of the Batonga.[4]
Tonga (Chitonga or iciTonga) developed as a spoken language and was not put into written form until missionaries arrived in the area. The language is not standardized, and speakers of the same dialect may have different spellings for the same words once put into written text.[5]
At least some speakers have a bilabial nasal click where neighboring dialects have /mw/, as in mwana 'child' and kumwa 'to drink'.[6]
Maho (2009) removes Shanjo as a separate, and not very closely related, language.
Verbs
Tonga follows the standard Bantu language structure. One word may consist of a verb, a direct object, a tense marker and even an indirect object.
| Tense[7] | Tense marker | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Subject-(tense marker)-verb root-(ending) | First person "ndi" doing something s/he shouldn't be doing "kuputa" | |
| Present Simple | -(verb root) | Ndaputa |
| Present Perfect | -a-(verb root)-ide | Ndiputide |
| Present Continuous | -la- | Ndilaputa |
| Habitual Present Tense | -la-(verb root)-a | Ndilaputa |
| Recent Past (Past of Today) | -ali-(verb root)-ide | ndaliputide |
| Simple Past | -aka- | ndakaputa |
| Recent Past Continuous | -ali-ku-(verb root) | ndalikuputa |
| Habitual Past Continuous | -akali-ku-(verb root) | Ndakalikuputa |
| Remote Past | -aka- | ndakaputa |
| Near Future | -la- | Ndilaputa |
| Simple Future | -ya-ku-(verb root)-a | Ndiyakuputa |
| Future Habitual | -niku-(verb root)-a | ndinikuputa |
| Extended Future (Tomorrow or after tomorrow) | -yaku-(verb)-a | ndiyakuputa |
References
- ↑ Tonga at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
Dombe (derogatory synonym) at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) - ↑ Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). "Tonga". Glottolog. Leipzig: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology.
- ↑ Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
- ↑ A Practical Introduction to Chitonga, C.R. Hopgood, 1992 Edition, Zambia Educational Publishing House, p. x
- ↑ Mweenzu Wafwulwe Ulalila Bowa (An Advanced Chitonga Language Course), R.N. Moonga and F.W. Wafer, Zambia Educational Publishing House, 1997, p. v
- ↑ Norval Smith, Harry Van Der Hulst, 1988. Features, Segmental Structure & Harmony Processes, vol. 1 p. 198
- ↑ Tenses taken from Peace Corps Zambia Trainee's Book: Tonga, 2003
External links
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Chitonga
- Glossary of Chitonga, in English and German
- Chitonga Glossary
- OLAC resources in and about the Tonga language
- OLAC resources in and about the Dombe language
- Chitonga language books, Lubuto Library Special Collections
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