Tsonga language

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tsonga
Shangani
Xitsonga
Native to Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland, Zimbabwe
Region Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Gaza Province, Maputo Province, Maputo City, Manica, Inhambane, Chikombezi
Ethnicity Tsonga (Shangani)
Native speakers
 3,7 million  (2006)[1]
Latin (Tsonga alphabet)
Tsonga Braille
Signed Tsonga
Official status
Official language in
  South Africa
 Zimbabwe (as 'Shangani')
Language codes
ISO 639-1 ts
ISO 639-2 tso
ISO 639-3 tso
S.53 (S.52)[2]
Linguasphere 99-AUT-dc incl. varieties 99-AUT-dca...
-dcg

The Tsonga language (Xitsonga) is a southern African Bantu language spoken by the Tsonga people.

Name

The name "Tsonga" includes Tsonga, Tswa, and Ronga. The 6 main dialects identified by HP Junod are: N’walungu (Luleke, Valoyi), Hlave, Nkuna, Gwamba, Nhlanganu, Djonga, Machabe, and Bila. The "Tsonga" people are grandchildren of "Gwambe na Dzhavana".

Geographic distribution

Geographical distribution of Xitsonga in South Africa: proportion of the population that speaks Xitsonga at home.
  0–20%
  20–40%
  40–60%
  60–80%
  80–100%
Geographical distribution of Xitsonga in South Africa: density of Xitsonga home-language speakers.
  <1 /km²
  1–3 /km²
  3–10 /km²
  10–30 /km²
  30–100 /km²
  100–300 /km²
  300–1000 /km²
  1000–3000 /km²
  >3000 /km²

Tsonga is spoken by about 1,972,000[3] people in South Africa's Limpopo province as well as Gauteng Province and Mpumalanga Province, as well as 1.5 million people in Mozambique, and 25,000 people in Swaziland. There are also 100,000 speakers in Zimbabwe.

In South Africa most of Vatsonga were concentrated in places like e.g. Nkowankowa, Giyani, Malamulele, N'wamitwa, Muhlava, Hlanganani (Elim) in Limpopo and Bushbuckridge (ka Mpisana) and others in Mpumalanga. There are also large numbers in the Northwest, KwaZulu-Natal (Tembe) and Gauteng provinces. Basically they can be found anywhere in the old Transvaal.

Official status

Tsonga is an official language in South Africa. It has been suggested to be made official in Zimbabwe according to the new constitution. All Tswa-Ronga languages are recognised in Mozambique. It is not official in Swaziland.

Dialects

Tswa-Ronga people and languages are: Chopi, Ndau, Ronga, Tsonga, Tonga and Tswa.

  • Chopi (Chope, Copi, Tshopi, Txopi) dialects are Copi, Khambani, Lambwe, Lenge (Lengue), Ndonge and Tonga.
  • Ndau (Ndzawu, Njao, Sofala, South-East Shona) dialects are Changa (Shanga, Xanga), Danda, Dondo, Gova, Ndau, and Senji.
  • Ronga (Rhonga) dialects are Kalanga, Konde, Putru, and Ssonge.
  • Tsonga (aka standard or South African Tsonga) dialects are Bila (Vila), Changana (Shangaan, Shangana), Dzonga (Jonga), Gwamba (Gwapa), Hlanganu (Langanu, Nhlanganu), Hlave (Mbayi, Nkuna, Pai), Kande, Khosa, Luleke, N'walungu (Ngwalungu), Nkuma, Songa, Xika, and Xonga.
  • Tswa (Tshwa) dialects are Dzibi (Dzivi), Dzibi-Dzonga (Dzivi-Dzonga), Tshwa, Hlengwe (Lengwe, Lhenge), Khambani, Makwakwe-Khambani, Mandla, Ndxhonge, and Nhayi (Nyai, Nyayi).
  • Tonga can be divided into Valley Tonga and Plateau Tonga, and is spoken by Ila, Iwe, Leya, Toka and Tonga people.

Tswa-Ronga dialects not considered part of the family include Pulana (Xipulana, Sepulane).

It has been said that the two dialects that unite all Tswa-Ronga languages are Nkuna and Khosa (HP Junod, Matimu ya Vatsonga).

For "language of", the various languages and dialects may use one or more of the prefixes: Bi-, Chi-, Ci-, Gi-, Ici-, Ki-, Ma-, Shee-, Shi-, Txi-, Va-, Wa-, and Xi-. For "people of", they use either "Ba-" or "Va-".

Various dialects of Tsonga are spoken as far north as the Save River in Zimbabwe, Zambezi River in the east (Mozambique), Ribvubye in the West (or Tshamahansi beyond Polokwane) and as far south as Saint Lucia Bay (Mkuze River) in KwaZulu/Natal. While most dialects are mutually intelligible, they do have distinct differences that are geographical as well as based on influence of the colonial era. Tsonga also has two very close relatives: Xironga, which is spoken in and about Maputo, Mozambique, and Xitswa, which is spoken around Inhambane and has a Chihlengwe dialect extending into Zimbabwe.

These dialects and relatives differ in pronunciation. For example, in South African Tsonga the use of the prefix "xi" is pronounced "shi" in Xikwembu (God). In Zimbabwe this prefix is pronounced "chi", as in "Chikwembu" (God). South African Tsonga also uses consonant combinations like "nk", "mp", "ns" as in khensa (thank), nyimpi (war), and nsiha (vein). In Zimbabwe the equivalents are khesa, nyipi, and siha.

Phonology

Tsonga has a distinction between modal and breathy voiced consonants: /bʱ, bvʱ, vʱ, dʱ, ɖʐʱ, dʒʱ, ɡʱ/ vs /b, bv, v, d, ɖʐ, dʒ, ɡ/ among the obstruents (the one exception being /ɮ/), and /m̤, n̤, ŋ̈, r̤, ȷ̈, w̤/ vs /m, n, ŋ, r, j, w/ among the sonorants (the one exception being /ɲ/).

Unlike some of the Nguni languages, Tsonga has very few words with click consonants, and these vary in place between dental and postalveolar. Examples are: ngqondo (mind), gqoka (wear/dress), guqa (kneel), riqingo (phone), qiqi (earring), qamba (compose), Mugqivela (Saturday).

Tsonga also has "whistled" sibilants similar to Shona "sw/sv", tsw/tsv", "dzw/dzv".

Grammar

The grammar is generally typical of Bantu languages with a subject–verb--object order. The structure changes to Subject--Object--Verb when addressing another person:

Tsonga English
Ndza ku rhandza I you love (I love you)
Wa ndzi rhandza You me love(You love me)
Ha ku tiva We you know(We know you)
Va ndzi tiva They me know(They know me)

Tsonga Tenses 1. Past Tense The present tense is formed by simply using the personal pronoun along with the verb Ndzi lava mali – I want money, Hi tirha siku hinkwaro – We work all day, Mi(u) lava mani? – Who are you looking for? U kota ku famba – S/He knows how to walk.

Past Progressive Generally, to indicate ongoing actions in the present one takes the personal pronoun, drops the 'i' and adds 'a' Ndzi nghena (e)ndlwini – I am entering the house, Ha tirha sweswi – We are working right now, Ma hemba – You(pl.) are lying, Wa hemba – You(sing.) are lying, Wa hemba – S/He is lying,

  • with the plural 'va'(they) there is no difference. Thus 'va hemba' = they lie AND they are lying.

3.Not Perfect This is for in one of three ways, depending on the word. (i) Generally, one drops the 'a' from the verb and adds the prefix '-ile' Ndzi nghenile ndlwini – I entered the house, Hi tirhile siku hinkwaro – We worked all day, U hembile – You lied, U hembile – S/He lied, Va hembile – They lied.

(ii)With verbs that end with -ala, in the past change to -ele or -ale ku rivala – to forget, Ndzi rivele – I Forgot, U rivele – you forgot, Va rivele – they forgot, Ku nyamalala – To disappear, U nyamalarile – S/he – disappeared,

  • words used to describe a state of being also use the past tense

Ku karhala – To be tired, Ndzi karhele – I am tired, U karhele – S/He is tired, Va karhele – They are tired.

(iii) In many cases merely changing the last 'a' in the verb to an 'e' indicates past action Ku fika – To arrive, U fike tolo – S/He arrived yesterday, Ndzi fike tolo – I arrived yesterday, Hi tirhe siku hinkwaro – We worked all day, Ndzi nghene (e)ndlwini – I entered the house.

4. Future This is formed by the adding 'ta' in between the personal pronoun and the verb Ndzi ta nghena (e)ndlwini – I will enter the house, Hi ta tirha siku hinkwaro – We will work all day, Va ta tirha siku hinkwaro – They will work all day, Mi ta tirha siku hinkwaro – You(pl.) will work all day.

Noun classes

Tsonga has several classes, much like other Bantu languages, which are learned through memorisation mostly. These are:

1 mu mufana/boy murhangeri/leader
2 va vafana/boys varhangeri/leaders vanhu/people
3 mu nseve/arrow nenge/leg nambu/river
4 mi miseve/arrows milenge/legs milambu/rivers
5 ri tiko/country rito/word vito/name
6 ma matiko/countries marito/words mavito/names
7 xi Xikwembu/God xilo/thing xitulu/chair
8 swi Swikwembu/gods swilo/things switulu/chairs
9 yi (N) yindlu/house mbyana/dog homu/cow
10 ti(N) tiyindlu/houses timbyana/dogs tihomu/cows
11 ri rihlaya/jaw rivambu/rib rintiho – finger
14 vu vutomi/life vumunhu/humanness vululami – righteousness
15 ku ku tshemba/trust ku dya/ to eat ku biha/ugliness
21 dyi dyimunhu/abnormally huge person dyiyindlu/abnormally huge house

Personal pronouns

Personal pronouns in Tsonga are very similar to those of many other Bantu languages, with a few variations.

These may be classified as first person (the speaker), second person (the one spoken to), and third person (the one spoken about). They are also classified by grammatical number, i.e., singular and plural. There is no distinction between subject and object.

Each pronoun has a corresponding concord or agreement morpheme.

Personal Pronouns
1st sg. 2nd sg. 3rd sg. 1st pl. 2nd pl. 3rd pl.
Pronoun mina wena yena hina n'wina vona
Agreement morpheme ndzi, ndza u, wa u, wa hi, ha mi, ma va
Example sentences Mina ndzi vona huku. ("I see a chicken.")
Mina ndza yi vona huku. ("I see it—the chicken.") 		Wena u vona huku. ("You see a chicken.")
Wena wa yi vona huku. ("You see it—the chicken.") 		Yena u vona huku. ("He/she sees a chicken.")
Yena wa yi vona huku. ("He/she sees it—the chicken.") 		Hina hi vona huku. ("We see a chicken.")
Hina ha yi vona huku. ("We see it—the chicken.") 		N'wina mi vona huku. ("You see a chicken.")
N'wina ma yi vona huku. ("You see it—the chicken.") 		Vona va vona huku. ("They see a chicken.")
Vona va yi vona huku. ("They see it—the chicken.")

Verbs

All verbs have the prefix "ku" and end with an 'a' in the infinitive, with a couple of exceptions.

Tsonga English
ku chava To fear
ku tsaka To rejoice
ku rhandza to love

The main exception to this is the verb "ku ri" – "to say" It corresponds to "ti" in many other bantu languages. Examples of its usage include; u ri yini? – what do you say?(what are you saying?), ndzi ri ka n'wina – i say to you all.

In many instances the "ri" is often omitted and thus "ku" on its own can also me "say" Va ri ndza penga – they say i'm crazy, Va ri yini? – what do they say?(what are they saying?).

Proverbs

Like many other languages in the planet, Xitsonga has many proverbs; these proverbs appear in different classes. They appear in a group of animals, trees and people.

Tsonga English Meaning
N'wana wa mfenhe a nga tsandziwi hi rhavi The child of baboon does not fail a branch A wise man can do anything.
U nga teki mali u bohela enengeni wa mpfuvu Do not tie money in the leg of hippopotamus Do not lend your money to people who do not pay back.
U nga dlayi nyoka u yi ndzuluta, ta micele ta ku vona Do not kill a snake and swing it, the ones inside the holes are watching you Do not do unnecessary bad things to someone, other people are watching you.
Kuwa ro tshwuka ri na xivungu endzeni. A fig fruit which is pink, it has a worm inside. Most of very beautiful women they have bad habits.
N'wana wa nyoka i nyoka. The child of snake is a snake. A child of a bad person, might be a very bad person.
Ndlopfu a yi fi hi rivambu rin'we An elephant does not die of one (broken) rib When in trouble, a man should try all efforts to find a solution.
Mbuti ya xihaha a yi tswaleli entlhambini A secretive goat does not give birth in a midst. Keep a secret do not say it where there are many people
Matimba ya ngwenya i mati The strength of crocodile is water. A man has power when he is supported by his people
N'hwarimbirhi yin'we yi ta tshwa nkanga If one tries to do more than one thing at the same time, one might not prosper.
N'wana wo ka a nga rili u ta fela a dzobyeni A child who does not cry will die unnoticed at the back of his mother. If you do not raise your voice (in a form of a complaint), you will not be heard.
Mbuti yi dya laha yi nga bohiwa kona A goat eats where it is tied. A person must use properties of a place where he is working.
Ku tlula ka mhala ku letela n'wana wa le ndzeni The way an impala jumps, it influences its unborn child. Whatever bad things a mother does, her daughter will also do.
I malebvu ya nghala. It is a lion's beard A thing may not be as scary as it looks.
Nomu a wu taleriwi hi nambu A mouth can cross any river. A mouth can say all words of promises.
Mavoko ya munhu a ma mili nhova/byanyi Grass cannot grow on a human being's hands. You must work hard (in every possible way) to succeed.
Xandla famba, xandla vuya. Let the hand go and let the hand come back. A giving hand is a receiving hand.
Humba yi olele nkuma The snail has collected ashes A person has died
Mbyana loko yi lava ku ku luma ya n'wayitela A dog smiles when it intends to bite something. A person can do (or intend to do) bad things to you, while he is smiling.
Ku hiwa hi Thomo ku suka e palamendhe ya le tilweni To be given by Thomo (king's name) from heavenly parliament. To be blessed by God.
Vana va munhu va tsemelana nhloko ya njiya Siblings are sharing the head of locust Siblings must share good things.
Mhunti yo tlulatlula Mangulwe u ta yi khoma. An Antelope which is jumping around next to Mangulwe (dog's name), he will catch it. (Used by a boy when he is in love with a girl) any girl who has been seen by this boy, she will accept his proposal.
Tolo a nga ha vuyi Yesterday will not come back Wishing to bring interesting old things of old days to nowadays.
Nghala yi vomba exihlahleni A lion roars in the bush A warrior is seen in a war
Ku hundza muti ri xile To pass a home during the day To be stupid
Tinghala timbirhi ta chavana Two lions fear each other Two powerful nations fear each other
Timpfuvu timbirhi a ti tshami xidziveni xin'we Two hippos cannot stay in the same deep water. Enemies cannot stay in the same place.
Vuhosi a byi peli nambu Chiefdom does not cross the river Chiefdom stays in the same family, cannot be passed to other families.
A ndzi ku hi laha ku nga na mpfula ku sala ndzhongo I thought is where the rain has poured and left fertile soil. I thought it was good things.
I matutu vana va ntavasi It is plenty
Ku tshwa nomo To have a burnt mouth Referring to someone who constantly lies, e.g. Jephrey Cuma u tshwe nomo.
N'wana u tseme mubya A disobedient child.
Ximitantsengele xi tshemba nkolo He who swallows a large stone has confidence in the size of his throat When you start something you must have power (courage) to complete it.
Mutlhontlhi wa tinyarhi ti vuya hi yena The one who challenges buffaloes they will chase him. He who provokes other people, will face the consequences.
Loko u tsundzuka mhelembe khandziya ensinyeni When you think of rhino, climb a tree. When you think of something, act immediately.
Ku ba ndlopfu hi xibakele To hit an elephant with a fist To make a very slight impression.
Ku banana hi rhambu ra mfenhe To hit each other with a baboon's bone To exchange gifts with relatives only.
Ku banana hi rhanga ro hisa To hit each other with a hot 'pumpkin' To accuse each other.
U nga hlawuli nkuku wa mhangele One must not choose the male of the guinea-fowl (similar to "Don't count your chickens before they are hatched"). This proverb is said to a young husband who might be tempted to prepare something for their babies before their birth, since you do not know if the baby is a male or female.
Tinhlanga ta le ndzhaku ti tiviwa hi mutlhaveri wa tona. The tattooing marks made on the back are known by the tattooer (not by the tattooed) You do not know what may happen when you have turned your back.
Xihlovo a xi dungiwi loko u heta ku nwa mati Do not close the well after having drunk. Do not mess up things after using them, you might need them tomorrow.
U nga sahi nsinya hi vuxika, u ta tshwa hi mumu hi malanga Do not cut the tree in winter, you will burn by sun in summer. Do not mess up things when you do not need them, you will suffer when you need them.
Mhunti yi biwa ya ha ri na mahika An Antelope is killed while is sighing A problem must be solved immediately.
Xirhami xi vuyisa na n'wana evukatini chillness causes a girl to come back to her parents' house from her husband's house. It is very cold.

Numerals

Tsonga English
N'we one
Mbirhi two
Nharhu three
Mune four
Ntlhanu five
Tsevu six
Nkombo seven
Nhungu eight
Kaye nine
Khume ten
Khume (na) n'we / Khumen'we eleven
Khume (na) mbirhi / Khumembirhi twelve
Khume (na) nharhu / Khumenharhu thirteen
Makhume mambirhi / Makumembirhi twenty
Makhume manharhu / Makumenharhu thirty
Mune wa makhume / Makumemune forty
Ntlhanu wa makhume / Makumentlhanu fifty
Dzana hundred
Gidi thousand

Months of the Year

Tsonga English
Sunguti January
Nyenyanyana February
Nyenyankulu March
Dzivamisoko April
Mudyaxihi May
Khotavuxika June
Mawuwani July
Mhawuri August
Ndzati September
Nhlangula October
Hukuri November
N'wendzamhala December

Vocabulary

Xitsonga, like many other African languages, have been influenced by various European colonial languages. Xitsonga includes words borrowed from English, Afrikaans, and Portuguese. Also, because of the influence of other more dominant neighbouring languages, Xitsonga has taken some words, especially click words, from isiZulu actually its (Nguni/ngoni).

Words Borrowed from English

  • Thelevhixini (Mavonakule) – television
  • Rhediyo (Xiyanimoya) – Radio
  • Xitulu – chair (Stool)
  • Wachi – watch (to tell time)
  • Movha – car (automobil)
  • Sokisi – socks
  • Nghilazi – glass
  • Tliloko – clock
  • Masipala – municipal (Plural: vamasipala)
  • Makhiya/swikhiya – keys

Words Borrowed from Afrikaans

  • lekere – sweets (lekkers)
  • fasitere – window (venster)
  • lepula – spoon (lepel)
  • kereke – church (kerk)
  • buruku – trousers (broek)
  • domu – idiot (dom)
  • tafula – table (tafel)
  • xipuku – ghost (spook)

Words Borrowed from isiZulu:

  • riqingho – phone
  • ku qonda – to head towards (Not standard = ku kongoma)
  • ku gcina – to end (Not standard = ku hetelela)
  • ku zama – to try (Not standard = ku ringeta)

Writing system

Xitsonga uses the Latin alphabet. However, certain sounds are spelled using a combination of letters, which either do not exist in Indo-European languages, or may be meant to distinguish the language somewhat.

An example of this is the letter "x" taken from Portuguese orthography, which is pronounced /ʃ/. Therefore, the following words, -shusha, shikolo, shilo, are written in Tsonga as -xuxa, xikolo, and xilo.

Other spelling differences include the letter "c", which is pronounced /t͡ʃ/. However, where the emphasis of a word is on the following vowel the letter is hardened by adding "h" this the Tsonga word -chava(fear)

A sound equivalent to the Welsh "ll" (/ɬ/) is written "hl" in Tsonga, e.g. -hlangana(meet), -hlasela(attack), -hleka(laugh)

A whistling sound common in the language is written "sw" or "sv" in Zimbabwean chishona. This sound actually belongs to the "x-sw" class within the language. E.g.:

  • xilo(thing) – swilo(things)
  • xikolo(school) – swikolo(schools)
  • Xikwembu(God) – swikwembu(gods)

Another whistling sound is spelled "dy" but has no English equivalent, the closest being the "dr" sound in the English word "drive"

Xitsonga has been standardised as a written language. However, there are many dialects within the language that may not pronounce words as written. For example, the Tsonga bible uses the word "byela"(tell), pronounced bwe-la, however a large group of speakers would say "dzvela/dyela" instead.

The Lord's Prayer as written in the Xitsonga Bible (Bibele)

Tata wa hina la nge tilweni,
vito ra wena a ri hlawuriwe;
a ku te ku fuma ka wena;
ku rhandza ka wena a ku endliwe
misaveni, tanihi loko ku endliwa tilweni
u hi nyika namuntlha vuswa bya hina
bya siku rin'wana ni rin'wana;
u hi rivalela swidyoho swa hina,
tanihi loko na hina hi rivalela lava
hi dyohelaka; u nga hi yisi emiringweni
kambe u hi ponisa eka Lowo biha,
[hikuva ku fuma, ni matimba, no ku twala i swa wena
hi masiku ni masiku. Amen]

References

  1. ↑ Tsonga reference at Ethnologue (17th ed., 2013)
  2. ↑ Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
  3. ↑ Stats SA, Key Results, Census 2001

External links

Tsonga edition of Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Look up Tsonga in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

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