Kaonde language
{{Short description|Bantu language spoken in Central Africa}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{Cleanup|date=June 2011}}
{{more citations needed|date=February 2018}}
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{{Infobox language
|name=Kaonde
|nativename=Kiikaonde
|states=Zambia, Democratic Republic of the Congo where it is predominantly known as Kiluba
|speakers=240,000
|date=1995–2010 census
|ref=e18
|familycolor=Niger-Congo
|fam2=Atlantic–Congo
|fam3=Benue–Congo
|fam4=Southern Bantoid
|fam5=Bantu
|fam6=Luban
|fam7=Luba languages
|minority=Zambia
|script=Latin (Kaonde alphabet)
Kaonde Braille
|iso3=kqn
|glotto=kaon1241
|glottorefname=Kaonde
|guthrie=L.40 (L.41)
}}
Kaonde (natively called kiiKaonde) is a Bantu language spoken primarily in Zambia. Kaonde and its dialects are spoken by over 350,000 people.
Speakers
Kaonde speakers mainly live in the Northwestern and parts of Central regions of Zambia. In Zambia, the Kaonde people are found in Solwezi, Mufumbwe, Kasempa, Kalumbila and Mushindamo in the North-Western province.
The term "Kaonde" refers to a group of people who are identified by a common language known as kiiKaonde. The Kaonde group, like many others in Zambia, was originally part of the Luba Kingdom. They migrated south to area surrounding a stream called Kaonde in river Congo Basin. From there, the people migrated into what is now Northwestern Zambia. Native speakers refer to the language as kiiKaonde. Speakers of most other Bantu languages use the prefix "chi" rather than "kii".
The Kaondes are ruled by the traditional leaders. Some of the Kaonde chiefs are Chief Kapiji Kasongo, Kasempa, and Mpanga
Grammar
= Nouns =
Like other Bantu languages, Kaonde nouns are grouped into several semantic classes, ranging from those that denote human beings to those that denote things. The concord or agreement markers for each class is a prefix attached to verbs and adjectives related to the noun. Tense markers may modify the concord.
| class="wikitable" | |||
| Singular noun | Singular concord | Plural noun | Plural concord |
|---|---|---|---|
| mu (person) | u- | ba | ba- |
| mu (thing) | u - | mi- | i- |
| ki | ki- | bi | bi- |
| ka | ka- | tu | tu- |
| n | i- | ma | a- |
| lu | lu- | ma | a- |
| bu | bu- | ma | a- |
| ji | ji- | ma | a- |
| pa (locative "on") | pa- | none | none |
| ku (locative "at" or "to") | ku- | none | none |
| mu (locative "in") | mu- | none | none |
= Pronouns =
Kaonde has personal, demonstrative and relative pronouns. The first and second person pronouns are independent of the noun class system. Third person pronouns are formed using the demonstrative pronouns for the ba noun class. Demonstrative are arranged by noun class and by deixis.
| class="wikitable" | ||
| Singular | Plural/Formal | |
|---|---|---|
| 1st person
| amiwa || atweba | ||
| 2nd person
| obewa || anweba | ||
| 3rd person
| awe/ao/awa || abe/abo/aba |
Sample text in Kaonde
Mu byambo byanji byalamata bantu bonse, Lesa waambile ne byambo bikwabo pa byo anemeka bumi ne mashi.
Translation
In a declaration applying to all humans, God revealed more about his evaluation of life and blood
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.language-museum.com/encyclopedia/k/kaonde.htm A sample paragraph in Kaonde]
- {{UDHR|kqn|Kaonde}}
- Lubuto Libraries, {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20150621183042/http://lubutocollections.org/items/show/67 Kiikaonde Reading Lessons]}}, Lubuto Library Special Collections, accessed May 3, 2014.
- {{usurped|1=[https://archive.today/20140511162813/http://lubutocollections.org/items/browse?search=Kiikaonde&submit_search=Search Kiikaonde language stories]}}, Lubuto Library Special Collections
- [http://www.language-archives.org/language/kqn OLAC resources in and about the Kaonde language]
- [https://theswissbay.ch/pdf/Books/Linguistics/Mega%20linguistics%20pack/African/Niger-Congo/Bantu/Kaonde%3B%20An%20Outline%20of%20Kikaonde%20Grammar%20%28Wright%29.pdf J.L. Wright’s Outline of Kikaonde Grammar]
{{Languages of the Democratic Republic of the Congo}}
{{Languages of Zambia}}
{{Narrow Bantu languages (Zones J–M)}}
{{Authority control}}