Kinyarwanda language

Kinyarwanda
Spoken in:	Rwanda
Region:	Central Africa
Total speakers:	7 million
Ranking:	not in top 100
Genetic classification:	Niger-Congo  Atlantic-Congo   Volta-Congo    Benue-Congo     Bantoid      Southern       Rwanda
Regulated by:	--
Language codes
ISO 639-1	rw
ISO 639-2	kin
SIL	RUA

Introduction

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: Bahutu, Batutsi, and Batwa (a pygmy people). The fact that these ethnic groups share the same language is assumed to be the result of the Bahutu outnumbering the latter two groups (see Bahutu for a more complete historical perspective).

Example translations

• Yego = Yes
• Oya = No
• Ndabizi = I know
• Simbizi = I don't know
• Amazi = water
• Nda shaka amazi = I'd like water.

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.