Kiswahili
(swahili) Language History
Kiswahili
(swahili) is spoken in Tanzania and Kenya. People from few
other countries also speak the language, especially in Uganda, Rwanda,
Burundi, DRC, Commoros and few other places. However, outside Kenya and
Tanzania the Kiswahili (swahili) dialects spoken in other countries are
strongly influenced by other languages spoken in the countries. The
language claims over 100 million speakers. This online dictionary of
the living Kiswahili (swahili) language is not an effort of a language
expert but an initiative of a Kiswahili (swahili) speaker who wants to
put online a tool for native speakers and non-speakers to understand
meanings of Kiswahili (swahili) words they find in text, spoken speech
and elsewhere.
A
brief history of the language as known to me is a mix of bantu
languages which form the core of the language and many borrowed words
from various other languages which the bantu speaking people had
interactions with. The main among these is arabic which was introduced
to bantu Kiswahili (swahili) speakers through trade routes. Other
languages which also have influence in Kiswahili (swahili) language are
english second major influence and german and portuguese. Persian also
has left some footprints in Kiswahili (swahili) language. more
information is available in here
Kiswahili
(swahili) language is part of the Kiswahili (swahili) culture,
which has many faces including dress codes, customs and norms, songs,
poems etc. This culture differs a bit from one location to another in
Zanzibar and Pemba it has more arabic influence due to historical
reasons compared to mainland Tanzania. Kiswahili (swahili) language has
a grammar which is explained in detail in here.
All
in all Kiswahili (swahili) speaking land is blessed with a lot of
tourist attractions to mention a few are fabulous beaches of Zanzibar
and Pemba, nice sites for snorkeling and diving in Zanzibar, Pemba and
Mafia, nice coastal line in Tanga, Dar
es Salaam, Lindi and Mtwara, the world tallest free standing
mountain Mt. Kilimanjaro, Masai-Mara plains and Serengeti Plains,
Ngorongoro, Rubondo, Ruaha and Selous game reserve and many tourist
attractions.
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