Swati (siSwati in the language itself; Swazi in Zulu) is a Bantu language of the Nguni group spoken in Swaziland and South Africa. The number of speakers is estimated to be in the region of 1.5 million. The language is taught in Swaziland and some South African schools. Swati is an official language of Swaziland, (along with English), and is also one of the eleven official languages of South Africa. Map showing the approximate distribution of Bantu vs. ... For the cattle breed see Nguni cattle. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...

Although often referred to as Swazi, this is the form of the noun stem indicating the language or its speakers taken from Zulu, which many Swati-speakers also speak. Swati is most closely related to Phuthi (the other larger 'Tekela' Nguni language), spoken in southern Lesotho and the northern Eastern Cape province of South Africa. Swati is also closely related to the 'Zunda' Nguni languages: Zulu (immediately adjacent to the south and east), Ndebele (immediately adjacent to the west, and further north in Zimbabwe), and Xhosa (spoken to the south of Lesotho in the Eastern and Western Cape provinces of South Africa). Zulu (isiZulu in Zulu), is a language of the Zulu people with about 10 million speakers, the vast majority (over 95%) of whom live in South Africa. ... Phuthi (Síphùthì)[1]is a Nguni Bantu language spoken in southern Lesotho and areas in South Africa adjacent to the same border[2]. The closest substantial living relative of Phuthi is Swati (or Siswati), spoken in Swaziland and the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. ... Nguni languages are mostly spoken by Nguni people, which are group of clans and nations living in south-east Africa. ... Capital Bhisho Largest city Port Elizabeth Premier Nosimo Balindlela Area - Total Ranked 2nd 169,580 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 3rd 6,436,761 38/km² Languages Xhosa (83%) Afrikaans (9. ... Zulu (isiZulu in Zulu), is a language of the Zulu people with about 10 million speakers, the vast majority (over 95%) of whom live in South Africa. ... The Ndebele language, or isiNdebele, or Sindebele, is an African language belonging to the Nguni group of Bantu languages, and spoken by the AmaNdebele (the Ndebele people). ... The Northern Ndebele language, or isiNdebele, or Sindebele, is an African language belonging to the Nguni group of Bantu languages, and spoken by the Ndebele or Matabele people of Zimbabwe. ... Xhosa (IPA: ) is one of the official languages of South Africa. ... Capital Bhisho Largest city Port Elizabeth Premier Nosimo Balindlela Area - Total Ranked 2nd 169,580 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 3rd 6,436,761 38/km² Languages Xhosa (83%) Afrikaans (9. ... Capital Cape Town Largest city Cape Town Premier Ebrahim Rasool Area - Total Ranked 4th 129,370 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 5th 4,524,335 35/km² Elevation Highest point: Seweweekspoort Peak at 2325 meters (7628 feet) Lowest point: sea level Languages Afrikaans (55. ...

Dialects

Swati spoken in Swaziland can be divided into four dialects corresponding to the four administrative regions of the country: Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, and Shiselweni. Categories: Stub ... Categories: Stub ... Location of Manzini in Swaziland Manzini is a market town in central Swaziland and is the nations main industrial centre. ... Shiselweni is an administrative district of Swaziland. ...

Swati has at least two varieties: the standard, prestige variety spoken mainly in the north, centre and southwest of the country, and a less prestigious variety spoken elsewhere.

In the far south, especially in towns such as Nhlangano and Hlathikhulu, the variety of the language spoken is significantly influenced by Zulu. Many Swazis, including those in the south who speak this variety, do not regard it as 'proper' Swati. This is what may be referred to as the second dialect in the country. The sizeable number of Swati-speakers in South Africa (mainly in the Mpumalanga province, and in Soweto) are considered by Swaziland Swati-speakers to speak a non-standard form of the language. Nhlangano is the fourth largest town in Swaziland. ... Mpumalanga, (name changed from Eastern Transvaal on 24 August 1995), is a province in South Africa. ... Johannesburg, including Soweto, from the International Space Station Soweto is an urban area in the City of Johannesburg, in Gauteng, South Africa. ...

Unlike the variant in the south of Swaziland, the Mpumalanga variety appears to be less influenced by Zulu, and is thus considered closer to standard Swati. However, this Mpumalanga variety is distinguishable by distinct intonation, and perhaps distinct tone patterns. Intonation patterns (and informal perceptions of 'stress') in Mpumalanga Swati are often considered discordant to the Swati ear. This South African variety of Swati is considered to exhibit influence from other South African languages spoken in close proximity to Swati. Intonation is a term used to cover particular uses of tones in linguistics and music. ...

A feature of the standard prestige variety of Swati (spoken in the north and centre of Swaziland) is the royal style of slow, heavily stressed enunciation, which is anecdotally claimed to have a 'mellifluous' feel to its hearers.

External links

Swati language edition of Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

• Ethnologue on Swati
• Swazi - English Dictionary
• PanAfrican L10n page on Swazi

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Software

• Project to translate Free Software into Swati
• Swati edition of OpenOffice.org
• Swati spell checker for OpenOffice.org and Mozilla (basic)

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 Official languages of the Republic of South Africa

Afrikaans · English · isiNdebele · Northern Sotho · Sesotho · Siswati · Xitsonga · Setswana · Tshivenḓa · isiXhosa · isiZulu Image File history File links Flag_of_South_Africa. ... Geographical distribution of South African languages. ... Look up Wiktionary:Swadesh lists for Afrikaans and Dutch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... South African English is a dialect of English spoken in South Africa and in neighbouring countries with a large number of Anglo-Africans living in them, such as Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. ... The Southern Ndebele language (isiNdebele or Nrebele in Southern Ndebele) is an African language belonging to the Nguni group of Bantu languages, and spoken by the amaNdebele (the Ndebele people of South Africa). ... Northern Sotho, Sepedi, or Sesotho sa Leboa, is one of the official languages of South Africa, and is spoken by 4,208,980 people (2001 Census Data), mostly in the provinces of Gauteng, Limpopo Province and Mpumalanga. ... Sesotho is a language spoken in southern Africa. ... The Tsonga or Xitsonga language is spoken in southern Africa by the Tsonga people, also known as the Shangaan. ... Tswana, also known as Setswana, is a Bantu language. ... Venda, also known as Tshivenda, or Luvenda, is a Bantu language. ... Xhosa (IPA: ) is one of the official languages of South Africa. ... Zulu (isiZulu in Zulu), is a language of the Zulu people with about 10 million speakers, the vast majority (over 95%) of whom live in South Africa. ...