QUICK QUESTION: How do you say 'Hello, how are you?'
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PART 9.1 | To be and I am.
Kuva is the Shona term for 'to be', or 'the state of being'.
Ndiri is the Shona term for 'I am'. In another words can mean "to be", because 'you are'. Just like To be (Kuva) you can add something to expand on the art of being.
To be a man. (Kuva murume)
I am a man. (Ndiri murume)
Whilst 'to be' doesn't specify on what particular is in the state of being. 'I am' specifies, it is I who is in a state of being. (Unlike 'to be' which just says 'to be something'). In order to form sentences that involve being something we need to learn the particle '-Ri'.
Before that lets learn some Nouns that you may need. (Feel free to back to Vocabulary from the last lesson).
U- (you - singular)
Mu- (you/them - plural/to older person)
Ndi- (I)
Nda- (I - past tense)
(others: Ndicha, Ndaka, Ndichazo, Ndakazo, Ndiri - these will be expanded on later)
Wa- (you - singular/ and also used in past tense)
Ma- (you/them - plural/ and also used in past tense)
Va- (you/them - plural/ and also used in past tense)
Don't forget plural terms are also used towards older people. We learned this in Lesson 7: Greetings. If you skipped or didn't understand it from there please comment so I can go back and make sure it'll be clear for others in future :)
In English the 'You' does not change, but in (most if not all) Bantu languages it does.
Iwewe/Iwe (You - singular) becomes 'U-' and 'Wa-'.
Imimi / imi (You/them - plural/to older person) becomes 'Va-', Mu-' and 'Ma'.
Inini/Ini (I) becomes 'Ndi-' and 'Nda-'.
Ivavo/ivo (they/them) becomes 'Va-', 'Mu-' and 'Ma-'.
As you see they/them (ivavo/ivo) and plural you (imimi/imi) both use 'Va-,', 'Mu-', and 'Ma-'. This is because Shona is a respect centered language. It makes it impossible for you to disrespect someone older than you through speak, trust me. After you are used to speaking it, to even say 'wa' or 'u' something to someone older than you becomes so uncomfortable lol.
We will look into this aspect of 'respect' or 'hunhu/tsika' later on in Shona history. If anyone wants a Shona People/Zimbabwean History book feel free to ask :).
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PART 9.2| Ri
'To be' in Shona is basically tied with the am, are, is, and these words are incorporated in the particle '-ri'.
The particle '-Ri' can be used in any sentences where you are saying 'something is', 'you are' or 'I am'.
First Example|
In the following examples we will use the Vocabulary you learnt in the last lesson.
- Ndiri mukadzi. (I am a woman).
- Ndiri mudzidzisi. (I am a teacher).
In both sentences '-ri' which is put after the noun 'ndi-' of 'I', changes the noun and it become 'I am', and all you do is add whatever you are. Let's look at the same statements with the particle 'U-' instead of Ndi.
- Uri mukadzi. (You are a woman).
- Uri mudzidzisi. (You are a teacher).
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LEARN SHONA🇿🇼 | Dzidza chiShona
Non-FictionSHONA is a bantu language spoken in Zimbabwe. It has mutually intelligible languages called: Ndau, Karanga, Manyika, Korekore, Zezuru,. It is believed to have been born from Tjikalanga, particularly Chikaranga. And it and it's native speakers share...
