Ndebele is a Bantu language group with two distinct languages spoken in Zimbabwe and South Africa. Northern Ndebele is closer to Zulu, while Southern Ndebele is closer to Sotho-Tswana languages. Both contain three click groups and are spoken by over 1 million people combined.
Ndebele is a name given to two distinct languages, the Northern Ndebele language spoken in Zimbabwe and the Southern Ndebele language spoken in South Africa. Both languages are part of the Nguni group of Bantu languages, but have some substantial differences.
Northern Ndebele is spoken in Zimbabwe by around 1.5 million people. It is identified by the ISO-639-3 code nde and is usually referred to as Northern to differentiate it from the Southern language. May also be known as Tebele, Sindebele or Isinde’bele. This language is also spoken by just over 8,000 people in Botswana.
The Matabele people, also known as the Ndebele, split from the Zulus under King Shaka in the early 19th century. Over the next few decades, they moved north into Zimbabwe, and both assimilated and were absorbed by various groups within the nation. The Matabele adopted the Ndebele language, but combined it when many aspects of the Zulu language. For this reason, Northern Ndebele is in many ways closer to Zulu than to the Southern language, both in terms of construction and vocabulary.
Southern Ndebele is spoken in South Africa by the Ndebele people, also sometimes called amaNdebele. It is spoken by nearly 600,000 people in South Africa. It is identified by the ISO-639-3 code nbe, and is also sometimes called Nrebele or Transvaal Ndebele.
Towards the end of the 16th century, these people split off from the main Nguni group. In the early 17th century they were led by a chief, Musi, to the area around what is now Pretoria. Over the next few centuries, Ndebele would become even more distinct from Nguni, becoming its own language. While the northern version could be said to have adopted many traits of Zulu, placing it closer on a continuum to that language, southern Ndebele could be said to be closer to the various languages of the Sotho-Tswana group, such as Sotho or Lozi.
Southern Ndebele is one of the 11 official languages of South Africa. It is not particularly widespread and does not enjoy the same place of precedence in classrooms and official publications of languages such as Afrikaans, English, isiZulu or isiXhosa. However, a large number of parents teach their children the language and it is widely used within the cultural group.
Both Northern and Southern Ndebele contain three distinct clickgroups, linking them to other Nguni languages, such as isiXhosa or isiZulu. A click is represented by the letter c. This click is done with the tip of the tongue directly against the back of the teeth. It sounds similar to the familiar tsk-tsk scolding sound. Another click is represented by the letter x. This click is achieved by placing the tongue to one side along the palate, in what is called a lateral click. This click sounds pretty much like what many people do when they click to call them a horse. The last click is represented by the letter q. This click is achieved by placing the tip of the tongue against the center of the palate. This makes a sort of pop or pop.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
