Swahili and Workbook

“Swahili Grammar and Workbook provides an in-depth, up-to-date student guide to modern Swahili grammar. The major aspects of Swahili grammar are explained clearly and illustrated with ample examples and exercises, and are arranged around distinct user-oriented grammar topics. The book fills an important gap in the Swahili linguistic literature and will be of great value to students of Swahili at different levels of proficiency.” Lutz Marten, SOAS, University of London, UK

Swahili Grammar and Workbook provides a practical and comprehensive companion to Swahili grammar, filling in gaps left by other textbooks. Presenting the essentials of Swahili grammar in a highly accessible fashion, it reduces complex language topics to helpful rules and mnemonic aids, enabling maximum grammar retention and accurate usage. Grammar points are followed by multiple examples and exercises, allowing students to consolidate and practice their learning. No prior knowledge of linguistic terminology is required. Key features include:

• Twenty-five language notes covering key topics such as: personal pronouns; the Swahili class system; special class combinations; the imperative, the subjunctive, and the conditional moods; the use of comparatives; the use of monosyllabic verbs; the passive form and various other forms of verb extensions; the ; • clear, detailed, and jargon-free grammatical explanations supported by an assortment of helpful diagrams, figures, and tables and many relevant and up-to-date examples; • a wide range of communication-oriented exercises to reinforce learning and develop students’ ability to use Swahili actively; • audio files to support pronunciation practice, clearly linked to relevant sections of the book and available for free download at www.routledge.com/9781138808263 • four appendices, Swahili–English and English–Swahili vocabulary lists, a list of refer- ences and an index presented at the back of the book for easy access to information.

Written by a highly experienced instructor, Swahili Grammar and Workbook will be an essential resource for all students and teachers of Swahili. It is suitable for use both as a companion reference text in language courses and as a standalone text in independent grammar classes.

Fidèle Mpiranya is Lecturer in Swahili and African Linguistics at the University of Chicago, USA. This page intentionally left blank Swahili Grammar and Workbook

Fidèle Mpiranya First published 2015 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2015 Fidèle Mpiranya The right of Fidèle Mpiranya to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Mpiranya, Fidèle, author. Swahili grammar and workbook / Fidèle Mpiranya. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. –Grammar. I. Title. PL8702.M624 2014 496.392–dc23 2014015471

ISBN: 978-1-138-80825-6 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-138-80826-3 (pbk) ISBN: 978-1-315-75069-9 (ebk)

Typeset in Times New Roman by Graphicraft Limited, Hong Kong To my daughter Mélyse, with love This page intentionally left blank Contents

List of illustrations ix Acknowledgments xi Abbreviations and conventional signs xii

Introduction 1

1 Swahili – key elements 3

2 Using basic vocabulary and markers 9

3 Personal pronouns 13

4 Swahili system 19

5 Noun/adjective and pronoun 29

6 The indicative mood and main verb tenses 40

7 Verb “be”/“have” in the main clause 50

8 Special class combinations and the reflexive pronoun 56

9 Prefix/stem contact rules vs. invariable adjectives/pronouns 61

10 Relative clauses and the use of reference pronouns 70

11 Imperative and subjunctive moods 83

12 Monosyllabic verb stems and the stem augment ku- 94

13 Auxiliary verbs and the expression of complex tenses 101

14 Expressing comparison 107 viii Contents 15 The passive form of the verb 110

16 Locative agreement and coordinated noun agreement 116

17 The conditional mood 127

18 The extension of the verb 133

19 Reciprocal, stative, and applicative verb extensions 142

20 Adverbs in a broad sense 151

21 Adjectives in a broad sense 163

22 Noun formation and augmentative/diminutive processes 174

23 Reduced forms and special uses of various pronouns 186

24 Subjunctive vs. /indicative in coordinated and subordinate clauses 191

25 Double object constructions and the use of “object markers” 202

Appendix A: Greetings and other polite expressions 215 Appendix B: Class agreements with all types of adjectives and pronouns 219 Appendix C: Clause connectors and other transition words 220 Appendix D: Use of verb tenses in Swahili proverbs 229

Vocabulary list 233 References 246 Index 248 List of illustrations

Maps 1.1 Swahili-speaking regions in East and Central Africa 3 1.2 The Swahili Coast and neighboring places of the Indian Ocean Basin 4

Figures 1.1 Place of articulation for the Swahili sounds /j/ [ɟ] and /y/ 6 1.2 Place of articulation for the English sound /j/ [dʒ] and Swahili /nj/ [ndʒ] 6 1.3 Place of articulation for /gh/ and /g/ 7 1.4 Place and manner of articulation for /ng’/ [ŋ] vs. /ng/ [ŋg] 7 7.1 Distribution of locative reference pronouns in Swahili 51 9.1 Main phonetic features of Swahili vowels 61

Tables 1.1 Swahili consonants illustrated 5 2.1 Verb tenses markers in the indicative mood (affirmative form) 11 3.1 Swahili personal pronouns 13 3.2 Noun/possessive agreement in for animates 16 3.3 Noun/possessive agreement in nouns for non-animates 16 4.1 Noun types and noun class assignment 22 4.2 Model sentences for Swahili noun classes 23 5.1 Noun/adjective prefixes vs. pronominal prefixes 29 5.2 Noun according to their agreement prefixes (listed in Table 5.1) 30 5.3 The demonstrative pronouns in different classes 33 5.4 Harmony between the hV- segment and the vowel of the following class prefix 33 5.5 Normal word order within a noun group 36 6.1 The indicative tense markers in affirmative form 40 6.2 Tense markers of the indicative in negative form 42 7.1 Verb “be” in different tenses of the indicative mood 50 7.2 of locative verb “be” 51 7.3 Locative prepositions and corresponding forms of the locative verb “be” 52 7.4 Verb “have” in all tenses of the indicative mood (affirmative/negative) 54 8.1 Model sentences for the classes [mu-u/ma-ya] and [mu-u/n-zi] 56 9.1 The nominal prefix in class [n-i/n-zi] according to the following consonant or vowel 65 x List of illustrations 10.1 Reference pronouns/relative markers in different classes 70 10.2 Form and contextual restrictions on different relative clause patterns 74 10.3 The conjunction na “and/with” with the contrastive pronouns of first and second persons 79 11.1 Basic markers of the subjunctive 85 11.2 Imperative vs. subjunctive markers 85 11.3 “Polite” vs. “direct” imperative 91 12.1 Form of the tense/mood marker and absence of the stem augment ku- 96 16.1 Use of locative agreement patterns 116 16.2 The locative demonstrative pronoun in terms of proximity 119 16.3 Conjunction na with locative reference pronouns 119 19.1 Typical suffix combinations 148 21.1 Color terms using the pattern “conjunction -a + noun” 165 23.1 Contraction between possessive pronouns and personal relationship nouns 187 Acknowledgments

Special thanks to Michael Pierson for editing an early version of my manuscript, and to Matthew Knisley for revising the final version. I also owe a debt of gratitude to my students, past and present, for their substantial feedback and suggestions about successive versions of this textbook. Comments from three anonymous reviewers also have helped in improv- ing the content and the form of this text, and I am very thankful for that. The data in this text are drawn from my own experience as a near-native speaker of Swahili. They have been double-checked by Innocent Basso, a native speaker born and raised in Tanga, Tanzania. Innocent also lent his for the audio materials provided online. I am very grateful to him for his important contributions. This book project would have been more difficult without the encouragement and the support of Larry Hyman, Salikoko Mufwene, Aimable Twagilimana, and Rachel Walker. I am thankful for their guidance and their friendship. Finally, I express my gratitude to Helle V. Goldman and Philip Carr for allowing me to reproduce a map and phonetic diagrams from their respective works. Many thanks also to Wiley-Blackwell, Philip Carr’s publisher.

Maps and figures credits Map 1.1: Adapted from CIA. 2013. The World Factbook. Washington, DC: Central Intelligence Agency. Public domain. www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/ docs/contributor_copyright.html Map 1.2: Adapted from Goldman, Helle Valborg. 1996. “A Comparative Study of Swahili in Two Rural Communities in Pemba, Zanzibar, Tanzania”. Ph.D. thesis, New York University. Reproduced with permission from the author. Figures 1.1–1.4: Adapted from Carr, Philip. 1999. English Phonetics and Phonology. Oxford: Blackwell. Reproduced with permission from the author and the publisher. Abbreviations and conventional signs

- : word part preceded/followed by another infin.: infinitive ~ : variant; roughly similar intr.: intransitive ø : zero, i.e. no prefix lit.: literally : additional material available online loc.: locative @ : more or less neg.: negative * : hypothetical; reconstructed form nomin.: nominal → : gives non-anim.: non-animate ↔ : vice versa non-sonor.: non-sonorous > : becomes noun gr.: noun group # : word end obj.: object adj.: adjective obsol.: obsolete affirm.: affirmative pers.: person anim.: animate pl.: plural C: consonant pres.: present cl.: class pron.: pronoun colloq.: colloquial pronom.: pronominal concr.: concrete ref. pron.: reference pronoun cons.: consonant rel.: relative pronoun/clause CV: consonant and vowel sb.: somebody demons.: demonstrative pronoun sg.: singular emph.: emphatic sth.: something fig.: figurative subj.: fut.: future subjunct.: subjunctive idiom.: idiomatic V: vowel Introduction

Though communicative approaches in language teaching must have primacy over gram- matical instruction, students of foreign languages often demand clear explanations of what sometimes appear to them as “unusual” phenomena, and seek simple ways to approach masses of new grammatical information. Experience shows that students who are familiar with grammatical rules better grasp the structures of the language and are, therefore, more able to reuse these rules accurately and innovatively. There are communication textbooks with linguistic explanations, but they often appear incomplete. This is especially true for Swahili communication textbooks produced in both the USA and Europe in recent years. Though some of these textbooks have been authored by linguists and do include elements of linguistic explanation, they generally do not address in detail fundamental issues such as noun class agreements, the use of verb moods, or phonetic irregularities. Fortunately, there exist various reference that may provide the learner with broader linguistic information, such as Ashton (1944), Polomé (1967), Wilson (1970), Mohamed (2001), or Thompson and Schleicher (2006). However, these reference grammars are generally not organized in a way that they can be used step-by-step with a communication textbook. The present text supplements communication textbooks with comprehensive linguistic explanations and practical exercises. Rather than full chapters, it is comprised of 25 rela- tively short and progressively organized “language notes” that address the most common questions among students of Swahili as a foreign language. This textbook strives to show that the core system of the Swahili language is simple and well-organized. In particular, it departs from traditional approaches that present the typical Swahili noun classes piece-by-piece, with individual noun classes in different chapters. Instead, it presents the different agreement patterns as a single system, in different layers that progressively introduce contextual variations. The presentation of different verb functions follows a similar systemic progression. The approach adopted here better follows the pro- gressive exposure of the students to the complexities of the language, as they are introduced to diverse noun classes and verb functions from their earliest learning activities. Using the least possible amount of linguistic terminology, this text applies simple lin- guistic parameters to reduce complex language topics to a few simple rules that each other. As a result, grammar rules appear as mnemonic aids that facilitate retention and accurate application of different language patterns by the students. Such mnemonic aids also serve as a feedback tool for the teacher, allowing him or her to communicate efficiently with the students about the type of mistakes they make. For students interested in advanced interpretations, grammatical explanations are occasionally complemented with subsections that address in detail some specific language facts. 2 Introduction Additionally, grammatical explanations are illustrated by numerous examples and communication-oriented exercises that allow the students to reinforce and consolidate their learning. While review exercises address a single topic, application exercises address the different topics covered in a given language note, and cumulative exercises integrate features from previous language notes. For interested students, an automated corrector will be available on a dedicated web page, along with audio materials for pronunciation practice (shown in the book by the symbol ). This textbook covers topics such as consonant articulation, word accent and accent groups, the interrogative intonation, and the noun classes. It also addresses other essential aspects of the morphology and syntax, such as: the use of verb tenses, moods, and auxiliary verbs; the role of phonetics in the formation of different categories of verbs, nouns, and adjectives; the relative clause construction; the formation of adjectival and adverbial phrases; the use of object markers in different types of clause constructions; the use of clause connectors; and idiomatic constructions. This text is suitable as a supplement to communication textbooks and exercise books for beginners and intermediate level students, such as Moshi (1988a, b), Hinnebusch and Mirza (1997), Mugane (1999), Senkoro (2003), Biersteker (2005), Muaka and Muaka (2006), Mohamed and Mazrui (2007), Omar and Rushubirwa (2007), or McGrath and Marten (2012). It may also serve as a reference for Swahili grammar fundamentals. References

Ali, Hassan O. and Ali M. Mazrui. 2004. Teach Yourself Swahili. www.glcom.com/hassan/ lessons/teach_yourself_swahili_cd_content.pdf Ashton, Ethel O. 1944. Swahili Grammar, Including Intonation. London: Longmans. BAKIZA (Baraza la Kiswahili la Zanzibar). 2010. Kamusi la Kiswahili Fasaha. Nairobi: Oxford University Press. Bertoncini-Zubkova, Elena. 1995. “Zwei homonyme ka-Markierer”, in Gudrun Miehe and Wilhelm J. G. Moehlig (eds.), Swahili Handbuch. Cologne: Rudiger Koppe Verlag, pp.121–123. Biersteker, Ann. 2005. Masomo ya Kisasa: Contemporary Readings in Swahili. Trenton: Africa World Press. Carr, Philip. 1999. English Phonetics and Phonology. Oxford: Blackwell. CIA. 2013. The World Factbook. Washington, DC: Central Intelligence Agency. www.cia.gov/ library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html Contini-Morava, Ellen. 1994. Noun Classification in Swahili. Publications of the Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities, University of Virginia. Research Reports, Second Series. www2.iath.virginia.edu/swahili/swahili.html Corbett, Greville. 1991. Gender. New York: Cambridge University Press. Ghassani, Mohamed. 2007. “Akili ya Mwendawazimu”. http://zanzibardaima.wordpress.com Goldman, Helle Valborg. 1996. “A comparative study of Swahili in two rural communities in Pemba, Zanzibar, Tanzania”. Ph.D. thesis, New York University. Guthrie, Malcolm. 1967–1971. Comparative Bantu. 4 vols. Farnborough: Gregg. Hinnebusch, Thomas and Sarah Mirza. 1997. Kiswahili: Msingi wa Kusema, Kusoma, na Kuandika. (2nd edn.). Washington: University Press of America. Ladefodged, Peter. 2005. A Course in Phonetics (5th edn.). Boston: Thomson Learning. www.phonetics.ucla.edu/course/chapter1/flash.html Marten, Lutz. 2000. “Agreement with conjoined noun phrases in Swahili”, in Afrikanistische Arbeitspapiere 64, Swahili Forum 7, pp.75–96. McGrath, Donovan and Lutz Marten. 2012. Colloquial Swahili: The Complete Course for Beginners (2nd edn.). London/New York: Routledge. Mdee, James Salehe, Kimani Njogu, and Adam Shafi. 2011. Kamusi ya Karne ya 21. Nairobi: Longhorn. Mohamed, Mohamed A. 2001. Modern Swahili Grammar. Nairobi: East African Educational Publishers Ltd. Mohamed, Mohamed A. 2011. Comprehensive Swahili–English Dictionary. Nairobi: East African Educational Publishers Ltd. Mohamed, Khalfan and Abdulwahid Mazrui. 2007. Living Swahili: A Complete Course for Beginners. New York: Living Language. Moshi, Lioba. 1988a. Mazoezi ya Kiswahili: Kitabu cha Mazoezi kwa Wanafunzi wa Mwaka wa Kwanza. Lanham, MD: University Press of America. References 247

Moshi, Lioba. 1988b. Tuimarishe Kiswahili Chetu: Kitabu cha wanafunzi wa mwaka wa pili/tatu. Lanham, MD: University Press of America. Mpiranya, Fidèle. 1995. Swahili Phonology Reconsidered in a Diachronical Perspective. Cologne: Rüdiger Köppe Verlag. Mpiranya, Fidèle. 1998. Perspective fonctionnelle en linguistique comparée des langues bantu. CEL, Lyon; distributed by Editions Klincksieck, Paris. Muaka, Leonard and Angaluki Muaka. 2006. Tusome Kiswahili. Madison, WI: NALRC Press. Mugane, John M. 1999. Tujifunze Kiswahili: Let’s Learn Swahili. Athens, OH: Aramati Digital Technologies Publications. Nurse, Derek and Thomas J. Hinnebusch. 1993. Swahili and Sabaki: A Linguistic History. Berkeley: University of California Press. Nurse, Derek and Thomas Spear. 1985. The Swahili: Reconstructing the History and Language of an African Society, 800–1500. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. Omar, Alwiya S. and Leonce K. Rushubirwa. 2007. Tuwasiliane kwa Kiswahili. Madison, WI: NARLC Press. Park, Jae-Ick. 1997. “Minimal word effects with special reference to Swahili”. Ph.D. thesis, Bloomington: Indiana University. Parker, C.A. 1974. “Aspects of a theory of proverbs: Contexts and messages of proverbs in Swahili.” Ph.D. thesis, University of Washington. Polomé, Edgar C. 1967. Swahili Language Handbook. Washington: Center for Applied Linguistics. Seidl, Amanda and Alexis Dimitriadis. 1997. “The discourse function of object marking in Swahili”, in Chicago Linguistic Society, 33, pp.373–389. Senkoro, Fikeni E.M.K. 2003. Tuseme Kiswahili: A Multidimensional Approach to the Teaching and Learning of Swahili as a Foreign Language. Madison, WI: NALRC Press. Thompson, Katrina and Antonia Schleicher. 2006. Swahili Learners’ Reference Grammar (2nd edn.). Madison, WI: NALRC Press. TUKI. 2000. English–Swahili Dictionary. University of Dar es Salaam: Taasisi ya Uchunguzi wa Kiswahili. TUKI. 2001. Kamusi ya Kiswahili–Kiingereza, Swahili–English Dictionary. University of Dar-es- Salaam: Taasisi ya Uchunguzi wa Kiswahili. Whiteley, Wilfred Howell. 1969. Swahili: The Rise of a National Language. London: Methuen. Wilson, Peter M. 1970. Simplified Swahili. Nairobi: East African Literature.