Ovambo language

The Ovambo (English: /ɒˈvæmboʊ/) language, Oshiwambo, is a dialect cluster spoken by the Ovambo people in southern Angola and northern Namibia, of which the written standards are Kwanyama and Ndonga.

Not to be confused with Ambo language (Zambia) or Ambo language (Nigeria).

Owambo
Oshiwambo
Oshiwambo
Native to	Angola, Namibia
Ethnicity	Owambo
Native speakers	1,441,000 (2014)[1]
Language family	Niger–Congo Atlantic–Congo Volta-Congo Benue–Congo Bantoid Southern Bantoid Bantu Kavango – Southwest Southwest Bantu Owambo
Standard forms	Kwanyama Ndonga
Language codes
ISO 639-1	kj, ng
ISO 639-2	kua, ndo
ISO 639-3	Variously: kua – Kwanyama ndo – Ndonga kwm – Kwambi lnb – Mbalanhu nne – Ngandjera
Glottolog	ndon1253[2]
Guthrie code	R.20 (R.21–24,211–218,241–242)[3]

Ambo
Person	Omuwambo
People	Aawambo, Ovawambo
Language	Oshiwambo
Country	Owambo, Ouwambo

Modern-day distribution of Oshiwambo speakers in Namibia

The native name for the language is Oshiwambo (also written "Oshivambo"), which is also used specifically for the Kwanyama and Ndonga dialects. It is the largest spoken local language in Namibia,[4] particularly the Ovambo people.

The language is closely related to that of the Herero and Himba, the Herero language (Otjiherero). An obvious sign of proximity is the prefix used for language and dialect names, Proto-Bantu *ki- (class 7, as in the name of the Swahili language, Kiswahili), which in Herero has evolved to Otji- and in Ovambo further to Oshi-.

History

Main article: Ovamboland

After Namibia's independence in 1990, the area previously known as Ovamboland was divided into the Ohangwena, Omusati, Oshana and Oshikoto Regions. The population, estimated at between 700,000 and 750,000, fluctuates remarkably. This is because of the indiscriminate border drawn up by the Portuguese and German Empires during colonial rule, which cut through the Oukwanyama tribal area, placing some in Angola and others in Namibia. This results in regular cross-border movement.

There are approximately one million Oshiwambo speakers in Namibia and Angola.[5] Though it is mainly spoken in the northern regions of Namibia, it is widely spoken across the rest of the country by populations of migrant workers from Ovamboland. These workers comprise a large part of the population in many towns, particularly in the south, where there are jobs in the mining industry. For example, in Lüderitz, an 18-hour drive from Ovamboland, at least 50% of the population speaks Oshiwambo.

Name

The names Ambo and Ovambo appear to have originally been exonyms. Despite extensive speculation, their origin remains unknown.

The country was called Ovamboland and Amboland by the German colonial authorities. In English, Ovamboland predominates, though Ambo country is sometimes used, and in English publications from Namibia, Owamboland, Wamboland, and Owambo are seen. The endemic forms are Owambo (Ndonga) and Ouwambo (Kwanyama).

The people are generally called the Ovambo or Ambo in English. The endemic forms are Aawambo (Ndonga) and Ovawambo (Kwanyama); the singular in both cases is Omuwambo. The language is generally called Ovambo, Ambo, or Oshiwambo in English; the endonym in both standards is Oshiwambo.[6]

Ovambo tribes and dialects

There are eight dialects, including the two written standards Kwanyama and Ndonga.

The following table contains the names, areas, dialect names and the locations of the Ovambo tribes according to T. E. Tirronen's Ndonga-English Dictionary. The table also contains information concerning which noun class of Proto-Bantu the words belong to.[7]

Area	Tribe	Dialect	Location
Classes 9 (*ny > on-), 11 (uu-/ou-)	Class 2 (*wa-, a-)	Class 7 (*ki > oshi-)
Ondonga	Aa-ndonga	Ndonga dialect	Southern Ovamboland
Uu-kwambi	Aa-kwambi	Kwambi dialect	Central Ovamboland
O-ngandjera	Aa-ngandjera	Oshi-ngandjera	Central Ovamboland
Uu-kwaluudhi	Aa-kwaluudhi	Oshi-kwaluudhi	Western Ovamboland
O-mbalanhu	Aa-mbalanhu	Oshi-mbalanhu	Western Ovamboland
Uu-kolonkadhi	Aa-kolonkadhi	Oshi-kolonkadhi	Western Ovamboland
Oukwanyama	Ova-kwanyama	Kwanyama dialect	Northern and Eastern Ovamboland, Angola
Eunda	Unda	Oshi-unda	northwest, Epalela vicinity

Maho (2009) lists the following as distinct languages in the Ovambo cluster:[3]

• Kwanyama
  • Kafima
  • Evale
  • Mbandja
  • Mbalanhu
  • Ndongwena
  • Kwankwa
  • Dombondola
  • Esinga
• Ndonga
• Kwambi
• Ngandjera
• Kwaluudhi
  • Kolonkadhi-Eunda

References

1. Kwanyama at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
   Ndonga at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
   Kwambi at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
   Mbalanhu at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
   Ngandjera at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
2. Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2017). "Ndonga (R.20)". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
3. Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
4. "New African Frontiers". Archived from the original on January 30, 2009. Retrieved May 16, 2009.
5. "United Nations Information Centre". Archived from the original on 6 November 2017. Retrieved 10 January 2009.
6. Minna Saarelma-Maunumaa, 2003, Edhina Ekogidho—Names as Links: The Encounter between African and European Anthroponymic Systems among the Ambo People in Namibia. Helsinki.
7. Toivo Emil Tirronen: Ndonga-English Dictionary. Oshinyanyangidho shongeleki ELCIN. Oniipa, 1986.

External links

• PanAfrican L10n page on Oshiwambo