Chasu
Asu
Atlantic-Congo
Asu (also Pare, Chasu) is a Bantu language of the South Pare mountains in northeastern Tanzania, sister to North Pare Rwa (rwk) within the E.31 Pare cluster. The Pare people (Asu + Rwa together ~640K) have a distinctive iron-smelting tradition that historically supplied iron tools across the Kilimanjaro region. Linguistically, Asu shows typical Bantu E.30 features: ~10 noun classes with concord, complex tonal system, and active morphological aspect. Bible translation work since the 1990s has produced standardized Asu literacy materials, with the Asu New Testament published 2005.
Where it is spoken
31 core words in Asu
Water
mende
/mende/
Fire
mshika
/mʃika/
Sun
idhuva
/iðuʋa/
Moon
mwezi
/mwezi/
Star
nyenyeri
/ɲeɲeri/
Mother
mama
/mama/
Father
baba
/baba/
I
mine
/mine/
You
uwe
/uwe/
Name
izina
/izina/
Eye
iiso
/iːso/
Hand
mkono
/mkono/
Heart
ngiti
/ŋɡiti/
Love
lumba
/lumba/
Tree
mti
/mti/
House
nyumba
/ɲumba/
Dog
mbwa
/mbwa/
Cat
paka
/paka/
Eat
kurya
/kuɾja/
Drink
kunwa
/kunwa/
One
imwe
/imwe/
Two
avili
/aβili/
Hello
shiloi
/ʃiloi/
Thank you
mwasanga
/mwasaŋɡa/
Good
mwamba
/mwamba/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Atlantic-Congo languages
| Meaning | Asu | Rwa | Shambala | Nyaturu | Sangu | Machame | Sena |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | mende /mende/ | mende /mende/ | mazi /mazi/ | maazi /maːzi/ | ameenzi /ameːnzi/ | mringa /mɾiŋɡa/ | madzi /madzi/ |
| Fire | mshika /mʃika/ | msika /msika/ | moto /moto/ | moto /moto/ | umoto /umoto/ | mòò /moːʔ/ | moto /moto/ |
| Sun | idhuva /iðuʋa/ | mlao /mlao/ | zuwa /zuwa/ | nzua /nzua/ | liluga /liluɡa/ | ìsùwà /isuwa/ | dzuwa /dzuwa/ |
| Moon | mwezi /mwezi/ | mwere /mwere/ | mwezi /mwezi/ | umweri /umweɾi/ | umwesi /umwesi/ | mwezi /mwezi/ | mwedzi /mwedzi/ |
| Star | nyenyeri /ɲeɲeri/ | nyenyeri /ɲeɲeri/ | nyenyezi /ɲeɲezi/ | nyeenyeeri /ɲeːɲeːri/ | nyenyezi /ɲeɲezi/ | nyenyeri /ɲeɲeri/ | nyenyezi /ɲeɲezi/ |
| Mother | mama /mama/ | mama /mama/ | mama /mama/ | mama /mama/ | mama /mama/ | mama /mama/ | mai /mai/ |
| Father | baba /baba/ | baba /baba/ | baba /baba/ | tata /tata/ | baba /baba/ | baba /baba/ | baba /baba/ |
| I | mine /mine/ | inyi /iɲi/ | niye /nije/ | une /une/ | une /une/ | inyi /iɲi/ | ine /ine/ |
| You | uwe /uwe/ | uwe /uwe/ | weye /weje/ | uwe /uwe/ | uwe /uwe/ | uwe /uwe/ | iwe /iwe/ |
| Name | izina /izina/ | irina /irina/ | izina /izina/ | izina /izina/ | litawa /litawa/ | irina /irina/ | dzina /dzina/ |
| Eye | iiso /iːso/ | liso /liso/ | izo /izo/ | iriiso /iɾiːso/ | iliho /iliho/ | rítiò /ɾitio/ | diso /diso/ |
| Hand | mkono /mkono/ | mkono /mkono/ | ukono /ukono/ | ukuboko /ukuboko/ | ukuboko /ukuboko/ | kùoòko /kuoːko/ | nkono /nkono/ |
| Heart | ngiti /ŋɡiti/ | ngiti /ŋɡiti/ | mwoyo /mwojo/ | umutima /umutima/ | umutima /umutima/ | mòyò /mojo/ | mtima /mtima/ |
| Love | lumba /lumba/ | lumbo /lumbo/ | kwenda /kwenda/ | butogwa /butoɡwa/ | ulungu /uluŋɡu/ | ìkwenda /ikwenda/ | kufuna /kufuna/ |
| Tree | mti /mti/ | mte /mte/ | mti /mti/ | umuti /umuti/ | umuti /umuti/ | mtí /mti/ | mtengo /mteŋɡo/ |
| House | nyumba /ɲumba/ | nyumba /ɲumba/ | nyumba /ɲumba/ | nyumba /ɲumba/ | inyumba /iɲumba/ | nyumba /ɲumba/ | nyumba /ɲumba/ |
| Dog | mbwa /mbwa/ | mboha /mboha/ | mbwa /mbwa/ | imbwa /imbwa/ | imbwa /imbwa/ | mbwa /mbwa/ | mbwa /mbwa/ |
| Cat | paka /paka/ | paka /paka/ | paka /paka/ | paka /paka/ | paka /paka/ | paka /paka/ | paka /paka/ |
| Eat | kurya /kuɾja/ | kuria /kuria/ | kuya /kuja/ | kuria /kuɾia/ | kulya /kuʎa/ | ìlya /iʎa/ | kudya /kudja/ |
| Drink | kunwa /kunwa/ | kunyua /kuɲua/ | kunywa /kuɲwa/ | kunywa /kuɲwa/ | kunwa /kunwa/ | ìnyo /iɲo/ | kumwa /kumwa/ |
| One | imwe /imwe/ | mongo /moŋɡo/ | imo /imo/ | umwe /umwe/ | imo /imo/ | ìmwí /imwi/ | posi /posi/ |
| Two | avili /aβili/ | iwi /iwi/ | mbili /mbili/ | aviri /aβiri/ | avili /aβili/ | iwi /iwi/ | piŵiri /piwiri/ |
| Hello | shiloi /ʃiloi/ | kira /kiɾa/ | nashukuru /naʃukuɾu/ | mbukire /mbukiɾe/ | mbasala /mbasala/ | máshàlòmà /maʃaloma/ | mwadzukabwanji /mwadzukabwandʒi/ |
| Thank you | mwasanga /mwasaŋɡa/ | asante /asante/ | asante /asante/ | asante /aˈsante/ | nashukulu /naʃukulu/ | ahsànte /ahsante/ | ndatenda /ndatenda/ |
| Good | mwamba /mwamba/ | kya /kja/ | hedi /hedi/ | kihi /kihi/ | kwifwa /kwifwa/ | ìchá /itʃa/ | nadidi /nadidi/ |
Part of LangMap — a linguistic visualization project. This is a static, crawlable summary; the interactive maps offer pronunciation audio, filters, and a globe view.