Chilunda
Lunda
Niger-Congo > Atlantic-Congo > Benue-Congo > Bantu (Guthrie zone L.52)
Lunda, or Chilunda, is a Bantu language of Guthrie zone L.52 spoken in the borderland where Zambia's North-Western Province meets Angola and the DR Congo. Its speakers are the Lunda-Ndembu, whose ritual life became famous in anthropology through Victor Turner's fieldwork in the 1950s. It is a typical Bantu language with a full noun-class system — kawa 'dog' plural tuwa, mutondu 'tree' plural nyitondu, katumbwa 'star' plural tutumbwa — and its orthography is distinctive among Zambian languages in using the letter ŋ (Nzambi 'God', kukeŋa 'to love', itaŋwa 'sun'). Lunda has a complete Bible (1962, revised 2004) and is used in schools and radio, but everyday lexicography is thin: no substantial Lunda dictionary is freely available online, so much of the modern vocabulary is undocumented in public sources. Transmission remains strong in rural Mwinilunga and Zambezi districts.
Where it is spoken
31 core words in Lunda
Water
meji
/medʒi/
Fire
kesi
/kesi/
Sun
itaŋwa
/itaŋwa/
Moon
kakweji
/kakwedʒi/
Star
katumbwa
/katumbwa/
Mother
mama
/mama/
Father
tata
/tata/
I
ami
/ami/
You
eyi
/eji/
Name
ijina
/idʒina/
Eye
disu
/disu/
Hand
chikasa
/tʃikasa/
Heart
muchima
/mutʃima/
Love
kukeŋa
/kukeŋa/
Tree
mutondu
/mutondu/
House
itala
/itala/
Dog
kawa
/kawa/
Cat
—
/—/
Eat
kudya
/kudja/
Drink
kunwa
/kunwa/
One
wumu
/wumu/
Two
ayedi
/ajedi/
Hello
mwani
/mwani/
Thank you
nasakalili
/nasakalili/
Good
chachiwahi
/tʃatʃiwahi/
Words compared
Compared with related Niger-Congo > Atlantic-Congo > Benue-Congo > Bantu (Guthrie zone L.52) languages
| Meaning | Lunda | Luvale | Kimbundu | Luba-Kasai | Kaonde | Bemba | Sena |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | meji /medʒi/ | meya /meja/ | menha /meɲa/ | mâyi /maːji/ | mema /mema/ | amenshi /amenʃi/ | madzi /madzi/ |
| Fire | kesi /kesi/ | kakahya /kakahja/ | tubia /tubja/ | kapia /kapia/ | mujilo /mudʒilo/ | umulilo /umulilo/ | moto /moto/ |
| Sun | itaŋwa /itaŋwa/ | likumbi /likumbi/ | muanya /mwaɲa/ | dîba /diːba/ | juba /dʒuba/ | akasuba /akasuba/ | dzuwa /dzuwa/ |
| Moon | kakweji /kakwedʒi/ | kakweji /kakwedʒi/ | ngonde /ŋɡonde/ | ngondo /ŋɡondo/ | ñondo /ɲondo/ | umweshi /umweʃi/ | mwedzi /mwedzi/ |
| Star | katumbwa /katumbwa/ | tanganyeka /taŋɡaˈɲeka/ | tetembwa /teˈtembwa/ | mutoto /mutoto/ | lutanda /lutanda/ | intanda /intanda/ | nyenyezi /ɲeɲezi/ |
| Mother | mama /mama/ | mama /mama/ | mama /mama/ | mâmu /maːmu/ | bama /bama/ | bamayo /bamajo/ | mai /mai/ |
| Father | tata /tata/ | tata /tata/ | tata /tata/ | tâtu /taːtu/ | batata /batata/ | bataata /bataːta/ | baba /baba/ |
| I | ami /ami/ | ami /ami/ | eme /eme/ | meme /meme/ | amiwa /amiwa/ | ine /ine/ | ine /ine/ |
| You | eyi /eji/ | ove /ove/ | eie /eje/ | wewe /wewe/ | obewa /obewa/ | iwe /iwe/ | iwe /iwe/ |
| Name | ijina /idʒina/ | lijina /liˈʒina/ | dijina /diˈʒina/ | dîna /diːna/ | jizhina /dʒiʒina/ | ishina /iʃina/ | dzina /dzina/ |
| Eye | disu /disu/ | liso /liso/ | dixi /diʃi/ | dîsu /diːsu/ | jiso /dʒiso/ | ilinso /ilinso/ | diso /diso/ |
| Hand | chikasa /tʃikasa/ | livoko /livoko/ | lukwaku /lukwaku/ | tshianza /tʃianza/ | kuboko /kuboko/ | ukuboko /ukuboko/ | nkono /nkono/ |
| Heart | muchima /mutʃima/ | mutima /mutima/ | muxima /muʃima/ | mucima /mutʃima/ | muchima /mutʃima/ | umutima /umutima/ | mtima /mtima/ |
| Love | kukeŋa /kukeŋa/ | zangi /zaŋɡi/ | henda /henda/ | dinanga /dinaŋɡa/ | butemwe /butemwe/ | ukutemwa /ukutemwa/ | kufuna /kufuna/ |
| Tree | mutondu /mutondu/ | mutondo /mutondo/ | mukune /mukune/ | mutshi /mutʃi/ | kichi /kitʃi/ | icimuti /itʃimuti/ | mtengo /mteŋɡo/ |
| House | itala /itala/ | zuvo /zuvo/ | inzo /inzo/ | nzubu /nzubu/ | nzubo /nzubo/ | ing'anda /iŋːanda/ | nyumba /ɲumba/ |
| Dog | kawa /kawa/ | kawa /kawa/ | imbwa /imbwa/ | mbwa /mbwa/ | mbwa /mbwa/ | imbwa /imbwa/ | mbwa /mbwa/ |
| Cat | — /—/ | katako /katako/ | kasalu /kasalu/ | nyao /ɲao/ | kapuso /kapuso/ | pushi /puʃi/ | paka /paka/ |
| Eat | kudya /kudja/ | kulya /kuʎa/ | kudya /kudja/ | kudia /kudia/ | kuja /kudʒa/ | ukulya /ukulja/ | kudya /kudja/ |
| Drink | kunwa /kunwa/ | kunwa /kunwa/ | kunwa /kunwa/ | kunua /kunua/ | kutoma /kutoma/ | ukunwa /ukunwa/ | kumwa /kumwa/ |
| One | wumu /wumu/ | -mwe /mwe/ | -moxi /moʃi/ | umue /umue/ | umo /umo/ | cimo /tʃimo/ | posi /posi/ |
| Two | ayedi /ajedi/ | -vali /vali/ | -iadi /jaːdi/ | bibidi /bibidi/ | bibili /bibili/ | fibili /fibili/ | piŵiri /piwiri/ |
| Hello | mwani /mwani/ | mwane /mwane/ | kiebi /kiebi/ | moyo /mojo/ | mwapoñai /mwapoɲai/ | muli shani /muli ʃani/ | mwadzukabwanji /mwadzukabwandʒi/ |
| Thank you | nasakalili /nasakalili/ | nasakwilila /nasakwilila/ | kishukutu /kiʃukutu/ | tuasakidila /tuasakidila/ | nasakwilila /nasakwilila/ | natotela /natotela/ | ndatenda /ndatenda/ |
| Good | chachiwahi /tʃatʃiwahi/ | -mwaza /mwaza/ | kiá /kja/ | bimpe /bimpe/ | kyawama /kjawama/ | chisuma /tʃisuma/ | nadidi /nadidi/ |
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