Comparison between english and swahili Language

Similarities between Swahili and English

It would interest you to know that the Swahili language is spoken by more than twenty million people in Africa. It is spoken in countries like Kenya, Tanzania and Congo. It is a popular tribal language that has attracted a lot of attention and it is for this reason that people are very much interested in learning it. However learning it just like any new language is not that easy. You would have to exert a lot of effort and time. The good thing is that there are some similarities between Swahili and English languages which should be very much encouraging to anyone wanting to study it.

One of the simples of similarities between Swahili and English is the fact that the Swahili verbs always carry with them the subject and sometimes the object and the tense. This is also found mostly in the English language. For instance there is a word like ‘Ninakula’ which means ‘I am eating’. Indeed another thing worthy of note is that the personal pronouns in the Swahili language are all one word just like the English language. For instance there is a world like ‘Mimi’ which means ‘I’ and ‘Sisi’ which means ‘We’.

Another of the similarities between Swahili and English is that they all have classes of nouns. The English language for instance has several classes of nouns like the personal nouns and impersonal nouns. When you enter the Swahili language, there are a number of noun classes which are eight in number. These would include classes like the N class, M-MI class and the KI-VI class. The KI-VI class for instance is one that includes names that start with KI or VI like ‘Kit’ for chair and ‘Viti’ for chairs. The M-MI class may be quite confusing but it only deals with non-human nouns like ‘Miji’ for ‘towns’, ‘Mji’ for ‘town’ and ‘Mti’ for ‘tree’.

There are other similarities between Swahili and English that we can consider like the fact that they all recognise the seven days in the week. Moreover, with reference to time, they all appreciate the fact that the day is made up of twenty four hours even though there may be slight differences with respect to point of references at certain periods in time. For instance in Swahili, Saturday is recognised as the first day of the week while the sixth day would fall on Thursday.
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15 Must-Know Swahili Phrases

When travelling to East Africa for the first time, it would be useful to learn the following Swahili phrases to help you get around easier.

No Problem - Hakuna matata
Made famous by the movie “The Lion King”, this phrase is commonly used to let your audience know that everything is alright and you are ok.

Hallo – Jambo
This phrase means hallo and may be used in greeting anyone at any time of the day.

How are you - Habari gani
This phrase is a great icebreaker, especially if you wish to begin a longer conversation with the person you are talking to. It is a polite and courteous way of asking the person about how they are doing.

Thank you very much- Ahsante sana
This phrase will endear you to the people you interact with whenever you wish to thank them for their hospitality.

Bye - Kwaheri ya kuonana
It is always polite to bid your host goodbye, so be sure to use this phrase which also expresses your desire to see the person again.

Good Morning - Habari za Asubuhi?
It is polite to always use this phrase in greeting people when you first meet them in the morning.

Good Afternoon - Habari za Mchana?
This phrase is used to politely greet people whenever you meet them in the afternoon.

Good Evening - Habari za Jioni?
Remember to be polite to the people you meet in the evening by greeting them with this phrase.

Please, I would like – Tafadhali naomba
This phrase is a polite way of making a request either for something or even information.

Yes, thank you – Ndiyo asante
This phrase is used as a polite way of accepting an offer that someone has made to you.

No, thank you – La shukrani

You may use this phrase as a polite way of rejecting an offer that is made to you.

What is your name? - Jina lako nani?

You may use this phrase when asking someone to tell you their name.

My name is - Jina langu ni
This is the response to give someone who asks you to tell them your name. You will begin with “Jina langu ni” and complete by including your name at the end. For instance “Jina langu ni Mary”.

I would like to go – Tafadhali, nataka kuenda
When asking for directions, you may use this polite phrase and end the sentence with your intended destination. For example, “Tafadhali, nataka kuenda Nairobi.”

Please give me – Tafadhali naomba
This phrase is used as a polite way of asking for something. For example, “tafadhali naomba msaada” is a request for assistance or help.

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