In message
,
Subi - nukta77 writes
>
>> Is ' Mzungu' evolved into a derogatory referal to colonials or is it still
>> an innocent used description?
>
>> like to see what you guys think....
>
>
>Hello the-niner-nation,
>
>I am a Tanzanian and KiSwahili is my language but not English, but, I
>will try to explain.
>
>The word 'mzungu' is generally used to refer to a 'white' person from
>Europe or North America and sometimes any white person from Asia and
>South America.
>
>It is a good word not assosicated with 'hate race', it is a good way
>to explain or distinguish somebody from the normal dark complexion of
>our skin.
>
>However, you should be alarmed when somebody calls you 'li-zungu' or
>'ma-zungu' or 'kaburu' because, that is calling names. 'li-zungu'
>means one mzungu who is not so friendly, it's more like calling
>someone 'a thing' while 'ma-zungu' is the plural of 'li-zungu' and
>'kaburu' is the worst of the three, it's racist meaning someone who is
>colonial type, brutal, mean, etc. So simply and 'informal' the
>opposite of Mzungu is Kaburu .
>
>When somebody call you or your child 'ka-zungu' ...it means an
>adorable white child (girl or boy) or a pretty white lady or a
>handsome white gentleman.
>
>Kwa heri! (Good Bye)
>(kwa = with, heri = blessing)
>Subi
Subi,
thanks for the Swahili breakdown of Mzungu, I lived in Kenya for
several years but can`t speak fluent Swahili, if I had lived in a town
I would have gone to a class to learn, I had to make do with "Jifunze
Kiswahili" book and cassettes!
The word Kaburu," there was a site called Kenya Kaburus but it seems
to have gone, it was people in Kenya who wrote about their schools and
experiences in East Africa.
Asante sana.
Patricia.
--
Pat Anderson |