Presentation edit
- For further information, read the article: Swadesh list
The Swadesh word list, developed by the linguist Morris Swadesh, is used as a tool to study the evolution of languages. It contains a set of basic words which can be found in every language. Various versions have been created, in particular:
- a complete 207 words version, in which some of the words are not found in every environment (it contains for instance snake and snow)
- a reduced 100 words version.
This word list should not be considered as an elementary lexicon to communicate with speakers of a given language; for such a purpose, the numerous existing Wikivoyage lexicons are more useful. Its only objective is to give a rough idea of the language, by showing its lexical and, when possible, phonetics basis.
List edit
| No. | English | Swahili kiswahili |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | I | mimi |
| 2 | you (singular) | wewe |
| 3 | he | yeye |
| 4 | we | sisi |
| 5 | you (plural) | nyinyi |
| 6 | they | wao |
| 7 | this | lile, ule, yule, ile, kile |
| 8 | that | lile, ule, yule, ile, kile |
| 9 | here | hapa |
| 10 | there | pale |
| 11 | who | nani (interrogative) |
| 12 | what | nini (interrogative) |
| 13 | where | wapi (no movement, interrogative) |
| 14 | when | lini (interrogative) |
| 15 | how | vipi (interrogative) |
| 16 | not | si |
| 17 | all | -ote |
| 18 | many | sana (very) / -ingi (numerous) |
| 19 | some | baadhi ya / chache |
| 20 | few | kidogo |
| 21 | other | ingine |
| 22 | one | moja |
| 23 | two | mbili |
| 24 | three | tatu |
| 25 | four | nne |
| 26 | five | tano |
| 27 | big | -kuu |
| 28 | long | -refu |
| 29 | wide | -pana |
| 30 | thick | -nene |
| 31 | heavy | -zito |
| 32 | small | -dogo |
| 33 | short | -fupi |
| 34 | narrow | -embamba |
| 35 | thin | -anana |
| 36 | woman | bibi, gashi |
| 37 | man (adult male) | mwanamume |
| 38 | man (human being) | mtu |
| 39 | child | mtoto |
| 40 | wife | mke |
| 41 | husband | mume |
| 42 | mother | mama |
| 43 | father | baba |
| 44 | animal | mnyama |
| 45 | fish | samaki |
| 46 | bird | ndege |
| 47 | dog | mbwa |
| 48 | louse | chawa |
| 49 | snake | nyoka |
| 50 | worm | funza, uchango |
| 51 | tree | mti |
| 52 | forest | msitu |
| 53 | stick | fimbo |
| 54 | fruit | tunda |
| 55 | seed | mbegu |
| 56 | leaf | jani |
| 57 | root | mzizi |
| 58 | bark (of a tree) | gamba |
| 59 | flower | ua |
| 60 | grass | nyasi |
| 61 | rope | kamba |
| 62 | skin | ngozi |
| 63 | meat | nyama |
| 64 | blood | damu |
| 65 | bone | mfupa |
| 66 | fat (noun) | mori |
| 67 | egg | yai |
| 68 | horn | pembe |
| 69 | tail | mkia |
| 70 | feather | unyoya |
| 71 | hair | nywele |
| 72 | head | kichwa |
| 73 | ear | sikio |
| 74 | eye | jicho |
| 75 | nose | pua |
| 76 | mouth | kinywa |
| 77 | tooth | jino |
| 78 | tongue (organ) | ulimi |
| 79 | fingernail | ukucha |
| 80 | foot | mguu |
| 81 | leg | mguu |
| 82 | knee | goti |
| 83 | hand | mkono |
| 84 | wing | bawa, ubawa |
| 85 | belly | tumbo |
| 86 | guts | utumbo |
| 87 | neck | shingo |
| 88 | back | mgongo |
| 89 | breast | kifua |
| 90 | heart | moyo |
| 91 | liver | ini |
| 92 | to drink | -nywa |
| 93 | to eat | -la |
| 94 | to bite | -donoa |
| 95 | to suck | -amwa |
| 96 | to spit | -tema |
| 97 | to vomit | -tapika |
| 98 | to blow | -puliza |
| 99 | to breathe | -pumua |
| 100 | to laugh | -cheka |
| 101 | to see | -ona |
| 102 | to hear | -sikia |
| 103 | to know | -fahamu |
| 104 | to think | -fikiri, -dhani, -waza |
| 105 | to smell | -nukilia |
| 106 | to fear | -ogopa |
| 107 | to sleep | -lala |
| 108 | to live | -ishi |
| 109 | to die | -fa |
| 110 | to kill | -ua |
| 111 | to fight | -pigana |
| 112 | to hunt | -winda |
| 113 | to hit | -gonga, -piga |
| 114 | to cut | -kata |
| 115 | to split | -pasua |
| 116 | to stab | -choma |
| 117 | to scratch | -kuna, -parua |
| 118 | to dig | -chimba |
| 119 | to swim | -ogelea |
| 120 | to fly | -paa |
| 121 | to walk | -tembea |
| 122 | to come | -ja |
| 123 | to lie (as in a bed) | -gona (action) |
| 124 | to sit | -keti (action, state) |
| 125 | to stand | -amka (action) |
| 126 | to turn (intransitive) | -pindua |
| 127 | to fall | -anguka |
| 128 | to give | -pa |
| 129 | to hold | -shika |
| 130 | to squeeze | -kaba, -minya, -kamua |
| 131 | to rub | -sugua |
| 132 | to wash | -safisha |
| 133 | to wipe | -futa |
| 134 | to pull | -vuta |
| 135 | to push | -guta |
| 136 | to throw | -tupa |
| 137 | to tie | -funga |
| 138 | to sew | -shona |
| 139 | to count | -hesabu |
| 140 | to say | -sema |
| 141 | to sing | -imba |
| 142 | to play | -cheza |
| 143 | to float | -elea |
| 144 | to flow | -tiririka |
| 145 | to freeze | -ganda |
| 146 | to swell | -fura |
| 147 | sun | jua |
| 148 | moon | mwezi |
| 149 | star | nyota |
| 150 | water | maji |
| 151 | rain | mvua |
| 152 | river | mto |
| 153 | lake | ziwa |
| 154 | sea | bahari |
| 155 | salt | chumvi |
| 156 | stone | jiwe |
| 157 | sand | mchanga |
| 158 | dust | vumbi |
| 159 | earth | ardhi |
| 160 | cloud | wingu |
| 161 | fog | ukungu |
| 162 | sky | mbingu |
| 163 | wind | homu |
| 164 | snow | theluji |
| 165 | ice | barafu |
| 166 | smoke | moshi |
| 167 | fire | moto |
| 168 | ash | majivu |
| 169 | to burn | -waka |
| 170 | road | njia |
| 171 | mountain | mlima |
| 172 | red | -ekundu |
| 173 | green | kijani |
| 174 | yellow | manjano |
| 175 | white | -eupe |
| 176 | black | -eusi |
| 177 | night | usiku |
| 178 | day | siku |
| 179 | year | mwaka |
| 180 | warm | moto |
| 181 | cold | baridi |
| 182 | full | -nene |
| 183 | new | -pya |
| 184 | old | -zee |
| 185 | good | -ema |
| 186 | bad | -baya |
| 187 | rotten | -bovu |
| 188 | dirty | -chafu |
| 189 | straight | nyofu |
| 190 | round | duara |
| 191 | sharp (as a knife) | chungu |
| 192 | dull (as a knife) | butu |
| 193 | smooth | -ororo |
| 194 | wet | kimaji |
| 195 | dry | -kavu |
| 196 | correct | sahihi |
| 197 | near | karibu |
| 198 | far | mbali |
| 199 | right | kuume |
| 200 | left | kushoto |
| 201 | at | pa |
| 202 | in | bi, fi |
| 203 | with | na |
| 204 | and | na |
| 205 | if | kama |
| 206 | because | kwa kuwa |
| 207 | name | jina |
- The words preceded by a hyphen (-) are radicals of a verb or an adjective; various prefixes may be used, as requested by the noun class system of the Swahili.
See also edit
Bibliography edit
- Les langages de l'humanité (Michel Malherbe), Robert Laffont, Paris 1995 - ISBN 2-221-05947-6 (in French)
External links edit
- Swahili, Mahorese and Lingala dictionaries (Lexilogos) (in French)
- Multilanguage dictionary
- Wiktionary : Swadesh list
- Wikamusi (Swahili Wiktionary) (in Swahili)