1,497 results on '"Swahili"'
Search Results
2. Fluency in L2: Read and Spontaneous Speech Pausing Patterns of Turkish, Swahili, Hausa and Arabic Speakers of English
- Author
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Ömer Eren, Erdoğan Bada, and Mehmet Kiliç
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Swahili ,Linguistics and Language ,Turkish ,Perspective (graphical) ,Multilingualism ,Experimental and Cognitive Psychology ,Hausa ,Language and Linguistics ,language.human_language ,Psycholinguistics ,Linguistics ,Fluency ,Reading ,Structured interview ,Speech Perception ,language ,Humans ,Speech ,Psychology ,General Psychology ,Language ,Spontaneous speech - Abstract
Language learners' actual speech performances constitute an essential aspect of studies on second language learning and teaching. Although there is ample research on fluency and pauses in English, current literature does not touch on this issue from a multilingual perspective by comparing both read and spontaneous speech performances. In this descriptive study, the researchers investigated pausing patterns with 40 Turkish, Swahili, Hausa, and Arabic speakers of English. For the read speech fragments' elicitation, the participants read out a short story, and for spontaneous speech, the data was gathered through structured interviews. In total, 4007 pauses were measured through Praat, and the findings obtained from the data were analyzed using multiple regression and several multivariate analyses of variance. The findings revealed crucial insights into the nature of fluency research in terms of (a) speech registers, (b) positions, (c) conjunctions, and (d) mother tongues.
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- 2021
3. Role of Character-Leaders in Development as Depicted in Swahili Literary Texts
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Martha Nyangweso Syekei and Oiko Fridah Gesare
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Swahili ,Third world ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Developing country ,Character (symbol) ,Colonialism ,language.human_language ,Underdevelopment ,Competitive election ,State (polity) ,Political science ,Political economy ,language ,media_common - Abstract
It has always been believed by the majority that elected leaders are a necessary component in the development of any country and more so in the developing world. This is so strong in that leaders are elected by their people through a competitive election because they believe they will influence economic development positively. Writers of literature are born and bred in the communities where they equally participate in the process of electing their leaders. Thus, when they write about the maxima or minimal roles played by these leaders in impacting economic development, they are believed to portray a true and to some extent a believable picture of the state of development in their respective communities. In this respect, this paper analyses the role played by the elected leaders in the realization of economic development in the third world as portrayed in selected Swahili literary texts. To achieve our main objective, the paper surveys the challenges of the third world and shows how the elected leaders tackle them to realize economic success. The paper concludes that elected leaders have downplayed their role in enhancing economic development and the result is underdevelopment experienced in the third world worse than that of the colonial leaders
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- 2021
4. Community Awareness and Understanding of the Origin of Swahili Archaeological Heritage and Ruins along Tanzania’s Swahili Coast: Conservation and Management Issues
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Maximilian F. Chami, Mandela Peter Ryano, and Eike Albrecht
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Swahili ,Tanzania ,Geography ,biology ,Later Stone Age ,Human settlement ,language ,Archaeological heritage ,Community awareness ,biology.organism_classification ,Archaeology ,language.human_language - Abstract
The Tanzanian coast has many remains of medieval Swahili settlements dated between the twelfth and sixteenth centuries C.E. In the same region, Neolithic and Later Stone Age sites have also been reported, alongside evidence for Early Iron Working settlements. Swahili culture, and the ruins that can still be seen, have their origins in this rich cultural past. It appears, however, that the present communities along the Tanzanian Swahili coast, and the public, are unaware of this important heritage history. There is a popular belief among them that the origin and influence on the now ruined Swahili settlements came from the Middle East, and it is true that Arab and other travellers described Swahili civilization in their writings. In this article, we explore the communities and researchers’ different perspectives on the origin of the Swahili ruins, focusing on the conservation and management problems this raises. We also analyse the position and role of heritage management institutions in the country towards enhancing community awareness and proper conservation of the ruins. Finally, we propose ways of promoting community awareness of the origin of the Swahili ruins, influencing participation and actions towards their conservation and management.
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- 2021
5. Downstream to Kinshasa / film-documentary by Dieudonné Hamadi. Icarus Films: New York. 89 minutes / Colour. Swahili; Lingala / English subtitles. Release: 2021. Copyright: 2020
- Author
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Arthur Mukenge
- Subjects
Swahili ,ICARUS ,Lingala ,Downstream (manufacturing) ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Political Science and International Relations ,Geography, Planning and Development ,language ,Art history ,Art ,Development ,language.human_language ,media_common - Published
- 2021
6. A Transformer-Based Approach to Multilingual Fake News Detection in Low-Resource Languages
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BandyopadhyayDibyanayan, EkbalAsif, GainBaban, and DeArkadipta
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World Wide Web ,Swahili ,Hindi ,Indonesian ,General Computer Science ,Low resource ,Computer science ,Vietnamese ,language ,Fake news ,language.human_language ,Transformer (machine learning model) - Abstract
Fake news classification is one of the most interesting problems that has attracted huge attention to the researchers of artificial intelligence, natural language processing, and machine learning (ML). Most of the current works on fake news detection are in the English language, and hence this has limited its widespread usability, especially outside the English literate population. Although there has been a growth in multilingual web content, fake news classification in low-resource languages is still a challenge due to the non-availability of an annotated corpus and tools. This article proposes an effective neural model based on the multilingual Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformer (BERT) for domain-agnostic multilingual fake news classification. Large varieties of experiments, including language-specific and domain-specific settings, are conducted. The proposed model achieves high accuracy in domain-specific and domain-agnostic experiments, and it also outperforms the current state-of-the-art models. We perform experiments on zero-shot settings to assess the effectiveness of language-agnostic feature transfer across different languages, showing encouraging results. Cross-domain transfer experiments are also performed to assess language-independent feature transfer of the model. We also offer a multilingual multidomain fake news detection dataset of five languages and seven different domains that could be useful for the research and development in resource-scarce scenarios.
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- 2021
7. Mkaumwa, Calumba, and Miami Columbo: Slavery and Expropriated Pharmacology from the Swahili Coast to the Ohio Valley
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Christopher M. Blakley
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Swahili ,Root (linguistics) ,History ,language ,Narrative ,World history ,Scientific object ,General Medicine ,Miami ,language.human_language ,Classics - Abstract
This article examines calumba root as a mobile scientific object in global history. The narrative begins with the first mention of calumba as an antidote from the “Indies” by an Italian phy...
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- 2021
8. The Role of Age and Exposure in English Vowel Perception and Production among Native Swahili Speakers
- Author
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Rose Acen Upor and Joseph J. Olomy
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Swahili ,Speech perception ,media_common.quotation_subject ,language.human_language ,Linguistics ,Test (assessment) ,Perception ,Vowel ,language ,Production (computer science) ,Psychology ,Sentence ,Meaning (linguistics) ,media_common - Abstract
Vowel perceptual studies in Foreign Language Acquisition (FLA) settings where L1 is dominant are generally scarce. The aim of this study, therefore, is to explore the role of the age and exposure factors in the perception and production of English vowels [ɑ-ɜ; æ-ɑ; i-ɪ] by the native Swahili speakers whose exposure to the English language is through formal instruction in a predominantly FLA situation. The participants (n=40) were classified into two groups: Young learners and adult learners. Using Flege’s Speech Learning Model (SLM), we administered a vowel perception test, and a vowel production exercise. The results confirm that adult learners have an edge over younger learners whereby the former exhibited greater accuracy in determining vowel contrasts and production than the latter. Although both groups shared common difficulties in discriminating the vowel sounds, adult learners had recourse to their prolonged exposure and ingeniously used previously acquired knowledge and skills in sentence structure and meaning to aid discrimination in comparison to the younger learners. Finally, the study supports the SLM contention that adults retain capacities to acquire L1 to perceive the properties of L2 speech sounds and establish new phonetic categories.
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- 2021
9. Automated Detection of Bilingual Obfuscated Abusive Words on Social Media Forums: A Case of Swahili and English Texts
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Geofrey Njovangwa and Godfrey Justo
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Obfuscated abuse ,Swahili ,Matching (statistics) ,Computer science ,business.industry ,ComputingMilieux_LEGALASPECTSOFCOMPUTING ,Rule-based system ,Rule based approach ,Abusive words ,computer.software_genre ,language.human_language ,Abuse detection ,Social media ,ComputingMilieux_MANAGEMENTOFCOMPUTINGANDINFORMATIONSYSTEMS ,Character (mathematics) ,language ,Artificial intelligence ,Detection rate ,F1 score ,business ,Character percentage matching techniques ,computer ,Natural language processing - Abstract
The usage of social media has exponentially grown in recent years leaving the users with no limitations on misusing the platforms through abusive contents as deemed fit to them. This exacerbates abusive words exposure to innocent users, especially in social media forums, including children. In an attempt to alleviate the problem of abusive words proliferation on social media, researchers have proposed different methods to help deal with variants of the abusive words; however, obfuscated abusive words detection still poses challenges. A method that utilizes a combination of rule based approach and character percentage matching techniques is proposed to improve the detection rate for obfuscated abusive words. The evaluation results achieved F1 score percentage ratio of 0.97 and accuracy percentage ratio of 0.96 which were above the significance ratio of 0.5. Hence, the proposed approach is highly effective for obfuscated abusive words detection and prevention. Keywords: Rule based approach, Character percentage matching techniques, Obfuscated abuse, Abuse detection, Abusive words, Social media
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- 2021
10. Debating the Swahili: Archaeology Since 1990 and into the Future
- Author
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Chapurukha M. Kusimba and Jonathan R. Walz
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Cultural heritage ,Swahili ,Archeology ,Scholarship ,Indian ocean ,History ,Global South ,language ,East africa ,Islam ,Colonialism ,Archaeology ,language.human_language - Abstract
The Swahili are arguably the most studied society in ancient Sub-Saharan Africa. The Swahili are of African in origin but balance their character between continental Africa and influences from the Indian Ocean, including Islam. City-states and towns along the eastern coast of Africa attest that the Swahili built coral monuments and commercial networks with broad connectivity. Colonial archaeologists claimed foreign origins and cast the Swahili as transplants, false representations evident by 1990 through the contributions of African and other archaeologists and interdisciplinary scholarship. Other aspects of the Swahili continue to be debated, and gaps and shortcomings present impediments to resolution. In this article, we characterize the Swahili and note early trends in the region’s archaeology relevant to contextualize Swahili archaeology post-1990. The article then discusses aspects of Swahili archaeology from 1990 to 2015 and current practices. We note trends, substantive achievements, and lapses in substance and practice during 30 years. Finally, we make observations and suggestions to advance archaeology the region’s archaeology. Archaeology in the Global South can learn from the case of the Swahili and the affirmations, critiques, and suggestions offered here, which we intend to promote future archaeological practice in East Africa.
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- 2021
11. Mashi – this language was in my ears
- Author
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Anne Golden and Guri Bordal Steien
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Swahili ,Linguistics and Language ,Lingala ,Metaphor ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Global South ,Identity (social science) ,Norwegian ,Language and Linguistics ,language.human_language ,Linguistics ,conceptual metaphors ,language biographies ,Possession (linguistics) ,language ,emic perspectives ,Official language ,Sociology ,conceptualization ,Cognitive linguistics ,VDP::Humaniora: 000::Språkvitenskapelige fag: 010 ,media_common - Abstract
This is the accepted version of an article from Metaphor and the Social World. The published article can be found here: https://doi.org/10.1075/msw.00021.gol In order to understand the process of learning new languages as adults, we need to take into account learners’ past experiences with all of their language(s), as such experiences shape attitudes and conceptualizations. In this paper, we present an analysis of metaphorical expressions in the narrated linguistic biographies of (former) refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in Norway. The participants speak a multitude of languages, e.g., different local Congolese languages, Congolese national languages (Lingala or Swahili), French (the official language of the DRC), in addition to Norwegian (the language of the host society). Attention is paid to how the participants’ expressions align with conceptual metaphors emerged from work in Cognitive Linguistics, such as LANGUAGE IS AN OBJECT, LANGUAGE IS A PERSON and LANGUAGE IS AN IDENTITY MARKER, as well as specifications LIKE LANGUAGE IS A TOOL and LANGUAGE IS A POSSESSION. We argue that awareness of conceptualizations of ‘language’ can contribute to the development of language training pedagogies that better reflect learners’ past experiences.
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- 2021
12. 'Potentially the Pompeii of East Africa'
- Author
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Vera-Simone Schulz
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Swahili ,Geography ,Tanzania ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,biology ,General Arts and Humanities ,Archipelago ,East africa ,language ,Ancient history ,biology.organism_classification ,language.human_language - Abstract
Focusing on a quotation by Mortimer Wheeler from the year 1955, when he called the ruined Swahili stone town of Kua on Juani island in the Mafia archipelago in today’s Tanzania “potentially...
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- 2021
13. Interpreting in Tanzania from the perspective of Tanzanian interpreters
- Author
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Elizaveta Getta
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Swahili ,Linguistics and Language ,biology ,business.industry ,Communication ,Context (language use) ,Public relations ,biology.organism_classification ,computer.software_genre ,Lingua franca ,Intercultural communication ,Language and Linguistics ,language.human_language ,Globalization ,Tanzania ,Political science ,National identity ,language ,business ,computer ,Interpreter ,computer.programming_language - Abstract
The study overviews the role of interpreting services in Tanzania, presenting mainly the experience of practicing freelance interpreters. The two official languages of Tanzania – English and Swahili – have separate roles in the country. Although most Tanzanians accept English as a necessary medium of intercultural communication, Swahili is perceived as an important part of Tanzanian national identity. It is the country’s lingua franca. On the one hand, Tanzania aims to preserve communication in Swahili; on the other hand, there is an inevitable need for intercultural communication with the rest of the world that grows especially in the context of globalization. The paper focuses on the role, status, education, working languages, conditions of Tanzanian interpreters, and the requirements of local and international clients. The study also creates a broader context that mentions crucial historical moments that have influenced the country’s current character of intercultural communication.
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- 2021
14. 'Even if the Chinese Grow Wings and Fly': Recasting Martial Arts in a Tanzanian Karate Dojo
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Mohamed Yunus Rafiq and Derek Sheridan
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Swahili ,Martial arts ,Literature and Literary Theory ,biology ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Art ,biology.organism_classification ,language.human_language ,Visual arts ,Philosophy ,Tanzania ,Anthropology ,language ,media_common - Published
- 2021
15. Revisiting Kalundu Mound, Zambia: Implications for the Timing of Social and Subsistence Transitions in Iron Age Southern Africa
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Maggie Katongo, Samantha Brown, C. Le Moyne, Nicole Boivin, Steven T. Goldstein, Anneke Janzen, Kristine Korzow Richter, Alison Crowther, Andrea Picin, E. R. Henry, J. Farr, Goldstein S.T., Crowther A., Henry E.R., Janzen A., Katongo M., Brown S., Farr J., Le Moyne C., Picin A., Richter K.K., and Boivin N.
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Swahili ,Archeology ,biology ,Iron Age ,Zambia ,Subsistence agriculture ,Social complexity ,Eleusine ,biology.organism_classification ,Archaeology ,Bayesian modeling ,language.human_language ,law.invention ,Geography ,law ,language ,Kalomo ,Radiocarbon dating ,Domestication ,Subsistence ,Chronology - Abstract
Novel trajectories of food production, urbanism, and inter-regional trade fueled the emergence of numerous complex Iron Age polities in central and southern Africa. Renewed research and re-dating efforts in Botswana, Zimbabwe, and along the Swahili Coast are transforming models for how inter-regional interaction spheres contributed to these patterns. While societies in present-day Zambia played an important role in the trade of copper, ivory, gold, and other resources between central and southern Africa, little is known about lifeways during the rise of social complexity in this region. This paper reports the results of re-excavation at Kalundu Mound on the Batoka Plateau of southern Zambia, one of the iconic mound sites of the Iron Age “Kalomo Culture.” New radiocarbon dates were combined with the original dates in a series of Bayesian models, indicating that previous chronologies for the site are not reliable and that the mound site likely developed rapidly from AD 1190 to 1410. Archaeobotanical, zooarchaeological, and paleo-proteomic analyses of excavated materials suggests a broad subsistence base combining wild and domesticated species, including the first reported evidence for finger millet (Eleusine coracana) in the region. Considering these findings, it is necessary to re-evaluate the temporal context of the Kalomo site-group, and to also systematically reinvestigate the systems of exchange and subsistence that supported Later Iron Age complexity. Introduction Situating Kalundu Mound Within the Regional Archaeology Kalundu Mound and the Kalomo Culture - Environmental Setting and Regional History - The 1957 Excavations - The 1960–1962 Excavations - The 2017 Excavations Results - Stratigraphy - Chronology - Chronological Modeling Results - Chronology Summary Subsistence - Faunal Remains - Macrobotanical Remains - Material culture Discussion - Site Formation - Iron Age Agriculture at Kalundu - Chronology for Kalundu Mound and the Kalomo Group Conclusion
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- 2021
16. Exploring Topic-language Preferences in Multilingual Swahili Information Retrieval in Tanzania
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Hussein Suleman and Joseph P. Telemala
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Swahili ,Information retrieval ,Tanzania ,General Computer Science ,biology ,Computer science ,language ,biology.organism_classification ,language.human_language - Abstract
Habitual switching of languages is a common behaviour among polyglots when searching for information on the Web. Studies in information retrieval (IR) and multilingual information retrieval (MLIR) suggest that part of the reason for such regular switching of languages is the topic of search. Unlike survey-based studies, this study uses query and click-through logs. It exploits the querying and results selection behaviour of Swahili MLIR system users to explore how topic of search (query) is associated with language preferences—topic-language preferences. This article is based on a carefully controlled study using Swahili-speaking Web users in Tanzania who interacted with a guided multilingual search engine. From the statistical analysis of queries and click-through logs, it was revealed that language preferences may be associated with the topics of search. The results also suggest that language preferences are not static; they vary along the course of Web search from query to results selection. In most of the topics, users either had significantly no language preference or preferred to query in Kiswahili and changed their preference to either English or no preference for language when selecting/clicking on the results. The findings of this study might provide researchers with more insights in developing better MLIR systems that support certain types of users and in certain scenarios.
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- 2021
17. Broadcasting Brotherhood? Interactive Diplomacy and Postcolonial Identity in Kol Yisrael’s African Services, 1960-1966
- Author
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Alexander J. White
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Cultural Studies ,Swahili ,History ,Government ,Sociology and Political Science ,business.industry ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Media studies ,Identity (social science) ,Broadcasting ,Public diplomacy ,language.human_language ,State (polity) ,Political science ,language ,business ,Diplomacy ,media_common - Abstract
Between 1960 and 1963, the Israeli government transmitted daily radio programmes to Africa through the state broadcaster Kol Yisrael. Taped programmes in English, French and Swahili were also distr...
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- 2021
18. Lexical cohesion in the translation of English-Swahili health care texts
- Author
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Manqoba Victor Ndlovu and Douglas Ondara Orang’i
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Cohesion (linguistics) ,Swahili ,Linguistics and Language ,business.industry ,Health care ,language ,Sociology ,business ,Linguistics ,language.human_language - Abstract
Lexical cohesion plays an integral role in ensuring that texts are cohesive. It is, however, not yet established if lexical cohesion remains the same once texts are translated from English into Swa...
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- 2021
19. The Rate of Affixing The Object Mark in The Verb in Habari Leo Swahili Newspaper
- Author
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Hossam Mohamed Ramadan
- Subjects
Swahili ,History ,media_common.quotation_subject ,language ,Object (grammar) ,Verb ,Syntax ,Agreement ,language.human_language ,Linguistics ,media_common ,Newspaper ,Meaning (linguistics) - Abstract
This study indicates the importance of the object marker in the Swahili language. The purpose of this study is to investigate the linguistic properties of object mark in the Swahili language in phonological, morphological, syntactical, and semantically and that is through previous studies about object mark. Also, the study discusses the function of the object marker in the verb in categories of news in Habari leo Swahili newspaper. Otherwise, the study discusses the states of object marker in titles and the texts of the news in Habari leo newspaper. Data were gathered and collected concerning object markers through the web site of Habari leo newspaper. The study used a descriptive approach and statistical approach. The findings of the study indicate that object marker in Swahili has various linguistic properties and has a different meaning in the titles and taxes news in Habri leo newspaper. Also, the data indicate that there are varied ratio in object mark from one department to another in the category of the newspaper. Also, some verbs are repeated in all sections of the newspaper.
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- 2021
20. Sam Soko, dir. Toni Kamau, producer. Softie. 2020. 96 mins. English/Swahili/Gikuyu. Kenya. Distributed by Icarus Films for purchase on DVD for $29.98, to rent on Vimeo for $3.99
- Author
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Ngala Chome
- Subjects
Cultural Studies ,Swahili ,ICARUS ,Anthropology ,media_common.quotation_subject ,language ,Art history ,Art ,language.human_language ,media_common - Published
- 2021
21. Swahili Seafarers’ Musings and Sensuous Seascapes in Yvonne Owuor’s The Dragonfly Sea
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Jauquelyne Kosgei
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Cultural Studies ,Swahili ,History ,Literature and Literary Theory ,biology ,Anthropology ,Seascapes ,language ,Dragonfly ,biology.organism_classification ,language.human_language - Published
- 2021
22. Translation and Cultural Adaptation of NIH Toolbox Cognitive Tests into Swahili and Dholuo Languages for Use in Children in Western Kenya
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Megan M Duffey, Amy Kovacs Giella, Mark Nyalumbe, Julie N. Hook, David Ayuku, George Ayodo, Emily Abuonji, Tuan M. Tran, and Megan S. McHenry
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Swahili ,General Neuroscience ,Applied psychology ,Cognitive flexibility ,Reproducibility of Results ,Pilot Projects ,Cognition ,Academic achievement ,NIH Toolbox ,Neuropsychological Tests ,Linguistic validation ,Kenya ,Article ,language.human_language ,Cognitive test ,Psychiatry and Mental health ,Clinical Psychology ,language ,Humans ,Neurology (clinical) ,Child ,Psychology ,Language ,Face validity - Abstract
Objectives:Performing high-quality and reliable cognitive testing requires significant resources and training. As a result, large-scale studies involving cognitive testing are difficult to perform in low- and middle-income settings, limiting access to critical knowledge to improve academic achievement and economic production in these populations. The NIH Toolbox® is a collection of cognitive, motor, sensory, and emotional tests that can be administered and scored using an iPad® tablet, reducing the need for training and quality monitoring; and thus, it is a potential solution to this problem.Methods:We describe our process for translation and cultural adaptation of the existing NIH Toolbox tests of fluid cognition into the Swahili and Dholuo languages for use in children aged 3–14 years in western Kenya. Through serial forward and back translations, cognitive interviews, group consensus, outside feedback, and support from the NIH Toolbox team, we produced translated tests that have both face validity and linguistic validation.Results:During our cognitive interviews, we found that the five chosen tests (one each of attention, cognitive flexibility, working memory, episodic memory, and processing speed) were generally well understood by children aged 7–14 years in our chosen populations. The cognitive interviews informed alterations in translation as well as slight changes in some images to culturally adapt the tests.Conclusions:This study describes the process by which we translated five fluid cognition tests from the NIH Toolbox into the Swahili and Dholuo languages. The finished testing application will be available for future studies, including a pilot study for assessment of psychometric properties.
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- 2021
23. Literary activism in the Swahili Coast
- Author
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Abdulrahman ‘Abu Amirah’ Ndegwa
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Cultural Studies ,Space (punctuation) ,Swahili ,Geography ,Literature and Literary Theory ,Anthropology ,language ,language.human_language - Abstract
The Swahili Coast, an area spanning from Mogadishu to the Swahili-speaking northern part of Mozambique is a space incredibly rich in language and culture, elements that have enriched cultural and l...
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- 2021
24. Islamic Discourses of Environmental Change on the Swahili Coast of Southern Tanzania
- Author
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Justin Raycraft
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Swahili ,Geography ,Tanzania ,Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous) ,biology ,Environmental change ,Anthropology ,language ,General Social Sciences ,Ethnology ,Islam ,biology.organism_classification ,language.human_language - Abstract
This paper addresses how Makonde Muslim villagers living on the Swahili coast of southern Tanzania conceptualize and discuss environmental change. Through narratives elicited during in-depth interviews and focus group discussions, I show that respondents associate various forms of environmental change—ecological, climatic, political, and socioeconomic—with God’s plan. Respondents had a sound grasp of the material workings of their lived realities and evoked religious causality to fill in the residual explanatory gaps and find meaning in events that were otherwise difficult to explain. Such narratives reveal both a culturally engrained belief system that colors people’s understandings of change and uncertainty and a discursive idiom for making sense of social suffering. On an applied note, I submit that social science approaches to studying environmental change must take into account political and economic contexts relative to local cosmologies, worldviews, and religious faiths, which may not disaggregate the environment into distinct representational categories.
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- 2021
25. Viewing gender through the eyes of proverbs: Reflections of gender ideology in the Akan and Swahili societies
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Josephine Dzahene-Quarshie and Shani Omari
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Swahili ,050101 languages & linguistics ,Linguistics and Language ,Divergence (linguistics) ,media_common.quotation_subject ,05 social sciences ,Gender studies ,Human sexuality ,050105 experimental psychology ,Language and Linguistics ,language.human_language ,Artificial Intelligence ,Perception ,language ,0501 psychology and cognitive sciences ,Ideology ,Sociology ,Relation (history of concept) ,Intertextuality ,media_common - Abstract
In this study, we compare gendered proverbs in the Akan society of Ghana and Swahili society of Tanzania, focusing on convergences and divergences in their worldviews on conceptualisation of gender roles and functions. Our analyses of data from written and oral sources within the theoretical concepts of gender ideology and intertextuality establish that largely, gendered proverbs in Akan and Swahili are convergent and express similar gender ideologies. Gendered proverbs in the two societies typically refer to females, and even when they mention males, they often critically expose the subjugation of women in relation to male superiority. The main divergent feature between gendered proverbs in Akan and Swahili societies is the perception of females as sex objects and the use of explicit expressions of sex organs and sexual acts by Akan proverbs. In contrast, Swahili gendered proverbs rarely address sexuality, and when they do, they do so discreetly by implication.
- Published
- 2021
26. THE BEARERS OF NEWS: PRINT AND POWER IN GERMAN EAST AFRICA
- Author
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Fabian Krautwald
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Swahili ,History ,05 social sciences ,0507 social and economic geography ,Media studies ,06 humanities and the arts ,Colonialism ,050701 cultural studies ,language.human_language ,Indigenous ,Nationalism ,Newspaper ,060104 history ,German ,Scholarship ,Elite ,language ,0601 history and archaeology - Abstract
Historians have drawn on newspapers to illuminate the origins of modern nationalism and cultures of literacy. The case of Kiongozi (The Guide or The Leader) relates this scholarship to Tanzania's colonial past. Published between 1904 and 1916 by the government of what was then German East Africa, the paper played an ambivalent role. On the one hand, by promoting the shift from Swahili written in Arabic script (ajami) to Latinized Swahili, it became the mouthpiece of an African elite trained in government schools. By reading and writing for Kiongozi, these waletaji wa habari (bearers of news) spread Swahili inland and transformed coastal culture. On the other hand, the paper served the power of the colonial state by mediating between German colonizers and their indigenous subordinates. Beyond cooptation, Kiongozi highlights the warped nature of African voices in the colonial archive, questioning claims about print's impact on nationalism and new forms of selfhood.
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- 2021
27. Online and Offline Android Based Mobile Application for Mapping Health Facilities Using Google Map API. Case Study: Tanzania and Kenya Borders
- Author
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Judith Leo, Shubi Kaijage, and Happyness Alexander
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Online and offline ,Swahili ,business.product_category ,biology ,business.industry ,Internet privacy ,Monitoring and evaluation ,biology.organism_classification ,language.human_language ,Tanzania ,Health care ,Internet access ,language ,Residence ,Android (operating system) ,business - Abstract
The evolution of technology in 1990s resulted in the enormous growth of smartphones and the propagation of mobile applications (App) that marked new opportunities for healthcare centers and medical education. Apps have altered health services from patient’s health monitoring to specialist’s appointments and consultations from specialized health facilities. It can be argued that a healthy society can bring forth sustainable economic development to its full potential while an unhealthy society cannot. However, a free movement of people, labour and right to residence which was built across East Africa (EA) borders enabled Tanzania and Kenya borders to have enormous interactions. Subsequently, increase the risk of highly communicable diseases such as Tuberculosis and Sexually transmitted infections in such a way that medical attention is unavoidable along the borders. Statistically, Android Operating System (OS) owns 83% of Africa’s mobile OS market. In addition, 25,794,560 internet users reported by Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA) together with the 22.86 million internet users provided by Kenya Digital which is equivalent to 46% and 43% of internet penetration in year 2020, disclose the need for Android mobile application for mapping health facilities both online and offline using Google map API, which will solve residents’ need to healthcare services on the presence or shortage of internet connections; using either Swahili or English language via Smartphone devices. The App incorporates Monitoring and Evaluation (M & E) tool for tracking application usage which will ease Admin’s task to generate daily and monthly reports in Excel and Comma-Separated Values (CSV) formats. The developed system received positive feedback from EA citizens and residents in the Arusha region and Namanga border crossing where 90.2% of the system evaluation conducted between Dec 2020 and Apr 2021 agreed upon App usage.
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- 2021
28. Correspondence between XPs and Phonological Phrases
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Hubert Truckenbrodt and Daniel Büring
- Subjects
Swahili ,Linguistics and Language ,Pronoun ,Reduction (recursion theory) ,Movement (music) ,Subject (grammar) ,language ,Context (language use) ,Language and Linguistics ,Linguistics ,language.human_language ,Mathematics - Abstract
In this article, I demonstrate that Swahili distinguishes two types of resumptive pronouns: (a) lower Ā-movement copies and (b) base-generated bound pronouns. These two types of resumptive pronouns are morphologically distinct: the presence of (local) person features reflects a base-generated derivation, and the absence of person features reflects Ā-movement. Crucial evidence comes from local person pronominal clefts derived from islands (bound pronoun context) and parasitic gaps (movement copy context). Inspired by Van Urk 2018, I analyze this pattern using Landau’s (2006) theory of chain reduction in which only movement copies create chains and are then subject to an algorithm that deletes person features.
- Published
- 2021
29. Two Types of Resumptive Pronouns in Swahili
- Author
-
Tessa Scott
- Subjects
Swahili ,Linguistics and Language ,Pronoun ,Computer science ,Subject (grammar) ,language ,Context (language use) ,Language and Linguistics ,Linguistics ,language.human_language - Abstract
In this article, I demonstrate that Swahili distinguishes two types of resumptive pronouns: (a) lower Ā-movement copies and (b) base-generated bound pronouns. These two types of resumptive pronouns are morphologically distinct: the presence of (local) person features reflects a base-generated derivation, and the absence of person features reflects Ā-movement. Crucial evidence comes from local person pronominal clefts derived from islands (bound pronoun context) and parasitic gaps (movement copy context). Inspired by Van Urk 2018, I analyze this pattern using Landau’s (2006) theory of chain reduction in which only movement copies create chains and are then subject to an algorithm that deletes person features.
- Published
- 2021
30. Men perspectives on attending antenatal care visits with their pregnant partners in Misungwi district, rural Tanzania: a qualitative study
- Author
-
Sylvia Tinka, Lusako Mwaikasu, Victoria Yohani, Jennifer L. Brenner, Hannah Faye G. Mercader, Jennifer Mitchell, Maendeleo Boniphace, Rose Laisser, Hadija Swai, and Dismas Matovelo
- Subjects
Adult ,Male ,Rural Population ,Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Rural-Tanzania ,Maternal Health ,Culture ,Reproductive medicine ,Antenatal care ,Tanzania ,lcsh:Gynecology and obstetrics ,Gender Role ,Male attendance ,Fathers ,Health facility ,medicine ,Humans ,Qualitative Research ,reproductive and urinary physiology ,Pregnant partners ,lcsh:RG1-991 ,Swahili ,biology ,business.industry ,Infant, Newborn ,Attendance ,Obstetrics and Gynecology ,Prenatal Care ,Focus Groups ,Patient Acceptance of Health Care ,biology.organism_classification ,Focus group ,language.human_language ,Attitude ,Socioeconomic Factors ,Family medicine ,language ,Female ,Thematic analysis ,business ,Delivery of Health Care ,Research Article ,Qualitative research - Abstract
Background Mens’attendance with their pregnant partners at facility-based antenatal care (ANC) visits is important for maternal and child health and gender equality yet remains uncommon in parts of rural Tanzania. This study examined men’s perspectives on attending ANC with their pregnant partners in Misungwi District, Tanzania. Methods Twelve individual interviews and five focus group discussions were conducted using semi-structured questionnaires with fathers, expectant fathers, and in-depth interviews were done to health providers, volunteer community health workers, and village leaders. Interviews were recorded and transcribed in Swahili and later translated to English. The research team conducted thematic analysis to identify common themes among interviews. Results We identified two broad themes on the barriers to male attendance at facility-based ANC visits: (1) Perceived exclusion during ANC visits among men (2) Traditional gender norms resulting to low attendance among men. Conclusion Attendance at health facility for ANC visits by men with their pregnant partners in the study areas were challenged by structural and local cultural norms. At the facility men were uncomfortable to sit with women due to lack of specific waiting area for men and that they perceived to be neglected. Local cultural norms demanded women to have secrecy in pregnancy while men perceived not to have a role of being with their partners during ANC visits.
- Published
- 2021
31. A cultural linguistic analysis of Swahili body metaphors
- Author
-
Rosanna Tramutoli
- Subjects
Swahili ,Generosity ,050101 languages & linguistics ,Multidisciplinary ,Semantic analysis (linguistics) ,Conceptualization ,media_common.quotation_subject ,05 social sciences ,Perspective (graphical) ,Swahili, metaphors, culture, body, conceptualizations ,metaphors ,body ,050105 experimental psychology ,language.human_language ,Linguistics ,culture ,Terminology ,Expression (architecture) ,Embodied cognition ,language ,0501 psychology and cognitive sciences ,conceptualizations ,Psychology ,media_common - Abstract
This study describes the relationship between language, culture and conceptualization, considering in particular the embodied cultural metaphors of ‘heart’ and ‘liver’. The recent study by Kraska-Szlenk (2014) on the semantic analysis of Swahili body terminology has demonstrated that moyo (heart) has a prominent role in the conceptualization of numerous emotional states, with several different metaphorical meanings (e.g., love, generosity, will). However, from a diachronic perspective, ini (liver) is equally important for the metaphorical expression of emotions or character traits in Swahili. Considering in addition the practice of Swahili traditional medicine (uganga), this study highlights Swahili bodily conceptualizations involved in the expression of emotions and personal traits. The data were collected mostly through interviews with Swahili speakers during fieldwork conducted in Tanzania.
- Published
- 2020
32. Providing hope: influences of volunteer tourism on program youth
- Author
-
Lana M. Olsen, Kathleen L. Andereck, and Christine A. Vogt
- Subjects
Swahili ,genetic structures ,biology ,business.industry ,05 social sciences ,Geography, Planning and Development ,Global South ,Public relations ,biology.organism_classification ,language.human_language ,Tanzania ,Tourism, Leisure and Hospitality Management ,Political science ,0502 economics and business ,language ,050211 marketing ,business ,Positive Youth Development ,human activities ,050212 sport, leisure & tourism ,Tourism - Abstract
Global South youth are considered members of a host community and are receivers of volunteer tourism development programs. However, their perceptions have rarely been included in volunteer tourism ...
- Published
- 2020
33. العرق والتنوع السکانی فی مجتمع سلطنة زنجبار والمؤثرات الحضاریة العربیة خلال القرن التاسع عشر
- Subjects
Swahili ,Social life ,Linguistic diversity ,Arabic ,language ,Food habits ,Treatment method ,Sociology ,Population diversity ,Theology ,language.human_language - Abstract
هدف البحث تناول العرق والتنوع السکاني في مجتمع سلطنة زنجبار والمؤثرات الحضارية العربية خلال القرن التاسع عشر، وقد قام الباحث بالشرح والتوضيح للصلات التاريخية للعرب والعمانيين بإقليم شرق أفريقيا، وقد تضمن: نشأة مجتمع سلطنة زنجبار( المجتمع السواحيلي): العرب، والعرب العمانيون، والعرب الحضارمة ( الشحريون). کما تناول: الأفارقة السواحيليون، وهم: السواحيليون الشيرازيون، والسواحيليون المستوعبون أو الذائبون، والسواحيليون الداخليون. کما تناول العناصر الآسيوية، من الهنود، البلوش. کما تناول الأوروبيون والأمريکيون، القمريون. کما تناول: التنوع اللغوي في مجتمع سلطنة زنجبار، والتي تتضمن اللغة العربية، واللغة السواحيلية، واللغات الهندية، کما تناول الأديان في مجتمع سلطنة زنجبار، والتي تتضمن الإسلام، والمسيحية، والديانات الهندية. کما تناول مظاهر الحياة الاجتماعية في سلطنة زنجبار، والتي تتضمن الأزياء والملابس، والتهذيب وحسن الضيافة، والمبطخ الزنجباري وعادات الطعام، والمرأة والطفولة في زنجبار، والموسيقى الزنجبارية، والبرزة أو المجلس، والطب وطرق العلاج، التعليم. کما تناول البحث المؤثرات العربية العمرانية في سلطنة زنجبار. The goal of the research is to deal with the ethnicity and population diversity in the society of the Sultanate of Zanzibar and the Arab civilization influences during the nineteenth century. (The Shahrians). It also dealt with: the Swahili Africans, who are: the Shirazi Swahili, the absorbed or dissolved Swahili, and the Inland Swahili. He also dealt with Asian elements, from Indians, Baluchis. Europeans and Americans also took up the Comorians. He also addressed: the linguistic diversity in the society of the Sultanate of Zanzibar, which includes the Arabic language, the Swahili language, and the Indian languages, as well as the religions in the society of the Sultanate of Zanzibar, which include Islam, Christianity, and Indian religions. He also dealt with aspects of social life in the Sultanate of Zanzibar, which include fashion and clothing, politeness and hospitality, Zanzibar and food habits, women and children in Zanzibar, Zanzibar music, Al Barza or Majlis, medicine and treatment methods, education. The research also dealt with Arab urban influences in the Sultanate of Zanzibar.
- Published
- 2020
34. The Cultural History and Chronology of Kisimani Mafia Stone Town Site, Mafia Archipelago, Tanzania: Findings from Re-excavation of the Site
- Author
-
Felix A. Chami, Alan Sutton, Mandela Peter Ryano, and Abel D. Shikoni
- Subjects
Swahili ,Archeology ,geography ,geography.geographical_feature_category ,Cultural history ,History ,Excavation ,Archaeology ,language.human_language ,Cultural heritage ,Archipelago ,language ,Pottery ,Settlement (litigation) ,Chronology - Abstract
This paper presents the results of recent archaeological work conducted at the ruined site of Kisimani Mafia, Mafia archipelago, Tanzania. The site is one of the two stone town sites on the archipelago, the other being Kua. Despite being fairly well reported in scholarly accounts, few archaeological investigations have been carried out, with Neville Chittick’s excavation at the site in the late 1950s being the only one. As the then prevailing scholarly interpretation of all ruined sites on the East African coast, the founding of Kisimani Mafia and Kua was attributed to the Persians and Arabs, respectively. It was suggested that Kisimani Mafia dated to the early second millennium CE, and was then regarded as the earliest settlement on the archipelago. This endeavour sought to review the cultural history of the stone town settlement in relation to the remote settlement history of the archipelago and the coast generally, currently known to date to the early first millennium CE, or even before that. This study involved an archaeological survey and excavations carried out on an open-air site in 2018. An array of cultural materials was recovered, including pottery, beads, glass, coins, slag and metal objects, as well as bone and shell remains. This paper, however, is based on the results of pottery and chronometric analyses, the results of which firmly established that the stone town site was occupied from a much earlier period than was thought. The cultural history spans the Triangular Incised Ware/Tana Tradition period through the Plain Ware period, to the end of the Swahili Ware period. The first two periods, which evolved from the Early Iron Working culture of the archipelago, were when the Swahili stone town settlement was founded.
- Published
- 2020
35. Examining Health Care Access for Refugee Children and Families in the North Carolina Triangle Area
- Author
-
Pranav Ganapathy, Kelly Hunter, Melissa McGovern, Emily Esmaili, Ailing Zhou, Jake Wong, Danielle Mayorga-Young, Tyler Lian, Deborah S. Reisinger, Brandon A. Knettel, Nathan M. Thielman, Maram Elnagheeb, and Kathryn Whetten
- Subjects
Male ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Refugee ,Health literacy ,computer.software_genre ,Health Services Accessibility ,Nursing ,Political science ,Health care ,North Carolina ,Humans ,Family ,Child ,media_common ,Swahili ,Refugees ,business.industry ,fungi ,General Medicine ,Focus Groups ,Focus group ,Acculturation ,Democracy ,language.human_language ,language ,Female ,business ,computer ,Interpreter - Abstract
BACKGROUND Resettled refugees are at increased risk of poor health outcomes due to acculturation challenges, logistical barriers, experiences of trauma, and other barriers to care that are poorly understood. Refugee children may be particularly vulnerable due to disruptions in health, well-being, education, and nutrition during the resettlement process.METHOD To describe the health care barriers facing refugees in the North Carolina Triangle area (comprised of Durham, Chapel Hill, Raleigh, and their surrounding areas), we conducted three focus group interviews (in Arabic, French, and Swahili) with 25 refugee parents from Syria, Iraq, Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Chad. We also administered a survey to nine organizations that provide services for refugees.RESULTS Focus group responses highlighted the multidimensional nature of health care barriers for refugee families and children, encompassing challenges with acculturation, communication, transportation, finances, and health literacy. Organizations emphasized similar challenges and described their efforts to improve access to services through increased communication, coordination, and seeking new financial support for programs.LIMITATIONS Given the geographic focus of the study, results may not be generalizable to other populations and settings. Men spoke more than women in some focus groups, and participants may have been influenced by more vocal contributors. Furthermore, this study is limited by a lack of health outcomes data.CONCLUSIONS This study suggests that the health care needs of refugees living in the North Carolina Triangle area can be better met by providing comprehensive, coordinated, and culturally relevant care. This could include minimizing the number of visits by integrating multiple services under one roof, providing trauma-informed interpreters, and offering accessible transportation services.
- Published
- 2020
36. PERSIAN LEXICAL LOANWORDS IN SWAHILI
- Subjects
Swahili ,language ,General Earth and Planetary Sciences ,language.human_language ,Linguistics ,General Environmental Science ,Persian - Abstract
Статья посвящена исследованию персидских лексических заимствований в языке суахили. Язык суахили является официальным языком ряда государств в Восточной Африке, таких как Танзания, Кения, Уганда, Коморские острова и др., эти страны можно считать родиной суахили. Актуальность исследования определяется интересом к распространению персидской заимствованной лексики в Восточной Африке параллельно с интересом к вопросу истории появления мусульманской культуры в Восточной Африке. Несмотря на то что арабские заимствования проникали в языки банту одновременно с персидскими словами, в этой статье рассмотрены исключительно персидские слова с целью подробнее исследовать тематические и структурные группы персидских заимствований, фонетические, морфологические и лексико-семантические изменения в них. Методологической и теоретической базой для исследования стали труды отечественных и зарубежных языковедов и африканистов, изучавших историю языка суахили, его строение, лексический состав, а также этническую структуру общества в Восточной Африке. Материалом для исследования послужили заимствованные из персидского языка слова, зафиксированные в «Суахили-русском словаре» под редакцией Н. В. Громовой. В лексическом составе языка суахили содержится значительное количество иностранных заимствований, что отражает разные периоды истории колонизации и освоения Восточной Африки. Персидских слов в суахили содержится порядка тридцати. Они представлены главным образом конкретными именами, обозначающими различные бытовые понятия, имеется и несколько абстрактных слов, связанных с религией и общественным укладом жизни. В морфологическом, фонологическом и лексико-семантическом плане обнаружены признаки глубокого усвоения иранизмов со стороны языка-реципиента - банту. The article is devoted to the study of Persian lexical borrowings in Swahili. Swahili is the official language of a number of states in East Africa; these are Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, the Comoros and others. These countries can be considered the homeland of Swahili. The relevance of the study is determined by interest in the distribution of Persian borrowed vocabulary in East Africa, along with interest in the issue of the history of the emergence of Muslim culture in East Africa. Despite the fact that Arabic borrowings penetrated the Bantu languages simultaneously with Persian words, this article exclusively discusses Persian words in order to study in more detail the thematic and structural groups of Persian borrowings, phonetic, morphological and lexical-semantic changes in them. The methodological and theoretical framework for this study was determined by works of the domestic and foreign linguists and africanists who studied the history of Swahili, its structural and lexical composition. The material for the study was taken from “Swahili-Russian Dictionary” (ed. N. V. Gromova). The lexical composition of Swahili contains a significant amount of foreign lexical borrowings, which reflects different periods of the history of colonization of East Africa. There are about thirty Persian words in Swahili. They are represented mainly by specific words denoting various everyday concepts, and there are several abstract words related to religion and the social way of life. On the morphological, phonological, and lexical-semantic plane, signs of a deep assimilation of Iranisms by the recipient language, Bantu, were found
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- 2020
37. Provider perspectives on the role of the patient as an active participant in HIV care
- Author
-
Jennifer Knight, Regina Kamene, Catherine Kafu, Paula Braitstein, Ira B. Wilson, Becky L. Genberg, Juddy Wachira, and Beatrice Koech
- Subjects
Referral ,Attitude of Health Personnel ,Health Personnel ,Psychological intervention ,Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) ,HIV Infections ,medicine.disease_cause ,Article ,World health ,Paternalism ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Nursing ,Health care ,medicine ,Humans ,030212 general & internal medicine ,Qualitative Research ,Swahili ,030505 public health ,business.industry ,Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health ,language.human_language ,language ,Patient Participation ,0305 other medical science ,business ,Psychology ,Qualitative research - Abstract
PURPOSE: The World Health Organization (WHO) advocates for patients to play an active role in their healthcare in order to improve the quality of care delivery. However, there is limited research on provider perceptions of the role of the patient during a medical encounter in an HIV setting in Sub-Saharan Africa. METHODS: This qualitative study was conducted between September 2014 and August 2015. Sixty healthcare providers were recruited using convenience sampling methods from three sites (Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, Webuye, and Busia) within the Academic Model Providing Access to Healthcare (AMPATH) HIV care and treatment program. In-depth interviews were conducted in either Swahili or English, transcribed, and translated if necessary into English. Data was analyzed thematically. RESULTS: Provider expectations were mainly influenced by their professional role. Despite this variance, providers expect patients to communicate openly during their clinical encounters. Overall, there was a shift in provider expectations of the patient from a traditional paternalistic role to a more active role. CONCLUSION: This study provides valuable insight into provider expectations of patients during medical encounters in HIV settings. Findings from this study may contribute to developing appropriate interventions for providers as well as to design patient empowerment initiatives.
- Published
- 2020
38. Means of realization of language game the Swahili language paroemias
- Author
-
Viсtoriya Sergeevna Shatokhina
- Subjects
Swahili ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Computer science ,Realization (linguistics) ,language ,030211 gastroenterology & hepatology ,Language-game ,030204 cardiovascular system & hematology ,Linguistics ,language.human_language - Abstract
The object of this article is the language game in its various manifestations. The subject of this research is the proverbs and sayings of the Swahili language, in which the author attempts to trace the linguistic phenomenon. Special attention is given to various means of language game at different language levels. The goal is to determine whether it is possible to interpret the term “language game” in a broad sense, as well as the extent of application of such linguistic tool in proverbs and sayings of the Swahili language. The article explores different perspectives upon the concept of language game. Analysis is conducted on the Swahili paroemias that demonstrate different ways of language game. The survey results carried out among the native speakers of Swahili are presented. This article is the first to analyze the ways of realization of language game in proverbs and sayings of the Swahili language on the various linguistic levels. The author demonstrates the examples from the corpus of Swahili paroemias, which were translated into the Russian language for the first time. The conclusion is made that language game takes place not only in the written texts, but also in folklore, which indicates that alongside a writer or a linguist, the author of the language game can also be a native speaker. It is underlined hat versatility is also characteristic to the Swahili language paroemias.
- Published
- 2020
39. No such thing as invisible people: toward an archaeology of slavery at the fifteenth-century Swahili site of Songo Mnara
- Author
-
Stephanie Wynne-Jones, Henriette Rødland, Marilee Wood, and Jeffrey Fleisher
- Subjects
Swahili ,010506 paleontology ,Archeology ,Fifteenth ,History ,060102 archaeology ,Archaeological record ,06 humanities and the arts ,Ancient history ,01 natural sciences ,language.human_language ,language ,0601 history and archaeology ,0105 earth and related environmental sciences - Abstract
This paper seeks to challenge the notion of the invisible slave in the archaeological record and investigates the way in which material culture may reflect the movements and practices of enslaved l...
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- 2020
40. War-talk: an urban youth language of siege in Nairobi
- Author
-
Wangui Kimari
- Subjects
Cultural Studies ,Swahili ,Siege ,History ,Sociology and Political Science ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Vernacular ,language.human_language ,Anthropology ,Slang ,Human settlement ,Political Science and International Relations ,language ,Ethnology ,media_common - Abstract
In this article, I detail how youth in poor urban settlements in Nairobi use a vernacular that I term war-talk. This is a speech, anchored in the Swahili derived urban slang language Sheng, which i...
- Published
- 2020
41. Not So Well Campaign Speech in Swahili
- Author
-
Ahmad Kipacha
- Subjects
Cultural Studies ,Swahili ,History ,Literature and Literary Theory ,Sociology and Political Science ,language ,language.human_language ,Linguistics - Abstract
The political campaign speeches can be used not only as platform to promote election manifestos of the candidates but also as communication channels imbued with creative manipulation of words, phrases, sayings and proverbial expressions to lure voters. Of interest in this study, is how some erudite public figures in Tanzania tend to interspace their political campaign speeches with proverbial elements. As campaign speeches aim to weaken political rivals, the use of subverted form of standard adage became inevitable on the process of waging verbal war to disarm opponents’ argumentative style, didactic wisdom and explanatory prowess. This paper goes beyond the exploration of standard proverbial expressions in political campaign speeches, to specifically target the deliberate modification, parody, subversion on existing proverbs and proverbial expressions in Swahili by the two major political parties of CCM and UKAWA as contested in the 2015 Tanzania general election campaigns.
- Published
- 2020
42. Building a Better Blogger
- Author
-
Craig Causer
- Subjects
Swahili ,Leadership development ,Work (electrical) ,Trainer ,Strategy and Management ,language ,Continuing education ,Electrical and Electronic Engineering ,language.human_language ,Education ,Management ,Career development - Abstract
Jacquelyn Adams began her training career teaching high school math in Swahili in a rural Tanzanian village for two years as a Peace Corps volunteer. Upon returning to the United States, she combined her love of teaching with her B.S. degree in computer engineering to become a corporate engineering trainer. After spending a decade as a top-rated instructor, she founded a consulting company, Ristole. Adams is an IEEE Senior Member and serves as the vice chair of both the IEEE's Continuing Education Committee and Public Visibility Committee. She has received local and national recognition for her professional achievements. including Top 40 Under 40, Entrepreneurial Achievement, Outstanding Young Alumni, and Outstanding Woman in Business awards. Her blog, Lessons on Leadership (https://insight.ieeeusa.org/jacquelyn-adams/), shares leadership development tips and has become the most read column on IEEE-USA InSight. Adams also hosts the IEEE.tv channel Jacquelyn Worx, which focuses on the future of work and career development.
- Published
- 2020
43. Mozambique Island, Cabaceira Pequena and the Wider Swahili World: An Archaeological Perspective
- Author
-
Diogo V. Oliveira
- Subjects
Cultural Studies ,Swahili ,Geography ,Fifteenth ,Literature and Literary Theory ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Perspective (graphical) ,language ,Ethnology ,Portuguese ,language.human_language ,Diversity (politics) ,media_common - Abstract
When the Portuguese reached Mozambique Island at the end of the fifteenth century, they encountered a populated coast of diverse communities integrated within a wider Swahili world. Swahili society...
- Published
- 2020
44. 'Looking for Life': Traces of Slavery in the Structures and Social Lives of Southern Swahili Towns
- Author
-
Felicitas Becker and McDougall, Anne
- Subjects
Archeology ,History ,inequality ,Inequality ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Social Sciences ,Islam ,Sufism ,Urban geography ,urban geography ,East africa ,Villagization ,media_common ,Swahili ,History and Archaeology ,villagization ,Livelihood ,East Africa ,slavery ,language.human_language ,post-slavery ,Anthropology ,language ,Ethnology - Abstract
This article traces the history of slavery and of post-slavery struggles for livelihood and status in the layout, the physical structures, and the social lives of three towns on the southern Swahili Coast: Kilwa, Mikindani, and Lindi. These towns were long surrounded by plantations that relied on the labor of enslaved people. In the first decades of the twentieth century, slave populations dissipated quickly. In towns, the colonial cash crop economy, voluntary rural-urban migration, and the decline of slave-owning elites combined to allow former slaves to assimilate and adopt new urbanite identities. Sufi orders played a central role in affording ex-slaves a respectable presence in town. Nevertheless, former slave owners and former slaves lived in different parts of these towns, former slaves’ livelihoods were more precarious, and the imputation of slave origins remains offensive, even today. Indeed, the era of slavery still divides people and still engages the social imagination.
- Published
- 2020
45. African Languages for Participatory Democracy and Sustainable Socioeconomic Development : The Case of Swahili in Tanzania
- Author
-
Chul-Joon Yang
- Subjects
Swahili ,Economic growth ,Politics ,Political science ,Languages of Africa ,Agency (sociology) ,language ,Citizen journalism ,Socioeconomic development ,Everyday life ,language.human_language ,Language policy - Abstract
That language plays a pivotal and integral role in making political processes participatory and inclusive, and socioeconomic development sustainable has been commonsensically presumed to be a well-established fact. Language is not simply a means of mutual communication, but also a potent tool for social inclusion and exclusion, resulting in having both a positive and negative social impact. In this sense the use of African languages in all social domains for making sure of the concretization of inclusive political participation and representation as well as sustainable socioeconomic development. Despite being considered to be an exemplary country that has pursued an active endoglosic language policy, Tanzania has an uphill task in facilitating participatory democracy and sustainable socioeconomic development by virtue of the ease of language understanding with which people can make them understood in everyday life. What is imperatively needed in making participatory democracy and sustainable socioeconomic development possible and feasible is a strong political will and its implementation. In tandem with a strong political will and its implementation in the conduct of national affairs, a ceaseless and concerted effort needs to be made with a view to capacitating Swahili to make a meaningful contribution to participatory democracy and sustainable socioeconomic development. Furthermore, corpus planning that refers to an institutional effort for creating standards for Swahili has to be done.
- Published
- 2020
46. Supporting the speaking development of students in a Swahili-as-a-foreign-language (SFL) classroom
- Author
-
William Bimpong
- Subjects
Swahili ,Grammar ,Work (electrical) ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Foreign language ,Mathematics education ,language ,Context (language use) ,Sociology ,language.human_language ,media_common - Abstract
Till date, the development of students’ language skills in a Swahili-as-a-foreign-language (SFL) context has not been thoroughly investigated. Rather, a majority of work has focused on grammar. This paper examines the activities that are used in an elementary SFL classroom at an American University to support the speaking development of students. Observation and in-depth interviews reveal that there are four main speaking activities used to support students’ speaking development. The findings highlight the importance of purposefully selecting speaking activities to support the speaking development of students in a SFL classroom.
- Published
- 2020
47. Makosa Ya Kisarufi Katika Makala Andishi Za Habari: Uchunguzi Kifani Wa BBC Swahili Na DW Kiswahili
- Author
-
Alcheraus R Mushumbwa
- Subjects
Swahili ,History ,Anthropology ,language ,African studies ,language.human_language - Abstract
Ikisiri Tafiti juu ya matumizi ya lugha katika vyombo vya habari zimethibitisha kuwapo kwa makosa kadhaa ya lugha katika utoaji wa habari. Makala haya, yanamakinikia makosa ya kisarufi katika matini andishi za habari za BBC Swahili na DW Kiswahili. Sampuli ya makala kumi kutoka kila tovuti ya chombo husika zilichanganuliwa kulingana na nadharia ya Corder (1967). Makosa ya udondoshaji, uchopekaji, upatanisho wa kisarufi, umoja na wingi, mpangilio wa vipashio na mantiki yalithibitika. Sababu za kufanyika kwa makosa hayo ni pamoja na: kutomudu sarufi ya Kiswahili, kukosa umakini katika uandishi na uhariri, athari za lugha mama, lugha za kigeni, lugha ya mazungumzo, na uteuzi mbaya wa msamiati. Vilevile, ilibainika kuwa makosa hayo yana athari hasi kwa wazungumzaji wa lugha pamoja na lugha yenyewe. Hata hiyo, tafiti zaidi zinapaswa kufanywa juu ya mazingira yachocheayo uvumilivu wa makosa ya lugha katika utangazaji wa habari kwa Kiswahili.
- Published
- 2020
48. Chinese Archaeology Goes Abroad
- Author
-
Yuqi Li and Michael Storozum
- Subjects
Cultural heritage ,Swahili ,Archeology ,Internationalization ,Context (archaeology) ,Soft power ,Foreign policy ,Political science ,language ,Cultural heritage management ,China ,Archaeology ,language.human_language - Abstract
From the mountains of Central Asia to the jungles of Mesoamerica, Chinese archaeologists are now conducting fieldwork around the world. China’s increasing involvement in world archaeology is a positive development for both heritage management and archaeological research. However, this new trend of joint Sino-foreign archaeological fieldwork is also situated within a larger political context. In this article, we examine how Chinese archaeological missions abroad help China achieve its geostrategic objectives. We present two case studies, one along the Swahili Coast in Kenya and another along the ancient Silk Road in Uzbekistan, to support our argument that Chinese involvement in archaeological projects in foreign countries often neatly dovetails with China’s foreign policy initiatives, which aim to build stronger economic and cultural ties with countries that host expanding Chinese markets. In sum, Chinese archaeology’s rapid internationalization is oriented towards growing China’s soft power and will likely play an even larger role in shaping global archaeological practice in the future.
- Published
- 2020
49. Musical Figuring of Dar es Salaam Urban Marginality in Mbogo’s Swahili Novel Watoto wa Maman’tilie
- Author
-
Imani Sanga
- Subjects
Swahili ,History ,Literature and Literary Theory ,Dar es salaam ,Vendor ,Anthropology ,Drop out ,language ,Musical ,language.human_language - Abstract
Watoto wa Maman’tilie (lit. Children of a Woman Street Food Vendor), a Swahili novel by a Tanzanian writer Emmanuel Mbogo, narrates the horrendous experiences of children who are forced to drop out...
- Published
- 2020
50. Language Comparison Between Swahili and Malay Languages with Semantic and Pragmatic Problems
- Author
-
Shintia Dwi Putri
- Subjects
Swahili ,History ,swahili ,Language and Literature ,Microbiology ,language.human_language ,Linguistics ,language ,malay ,language comparison ,semantics ,pragmatics ,Malay - Abstract
The purpose of this study is to explore the similarities and differences of Malay and Kiswahili, which is better known as Swahili. This study intends to investigate the patterns of response from Malays and Kiswahili. In discussing the idea of linguistic meaning by comparing the Swahili language with Malay, this study focuses on different meanings, assuming that there will be differences regarding the discussion of meaning types that can enhance understanding and appreciation of linguistic meaning. The discussion takes a general conceptual orientation of approach that considers language to be an analysis where the analytical unit is speech acts. From a broader perspective, this article distinguishes the conceptual and associative meaning of the use of Malay and Swahili languages then begins dealing with the individual types. There are five types of meanings discussed, namely conceptual, connotative, social, affective and collocative. The results show that there are many differences between Malay and Swahili languages. The connotation is meaning that is still difficult to understand, and it is what requires the continuation of learning semantics and pragmatics because every language has a different meaning following the culture.
- Published
- 2020
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