All in Zulu

Online pic: eating together with your

hands is not 'primitive.' Kids learn to share.

All is -nke- in Zulu, and we put something before it, a prefix.

Bonke: a boy’s name meaning all of them.

Zonke: a girl’s name meaning all the girls.

Sonke: a girl’s name meaning all of us.

You say -nke- like the French word quelle.

Many moons ago, before fork ‘ knife, the iphone and ‘get out of my room,’ people did things collectively. They ate and slept together. Kwa-Zulu, girls slept in one room, boys in theirs but families ate together from one round plate. That’s where kids imbibed the language, culture and spirit of sharing.

 

ZULU	ENGLISH
Nonke.	A girl’s name meaning all of you.
Sidla sonke.	We eat together.
Bonke balele.	They are all asleep.
Bonke bayagula.	They are all sick.
Zonke, uphi umama?	Zonke, where’s ma?
Bonke, uphi ubaba?	Bonke, where’s dad?
Sisonke kule nkinga.	We are all in this problem.
Nonke nenze iphutha.	You all made a mistake.
Iphutha lethu sonke.	It is all our fault.
Izwe lethu lonke.	It is all our land.
Inyama yethu yonke.	It’s all our meat.

This is another ‘written podcast’ by Nonqaba waka Msimang.