Zulu Lesson Sprinkling Lies

Sprinkling lies on the internet sets marriages, reputation and careers ablaze. 

Some never recover from the damage.

Sprinkle is fafaza in Zulu. How do I say it? Fa-fa-za. You say the first 2 parts like father and the third one like Zara.

The internet is an expert in sprinkling lies. What is inhumane, is saying a celebrity’s child is dead, just to get page views. Some vindictive women swear: I’ll destroy him on the internet.’ They sprinkle lies about men who did not marry them, especially famous sportsmen and actors, with the intention of ruining their careers.

Fa-fa-za. When you are baking, you knead the dough, sprinkle some flour and knead again. Homes in rich neighborhoods have sprinklers to softly wet the lawn. 

Fa-fa-za, also means sprinkle lies that will graduate to ‘fact’ over time. For example, Trump’s lie that his election was stolen. Unfortunately, it led to southern states like Georgia making laws to suppress the right to vote.

My grandmother used to wake up every morning and sprinkle water around her house, to ward off evil spirits that prowled around at night. She also sprinkled water so that we could sweep the yard with less dust. Mama used to sprinkle some water on clothes before she ironed them. New irons do that now.

ZULU	ENGLISH
Fafaza e-gcekeni.	Sprinkle water around the yard.
Umama u-fafaza izingubo khona e-zo-ayina.	Mother is sprinkling clothes before she irons them.
Musa u-ku-fafaza izindaba.	Stop sprinkling stories.
U-Thandi u-fafaza amanga.	Thandi is sprinkling lies.
U-Donald Trump u-fafaza amanga ngo-khetho luka-2020.	U-Donald Trump is sprinkling lies about the 2020 election.
Ba-fafaza amanga nge-Covid-19.	They are sprinkling lies about Covid-19.
Ba-fa-fa-za u-lettuce ne-spinach estolo.	Supermarkets sprinkle lettuce and spinach to keep it fresh.

By: Nonqaba waka Msimang.