Language in Kenya

The base of the mountain lies at some 5,250 feet (1,600 metres). At the 8,000-foot (2,440-metre) contour, the circumference is approximately 95 miles (153 km). Sheng is another language you may hear in Kenya. Sheng (the word coming from a combination of the words SwaHili and ENGlish) is a language that has grown out of Nairobi that is used almost exclusively by the younger crowd. It is a mix of Kiswahili, English, and the Bantu tribal tongues. Sheng is regarded almost as a secret language of the youth, and when spoken by a tourist, it is sure to impress any young adult in any big city. It is hard to differentiate from Kiswahili without knowing the language, but it can still be fun to substitute a Sheng greeting for a Kiswahili greeting if you run into a young adult. Common Sheng greetings are: “Sasa?” which is answered by “fit” or “fiti,” and “Mambo?” (or “Mambo vipi?” or just “Vipi?”), which is answered by “poa.”
What follows is a list of Kiswahili vocabulary that will allow you to have a working knowledge of the language. This could be useful to get you out of a fix, order food, or just impress a local.
Pronunciation: One of the reasons Kiswahili is not a difficult language is that it is very grammatical and pronunciation never changes from word to word.
A as the ‘a’ in ‘father’ 
E as the ‘e’ in ‘best’ or the ‘a’ in ‘hay’
I as the ‘ee’ in ‘bee’
O as the ‘o’ in ‘cold’
U as the ‘ou” in “you”
Dh as the ‘th’ in ‘this’
Ng’ as the ‘ng’ in ‘sing’
All other consonants require no explanation.
Greetings and Civilties:
Greeting is extremely important in Kenyan culture. Before talking to anyone, it is polite to greet them first. After a greeting, some Kenyans may even carry on with small talk for ten good minutes before getting to the topic at hand.
Welcome                                             Karibu
How are you (greeting a singular person)? Habari yako? or Habari gani?
How are you (greeting many people)?    Habari zenu? or Habari gani?
I’m fine                                                  Nzuri, Salama, or Njema
What is your name?                              Unaitwa nani?
My name is ____                                   Ninaitwa ______
Where are you from?                             Unatoka wapi?
I’m from _____                                      Ninatoka shiut______
Where do you live?                                Unakaa wapi?
I live in _____                                       Ninakaa ______ 
Thank you very much                             Asante sana
Yes                                                          ndio
No                                                        hapana
Goodbye                                            fkwaheri
hello                                                 jambo, salama, sasa
No problem                                                  Hakuna Matata, ni sawa, usijali
White person (foreigner)                                 Mzungu
White people (foreigners)                              Wazungu

Finding your way around:
I want to go to _____                                        Nataka kwenda mpaka/nataka kwenda  ______
Is this the way to ______?                                Hii ni njia ya wapi _____?
Is this the car to _____?                                  Hii ina enda wapi_____?
How much is it to go to _____?                        Ni pesa ngapi kwenda _____?
bus                                                                  basi
train                                                                 gari la moshi
vehicle                                                             gari
boat                                                                 meli
taxi                                                                  taxi
ticket                                                                 tikiti
Wait a little!                                                  Ngoja kidogo!
Stop here!                                                   Simama hapa!
Where is _____?                                         Wapi _____?
hotel                                                            hoteli ya kulala
bank                                                            bank
restaurant                                                    hoteli ya chakula
post office                                                    posta
toilet                                                              choo
hospital                                                       hospitali
police station                                              stesheni ya polisi

Accommodation:
Where is a hotel?                                            Wapi hoteli ya kulala?
Do you have a room for one person?            Kuna chumba kwa mtu moja?
Do you have a room for two people?            Kuna chumba kwa watu wawili?
Is there hot water?                                       Kuna maji ya moto?
How much is the room?                                 Chumba ni pesa ngapi?
I want to see the room please.                   Nataka kuona chumba tafadhali.
For one day                                                siku moja
For one week                                           wiki mzima /moja
key                                                           ufunguo/ kifunguo


Animals:
bird -                                                      ndege
crocodile -                                              mamba
elephant -                                                ndovu/tembo
giraffe -                                                  twiga
hippopotamus -                                     kiboko
hyena -                                                    fisi
insects/bugs -                                           wadudu
lion -                                                       simba
monkey -                                                 tumbili
mosquito -                                                 mbu
rhinoceros -                                               kifaru
snake -                                                      nyoka
water buffalo -                                             nyati

numbers:
1 moja
2 mbili
3 tatu
4 nne
5 tano
6 sita
7 saba
8 nane
9 tisa
10 kumi
11 kumi na moja
12 kumi na mbili
20 ishirini
30 thelathini
40 arobaini
50 hamsini
60 sitini
70 sabini
80 themanini
90 tisini
100 mia moja
200 mia mbili
1000 elfu moja
4567 elfu nne mia tano sitini na saba

Emergencies:
I’m sick                             mimi mgonjwa/ mi nimgonjwa

I need a doctor                   ninahitaji daktari/ nataka daktari

I’m pregnant                      nina mimba
hospital                             hospitali
pharmacy                          duka la dawa
medicine                         dawa

Security:
Help!                                         Saidia!
I’m lost                                     nimepotea
I’ve been robbed                          nimeibwa
Don’t bother me.                          usinisumbue
Go away                                      kwenda kabisa/ toka hapa

I have no money                        sina pesa
At the restaurant:
Vegetables and Grains:
beans (pinto, kidney)                    maharagwe
cabbage                                               kabichi
carrots                                        karoti
cassava                                           muhogo
kale                                          sukuma wiki
lettuce                                           salad
onions                                              vitunguu
potatoes                                          viazi
rice                                                  mchele

tomatoes                                              nyanya
vegetables (greens)                                mboga
Meat:
beef -                                                  nyama ya ng’ombe
goat -                                            nyama ya mbuzi
kebabs - mushkaki
meat - nyama
mutton - nyama ya kondoo
pork - nyama ya ng’uruwe
crab - kaa
fish - samaki
lobster - kamba
chicken - kuku

Fruit:
bananas - ndizi
coconut - nazi
dates - tende
fruit - matunda
guava - pera
limes - ndimu
mangoes - maembe
oranges - machungwa
papayas - paipai
passion fruit - pashoni/ passion fruit

pineapples - mananasi
sugar cane - miwa

Other useful words and phrases:
boiled - chemsha
bread - mkate
butter - siagi/ blue band

cold - baridi
cup - kikombe
Do you have____? - Kuna/ uko na _____?
eggs - mayai
food - chakula
fork - uma
fried - kaanga
glass - glasi/ glass

hot - moto
hot(spicy) - kali
knife - kisu
napkin - kitambaa
pepper - pilipili
plate - sahani
raw - mbichi
ripe - mbivu
roast - choma
table - meza
salt - chumvi
spoon - kijiko
soup - supu
sweet - tamu
without meat - bila nyama

Source of Sheng Language

Sheng ((S)wahili and (Eng)lish) is a Swahili-based slang language spoken by predominantly the Kenyan urban youth. Sheng sources words from various languages in Kenya and evolves rapidly. It is said to be the 'unifying language of the '43th tribe' (the Kenyan youth) and to transcend ethnicity.

Sheng ni lugha ya mtaa mostly inabongwa na wasee wa mtaa na matao ka Nairobi,Kisumu,Nakuru na zingine mob.Ni lugha imetoa na still inatoa words from languages ka engo,swa na hizi tribe zingine.Imegrow sana.Inasemekana ni language ya 43rd Kenya.

City Life Sheng

There's a friendly joke that has been going around in East Africa claiming that 'Swahili was born in Zanzibar, grew up in Tanzania, fell sick in Kenya, died in Uganda and was buried in Congo'. The interesting thing is that this refers to a 'proper' Swahili language, generally accepted to be the variety spoken on the East African coast in Kenya and Tanzania.

So, does this really mean that people in eastern Congo speak bad Swahili? No, they just have their own vocabulary and grammar which has been in development as a spoken language all the way since Swahili was first brought there towards the end of the slave trade. Congolese Swahili, in all its regional differences, is widely used in a large part of the country, but a 'Congomani' won't always be able to understand everything a Swahili speaker from the East African coast says and vice versa. And in Congo there's a difference between the way the language is written and spoken - the latter variety is much more dynamic and allows for people to express themselves in a fun and creative way, full of references to the 'now'.

Further east, in Kenya and Tanzania there's a general agreement on what is proper Swahili, as taught in school, used in official correspondence and in newspapers. The language that youth use amongst each other is quite a bit different from the 'proper' version. In Tanzania there's a growing culture of using slang, on the streets, in music (bongo flava lyrics), in movies, comic books and in public spaces. Some of the newly invented slang vocabulary even makes it into every day use among the older generation, too - think of 'mambo vipi' ('what's up') which would have been considered rude language in the early nineties, while nowadays even the president may be heard saying it.

Since the times of ujamaa, the National Swahili Council has been inventing new Swahili terms to substitute English loan words - 'luninga' for 'television' is often heard (at the same time, Swahili proper is full of foreign loan words, from 'safari' to 'daktari' and even German 'shule'). In 2007 Tanzanian MP's were instructed not to mix any English into their conversation when presenting in parliament, and earlier this month, a form 4 student got his state exam results nullified for having entered bongo flava lyrics into his exam sheets. But language has always proven to be resistant to any attempts at restricting it, and nowadays there's a large vocabulary of Swahili slang words that are generally not in the dictionary but understood by most youth in Tanzania, Kenya and beyond.

Sample of sheng Language

Sample vocabulary

Sheng	English (definition)
mnati	fluent speaker of Sheng, person who is good at something
babi, barbie	person who doesn't speak Sheng, person from a wealthy background
bonga (bong-gah)	talk
bonga mavi	talk smack
dai	want
dungia (doong-gi-ah), gawia, chapia	give, share (with)
pack	live (somewhere)
deng'a, thwau, bunde, mchuma, mtoo, ridhe, fee	gun, firearm
chapaa, munde, mundez, niado, ganji, dough, cheddar, mkwanja	money
so, kioo, oss, red	one hundred shillings
finje, chuani	fifty shillings
mbao, blue	twenty shillings
ashuu, shoe, kindee, ikongo	ten shillings
ngovo, kobole, guoko	five shillings
rwabe, jill	two hundred shillings
punch, jirongo	five hundred shillings
thao, gee (like the letter G), kapaa, ngiri, ngwanye, ndovu, kei (like the letter K), muti	one thousand shillings
fala, mwere (mweh-reh)	stupid person, idiot
ocha, moshatha	up country, rural home/area
noma, niku hatata, wa gwan	in a mess, trouble
asubuhi, morgen	morning
njeve	cold
ingiza njeve	get scared, be afraid, chicken out
chapo	chapati
ngodha	underpants
msee, kizee, mdhii, mguys, mzeiya, mtungwaz	guy, dude
dame, mresh, supuu, msupa, manzi, shore (sho-reh; from "shawty"), msusu, mroro	girl, chick
buda, mzae	old man
gweng	hard (difficult)
zi, nada, do, nah	no
mathree, mat, jive, jav, buu	matatu
deree, kigonyi	driver
konkodi, makanga, manumber	bus/matatu conductor
fegi, mozo, ngale, fuaka	cigarette
bangi (bang-gee), gode (goh-deh), juala	weed
karao, gova, sanse	police
keja, hao, mbanyu, base, diggs	house, home
matha, mathe, mthama	woman
mboch	housegirl (maid)
mbota	watch
mbwenya	coat
mdosi, sonko	boss, rich person
msoto	poor person
sota	go bankrupt
mdosi, fathe, mbuyu, buda	dad
masa, mathe, mnyaka, mokoro, moda	mum
nare (nah-reh)	fire, matches
ndai, moti, murenga, dinga	car
ngata (ng-gah-tah), gede (geh-deh)	fuel
nguenos, ngwex, mwewe	chicken
njumu, njuti, ndula	shoes
poa, wazi	cool
ubao, maunenge	hunger
veve, mbachu, shamba	miraa
kuber (koo-beh-rr), kubz	(chewing) tobacco
mburungo	cargo
chapa, donje, kiatu	ugly
chipo, vibanzi, chibaz, njiva, vanga	chips
fika, ishia, jikata	to go somewhere
kirindi	crowd
earthwire	neck tie
dush, nyoni	bird
mavi, mafi, shonde	faeces
shower	rain
mode (moh-day)	teacher
mtaa	city, town, streets, neighbourhood
majuu, chambele	Western world
mngoso, mlami	white person, Caucasian person
mtiaji, msororaji	snitch, tattletale
kauzi, thegi, gondi, dingo, obe (ob)	thief, thug, mugger, burglar
masaa, githaa	time
mshikaji	boyfriend/girlfriend
pasuka, raruka	laugh
karokota, doze	take a nap, sleep
nyaku, waka, washa	drink (alcohol)
tei	alcohol
N.B. Words in brackets in the Sheng column show how the word is pronounced.

Examples

Sheng	English (translation)
Huu msee ni fala!	This guy's an idiot!
Si unidungie chuani?	Can you please give me fifty shillings?
Acha kubonga mavi mdhii.	Stop talking smack, man.
Ukivuta fegi utajiletea noma.	If you smoke cigarettes you'll get yourself in trouble.
Ule dame amechapa!	That girl is ugly!
Maisha ni gweng bana.	Life's hard man.
Kuja utugawie hizi njiva.	Come and share your fries with us.
Budake alishikwa na makarao.	His dad was caught by the police.
Aliibiwa mbota na mboch.	His watch was stolen by his housegirl.
Aliona magondi akaingiza njeve.	He got scared when he saw some thugs.	Budake ni mzii	His father is tough

Makoboshto-Condom

Definition of Sheng

Sheng is a Swahili-based patois or slang, originating in Nairobi, Kenya, and influenced by many of the languages spoken there. While primarily a language of urban youths, it has spread across social classes to the halls of the Kenyan parliament and geographically to neighbouring Tanzania and Uganda

Etymology and history

The word "Sheng" is coined from the two languages it is gotten from: Swahili and English. The "h" was added in between because "Seng" sounded unusual.
Originating in the early 1970s in the Eastlands area of Nairobi (variously described as a "slum", "ghetto" or "suburb"), Sheng is now heard among matatu drivers across the region, and in the popular media. Most of the Sheng words are introduced in various communities and schools and given wide exposure by music artists who include them in their lyrics, hence the rapid growth. It can be assumed to be the first language of many Kenyans in urban areas.
Like all slang, Sheng is mainly used by the youth and is part of popular culture in Kenya. It also evolves rapidly, as words are moved into and out of slang use. It is finding broad usage among hip hop artists in the African Great Lakes region, both mainstream and "underground" (whose music helps spread the language and contribute to rapid changes or shifts in Sheng vocabulary), as well as among some university and secondary-school students.
Although the grammar, syntax, and much of the vocabulary are drawn from Swahili, Sheng borrows from English and from the languages of various ethnic groups in Kenya, including Luhya, Gĩkũyũ, Luo and Kamba. Words are also borrowed from languages that are neither a local language nor English — such as the Sheng word dame "lady" — which is a title of honour for a lady in English, or morgen "morning" - a Sheng word used in some areas with a similar meaning in German.
Sheng vocabulary can vary significantly within Kenya's various subdivisions and the larger African Great Lakes region, and even between neighbourhoods in Nairobi. Many youth living in the capital often use the argot as their everyday mode of communication rather than Swahili or English.

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