Xhosa and Shona
Countries
South Africa
Zimbabwe
National Language
South Africa
Botswana, Mozambique, Zimbabwe
Second Language
Lesotho, South Africa
Not spoken in any of the countries
Speaking Continents
Africa
Africa
Minority Language
Botswana, Lesotho
Not spoken in any of the countries
Regulated By
Not Available
Not Available
Interesting Facts
- Xhosa has 15 click sounds, borrowed from the khoi-khoi and san languages of the South Africa.
- The same sequence of consonants and vowels can have different meaning when said with different tones, so Xhosa is tonal.
- Shona language is tonal language.
- The African people in Zimbabwe is made of 10 ethnic groups, each speaking a different languages, shona is spoken by 60 percent of population.
Similar To
Zulu, Swazi, and Ndebele
Kalanga and Nambya Language
Derived From
Khoi-Khoi and San Languages
Not Available
Alphabets in
Xhosa-Alphabets.jpg#200
Shona-Alphabets.jpg#200
Writing Direction
Not Available
Not Available
Time Taken to Learn
Not Available
Thank You
Ndiyabulela
Waita zvako
How Are You?
Unjani
Wakadini zvako?
Good Night
Ulale kakuhle
Urare zvakanaka
Good Evening
Ubusuku obuhle
Manheru
Good Afternoon
Uben' emva kwemini entle
Masikati
Good Morning
Molo
Mangwanani
Please
Ndicela
Ndinokumbirawo
Sorry
Ndicela uxolo
Ndineurombo
Bye
Uhambe/Usale kakuhle
bye
I Love You
Ndiyakuthanda
Ndinokuda
Where They Speak
South Africa
Zimbabwe
Where They Speak
South Africa
southern Zimbabwe
Where They Speak
South Africa
central Zimbabwe, Mashonaland
Second Language Speakers
Not Available
Native Name
isiXhosa
Not Available
Alternative Names
“Cauzuh” (pej.), Isixhosa, Koosa, Xosa
Chishona, “Swina” (pej.), Zezuru
German Name
Xhosa-Sprache
Schona-Sprache
Pronunciation
Not Available
Not Available
Ethnicity
amaXhosa, amaBhaca
Not Available
Origin
16th Century
20th century
Language Family
Niger-Congo Family
Niger-Congo Family
Subgroup
Benue-Congo
Benue-Congo
Early Forms
No early forms
Not Available
Standard Forms
isiXhosa
Not Available
Language Position
Not Available
Signed Forms
Signed Xhosa
Not Available
Scope
Individual
Individual
ISO 639 6
Not Available
Not Available
Glottocode
xhos1239
core1255
Linguasphere
99-AUT-fa
99-AUT-a
Language Type
Living
Living
Language Linguistic Typology
Subject-Verb-Object
Not Available
Language Morphological Typology
Not Available
Not Available
All Xhosa and Shona Dialects
Most languages have dialects where each dialect differ from other dialect with respect to grammar and vocabulary. Here you will get to know all Xhosa and Shona dialects. Various dialects of Xhosa and Shona language differ in their pronunciations and words. Dialects of Xhosa are spoken in different Xhosa Speaking Countries whereas Shona Dialects are spoken in different Shona speaking countries. Also the number of people speaking Xhosa vs Shona Dialects varies from few thousands to many millions. Some of the Xhosa dialects include: Gcaleka, Thembu. Shona dialects include: Hwesa , Karanga. Also learn about dialects in South American Languages and North American Languages.
Xhosa and Shona Speaking population
Xhosa and Shona speaking population is one of the factors based on which Xhosa and Shona languages can be compared. The total count of Xhosa and Shona Speaking population in percentage is also given. The percentage of people speaking Xhosa language is 0.11 % whereas the percentage of people speaking Shona language is 0.13 %. When we compare the speaking population of any two languages we get to know which of two languages is more popular. Find more details about how many people speak Xhosa and Shona on Xhosa vs Shona where you will get native speakers, speaking population in percentage and native names.
Xhosa and Shona Language Codes
Xhosa and Shona language codes are used in those applications where using language names are tedious. Xhosa and Shona Language Codes include all the international language codes, glottocodes and linguasphere.