Zulu and Xhosa
Countries
South Africa
South Africa
National Language
South Africa
South Africa
Second Language
Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Zimbabwe
Lesotho, South Africa
Speaking Continents
Africa
Africa
Minority Language
Not spoken in any of the countries
Botswana, Lesotho
Regulated By
Pan South African Language Board
Not Available
Interesting Facts
- The meaning of word "Zulu" means "Sky"and Zulu was the name of the ancestor who founded the Zulu royal line in about 1670.
- Zulu language has many loanwords borrowed from Afrikaans and English Languages.
- 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.
Similar To
Xhosa Language
Zulu, Swazi, and Ndebele
Derived From
Not Available
Khoi-Khoi and San Languages
Alphabets in
Zulu-Alphabets.jpg#200
Xhosa-Alphabets.jpg#200
Writing Direction
Not Available
Not Available
Thank You
Ngiyabonga
Ndiyabulela
How Are You?
unjani
Unjani
Good Night
okuhle ebusuku
Ulale kakuhle
Good Evening
okuhle kusihlwa
Ubusuku obuhle
Good Afternoon
okuhle ntambama
Uben' emva kwemini entle
Good Morning
okuhle ekuseni
Molo
Sorry
Ngiyaxolisa
Ndicela uxolo
Bye
bye
Uhambe/Usale kakuhle
I Love You
Ngiyakuthanda wena
Ndiyakuthanda
Where They Speak
Gabon, South Africa
South Africa
Dialect 2
central KwaZulu-Natal Zulu
Thembu
Where They Speak
Georgia, South Africa
South Africa
Where They Speak
Zimbabwe
South Africa
Native Name
isiZulu
isiXhosa
Alternative Names
Isizulu, Zunda
“Cauzuh” (pej.), Isixhosa, Koosa, Xosa
German Name
Zulu-Sprache
Xhosa-Sprache
Pronunciation
Not Available
Not Available
Ethnicity
Zulu people
amaXhosa, amaBhaca
Language Family
Niger-Congo Family
Niger-Congo Family
Subgroup
Benue-Congo
Benue-Congo
Early Forms
urban Zulu
No early forms
Standard Forms
Deep Zulu
isiXhosa
Language Position
Not Available
Signed Forms
Not Available
Signed Xhosa
Scope
Individual
Individual
ISO 639 6
Not Available
Not Available
Glottocode
zulu1248
xhos1239
Linguasphere
99-AUT-fg
99-AUT-fa
Language Type
Living
Living
Language Linguistic Typology
Subject-Verb-Object
Subject-Verb-Object
Language Morphological Typology
Not Available
Not Available
All Zulu and Xhosa 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 Zulu and Xhosa dialects. Various dialects of Zulu and Xhosa language differ in their pronunciations and words. Dialects of Zulu are spoken in different Zulu Speaking Countries whereas Xhosa Dialects are spoken in different Xhosa speaking countries. Also the number of people speaking Zulu vs Xhosa Dialects varies from few thousands to many millions. Some of the Zulu dialects include: Qwabe, central KwaZulu-Natal Zulu. Xhosa dialects include: Gcaleka , Thembu. Also learn about dialects in South American Languages and North American Languages.
Zulu and Xhosa Speaking population
Zulu and Xhosa speaking population is one of the factors based on which Zulu and Xhosa languages can be compared. The total count of Zulu and Xhosa Speaking population in percentage is also given. The percentage of people speaking Zulu language is 0.16 % whereas the percentage of people speaking Xhosa language is 0.11 %. 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 Zulu and Xhosa on Zulu vs Xhosa where you will get native speakers, speaking population in percentage and native names.
Zulu and Xhosa Language Codes
Zulu and Xhosa language codes are used in those applications where using language names are tedious. Zulu and Xhosa Language Codes include all the international language codes, glottocodes and linguasphere.