Northern Ndebele

language belonging to the Nguni group of Bantu languages, one of the official languages of Zimbabwe

Key facts

Region: Limpopo in South Africa; Matabeleland South in Zimbabwe; North-East District in Botswana
Ethnicity: Northern Ndebele
Native speakers: 2.6 million (2023)
Language family: Niger–Congo ? Atlantic–Congo Volta-Congo Benue–Congo Bantoid Southern Bantoid Bantu Southern Bantu Nguni Zunda Northern Ndebele
Writing system: Latin script
Official language in: Zimbabwe
Iso 639 1: nd – North Ndebele
Iso 639 2: nde – North Ndebele
Iso 639 3: nde – North Ndebele
Glottolog: nort2795
Guthrie code: S.44
Linguasphere: 99-AUT-fk incl., varieties 99-AUT-fka, to 99-AUT-fkd

Article

isiNdebele dictionary, 1910 Northern Ndebele ( English: /əndəˈbeɪleɪ/), also called Ndebele, isiNdebele saseNyakatho, Zimbabwean Ndebele, isiNdebele or North Ndebele, associated with the term Matabele, is a Nguni language spoken by the Northern Ndebele people which belongs to the Nguni group of languages.

Ndebele is a term used to refer to a collection of many different African cultures in Zimbabwe. As a language, it is by no means similar to the Ndebele language spoken in kwaNdebele in South Africa although, like many Nguni dialects, some words will be shared. Many of the natives that were colonized by the Matabele were assimilated into Mzilikazi's kingdom and are an of-shoot of the Zulu tribe. The Matebele people of Zimbabwe descend from the Zulu due to a Zulu leader Mzilikazi (one of Zulu King Shaka's generals), who left the Zulu Kingdom in the early 19th century, during the Mfecane, arriving in present-day Zimbabwe in 1839.