Preface to the KyaNgonde Language.
KyaNgonde is spoken by 270,000 people in Karonga district, at the northern end of Malawi, a country of 12 million in southeast Africa. There is evidence that the language is experiencing extinction: it is not taught in schools, printed in newspapers, or broadcast on the nation’s radio station. As a result, many young Ngonde and their few college-educated adults are now experiencing problems reading and writing it well. Some also find it difficult to speak the language fluently without interposing the vocabulary with foreign words, such as English or Chewa, the dominant national language. Ironically, only the illiterate or less-educated Ngonde living in the rural villages speak the language flawlessly.
KyaNgonde is closely related to KiNyakyusa, which is spoken by 600,000 Nyakyusa people in southwest Tanzania. The two ethnic groups are separated by the Songwe river, which is the international boundary between Malawi and Tanzania.
Below is a translation of Terralingua’s Statement of Purpose into KyaNgonde language by a Ngonde journalist, who also publishes scholarly Occasional Papers about the Nyakyusa-Ngonde people.
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Telalingwa lo ulubungano ulupya lwa mfisu fyosa, ulu lupakubomba isi:
1. Ukusungilila injobelo syosa sya mfisu fya pasi ukuti siyobigwege, kangi
2. Ukuketesya namuno inyiho sya bandu sikwaganila nu bumi bwa fipeligwa.
Ukalata mpimba uyu yo ikulingania isi Telalingwa apakubomba:
ULULINGANIO LWA MBOMBO.
Telalingwa: ubutuli bwa kukindilisya Injobelo syosa palikimo nu bumi bwa fipeligwa.
A. Telalingwa asyagenie ukuti:
1. Bati ukukindana kwa njobelo syosa kukupa amaka ku bukindani bwa nyiho;
2. Bati ukukindana kwa nyiho nu bwa fipeligwa, kuti fifwene itolo umma, loli filipalikimo fiyo;
3. Bati, bo kufwana ni fipeligwa, injobelo nyingi sya pa kisu kya pasi lilino sikuboneka ukuti sipakuyonga kilingani, kangi ubuyongelo bububu bwisakutwala ubutolwe bukulumba fiyo.
B. Telalingwa akufumusya akuti:
4. Bati injobelo yosa, po bule yipagulanie munjobelo isingi, yibagile ukugindikiwa nukuti yisungiligwe akanunu kangi yikindililege, ukusita ukupasya na kayilo kake nkisu, ubwingi bwa bandu aba bikuyoba injobelo yiyiyo, pamo nu bufumuke bwake bwa njobelo yiyiyo;
5. Bati ukwinogona ukuti injobelo ‘nki iyi bandu bayobege, na muno yi pakubatulila, bene banjobelo yabo, pamo aba abanyenya babo bakayobaga injobelo yiyiyo, bo bapeligwe na maka aga kusala injobelo iyi bi kulonda ukuti bayobege; kangi
6. Bati ukufikapo ukutumula aminogono gagago, ga bombigwege nu buhobofu nkabalilo ka lutenganio, kangi ulugindikano luyepo napapo inyiho sikindene — lwene ulugindiko lululu lo lusakutula abandu ba mfisu fyosa fya pasi ukuti ba pilikanege kanunu, nukuti twesa tumanye ukuti tuli bandu bamobene.
C. Po lelo, Telalingwa ali pakubomba imbombo isi:
7. Aya pakutula ukusungilila nu kukindilisya injobelo syosa sya mfisu fya pasi, na papo injobelo simo sipagulenie (palikimo ni njobelo sya bandu aba amapuli, kangi nisingi itolo), nukuti ubutuli bwa mbombo iyi busakufumila ku fipanga fya fimanyilo fya m’masukulu nifya nkaya.
8. Aya pakumanyila akayilo ka njobelo syosa, palikimo na mahala aga gali nkati munjobelo sisisi, ukufuma ku bene aba njobelo, nu kufimbilisya ukuti ubutuli buyepo pakati pa fipanga fyosa ifi fikulonda ukutula ukusungilila inyiho palikimo nu bumi bwa fipeligwa, kangi nukutula abandu bosa aba bikulonda ukuti bakindililege ukuyoba injobelo syabo.
9. Aya pakulongosya na muno inyiho sya bandu sikwaganila nu kupeligwa kwa findu, nu kwanda ukubikapo injila sya kutulana ifipanga fya kulekana-lekana, palikimo nabandu aba biganile ukusungilila inyiho (bo ngati abamanyili ba njobelo, abamanya kalata, abamanyili ba nyiho sya bandu, na bangi itolo), na aba biganile ukusungilila ubumi bwa fipeligwa (bo ngati abamanyili ba fipiki, abamanyili ba finyamana, nabangi itolo), kokuti bosa babombe palikimo ukukwesya imbombo yakusungilila nu kukindilisya inyiho nu bumi bwa findu.
10. Aya pakubomba ni fipanga fyosa fya pa maso melu ni fya kubutitu, ukufuma ku fipanga finandi fya nkaya ukwakufika kufipanga fya mfisu fyosa, ko kuti imbombo syosa isi tulingenie apa sibagile ukubombigwa.
Lelo mumanye ukuti abakalata bosa ba Telalingwa bikwanda ukusimbigwa tasi mu KiNgelesi, nukuti ukusanusya amasyo mu njobelo isingi, gi kutendekesigwa na batuli aba bikubomba pa kabalilo kabo bene. Po lelo, napapo tukulonda ukusanusya aba kalata mu njobelo nyingi fiyo, loli tungafinga umma ukuti aba kalata bosa nkyeni bisakusanusyigwa mu KyaNgonde.
Linga kupasikisya nukuyonga kilingani kwa njobelo simo sya pa kisu kya pasi, pamo ifipeligwa fyene, pamo injobelo ni fipeligwa fyosa, tukusuma ukuti wingile mu lukomano lwa Telalingwa. Gukayapo umutengo gwa kwingilila — ututumile itolo ingamu yako, nu buyo bwako kuno kwa mbilila abakalata (“address”), aba lamya (“telephone”), ama fakisi (“fax”), kangi na ma i-melu (“e-mail”). Loli, linga kulonda ukuntula Telalingwa ni ndalama, tukusuma ukuti gwinogone ukutuma indalama sya kukindapo kalongo isya abaAbamelikani (U.S. $10) pa kinja. (Ukupa indalama sisisi, usimbe ingamu ya “Terralingua” pa kyeki (“cheque” pamo pa “International Money Order”). Syosa injila syako syabutuli, twisakwikyela nasyo!
Ndaga fiyo.
Amasyo aga gasanusyigwe nu: Walusako A. Mwalilino.
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