Lesson 007 - Shona Pronouns

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Today we’re going to be learning Shona Pronouns.

These beautiful children are my Mbuya's (grandmother's) neighbors in Honde Valley, Mutare. Honde Valley is one of the most georgeous places in Zimbabwe, and the people are incredibly friendly!

As always, lets begin by going over the words and phrases sent via twitter since our last lesson. Visit www.twitter.com/kudzaidotnet. Once you’re there, begin following the Shona lessons podcast. And, you can select to receive the shona words and phrases as text messages, directly on your mobile phone.

Twitter Review

Mapurisa - Police. Daidza mapurisa! Call the police. Mapurisa ano chengeta nyika. The police protect the land.

Manheru - Evening. Manheru ano, tiri kudya sadza. This evening, we’re eating sadza.

Nguva - Time. Dzaa Nguvayi? What time is it? Nguva dzasvika. The time has come. Ndino shanda nguva dzose. I work all the time.

Ayihwa - (ah yee whaa) - No. Ayihwa handidi kuenda nemi - No I don’t want to go with you.

Gogodza - (go-go-dzah) Knock. “Gogogoyi” (go-go-go-yee). Knock knock. Said out loud when knocking at someone’s door.

Imbwa (eem-b’gwa). Dog. Mwana anotya imbwa. The kid is afraid of the dog. Imbwa iri kuhukura. The dog is barking.

Tya (ch-kah) - Fear/Afraid. Kutya - To be afraid. Mwana uyu ari kutya. This kid is afraid. Uri kutya chii? What are you afraid of?

Mukadzi. Woman. Mukadzi uyo ndi mai wangu. That woman is my mother.

Musoro. Head. Musoro wake wakanaka. Her/His head is nice. Musoro wangu uri kupisa. My head is hot.

Dzidza. Learn. Ndiri kudzidza kutaura shona. I am learning to speak shona. Ndakadzidza kuchikoro. I learned (studied) at school.

Mubvunzo. Question. Ndine mubvunzo. I have a question.

Zuva. Day. Zuva also means “Sun.” Nhasi iZuva rakanaka. Today is a good day. Zuva riri kupisa. The sun is hot.

Rara. Sleep.

Batsira. Help. Batsira Baba kutakura huni. Help Dad carry the firewood. Ndibatsire. Help me. Ndamu batsira. I helped him/her.

Chenjera. Be careful.

Today’s Lesson: Shona Pronouns

Now, lets begin today’s lesson on Shona pronouns. First, lets go over the English versions of the pronouns we’ll be learning and then we’ll translate them into Shona. And, the topic we are going to use is “Going to work,” “Kuenda kubasa” There are 6 pronouns in Shona, and their English versions are:

I, We, You, You all, He/She, and They

Now lets review these 6 pronouns in Shona, and join them with the phrase “Kuenda kubasa.”

Ini – I

Ini ndiri kuenda kubasa – I am going to work

Isu - We

Isu tiri kuenda kubasa - We are going to work

Iwe - You

Iwe Uri kuenda kubasa - You are going to work

Imi – means “You all.” Imi is used when saying “You” to more than one person. It is the plural form of You. Also, remember that Shona addresses adults as if they are more than one person. So Imi, is also how you would say “You” to an adult. Let’s practice.

Imi muri kuenda kubasa - You all are going to work. (or) You are going to work (when speaking to an adult).

Iye - He/She

Iye ari kuenda kubasa - She is going to work. (or) He is going to work.

Ivo - They

Ivo wari kuenda kubasa - They are going to work

Ini – means I.

Isu – means We

Iwe – means You

Imi – means You all

Iye – means he/she

Ivo – means they

The following is a story entitled – Ini, I Hurt My Knee.

Yesterday I was playing soccer with some friends. Ini, I hurt my knee and fell down to the ground. My friend Rumbi said, “Don’t cry. Isu, we have a nurse named Sue.” So I asked, “How can the nurse help me?” Rumbi answered, don’t worry… Iwe, you’ll see the way. So I said “Lets go, and Imi, you all can come with me.” Rumbi replied, “Yes, let’s all go together. She’ll be happy to see us. Iye, she will say yay. But the doctors will be surprised to see your knee. Ivo, they will say woa.”

After this experience, I decided to write a song about it. In this song, each sentence begins with the shona pronoun, followed by the English meaning. Also, notice that the last word in each sentence is an English word that sounds similar to the pronoun in the sentence. Here’s the song:

Ini, I – hurt my knee

Isu, We have a nurse named sue

Iwe, You’ll see the way

Imi, You all can come with me

Iye, She will say yay

Iwo, They will say woa

In our next lesson, you’re going to learn how to use these pronouns in your sentences. After the next lesson, you’ll be able to put together thousands of sentences by combining these pronouns with phrases such as “having fun” “kunakidzwa.” Hey, lets do that right now with our ending review using that phrase. Kunakidzwa. Having fun.

Ini ndiri kunakidzwa - I am having fun

Isu tiri kunakidzwa - We are having fun

Iwe Uri kunakidzwa - You are having fun

Imi muri kunakidzwa - You all are having fun

Iye ari kunakidzwa - He/She is having fun

Ivo vari kunakidzwa - They are having fun.

That’s it for today, I hope you had as much fun as I did with this lesson. I can’t wait for the next lesson, where we’ll learn even more. Join me next, and until then, Toonana.