The kiswahili ( vernacular Language ), is a language bantoue, originating in the south of the Kenya then which was métissée with other African languages and the Arab . She plays nowadays a big role like Common language in all the sub-Saharan Africa. The prefix ki means here “language”, swahili indicates the coast, the kiswahili is thus the language of the coast.
See also: Swahili
The East Africa, and more particularly the Tanzania, swarmed with close close languages. Starting from 1930, the colonial administration, via the Committee on the territorial language , decided to standardize a language starting from the dialect of Zanzibar, one of oldest, the Kiunguja. The languages swahili being languages traditionally used as language second on the continent and language first on the coastal fringe and the islands.
With leaving independence, to exceed ethnic cleavages, Nyerere chose this language, to be the official language of Tanzania. The unification and the standardization continue with the Institute off Swahili Research of the University College of Dar Es Salaam. The swahili, language first minority, but language second rather widespread was going to constitute an important point of the policy of the country. The objective in the long term being to supplant the colonial language, English, who was binding already on the Parliament. This language not supporting any ethnos group, was well accepted by the company. Starting from 1965, the political campaigns, education, meetings of courts in first authority, and many other sectors is melted in kiswahili, it is the " swahilisation" company. Starting from 1970 the Parliament sits in this language. In 1980, secondary education is not done any more but in kiswahili. Gradually the children do not speak any more the language of their parents, the kiswahili is becoming language first, the national language.
Many contemporary authors write in kiswahili, in particular in Tanzania and in Kenya. Like the other languages swahilis, the kiswahili has had a literature written for several centuries (at the origin in Arab characters and is written since the end of the 19th century in Latin characters).
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