The Bemba language is spoken in Central African countries including Zambia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania and Botswana.
In Zambia, it is spoken by over six million people. Several Zambian dialects have evolved. “Bemba Lite” (Town Bemba) is spoken along the line of rail and is characterized by words borrowed from various local languages and English.
ENGLISH BEMBA BEMBA (Singular) (Plural) Head Mutwe Mitwe Hair Mushishi Mishishi Grey hair Lufwi Mfwi Body hair Ipipi Bupipi Bald patch Pala Mapala Forehead Mpumi Mpumi Crease Lukanshi Nkanshi Eye Linso Menso Eyelash Lukopyo Nkopyo Eyelid Cipa ca linso Fipa fya menso Eyebrow Cikumbi Fikumbi Jaw Isaya Masaya Tears Cilamba Filamba Nose Môna Myona Ear…
Ukusefya pa Ng’wena-Bemba Cultural Identity If you want to find out more about some of the Bemba traditions from the past, The Bemba Heritage Facebook Page is a chronicle of traditional culture and wisdom of the Bemba people of Zambia. The following are some of the topics currently covered: BEMBA INITIATION SONGS: THE FIRST DAY…
14 September, 2022 The Bible has been translated into several languages including Bemba. When you open the English and Bemba versions side by side and listen to Bemba audio track of the verses, you get a free and easy way of improving your grasp of the Bemba language. This is an updated and much simpler…
Welcoming the in-laws can be a daunting experience. Welcoming them in a second language adds to the excitement! As in other situations where a person makes an effort to communicate in the other person’s language, this creates a sense of appreciation of the effort you are putting in. You don’t have to be perfect to…
Useful Bemba phrases – On Your Phone
How are you? Muli shani? (pl.) Uli shani?(sing.) How is your family? Ulupwa luli shani? How is the baby? Umwana ali shani? How are the children? Abana bali shani? How is Bwalya? Ba Bwalya bali shani?(pl.) Bwalya ali shani?(sing.) How is work? Incito ili shani? How is the fruit? Ifisabo fili shani? How is the…
Bemba Phrases to Use in Emergencies.In this lesson you will learn some phrases that will come in handy in emergency situations. It will help you to understand what someone may be trying to communicate to you in an emergency. It can also prepare you to communicate in Bemba when you are faced with an emergency. If…
“Last night I saw something that I have never seen before. A young woman took a smooth stone out of her bag. She touched it and it started glowing in the dark. She pointed at it and the face of her mother appeared on the surface of the stone. She touched the face with her…
Adverbs of Place and Space Space and places are described using different adverbs. In some cases, more than one word is available. Where this is the case, the words are here separated by a coma. Examples show how the words can be used. In front, forward, before = Kuntanshi, Pantanshi She is standing in front of…
In this short video lesson, we will look at the way adjectives are used in Bemba, as compared to English. A noun is a part of a sentence that names a person, place, thing, idea, action or quality. Examples: Itaba = cob of maize Umuntu = person Kapenta = a type of small fish…
