Bemba (iciBemba)

Bemba is a Bantu language spoken in parts of Zambia, particularly the Northern, Luapula, Copperbelt and Northwestern Central provinces, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Tanzania by about 3.6 - 6 million people.

Bemba is a national (official) language in Zambia and is used as a lingua franca in many areas, particularly cities and in Copperbelt Province. It is also used on the radio.

The spelling of Bemba was standardised between 1972 and 1977 by the Zambian Ministry of Education.

Bemba pronunciation

Notes

In proper nouns, c is written ch
S is pronounced [ʃ] when it appears before i
Bemba has two tones: a high tone, which is sometimes marked by an accent over the appropriate vowel; and a low tone, which is not marked.

Links

Information about the Bemba language
http://www.anthropology.emory.edu/FACULTY/ANTDS/Bemba/
http://www.panafril10n.org/wikidoc/pmwiki.php/PanAfrLoc/Bemba
http://www.isp.msu.edu/AfrLang/hiermenu.html
http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=bem

Other Niger-Congo languages

Akan, Bambara, Bamum, Bemba, Chichewa, Duala, Ewe, Ewondo Ga, Ganda, Herero, Igbo, Kirundi, Kpelle, Lingala, Mende, Ndebele, Northern Sotho, OshiWambo, Shona, Southern Sotho, Swahili, Swati, Tsonga, Tswana, Twi, Wolof, Xhosa, Yorùbá, Zulu

Other languages written with the Latin alphabet

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