Abantu
/aˈɓan.tu/noun
In Southern African languages such as isiZulu and isiXhosa, abantu means “people” or “persons,” the plural of umuntu.
Did you know?Abantu is related to the philosophical term ubuntu, often summarized as “I am because we are,” although abantu itself simply means “people” in Nguni languages.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Bantu
Proto-Bantu
*ba-ntu
“people or persons; the plural noun-class prefix *ba- combined with a root meaning person or human being”
Early Bantu languages
Bantu
ba-ntu
“people; the form reflects a widespread Bantu grammatical pattern for human plurals”
Precolonial period
Nguni
abantu
“people or persons, formed with the plural prefix aba- and the root -ntu”
19th Century
isiZulu/isiXhosa
abantu
“people; persons”
20th Century
English
Bantu
“a linguistic term for the large family of African languages, later also used broadly for peoples speaking those languages”
Modern English
English
abantu
“a loanword used in discussions of Southern African languages, culture, politics, and philosophy”