Bantu
/ˈbæn.tuː/noun
A major family of closely related African languages, and by extension the peoples who speak them.
Did you know?The term was coined in the 19th century by linguists from the common noun *-ntu* “person” with the plural prefix *ba-*, so its name literally means “people,” not a single ethnic group.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Bantu
PB
*-ntʊ̀
“person, human being”
Proto-Bantu
PB
*ba-ntʊ̀
“people, human beings”
19th Century
English
Bantu
“a linguistic classification for the related languages and their speakers in much of sub-Saharan Africa”
Modern English
English
Bantu
“a member of one of the Bantu-speaking peoples; also used of the language family itself”