Chichewa
/tʃɪˈtʃɛwə/noun
A Bantu language spoken mainly in Malawi, Zambia, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe.
Did you know?The opening element chi- is a Bantu noun-class prefix commonly used for languages, so Chichewa linguistically means “Chewa language,” not merely “Chewa.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Bantu, before 1st millennium CE
Proto-Bantu
*ki-/ *ci-
“A reconstructed noun-class prefix associated with languages, cultural objects, and other nonhuman entities; its exact form varied by branch.”
Early Bantu period
Bantu
*Chewa-related ethnonym
“The ethnonym Chewa developed within the historical Maravi cultural and political sphere; its deeper origin is not securely established.”
18th–19th Century
Nyanja/Chewa
chi-Chewa
“Literally, “the language of the Chewa,” formed from the language prefix chi- plus the ethnonym Chewa.”
19th Century
Missionary English
Chichewa
“An English-influenced written form used as Christian missionaries and administrators developed orthographies for the language.”
20th Century
Modern English
Chichewa
“The established English name for the standardized national language of Malawi, also called Chewa or, in broader usage, Nyanja.”
Explore more surprising origins