Nguni
/ŋˈɡuːni/noun
A group of closely related Bantu languages and the peoples who speak them, including Zulu, Xhosa, Swati, and Ndebele.
Did you know?“Nguni” is mainly a modern comparative and cultural label; it is not securely derived from the English word “gnu,” despite the identical-looking spelling.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Bantu, before 1000 BCE
Proto-Bantu
*ntu
“Person or human being; a widely reconstructed Bantu root preserved in many Bantu languages”
First millennium CE
Bantu
Southern Bantu varieties
“Bantu-speaking communities spread and diversified across southeastern Africa”
18th–19th Century
Southern Bantu
isiNguni
“A language or speech variety associated with Nguni-speaking communities; the internal origin of Nguni is uncertain”
19th Century
English
Nguni
“An English scholarly and colonial term for related southeastern African peoples and languages”
Modern English
English
Nguni
“A collective label for the Nguni language group and its associated cultural communities”