Learning to Speak

"Habari za (asubuhi, mchana, leo, or Jioni)?"

Many times during any given day you will hear this friendly greeting used among Swahili speakers. Translated from the Swahili, the phrase inquires of "The news of the (morning, afternoon, day or evening)?"

To this, the appropriate response is "Nzuri" or "Nzuri sana." It is always "good" or "very good" as long as you are breathing. Remember this exchange if you ever plan to come to East Africa. It will come in handy as greetings are an important part of the culture.

Habari is one of many ways to politely greet people in Tanzania, rather than the stereotypical greeting, "Jambo"-which, I think, originated with the old Tarzan movies and we have learned is actually incorrect usage-used primarily by tourists. Sue was disappointed to learn this, as she had been singing a song with her students in the States incorrectly using "Jambo." However, we were glad to find out that "Hakuna Matata" is appropriate - no worries!

The people of Tanzania speak Swahili, and since our arrival here in northern Tanzania nearly three weeks ago, it has become abundantly clear that the Tanzanians love their language. What's more is that the majority of the people are more than willing to spend their time helping visitors learn. As we have progressed in our introductory language training, we have remarked many times how Tanzania must be a nation of Swahili teachers. Whether we are riding the daladala (bus), or walking down the street, chances are that someone will enjoy letting us practice what we have learned and then give us a tutorial of their own.

Since we are trying to learn Swahili, this has proven to be very helpful to us. We have found that wherever we are, the people are genuinely thrilled at our effort to speak in their language. Even the smallest phrases (which is about all we can muster at this point) brings an appreciative smile. We are having a lot of fun with Swahili school and are excited to put what we've learned to use.