by Hammed Sonny | Sep 2, 2024 | Africa
The Democratic Republic of Congo is a hugely diverse country. There are thought to be around 242 known languages. 62 of these are utilised within the region, with only a few being recognised as official languages. The three most used languages are French, Kituba and Lingala.
Official Language
French is the official language of the Congo. Out of the entire population, only 30% speak French fluently, however a greater proportion are able to understand it. The vast majority of these French speaking citizens live within urban areas of the country.
French is used typically in work settings which include the government and media. French is a highly respected language throughout the Congo and it is taught to some degree in schools.
Despite its official status, more people tend to speak in ethnic languages, native to the country.
Lingala
Lingala is a trade language that has grown in popularity across the country. It is mainly spoken in Eastern and Northern pockets of the Congo. To this day it is still used for trade purposes but now also heavily spoken in education and administration settings.
Lingala is divided into two sub dialects: Standard Lingala and Spoken Lingala. Standard is typically used in more formal settings such as the media and spoken is saved for day-to-day use.
The language is quickly growing in status with more and more people adopting it as their second tongue.
Kituba
Kituba accounts for the largest ethnic language in the Congo. Approximately 50% of Congolese people speak this language to some extent. As a national language, it has status within parliament and educational institutes.
Due to its high prevalence, Kituba is widely understood by a great proportion of the countries people.
Small minority languages
As always, within such a diverse and cultured region, there are multiple other languages considered as minority dialects. In the Congo, there are around 60 smaller languages spoken in clusters dependant on region. Many of these belong to the Bantu language family and include: Kiteke, Koongo and Baganda, to name a few.
Each small ethnic group has their own language that they will speak natively.
Final Thoughts
Although French is considered Congo’s official language, it is clear to us that ethnic and regional languages override the official tongue. This just goes to show how influential culture and diversity can be within a country.
Do you require an interpreter or translator in French or Lingala?
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by Hammed Sonny | Aug 5, 2024 | Languages, Multilingualism
Daunting in its own right, the idea of job searching can come equipped with a lot of stress for an individual. From writing your CV, sending in applications, or even beginning your first day in a new job, perhaps the most important part is the interview. That time old formality of showcasing yourself to an employer and telling them exactly why they should recruit you over any other candidate. Even in your native language this could be a challenge. Now, imagine you are about to go through that entire process in another language… maybe a job with a foreign company has taken your fancy? Or perhaps you’re a graduate set on bagging a job abroad. Whatever the reason requiring you to take your interview in another tongue, here are a few pointers to set you on the right tracks.
Listen carefully
It seems that listening with care to your interviewer could be the most crucial part to success, even more so when interviewing in a language that is not your mother tongue. To improve the levels of communication, never fee afraid to request that the interviewer speaks slightly slower to accommodate you. Once the question is asked, take a minute to think over what was asked before you execute your answer. Identify any words you seem as key words and be sure to address these clearly in your response.
Honesty is the best policy
When it comes to language, it can be a bad idea to overestimate your skills. Be honest with yourself and more importantly your employer. This seems to be something to address way before your interview, be clear about your levels of proficiency in your CV and application. Ensure your employer knows exactly what they are getting from you.
Do your research
Doing your research can set you strides ahead if it’s done correctly. More often than not, most organisations will ask you similar questions during the interview process. So, if you like to be prepared there is no harm in sourcing these questions and preparing answers to them in the target language. This way, you minimalize the chance of any nasty surprises.
Immerse yourself into the language pre interview
Possibly a day or so before your interview, you could try completely immersing yourself into the language. From listening to music in the language, watching tv or interviews or talking in it where possible, total language immersion can help you pick up common idioms and gestures which could really impress your interviewer!
Final thoughts
In order to prepare for your interview, time and effort can pay off. By following and considering these simple steps you can set yourself up for success! Bagging a job can go way beyond what is on your CV, as 9 times out of ten an employer is more interested in the person behind the document.
If you require a language translation service, visit Crystal Clear Translation for a quote.
by Hammed Sonny | Aug 2, 2024 | Africa, Asia, Carribean
Without a doubt, the hospitality and catering industries is one of the most lucrative fields in the world. From a quick coffee before your train, to a no expenses spared family meal, we have all experienced dining out at some point in our lives. Luckily, we are never short of options, with a staggering number of different cuisines on offer, from good old British comfort food, to worldwide, exotic meal options- even better that you do not have to leave to country to experience these worldwide flavours!
Over the past years, throughout the UK, several food outlets have risen to prominence on our high streets. From fiery Mexican to vibrant Caribbean foods, there is something for everyone! Which is your favourite?
South Africa- Nandos
Renowned for its south African Peri-Peri style cuisines, Nandos is a sure-fire favourite for many. Founded in Johannesburg, the spicy chicken chain is one of the most popular food outlets on British high streets. In fact, the UK has the most Nandos shops out everywhere in the world, with 392 stores throughout the UK. We love it so much in fact, that the restaurants are pretty much always full! So much so, there are two Nandos branches within one minute of each other so help combat the heavy queues.
Asia- Wagamamas
Wagamamas offers its diners the chance to experience Japanese and Asian inspired dishes with a modern British twist. Founded in 1992, Wagamamas has fast become one of the most popular dining locations in the UK. It is said that from 2018 to 2019, the restaurants annual turnover was as high as 342 million pounds! From its authentic Ramen dishes to its Asian inspired side dishes, the restaurant has something for everyone. More often than not, most major towns and cities will have a Wagamamas close by, with statistics showing that there are approximately 132 stores in the UK.
Mexico/Texas- Chiquito
Fusion foods are highly popular throughout the world. Perhaps one of the most affluent being Tex-Mex cuisine- a bold fusion of Mexican and Texan foods, and the result seems to go down a storm with British consumers! Chiquito was founded in 1989 in the UK, offering its diners the best of both worlds, with a fiery menu of Tex-Mex goods. The 33-year-old food chain was once described as the UKs best Tex-Mex food joint, proving just how much us brits love our fusion food.
Italy- ASK Italian
Offering quintessential Italian foods, ASK Italian has become a restaurant staple in the UK. Founded in 1993, ASK has evolved into one of the most popular Italian food chains. Its inspired cuisine offers diners an authentic Italian dining experience at an affordable price. There are 120 UK wide outlets serving their food, and with people flooding into the restaurants daily, it remains an increasingly popular location for Italian food.
Caribbean- Turtle Bay
Turtle Bay is a vibrant outlet which offers the much-loved flavours of Caribbean food. Fusing a selection of authentic flavours, the outlet has created ab outstanding menu which we just can’t get enough of. The warm, fun-loving atmosphere makes for a relaxed dining experience, which keeps its visitors coming back. Turtle Bay is perhaps the leader in terms of popular Caribbean cuisine joints in the UK, with hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.
Final Thoughts
It goes without saying that there are ample locations to enjoy your preferred cuisine out and about. Regardless of Covid-19 measures, the catering and hospitality industry remains rife thanks to its diversity and choice. There is something out there for everybody, and as the options continue to grow, so does the economical scale of the field.
Should you require a translation or interpretation service, visit Crystal Clear Translation for a quote.
by Hammed Sonny | Jun 24, 2024 | Africa, Anglophone World
West African Pidgin English (WAPE) is a term for a diverse number of English-based pidgin and creole languages spoken throughout West Africa, of which Krio (spoken in Sierra Leone) is one of those languages. Other types of WAPE languages are Liberian Pidgin English, Nigerian Pidgin English and Cameroon Pidgin English. Pidgin languages in West Africa act as a lingua franca between speakers of different languages, who speak the WAPE languages in addition to other vernacular. In Nigeria alone, there are between three and five million people whose primary language and form of communication is Pidgin, and is estimated to be used as a second language by up to 75 million people in the country (around half of the population). Whilst Sierra Leone Krio is not spoken to the same degree as Nigerian Pidgin English, it is spoken as a second language in Gambia, Guinea and Senegal by an estimated 4 million people.
Are Krio and West African Pidgin mutually intelligible?
Both Krio and West African Pidgin derive from the same language family, English Creole (also known as English-based creole languages). As a result, the majority of the pidgin and creole languages that constitute West African pidgin share the same basic linguistic and phonological characteristics. For instance, many of the WAPE languages share the same vowel inventory, made up of seven vowels: i, ey, e, a, o, ow, u. In addition to this, word formation in the WAPE languages is very similar. The phrase “sit down” in Pidgin English is constructed through complex forms, combining the bound prefix “si-“, meaning “sit”, with the free form “dong”, or “don”. Both Nigerian Pidgin English and Krio translate the phrase “sit down” as “Sidon”. In most of the pidgin languages, there are words, like the word “si”, which are only found in a bound form, meaning that they only occur as part of another word and never on their own.
Another example of the possible mutual intelligibility between Sierra Leone Krio and West African Pidgin is the prominence of the grammatical feature of verb serialization, or serial verb construction. This type of grammar can also be found in many different African languages, namely Yoruba, and is not common in the English language. Serial verb construction refers to a type of grammatical construction in which a sentence contains a subject and different verbs, but these words are not linked by a conjunction (e.g. and, but, if). Therefore, in Yoruba, one would translate the sentence “He brought the book” as “O mu iwe wa” (“He took book come”). In the Krio language, the sentence “I cut the bread with the knife” would be translated as “A tek nef kot di bred” (literally translated “I take knife cut the bread”). Moreover, Krio and the other West African Pidgin English languages share similar pronouns. Some of the Krio pronouns, for instance, are mi (“me, my”), yu (“you, your”), “am” (he/she/it), “dem” (they, them, theirs), “im” (his, hers, its”), “una” (feminine pronoun “you”). These pronouns are all also used in Nigerian Pidgin English as well as Ghanian Pidgin English.
To what extent are these languages not mutually intelligible?
While there are some similarities between Krio and the other West African Pidgin languages, they are not entirely mutually intelligible. To give an example, the most common phrase across the different pidgin languages in West Africa is the greeting. In Cameroonian Pidgin, the phrase “how na” (“how are you”) is used, similar to the Nigerian Pidgin greeting phrase “har fa”, meaning “how far”. However, in Krio, the word “kushe” (pronounced cushah), meaning “hello”, is used as a form of greeting. Ghanian pidgin English also diverts from the rest of the West African Pidgin English languages, especially in the context of greetings, as it utilises loanwords from the Akan languages (most widely spoken languages in Ghana), namely “eti sen” (“how are you”).
The primary pidgin languages in West Africa, like Nigeria Pidgin English, tend to borrow words entirely from the English language and do not utilise many loanwords, inhibiting the extent of intelligibility between the different pidgin languages. Like Ghanian Pidgin English, Krio also borrows loanwords from other languages. One such example of the use of loanwords in Krio is the word “bòku”, meaning “many”. This word derives from the French adjective “beaucoup”, meaning “many” or “lots”. Moreover, Krio has borrowed different idiomatic expressions from other African languages such as Yoruba, Kikongo and Igbo. In Krio, the phrase “big yay” (literally translates as “big eye”) is used to convey greed and selfishness. This idiom is borrowed from the Igbo expression “anya uku” (which literally translates as “eye big”). Similarly, another idiom that can be found in the Krio language is “swit mot” (meaning “sweet mouth”), which is used to convey persuasiveness. This same idiom can be found in Yoruba and the Akan language, as “enu didu” (Yoruba) and “ano yede” (Akan, or Twi).
In Conclusion
The plethora of pidgin languages that constitute the West African Pidgin English languages, such as Nigerian Pidgin English and Krio, derive from the same language family of English Creole and are spoken by millions across West African countries as a lingua franca and second language. They share some vocabulary and phonological similarities, and could be argued to be mutually intelligible to some degree. However, there are definite varieties and divergences between the languages, like Krio’s use of loanwords from other languages as well as its differences in phrases. Therefore, one cannot treat Sierra Leone Krio and Nigerian or Ghanian Pidgin English as the same language, especially in the context of translation or interpretation.
If you should require translation of any of the pidgin languages spoken in the many different countries of the West African region, such as Nigeria, Sierra Leone or Ghana, you may be interested in the excellent services provided by Crystal Clear Translation. At CCT, we employ many efficient and reliable translators able to navigate the intricacies of many different languages and cultures. Click here for a quote if you should need interpretation or translation services in a multitude of different languages.
by Hammed Sonny | Jun 17, 2024 | Africa
The Tuareg people are a Berber ethnic group, who live primarily in Sub-Saharan and Northern Africa (such as Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, Algeria, Nigeria), whereas the Fulani people live in West Africa and Central Africa (such as Guinea, Senegal, Mali, Mauritania, Gambia). Regarding population size, there an estimated 2 million Tuareg people, and, by contrast, at least 25 million people within the Fulani ethnicity. Both groups are traditionally pastoralists and nomadic people, and have historically, both peoples have previously utilised a hierarchical caste system, with divisions between those viewed as the nobles, the artisan caste (blacksmiths, jewellers) and those who were enslaved (the Maccudo in Fulani, and the Ikelan in Tuareg). Whilst most Fulani and Tuareg people now live within urban populations in various African countries, there are still some who live as herdsmen and agriculturalists.
What are some of the similarities and differences between the Tuareg and Fulani people?
Both the Tuareg and Fulani are followers of Sunni Islam. In fact, around 99% of Fulani people are estimated to be practising Muslims. Originally the Tuareg people followed the traditional Berber religion, but adopted Islam in the 7th century, followed by Sunni Islam in the 16th century. Despite the predominance of Islam within the Tuareg, they have also preserved pre-Islamic beliefs in spirits and exorcism. In addition to this, they differ to traditional Islam in some of their practices. For instance, as part of their ancient traditions, Tuareg men wear a veil. Tuareg men must wear the veil for the duration of their lives from the age of 25 onwards and cannot remove the veil. The wearing of the veil is supposed to symbolise the passage from childhood to adulthood. However, as the number of Tuareg living a nomadic lifestyle declined, fewer Tuareg men wear the veil, although it is still worn for festive and ceremonial events within the Tuareg community. The Tuareg belong to the Maliki school of Islam and are not as orthodox in their practise of Islam. They have daily prayers for instance, but are not required to fast during Ramadan, mainly due to the traditionally nomadic nature of their lifestyle which meant they had to travel often.
In contrast to the Tuareg, the Fulani practise a more traditional form of Sunni Islam, and have incorporated more characteristics of traditional Islam, such as the practise of women wearing the hijab and burqa. In a historical context, the Fulani people are believed to be part of the first Africans to convert to Islam. During the eighth and fourteenth centuries, there were a group of Fulani Islamic clerics known as the Torodbe, who acted as missionaries of the Islamic religion. The Fulani empire (also known as the Sokoto Caliphate) played an important role in the spread of Islam throughout Western Africa during the early nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
One other major difference between the Tuareg and Fulani people is the languages spoken by the two groups. The Tuareg speak the Tuareg language, which consists of different dialects known as Tamasheq, Tamahaq, Air Tamajeq and Tawellemet. These different dialects derive from the Berber language family, itself part of the Afro-Asiatic language family. The Berber languages also include Tarifit and Kablye. which are spoken mainly in Morocco and Algeria. The Tuareg language is written in three different scripts, Tifinagh, Latin and Arabic. The Tifinagh script, which is written from left to right, is the original alphabet of the Tuareg people, and derived from the ancient Libyan alphabet. Unlike Latin, the written Tifinagh alphabet only includes consonants. This kind of writing system is known as an abjad, which is also used in the Hebrew and Arabic languages.
On the other hand, the Fulani people speak the Fula language, part of the Senegambian branch of Niger-Congo language family. The Fula language is written mainly in the Latin script but is also written in Arabic and the Adlam script. Whilst the Fulani people predominantly use the Latin and Arabic scripts for written communication, the Adlam script was created in 1989 by Ibrahima and Abdoulaye Barry, specially for the Fulani language. This alphabet is written from left to right and is composed of 28 glyphs (5 vowels and 23 consonants). Adlam is taught in schools in Guinea, Nigeria, and Liberia, and has also been used in the publication of newspapers and books. In addition to the Fula language, the Western Fulani people (in Senegal, Mauritinia, Gambia and Western Mali) speak a language known as Pulaar. This dialect is the second most spoken language in Senegal, being spoken by around 22% of the population. Like Fula it is written in the Latin and Adlam scripts but is also written in an Arabic script known as Ajami (this script is also used in Swahili and the Hausa language).
In Conclusion
There are numerous differences between the Fulani and Tuareg tribes, in their different languages and within the practice of their Sunni Islam religion. Whilst both groups share historical similarities in the structure of their societies as well as their traditional livelihoods as nomads and farmers, the modern Tuareg and Fulani people are distinct groups pf people with a rich and varied culture and history. If you require translation or interpreting services for someone of the Tuareg or Fulani groups in their respective languages, or any other language, you can get a quote here from Crystal Clear Translation.
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