Rwanda-Rundi or West Highlands Kivu is a group of Bantu languages, specifically a dialect continuum, spoken in Central Africa. Two dialects, Kirundi and Kinyarwanda, have been standardized as the national languages of Burundi and Rwanda respectively. These neighbouring dialects are mutually intelligible, but other dialects which are more distant ones may not be. The other dialects are spoken in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kinyabwisha in North Kivu), Uganda (Rufumbira, spoken by the Bafumbira in Kisoro District), and Tanzania; Ha, with one million speakers, is the most widely spoken.
Comparison of Kinyarwanda and Kirundi Kinyarwanda and Kirundi are very similar in many aspects, but differ in several ways as well.
Tonal marking Both languages are tonal languages. High and low tones (or H and L) are the essential tones and, having a phonemic distinction on vowel length, when a long vowel changes from a low tone to a high tone it is marked as a rising tone and when a long vowel changes from a high tone to a low tone, it is marked as a falling tone. This is often illustrated in Kirundi in Meeussen's rule. Propositions have also been made that tones can shift by a metrical or rhythmic structure.
Symbol1 Explanation Kinyarwanda Kirundi Part of speech English (definition)Plain vowel(a, e, i, o, u)Short vowelLow tone(gu)sabaVerbask, requestumugeziNounstream, river(gu)shyika(gu)shikaVerbarriveikiraroNounbridgegusaIncomparable adjectiveonly, justAcute vowel(á, é, í, ó, ú)Short vowelHigh toneinkáNouncowintébechairigitítree, stick, woodurugóyard, corralurutúgushoulderCircumflex vowel(Kinyarwanda)(â, ê, î, ô, û)Short vowelHigh toneinkâinkáNouncowintêbeintébechairigitîigitítree, stick, woodurugôurugóyard, corralurutûguurutúgushoulderCircumflex vowel(Kirundi)(â, ê, î, ô, û)Short vowelHigh tone (on the accent vowel in Kinyarwanda)amáaziamâziNounwater(gu)téeka(gu)têkaVerbcookizíikoizîkoNounhearth(ku)ryóoha(ku)ryôhaVerbtaste good(gu)kúunda(gu)kûndalove, likemacron vowel(Kirundi only)(ā, ē, ī, ō, ū)Long vowelLow tone (both letters in low tone in Kinyarwanda)igisaaboigisāboNoungourdicyeegeeraicēgēraplant(ku)giisha(ku)gīshaVerbmake goingoonaingōnaNouncrocodileuruuhourūhogourd (utensil)Caron vowel(Kirundi only)(ǎ, ě, ǐ, ǒ, ǔ)Long vowelHigh tone (on the accent vowel in Kinyarwanda)ububaáshaububǎshaNounabilityAbeégaAběgaPlural nounTutsis, Tutsi clanumuhiígiumuhǐgiNounhunterumukoóbwaumukǒbwagirlumuúnsiumǔsiday, dateDiaeresis vowel(Kirundi only)(ä, ë, ï, ö, ü)Long vowelHigh toneNo equivalent tonal patternbäkozeVerbthey didmwëseNounall of younarï nziVerbI thought, I knewböseNounall of themwarüziVerbyou thought, you knew1 These symbols are only used in transcription, for example in a dictionary, but in other forms of writing, plain vowels are used and letters are not doubled (unless if the word itself is spelt in that way).
Spelling Formation Kinyarwanda Kirundi Part of speech English (definition)c+ycyanecaneAdverbverycyanjyecanjePossessive pronoun, possessive adjectivemine, myicyubahiroicubahiroNounrespectntacyontacoIndefinite pronounnothingj+y -jya -jaPrefix, verbgonjyewenjeweObject pronounmeyanjyeyanjePossessive pronoun, possessive adjectivemine, mysh+y -shyira -shiraPrefix, verbput, placeindeshyoindeshoNounheightnshyanshaAdjectivenewb+yv+yumubyeyiumuvyeyiNounparent -gorobye -gorovyePrefix, verbbecame evening -ibye -ivyePrefix, possessive pronoun, verbhis (multiple objects), stole
Word formation There are many instances in which the two speech varieties of both languages have words that are slightly different. However, these differences do not continually recur. One has to memorize such differences as "-anga" in Kinyarwanda in contrast to "-anka" in Kirundi (meaning to dislike or hate), because the shift from "g" to "k" is extremely rare, with proof being words like "inka" (cow), "inkono" (pot) and many other words where "nk" is common in both dialects. Such minor variations involve different consonants, vowels or vowel lengths, tones or affixes. Summary Rwanda Rundi Part of speech English (definition)ConsonantsimpyisiimfyisiPlural nounhyena, jackal(kw)anga(kw)ankaVerbdislike, hateamagamboamajamboPlural nounwordsumunsiumusiNounday, dateijosiizosineckVowelsibiyobeibiyobaPlural nounpeanuts(ku)yogoza(ku)yogezaVerbannihilate(ku)reba(ku)rabasee, lookVowel length/-riinganira//-ringanira/Prefix, verbbe of equal length/-pima//-piima/measure, weigh/-sáagura//-sáaguura/be in excessTone/umukonó//umukóno/Nounsignature/mugufí//mugúfi/Adjectiveshort/ikiguzí//ikigúzi/Nounprice, valueFormationnyirabukweinabukweNounmother-in-lawnyirakuruinakurugrandmother1MixedumugatiumukateNounbread1 In both Kinyarwanda and Kirundi, nyogokuru is more commonly used to mean "grandmother".
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