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Chama Cha Kiswahili Cha Taifa
''Chama cha Kiswahili cha Taifa'' (National Kiswahili Association, abbreviated as CHAKITA) is a Kenyan institution founded in 1998 responsible for the promotion of the Swahili language in Kenya. The Founding Chair is Prof. Kimani Njogu, a graduate of Yale University's department of Linguistics. Key activities of CHAKITA are directing research into Kiswahili language and literature in coordination with academic institutions and to develop Kiswahili so that it can be used as a means of national development. The institution sees use of indigenous languages in governance as key to socio-economic development. The Association is key in influencing policies on culture and languages in Kenya and was instrumental in ensuring that Kiswahili was entrenched in the Constitution of Kenya. In 2000, the Kenyan parliament passed a CHAKITA sponsored bill to make Kiswahili a national language and to make its teaching compulsory in schools. Professor Clara Momanyi, Secretary of CHAKITA, was tasked with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swahili Language
Swahili, also known by its local name , is the native language of the Swahili people, who are found primarily in Tanzania, Kenya and Mozambique (along the East African coast and adjacent litoral islands). It is a Bantu language, though Swahili has borrowed a number of words from foreign languages, particularly Arabic, but also words from Portuguese, English and German. Around forty percent of Swahili vocabulary consists of Arabic loanwords, including the name of the language ( , a plural adjectival form of an Arabic word meaning 'of the coast'). The loanwords date from the era of contact between Arab slave traders and the Bantu inhabitants of the east coast of Africa, which was also the time period when Swahili emerged as a lingua franca in the region. The number of Swahili speakers, be they native or second-language speakers, is estimated to be approximately 200 million. Due to concerted efforts by the government of Tanzania, Swahili is one of three official languages (th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kimani Njogu
Dr. Kimani Njogu is Kenyan linguist known for his role in study and advocacy of Kiswahili language. Life and career Njogu was born in Kericho County. After teaching high school, he pursued further education in Swahili studies, gaining his bachelor's degree from Kenyatta University in 1985 and Masters from University of Nairobi. He joined the faculty of Kenyatta University. In 1988, he embarked on a scholarship at the department of Linguistics at Yale University, where he completed his PhD in 1993 with a dissertation on dialogue poetry in East Africa. On returning to Kenya, he once again served on the faculty at Kenyatta University before becoming an independent scholar. He is the founder chairman of Chama cha Kiswahili cha Taifa, a body dedicated to the promotion of Kiswahili in Kenya. His book, ''Ufundishaji wa Fasihi: Nadharia na Mbinu'', coauthored with Rocha Chimera, won the 2000 Noma Award for Publishing in Africa The Noma Award for Publishing in Africa (''French:Le Prix No ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Constitution Of Kenya
The Constitution of Kenya is the supreme lawof the Republic of Kenya. There have been three significant versions of the constitution, with the most recent redraft being enabled in 2010. The 2010 edition replaced the 1963 independence constitution. The constitution was presented to the Attorney General of Kenya on 7 April 2010, officially published on 6 May 2010, and was subjected to a referendum on 4 August 2010."Kenya referendum date set" Daily Nation, 14 May 2010 The new Constitution was approved by 67% of Kenyan voters. The constitution was promulgated on 27 August 2010. Constitutional reforms involving wholly n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kenyan Constitutional Referendum, 2010
A constitutional referendum was held in Kenya on 4 August 2010. Voters were asked whether they approved of a proposed new constitution, which had been passed by the National Assembly on 1 April 2010. The new constitution was seen as a vital step to avoid a repetition of the violent outbursts after the 2007 general elections. The result was a victory for the "Yes" campaign, with 68.6% of voters approving the constitution. The "No" campaign's main spokesman, Higher Education Minister William Ruto, conceded defeat. The new constitution came into force on 27 August. Background The 1963 constitution was replaced by a new constitution in 1969. This was amended on several occasions, including a 1982 amendment that led to a coup attempt. The amendment saw the addition of a section 2A to the constitution, making Kenya a single-party state under President Daniel arap Moi. Following protests in the late 1980s, section 2A was repealed in 1991, establishing the multi-party state, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baraza La Kiswahili La Taifa
''Baraza la Kiswahili la Taifa'' (National Swahili Council, abbreviated as BAKITA) is a Tanzanian institution responsible with regulating and promoting the Kiswahili language. Background Tanganyika and Zanzibar, the two constituents of modern Tanzania, had come under German colonial rule by the 1880s. The territory was inhabited by a large number of ethnic groups speaking different languages. The German colonial government decided to use Kiswahili as the language of administration after becoming fearful that use of German would introduce the local population to subversive Marxist texts. The British, who took over after the defeat of Germany in World War 1 continued this policy. Swahili has 17 dialects. The Interterritorial Language Committee in 1930 under British colonial rule in East Africa tasked with creating a standardized form of the language. The Kiunjuga dialect spoken in Zanzibar was chosen as the base. The committee was also involved in standardizing the spelling as well a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to the south; Zambia to the southwest; and Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest mountain, is in northeastern Tanzania. According to the United Nations, Tanzania has a population of million, making it the most populous country located entirely south of the equator. Many important hominid fossils have been found in Tanzania, such as 6-million-year-old Pliocene hominid fossils. The genus Australopithecus ranged across Africa between 4 and 2 million years ago, and the oldest remains of the genus ''Homo'' are found near Lake Olduvai. Following the rise of '' Homo erectus'' 1.8 million years ago, humanity spread ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical .... The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The southern part of the country includes a substantial portion of Lake Victoria, shared with Kenya and Tanzania. Uganda is in the African Great Lakes region. Uganda also lies within the Nile, Nile basin and has a varied but generally a modified equatorial climate. It has a population of around 49 million, of which 8.5 million live in the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kampala. Uganda is named after the Buganda kingdom, which encompasses a large portion of the south of the country, includi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Language Regulators
This is a list of bodies that consider themselves to be authorities on standard languages, often called language academies. Language academies are motivated by, or closely associated with, linguistic purism and prestige, and typically publish prescriptive dictionaries,Thomas, George (1991''Linguistic purism''p.108, quotation: which purport to officiate and prescribe the meaning of words and pronunciations. A language regulator may also have a more descriptive approach, however, while maintaining and promoting (but not imposing) a standard spelling. Many language academies are private institutions, although some are governmental bodies in different states, or enjoy some form of government-sanctioned status in one or more countries. There may also be multiple language academies attempting to regulate and codify the same language, sometimes based in different countries and sometimes influenced by political factors. Many world languages have one or more language academies or offici ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
