HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Burundi Burundi (, ), officially the Republic of Burundi ( rn, Repuburika y’Uburundi ; Swahili language, Swahili: ''Jamuhuri ya Burundi''; French language, French: ''République du Burundi'' ), is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley at the ...
traditionally had two official languages: Kirundi and
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
. English became the third official language of the country in 2014. Of these, only Kirundi is spoken by the vast majority of the population. It is recognised as the national language by the Burundian constitution of 2005. Burundi is unusual among African states in having a single indigenous language shared by its entire population. In one estimate, 98 percent of Burundians speak Kirundi. Under Belgian colonial rule (1919–62), Kirundi was taught whereas under German rule (1894–1916)
Swahili Swahili may refer to: * Swahili language, a Bantu language official in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda and widely spoken in the African Great Lakes * Swahili people, an ethnic group in East Africa * Swahili culture Swahili culture is the culture of ...
had been encouraged. In recent years, the Burundian government has promoted the use of Kirundi language as way to unify the country's different ethnic groups. The country is considered part of ''
Francophonie Francophonie is the quality of speaking French. The term designates the ensemble of people, organisations and governments that share the use of French on a daily basis and as administrative language, teaching language or chosen language. The ...
''. As a legacy of Belgian colonial rule, French has an important role in government, business, and the educated classes but only between 3 and 10 percent of the population speak the language fluently. Burundian vernacular French also frequently incorporates loanwords from Kirundi, Lingala and other languages. French is spoken by a significant minority and is spoken mainly as a second language, as a French pidgin, or by foreign residents of the country. English was adopted as part of moves towards regional integration with the East African Community after 2007 but has little effective presence in the country. Spoken languages in Burundi include Swahili which is widely spoken in the Great Lakes region. It is especially used in commerce and in connection with the country's Muslim minority or with immigration from elsewhere in East Africa.


See also

*
Culture of Burundi The culture of Burundi is based on local tradition and common influence with its neighbors. Music Traditional drumming of ''karyenda'' is an important part of Burundian cultural heritage, as indicated by the world-famous Royal Drummers of Buru ...
*
Languages of Rwanda Kinyarwanda is the national language of Rwanda, and the first language of almost the entire population of the country. It is one of the country's official languages alongside French, English, and Swahili. Rwandan Sign Language is used by the e ...


References


Further reading

*


External links


Ethnologue listing of Burundi languages
{{Languages of Africa