Tsonga language

Bantu language of the Tsonga people of Southern Africa Geographical description of Tsonga in South Africa: proportion of the population that speaks a form of Tsonga at home Tsonga (/ˈ(t)sɒŋɡə/ ⓘ (T)SONG-gə), or Xitsonga (/ʃiˈtsɒŋ.ɡə/ shee-TSONG-gə) as an endonym (also known as Changana in Mozambique), is a Bantu language spoken by the Tsonga people of South Africa and Mozambique. It is mutually intelligible with Tswa and Ronga and the name "Tsonga" is often used as a cover term for all three, also sometimes referred to as Tswa-Ronga. The Xitsonga language has been standardised as a written language. Tsonga is an official language of the Republic of South Africa, and under the name Shangani it is recognised as an official language in the Constitution of Zimbabwe. All Tswa-Ronga languages are recognised in Mozambique. It is not official in Eswatini (formerly known as Swaziland). History The first records of studies of Xitsonga by Europeans go back the Swiss missionary, Henri-Alexandre Junod, who between the years 1890 and 1920 hypothesised that the Xitsonga language (which he called the Thonga language) consolidated itself in Mozambique before the 1400s. In his own wor