| Languages of Zambia | |
|---|---|
 Signs in English,Lusaka | |
| Official | English |
| Recognised | Bemba,Kaonde,Lozi,Lunda,Luvale,Nyanja,Tonga |
| Vernacular | Zambian English |
| Minority | Bwile,Chokwe,Ila,Kuhane,Kunda,Kwangwa,Lala-Bisa,Lamba,Lenje,Luyana,Mambwe-Lungu,Mbamba Bay,Mbowe,Mbukushu,Mbunda,Mwanga,Nkangala,Nkoya,Nsenga,Shanjo,Shona,Soli,Tabwa,Tumbuka,Wanda,Yao |
| Signed | Zambian Sign Language |
| Keyboard layout | |
Zambia has several major indigenouslanguages,[1] all members of theBantu family, as well asKhwedam,Zambian Sign Language, several immigrant languages and thepidginsSettla andFanagalo.English is theofficial language and the major language of business and education.[1][2]
Zambia has 45 languages, some of which have a long history in Zambia, while others, such asSilozi, arose as a result of 18th- and 19th-century migrations. All of Zambia's major languages by native-speaker population are members of theBantu family and are closely related to one another.[2]
Seven native languages are officially recognised as regional languages.[3][2] Together, these represent the major languages of each province:Bemba (Northern Province,Luapula,Muchinga and theCopperbelt),Nyanja (Lusaka and theEastern Province),Lozi (Western Province),Tonga and Lozi (Southern Province), andKaonde,Luvale andLunda (Northwestern Province). These seven languages are used, together with English, in early primary schooling and in some government publications. A common orthography was approved by the Ministry of Education in 1977.[4][5]
The most common languages spoken by the majority of the population in Zambia are Bemba, followed by Nyanja and Tonga, while some other languages such as Luvale, Tumbuka, Lunda and the rest are spoken in their local localities of the country.
English, the former colonial language, serves as a common language among educated Zambians. At independence in 1964, English was declared the national language. English is the first language of only 2% of Zambians but is the most commonly used second language.[6]
The English spoken in Zambia has some distinctive features, such as the omission of certain object pronouns that would be obligatory in Western English ("Did you reach?"), the simplification of somephrasal verbs ("throw" instead of "throw away"), subtle differences in the usage ofauxiliary verbs such as "should", simplification of vowel sounds (some Zambians may regard "taste" and "test" as homophones), and the incorporation of particles derived from Zambia's indigenous languages (such aschi "big/bad" andka "little"). Zambian English also incorporates South African words such asbraai for "barbecue".[7]
| Bemba | Nyanja | Tonga | Kaonde | Barotse | Tumbuka | Mambwe | English | Other | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 39.9% | 20.1% | 14.8% | 8.8% | 7.5% | 3.7% | 3.4% | 1.1% | 0.8% |
| 2000 | 38.5% | 20.6% | 13.9% | 9.7% | 6.9% | 3.2% | 3.2% | 1.7% | 4.3% |
| 2010 | 31.0% | 25.3% | 17.5% | 6.6% | 9.3% | 3.3% | 3.2% | 1.7% | 0.3% |
Source: 2010 Census[8]
The established languages of Zambia are:[9]
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