Language/Rundi/Vocabulary/Family-Members
Family is an important part of Burundian culture, just like in many other cultures around the world. In this lesson, we will learn the Rundi words for different family members and how to describe relationships. By the end of this lesson, you will be able to talk about your family and your relationships in Rundi!
Family Members
The Rundi language has specific words to describe different family members, and these words can vary depending on whether the family member is on your mother's side or your father's side. Let's take a look at the most common family members and how to say them in Rundi:
Rundi | Pronunciation | English |
---|---|---|
Umukuru w'umuryango | (oo-moo-koo-roo woo moo-ree-an-go) | Head of the family |
Umuryango | (oo-moo-ree-an-go) | Family |
Umugabo wanjye | (oo-moo-ga-boh wan-jyeh) | My husband |
Umugore wanjye | (oo-moo-go-reh wan-jyeh) | My wife |
Umukobwa wanjye | (oo-moo-ko-bwah wan-jyeh) | My daughter |
Umwana wanjye | (oo-mwa-nah wan-jyeh) | My child |
Umugeni wanjye | (oo-moo-geh-nee wan-jyeh) | My inlaw (spouse's parent) |
Umukwe wanjye | (oo-moo-kweh wan-jyeh) | My inlaw (spouse's sibling) |
Umushukanyi wanjye | (oo-moo-shoo-kan-yee wan-jyeh) | My brother/sister in law (sibling's spouse) |
Umukuru w'umuryango wanjye | (oo-moo-koo-roo woo moo-ree-an-go wan-jyeh) | My elder in the family |
As you can see, the word "wanjye" means "my" in Rundi. To say "your" family member, simply replace "wanjye" with "wawe".
Here are a few more family members in Rundi:
Rundi | Pronunciation | English |
---|---|---|
Umwana | (oo-mwa-nah) | Child |
Umugabo | (oo-moo-ga-boh) | Husband |
Umugore | (oo-moo-go-reh) | Wife |
Umwandiko | (oo-mwan-dee-koh) | Cousin (both male and female) |
Umushumba | (oo-moo-shoom-bah) | Niece/Nephew |
Umuryango | (oo-moo-ree-an-go) | Family |
Abagore | (ah-bah-go-reh) | Women/wives (plural) |
Abakobwa | (ah-bah-koh-bwah) | Girls (plural) |
Abana | (ah-bah-nah) | Children (plural) |
Abagabo | (ah-bah-ga-boh) | Men/husbands (plural) |
It's important to note that the Rundi language has a complex noun class system, which means that the way a word is spelled and pronounced can change depending on the class of the noun it describes. For example, the word "umuryango" (family) is in class 1, while the word "abana" (children) is in class 2. We'll cover noun classes more in-depth in a future lesson.
Describing Relationships
In addition to family members, it is important to know how to describe relationships in Rundi. Here are a few common relationship-related words in Rundi:
Rundi | Pronunciation | English |
---|---|---|
Urugendo | (oo-roo-gen-do) | Journey/travel |
Urukundo | (oo-roo-koon-doh) | Love |
Urwo rwacu | (oo-rwoh rwah-chu) | Our relationship |
Imvugo y'urukundo | (im-voo-goh yoo-roo-koon-doh) | Love poem |
Ubusabane | (oo-boo-sah-bah-neh) | Friendship |
Isuku | (ee-soo-koo) | Hate |
Here are some phrases you can use to describe your relationship status in Rundi:
- Ndi umukobwa wese wa mbere || (In-dee ooh-moo-koh-bwah weh-seh wah mm-beh-reh) || I am the first girlfriend
- Ndi umukire wa mbere || (In-dee ooh-moo-kee-reh wah mm-beh-reh) || I'm the first boyfriend
- Ntacyo ndi || (In-tah-choh in-dee) || I am not seeing anyone
- Nimgendana || (In-mehn-gain-dah-nah) || I am in love
Conclusion
In this lesson, we learned the Rundi words for different family members and how to describe relationships. We also discussed the importance of noun classes in the Rundi language and how they can affect the way words are spelled and pronounced. By the end of this lesson, you should feel comfortable talking about your family and relationships in Rundi. Don't forget to practice these new words and phrases with a native Rundi speaker to improve your pronunciation and fluency!
Other Lessons
- Time
- Count to 10
- Health
- Persons
- Days and Months
- Common Greetings
- Emergency Vocabulary
- Colors
- Days
- Common Foods