Karibu sana katika Kisa ya Kisasa tunapo kabiliana na maneno mapya na vichekesho vya kilugha.
Welcome to the modern story where we confront new words and funny phrases.
Mgoso agundua ulimi hauna mfupa! -The white person (Mgoso) understood that the tongue has no bone.
Nilikuwa mgeni Mzizima. Nilikuwa na uzoefu wa sehemu mbalimbali Tanzania lakini Kiswahili changu wakati ule hakijakolea sawasawa. Basi nilikutana na mwanamke mmoja kwa mara ya kwanza. Tulikuwa tumeongea kwenye simu mara nyingi lakini siku hiyo ilikuwa mara ya kwanza kuonana naye ana kwa ana. Sikujua jinsi ya kueleza hivyo kwa Kiswahili. Nilikusudia kusema ‘in the flesh’ kwa kumwambia, “Nimefurahi kukutana na wewe kwa mara ya kwanza kimwili.”
My first time in Dar-es-Salaam (Mzizima). I thought my Swahili was pretty good. I had spoken to this woman several times on the phone but never met her face to-face (ana kwa ana). How to express to her that this was the first time we had met ‘in the flesh’? I proudly announce that I was pleased to meet her bodily (kimwili) for the first time; with all the implications that you would expect of such a phrase. I thus learnt a valuable lesson and a useful proverb: the tongue doesn’t have a bone (ulimi hauna mfupa; i.e. it is incontrollable). This is an acceptable phrase for excusing those numerous faux pas.
Jamaa agoma kuondoka kizimbani -the man refused to leave the dock (in court).
Jamaa mmoja alishitakiwa kwa kuiba vitu vyenye thamani ya kilo tatu. Alimwambia hakimu kuwa bora afungwe jela kuliko kuja mahakamani kila siku. Mtu huyu alichoka na ‘njoo kesho’ za mahakama kwa sababu mlalamikaji hafiki mahakamani. Baada ya kugoma kuondoka iliwabidi maafande wamtoe nje kwa nguvu, ndipo alipofunguliwa shitaka lingine la kufanya fujo mahakamani. Aidha hukumu ya kesi hiyo haitatolewa mpaka mwisho wa 1999!
The man who refused to leave the dock in court was charged with theft of goods to the value of 300,000 sh. (kilo tatu). He asked the judge if he could be imprisoned instead of the constant postponements of the court (njoo kesho, lit. come tomorrow). After striking out and refusing to leave, the police (maafande: cops) had to remove him by force. This led to the opening of a new case, that of ‘creating a disturbance’ (fujo) in court, the judgement of which will not be announced until December 1999!
Kilo has come to mean 100,000 shillings ie. the same as ‘laki’. Maafande is a common word for the police; it’s in the dictionary. ‘Njoo Kesho’ means come tomorrow, it is used here as a noun; postponings. Fujo is what English soccer fans are famous for; disturbance. It is used to describe strikes as well as violence.
Ben Rawlence