Jambo!
If you only know one word in Swahili, this is probably it.
Literally, 'jambo' means 'matter' or 'affair'. Used alone, it is a greeting for foreigners who probably only know one word in Swahili. If you want to speak Kiswahili sanifu, or standard Swahili, you need to learn a few prefixes. To greet someone, you should ask:
Hujambo?
Hu- is a negative marker, so 'hujambo' means: "you have no matter?", or "there's nothing the matter with you?"
The correct reply is:
Sijambo.
Si- is the negative marker for the first person (I), so it means "I have no matter", or "there's nothing the matter with me."
The negative marker requires a different prefix for each person:
Si + jambo = sijambo (I have no 'jambo')
Hu + jambo = hujambo (You have no 'jambo')
Ha + jambo = hajambo (He/She has no 'jambo')
Hatu + jambo = hatujambo (We have no 'jambo')
Ham + jambo = hamjambo (You [plural] have no 'jambo')
Hawa + jambo = hawajambo (They have no 'jambo')
(Remember these negative prefixes. They will be useful).
So if you're talking to more than one person, you should greet them with
Hamjambo?
And they will reply
Hatujambo.
You can ask about other people as well. If someone knows that you have children (or if they don't know you at all, but think that you should have children), they might ask
Watoto hawajambo? (Are the children ok? or 'The children have no 'jambo'?')
And you would reply
Hawajambo.
***
The plural of 'jambo' is 'mambo'. Mambo is also used as a greeting, particularly in a less formal situation and if you're one of the cool young guys.
If someone greets you with "mambo?" or "mambo vipi?" you can reply with something like:
poa cool
safi clean
(If you want to be clever, try "poa kichizi kama ndizi" - crazy cool like a banana.)
If you only know one word in Swahili, this is probably it.
Literally, 'jambo' means 'matter' or 'affair'. Used alone, it is a greeting for foreigners who probably only know one word in Swahili. If you want to speak Kiswahili sanifu, or standard Swahili, you need to learn a few prefixes. To greet someone, you should ask:
Hujambo?
Hu- is a negative marker, so 'hujambo' means: "you have no matter?", or "there's nothing the matter with you?"
The correct reply is:
Sijambo.
Si- is the negative marker for the first person (I), so it means "I have no matter", or "there's nothing the matter with me."
The negative marker requires a different prefix for each person:
Si + jambo = sijambo (I have no 'jambo')
Hu + jambo = hujambo (You have no 'jambo')
Ha + jambo = hajambo (He/She has no 'jambo')
Hatu + jambo = hatujambo (We have no 'jambo')
Ham + jambo = hamjambo (You [plural] have no 'jambo')
Hawa + jambo = hawajambo (They have no 'jambo')
(Remember these negative prefixes. They will be useful).
So if you're talking to more than one person, you should greet them with
Hamjambo?
And they will reply
Hatujambo.
You can ask about other people as well. If someone knows that you have children (or if they don't know you at all, but think that you should have children), they might ask
Watoto hawajambo? (Are the children ok? or 'The children have no 'jambo'?')
And you would reply
Hawajambo.
***
The plural of 'jambo' is 'mambo'. Mambo is also used as a greeting, particularly in a less formal situation and if you're one of the cool young guys.
If someone greets you with "mambo?" or "mambo vipi?" you can reply with something like:
poa cool
safi clean
(If you want to be clever, try "poa kichizi kama ndizi" - crazy cool like a banana.)
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