LEARN SWAHILI [ KISWAHILI ] FREE ONLINE
The Assimil-syllable Method
[Kwa Mtindo wa Kufyonza Silabi ]
LESSON 1
In this first LESSON we introduce you to the Ki-swahii alphabet. Ki-swahili alphabet consists of all English ones with the exception of Q(q) and X (x). However, some of the letters are not pronounced in similar manner. In addition, Kiswahili is best learned by using the syllables rather than letters. It is this approach of learning Kiswahili by absorbing the essential Ki-swahili syllables which is the secret behind our shortcut method of learning Kiswahili in only a few weeks.
A. The Kiswahili Alphabet
Kiswahili has the following alphabet:
IN CAPITAL LETTERS:
A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, R, S, T, U, V, W, Y and Z.
IN LOWER CASE:
a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, r, s, t, u, v, w, y and z.
THE VOWELS
Few consonants stand alone in Kiswahil (they are an exception rather than a rule. In most casesit is mainly when you need double consonants to have a single syllable.
The vowels- a, e, i, o and u are thus meaningless except when they join consonants or other vowels e.g. ua-flower or kill; oa-merry; and au-or.
THE BASIC SYLLABLES:
There are 19 Basic Syllables ending with the a vowel, these are:
1. ba
2. cha
3. da
4. fa
5. ga
6. ha
7. ja
8. ka
9. la
10. ma
11. na
12. pa
13. ra
14. sa
15. ta
16. va
17. wa
18. ya
19. za
PRONOUNCIATION:
ba- sounds as ba in bat;
cha-sounds as cha in chart;
da-sounds as da in darling;
ga-sounds as ga in garden;
ha-sounds as ha in hard;
ja-sounds as ja in Japan;
ka-sounds as ka in Karate;
la-sounds as la in lamb;
ma-sounds as ma in machine;
na-sounds as na in Nairobi;
pa-sounds as pa in pass;
ra-sounds as ra in Rambo;
sa-sounds as sa in satire;
ta-sounds as ta in tap;
va-sounds as va in vagabond;
wa-sounds as wa in want;
ya- sounds as ya in Yankee;
za- sounds as za in Zambia or Zanzibar.
More complex syllables will include more than one consonant as shall be shown in advanced lessons.
In Lesson 2 we shall show the simple syllables using the letters e and i.
In Lesson three we shall show the use of simple syllables using the letters o and u.
