Nyanja Word of the Week 2: Bwino

Muli bwanji?
Bwino!

"Bwino" is one of the few Nyanja words that my 2-year-old daughter, Nzinzi, actually knows. When we first found out we were expecting a baby, my husband and I were adamant that we would teach her both English and Nyanja. (Really, we wanted to teach her English and "Nsenga," a language very similar to Nyanja, and spoken in the area that my husband's family comes from. Nyanja, she would learn from her playmates in Lusaka, obviously.)

Well, she's 2 now, and speaking English like crazy - why, just this morning she said, "Mr. Bear wants to sit on the couch" - but her Nyanja is limited to only a few words. It's not too late, though, and that's part of the purpose of this blog - to help keep Nzinzi and myself in the habit of thinking about, practicing, and expanding our Nyanja skills.

Today, we're focusing on one of the basics.

In Nyanja, "bwino" means "well" or "good." Bwino is pronounced "bwee-no," but because Nyanja is a tonal language, there is a right and wrong way to say it, as far as your intonation goes. Any of my readers who already know a bit of Nyanja would already know the meaning of bwino. If you are one of them, try chatting with a Zambian to perfect your pronunciation and intonation. (In my early days in Zambia, I had a long discussion with Mathew Tembo*, where I heard him keep saying, "No, it's not 'bwino', it's 'bwino.'")

If you're just starting out, don't worry about perfecting your accent yet, just go with it! Bwino can be your go-to answer for all kinds of "How?" questions, or questions which end in "bwanji?"

EXAMPLES:

Question: "Muli bwanji?" ("How are you?")
Response: "Bwino!"

Question:"Mwauka bwanji?" ("How did you sleep?"/Literally "How did you wake up?")
Response:"Bwino!"

Question: "Kunyumba kuli bwanji?" ("How's everything at home?"/Literally "How's home?")
Response: "Bwino!"

Question: "ATembo ati bwanji?" ("How is Tembo?")
Response: "Bwino!"

Here's another little secret, in Lusaka, sometimes "bwanji?" gets shortened to just "bwa'?"

EXAMPLE:

Question: "Muli bwa'?" ("How are you?" slang verson)
Response: "Bwino!"

And that's not all... you can even use "bwino" in other Zambian languages!

In Bemba:
Question: "Muli shani?"
Response: "Bwino!"

In Nsenga:
Question: "Muli tyani?"
Response: "Bwino!"

There must be more languages that use this word. Zambians, leave a comment/email me/Facebook me if you know of other languages that use bwino.

To those of you non-fluent Nyanja speakers, if you're like me, and you'd like to pretend that you know more Nyanja (or other Zambian languages) than you really do, practice this:

If someone asks you a question ending in "bwanji," or "bwa'" (or "shani" or "tyani," if you can remember), even if you don't understand the question, answer "bwino." Nine times out of ten you'll be safe. (But be careful! I will have stories to share about the pitfalls of pretending to know more Nyanja than you really do.)

Other useful bwino phrases:

"Mwende bwino" - "Go well." Say this as part of your goodbyes to someone who is going somewhere, whether its home from work, or to another country.

"Musale bwino" - "Stay well." The person who is going somewhere would say this back to the person who is staying.

"Mugone bwino" - "Seep well."

"Mulungu ali bwino" - "God is good."

"MC Wabwino" - MC "who's good," a famous Zambian pop artist, who I have always enjoyed for his large stature, large voice, and large jewelry**!

Here's MC Wabwino's song "J.O.B." Its about sexual harrassment during the interview/hiring process. (MC Wabwino and I are both against that!) But I like singing it these days, because I'm looking for a job.

Bonus phrase:

"Nifuna nchito!" - "I need a job!" (Listen for it in the song.)

* Thank you for tolerating the shameless promotion of the artist who I manage/promote, aka my husband.
** Please stay tuned to Nyanja Word of the Week for more Zambian musical recommendations. I can't wait to share some whose music I think is really bwino!