View source for Venda language

{{Short description|Bantu language of South Africa and Zimbabwe}}
{{EngvarB|date=July 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2016}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = TshiVenda
| nativename       = {{lang|ve|Tshivenḓa}}
| states           = {{Plainlist|
* [[South Africa]] and [[Zimbabwe]]
* [[Mozambique]]
}}
| region           = [[Limpopo]]
| speakers         = {{sigfig|1.29|2}} million
| date             = 2011 census
| ref              = e18
| speakers2        = 1.7&nbsp;million [[L2 speakers]] in South Africa (2002)<ref>Webb, Vic. 2002. "Language in South Africa: the role of language in national transformation, reconstruction and development." ''Impact: Studies in language and society,'' 14:78</ref>
| familycolor      = Niger-Congo
| fam2             = [[Atlantic–Congo languages|Atlantic–Congo]]
| fam3             = [[Volta–Congo languages|Volta–Congo]]
| fam4             = [[Benue–Congo languages|Benue–Congo]]
| fam5             = [[Bantoid languages|Bantoid]]
| fam6             = [[Southern Bantoid languages|Southern]]
| fam7             = [[Bantu languages|Bantu]]
| fam8             = [[Southern Bantu languages|Southern]]
| dia1             = Guvhu
| dia2             = Ilafuri
| dia3             = Lembetu
| dia4             = Manda
| dia5             = Mbedzi
| dia6             = Phani
| dia7             = Tavha-Tsindi
| script           = [[Latin script|Latin]] (Venda alphabet)<br/>[[Venda Braille]]<br>[[Ditema tsa Dinoko]]
| nation           = {{flag|Zimbabwe}}<br>{{flag|South Africa}}
| ethnicity        = [[Venda people|Venda]], [[Lemba people|Lemba]]
| iso1             = ve
| iso2             = ven
| iso3             = ven
| lingua           = [http://linguasphere.info/?page=linguascale&linguacode=99-AUT-b 99-AUT-b] incl. varieties<br/> 99-AUT-baa to 99-AUT-bad
| guthrie          = S.20 (S.21)
| map              = South Africa Venda speakers proportion map.svg
| mapcaption       = Geographical distribution of Tshivenda in South Africa: proportion of the population that speaks Tshivenda at home.
{{div col}}
{{legend|#EDF8E9|0–20%}}
{{legend|#BAE4B3|20–40%}}
{{legend|#74C476|40–60%}}
{{legend|#31A354|60–80%}}
{{legend|#006D2C|80–100%}}
{{div col end}}
| map2             = South Africa Venda speakers density map.svg
| mapcaption2      = Geographical distribution of Tshivenda in South Africa: density of Tshivenda home-language speakers.
{{div col}}
{{legend|#ffffcc|&lt;1 /km²}}
{{legend|#ffeda0|1–3 /km²}}
{{legend|#fed976|3–10 /km²}}
{{legend|#feb24c|10–30 /km²}}
{{legend|#fd8d3c|30–100 /km²}}
{{legend|#fc4e2a|100–300 /km²}}
{{legend|#e31a1c|300–1000 /km²}}
{{legend|#bc0026|1000–3000 /km²}}
{{legend|#800026|&gt;3000 /km²}}
{{div col end}}
| notice           = IPA
| sign             = [[Signed Venda]]
| glotto           = vend1245
| glottorefname    = Venda
}}
{{Infobox Bantu name
|root=Venda
|person='''Mu'''venda
|people='''Vha'''venda
|language='''Tshi'''venda
}}

'''Venḓa''' or '''Tshivenḓa''' is a [[Bantu languages|Bantu]] language and an [[Languages of South Africa|official language of South Africa]] and [[Zimbabwe]]. It is mainly spoken by the [[Venda people]] (or Vhavenḓa) in the northern part of South Africa's [[Limpopo|Limpopo province]], as well as by some [[Lemba people]] in [[South Africa]]. The Tshivenda language is related to [[Shona language|Shona (Karanga and Kalanga)]] which is spoken in [[Southern Africa]]. During the [[apartheid]] era of South Africa, the [[Bantustan]] of [[Venda]] was set up to cover the Venda speakers of [[South Africa]].

According to the 2011 [[census]], Venda speakers are concentrated in the following areas: [[Makhado Local Municipality]], with 350,000 people; [[Thulamela Local Municipality]], with 370,000 people; [[Musina Local Municipality]], with 35,000 people; and [[Mutale Local Municipality]], with 89,000 people. The total number of speakers in [[Vhembe District Municipality|Vhembe district]] currently stands at 844,000. In [[Gauteng|Gauteng province]], there are 275,000 Venda speakers. Fewer than 10,000 are spread across the rest of the country—for a total number of Venda speakers in South Africa at 1.2&nbsp;million people or just 2.2% of South Africa's population, making Venda speakers the second smallest minority language in South Africa, after the [[Southern Ndebele language|Ndebele language]], which number 1.1&nbsp;million speakers. The population statistics of the Venda people in [[Zimbabwe]] are not clear but may currently stand at a million. The people are concentrated in the South of the country but also spread to other towns and cities. There is also a significant number of them in neighbouring South Africa where they are [[Migrant worker|migrant workers]].

==Writing system==
The Venda language uses the [[Latin alphabet]] with five additional accented letters. There are four [[dental consonant]]s with a [[circumflex accent]] below the letter (''ḓ, ḽ, ṋ, ṱ'') and an [[overdot]] for [[velar consonant|velar]] ''ṅ''. Five vowel letters are used to write seven vowels. The letters C, J and Q are used only for [[Foreign Words|foreign words]] and names.
{| cellpadding=4 style="font-size:larger; text-align:center;" summary="Thirty-one letters of the Venda alphabet, capital and small"
|+ style="font-size:smaller;" | The Venda alphabet
|-
| A a || B b || (C c) || D d || Ḓ ḓ || E e || F f || G g ||
|-
| H h || I i || (J j) || K k || L l || Ḽ ḽ || M m || N n ||
|-
| Ṋ ṋ || Ṅ ṅ || O o || P p || (Q q) || R r || S s || T t ||
|-
| Ṱ ṱ || U u || V v || W w || X x || Y y || Z z ||
|}

{| class="wikitable"
! letter(s) !! value(s) in IPA !! notes
|-
| '''a'''|| {{IPA|[a]}}, {{IPA|[ɔ]}} ||
|-
| '''b'''|| {{IPA|[b]}} || 
|-
| bv || {{IPA|[b̪v]}} ||
|-
| bw || {{IPA|[bɣʷ]}} or {{IPA|[bj]}}|| Varies by dialect
|-
| '''d'''|| {{IPA|[d]}} ||
|-
| dz ||  {{IPA|[d͡z]}} || 
|-
| dzh || {{IPA|[d͡ʒ]}}  || Similar to English "j"
|-
| dzw || {{IPA|[d͡zʷ]}}|| 
|-
| '''ḓ'''|| {{IPA|[d̪]}} ||
|-
| '''e'''|| {{IPA|[ɛ]}}, {{IPA|[e]}} ||
|-
| '''f'''|| {{IPA|[f]}} || 
|-
| fh || {{IPA|[ɸ]}} ||
|-
| '''g'''|| {{IPA|[ɡ]}} || 
|-
| '''h'''|| {{IPA|[ɦ]}}, {{IPA|[h]}} || Pronounced {{IPA|[h]}} before ''e''.
|-
| hw || {{IPA|[ɣʷ], [hʷ]}}||
|-
| '''i'''|| {{IPA|[i]}} ||
|-
|'''j'''
|[j]
|In the word '''Jerusalema'''
|-
| '''k'''|| {{IPA|[kʼ]}}||
|-
| kh || {{IPA|[kʰ]}}  ||
|-
| khw || {{IPA|[kʷʰ]}}|| 
|-
| '''l'''|| {{IPA|[ɺ]}} ~ {{IPA|[l]}}||Heard as {{IPA|[l]}} in free variation.
|-
| '''ḽ'''|| {{IPA|[l̪]}} ||
|-
| '''m'''|| {{IPA|[m]}}, {{IPA|[m̩]}} || ''M'' is syllabic {{IPA|[m̩]}}, when the following syllable begins with ''m''. 
|-
| '''n'''|| {{IPA|[n]}}, {{IPA|[n̩]}} || ''N'' is syllabic when the following syllable begins with ''n''. 
|- 
| ng || {{IPA|[ŋɡ]}} || 
|-
| ny || {{IPA|[ɲ]}} ||
|- 
| nz || {{IPA|[nd͡z]}} ||
|- 
| '''ṋ'''|| {{IPA|[n̪]}} || 
|-
| '''ṅ'''|| {{IPA|[ŋ]}} ||
|-
| ṅw || {{IPA|[ŋʷ]}}|| 
|-
| '''o'''|| {{IPA|[ɔ]}}, {{IPA|[o]}} ||
|-
| '''p'''|| {{IPA|[pʼ]}}||
|-
| ph || {{IPA|[pʰ]}} || 
|-
| pf || {{IPA|[p̪f]}} || 
|-
| pfh || {{IPA|[p̪fʰ]}} || 
|-
| '''r'''|| {{IPA|[ɾ]}} ||
|-
| '''s'''|| {{IPA|[s]}} || 
|-
| sh || {{IPA|[ʃ]}} || 
|-
| sw || {{IPA|[ʂ]}} || 
|-
| '''t'''|| {{IPA|[tʼ]}}|| 
|-
| th || {{IPA|[tʰ]}} || 
|-
| ths|| {{IPA|[t͡sʰ]}}||
|-
| thsh || {{IPA|[t͡ʃʰ]}} ||
|-
|ts
|{{IPA|[t͡sʼ]}}
|
|-
|tsh
|{{IPA|[t͡ʃʼ]}}
|
|-
| tsw || {{IPA|[t͡sʷ]}}|| 
|-
| ty || {{IPA|[c]}} || 
|-
| '''ṱ'''|| {{IPA|[t̪ʼ]}} ||
|-
| ṱh || {{IPA|[t̪ʰ]}} ||
|-
| '''u'''|| {{IPA|[u]}} ||
|-
| '''v'''|| {{IPA|[v]}} ||
|-
| vh || {{IPA|[β]}} ||
|-
| '''w'''|| {{IPA|[w]}} ||
|-
| '''x'''|| {{IPA|[x]}} || Similar to the ''ch'' in Scottish ''loch''.
|-
| xw || {{IPA|[xʷ]}}|| 
|-
| '''y'''|| {{IPA|[j]}} ||
|-
| '''z'''|| {{IPA|[z]}} ||
|-
| zh || {{IPA|[ʒ]}} ||
|-
| zw || {{IPA|[ʐ]}} ||
|}

===Unicode===
The extra letters have the following [[Unicode]] names: 
* Ḓ U+1E12 LATIN CAPITAL LETTER D WITH CIRCUMFLEX BELOW
* ḓ U+1E13 LATIN SMALL LETTER D WITH CIRCUMFLEX BELOW
* Ḽ U+1E3C LATIN CAPITAL LETTER L WITH CIRCUMFLEX BELOW
* ḽ U+1E3D LATIN SMALL LETTER L WITH CIRCUMFLEX BELOW
* Ṅ U+1E44 LATIN CAPITAL LETTER N WITH DOT ABOVE
* ṅ U+1E45 LATIN SMALL LETTER N WITH DOT ABOVE
* Ṋ U+1E4A LATIN CAPITAL LETTER N WITH CIRCUMFLEX BELOW
* ṋ U+1E4B LATIN SMALL LETTER N WITH CIRCUMFLEX BELOW
* Ṱ U+1E70 LATIN CAPITAL LETTER T WITH CIRCUMFLEX BELOW
* ṱ U+1E71 LATIN SMALL LETTER T WITH CIRCUMFLEX BELOW
<!--
==Samples==
Some short samples of the language in the writing system(s) used to write the language. You might also include sound samples of the language being spoken.
-->
===Luṱhofunḓeraru lwa Mibvumo===
{{Importance section|date=July 2017}}
The ''sintu'' writing system ''Isibheqe Sohlamvu/[[Ditema tsa Dinoko]]'', known technically in Venda as ''Luṱhofunḓeraru lwa Mibvumo'', is also used for the Venda language.{{citation needed|date=July 2017}}
{| class="wikitable"
!''ṱala'' "divorce"
|
[[File:Ṱala.jpg|thumbnail|none|[t̪ʼaːɽa]]]
!''tala'' "draw a line"
|
[[File:Tala2.jpg|thumbnail|none|[tʼaːɽa]]]
|-
|}

==Phonology==
Venda distinguishes [[dental consonant|dental]] ''ṱ, ṱh, ḓ, ṋ, ḽ'' from [[alveolar consonant|alveolar]] ''t, th, d, n, l'' as well as (like in [[Ewe language|Ewe]]) [[labiodental]] ''f, v'' from [[bilabial]] ''fh, vh'' (the last two are slightly [[labialization|rounded]]). There are no clicks. As in other [[Languages of South Africa|South African languages]] like [[Zulu language|Zulu]], ''ph, ṱh, th, kh'' are aspirated and the "plain" stops ''p, ṱ, t,'' and ''k'' are [[ejective]].{{sfnp|Poulos|1990}}

===Vowels===
There are five vowel sounds in Tshivenḓa. 
{| class="wikitable" style=text-align:center
!
! [[Front vowel|Front]]
! [[Back vowel|Back]]
|-
! [[Close vowel|Close]]
| {{IPAlink|i}}
| {{IPAlink|u}}
|-
! [[Mid vowel|Mid]]
| {{IPAlink|ɛ}}
| {{IPAlink|ɔ}}
|-
! [[Open vowel|Open]]
| colspan="2" | {{IPAlink|a}}
|}

===Consonants===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" |
! colspan="3" | [[Bilabial consonant|Bilabial]]
! rowspan="2" |[[Labiodental consonant|Labio-<br> dental]]
! rowspan="2" |[[Dental consonant|Dental]]
! colspan="4" | [[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
! rowspan="2" | [[Palatal consonant|Palatal]]/<br>[[Postalveolar consonant|Post-<br> alveolar]]
! colspan="2" | [[Velar consonant|Velar]]
! rowspan="2" | [[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
!<small>plain</small>!!<small>lab.</small>!!<small>pal.</small>
!<small>plain</small>
!<small>sib.</small>!!<small>lab.</small>!!<small>pal.</small>
!<small>plain</small>!!<small>lab.</small>
|-
! colspan="2" |[[Nasal consonant|Nasal]]
|{{IPAlink|m}}
|
|{{IPAlink|mʲ}}
|({{IPAlink|ɱ}})
|{{IPAlink|n̪}}
|{{IPAlink|n}}
|
|
|
|{{IPAlink|ɲ}}
|{{IPAlink|ŋ}}
|{{IPAlink|ŋʷ}}
|
|-
! rowspan="3" |[[Plosive]]/<br>[[Affricate]]
!<small>ejective</small>
| {{IPAlink|pʼ}}
| {{IPAlink|pʷʼ}}
| {{IPAlink|pʲʼ}}
|{{IPAlink|p̪fʼ}}
| {{IPAlink|t̪ʼ}}
| {{IPAlink|tʼ}}
|{{IPAlink|tsʼ}}
|{{IPAlink|tsʷʼ}}
| {{IPAlink|tʲʼ}}
|{{IPAlink|tʃʼ}}
| {{IPAlink|kʼ}}
|
|
|-
! <small>aspirated</small>
| {{IPAlink|pʰ}}
| {{IPAlink|pʷʰ}}
| {{IPAlink|pʲʰ}}
|{{IPAlink|p̪fʰ}}
| {{IPAlink|t̪ʰ}}
| {{IPAlink|tʰ}}
|{{IPAlink|tsʰ}}
|{{IPAlink|tsʷʰ}}
|
|{{IPAlink|tʃʰ}}
| {{IPAlink|kʰ}}
|
|
|-
!<small>voiced</small>
| {{IPAlink|b}}
| {{IPAlink|bʷ}}
| {{IPAlink|bʲ}}
|{{IPAlink|b̪v}}
| {{IPAlink|d̪}}
| {{IPAlink|d}}
|{{IPAlink|dz}}
|{{IPAlink|dzʷ}}
| {{IPAlink|dʲ}}
|{{IPAlink|dʒ}}
| {{IPAlink|ɡ}}
|
|
|-
! rowspan="2" | [[Fricative]]
!<small>voiceless</small>
| {{IPAlink|ɸ}}
|
|
| {{IPAlink|f}}
|
|
|{{IPAlink|s}}
| {{IPAlink|sʷ}}
|
| {{IPAlink|ʃ}}
| {{IPAlink|x}}
|
| {{IPAlink|h}}
|-
!<small>voiced</small>
| {{IPAlink|β}}
|
|
| {{IPAlink|v}}
|
|
|{{IPAlink|z}}
| {{IPAlink|zʷ}}
|
| {{IPAlink|ʒ}}
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2" | [[Approximant]]
|
|
|
|
|{{IPAlink|l̪}}
|({{IPAlink|l}})
|
|
|
|{{IPAlink|j}}
|
| {{IPAlink|w}}
|
|-
! rowspan="2" |[[Rhotic consonant|Rhotic]]
!<small>voiced</small>
|
|
|
|
|
|{{IPAlink|r}}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|-
!<small>flap</small>
|
|
|
|
|
|{{IPAlink|ɺ}}
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|}

A labiodental nasal {{IPA|/ɱ/}} sound appears in prenasalised consonant sounds. {{IPA|[l]}} is mostly heard as an allophone of {{IPA|/ɺ/}} in free variation and in loanwords. Labiovelar sounds occur as alternatives to labiopalatal sounds and may also be pronounced {{IPA|/pkʰ pkʼ bɡ mŋ/}}.{{sfnp|Poulos|1990}} [[Fortition]] of {{IPA|/ɸ β s ʃ x h l̪ ɺ r w/}} occurs after nasal prefixes, likely to {{IPA|[pʰ? b tsʰ tʃʰ kʰ? pʰ d̪ d d b]}}.<ref>Netshisaulu N.C & Nyoni A. 2021. Tshivenḓa Tsho Vhibvaho. World wide Publishers </ref>

===Tones===
Venda has a specified tone, {{sc|high}}, with unmarked syllables having a low tone. [[Phonetics|Phonetic]] falling tone occurs only in sequences of more than one vowel or on the penultimate syllable if the vowel is long. Tone patterns exist independently of the [[Consonant|consonants]] and vowels of a word and so they are [[word tone]]s. Venda tone also follows [[Meeussen's rule]]: when a word beginning with a high tone is preceded by that high tone, the initial high tone is lost. (That is, there cannot be two adjacent marked high tones in a word, but high tone spreads allophonically to a following non-tonic ("low"-tone) syllable.) There are only a few tone patterns in Venda words (no tone, a single high tone on some syllable, two non-adjacent high tones), which behave as follows:

{|class=wikitable
!Word!!Pattern!!After L!!After H!!Notes
|-
!thamana
| –.–.–
|thàmà:nà||thámâ:nà
|Unmarked (low) tone is raised after a high tone. That is, the preceding tone spreads.
|-
!dukana
| –.–.H
|dùkà:ná||dúkâ:ná
|A preceding high tone spreads but drops before the final high tone.
|-
!danana
| –.H.–
|dàná:nà||dánâ:nà
|rowspan=2|The pitch peaks on the tonic syllable, and a preceding non-adjacent high tone merges into it.
|-
!phaphama
| –.H.–
|phàphá:ná||pháphâ:nà
|-
!madzhie
| H.–
|má:dzhíè||mâ:dzhìè
|rowspan=3|Initial high tone spreads. With an immediately preceding high tone, that initial tone is lost.<br>(The preceding tone also spreads but not as far.)
|-
!dakalo
|H.–.–
|dáká:lò||dákà:lò
|-
!khokhola
| H.–.H
|khókhô:lá||khókhò:lá
|}

== References ==
<references/>

==Sources==
* {{cite book |last1=Poulos |first1=George |title=A Linguistic Analysis of Venda |date=1990 |publisher=Via Afrika |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=en0OAAAAYAAJ }}

==External links==
{{interwiki|code=ve}}
*[https://www.scribd.com/doc/99457571/Tshivenda-is-Being-Learned Tshivenḓa Grammar Guide] by Zach Gershkoff, US [[Peace Corps]] (2012).
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070322025306/http://www.panafril10n.org/wikidoc/pmwiki.php/PanAfrLoc/Venda PanAfrican L10n page on Venda]
*[http://ve.kasahorow.org/app/d Young kasahorow Dictionary in Venda] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210619165048/https://ve.kasahorow.org/app/d |date=19 June 2021 }}

===Software===
* [http://translate.org.za/ Translate.org.za] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070114015602/http://translate.org.za/ |date=14 January 2007 }} Project to translate Free and Open Source Software into all the official languages of South Africa, including Venda

{{Languages of South Africa}}
{{Languages of Zimbabwe}}
{{Narrow Bantu languages (Zones N–S)}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Venda language}}
[[Category:Venda language| ]]
[[Category:Southern Bantu languages]]<!-- language family category -->
[[Category:Languages of South Africa]]<!-- country category -->
[[Category:Languages of Zimbabwe]]
[[Category:Venda| language]]