localize-sw

Localize: Swahili (sw → Kiswahili)

You are translating source text into Swahili for East Africa. This skill captures grammar, register, UI conventions, formatting, and Swahili-specific failure modes derived from a production translation prompt.

Scope & Variants

Swahili has two primary localization targets used in software, both based on the same literary standard (Kiswahili sanifu) but with minor lexical preferences:

• sw-TZ — Tanzanian Swahili. Tanzania uses Kiswahili as a co-official language alongside English and as the primary medium of instruction in primary school. BAKITA (Baraza la Kiswahili la Taifa — the National Swahili Council of Tanzania) is the official language regulator and the arbiter of standard usage. Tanzanian Swahili is generally considered the "purer" or more formal standard, with stronger preference for native Bantu vocabulary and Arabic loans over English calques.
• sw-KE — Kenyan Swahili. Kenya uses Kiswahili as a co-official language alongside English. Kenyan usage tends to be more permissive of English loanwords (computer, email, print are often code-switched) and is influenced by Sheng (Nairobi urban mix of Swahili + English + ethnic languages), though Sheng is NOT used in formal UI. The Chama cha Kiswahili cha Taifa (CHAKITA) plays a similar standardizing role.

Also significant:

• sw-UG — Uganda. Swahili was made an official language in 2005 but English remains dominant in software; Swahili UIs use Tanzanian-style sanifu.
• sw-CD — DR Congo. Swahili is one of four national languages, predominant in eastern provinces. Often called Kingwana — a regional variety with French loanword influence — but software localization uses standard sanifu.
• sw-RW, sw-BI — Rwanda, Burundi. Swahili is a recognized language alongside Kinyarwanda/Kirundi and French/English; software is rarely localized into Swahili specifically for these markets.

Default UI register: Tanzanian-style Kiswahili sanifu, which Kenya largely follows. This is the safest choice for pan-East-African software because:

1. Tanzania has the largest Swahili-as-first-language population (~15M L1 speakers, ~50M total).
2. BAKITA-aligned vocabulary is universally understood in Kenya, Uganda, and beyond.
3. It avoids Sheng-flavored Kenyan colloquialisms that Tanzanians or formal Kenyans may find unprofessional.

Native name: Kiswahili (the language — note the Ki- prefix from class 7, which is the noun class used for languages). Use "Kiswahili" in UI when naming the language itself.

Identity Guardrail

Swahili is Bantu (Niger-Congo, Atlantic-Congo, Volta-Congo, Benue-Congo, Bantoid, Southern Bantoid, Narrow Bantu, Sabaki). Closest sister languages: other Sabaki languages (Comorian Shikomori, Mwani, Pokomo). Wider family: ~500 Bantu languages across sub-Saharan Africa (Zulu, Xhosa, Shona, Kikuyu, Luganda, Lingala, Kinyarwanda, etc.) — all share the noun-class system, agglutinative verb morphology, and concord.

Swahili is NOT:

• NOT Arabic — despite ~20% of vocabulary being Arabic loanwords (kitabu from kitāb, salama from salām, shule from school via German/Arabic, dunia from dunyā), Swahili grammar is fundamentally Bantu. Arabic is Afro-Asiatic, has root-and-pattern morphology, three-letter consonantal roots, masculine/feminine gender, dual number, and VSO order. Swahili has none of these — it has noun classes, agglutinative prefix-stacking verbs, no gender, no dual, and SVO. Do NOT treat Swahili as "African Arabic." The Arabic vocabulary layer is comparable to French loanwords in English: lexical influence, zero grammatical influence.
• NOT closely related to Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo, Zulu/Xhosa, Amharic, Somali, etc. — Hausa is Afro-Asiatic (Chadic). Yoruba and Igbo are Niger-Congo but Volta-Niger branch, NOT Bantu. Zulu/Xhosa ARE Bantu but South Bantu (very distant cousins, ~3000+ years diverged from Swahili — about as related as English to Hindi). Amharic and Somali are Afro-Asiatic Semitic and Cushitic respectively. Do NOT translate Swahili by analogy with any of these.
• NOT Sheng. Sheng is a Nairobi-origin urban mix of Swahili grammar with English, Kikuyu, Luo, and Dholuo vocabulary. It is heavily slang-based, age-marked (teen/young-adult), and used in informal conversation, music (genge, gengetone), and street advertising. Sheng is inappropriate for software UI, formal writing, or any text intended to be understood across age groups and regions. UI uses Kiswahili sanifu.
• NOT historically Arabic-script. Swahili was indeed historically written in Ajami (a modified Arabic script) on the coast of East Africa from roughly the 13th century onward, but since the 19th century the standard script has been Latin (adopted under European colonial education and standardized at the 1928 Mombasa conference). All modern UI, books, newspapers, and digital content use Latin script. Do NOT output Arabic script.

Closest practical neighbors:

• Comorian (Shikomori) — same Sabaki subgroup, ~50% mutually intelligible to literate Swahili speakers.
• Mijikenda languages (Giriama, Digo) — coastal Kenya, Sabaki cousins.
• Other Bantu languages share the noun-class concept but with different class numbers, prefixes, and vocabulary — a Zulu speaker would recognize the system but not the words.

Register

Default level: Polite-standard sanifu for software UI, errors, documentation, marketing.

Swahili does NOT have a strict T-V distinction like French tu/vous, German du/Sie, or Hungarian te/Ön. Politeness is achieved through:

Mechanism	Casual	Polite-standard (UI)
Pronoun	wewe (you sg), nyinyi/ninyi (you pl)	same — wewe is universal
Vocabulary	colloquial	formal Bantu / Arabic loans
Verb form	bare imperative	subjunctive (-e final), or imperative + tafadhali
Sentence shape	terse	structured

	wewe (you, sg)	ninyi (you, pl)
Subject prefix	u-	m-
Object prefix	-ku-	-wa-/-eni
Imperative	Hifadhi! Soma!	Hifadhini! Someni! (with -ni suffix)
Subjunctive	uhifadhi, usome	mhifadhi, msome
Possessive	-ako (kitabu chako)	-enu (kitabu chenu)

The critical insight: Politeness in Swahili comes from word choice and structure, not from a separate formal pronoun. A button labeled Hifadhi (Save — bare imperative) is not impolite; it is the norm. Adding Tafadhali hifadhi ("please save") on every button would be excessively polite and feel non-native.

Examples of register calibration:

• UI button: Hifadhi (correct — direct imperative, polite-standard)
• Polite request: Tafadhali ingiza nenosiri lako (please enter your password — tafadhali reserved for high-stakes prompts)
• Casual/Sheng (WRONG for UI): Hifadhi maze (save dude), Hebu save (let me save), Sasa unataka kufanya nini? (what do you wanna do now — colloquial conversational opener)

Within a file, ONE register only. Mixing sanifu with Sheng terms (e.g. mzee for "old version", noma for "great") is always wrong in UI.

Pronouns of address:

• wewe — singular "you", default for UI addressed to a single user. Not impolite.
• ninyi/nyinyi — plural "you", for messages addressed to multiple users (e.g. team mentions).
• Bwana (Mr.), Bibi (Mrs.), Mwalimu (Teacher), Daktari (Doctor) — honorifics for direct address, used in customer-service messaging but rarely in pure UI.

Do not use Heshima ("respect" / royal we) or archaic forms. They sound formal-stilted.

Critical Hard Rules

Noun Class System (severity 3.0 — THE single most important Swahili rule)

Swahili has 15–18 noun classes, traditionally numbered 1–18 (some classes are rare or merged in modern usage). Each noun belongs to a class indicated by its prefix; the class governs the prefixes of every agreeing word in the sentence (adjectives, verbs, possessives, demonstratives, relative pronouns). This is concord, and getting it wrong is the most common and most jarring translation error.

The 9 core class pairs (singular/plural) plus standalone classes:

#	Sg/Pl	Noun prefix	Subject prefix	Adj prefix	Possessive prefix	Demonstrative	Typical content	Examples
1/2	M-/Wa-	m-/wa-	a-/wa-	m-/wa-	wangu/wetu...	huyu/hawa	People	mtu/watu (person/people), mtoto/watoto (child/children), mwalimu/walimu (teacher/teachers), mtumiaji/watumiaji (user/users)
3/4	M-/Mi-	m-/mi-	u-/i-	m-/mi-	wangu/yangu...	huu/hii	Plants, body parts, abstract, natural forces	mti/miti (tree/trees), mkono/mikono (hand/hands), mlima/milima (mountain/mountains), mfumo/mifumo (system/systems)
5/6	Ji-/Ma-	(Ø)/ma-	li-/ya-	(Ø)/ma-	langu/yangu...	hili/haya	Augmentatives, collectives, paired body parts, fruits	jicho/macho (eye/eyes), jiwe/mawe (stone/stones), jina/majina (name/names), tunda/matunda (fruit/fruits), tokeo/matokeo (result/results)
7/8	Ki-/Vi-	ki-/vi-	ki-/vi-	ki-/vi-	changu/vyangu...	hiki/hivi	Things, manner, instruments, languages, diminutives	kitu/vitu (thing/things), kiti/viti (chair/chairs), kitabu/vitabu (book/books), kitufe/vitufe (button/buttons), Kiswahili (language names are class 7)
9/10	N-/N-	(Ø)/(Ø)	i-/zi-	(Ø)/(Ø)	yangu/zangu...	hii/hizi	Animals, abstract nouns, loanwords (including most English/Arabic tech terms)	mbwa/mbwa (dog/dogs, same), ndege/ndege (bird/birds, same), nyumba/nyumba (house/houses), faili/faili (file/files), kompyuta/kompyuta (computer/computers), barua/barua (letter/letters)
11/(10)	U-	u-	u-/zi-	wangu/zangu	huu/hizi	Abstracts, mass nouns, long thin things (plural shifts to class 10)	uhuru (freedom — usually no plural), upendo (love — no plural), wakati/nyakati (time/times — irregular pl)
14	U-	u-	u-	wangu	huu	Abstract nouns (often no plural)	ujamaa (family/community/socialism), ukweli (truth), umoja (unity)
15	Ku-	ku-	ku-	(—)	(—)	(—)	Verbal infinitives, gerunds (verb-nouns)	kufanya (to do / doing), kusoma (to read / reading), kuhifadhi (to save / saving)
16	Pa- (locative)	pa-	pa-	—	—	hapa	Specific location (formed with -ni suffix on a noun)	nyumbani (at home), shuleni (at school), failini (in the file)
17	Ku- (locative)	ku-	ku-	—	—	huku	General/indefinite location, direction	kule (over there), kwenye (at/in — preposition)
18	Mu-/Mw- (locative)	m(u)-	mu-	—	—	humu	Inside (enclosed)	ndani (inside), mwituni (in the forest)

Concord example — a complete sentence with class agreement spreading:

Mtumiaji huyu mzuri anasoma kitabu chake kipya. = "This good user is reading their new book."

Breaking it down:

• mtumiaji (user) — class 1 (M-Wa)
• huyu (this) — class 1 demonstrative
• mzuri (good) — class 1 adjective prefix m-
• a-na-soma (he/she-PRES-read) — class 1 subject prefix a-
• kitabu (book) — class 7 (Ki-Vi)
• chake (his/her) — class 7 possessive prefix ch- (a phonological variant of ki-)
• kipya (new) — class 7 adjective prefix ki-

The class of mtumiaji (class 1) controls huyu, mzuri, and the verb prefix a-. The class of kitabu (class 7) controls chake and kipya. The two classes do NOT cross over.

Concord in plural:

Watumiaji hawa wazuri wanasoma vitabu vyao vipya.

• watumiaji (users) — class 2
• hawa (these) — class 2 demonstrative
• wazuri (good, pl) — class 2 adjective prefix wa-
• wa-na-soma — class 2 subject prefix wa-
• vitabu (books) — class 8
• vyao (their) — class 8 possessive prefix vy-
• vipya (new, pl) — class 8 adjective prefix vi-

The most common concord errors in UI translation:

Wrong	Correct	Why
faili mpya (with class-9 prefix on adj)	faili jipya (often) OR faili mpya (acceptable — see note)	Class 9 N-class typically has Ø prefix on adjectives, so adjectives starting with vowel get N- or the bare form; the rule is complicated by whether the adjective is Bantu (takes prefix) or Arabic (no prefix). mpya happens to be invariant here.
kitufe mpya	kitufe kipya	Class 7 button needs class-7 prefix ki- on the adjective
mifumo mpya	mifumo mipya	Class 4 plural systems need class-4 prefix mi- on the adjective
matokeo nzuri	matokeo mazuri	Class 6 results need class-6 prefix ma- on the adjective
watumiaji wengi	watumiaji wengi (correct)	Class 2 users with class-2 wa- prefix (here w- because of vowel sandhi)

Subject-prefix-on-verb errors:

Wrong	Correct	Why
Faili **a**nahifadhiwa	Faili **i**nahifadhiwa	Class 9 (faili) takes i-, not a- (class 1)
Mfumo **i**nafanya kazi	Mfumo **u**nafanya kazi	Class 3 (mfumo) takes u-, not i- (class 9)
Vitufe **i**nafanya kazi	Vitufe **vi**nafanya kazi	Class 8 (vitufe) takes vi-, not i-
Matokeo **i**meonekana	Matokeo **ya**meonekana	Class 6 (matokeo) takes ya-, not i-
Watumiaji **a**meingia	Watumiaji **wa**meingia	Class 2 (watumiaji) takes wa-, not a-

Quick lookup table for UI nouns and their classes:

English	Swahili	Class (sg/pl)	Subject prefix (sg/pl)	Adjective prefix (sg/pl)
user	mtumiaji / watumiaji	1/2	a-/wa-	m-/wa-
system	mfumo / mifumo	3/4	u-/i-	m-/mi-
setting	mpangilio / mipangilio	3/4	u-/i-	m-/mi-
button	kitufe / vitufe	7/8	ki-/vi-	ki-/vi-
file	faili / faili	9/10	i-/zi-	(no prefix)
folder	folda / folda	9/10	i-/zi-	(no prefix)
password	nenosiri / manenosiri (or nywila)	5/6 (or 9/10)	li-/ya-	(Ø/ma-)
message	ujumbe / jumbe	11/10	u-/zi-	(varies)
result	tokeo / matokeo	5/6	li-/ya-	(Ø/ma-)
document	hati / hati	9/10	i-/zi-	(no prefix)
account	akaunti / akaunti	9/10	i-/zi-	(no prefix)
email	barua pepe / barua pepe	9/10	i-/zi-	(no prefix)
link	kiungo / viungo	7/8	ki-/vi-	ki-/vi-
browser	kivinjari / vivinjari	7/8	ki-/vi-	ki-/vi-
window	dirisha / madirisha	5/6	li-/ya-	(Ø/ma-)
computer	kompyuta / kompyuta	9/10	i-/zi-	(no prefix)
network	mtandao / mitandao	3/4	u-/i-	m-/mi-
server	seva / seva	9/10	i-/zi-	(no prefix)
screen	skrini / skrini	9/10	i-/zi-	(no prefix)
language	lugha / lugha	9/10	i-/zi-	(no prefix)

Memorization shortcut: Most English tech loanwords land in class 9/10 (N-class) — same form for singular and plural, takes i-/zi- subject prefixes, and adjectives generally appear in their bare form. This is why faili imehifadhiwa works the same for one file or many files (you'd add a number to disambiguate).

Verb Morphology — Agglutinative Stacking (severity 2.5)

Swahili verbs are built by stacking morphemes in a fixed order:

Subject prefix (SM) + Tense/Aspect (TAM) + (Object prefix OM) + Verb root + (Extension) + Final vowel (FV)

Worked example:

• a-li-ki-pik-i-a = "he/she-PAST-it-cook-applied-FINAL"
• Translation: "he/she cooked it for [someone]"
• Morpheme by morpheme:
  • a- = 3rd person singular subject (class 1)
  • -li- = past tense marker
  • -ki- = object marker (class 7 "it")
  • -pik- = verb root "cook"
  • -i- = applicative extension ("for/to")
  • -a = final vowel (indicative)

Subject prefixes (personal):

Person	Subject prefix	Example with -soma (read)
1sg (I)	ni-	ninasoma (I read)
2sg (you)	u-	unasoma (you read)
3sg (he/she)	a-	anasoma (he/she reads)
1pl (we)	tu-	tunasoma (we read)
2pl (you all)	m-	mnasoma (you all read)
3pl (they, people)	wa-	wanasoma (they read)

For non-person subjects, the subject prefix matches the noun class (see noun class table above).

Tense/Aspect markers (TAM):

Marker	Meaning	Example (a- subject)	Translation
-na-	present (general/progressive)	anasoma	he/she reads / is reading
-li-	past (simple)	alisoma	he/she read
-ta-	future	atasoma	he/she will read
-me-	perfect (completed, result-state)	amesoma	he/she has read
-ki-	conditional / "while" / "if"	akisoma	if/while he/she reads
-nge-	hypothetical "would"	angesoma	he/she would read
-ngali-	counterfactual "would have"	angalisoma	he/she would have read
-ja-	"not yet" (negative perfect)	hajasoma	he/she hasn't read yet
hu-	habitual (no subject prefix)	husoma	he/she usually reads
-∅-	subjunctive (bare, final vowel -e)	asome	he/she should read
-ka-	consecutive ("and then")	akasoma	and then he/she read

Extensions (verb-final suffixes that modify meaning):

Suffix	Function	Example
-i- / -e-	applicative ("for/to")	pikia = cook for; somea (read to)
-ish- / -esh-	causative ("make X happen")	somesha = teach (make read); pikisha = make cook
-ek- / -ik-	stative / potential ("be Xable")	someka = be readable; pikika = be cookable
-w- (before final -a)	passive	somwa = be read; pikwa = be cooked; hifadhiwa = be saved
-an-	reciprocal ("each other")	somana = read each other; saidiana = help each other

Common UI verb patterns:

English UI form	Swahili	Morpheme breakdown
Saving... (system status)	Inahifadhi...	i- (class 9 SM) -na- (PRES) hifadhi (root)
Saved	Imehifadhiwa	i- (class 9) -me- (PERF) hifadhi (root) -w- (PASS) -a (FV)
Save (button)	Hifadhi	bare imperative — verb root as command
Will save (future status)	Itahifadhiwa	i- (class 9) -ta- (FUT) hifadhi -w- -a
Not saved yet	Haijahifadhiwa	ha- (NEG) -i- (class 9 SM) -ja- (not yet) hifadhi -w- -a
Loading...	Inapakia...	i- -na- pakia
Loaded	Imepakia (intrans) / Imepakiwa (passive)	i- -me- pakia (-w-) -a
Click here	Bofya hapa	bofya imperative + hapa "here"
Please click	Tafadhali bofya	tafadhali (Arabic loan, "please") + bofya
You should save	Uhifadhi	u- (2sg SM) hifadhi -i (subjunctive FV — i replaces final -i but irregular here, often written uhifadhi)
Don't save	Usihifadhi	u- (2sg) -si- (negative subjunctive) hifadhi

The status-vs-command distinction:

• System status messages use the impersonal class-9 prefix i- (or the appropriate class for the subject noun) + tense marker:
  • Inapakia... = it/the-file is loading
  • Imehifadhiwa = it has been saved
• Commands/buttons use the bare imperative (just the verb root with final vowel):
  • Hifadhi = Save!
  • Futa = Delete!
  • Tuma = Send!
• DO NOT mix first/second person into system status: ❌ Ninapakia faili yako... ("I am loading your file") — too personal. ✅ Inapakia...

Concord on Adjectives — The "kitufe mpya" Trap (severity 2.5)

Adjectives in Swahili come AFTER the noun and take a concord prefix that matches the noun's class. This is one of the most error-prone areas because:

1. Many English-derived loan adjectives (in class 9) appear unchanged.
2. Bantu-origin adjectives almost always change.
3. The prefix form sometimes drops or assimilates phonologically.

Bantu adjective stems that take concord:

Stem	Meaning	Class 1 sg	Class 2 pl	Class 3 sg	Class 4 pl	Class 7 sg	Class 8 pl	Class 9 sg	Class 10 pl
-pya	new	mpya	wapya	mpya	mipya	kipya	vipya	mpya	mpya
-zuri	good/beautiful	mzuri	wazuri	mzuri	mizuri	kizuri	vizuri	nzuri	nzuri
-baya	bad	mbaya	wabaya	mbaya	mibaya	kibaya	vibaya	mbaya	mbaya
-dogo	small	mdogo	wadogo	mdogo	midogo	kidogo	vidogo	ndogo	ndogo
-kubwa	big	mkubwa	wakubwa	mkubwa	mikubwa	kikubwa	vikubwa	kubwa	kubwa
-refu	long/tall	mrefu	warefu	mrefu	mirefu	kirefu	virefu	ndefu	ndefu
-eupe	white/clear	mweupe	weupe	mweupe	myeupe	cheupe	vyeupe	nyeupe	nyeupe

Loan adjectives (mostly Arabic, English) — INVARIANT (no concord):

Adjective	Meaning
bora	best/excellent
safi	clean/fine
ghali	expensive
rahisi	easy/cheap
tayari	ready
hodari	skilled/capable
muhimu	important
salama	safe/peaceful

These are used as-is regardless of noun class: kitufe rahisi, mfumo rahisi, matokeo rahisi, watumiaji rahisi (though semantics may force a different word).

Worked examples:

Wrong	Correct	Class explanation
kitufe mpya ❌	kitufe kipya ✅	Class 7 → ki- prefix on -pya
mfumo kipya ❌	mfumo mpya ✅	Class 3 → m- prefix on -pya (mpya, identical to class 1)
mifumo mpya ❌	mifumo mipya ✅	Class 4 plural → mi- prefix on -pya
vitufe mpya ❌	vitufe vipya ✅	Class 8 plural → vi- prefix on -pya
matokeo mazuri ✅	matokeo mazuri ✅	Class 6 → ma- prefix on -zuri (correct)
faili kubwa ✅	faili kubwa ✅	Class 9 → bare/Ø prefix on -kubwa (correct as-is)
nyumba kubwa ✅	nyumba kubwa ✅	Class 9 → bare prefix (correct)
watu wengi ✅	watu wengi ✅	Class 2 → wa- prefix on -ingi → wengi (vowel sandhi)
vitabu vingi ✅	vitabu vingi ✅	Class 8 → vi- + -ingi → vingi

Possessives — Agree with the POSSESSED, Not the Possessor (severity 2.0)

Possessive pronouns in Swahili agree with the possessed noun's class, not the possessor's gender or number. The stem is the person/number of the possessor, the prefix is the class of the possessed thing.

Possessor stems:

Possessor	Stem
my (1sg)	-angu
your sg (2sg)	-ako
his/her (3sg)	-ake
our (1pl)	-etu
your pl (2pl)	-enu
their (3pl)	-ao

Concord prefix on possessive by class:

Class	Prefix	"my"	"your sg"	"his/her"	"our"	"your pl"	"their"
1 (mtu)	w-	wangu	wako	wake	wetu	wenu	wao
2 (watu)	w-	wangu	wako	wake	wetu	wenu	wao
3 (mfumo)	w-	wangu	wako	wake	wetu	wenu	wao
4 (mifumo)	y-	yangu	yako	yake	yetu	yenu	yao
5 (tokeo)	l-	langu	lako	lake	letu	lenu	lao
6 (matokeo)	y-	yangu	yako	yake	yetu	yenu	yao
7 (kitabu)	ch-	changu	chako	chake	chetu	chenu	chao
8 (vitabu)	vy-	vyangu	vyako	vyake	vyetu	vyenu	vyao
9 (faili)	y-	yangu	yako	yake	yetu	yenu	yao
10 (faili pl)	z-	zangu	zako	zake	zetu	zenu	zao
11 (uhuru)	w-	wangu	wako	wake	wetu	wenu	wao
14 (ujamaa)	w-	wangu	wako	wake	wetu	wenu	wao

Worked examples:

English	Swahili	Class
my book	kitabu changu	7
my books	vitabu vyangu	8
my people	watu wangu	2
my file	faili yangu	9
my files	faili zangu	10 (same noun, possessive differs!)
my system	mfumo wangu	3
my systems	mifumo yangu	4
my result	tokeo langu	5
my results	matokeo yangu	6
your account	akaunti yako	9
your accounts	akaunti zako	10
our settings	mipangilio yetu	4
their messages	jumbe zao	10

Subject Pronouns are PRO-DROP (severity 1.5)

Because the verb prefix already encodes the subject, the standalone subject pronouns (mimi, wewe, yeye, sisi, ninyi, wao) are omitted in most contexts. They appear only for emphasis or contrast.

Wrong (overuses pronoun)	Correct (pro-drop)
Wewe unaweza kuhifadhi faili.	Unaweza kuhifadhi faili. ✅
Mimi ninapakia...	Inapakia... ✅ (impersonal system voice)
Sisi tunapakia faili yako	Inapakia... ✅

For UI imperatives, drop pronouns entirely: Hifadhi, Futa, Bofya hapa — never Wewe hifadhi, Wewe futa, Wewe bofya hapa.

SVO Word Order (severity 1.5)

Neutral declarative sentences follow Subject-Verb-Object. Word order is flexible because the verb morphology marks subject (via SM) and object (via OM), but UI strings should stick to SVO for clarity.

Wrong	Correct	Why
Faili mpya alifungua mtumiaji ❌	Mtumiaji alifungua faili mpya ✅	SVO: user-opened-new-file
Imehifadhiwa faili ❌ (VS, marked)	Faili imehifadhiwa ✅	Neutral statements put subject first

VSO order is grammatical but signals emphasis/contrast — inappropriate for plain UI status messages.

No Articles — Definiteness from Context (severity 1.0)

Swahili has no a/the articles. Definiteness is inferred from context, demonstratives (huyu, hii, hiki), or the object marker on the verb. Do NOT translate English "the" or "a/an" with anything; just drop them.

English	Swahili
Save a file	Hifadhi faili
Save the file	Hifadhi faili (context decides)
Save this file	Hifadhi faili hili (demonstrative class 5/9 in some uses) — use hii for class 9: Hifadhi faili hii

If you need to make definiteness explicit, use a demonstrative (huyu, hawa, huu, hii, hiki, hivi, lile, yale, kile, vile) or an object marker on the verb (-ki- for class 7, -i- for class 9, etc.).

Negation (severity 2.0)

Swahili negates verbs by changing the subject prefix and (sometimes) adding a tense-specific suffix.

Affirmative	Negative present	Negative past	Negative perfect (not yet)	Negative future
Ninasoma (I read)	Sisomi	Sikusoma	Sijasoma	Sitasoma
Unasoma	Husomi	Hukusoma	Hujasoma	Hutasoma
Anasoma	Hasomi	Hakusoma	Hajasoma	Hatasoma
Tunasoma	Hatusomi	Hatukusoma	Hatujasoma	Hatutasoma
Mnasoma	Hamsomi	Hamkusoma	Hamjasoma	Hamtasoma
Wanasoma	Hawasomi	Hawakusoma	Hawajasoma	Hawatasoma

Pattern:

• Present negative: subject-prefix replaced by ha- (hu-, ha-, etc.) + verb root with final -i (not -a)
• Past negative: subject-prefix replaced by ha- + -ku- + verb root + final -a
• Perfect negative ("not yet"): ha- subject + -ja- + verb root + final -a — NOT just adding "si"

For non-person subjects, use the class negative form:

Class	Affirmative	Negative present	Negative perfect
9 (faili)	Inahifadhiwa	Haihifadhiwi	Haijahifadhiwa
3 (mfumo)	Unafanya kazi	Haufanyi kazi	Haujafanya kazi
7 (kitufe)	Kinabofyeka	Hakibofyeki	Hakijabofyeka

Wrong	Correct	Why
Faili si imehifadhiwa ❌	Faili haijahifadhiwa ✅	Use ha-...-ja- for negative perfect, not "si imehifadhiwa"
Si inafanya kazi ❌	Haifanyi kazi ✅	Class 9 negative present is hai-...-i
Hawakuwa wameingia ⚠	Hawakuingia / Hawajaingia ✅	Don't stack negatives; use the right negative tense

Numbers and Counting Concord (severity 2.0)

Cardinal numbers 1–5 agree with noun class (taking a concord prefix). Numbers 6 and above are invariant (no concord — they appear as bare numerals or in their Arabic-derived form).

Numeral	Class 1/2 (mtu)	Class 3/4 (mfumo)	Class 7/8 (kitabu)	Class 9/10 (faili)
1	mtu mmoja	mfumo mmoja	kitabu kimoja	faili moja
2	watu wawili	mifumo miwili	vitabu viwili	faili mbili
3	watu watatu	mifumo mitatu	vitabu vitatu	faili tatu
4	watu wanne	mifumo minne	vitabu vinne	faili nne
5	watu watano	mifumo mitano	vitabu vitano	faili tano
6	watu sita	mifumo sita	vitabu sita	faili sita
7+	watu saba, nane, tisa, kumi...	(all invariant)

Critical rule: Numbers 6 and above are Arabic loans (sita, saba, nane, tisa, ishirini, hamsini, mia, elfu) and they do not take noun-class concord.

English	Swahili
1 user	mtumiaji mmoja
2 users	watumiaji wawili
5 users	watumiaji watano
6 users	watumiaji sita (no concord)
10 users	watumiaji kumi
25 users	watumiaji ishirini na watano (← watano concords because of "5" inside "25")
100 users	watumiaji mia moja (or watumiaji 100)
1 file	faili moja
5 files	faili tano
100 files	faili 100 (or faili mia moja)

ICU plurals — Swahili has two CLDR categories: one and other. Both render with the morphological plural form via the noun's class prefix; the number agreement is encoded in the noun's class itself, not in extra plural forms.

{count, plural,
  one {faili # / # faili}
  other {faili # / # faili}
}

Note: Because class 9/10 nouns (faili, kompyuta, akaunti) don't change form between singular and plural, only the verb agreement changes. For class 7/8 (kitufe/vitufe), 3/4 (mfumo/mifumo), 1/2 (mtumiaji/watumiaji) etc., the noun form MUST switch:

{count, plural,
  one {mtumiaji #}
  other {watumiaji #}
}

{count, plural,
  one {kitufe kimoja}
  other {vitufe #}
}

Passive Voice (severity 1.5)

Swahili passives are formed by inserting -w- before the final vowel of the verb root. Used heavily in UI status messages.

Active (root)	Passive	Meaning
hifadhi	hifadhiwa	be saved
futa	futwa	be deleted
tuma	tumwa	be sent
pakia	pakiwa	be loaded/uploaded
pakua	pakuliwa	be downloaded
ona	onekana / onwa	be seen
chagua	chaguliwa	be chosen

Full passive form in UI status (class 9 subject, perfect tense):

Active concept	Passive UI form
Saved	Imehifadhiwa
Deleted	Imefutwa
Sent	Imetumwa
Uploaded	Imepakiwa
Downloaded	Imepakuliwa
Selected	Imechaguliwa

The "Fanya + Noun" Calque (severity 1.5)

English often uses make/do + noun ("make a decision", "do a search", "make changes"). Swahili usually has a single-verb equivalent that sounds more natural.

Wrong (fanya + noun)	Correct (single verb)	Meaning
fanya mabadiliko	badilisha	make changes / change
fanya uamuzi	amua	make a decision / decide
fanya uchaguzi	chagua	make a selection / choose
fanya utafiti	tafuta	do a search / search
fanya usasishaji	sasisha	do an update / update
fanya uhifadhi	hifadhi	do a save / save
fanya usafishaji	safisha	do cleaning / clean
fanya marekebisho	rekebisha	make corrections / correct
fanya muunganisho	unganisha	make a connection / connect

When fanya IS appropriate:

• Abstract or culturally-loaded actions: fanya kazi (work — literally "do work"), fanya hesabu (do math), fanya mazoezi (do exercise).
• When the noun is the specific point: fanya mtihani (sit an exam).

Latin Alphabet with ng' (severity 1.5)

Swahili uses standard Latin script with these letters: a, b, c, ch, d, dh, e, f, g, gh, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, ng, ng', ny, o, p, r, s, sh, t, th, u, v, w, y, z.

Key points:

• ng' with an apostrophe is a distinct letter (velar nasal /ŋ/), separate from the digraph ng (nasal+stop /ŋg/). They are NOT interchangeable.
  • ng'ombe = cow (/ŋombe/)
  • nguo = cloth (/ŋguo/)
  • ng'ang'ania = cling to (note the repeated ng')
• dh, gh, th appear in Arabic loanwords: dhambi (sin), ghali (expensive), thelathini (thirty). These represent the original Arabic sounds /ð/, /ɣ/, /θ/, though many speakers pronounce them as /z/, /g/, /s/.
• c alone is rare; mostly appears in proper nouns or as part of ch.
• No tones, no accents. Swahili lost the Bantu tone system entirely. Pronunciation is predictable from spelling.
• Stress on penultimate syllable (the second-to-last). Affects UI reading rhythm: ki-TA-bu, mtu-MIA-ji, Kis-wa-HI-li.

Time — Two Systems (severity 1.0)

Swahili has a traditional time-keeping system that differs from Western time by 6 hours:

Traditional Swahili time (Saa za Kiswahili): Day starts at 6 AM = saa moja asubuhi (hour 1 morning). So:

• 6:00 AM = saa kumi na mbili usiku / saa moja asubuhi
• 9:00 AM = saa tatu asubuhi (hour 3 morning)
• 12:00 noon = saa sita mchana (hour 6 midday)
• 3:00 PM = saa tisa mchana (hour 9 afternoon)
• 6:00 PM = saa kumi na mbili jioni (hour 12 evening)
• 9:00 PM = saa tatu usiku (hour 3 night)

Standard / international time (Saa za kimagharibi): Used in all modern UI, schedules, transport, broadcasting:

• 9:00 (am/asubuhi), 14:30, 21:00

UI rule: Use 24-hour international format (14:30) or 12-hour with asubuhi/mchana/jioni/usiku (morning/midday/afternoon/night) for AM/PM. Avoid traditional saa-based time in software UIs unless culturally targeted.

Wrong	Correct
saa 3 asubuhi (for 9 AM, in tech UI)	9:00 or 9:00 asubuhi
saa kumi mchana (for 4 PM)	16:00 or 4:00 mchana

Currency — Country-Specific (severity 1.0)

Country	Code	Symbol	Format	Notes
Tanzania	TZS	TSh or /=	TSh 1,000 or 1,000/=	The /= is traditional Tanzanian currency notation (equivalent to "shillings flat"). Both are widely understood.
Kenya	KES	KSh or Ksh.	KSh 1,000 or Ksh. 1,000	KSh is standard; Ksh. is older formal style.
Uganda	UGX	USh	USh 1,000
DRC	CDF	Fr or FC	Fr 1,000 or 1,000 FC	French-derived "franc congolais"; US dollars also widely used in commerce.
Rwanda	RWF	RF or FRw	RF 1,000
Burundi	BIF	FBu	FBu 1,000

For pan-EAC or cross-country UI:

• Show the amount in figures with no specific symbol, or use the ISO code (TZS 1,000) for clarity.
• Avoid hardcoding a single country's currency in shared UI.

Numbers and Decimal Format (severity 1.0)

Swahili (under English colonial-era influence) follows the Anglo-style numeric convention:

• Comma for thousands: 1,234, 1,234,567
• Period for decimals: 3.14, 0.5

(Contrast with European-style 1.234,56 which is NOT used.)

Wrong	Correct
3,14	3.14
1.000 (for one thousand)	1,000
1 000 (space thousands, French-style)	1,000

Very large numbers can use words:

• mia moja = 100
• elfu moja = 1,000
• milioni moja = 1,000,000
• bilioni moja = 1,000,000,000

Dates (severity 1.0)

Numeric format: DD/MM/YYYY (day-first, slash-separated). Example: 15/01/2024.

Long form (formal/written): 15 Januari 2024 or Tarehe 15 mwezi wa Januari mwaka 2024 (date 15 month-of January year 2024).

Month names (capitalized, English-derived):

#	Swahili	English
1	Januari	January
2	Februari	February
3	Machi	March
4	Aprili	April
5	Mei	May
6	Juni	June
7	Julai	July
8	Agosti	August
9	Septemba	September
10	Oktoba	October
11	Novemba	November
12	Desemba	December

Days of the week (Swahili days mix Bantu numerical counting with Arabic religious tradition):

Swahili	English	Etymology
Jumatatu	Monday	"first gathering day"
Jumanne	Tuesday	"second gathering"
Jumatano	Wednesday	"third gathering"
Alhamisi	Thursday	Arabic al-khamīs ("the fifth")
Ijumaa	Friday	Arabic al-jumʿa ("congregation" — Muslim prayer day)
Jumamosi	Saturday	"Moses day" (from Arabic)
Jumapili	Sunday	"Apollo day" / "first"

Wrong/Right:

Wrong	Correct
01/15/2024 (US format)	15/01/2024
2024-01-15 (ISO — acceptable but unusual in pure-Swahili UI)	15/01/2024 or 15 Januari 2024
january (lowercase)	Januari (capitalized)

Comma and Punctuation Rules (severity 1.0)

• NO comma before na (and), au (or), wala (nor): Hifadhi faili au funga dirisha (NOT Hifadhi faili, au funga dirisha).
• COMMA before lakini (but), kwa sababu (because), ingawa (although), ili (so that), kwamba (that), kama (if), wakati (when): Imeshindikana, kwa sababu seva haijibu.
• Quotation marks: standard double quotes "...". Single quotes '...' for nested.

Religious and Cultural Neutrality (severity 1.0)

East Africa is religiously diverse:

• Tanzania: ~60% Christian, ~35% Muslim (Zanzibar is 99% Muslim).
• Kenya: ~85% Christian, ~10% Muslim, indigenous religions present.
• Uganda: ~85% Christian, ~12% Muslim.
• Coastal regions (Swahili coast): historically Muslim majority.

UI guidelines:

• Avoid religious salutations (Asalaam aleikum — Muslim greeting; Bwana asifiwe — Christian "praise the Lord") in default UI.
• Default greeting: Habari (hello — neutral, lit. "news") or Karibu (welcome).
• Holiday names should be religion-neutral or country-specific: Sikukuu ya Idi (Eid), Krismasi (Christmas), Pasaka (Easter), Mwaka Mpya (New Year).
• Default date references use Gregorian calendar.

Cross-EAC Terminology Respect (severity 1.0)

Tanzanian and Kenyan Swahili sometimes prefer different terms for the same concept. UI for pan-East-African use should:

• Prefer the term that is mutually understood in both countries.
• Avoid heavily Kenya-specific or Tanzania-specific colloquialisms.

Concept	Tanzanian-leaning	Kenyan-leaning	Pan-EAC safe
Computer	kompyuta	kompyuta / computer	kompyuta
Phone	simu	simu	simu
Money	pesa	pesa / hela / doh (Sheng)	pesa
OK / yes	sawa / ndiyo	sawa / sawa-sawa / poa (Sheng)	sawa / ndiyo
Friend	rafiki	rafiki / jamaa	rafiki
Now	sasa	sasa / saa hii	sasa
Cool/great	nzuri / vizuri	poa (Sheng) / safi	nzuri / vizuri

UI Conventions

Button Labels — Bare Imperative

Swahili buttons use the imperative stem — the verb root with its final vowel (-a for most, -i for Arabic loans). NOT the infinitive (ku-), NOT present-tense ina-/una-, NOT subjunctive (-e final).

Wrong	Correct	Notes
Kuhifadhi (infinitive)	Hifadhi	Drop ku-
Unahifadhi (present 2sg)	Hifadhi	Drop subject + tense
Uhifadhi (subjunctive — overly polite)	Hifadhi	Subjunctive is for embedded clauses
Bonyeza hapa ili kuhifadhi (verbose)	Hifadhi	Be concise
Tafadhali hifadhi (please save)	Hifadhi	Tafadhali only for high-stakes prompts

English	Swahili button
Save	Hifadhi
Delete	Futa
Cancel	Ghairi / Sitisha
OK	Sawa
Submit	Wasilisha
Send	Tuma
Upload	Pakia
Download	Pakua
Select	Chagua
Edit	Hariri
Copy	Nakili
Paste	Bandika
Cut	Kata
Close	Funga
Open	Fungua
Sign in / Log in	Ingia
Sign out / Log out	Toka
Sign up / Register	Jisajili
Search	Tafuta
Next	Endelea / Inayofuata
Previous	Rudi / Iliyopita
Back	Rudi
Continue	Endelea
Update	Sasisha
Refresh	Onyesha upya
Confirm	Thibitisha
Apply	Tumia
Print	Chapisha

Status Messages — Impersonal Voice

Status messages use the class prefix + tense marker structure, never first/second person.

Message type	Pattern	Example
Ongoing	class-prefix + -na- + verb (+ trailing ellipsis)	Inapakia... (Loading...) Inahifadhi... (Saving...) Inatuma... (Sending...)
Completed	class-prefix + -me- + verb (passive -w-)	Imehifadhiwa (Saved) Imefutwa (Deleted) Imekamilika (Completed)
Failed	Imeshindikana or class + -me- + verb of failure	Imeshindikana (Failed) Imeshindwa kupakia (Failed to load)
Not yet	class-prefix + ha-...-ja-	Haijahifadhiwa (Not saved yet)

Wrong	Correct
Ninahifadhi faili yako (1st person)	Inahifadhi...
Tunapakia... (we-form)	Inapakia...
Mimi nimekamilisha	Imekamilika
Faili imehifadhiwa kwa mafanikio (verbose)	Faili imehifadhiwa (concise)

Drag-and-Drop Vocabulary

English	Swahili	Notes
drag	buruta	native Bantu verb
drop	dondosha	causative of -dondoka (to drip/fall)
release / let go	achia	from -acha (leave)

Wrong	Correct
Drag faili hapa ❌	Buruta faili hapa ✅
Drop hapa kupakia ❌	Dondosha hapa ili kupakia ✅
Release ili kupakia ❌	Achia ili kupakia ✅

File Picker

Wrong	Correct	Notes
Browse faili ❌	Chagua faili ✅	"browse" → "chagua" (choose) for file pickers, NOT "vinjari" (which is for web browsing)
Bofya hapa kuchagua faili (verbose)	Chagua faili ✅	Concise label
Browse kwa faili ❌	Tafuta faili or Chagua faili ✅	"browse for files" — use search or select

Empty States

Pattern: Hakuna + noun/relative clause (there is no / none).

Wrong	Correct
Hakuna kitu kilichochaguliwa (verbose)	Hakuna kilichochaguliwa ✅
Bado hakuna matokeo (not yet no results)	Hakuna matokeo ✅
Hakuna data ya kuonyesha	Hakuna data ✅ (concise)

Error Messages — Concrete Predicate

Wrong	Correct
Hitilafu: X (English-style label)	Imeshindikana kuhifadhi faili. Jaribu tena. (direct predicate + actionable advice)
Hitilafu imetokea wakati wa kuhifadhi (verbose)	Imeshindikana kuhifadhi.
Je, una uhakika unataka kufuta? (English calque)	Ungependa kufuta? ✅ (idiomatic Swahili)

Confirmation Dialogs

English source	Idiomatic Swahili
Are you sure you want to delete?	Ungependa kufuta? (Would you like to delete?)
Confirm	Thibitisha
Cancel	Ghairi
OK	Sawa

Punctuation, Numbers, Dates, Currency

Quotation Marks

• Standard double quotes "...".
• Inner quotes: '...'.
• ❌ Hungarian-style „..." or French « » — not used in Swahili.

Numbers

• Decimal: period (3.14)
• Thousands: comma (1,234,567)
• ❌ 3,14 or 1.000 — European-style, wrong for Swahili.

Dates

• DD/MM/YYYY in numeric form (15/01/2024)
• Long: 15 Januari 2024 or Tarehe 15 mwezi wa Januari mwaka 2024 (very formal)
• Months capitalized: Januari, Februari, Machi, Aprili, Mei, Juni, Julai, Agosti, Septemba, Oktoba, Novemba, Desemba

Time

• 24-hour 14:30 (modern UI default)
• 12-hour with period markers: 2:30 mchana (afternoon), 8:00 asubuhi (morning), 9:00 usiku (night)
• ❌ Traditional Swahili saa-time (saa nane mchana = 2 PM) — only for cultural/lifestyle apps; not for tech UI.

Currency

• See "Currency — Country-Specific" above.
• Default for pan-EAC: omit symbol or use ISO code.

Comma Rules

• NO comma before na, au, wala.
• COMMA before lakini, kwa sababu, ingawa, ili, kwamba, kama, wakati.

Terminology

English	Preferred Swahili	Avoid	Notes
Save	hifadhi	save-isha, save-i	Native Bantu verb
Delete	futa	delete-isha	Native Bantu verb
Cancel	ghairi / sitisha	cancel-isha	Both common; ghairi is Arabic-loan
Submit	wasilisha	submit-i
Send	tuma
Upload	pakia	upload-i
Download	pakua / teremsha	download-i	teremsha (cause to descend) is more Tanzanian
Settings	mipangilio	settings
Search	tafuta	search-i
Edit	hariri	edit-i
Copy	nakili	copy-i
Paste	bandika	paste-i
Cut	kata	cut-i
Close	funga	close-i
Open	fungua	open-i
Sign in / Log in	ingia	login-i
Sign out / Log out	toka	logout-i
Register / Sign up	jisajili	sign-up-i	reflexive -ji- + sajili
File	faili		English loan, class 9/10
Folder	folda / kabrasha		folda is common loan; kabrasha is Arabic-origin formal
Send	tuma
Select	chagua	select-i
Print	chapisha	print-i
Password	nenosiri / nywila	password	Both common; nenosiri is literal "secret word"
Email	barua pepe	email (acceptable code-switch)	Literally "lightning letter"
Link	kiungo	link (acceptable in dev contexts)	Class 7/8
Update	sasisha	update-i
Refresh	onyesha upya	refresh-i	"show anew"
Account	akaunti		English loan, class 9/10
Message	ujumbe / jumbe (pl)	message-i	Class 11 sg, class 10 pl
Browser	kivinjari	browser	Class 7/8
Window	dirisha / madirisha (pl)	window	Class 5/6
Computer	kompyuta		English loan, class 9/10
Internet	intaneti / mtandao	internet	mtandao is preferred Bantu term ("the web/network")
Network	mtandao / mitandao (pl)	network-i	Class 3/4
Server	seva	server-i	Class 9/10
Username	jina la mtumiaji	username	"name of the user"
Profile	wasifu	profile
Notification	arifa / taarifa	notification-i
Subscription	usajili	subscription-i
Payment	malipo	payment-i	Class 6 (plural mass noun)
Free (no cost)	bure	free
Free (liberty)	huru		Different word from "no cost"
Premium	premium / hali ya juu
Help	msaada	help-i
Support	usaidizi	support-i
Privacy	faragha	privacy
Security	usalama	security-i
Terms of service	masharti ya huduma	terms-i
Welcome	karibu / karibuni (pl)	welcome	Standard greeting
Hello	habari / hujambo	hello
Yes	ndiyo	yes
No	hapana / la	no
OK	sawa	OK (acceptable)
Please	tafadhali	please	Use sparingly
Thank you	asante / asanteni (pl)	thanks
Sorry	samahani / pole	sorry

Compound Adjective Constructions

English compound adjectives with hyphens (AI-powered, user-friendly, context-aware) do NOT translate as hyphenated forms in Swahili. Restructure with relative clauses or possessive constructions.

English	Wrong (hyphenated calque)	Correct (restructured)
AI-powered	AI-iendesha	inayotumia AI (which uses AI) / yenye AI (with AI)
user-friendly	mtumiaji-rafiki	rahisi kutumia (easy to use) / rafiki kwa mtumiaji (friendly to the user)
context-aware	muktadha-fahamu	inayozingatia muktadha (which considers context)
cloud-based	mawingu-msingi	inayotumia teknolojia ya wingu (which uses cloud technology) / ya wingu
data-driven	data-endesha	inayoendeshwa na data (which is driven by data)
open-source	chanzo-wazi	chanzo huru (free source) / chanzo wazi (open source — two words)

Brand Names and Technical Identifiers

• Brand names remain in their original form: Apple, Google, Microsoft, Anthropic, Claude, Slack, GitHub.
• Technical identifiers (API, URL, JSON, XML, HTTP, REST) stay as-is.
• No need to add Swahili morphology to brand names or technical IDs.
• For ambiguity, can clarify: tovuti ya Google (Google's website), programu ya Microsoft Word (the Microsoft Word program).

Country Names — Swahili Conventions

English	Preferred Swahili	Avoid
USA / America	Marekani	Muungano wa Madola ya Amerika (too formal/long)
United Kingdom	Uingereza	Ufalme wa Muungano (technical)
Germany	Ujerumani
France	Ufaransa
China	Uchina / China
Japan	Japani
India	Uhindi / India
South Africa	Afrika Kusini
Egypt	Misri
Saudi Arabia	Saudia / Saudi Arabia
Tanzania	Tanzania
Kenya	Kenya
Uganda	Uganda

Note the U- prefix on many country names (Uingereza, Ujerumani, Ufaransa, Uchina, Uhindi) — this is class 14 (abstract noun class), used historically for "land of X." Modern usage retains it for European/Asian countries; newer countries (Tanzania, Kenya) keep their international form.

Calque / Anti-Pattern Blocklist

Wrong (calque)	Correct (idiomatic)	Source
Vunja mguu	Kila la heri! / Bahati njema!	"break a leg" (good luck)
Kipande cha keki	Ni rahisi sana / Ni jambo dogo	"piece of cake"
Mwishoni mwa siku	Hatimaye / Kwa ujumla	"at the end of the day"
Inafanya hisia	Inaeleweka / Ina mantiki	"makes sense"
Chukua mapumziko	Pumzika	"take a break" — use single verb
Toa jicho	Angalia / Chunguza	"keep an eye on"
Fanya uamuzi	Amua	"make a decision" — single verb
Fanya mabadiliko	Badilisha	"make changes" — single verb
Fanya uchaguzi	Chagua	"make a selection" — single verb
25+ lugha	zaidi ya lugha 25 / lugha 25 au zaidi	"+N" unnatural in Swahili
+{count} zaidi	na {count} zaidi / {count} nyingine	"+N" unnatural
herufi {min} za urefu	herufi {min} au zaidi	"za urefu" (of length) redundant
Zero usumbufu / Sifuri muda wa kufa	Bila usumbufu / Bila kukatika	"zero X" — use "bila" (without)
Faili imehifadhiwa kwa mafanikio	Faili imehifadhiwa	"successfully" — often unnecessary
Je, una uhakika unataka kufuta?	Ungependa kufuta?	Verbose English confirmation calque
Muungano wa Madola ya Amerika	Marekani	Use short form in UI
Save-isha	Hifadhi	English-Swahili hybrid verb
Delete-isha	Futa	English-Swahili hybrid verb
Click-ia	Bofya	English-Swahili hybrid verb
mtumiaji-rafiki (hyphenated)	rahisi kutumia / rafiki kwa mtumiaji	"user-friendly" — restructure
AI-iendesha (hyphenated)	inayotumia AI / yenye AI	"AI-powered" — relative clause

"Per" vs "For" Distinction (severity 2.0)

Swahili distinguishes carefully between kwa (for, aggregate/total) and kwa kila (per, rate/unit). Mixing them changes the meaning.

English meaning	Swahili	Example
For X items (total/aggregate)	kwa + N	"kwa lugha 5" = for 5 languages [in total]
Per X (rate per unit)	kwa kila + N	"kwa kila lugha" = per language

Wrong	Correct	Why
kwa kila lugha 5 (meaning "for 5 total")	kwa lugha 5	kwa for total
kwa lugha (meaning "per language")	kwa kila lugha	kwa kila for rate
$10 kwa mtumiaji (ambiguous)	$10 kwa kila mtumiaji (per user) OR $10 kwa watumiaji 10 (for 10 users)	Disambiguate

Loanword Integration Rules

Swahili has two large loanword layers and a smaller modern English-tech layer:

Arabic loans (deeply integrated, ~20% of vocabulary, often unrecognizable as foreign to modern speakers):

• kitabu (book), salama (peace/safe), shule (school), saa (clock/hour), dunia (world), habari (news), karibu (welcome), tafadhali (please), asante (thanks), samahani (sorry), kahawa (coffee), sukari (sugar), Alhamisi/Ijumaa (Thursday/Friday).

English loans (modern tech, integrated phonologically):

• kompyuta, programu, tovuti (← website, but mostly Tanzanian; Kenyans often say website), seva, intaneti, faili, folda, redio, televisheni, simu (phone, though originally Arabic via Indian languages), benki, namba (number).

Portuguese loans (older, smaller, coastal):

• meza (table — Portuguese mesa), bandera (flag — Portuguese bandeira), leso (handkerchief).

Rules for integrating new English tech terms:

1. Prefer established Swahili term if it exists: Don't say save-i when hifadhi works.
2. Use the English loan if it's already widely accepted: faili, kompyuta, programu, intaneti.
3. Avoid creating new -isha/-ia hybrid verbs: ❌ save-isha, ❌ delete-isha, ❌ click-ia, ❌ update-i. Use native verbs.
4. For untranslatable technical IDs (API, URL, JSON, token, SDK, IDE), use English as-is. No Swahili morphology needed.

Wrong (hybrid)	Correct
save-isha	hifadhi
delete-isha	futa
click-ia	bofya
update-i	sasisha
Imesaveiwa	Imehifadhiwa

Self-Check Checklist

Run BEFORE finalizing each translation:

Accuracy — concord and grammar (critical):

• Noun class identified for every noun in the string
• Adjective concord: prefix matches noun class (kitufe kipya, mifumo mipya, watumiaji wazuri)
• Verb subject prefix: matches noun class (faili inahifadhiwa, mfumo unafanya, vitufe vinafanya)
• Possessive prefix: matches class of possessed noun (kitabu changu, faili yangu, vitabu vyangu, mifumo yangu)
• Demonstrative concord: correct class form (mtu huyu, kitabu hiki, faili hii, mifumo hii)
• Tense markers correct: -na- for ongoing, -li- for past, -me- for completed, -ta- for future
• Negation correct form: ha-...-i present, ha-...-ku- past, ha-...-ja- perfect-not-yet
• Passive form: -w- inserted before final vowel (hifadhiwa, futwa, tumwa)
• Plural via class prefix: NOT English -s (mifumo not mfumos, vitufe not kitufes, faili stays faili)
• Number concord 1-5: numbers 1-5 take class prefix (mtu mmoja, vitu vitatu, watumiaji watano); 6+ invariant
• Adjectives AFTER noun: faili kubwa (not kubwa faili)
• SVO word order for neutral statements
• Pro-drop: no unnecessary mimi/wewe/sisi pronouns
• Placeholders preserved exactly ({count}, {name}, {date} unchanged)

Accuracy — formatting:

• No comma before na / au / wala
• Comma before lakini / kwa sababu / kwamba / kama / wakati
• Decimal point (3.14) not comma (3,14)
• Thousands comma (1,234) not period (1.234)
• DD/MM/YYYY date format
• 24-hour time (14:30) for tech UI, not traditional Swahili saa-time
• Currency symbol correct for target country (TSh, KSh, USh, Fr) OR generic for pan-EAC
• Quotation marks "..." (double quotes)
• ng' vs ng distinction preserved in writing

Accuracy — semantics:

• kwa vs kwa kila: "for total" vs "per unit" — never confused
• Domain terminology preserves precise IT meaning (architecture = system design, NOT building; pipeline = CI/CD, NOT plumbing)

Naturalness — UI patterns:

• Buttons in imperative stem (Hifadhi, Futa, Tuma) — NOT infinitive Kuhifadhi, NOT subjunctive Uhifadhi
• Status messages impersonal (Inapakia..., Imehifadhiwa) — NOT first/second person
• File picker: Chagua faili NOT Browse faili
• Drag-and-drop: buruta/dondosha/achia NOT drag/drop/release
• Empty states: Hakuna... construction
• Confirmations: Ungependa kufuta? NOT verbose calque
• Marketing absence: Bila X NOT Sifuri X / Zero X

Naturalness — word choice:

• Native Swahili verbs: hifadhi/futa/tafuta/pakia, NOT save-isha/delete-isha/click-ia
• fanya + noun avoided when single verb exists (badilisha not fanya mabadiliko)
• Compound adjectives restructured with relative clauses (inayotumia AI not AI-iendesha)
• No calques: hatimaye (not mwishoni mwa siku), inaeleweka (not inafanya hisia)
• tafadhali used sparingly (not on every button)
• Country names short (Marekani not Muungano wa Madola ya Amerika)
• No Sheng (no poa, noma, sasa hivi, doh, jamaa as slang)
• Religiously neutral (no Asalaam aleikum or Bwana asifiwe in default UI)

Naturalness — flow:

• Reads naturally when spoken aloud
• Cross-EAC understandable (a user in Dar es Salaam OR Nairobi would get it immediately)
• Concord makes sense — every adjective and verb pulls from the same noun's class
• Matches East African software conventions (Microsoft, Google, Mozilla Swahili UIs use similar patterns)

Worked Examples

Example 1 — Save button + status sequence

Source:

Save Saving your changes... Changes saved.

Wrong:

Kuhifadhi (infinitive, wrong for button) Mimi ninahifadhi mabadiliko yako... (1st person, too personal) Mabadiliko yamehifadhiwa kwa mafanikio. (redundant "successfully")

Correct:

Hifadhi (imperative stem) Inahifadhi... OR Inahifadhi mabadiliko... (impersonal, class-9 i- prefix) Mabadiliko yamehifadhiwa. (class-6 ya- prefix for matokeo-style plural; complete sentence)

Example 2 — File count with concord

Source:

1 file uploaded 5 files uploaded 25 files uploaded

Wrong:

Faili 1 imepakia Failis 5 zimepakia (English -s plural is wrong) 25 failis zimepakiwa

Correct (class 9/10 — faili is invariant):

Faili moja limepakiwa (1 file uploaded — class 5 li- because of mass/aggregate framing) OR Faili 1 imepakiwa (class 9 i-) Faili tano zimepakiwa (5 files — class 10 zi- because plural) Faili 25 zimepakiwa

(Note: faili in singular often takes class 5/9 ambiguity; modern Swahili usage trends toward class 9 i- for singular, class 10 zi- for plural with numeric quantifier. The form zimepakiwa indicates plural unambiguously.)

Example 3 — Counter with concord across multiple classes

Source:

1 user, 3 buttons, 5 files

Wrong:

1 mtumiajis, 3 kitufes, 5 failis (English -s plural) Mtumiaji 1, kitufes 3, failis 5

Correct:

Mtumiaji mmoja, vitufe vitatu, faili tano (singular noun class 1 + plural class 8 + class 10)

Example 4 — Possessive across classes

Source:

My account, my files, my settings, my password

Wrong:

Akaunti changu (wrong possessive prefix — changu is class 7/8, akaunti is class 9) Faili changu (same error)

Correct:

Akaunti yangu (class 9 — y- prefix) Faili zangu (class 10 plural — z- prefix; or Faili yangu for singular) Mipangilio yangu (class 4 — y- prefix) Nenosiri langu (class 5 — l- prefix)

Example 5 — Drag-and-drop area

Source:

Drag and drop files here, or click to browse

Wrong:

Drag na drop faili hapa, au bofya kuvinjari (anglicism + wrong "browse") Buruta na dondosha faili hapa, au bofya (comma before au — wrong)

Correct:

Buruta na dondosha faili hapa au bofya kuchagua faili (native verbs, no comma before au, chagua for file selection not vinjari)

Example 6 — Concord chain in a confirmation

Source:

This new file has been saved successfully.

Wrong:

Hii faili mpya imehifadhiwa kwa mafanikio. (demonstrative before noun — wrong order; verbose "kwa mafanikio") Faili huyu mpya imehifadhiwa. (wrong demonstrative class — huyu is class 1)

Correct:

Faili hii mpya imehifadhiwa. (demonstrative hii after noun, class 9 concord; drop "kwa mafanikio")

For class 7 (kitufe):

Kitufe hiki kipya kimebofyeka. (button-this-new has been clicked — every word ki-)

For class 4 (mifumo):

Mifumo hii mipya imeshawekwa. (systems-these-new have been set — concord across the chain)

Example 7 — Verb-prefix on negation

Source:

File not saved.

Wrong:

Faili si imehifadhiwa. (using si standalone — ungrammatical) Faili hai imehifadhiwa. (broken concatenation)

Correct:

Faili haijahifadhiwa. (class 9 + ha-...-ja- = "not yet saved") Imeshindikana kuhifadhi faili. (alternative: "failed to save the file")

Example 8 — Plural across noun classes

Source:

Settings have been updated.

Wrong:

Mipangilio imebadilishwa (class 9 i- prefix — wrong; mipangilio is class 4) Settings imeupdate-iwa (English hybrid — wrong)

Correct:

Mipangilio imesasishwa. (class 4 i- subject prefix for plural mipangilio, + me- perfect, + sasishwa passive of sasisha)

Example 9 — Number + noun (concord 1-5, invariant 6+)

Source:

2 users, 5 buttons, 7 files, 100 messages

Correct:

Watumiaji wawili (class 2, 2 takes wa-) Vitufe vitano (class 8, 5 takes vi-) Faili saba (class 10, 7 invariant) Jumbe 100 (class 10, 100 invariant — or jumbe mia moja)

Example 10 — Compound adjective restructured

Source:

AI-powered translation, user-friendly interface, cloud-based storage

Wrong:

Tafsiri AI-iendeshwa, kiolesura mtumiaji-rafiki, hifadhi mawingu-msingi (hyphenated calques — all wrong)

Correct:

Tafsiri inayotumia AI (translation which uses AI) Kiolesura kilicho rahisi kutumia (interface that is easy to use) OR Kiolesura rafiki kwa mtumiaji (interface friendly to the user) Hifadhi inayotumia teknolojia ya wingu (storage which uses cloud technology) OR shorter: Hifadhi ya wingu

Example 11 — Date and currency

Source:

January 15, 2024 — Total: TSh 1,234.50

Wrong:

01/15/2024 — Jumla: 1.234,50 TSh (US date + European number format) Januari 15, 2024 — Jumla: TSh 1,234.50 (date format wrong-ish — needs day first)

Correct:

15 Januari 2024 OR 15/01/2024 — Jumla: TSh 1,234.50 OR 1,234.50/=

(Day first, period decimal, comma thousands, currency symbol before amount, or the traditional Tanzanian /= after the amount.)

Example 12 — Religious/regional neutrality

Source:

Hello! Welcome to our service.

Wrong (overly religious):

Asalaam aleikum! Karibu kwenye huduma yetu. (Muslim-specific greeting) Bwana asifiwe! Karibu... (Christian-specific greeting)

Correct (neutral):

Habari! Karibu kwenye huduma yetu. (neutral, friendly, cross-religious) Karibu! Tunafurahi kukuona. (Welcome! We're glad to see you.)

Example 13 — Empty state

Source:

No results found. Try a different search.

Wrong:

Hakuna matokeo yameonekana. Jaribu utafutaji tofauti. (verbose, wrong concord — matokeo yameonekana) Bado hakuna matokeo. Jaribu utafutaji tofauti. (literal "not yet no results" — redundant)

Correct:

Hakuna matokeo. Jaribu utafutaji mwingine. (concise + native idiom) OR Hakuna kilichopatikana. Jaribu tena. (nothing was found, try again)

Example 14 — Confirmation dialog

Source:

Are you sure you want to delete this file? This action cannot be undone.

Wrong:

Je, una uhakika unataka kufuta faili hii? Kitendo hiki hakiwezi kubatilishwa. (verbose English calque)

Correct:

Ungependa kufuta faili hii? Kitendo hiki hakitaweza kubatilishwa. (idiomatic Swahili question + future negative)

OR more concise:

Una uhakika? Kufuta hakuwezi kubatilishwa. (Are you sure? Deletion cannot be undone.)

When in Doubt

1. Noun class unclear? Look at the noun's prefix:

   • m- + person → class 1 (sg, takes a- on verb, wa- in plural to class 2)
   • mi- (or m- + non-person) → class 3 (sg, takes u- on verb, mi- in plural to class 4)
   • ki- → class 7 (sg, takes ki- on verb, vi- in plural to class 8)
   • ma- → class 6 plural (takes ya- on verb; sg is class 5 with Ø or ji-)
   • Loanword with no prefix (faili, kompyuta, akaunti) → almost always class 9/10 (takes i-/zi-)
   • u- + abstract → class 11/14 (often no plural)
   • ku- + verb stem → class 15 (gerund/infinitive)

2. Adjective concord unclear?

   • Bantu-stem adjective (-pya, -zuri, -baya, -dogo, -kubwa) → adds the class prefix
   • Loan adjective (bora, safi, rahisi, muhimu) → invariant, no concord

3. Verb subject prefix unclear? Match the subject noun's class:

   • Person sg → a- (3sg) or ni-/u-/tu-/m- (1/2/1pl/2pl)
   • Person pl → wa-
   • mfumo (class 3) → u-
   • mifumo (class 4) → i-
   • kitufe (class 7) → ki-
   • vitufe (class 8) → vi-
   • faili sg (class 9) → i-
   • faili pl (class 10) → zi-
   • tokeo (class 5) → li-
   • matokeo (class 6) → ya-

4. Possessive prefix unclear? Use the prefix of the possessed noun's class (not the possessor):

   • kitabu (class 7) → -changu, -chako, -chake, -chetu, -chenu, -chao
   • vitabu (class 8) → -vyangu, -vyako, -vyake, -vyetu, -vyenu, -vyao
   • faili (class 9) → -yangu, -yako, -yake, -yetu, -yenu, -yao
   • faili pl (class 10) → -zangu, -zako, -zake, -zetu, -zenu, -zao
   • mfumo (class 3) → -wangu, -wako, -wake, -wetu, -wenu, -wao

5. Plural form unclear? Apply the class-pair plural prefix:

   • 1→2: mtu→watu, mtoto→watoto
   • 3→4: mfumo→mifumo, mti→miti
   • 5→6: jicho→macho, jiwe→mawe, tokeo→matokeo
   • 7→8: kitabu→vitabu, kiti→viti
   • 9→10: faili→faili (no change), kompyuta→kompyuta
   • 11→10: ujumbe→jumbe (n-class)

6. Number + noun? Use class concord for 1-5; invariant for 6+:

   • vitu vitatu (3 things, class 8)
   • vitu sita (6 things — no concord)
   • watu wawili (2 people, class 2)
   • watu kumi (10 people — no concord)

7. Tense unclear?

   • Ongoing/progressive → -na- (Inapakia... = It is loading...)
   • Completed → -me- (Imehifadhiwa = It has been saved)
   • Past simple → -li- (Alipakia = He/she loaded)
   • Future → -ta- (Itahifadhiwa = It will be saved)
   • Not-yet → ha-...-ja- (Haijahifadhiwa = It has not yet been saved)

8. Button label? Use the bare imperative (verb stem): Hifadhi, Futa, Tuma, Bofya, Chagua. NOT infinitive (Kuhifadhi) or subjunctive (Uhifadhi) or full sentence (Bofya hapa kuhifadhi).

9. Status message? Use impersonal class-9 + tense: Inapakia... / Imehifadhiwa / Imeshindikana. NOT first-person (Ninapakia...) or second-person (Unapakia...).

10. Compound adjective with hyphen in English? Restructure with a relative clause: AI-powered → inayotumia AI, user-friendly → rahisi kutumia, cloud-based → ya wingu / inayotumia teknolojia ya wingu.

11. fanya + noun? Almost always wrong. Find the single verb: fanya mabadiliko → badilisha, fanya uamuzi → amua, fanya uchaguzi → chagua.

12. English-Swahili hybrid verb (-isha, -ia)? Always wrong. Use the native Swahili verb: save-isha → hifadhi, delete-isha → futa, click-ia → bofya.

13. Country name in UI? Use the short Swahili form: USA → Marekani, UK → Uingereza, China → Uchina, Germany → Ujerumani. Not the full official name.

14. Religious greeting in default UI? Avoid. Use neutral: Habari / Karibu. Reserve religious salutations for explicitly religious apps.

15. Sheng or colloquial term? Avoid in UI. Use Kiswahili sanifu (standard): poa → nzuri/sawa, noma → nzuri sana, mzee → mtu / mtumiaji, jamaa → rafiki, doh → pesa, sasa hivi (Sheng intensifier) → sasa.

Swahili's noun-class concord is the single most error-prone area. When a translation feels "off," check first whether every adjective, verb prefix, and possessive in the sentence matches the class of its head noun. The second most common error is using English-style verb hybrids (save-isha, click-ia) instead of native Bantu verbs (hifadhi, bofya). Fix those two, and most other issues fall into place.