Appendix:Tswana Swadesh list

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This is a Swadesh list of words in Tswana, compared with definitions in English.

Presentation

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For further information, including the full final version of the list, read the Wikipedia article: Swadesh list.

American linguist Morris Swadesh believed that languages changed at measurable rates and that these could be determined even for languages without written precursors. Using vocabulary lists, he sought to understand not only change over time but also the relationships of extant languages. To be able to compare languages from different cultures, he based his lists on meanings he presumed would be available in as many cultures as possible. He then used the fraction of agreeing cognates between any two related languages to compute their divergence time by some (still debated) algorithms. Starting in 1950 with 165 meanings, his list grew to 215 in 1952, which was so expansive that many languages lacked native vocabulary for some terms. Subsequently, it was reduced to 207, and reduced much further to 100 meanings in 1955. A reformulated list was published posthumously in 1971.

List

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No. English Tswana
1 I nna, mna
you (singular) wêna
3 he êna, ênê
4 we rona, chona
5 you (plural) nyena, lona
6 they bôna, bônê
7 this yôno, ôno, êno, lêno/jêno, sêno, êno, lôno, bôno/jôno, môno, fano, kwano
8 that yôo, ôo, êo, lêo/jêo, sêo, êo, lôo, bôo/jôo, môo, fôo, kôo
9 here fano, kwano, gôna
10 there fôo, kôo
11 who mang
12 what eng, -ng
13 where kae
14 when leng
15 how jang
16 not ga
17 all -tlhê
18 many ntsi
19 some -ngwe
20 few mmalwa, mbalwa
21 other -sele
22 one nngwe
23 two pêdi
24 three tharo
25 four -nê
26 five tlhano
27 big -golo
28 long lêlêlê
29 wide phara
30 thick -ima
31 heavy -kete, -ima
32 small -nnyê
33 short khufe, khutshwane
34 narrow sesane
35 thin sesane
36 woman mosadi
37 man (adult male) monona, monna
38 man (human being) motho
39 child ngwana
40 wife mosadi, mogatsa
41 husband monona, monna, mogatsa
42 mother mama, mma, mamê, mmê
43 father rara, rra, rarê, rrê
44 animal setshedi, phôlôgôlô
45 fish tlhapi
46 bird nông, nônyane
47 dog ntšwa, ntša
48 louse nta
49 snake nôga
50 worm seboko
51 tree setlhare, more
52 forest sekgwa
53 stick thupa
54 fruit loungô
55 seed pêo
56 leaf lekakaba, letlhare
57 root modi
58 bark (of a tree) lekwati
59 flower sešêšê, leloba, palesa, sethunya
60 grass bojang
61 rope mogala
62 skin letlalô
63 meat nama
64 blood madi
65 bone lerapô, lesapô
66 fat (noun) mafura
67 egg lee
68 horn lonaka
69 tail mogatla, mosela
70 feather lofofa
71 hair moriri
72 head tlhôgô
73 ear tsêbê
74 eye leitlhô
75 nose nkô
76 mouth molômo
77 tooth leinô
78 tongue (organ) loleme
79 fingernail lonala
80 foot lonao
81 leg leoto
82 knee lengôlê
83 hand seatla
84 wing lofuka
85 belly mpa
86 guts mala
87 neck thamo, molala
88 back mokwatla, motlhana, mokôkôtlô
89 breast letsêlê, lebêlê (breast), sefuba (chest)
90 heart pelo
91 liver sebete
92 to drink nwa
93 to eat ja
94 to bite loma
95 to suck mona
96 to spit kgwa
97 to vomit tlhatsa
98 to blow [[foka]]
99 to breathe hêma
100 to laugh tshêga
101 to see bôna
102 to hear utlwa
103 to know itse
104 to think akanya
105 to smell dupa (transitive)
106 to fear bôifa
107 to sleep rôbala
108 to live tshela
109 to die swa
110 to kill bolaya
111 to fight lwa
112 to hunt tsoma
113 to hit betsa
114 to cut sega
115 to split farola
116 to stab tlhaba
117 to scratch ngwaya (an itch), ngapa, fala
118 to dig êpa
119 to swim shapa
120 to fly fofa
121 to walk tsamaya
122 to come tla
123 to lie (as in a bed) rapama
124 to sit dula
125 to stand êma
126 to turn fapoga, theola, itsôkêtsa
127 to fall wa
128 to give fa
129 to hold tshwara
130 to squeeze tamola, pitla
131 to rub gotlha
132 to wash tlhatswa
133 to wipe sutlha
134 to pull gôga
135 to push kgaramêtsa
136 to throw tika
137 to tie bôfa, tlama
138 to sew roka
139 to count bala
140 to say re
141 to sing ôpêla
142 to play tshameka
143 to float kokobala
144 to flow êla
145 to freeze gatsêla
146 to swell ruruga
147 sun letsatsi
148 moon ngwêdi
149 star nalêdi
150 water mêtse
151 rain pula
152 river noka, molapô
153 lake bodiba, letsha (salt lake/pan)
154 sea lewatle
155 salt letswai
156 stone lejê
157 sand motlhaba
158 dust lorole
159 earth lefatshe
160 cloud leru
161 fog mouwaaane
162 sky legodimo
163 wind phefô
164 snow sefokabolêo, semathane
165 ice sekwakwatlêla
166 smoke mosi
167 fire molelô
168 ash molôra
169 to burn ša (intransitive), fisa (transitive)
170 road tsela
171 mountain thaba
172 red hubidu
173 green tala
174 yellow serolwana
175 white tshwêu
176 black ntsho
177 night bosigo
178 day motshegare
179 year ngwaga
180 warm bothuthô, bothithô
181 cold tsididi
182 full tlêtše
183 new ntsha
184 old gologolo, tala
185 good tle
186 bad -be, -swe
187 rotten bôdilê
188 dirty leswê, kgônnê
189 straight tlhamalala
190 round kgolokwe
191 sharp (as a knife) bogale
192 dull (as a knife) boboi, boruthutu
193 smooth borethe, borêlêdi
194 wet kôlôbilê
195 dry oma
196 correct nepa
197 near gaufe
198 far kgakala
199 right moja
200 left molêma
201 at fa
202 in mô
203 with le
204 and le
205 if ha
206 because gonnê, ka gore, ka ntlha ya, gobô
207 name leina
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English Wikipedia has an article on:
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References

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Swadesh lists
Individual languages
Language families, family branches, and geographic groupings
Constructed languages
Reconstructed proto-languages
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