Sentential and proverbial morphological structures of Christian theonyms in Bemba
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32690/SALC57.6Keywords:
sentential structures, proverbial structures, Bemba, Christian theonyms, lexical morphologyAbstract
Drawing on Bemba, a Bantu language primarily spoken in northern Zambia, we interrogate the Christian theonyms to account for their complex morphological structures, while highlighting the wealth of information on the Bemba society and their sociocultural environment. For data, semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, and document analysis were employed. Thus, the article highlights two morphological structures, one being a sentential structure that consists of a subject and a predicate, and the other a proverbial structure that feeds into standard metaphoric and paradigmatic forms. Overall, the theonyms show the rich Bemba nominal and verbal morphology, as well as the sociocultural narratives of the Bemba people.
References
Agbeyangi, A.O. 2016. “Morphological analysis of Standard Yorùbá nouns”. American Journal of Engineering Research 5(6). 8-12.
Amashiwi ya kwa lesa Bible (Mbala). 2009. Diocese of Mpika: White Fathers. Azhar, I. 2012. “English proverbial structures and the meaning of their interconstituent relations”. Proceedings of Seminar Nasional Wacana Bahasa Dan Sastra Bandingan
Sebagai Kahasanah Nusantara. Bangkalan-Madura. Online: https://pusatbahasaalazhar.wordpress.com [14.07.23].
Bickford, J.A. & J. Daly. 1996. A course in basic grammatical analysis. 3rd preliminary edition. Dallas, TX: Summer Institute of Linguistics.
Chilambe, B. 2020. A comparative study of standard Bemba and Unga dialect. Doctoral Dissertation. University of Zambia, Lusaka.
Doke, C.M. 1950. “Bantu languages, inflexional with a tendency towards agglutination”. African Studies 9(1). 1-19.
Felecan, D. 2009. “Nicknames: A reflections of polyphony within the linguistic area from the northwestern part of Romania”. Nomina Africana 23(2). 61-90.
Fortune, G. 1988. Grammatical constructions. Vol. 2. Harare: Mercury Press.
Guthrie, M. 1948. The classification of Bantu languages. London: Dawsons of Pall Mall.
Hang’ombe, K. 2015. Morphology and semantics of Tonga anthroponyms: The case of Tonga given names and surnames. MA Dissertation. University of Zambia, Lusaka.
Hendrikse, A.P. & G. Poulos. 1994. “Word categories-prototypes and continua in Southern Bantu”. South African Journal of Linguistics 12: sup20. 215-245.
Horton, R. 1971. “African Conversion”. Journal of the International African Institute 41(2). 85-108.
Houis, M. 1983. “Des unités significatives: Préalable à la lexicographie”. Afrique et Langage 19. 5-31.
Ishiwi lyakwa lesa. 2015. T.B. Zambia, trans. Lusaka: The Bible Society of Zambia.
Jimaima, H. 2016. Social structuring of language and the mobility of semiotic resources across the linguistic landscapes of Zambia: A multimodal analysis. Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis. University of the Western Cape, Cape Town.
Kabaso, F.M. 2016. A morphological and semantic analysis of nicknames in Ng’umbo. MA Dissertation. University of Zambia, Lusaka.
Kabinga, M. 2010. A comparative study of the morphosyntax and phonetics of Town Bemba and Standard Bemba of the Copperbelt, Zambia. Unpublished MA Thesis. University of Cape Town.
Kafunda, C. 2022. An investigation on the declaration of Zambia as a Christian nation and its contribution to peace and conflict resolution. Doctoral Dissertation, University of Zambia, Lusaka.
Kalkhoff, A.M.T. 2021. Gestaltphonologische Interpretation von Vokalsequenzierungen. De Gruyter.
Kambarami, F., S. McLachlan, B. Bozic, K. Dube & H. Chimhundu. 2021. “Computational modeling of agglutinative languages: The challenge for Southern Bantu languages”. Arusha Working Papers in African Linguistics 3(1). 52-81.
Kapwepwe, M. 2002. Some Bemba names and their meanings. Lusaka: Mulenga Kapwepwe Publishers.
Kashoki, M. 1977. “Town Bemba: A sketch of its main characteristics”. Language in Zambia: Grammatical sketches, ed. by M.E. Kashoki. Lusaka: Institute for African Studies, University of Zambia. 62-108.
Kashoki, E.M. 1990. The factor of language in Zambia. Lusaka: Kenneth Kaunda Foundation.
Katamba, F. 1993. Morphology. New York: Palgrave.
Kiparsky, P. 1982. “Lexical morphology and phonology”. Linguistics in the morning calm,ed. by I.S. Yang. Seoul: Hanshin.
Lumwanga, C.R. 2015. Some linguistic variations of Bemba: A dialectological study of Standard Bemba, Luunda and Ŋumbo. Doctoral Dissertation. University of Zambia, Lusaka.
Mann, M. 1999. An outline of Icibemba grammar. Lusaka: Bookworld.
Mapoma, M.I. 1969. “The use of folk music among some Bemba Church Congregations in Zambia”. Yearbook of the International Folk Music Council 1. 72-88. International Council for Traditional Music. Online: https://www.jstor.org/stable/767635: 18-0 [14.07.23].
Mbala, B. 1971. Amashiwi ya kwa Lesa. Mbala: Life Press.
Mieder, W. 2004. Proverbs: A handbook. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Mohlala, L. 2003. The Bantu attribute noun class prefixes and their suffixal counterparts,with reference to Zulu. Masters Dissertation. University of Pretoria.
Mphande, L. 2006. “Naming and linguistic Africanisms in African American culture”. 35th Annual Conference on African Linguistics: African Languages and Linguistics in Broad Perspectives, ed. by J. Mugane. Ohio State University.
Mushindo, P. 1956. Baibele wa Mushilo. Lusaka: The Bible Society of Zambia.
Ngalande, S. & B.S. Kumar. 2022. "No English but English: The case of language Policy and planning in Zambia". Handbook of language policy and education in countries of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), ed. by M.M. Kretzer & R.H. Kaschula. Brill. 327-343.
Nkhata, L. & H. Jimaima. 2020. “Neologisms: A morphological analysis of social media discourses on the Zambian online media”. Multidisciplinary Journal of Language and Social Sciences Education 3(2). 66-93.
Pesetsky, D. 1979. Russian morphology and lexical theory. Unpublished paper. MIT.
Pongweni, A. 1983. What’s in a name? A study of Shona nomenclature. Gweru: Mambo Press.
Simungala, G. & H. Jimaima. 2023. “Legitimization and recontextualization of languages: The imbalance of powers in a multilingual landscape”. Linguistic Landscape 9(1). 36-58.
Simungala, G. & H. Jimaima. 2021. “Sociocultural narratives and the anthropomorphic power of agency in a semiotic landscape”. Southern African Linguistics and Applied Language Studies 39(2). 195-209.
Simungala, G., D. Ndalama, & H. Jimaima. 2021. “Communicative practices from the margins: The multilingual and multicultural repertoires on university spaces”. Journal of Asian and African Studies 57(4). 712-724.
Simungala, G., H. Jimaima & B.K. Namatama. 2023. “Translanguaged discourses of Bemba and English: The mobility and mixing of languages in a multilingual space”. Language in Africa 3(3). 67–86.
Simungala, G., H. Jimaima & P. Chikuta. 2022. “Indigenous languages in an online space: Translanguaging for visibilisation of multilingualism and multisemiotic modes”. Language Matters: Studies in the Languages of Southern Africa 53(2). 85-109.
Spitulnik, D. 1998. “The language of the city: Town Bemba as urban hybridity”. Journal of Linguistic Anthropology 8(1). 30-59.
Spitulnik, D. & M.E. Kashoki. 2001. “Bemba.” Facts about the world’s languages: An encyklopedia of the world’s major languages, past and present, ed. by J. Garry & C. Rubino. New York, Dublin: H.W. Wilson. 81-85.
Spitulnik, D. & M.E. Kashoki. 1996. BEMBA: A brief linguistic profile. Online: http://www.anthropology. emory. edu/FACULTY/ANTDS/Bemba/profile. html [10.03.2010].
Whiteley, W. 1951. Bemba and related peoples of Northern Rhodesia. London: International African Institute.
Yuka, L. 2016. “The structure of Lamnso’ proverb”. Current research in African linguistics, ed. by O.O. Orie, J.F. Ilọri & L.C. Yuka. Cambridge: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. 469-491.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 University of Warsaw Press
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The SALC is a BOAI-compliant open access journal. The journal content is freely available on the journal website. All journal content appears on the licence Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of the first publication, the work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
Authors are required to sign and send copies of Article Publishing Agreement and Fields of Exploitation statement prior to article's publication.
