Rwanda Languages

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Rwanda

Languages

Description

The country's principal and national language is Kinyarwanda, which is spoken by nearly all Rwandans.

Official languages in Rwanda are:

• Kinyarwanda
• English
• French
• Swahili

Word List(s)

• French Genealogical Word List
• Useful phrases in Kinyarwanda - Omniglot
• Useful Swahili phrases - Omniglot
• Useful French phrases - Omniglot
• Bemeriki, Yves. Kinyarwanda language : the Kinyarwanda phrasebok and dictionary. n.p.: n.p., 2017. Available at: WorldCat.
• Mawadza, Aquilina. Kinyarwanda-English/English-Kinyarwanda Dictionary and Phrasebook. U.S.: Hippocrene Books, Incorporated, 2016. Available at: WorldCat.
• Benjamin, Martin. Swahili phrasebook & dictionary. Footscray, Victoria: Lonely Planet, 2014. Available at: WorldCat.

Alphabet and Pronunciation

Alphabet

• Kinyarwanda alphabet - Omniglot
• Swahili alphabet - Omniglot
• French alphabet - Omniglot

Pronunciation

• Kinyarwanda pronunciation - Glosbe
• Swahili pronunciation - Omniglot
• French pronunciation - Omniglot

Language Aids and Dictionaries

Dictionaries

• Zemback, A. H. English-Kinyarwanda dictionary : Kinyarwanda-English. Charleston, SC: n.p., 2009. Available at: WorldCat.
• Niyomugabo, Cyprien, J. P. Hagenimana, and C. Ntawizera. Kinyarwanda-English, English-Kinyarwanda dictionary. Kigali, Oxford, UK: Fountain Publishers, 2009. Available at: WorldCat.
• Bimbenet, Charles, Janet Gough, Cordelia Lily, Christian Salzédo, and Anna Stevenson. Collins Robert French Dictionary. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers, 2020. Available at: WorldCat.
• Johnson, Frederick and A. C. Madan. A English-Swahili dictionary. New Delhi: Asian Educational Services, 2002. Available at: WorldCat.
• Perrott, D. V. and J. C. Russell. Swahili dictionary : Swahili-English/English-Swahili. London: Teach Yourself, 2003. Available at: WorldCat.

Online Dictionaries

• Dictionary English - Kinyarwanda - Glosbe
• Dictionary Swahili - English - Glosbe
• Dictionary English - French - Glosbe

Language Aids

• French grammar - Omniglot
• Kimenyi, Alexandre. A relational grammar of Kinyarwanda. Ann Arbor, Mich: University Microfilms International, 1990. Available at: WorldCat.
• Ashton, E. O. Swahili grammar. Essex, U.K: Longman Group, 1982. Available at: WorldCat.