Lingala Language

Lingala

Lingala is one of the principal languages spoken in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), (Congo-Kinshasa), and the Republic of Congo (Congo-Brazzaville). The Lingala of today is based on Bobangi, spoken by the people (bangala) who lived along the Congo River between Lisala and Kinshasa. Bobangi was the regional trade language until the arrival of the Europeans in the late nineteenth century.

The colonial administration needed a common language for the region and started to use the language for missionary and administrative purposes, calling it Bangala to set it apart from Bobangi. Compared to local Bantu languages, its sentence structure, word structure and sounds were simplified and its speakers freely borrowed words and constructions from other languages they knew. It became the language of the army, police, administration, education, politics, media, and missionaries.

Lingala language can be divided into four variations: Standard Lingala, Spoken Lingala, Kinshasa Lingala, and Brazzaville Lingala.

Standard Lingala is mostly used in educational and news broadcasts on radio or television, in religious services in the Catholic Church and is the language taught as a subject at all educational levels. Standard Lingala is historically associated with the work of the Catholic Church and its missionaries. It is largely used in formal functions.

Spoken Lingala is the variation mostly used in the day-to-day lives of Lingala speakers. This variation of Lingala is historically associated with the work of Protestant missionaries. Spoken Lingala is largely used in informal functions, and the majority of Lingala songs use Spoken Lingala over other variations. Modern Congolese music, called soukous, is one of the most popular in Africa and is a true source of enrichment of the language.

Kinshasa Lingala and Brazzaville Lingala are the dialects from the capitals of both Congos. They are both heavily influenced by other Bantu languages as well as French (the official language of both countries). They both have many borrowed words from those languages, as well as a simplified phonology and grammar. Over 10 million people speak Lingala.

Lingala - lisolo ya mokuse

Lingala ezali moko ya minoko balobaka na Republique Democratique ya Kongo (Kongo-Kinshasa) na Republique ya Congo (Kongo-Brazzaville). Lingala ya sikoyo euta na Bobangi, elobamaka na bato (Bangala) oyo bafandaka mpembeni na ebale ya Kongo kati na Lisala tii na Kinshasa. Bobangi ezalaka monoko ya mombongo na esika tii na bokomi ya bato ya Mpoto na suka ya sekulo ya zomi na libwa.

Leta ya banoko balingaka monoko ya lisanga na ebandaki koloba yango mpo na mosala ya bateyi na ya botambwisi. Babengaka monoko oyo Bangala mpo na kokesenisa yango na Bobangi. Koleka lokola minoko ya babantu awa, botongi ya baphrase na botongi ya maloba na makelele ezalaki koleka minoko misusu ya babantu na simplicite. Balobi ya Lingala badefa maloba na botongi uta na minoko misusu oyo balobaka. Lingala ekoma monoko ya basoda, bapolisi, batambwisi, bato ya leta, balakisi, bakomi nsango na basango.

Monoko ya Lingala ekoki kokabwana na biteni minei: Lingala ya standard, Lingala oyo balobaka, Lingala ya Kinshasa na Lingala ya Brazzaville.

Balobaka Lingala ya standard na baemissions ya nsango na botangi, na mesi ya katoliki. Batangisaka Lingala na bakelasi ya ebandeli, bakelasi ya ntei na bakelasi ya suka. Lingala ya standard elobamaka na ntango ya formel. Esangana na mosala ya bakatolik.

Lingala oyo balobaka ezali na ndenge moko na ntango nyonso. Esangana na mosala ya baprotestants. Lingala oyo elobamaka na ndenge moko ya informel. Banzembo mingi ya Lingala balobaka na ndenge ekeseni. Miziki ya Kongo ya sikoyo babengi yango soukous ezali miziki oyo eyebani na bato mingi mpenza o kati ya Afrika na ezali mpenza ya solo mosisa ya monoko.

Lingala ya Kinshasa na Lingala ya Brazzaville ezali nkota ya bamboka mikonzi ya Kongo mibale. Ezali lisanga ya minoko ya babantu misusu na falanse, monoko ya leta na bikolo mibale. Minoko mibale lizali na maloba mingi oyo edefamaka uta na minoko misusu. Bato koleka bamillions zomi balobaka Lingala.

Susan
April 2008