Digo (Chidigo)

Digo is a Bantu language spoken in southern Kenya and northern Tanzania by about 479,000 people. In Kenya it is spoken in Kwale county by about 313,000 people. In Tanzania there are about 166,000 Digo speakers in the Tanga area in the northeast of the country.

Digo is classified by some linguists as a dialect of Mijikenda. However, Digo speakers believe that their language differs significantly from other Mijikenda dialects. Digo itself has several dialects, including Northern Digo (Chinondo), T'simba and Tsw'aka in Kenya, and Southern Digo (Ungu / Lungu) in Tanzania.

There are several ways to write Digo, and written material in Digo is based on the Northern Digo dialect of Kenya. The Digo Language and Literacy Project has published a dictionary, grammar, translations from the Bible, and other material.

Digo alphabet and pronunciation

Download an alphabet chart for Digo (Excel)

Sample text

^ipho mwandzo Mlungu waumba dzulu mlunguni na dunia.
Dunia kala taina umbo rorosi wala chitu chochosi. Seemu kulu ya madzi kala ni jiza huphu. Nguvu za Roho wa Mlungu kala zi dzulu ya madzi.
Halafu Mlungu achiamba, "Nakukale na mwanga" na mwanga uchiala.

Source: Beginning, the first book of the prophet Moses in the Digo language

Translation

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

Source: https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Genesis-Chapter-1/

Sample videos in and about Digo

Links

Information about Digo
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digo_language
https://www.ethnologue.com/language/dig
http://www.language-archives.org/language/dig

Digo Language and Literacy Project
https://chidigo.com

Bantu languages

Bangi, Basaa, Bemba, Bena, Benga, Bhaca, Bukusu, Bulu, Central Teke, Chichewa, Chokwe, Chuwabu, Comorian, Digo, Duala, Eton, Ewondo, Fang, Ganda/Luganda, Gogo, Gusii, Gwere, Haya, Hehe, Herero, Ibinda, Ikizu, Ikoma, Jita, Kamba, Kiga, Kikuyu, Kimbundu, Kinyarwanda, Kirundi, Kisi, Kongo, Konjo, Koti, Kukuya, Kunda, Kuria, Lambya, Lingala, Loma, Lozi, Luba-Katanga, Luchazi, Lunda, Luvale, Makaa, Makonde, Makhuwa, Mandekan, Maore, Masaaba, Mbukushu, Mbunda, Mende, Mongo, Mushungulu, Mwani, Nambya, Nande, Nkore, North Teke, Northern Ndebele (South Africa), Northern Ndebele (Zimbabwe), Northern Sotho, Nyamwezi, Nyakyusa, Nyemba, Nyole, Nyungwe, Nzadi, Oroko, OshiWambo, Pagibete, Punu, Ronga, Safwa, Sena, Sengele, Shona, Soga, Songe, Southern Ndebele, Southern Sotho, Sukuma, Swahili, Swati, Tanga, Tembo, Tonga, Tshiluba, Tsonga, Tswa, Tswana, Tumbuka, Umbundu, Venda, Vwanji, Xhosa, Yao, Yasa, Zigula, Zinza, Zulu

Languages written with the Latin alphabet

Page last modified: 20.08.23

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