Colloquial Swahili speakers will drop the initial prefix “Ni-” and simply say “Nakupenda. " Either “Ninakupenda” or “Nakupenda” are both accurate. The shorter version is simply more commonly used by native speakers, similar to how native American speakers might more frequently say “bye” instead of “goodbye. " Other translations of “Ninakupenda” and “Nakupenda” are “affirmation of romantic feeling” and “affirmation of affection or deep caring. " [2] X Research source The phrase can be used with a lover or spouse or a family member.
To call someone “my love,” say, “manzi wangu. " To say, “I love you too,” say, “Ninakupenda pia. “[4] X Research source To say, “I love you, my angel,” say, “Ninakupenda malaika wangu. "
Some sites don’t understand that in Swahili the prefix “Ni-” is the subject “I. " Thus, you don’t need to say “Mimi ninakupenda wewe” because it literally means “I I you love you” with the “I” repeated twice. That’s silly.
The correct pronunciation is “Nah-koo-PEND-ah. " The correct pronunciation of the less colloquial version of “I love you” is “Nee-nah-koo-PEND-ah. " [6] X Research source
For example, “Ninakupenda pia” is pronounced “Nee-nah-koo-PEND-ah pee-ah. " A is pronounced “ah” (like “father”) E is pronounced “eh” (like “egg”) I is pronounced “ee” (like “tree”) O is pronounced “oh” (like “oval”) U is pronounced “oo” (like “room”) There are no silent vowels in Swahili. You must pronounce each vowel in a sentence. [8] X Research source
The letters “n” and “m” are pronounced the same way they are pronounced in English. The difference is that, in Swahili, sometimes another consonant will follow the “n,” and it also must be pronounced. For example, “Ndugu” is a word that means relative. Consonants pronounced the same way they are pronounced in English include the letters p, s, t, v, w, y, and z. Understand how to pronounce consonant pairings. For example, “ch” is pronounced like the “ch” in “chair. " And “sh” is pronounced like the “sh” in “shut. " “Gh” can be pronounced with a hard “g” as in the English word “garden. "
For example, the word “Ninakula” is actually a complete sentence which means “I am eating” in Swahili. “Ni-” is the portion of the word that indicates the subject of the sentence: “I. " That’s why the English phrase “I love you” is also just a single word in Swahili. As another example, the way you say “I don’t need” to indicate you don’t want to buy something is simply, “Sihitaji. " To say “I am lost,” you say, “Nimepotea. "
This means there are not different words used for he, him, she or her. The prefix “a-” is used for “he” or “she” alike. Swahili was ahead of the curve in this respect. The language is essentially gender neutral.
Buy an audio CD or textbook. These days, it’s easy to learn a foreign language by purchasing audio CD lessons or textbooks online. Some language exchange programs online will match you with a native speaker. You can also find You Tube videos for free that teach you how to say key Swahili phrases.
Ohio State University is an example of an American university offering Swahili language training. Learning the language will help you better understand the culture, which should improve your relationship with the person you love, if they are a native Swahili speaker. [12] X Research source Swahili (or Kiswahili as people speaking the language call it) is the African indigenous language that is the most studied and most important.
