AFRC1177 - Afro-American History 1876 to Present
History & Tradition Sector
Zulu, known by native speakers as IsiZulu, is one of the 11 official languages of South Africa. It is a member of the Nguni language group. Zulu speakers can invariably understand other Nguni languages, which include Xhosa, Swati and Ndebele. With 8.3 million speakers in South Africa, Zulu remains the most-spoken language. It is also used in Malawi, southern Swaziland, and Lesotho. In KwaZulu-Natal, the largest province in South Africa, Zulu is the dominant language.
Yoruba speakers live primarily in southwestern Nigeria, the Republic of Benin, Togo, and even as far west as Ghana, Sierra Leone, Upper Volta, and Ivory Coast. Historically, the trans-Atlantic Diaspora took Yoruba and its descendants to Sierra Leone, Brazil, Cuba, Trinidad, Haiti, and other parts of the Americas. Today, there are 60 million Yoruba on the African continent and in the New World.
Wolof is a member of the West Atlantic group of languages and was originally only spoken in the Senegambia area. However, following extensive cross-immigration between Senegal and Mauritania, the language has gained additional speakers. Additionally, the traditional Bana-Bana trade between Senegal and Mali has spurred a notable increase of Wolof speakers within the Malian population.