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Written by Richard Mbuthia
Monday, 04 June 2007
It happens all the time, sometimes innocent, often not, still its capacity to cause offence and alienation is constant. I am talking about that bad habit; we all know some of its practitioners, those among us who are so in love with their ethnic languages that they feel inclined, maybe even compelled to use them to communicate in public places and offices. These people are oblivious to the discomfort felt by those cannot help but hear what they are talking with their mates, even as they cannot understand it. These friends of ours find it very easy to gossip about people in and around the office by using their vernacular tongues instead of the standard Kiswahili or English that is supposed to be used in offices and public places. The results of using the mother tongue in public places Â sometimes turn out to be amusing and embarrassing all in one pot. This reminds me of a certain incident which took place in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania some years back. Two Kenyan ladies (from the same tribe) had boarded a bus to town one Saturday morning. As they were settling into the daladala, a burly man got into the vehicle and sat close to them. One look at the man and one of the ladies almost instantly started telling her friend, in mother tongue, what she thought of the man: a big, good-for-nothing man. In the same vein and tongue, the other lady, tongue-in-cheek, said that she wouldn't date a guy his size. And she also thought that he wore smelly socks. And the undue criticism of the man went on and on. The man got off the vehicle first. As he was alighting, he turned to the two ladies and, in their mother tongue, he wished them a good day. This struck the ladies and they realized that what they had all along said about the man had been understood by him. With egg on their faces, they just looked down and felt immensely foolish. Related Articles: New constituencies - much ado about nothing? Kofi Annan to Begin Mediation Obama wins Maine to take weekend tally to five The tragedy of our times Letter from Kakuma Set as favorite Bookmark Email This Trackback(0) TrackBack URI for this entry Comments (6) Subscribe to this comment's feed Show/Hide comments YES written by Thuo , June 05, 2007 Thank you for highlighting that. Its actually rude to ignore the people aroung you and just rumble in you MT. It can be very uncomfortable. At the same time, if the environment allows, speak as much MT as possible and be proud of it. There is everything precious in our true identities. report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0 No written by Femme Noir , June 05, 2007 I think that kind of behaviour has more to do with simply being a rude and inconsiderate person rather than being ultra-lingual. A nafarious person remains such whether or not they use the official language.Ne c'est pas? report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0 ... written by aeichener , June 05, 2007 Hm. I has thought (and hoped) that the times were past, when ignorant native children had to be civilized into educated negroes, and the first step thereto was the dismissal of one's native tongue, evenm by severe punishment. Of course, Richard has made two valid points. The first is that it is simply rude to use a restricted mode of communication in presence of others which will not be understood by all (just as impolite as ostentatious whispers). The second is that use of a foreign tongue in order to badmouth somebody in his or her presence is utterly cenji-like. And Thuo is totally right in breaking a lance for an extended use of the mother tongue wherever it is possible and appropriate. Alas, for many Kenyans English now is their real and best-mastered "first language". And for some, it's Sheng. Alexander report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0 ... written by donworry , June 05, 2007 I have been in a similar situation to the one Richard's friend on the Dar es Salaam bus found himself. The words that the 3 women used whilst describing me cannot be repeated here. Using their powers of observation they were able to work out my occupation and net worth, which did not amount to much. The small pretty woman thought that I was a grave-digger. Our fellow travellers were laughing all thru the journey. I too wished them a safe journey as I left the bus. report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0 ... written by a guest , June 05, 2007 Its not all bad. Here is a perfect example of when to use it...your german boss is being a perfect arse, excuse my language, instead of punching his nose or worse venting on your family, you can include kumbaff hii, jinga sana as you talk...especially when he/she too hits the german highway! everyone is happy, and anger released, what you dont know, dont hurt you! And if you think he might gitch swa, jaza mothertongue report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0 ... written by ANON , June 07, 2007 There is nothing wrong in speaking a language as long as you are minding your own business. The problem with Kenyans is they like eavesdropping on people's conversations. Even English is viewed as a mothertongue by nonspeakers. report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0 Show/Hide comment form Write comment Name Email Title Comment smaller \| bigger Subscribe via email (Registered users only) I have read and agree to the Terms of Usage. Write the displayed characters
Last Updated ( Monday, 04 June 2007 )