“Imfulanse”: Borrowed French Words in the Chibemba Dialect of Luapula Valley, in ColonialZambia, 1905-1964

by

Mwelwa Chambikabalenshi Musambachime Department of History

Seminar Paper to be presented to the Departmentof Literature and Languages,University of Zambia, Great East Road Campus.

Venue: Language Lab 2Time: 15.00Date: 7 November 2010

Abstract

Between 1890 and 1900, colonial boundaries were delimited to

create colonies. Each colonial power

demarcatedpoliticalboundaries to separate it from other

political units and introduced its language to the colony or

colonies. Each colony political boundaries created by natural

barriers such as rivers, mountain ranges or imaginary lines.

It also hadlinguistic boundaries formed between areas where

people speak different official languages. Often, these

boundaries matched or reflected political boundaries.. Rarely

did a colonial language of one find itself accepted in

a”foriegn” colony. However,this unusual development occurred

in Luapula Valley, a border area in Northern Rhodesia, now

Zambia, adjacent to Katanga Province of the Belgian Congo,

where French words were readily adopted and used in the local

Bemba dialect This paper discusses the phenomenon of borrowing

“foreign” words from the French language (Imfulanse) which was

the official language in the adjacent Katanga Province of the

Belgian Congo, into the Chibemba dialect spoken in the Luapula

Valley up to years well after the independence in 1964. This

process was influenced by a number of factors discussed in the

paper. Adoption of French words is a phenomenon that occurred

and continues in many parts of Zambia, Central Africa and

indeed the rest of Africa It was used as a sign of

acculturation, a status symbol for those who had travelled or

had lived in Katanga, a process of exclusion to those who did

not know and understand the French words or inclusion for

those who did.. This phenomenon has attracted some scholarship

but not as much to cast this issue in wider academic circle.

This paper is a contribution to this debate.

.

Introduction

“. . .just as society is essentially dynamic and reacts to external influences, so the language of the people is as much a part of social life . . .”White:1951:66 “Borrowing from other languages is a creative activity”.Chief Mwata Kashiba Kalemfu, Kashiba, Mwense District 12

May 1975.

The “quests from another language” or borrowed words, permeate all languages. Through “linguistic” osmosis, the many thousands of words

are taken over from one language by another due various forms of interactions. or centuries, Africans have been borrowing thousands of “foreign” words and orally making they part of their language. Practicality liesbehind the choosing of words with no equivalent. The simple love for novelty also prompts the adoption of many others. Foreign words are most noticeable indifferent languages relating to business, social activities, religionand the activities.Chisanga Mulenga Paulo, Shila historian, Mununga, 22

August 1972.

Boundaries are just one type of artificial, or man-made, boundary. Other boundaries created by people include linguistic, economic, and social boundaries

The three quotations highlight the importance of

borrowing words from one

language into another. The phenomenon is part and parcel of

human interaction. And David Birmingham (1983:1) reminds us

that “adaptability and innovation are the

hallmarks of Central African history”. Following the same

trend of thought, C.M.M.White, a former District Official in

Balovale (now Zambezi), rightly observed that “one of the

outstanding features of modern Africa is the great impact

which it has experienced from the contact with the outer

world” (1951:66). This observation was picked up by James A

Pritcett who worked among the Lunda –Ndembu following the

footsteps of Victor Turner. After carrying out his field work

in Mwinilunga, Pritchett(2001: xi). concluded that

“the Lunda had no aversion to cultural borrowing. Much of their material culture is based on items from elsewhere. . . Yet borrowing seems to entail notsimply taking but also transforming. Foreign things must be refashioned into Lunda things. Foreign words, for example, must be assigned to one of the t ennoun classes, given the appropriate prefix, and then subjected to the same rules of alliteration that apply to all other words within that class”

Like the other ethnic groups in Central Africa,

the Lunda-Ndembu, , interacted among themselves and with

other ethnic groups from different parts of Eastern, Central

and Southern Africa for centuries among traders, blacksmiths,

medicine men, dancers, hunters, metallurgists, fishermen and

various artisans-. In this interaction, communication played

an important role and was the vehicle through which “foreign”

words were adopted either because they represented items that

were new, or replaced old words that were not fashionable.

In later centuries when ,long distance trade linking the

hinterlands with either the East or West Coast, became

prominent, they interacted with visiting traders: Luba from

the lower Lualaba; Portuguese, Mambari, Ovimbundu, Luso-

African (Pombeiro) from Angola; Luso – Africans, Arab,

Swahili, Nyamwezi from East Africa; Bisa from the Plateau

fringing Lake Bangweulu; Yao from Malawi and Mozambique;

Chikunda,Goan,and Luso-Goan from the lower Zambezi Valley; and

British traders such as George Westbeech who traded with the

Lozi from the 1860s and stayed for a short or long period

among their midst for varying periods. .This situation allowed

the Africans to pick “some new words” which were useful in

conducting trade or developing social relations. This trend of

borrowing continued in the colonial period during which

Africans picked and used words both from African and European

languages that were “new” to them or replaced their own

words. Gradually, this process of “adopting” foreign words

became an unconscious or conscious act which gradually

introduced new words in their languages. The rise of urban,

Provincial, District and trading centres provided the

environment in which the borrowing of words from various

ethnic groups to suit certain times and occasions flourished

without force or coercion. This process which was observed by

White (1951: 66 -71) in Balovale District and also discussed

later by Kashoki (1972:707 -729; 1975:29-31; 1978:80-

95;1990:31-57) ,and Kashoki and Musonda ( 1982:293 -316), was

a phenomenon that involved all communities to a small or

greater extent, continues today in areas of habitation.

This paper discusses the phenomenon of borrowing

“foreign” words from the French language which was the

official language in the KatangaProvince of the Belgian Congo,

into the Chibemba dialect spoken in the LuapulaValley –from

Mambilima to the northern shore of Lake Mweru from 1905- to

the year of independence in 1964. This process was influenced

by a number of factors discussed below. Adoption of “foreign”

words is a phenomenon that occurred and continues in many

parts of Zambia, Central Africa and indeed the rest of f

Africa and the world. It has attracted some scholarship but

not as much to cast this issue in wider academic circle.

In September 1996, the University of Namibia organised a

regional workshop on “Cross-border Languages”, held at

Okahandja, a small town north of Windhoek. One of the

presenters, Professor Edward .D.Elderkin (1996:2) observed the

following in his paper:

Although the concept of a language boundary is rarely discrete, as it depends on the geographical circumscription of a characteristic of an ever increasing mobile human population, it is clear that provincial boundaries, usually discrete, do not concede with language boundaries other presented agreed with him and pointed out that in nearly all countries there were languages that were spoken on both sides of the borders due to the spread ofthe border communities. In some situations, this also refers to European languages who, due to their woefulness in trade, commerce, labour migration, education, religion, forms of entertainment and availability of health facilities found increasing acceptance and use in areas where the colonial power was different and where the European language did not concede with political boundaries.

Good neighbourliness between countries manifests itself

in several ways. One of these is the spread of cultural

interactions and influences from the country to another in a

peaceful manner without the use of force, cohesion or threats.

This might include songs and dances, games, political

ideologies, religious ideas, fashion and dress for men and

women, types of foods, a language or languages spoken in

country being adopted either wholly or in part in another

country. A good example of these processes is along the

United States – Mexican border (Musambachime, 1991) In

Africa, similar situations exist the along the border between

Zambia and Tanzania, Nigeria and Cameroon or Nigeria and

Niger, Ghana and Togo, Ghana and Cotê d’Ivorie, Democratic

Republic of the Congo and the Congo Republic, Zimbabwe and

Mozambique, Zambia and Angola, Angola and Namibia, as well as

other borders, but these have attracted little or no

scholarship. In Zambia, one area which found itself in this

position was the LuapulaValley. The reason of being adjacent

to a more buoyant and stronger mining economy and the strong

economic links that developed during the period 1905 to 1964,

was a strong magnet which drew the Luapula Valley into the

Katangese economy. The presence of a rich fishery exporting

fresh, salted and smoke -dried fish, strong agricultural base

exporting foodstuffs such as cassava meal, bananas and small

livestock-goats and sheep, and poultry, to feed the

workers, through labour migration,the setting up of central

places such as Kasenga, Katabulwe, Kashiobwe, Kilwa Mulenga,

Lukonzolwa and Mpweto with the setting of shops on the

western side of the Luapula River and shores of Lake Mweru,

retailing and trading second-hand clothes, groceries,

hardware;, smuggling of Simba and Tembo brand beers brewed in

Elisabethville (now Lubumbashi) and Jadotville (now Panda-

Likasi) and soft drinks, a cosmopolitan population living in

interlinked and connected villages involved in various types

of trade,, a gradual and unforced process of adoption of

French words in the Chibemba spoken in Luapula Province

occurred which attained a reasonable level of permanence,

frequency, proficiency and wide currency.. This process of

“enrichment” of the Chibemba spoken on the eastern side of the

lower Luapula and the eastern shores of Lake Mweru, occurred

not by coercion of any sort, decree or any legal instrument,

but was spontaneously influenced by a number of factors

discussed below. French words from the French language

(called Imfulanse in the local language) which was the official

language in Katanga, were, during the period of colonial rule

1890-1964 and after, consciously or unconsciously adopted,

absorbed and added to a local dialect of Chibemba spoken in an

area which was under British rule, where English was the

official language. The approach using a geo-political, socio-

economic administrative and religious factors, will help us to

account for the morphological and phonological process of

incorporation at work.

,

Border control—the effort to restrict territorial access—

has long been a core state activity. As territorially

demarcated institutions, states have always imposed entry

barriers, whether to deter armies, tax trade and protect

domestic producers, or keep out perceived “undesirables.” All

states monopolize the right to determine whoand what is

granted legitimate territorial access. But there is sign

can’t historicalvariation in border control priorities and

policies. Although military defence, economic regulation,

emigration and migration have traditionally been central

border concerns, in many places states are retooling their

border regulatory apparatus to prioritise policing. Thus,

rather than simply eroding, as is often assumed, the

importance of territoriality is persisting—but with a shift in

emphasis.3 Inman cases, more intensive border law enforcement

is accompanying the demilitarization and economic

liberalization of borders (Musambachime, forthcoming).

Word Borrowing

Borrowing gives a second or foreign language local colour

and flavour.

Koopman (1994:19) asserts that borrowing is part of an

enrichment,enhancement and strengthening process.” Thomason

and Kaufman (1988:21) define borrowing as “the incorporation

of foreign elements into a speaker’s native language”. Sebba

(1997:10) sees borrowing as the “naturalization and adoption

of foreign items into another language,” and Van Coetseme

(1988:10) argues that it is “an importation of features from

mother languages into a native language”. Furthermore,

Mesthrie et al (2000:249) notes that borrowing usually

involves the adaptation of words into the phonetic and

grammatical system of the other language and it doesn’t

presuppose knowledge of the language from which it is taken.

Further. Uriel Weinrich (1979:1) has observed that “two or

more language [are] said to be in contact if they are used

alternatively by the same persons”. This condition is a self-

evident prerequisite to any influence extended by one language

on another. Borrowing” refers to the adoption of individual

words or even large sets of vocabulary items from another

language or dialect. In this process of borrowing, the lending

language dies not lose its word, not does the borrowing

language return the word. Borrowed words are called loan

words. 2 There are two hypotheses which try to explain the

motivation for “borrowing of words from one language to the

other. One is the “deficit” which entails the presence of

linguistic gaps in a language creating a prime motivation for

borrowing to remedy the prevailing “deficit” where there are

no equivalents in the borrowing language. And the other is

the “dominant” which presupposes that when two cultures come

into contact, the direction of culture learning and subsequent

word borrowing is not mutual, but is from the dominant to the

subordinate. The borrowing is not necessarily engaged in to

fill “lexical” gaps, but words are borrowed and used even

though there equivalents because these seem to have prestige.

Conversely, some other languages have borrowed words relating

to entertainment, sports and words regarding Western culture.

Words are also borrowed for new concepts and ideas for which

there are no local equivalents the number of words adopted is

determined by the degree of influence a language has on

another. The influence that a language exerts on another may

be seen in the local or partial adoption of a few or many

words (loan words) by other language users to compensate for

any deficiencies. This especially happens when a particular

concept is introduced in a particular country. Partial

adoption or adoption of loan words may involve as Linton

(1940:4) argues “not only the addition of a new element or

elements to culture, but the elimination of certain previous

existing elements and modifications and reorganization of

others.” The process of borrowing may be mutual or it may be

uni-directional indicating the superiority of one language

over the other (Whitely 1969: 30-31; Porter, 1971:184;

Kashoki, 1975, 724). The effect of this process is seen in

the phonological and grammatical structures as well as in the

grammars of the languages involved in borrowing (Krumm, 1940;

Kunene 1963; Whitely 1965). 1

A study of loan words can shed light on historical

connections and acculturation (Weinrich, 1979:5; McCall

1975:28) Herskovits, 1979: 116; Kashoki, 1975, 724). Kazadi -

WA Makuna- has advised that in studying this process, it is

important to understand that interest, need and desire

attached to the new elements being borrowed. An individual, a

group or community for example will not adopt and/or

assimilate new ways of life merely because they have come in

contact for a length of time with another culture, but various

because they have found new ways of life complementary to

their own and have judged them to be necessary to their

development.

This observation is echoed by Bascom and Hevskovits. In

view (1959:5) also shared by Hood (1959: 201-9), they noted

that “all groups [of people] take innovations selectively.

Some things are accepted, while others not considered

desirable are rejected because they are incompatible with

existing custom of unsuitable to the natural environment”.

Borrowing of words by one language from another is a

phenomenon which is recognized by linguists, historians and

anthropologists as an indicator of cultural contact and a fact

of cultural diffusion and acculturation (Weinreich, 1979:5;

McCall 1975:28). Writing on acculturation, Melville

Hertkovists (1979:116) noted that “acculturation…occurs as a

result of contact and it is the continuing nature of the

contact and the opportunities for exposure which constitute

the eventual patterning of (the) resulting cultural

orientations”. This may not only involve adapting new elements

which may involve borrowing of a number of words form one

language by another language.

A language in any society or nation, big or small, is an

important part of human behaviour, governed by traditions and

culture. It serves as a medium of expression and

communication. It is at any given time, an adequate form for

expressing all categories of communication customary to the

culture of which it is part of. Once a language comes into

contact with another it may be noticed by the speakers that

one is deficient in a number of ways and might be encouraged

to borrow from another language to compensate for its

deficiency.

Borrowing, may involve, as Ralph Linton (1940:469) puts

it, “not only the addition of a new element to elements to the

culture, but also the elimination of certain previous existing

elements and modifications and reorganization of others”. The

process of borrowing may be mutual as is the case between

Bemba and Kiswahili (Whitely 1969:30-31) or it may be uni-

directional, indicating the superiority of the culture

speaking the language from which words are being borrowed

(Porter 1971:184). This certainly was the case with Arabic

which spread in North and parts of West and East Africa as

part of the process of converting societies to Islam, and

European languages introduced in parts of Africa before and

after the establishment of colonial rule (Baker 1947:62-64;

McCall 1969:29-73; Kiraithe and Baden 1976:3-31; Hair 1980:1-

46; Palome 1963:499-511; 1971;:364-75). European languages

have exercised a dominant influence over other languages they

have come in contact with.

Kazadi –wa- Makuna (1979-80,31) has advised that in

studying the process of borrowing, it is important to

understand the interest, need and desire attached to the new

elements being borrowed. An individual, a group or community

for example, “will not adopt and/or assimilate new ways of

life merely because they have come in contact for a given

length of time with another culture, but rather because they

have found new ways of life complementary to their own and

have judged them to be necessary to their development”. This

observation is collaborated by Bascom and Herskovits (1959:5

who note that “all groups take innovations selectively some

things are accepted, while others, not considered desirable,

are rejected because they are incompatible with pre-existing

custom or unsuitable to natural environment”. Once the new

mode of life and the new modes of expression have been judged

pertinent by the adopting group, the potentiality of these

phenomena to be assimilated – that is the speed by which they

will be accepted and assimilated – will be determined by the

similarities or differences between the pre-existing elements

of the mode of life the adopting society and those from whom

they are borrowing. Equally important in facilitating the

assimilation of new ideas is the state of resistance in the

culture of those borrowing – whether traditions are not strong

enough to resist foreign cultural infiltration (Hood 1959:201-

9).

In Africa, the phenomenon of borrowing words by one

language from another has been studied at two levels. The

first is concerned with the theoretical and empirical

implications involved in the process of borrowing, which is

largely descriptive and a domain of linguists (Whitely,

1963:128-45,1967:120-30; Grower 1952: 154-56: Parson 1962:197-

203, Greenberg 1962: 165-175; Richardson 1963:128-145, 1961:

24-36; 1962, 189-96, Epstein 1959:235-53). The other is a

diachronic analysis of the cultural, social and economic

factors influencing the process of borrowing which is the

domain of socio-linguists, anthropologists and historians

(White 1951:66-71; Mosha 1971: 255-308; Baker 1947; 62-62;

Kashoki 1972:161-86; 1978, 707-25; Musonda and Kashoki 1982:

293-316; Palome 1963: 499-511, 1971:364-75; Leblane 1954:787-

99; Comhaire-Slylvian 1949; 239-50). Although the emphasis

and approach are different at each level, these studies have

over the years, contributed to a better understanding of the

importance of borrowing of words in African societies. This

study looks at the historical, social and economic factors

which contributed to the adoption of French words in the Bemba

language spoken in the LuapulaValley, after the introduction

of colonial rule in the 1890s. What makes the study unique is

that the phenomenon occurred in an area administered by the

British. Here, due to the proximity of the area to French

speaking KatangaProvince of the Belgian Congo, English was

disregarded in favour of French as a language of acculturation

and ultimately French words found their way into the local

language.

AreaLuapulaValley refers to a broad flood plain on the lower

Luapula river just before the river flows into lake Mweru (see

the map). The Eastern section of the valley is densely

populated while the Western part is not, due to the presence

of marshes. The dominant ethnic groups are the Lunda of Mwata

Kazembe, who together with the Ushi, Chishinga, Tabwa, Shila

and Bwile speak a dialect of Bemba spoken in North Eastern

Zambia and Eastern region. This area came under European

colonization in 1891 with the British taking the Eastern part

to form part of the North East Rhodesia while the Western part

was taken by the Belgians and formed part of Congo Free State

- later Belgian Congo (Musambachime, McPherson 1981).

From the early 1800s, the area developed trade contacts

with the Portuguese on the West Coast and Tete in Mozambique

and the Swahili speaking East African traders – Arabs,

Swahili, Nyamwezi and Fipa traders. The later visited the

capital regularly to trade in Ivory, Copper, Salt and Slaves.

Some of the traders became semi-or permanent residents in

Kazembe village. In the late 1850 and 1860s, many traders

spread throughout the Eastern parts of Luapula River and Lake

Mweru befriending local women. Later they founded trading

centres at Mpweto on the shores of Lake Mweru, Kabuta in

Nsama’s area and Salanga South of Kazembe’s village. Through

the process, Kiswahili spread in the area. (Roberts, 1970,

1971, 1976; Kashoki).

The early history of Katanga -- characterized by

trade -- involved local ethnic groups and foreigners from East

Africa. Among the latter were the Waswahili and the

Wanyamwezi, porters for the Arab traders who headed the

caravans (Polomé, 1968), and who, along with their East

African workers, spoke a language known as Swahili. This they

introduced into Katanga; it was adopted later as the language

of trade and inter-ethnic communication, At this time, the

major trading center was Bunkeya, located in the Likasi area

and inhabited by people belonging to the Yeke and Sanga ethnic

groups, of whom the latter were in the demographic majority.

Having come to Bunkeya with traders' caravans, the Yeke or

Wanyamwezi were less significant numerically. Very highly

valued, however, were the caravan heads (i.e. the Arab

merchants) with the most linguistic prestige; they spoke

Kiswahili (Polomé, 1968), which was adopted as the language of

trade in Bunkeya and learned by locals

In 1890, the area came under colonial rule. The Anglo-

Belgian Treaty of April 1894, established the middle thwaleg

of the Luapula as the boundary between the Congo Free State

and North East Rhodesia. The Western side became part of the

Congo Free State, then owned by King Leopold II of Belgium but

which became a |Belgian Colony in 1908. The Eastern part

became part of North East Rhodesia (NER) ruled by the British

South African Company, formed by Cecil Rhodes in 1888. and

later amalgamated with North West Rhodesia to form Northern

Rhodesia which became a British colony from April 1924.. With

the advent of colonial rule European languages: French in

Katanga and English in NER, displaced Kiswahili in terms of

official use and prominence. In Katanga, Kiswahili assumed a

secondary role but remained an important lingua franca used by

the administrators, missionaries, traders and employers. In

NER Kiswahili was discouraged completely because the BSAC

administration felt that it was “the language of the slave

traders”.

In Katanga Kiswahili was second to French in terms of the

hierarchy in communication and in terms of prestige located

between French as the top and local languages (Chibemba, Chi

Hemba, Chiluba, Sanga, and Chilamba) at the bottom which were

spoken more in the home environment. Kiswahili came to

characterise a new colonial urban culture which submerged

ethnic and social differences. This language united and

presented the African population as one homogeneous group.

From 1885, shortly after the end of the Berlin

Conference on Africa and the declaration of the Congo Free

State (CSF), the Congo, popularly known as Bula Matari to the

Africans, came under the control of King Leopold II of the

Belgians, a monarch of a small bilingual European nation of

Belgium speaking French and Flemish – related to the Dutch

language. The development of mining, led to the creation of a

new economic center: Lubumbashi, known at the time as

Elisabethville. According to Barbara Yates in a well

researched study (1980:258; 1980: 57), French was declared the

official language of the CFS administration while Flemish was

used sparingly. Relevant circulars were issued to this effect.

Under the rubric “Duties of District Commissioner, the

administrative manual of July 1907 (page 101)” summarized the

official policy in the following instructions:

It is necessary to introduce to the blacks the French language, the official language of the state [CFS]. It is thus recommended to officials to use as much as possible only French terms in their official dealings with state soldiers and workers in a manner so as to have in each post [posted] a nucleus of men knowing rudiments of the language and who, in turn, will propagate it among the natives.

The legislation on education also reflected the official

language policy and position of the government – the use

French as the medium of instructions (Yates, 1980: 258).

In the Congo Free State, the Belgians decided to

keep Swahili for wider communication. (Polomé, 1968) They

expanded it into various areas of the province, and they

prohibited non-Arab Swahili people in the Congo from returning

to East Africa. They also encouraged the use of the language

in the school system, and signed a deal with Catholic missions

to spread Swahili. Thus, at the creation of the Congo Free

State in 1908, three agents -- mining, administration, and

missions -- were responsible for the expansion of Swahili.

In their campaign to spread Swahili, the

Belgians were affected by a drastic curtailment in contact

between East Africa and Katanga. Agents relied upon the small

number of EAS speakers and on a large number of non-native

speakers from local ethnic groups. Of importance here was the

fact that the Luba ethnic groups and the Bemba represented

large numbers. Their demographic advantage, coupled with their

higher levels of education (due to missionary education),

allowed the Luba from the Kasais to occupy influential

positions (as teachers, office workers, and artisans, for

example). (Poloreé, 1969; Heine, 1970) As a result of their

socio-economic situation, and because they proved to be

zealous learners, the Luba were employed as agents of

linguistic expansion throughout the major industrial centres,

and played a crucial role in it. (Polomé, 1968; Heine, 1970)

With the advent of independence, Swahili was widely

spoken and used throughout Katanga as the sole lingua franca.

Its spread did not lead to significant language shift,

however, because Swahili co-existed and shared certain

communicative functions with other ethnic languages (which

continued as conduits for intra-ethnic communication). Daily

linguistic contacts, which were cultural as well, led to

mutual linguistic colouring, and certainly contributed to the

evolution of the original variety of Swahili of Katanga,

Gradually, Swahili. Lost its influence in Elisabethville,

where Bemba speakers constituted the majority ethnic group.

Ultimately, however, because of the prestige that French was

accorded in Congolese society, its speakers -- Congolese

intellectuals -- constituted the social group with the highest

degree of vitality.

In the long run, however, although Swahili

was considered important, its prestige dwindled. French,

instituted as the official language of the country, was

adopted as the language of government, court, education, and

economic development. For all purposes, and especially after

independence, when education was accessible to a large portion

of the population, French's importance increased

To the Africans in the CFS, later from 1908, called Belgian

Congo, French was seen and regarded as a language which

enabled a speaker to acquire prestige, social status and

social promotion. Illiterate and barely literate Africans

made every effort to acquire a rudimentary knowledge of French

and would boast of being able to speak the language of the

Belgians – French (Zeiling, 2008:227 -258). This became even

more necessary as it was used at meetings of clubs,

associations, social and cultural meetings among the

cultured African (evolues). It was to the many, a language

that transcended ethnic differences and exposed the speakers

to a refined culture (Mudimbe, 1994:132-133).

To the Africans, a Belgian was a powerful

person. He was feared because of his readiness to use the whip

or gun and to imprison those who, in his judgement, were at

fault. He was respected and admired and was associated with

engendering fear and respect for the white man. He had a “hard

heart”, he was a rock breaker (Bula Matari). He was ready to use

the Force Publique (a quasi-military police) against African

citizens, traders and chiefs who failed to meet expected

number of workers on public works such as road construction of

roads, bridges, prisons and administrative offices; and

quotas of assigned raw materials. Such as the amount of cotton

grown, rubber balls and amount of ivory collected and amount

paid in poll tax. He was able to inflict pain, injury and

even cause death if the wishes were not met. He was ready to

enhance his social standing, technological advancement and

success. He was generally perceived to be knowledgeable and

all powerful. The Belgians and other Europeans in the

administration, were also a source of fear for the power

they held, exercised, and generated. The European

administrators collected taxes, burned villages that failed to

meet their tax quotas, gave orders to whip and imposed forced

labour (corvèe) for public works – making of the roads and

bridges, offices and houses for the administrative staff and

where possible, created gardens and planted fruit trees.

Lack of personnel led the colonizers to hire the

Tanganyika Concessions Limited and Roberts Williams Company,

whose duty was to recruit workers from other areas of the

Katanga province, i.e., the Kasai provinces and the

neighbouring countries of Rwanda, Burundi, North West Rhodesia

and North East Rhodesia. Recruits included the Luba-Katanga,

who spoke a Luba variety of Kiluba, and the Luba-Kasai and

Lulua, who spoke Tshiluba. Workers from Northern Rhodesia

spoke Bemba, other languages, and some English. During all

these undertakings, the African people were observant and

listened closely to what was said and what it meant as well as

observed the gestures and the general body language of the

speaker. In this way, they picked French words and

demonstrated their competency to their friends and relatives

when time was opportune. In the compounds (Communes) where

they lived, the migrants from Mweru-Luapula were mixed with

other ethnic groups from all parts of Katanga, the Kasai,

Manyema, Kivu as well as Ruanda-Urundi, Angola and North West

Rhodesia. This allowed for greater interaction and absorption

of French and other words from other languages in their local

vocabulary. This became even more necessary at family

gatherings, in church during sermons, meetings of clubs,

associations and among the cultured African (evoluès). French

words were gradually, and with increasing frequency, absorbed

and used in the number of the many a language that

transcended ethnic differences and exposed the speakers to a

refined new culture (Mudimbe, 1994:132-133). A number of

influential person in Mweru-Luapula became ‘’fluent’’ in

French. Among these were Chief Lubunda who went to the Congo

at the tender age of sixteen in 1906, and returned to become

chief when he was well over fifty, Another was Shadrack

Chinyanta Kasasa, who became Mwata Kazembe XIV.(Yamba)

The informal learning French or even English was,

officially, neither encouraged nor discouraged. Formally,

French was taught in a rudimentary fashion in Mission schools

on the Congolese side of the lower LuapulaRiver and the

western side of Lake Mweru run by Catholic orders such as the

Salessians. Europeans found that those who had the aptitude to

learn a European language were a great help in conveying

instructions or complaints and in understanding the thinking

of the Africans on certain issues. Commenting on this issue,

F.G. Rowling (1939: 133) argued that

Africans may “learn to [speak, read and] write some European language extremely well, yet with little understanding of the real inner meaning, and often with no gain whatsoever to life or conduct. In many cases, to their own great loss, they learn to despise both their language and their own people”.

This kind of attitude while being true for some parts of

Africa and a small number of Africans, was not common among

the Northern Rhodesian migrants in Katanga. Whilst they took

pride in acquiring some French words, they did not look down

upon their language because the level of proficiency was very

low and did not grow big heads to despise their people

because the African institutions where they came from where

very strong against such behaviour. Disrespect was quickly

punished by public rebuke, ridicule admonition, ostracization

and payment of prescribed fees for a transgression. In some

cases, even parents as well as clansmen and women faced

collective punishment if some customary norms were disregarded

by an individual.

From the early days of colonial rule, the local people,

for some reasons –gestures accompanying speech and the speech

itself, viewed and regarded French as a language of status,

social promotion and prestige. It became desirous for the

many to acquire a smattering vocabulary of the language.

Palome l(1971:364-375) who studied multi-lingualism in

Elisabethville (Lubumbashi today) observed that French was a

“Prestige language” which some African elite made “a point of

honour to display their command of the language” to impress

the less educated, who in turn tried to impress those with

little or no education”.

Popularity of the French Language in Luapula Valley

After the establishment of the colonial rule,

the Luapula River served as a boundary between the Congo Free

State (which later became a Belgian colony in 1908) and North

East Rhodesia (which became part of Northern Rhodesia in

1911), the local people quickly noticed and recognised the

difference between the British who spoke English and the

Belgians who spoke French or Flemish. Labour migrants from

Northern Rhodesia to Katanga struggled to learn Ki-Swahili

brought to the area by East African traders such as the Yeke,

originally a Nyamwezi, a Sumbwa groups who dominated the

copper producing area from the 1870s to the beginning of

colonial rule. Swahili was recognised by the Belgian

administration as the language to be used at work and the

lingua franca of Katanga (Fabian,1986: 101).They also struggled

to pick some French words, expressions and sentences which

they found useful and which quickly entered their vocabulary.

They were proud to show off what they picked including the

body expressions. Some who had elementary education in mission

schools which exposed them to English added on an elementary

French education in schools run by the Salessians, a Catholic

order. Bishop Springer, an American, established an

educational academy in Elisabethville, which offered a

bilingual curriculum of English and French in addition to Ki

Swahili. Like many young Congolese, what was learned in the

urban schools and in the informal environment, was brought

back to the villages during visits or on their permanent

return.

In the early 1900s, the role of European languages was

rather limited. Educated Africans from northern Nyasaland who

had attended schools run by the Livingstonia Mission, from

North East Rhodesia who attended schools run by the London

Missionary Society at Kawimbe and Senga Hill in Abercorn,

Kashinda in Mporokoso and Mbereshi, near Kazembe, who

attended schools run by the Christian Mission in Many Lands,

the schools run by The Universities Mission to Central Africa

(now called Anglicans) and those run by the Roman Catholics

(the White Fathers), and acquired a certain level of

proficiency in English, were useful to the employers such as

the Tanganyika Concessions Limited, the Comité Spécial du Katanga,

the Union Minière du Haut Katanga, the Railway Company (BCK) and

other employers running retail businesses and contractiors..

They served as the first link in the communication chain

established with their African workers. They were precious to

the w3hite employers but they were too few. Although they were

useful in any number, in many situations, only one or two at

most would be sufficient.

Some schools operated by both Roman Catholic and

Protestants missionaries, conducted their teaching initially

in local languages such as Chi -Luba, Lunda andChi- Bermba, and in

later grades, added Kiswahili , French and English. At these

schools, the school pupils learned enough of the European

languages to receive and carry out instructions from

administrative officers, employers, missionaries and traders

and to act as interpreters.

For the Salessians, teaching of French was cardinal, indeed

it was the only way of winning the Africans over to the White

man in the process of gradual assimilation. Some priests

however felt that it was better to teach Africans in their

“ethnic” languages since their lack of European education made

a more elevated language difficult to be taught to them. The

official Belgian policy favoured the use of selected African

languages and Kiswahili as a lingua franca. This, according to

Yates, this was to allow missionaries to keep a better control

over the Africans. However, from the information collected

from the late Chief Lubunda in 1975 and confirmed by Fabian

(1986:136), the missionaries taught French to the Africans and

encouraged the teaching of Kiswahili as “an effective barrier

against free communication [between the Africans and

Europeans]”.

George Grenfell, a missionary with the Baptist Society

in the Upper Congo argued that it was advantageous to teach

French and English to the Africans, because

in addition to the self -reliance and resourcefulness of a

more or less skilled body of artisans, the missionaries, by

teaching them a civilized language and bringing them into

contact with literature and civilization of the world, have

placed them in as position of great advantage as compared to

those among the mission work has been carried on extensively

with the language of the country. From a distinctly

religious point of view, it may be debatable as to whether it

is advantageous or not to teach a new language, but from a

social point of view, the gain is distinct,

After the First World War, the development of the

fishing industry to feed the mine and urban workers in Katanga

and the establishment of retail trade shops at Kasenga,

Katabuklwe, Chibondo, and Kilwa Mulenga, and the direct

contact between European fish traders and the African

fishermen helped to popularize the French language as it was

the “official” language of government business and trade and

in some cases, socialisation. The use of French words quickly

created a difference in indicating those who had been to

Katanga who were regarded as or seen to be “sophisticated” and

those who were not. French became a language of acculturation

while English was found to be a dull language without flair.

The French language dominated an area with a number of schools

operated by the London Mission Society at Mbeleshi and later

Kafulwe Missions and the Plymouth Brethrens (later called the

Christian Missions in Many Lands) at Johnston Falls

(Mambilima), Mubende and Kawama . In these schools, pupils

were forced to use the medium of English both in and out of

class(Morrow, 19:67),1978:67). The graduates from these

schools found employment as local teachers and evangelists,

but many migrated to Katanga and leant French as their

language of communication( Chungu;Yamba,Mukoshi, Chuba,

Morrow,1978, 67), .The presence and existence of this “class”

of educated local Africans was a source of concern to the

British Officials.. In his annual report for the year ending

31 March 1930, J.B. Thompson, the District Commissioner for

Kawambwa (NAZ/1/3/8), recorded this fear in the following

report:

For among these “educated” natives, who act as a class are an admirable and valuable body of citizens, there are necessarily a certain number who are claiming from literary education the distinction that rightly belongs to ability and character and whose resentment when they are taken at true rather than their own self-arrogated value is not only a social nuisance but is liable to become a public danger. And it is only with the more general spread oif education and is ceasing to have in itself a “scarcity value” that these men will find their true level and cease to be a

source of irritation to the respectable and industrious elements in the native population

In 1932, at the height of the World Depression, the

mines in the Congo and those on the Zambian Copperbelt) closed

down and the workers were repatriated to their homes. Some of

these returned to Northern Rhodesia and settled along the

middle LuapulaRiver. In 1933, the White Fathers at the newly

found Kaunda Mission ( a few kilometres from Fort Roseberry)

who were French, established contact with these villages.

Father Superior at Kabunda, reported the following:

On the eastern bank of the Luapula [River], there is a whole string of villages inhabitant by people who came back from the Congo, which extends as far as the Salessian missionaries [at] Kaboka. We feel completely at home with those people, for most of them have had contact with the Catholic Church, which to all intent and purpose, is the “official” church in the Belgian Congo. Moreover, they speak – or at least understand –French and they are happy to come upon Basungu [Europeans] who speak the European language they are used to on the [other] side of the river. For them, English [which is spoken in Northern Rhodesia] was a “Foreign” language.

FENZA/B/L: Kabunda Diary, 2 April, 1933.

This situation persisted in the Luapula Valley where

French, among the educated few, became a preferred language to

English. In 1958, P.K Mulala, a newly appointed African

Administrative Assistant based at Kawambwa Boma, visited the

eastern part of the Luapula Valley on a familiarisation tour.

What he saw surprised him a lot. He described his surprise in

the following report:

French is spoken in this area by many people: women and children irrespective of whether they were educated or not. It is a pride and sign of dignity for one to speak French in this area. Some uneducated elements told me that meeting other Africans in social activities was sufficient enough for one to learn French. This might be true because most of the people I met who spoke French were not educated at all (NAZ/SEC2/879).

Not being proficient in French himself, Mulala, who from

the report was thoroughly impressed by what he saw in Luapula

Valley, was unable to tell whether the French spoken – even by

uneducated – was good.. The point which he emphasized was

the popularity of French over English, a situation which was,

for Northern Rhodesia – a country where English was the

official language, unique and unexpected. The questions

which arose from Mulala’s report are threefold.: (1) why did

British subjects living in Northern Rhodesia were English was

he official language find “status”, ‘pride’ and ‘dignity’ in

speaking French which was the official language in the

Belgian Congo?; (2) how did this situation develop in this

area only? And (3) how did it perpetuate itself?

To answer these questions, one needs to sketch the

social and economic history of Katanga to which the Luapula

Valley was inextricably tied from early 1900s to the mid

1970s. Katanga was a source of employment, education,

commerce, medical attention at the hospitals at Chibambo and

Kaboka and clinics at many centres, trade, socialisation and

affluence for the people in Mweru-Luapula. This prevailing

situation created an environment in which it was easy for

the inhabitants of Mweru-Luapula to borrow and adopt French

words in their vocabulary

Changes in borrowed words

McCall (1969:28-73) and Kiraithe and Baden (1976:3-31)

who studied the borrowing of words by Swahili from Portuguese

shows that any European words which were borrowed, underwent

some changes to fit into the Swahili structure. Similarly, it

is obvious that as the words were adopted from French and

became part to the Bantu lexicon, changes at the phonological,

morphological (grammatical) and lexical levels occurred to

adapt the new items to the speech patterns of the Bemba

speakers.

(a) Phonological

Branford and Laughton (2002), Finlayson (1993) and

Romaine (1995)

In their studies demonstrate that borrowed items typically

undergo some

Phonological, morphological and semantic changes. At the

levels of phonology and morphology a borrowed word may be

unassimilated, in that case there is no adaptation to the

phonology of the recipient language, or it may also be

partially or wholly assimilated. Haugen (1953) calls

borrowings that are adapted phonologically and morphologically

loan words (in Romaine 1995:56). .According to Weinriech

91969:5) phonological changes “concerned the manner in which

the speaker preserves and reproduces the sounds of one

language and in terms of another. These changes (or

interferences) arose when a Bemba speaker identified French

phonemes with those in Bemba and in reproducing the subjected

them to Bemba rule. The current study concerns itself with

those borrowed items in which there has been no or very little

adaptation of the French word (loan word) when it is used in

the Chibemba of Luapula Province. This phenomenon has been

described by Bloomfield 9133:45) as “sound substitution.” For

example, voiced French consonants such as

b, d, g, j, v, z

were replaced by non-voiced Bemba sounds:

b or mob, nod, or t, nag, no, f, s

or she.

Affricatives such as ‘r’ were replaced by ‘l’ while the nasal

sounds were de-nasalized and uttered just like any other Bemba

sound.

(b) Grammar

In the grammatical interference, the speakers of Bemba

identified Bemba morphemes (segments of utterances) with

French ones. In this process borrowed French words – usually

nouns in this case are used together with prefixes and

suffixes used in Bemba to denote size, quantity and quality.

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

(1) Kali kashini kanono un petit magasin a small

shop

I Kashini ilikulu un grand

magasin A big shop.

(2) Ama kashini ayanono petit magasins small

shops

Ama kashini ayengi beauoup des magasinsmany shops

(3) Ikashini ilisuma un bon magasin a nice shop

Ikashini ilibi un mauvais magasin a bad

shop

(c) Lexical

At the lexical level, French morphones were transferred

into Bemba without much change.

Komsi Komsa Comme çi commça

Komishele Commissaire

Shefudepo Chef de poste

Process of borrowing

The borrowing of word from French to Chibemba was a

selective process involving words that were not available in

the local language(Tempels, 1959;Mudimbe, 1988:44 -.97;

Mudimbe, 19912: 56 ) It was not, therefore, an elitist

development but a functional one in which all the population

were involved in as part of their communication to kins and

those who were not. French words which added flair to the

language became, overtime domesticated in their corrupted

forms to become part and parcel of the everyday speech. In

the short but highly interesting article published in 1951,

White (1951:66), observed that

One of the most outstanding features of modern Africa is the great impact which it has experienced from the contact with the outer world

(seen in) the development of industrialization with its attendant factors. Chief amongst (these) is the phenomenon of migrant labour especially produced by the Rand mines in Southern Rhodesia such as Wankie, the Copper mines of Northern Rhodesia, the Union Minière in Katanga and the diamond mines in Angola and the Belgian Congo. There has also arisen an extensive demand for labour on account of railways, building motor transport, urban settlements and farming. Yet a further factor has been contributed by modern administration…Over all looms the fact that with these changes there has been introduced a moneyed economy.. .

These developments played an important part in the

process of borrowing words from African and European

languages and incorporating them into local languages. Among

these was the Bemba spoken in the LuapulaValley.

From the Belgian administration of the Congo, Katanga

inherited French as an official language used in

administration, of all official documents and school

curriculum. Borrowing of French words in Bemba and other

languages of Katanga took place at several levels:

administration, labour migrations, farming industry, retail

trade, social life, religion, education, medicine and

education(Chief Sapwe –wa Bukanda; Chief Lubunda; Chief

Chikungu) Each of these levels was responsible for the

adoption and absorption of a number of French words in the

Bemba of Luapula Valley.

Factors in the Process of Borrowing

1. Administration in Katanga

After the establishment of colonial rule, the Belgians

established Kasenga as an administrative post. The British

established their own at Chienge, 250 miles (400 Kilometres)

to the north and rarely vested the area except to collect hut

tax. So in the absence of any established British influence,

the area, being in a close proximity to Kasenga, came under

increasing influence from the Katangan side. Kasenga,

established in 1900, was initially a one-man post run by Chef de

poste (equivalent to Native (later District) Commissioner in

Northern Rhodesia) with a small detachment of African

soldiers of the Force Publique. At its administrative offices, a

blue flag with the star of the Congo – a flag of the Congo

Free state – flew. All persons entering Katanga had to have

their passes (laissez passer) checked and stamped by the Chef de

poste. The activities created a situation where a number of

French words came to be frequently used by Bemba speakers and

subsequently adopted. Among these are:

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Bilo Bureau Office

Intalapo drapeau Flag

Shefudepo Chef de poste native

Shefu Chef Chief

Leta L’etat State (1)

Soda Soldat Soldeir (2)

Balye Barrière Barrier

Aluume Armèe Army

Lesepase Laissez-passer Pass

Salu Salut Salute

Bonju Bonjour Hallo

Bonwi bon nuit Good night

Patante Patent License

Komishele Commissaire Commissioner

Kadi guarde Guard

1.Refers to the Congo Free State (L’ Ètat independent du Congo).The

local name widely used to refer to the State was Mbula Matali

(from Bula Matari)

2.The Local name was Kaboke probably form Lingala, spoken in

Upper Congo along the Middle Congo..

ii. Labour migration

In 1900, prospectors working for the Tanganyika

concessions limited (TCL) began pegging old copper mines in

Katanga. Later, new ones were discovered. Being located in a

sparsely populated area, labour prospecting and mining

purposes had to be brought in from the more populous areas of

the Luapula – Lufira and LuapulaValleys. Workers from the

latter were regarded as being more resilient , reliable and

hard working. From 1910, to about 1925, they formed over half

of the labour force on the mines. Thousands more were

employed by the railways and private companies. For

example, in Elisabethville alone, 60 percent of the labour

came from North East Rhodesia, with the Bemba workers being

very prominent. The workers employed by large companies such

as the mines and railways were accommodated in compounds while

those employed by small companies were accommodated in the

CitèIndigène. .Here, the workers from Luapula Valley came into

contact with others from Angola, Ruanda-Urundi, Katanga and

North-West Rhodesia (Perrings, 1979, 151-55).

In the Katangan urban centres, apart from attending to

their work, the workers were first exposed to Swahili was

lingua franca among the workerswho came from different countries:

Begian Congo and Ruand-Urundi, Northern Rhodesia,Nyasaland,

Mozambique andAngola. In addition, English, French and in some

cases Fanakalo or “Kitchen kaffir” originally from Soujth

Africa and ujsed in Southern Rhodesia and parts of the railway

belt in Northern Rhodesia, were used by different workers as

their various forms of communication depending on the level

of education of the people involved. English and French were

also learned in Night Schools ran by the Methodist

Missionaries headed by Bishop Springer. The products of these

schools proudly presented themselves “Springas” or “abakwa

Springer” (those belonging to Springer not necessarily the

Methodist Church which ran these institutions (Besa; Yamba;

Kasokolo; Hoover,2013:67-113). However, as the Belgians

gradually asserted their hold on Katanga, French replaced

other languages and became the “official” language. For

example, announcements were originally written in French and

translated in Swahili, official sign plates in the Post

Office, hospital and other public buildings were in French and

Swahili. (Palome, 1971, 369; Hoover, 2007::9; Hoover, 2013:67

-113).

After 1925, the mining company of Katanga the Union

Minière du Haut Katanga, (UMHK) embarked on a programme of

stabilizing labour by allowing workers to bring and live with

their families. Children were sent to schools where

instructions were in Kiswahili and French. After four years

they became proficient in French. And according to Palome,

(1971: 368) the educated people made “a point of honour to

display their command of the language in public”. French,

therefore, was a prestige language used to enhance one’s

status. French was also spoken at the market, in shops, and

offices of public service inter-changing with Swahili. In the

compounds, women and children communicated in Swahili heavily

blended with French words which invariably became part of

their vocabulary. These were later introduced in Mweru –

Luapula among these were:

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Munyemunyele Union Minière du Haut Mining Union of

KatangaUpper Katanga

Beseka BCK* Railway

Company

*Bas-chemin eu fer du Katanga

Komune Commune Compound

iii.Reckoning of Time

One of the first things the recruited workers learnt was

to reckon the time in French. This was important because

they had to know when to report for work, knock off and keep

appointments. As many workers were used to reckoning the time

by night, day, evening or by the position of the sun which

changed from season to season, they had to learn the twenty-

four hour clock. To help them, the Union Minière devised a

system to blowing sirens in groups of numbers to indicate the

time of the day or night. These were blown to warn the

workers to prepare for a shift, or end of it to let them know

the time of the day. From this exercise, the workers began to

learn about the time in French. Gradually, the French words

were modified to suit the Bemba structure as follows:

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Inele Une heure One 0’clock

Dezele or desele deux heures Two 0’clock

Twazele or Twasele Trois heures Three

0’clock

Katelele Quarte-heures Four 0’clock

Senkele Cing heures Five 0’clock

Sezele or sisele Six heures Six 0’clock

Setele Sept heures Seven

0’clock

Witele Huit heurues Eight

0’clock

Onzele or Onsele Onze heures Eleven

0’clock

Minwi Minuit Mid night

Mili Midi

Midday(Twelve 0’clock)

They also learnt to tell time by the parts of the hour:

quarter to, quarter past, half past. i.e.

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

ekala et quart quarter past

mwa-ekala et moins le quart quarter to

demi et demi half-

past.

iv. Currency

At the beginning of the mining venture, workers were paid

in English currency. This was later changed and the Belgian

Congo Franc (imfalanga, sing ulufalanga) was adopted. The Francs

were kept in money purse (ptomaine -Mpotemone) or in the

pockets in the trousers or tied to a piece of cloth. Prices of

goods and foodstuffs were now quoted in francs. Before long,

these quotations became part of the ordinary vocabulary as

follows:

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Ulufalanga un franc one franc

Pl. infalanga francs franks

Senki fulanga cing francs five francs

di fulanga dix francs ten francs

kalanti fulanga quarante francs forty francs

senkanti fulanga cinquante francs fifty francs

swansante fulanga soizante francs sixty francs

mili fulanga mille francs one hundred

francs.

Returning labour migrants introduced the francs in Luapula

Valley. They were followed by African and European traders who

came to the Luapula Valley and Lake Mweru area to buy cassava

meal, ground nuts and beans; dried and fresh fish; small

livestock like Sheep and Goats, poultry, fruits like Mangoes,

Jackfruit and Bananas to sell at the markets or to deliver to

employers who gave these as part of weekly or fortnightly

rations to their workers. By 1926, the Belgian Congo Franc was

a very popular currency used for trade transactions as well as

paying annual tax, fines and other obligations. This did not

escape the attention of the Native Commissioner for Kawambwa

sub. District. In his annual report for 1925, he complained

that:

It appears that (the people in Kawambwa Distinct which included Luapula Valley) have got used to being paid in Belgian (Congo) money that they are extremely averse to change (to the British Coin) and insist on a higher price if paid in our currency. They prefer to be paid in Belgian currency. (NAZ/ZA7/1/9/8:1926).

Copies of denominations of the Belgian Congo Francs

,

After 1931, it becomes an unofficial legal tender and

accepted for payment of taxes. . In 1950, for example, whilst

on a visit to Kasenga, the District Commissioner for Kawambwa

observed the popularity of the Franc in all transactions. He

recorded that “people still think in terms of francs. The

prices of goods are quoted in Francs as much as in sterling;

tax payers offer francs with which they pay their taxes and

some labours still ask to be paid ... in franc”. (NAZ/SEC2/87:

1950 Annexure 3): The franc lost its popularity in the

mid 1960 following the continuing civil wars and general

insecurity which affected productivity, forced the fight of

capital and massive devaluations led to the loss of its

value which depreciated very badly. The traders turned to the

Kwacha which remained stable

.

v. Commerce

Before and after the First World War, Elisabethville

(popularly known as Tauni-Town) had several shops operated by

Jewish and Greek traders which dealt exclusively in second-

hand clothes (Kombo, now called Salalaula) which came in bales

(amabalo sing. balo), which were packed with an assortment of

clothings, brought in to cater for the large and ever growing

African demands large volumes of textiles and clothing were

imported from Europe and the United States to satisfy this

demand. These second-hand clothes were sold in the village

shops and from village to village by itinerant hawkers

(Musambachime, 1981; Hansen, 2000). The availability of these

cheap clothes enabled the people in Luapula Valley to appear

better dressed than their surrounding neighbours on the

surrounding plateau. The trade in clothes brought into the

local language a substantial number of corrupted French words

as follows:

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Pantalo Pantalon Trousers

Shapo Chapeau Hat

Inshimishi Chemise Shirt/dress

Patufu Pantoufle slippers or

canvas

mushinyele muslin muslin

Swala Swoie silk

Imelesu lacet lace

matala matelas mattress

From the proceeds of the sale of fish, traders used the

Francs earned to purchase goods which they brought to the

villages for their personal use distribute to relatives and

friends or resell for a profit in the village shops ( A

mabototike sing. Botike,from boutique). Many used their Francs to

purchase and invest in cheap clothes bought from shops that

were run by Jewish, Greek and Italian traders (collectively

known as bakomelesa, sing. Komelesa, from commerçant), in

Elisabethville, which were both cheaper and stylish than those

found in the local shops in the districts to resell or barter

for fish in the fishery. This was the method followed by those

who did not own fishing gear.

In the lower Luapula Valley, prosperity was generally

widespread. The area quickly attained the status of a peri-

urban area, locally called Ku Chisungu (a town or developed

area). Places like Mwansabombwe, the capital of the Eastern

Lunda were built on town planning copied from the Katangan

towns. Here also, a few rich traders (Ba Komelesa) stood out in

the early years. One of these was Katota Nkomba, a village

headman as well as the traditional owner of the land (Mwine

Kabanda) on the Kabula stream, which was a tributary of the

Luapula, located in Chief Kashiba’s area. After the lifting of

the Sleeping Sickness regulations in August 1922, Katota

Nkomba rebuilt his village on the Kabula Stream and

immediately entered the fish trade. He was helped by his large

number of nephews. He sold his catch, fresh or smoked to the

Greek traders and was in his own right, good at saving money

and looked for opportunities to invest. As would be the case

with all emergent African traders, he used the money realised

to buy second-hand clothes (to resell through hawking in the

neighbouring villages and in a small village shop which he

opened and stocked with other grocery goods such as bathing

and washing soap, candles, paraffin, sweets candy), biscuits.

He was helped by several brothers and nephews to run these

businesses. One of these was a nephew called Maxim Nkomba

who, at the time I conducted fieldwork in Valley in 1975 and

1979, was patriarch. Within the LuapulaValley, a number of

traders – largely of Greek origin, established their shops.

Some of the items bought were sold included grocery goods

such as bathing and washing soap, candles, paraffin, sweets

candy), biscuits. Secondhand clothes called Kombo ( the

etymology of the word is not known), now called Salaula. The

others who also distinguished themselves were such , Mwenso

Brothers, Messrs James Kapesha and Biston Katongola ( Nkomba,

1975; Musambachime, 1981; Hansen, 2000) And among the

consumables were sold and bought were:

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Insukale Sucre sugar

Alumeti Allumette Matches

Sekeleti Cigarette cigarette

Sakoshi Sachoche Satchel

Biskwiti or bisketi Biscuit Biscuit

Some of these were sold by weight: Chilo or kilo, kilogramme,

kilogramme

vi.. Trade in Fish

Due to the presence of tsetse fly, Katanga was unable to

raise enough cattle to meet the demands of the urban

population of Katanga. Vast amounts were imported from

Northern Rhodesia, Bechuanaland and Southern

Rhodesia(Musambachime, 1981, 99; BSAC, 1919:16). However,

these imports besides being expensive were inadequate to meet

demand. To meet the shortfall of protein the Congolese

government and the Comié Spécial du Katanga encouraged the

exploitation of local fisheries to supply fish to the urban

areas of Katanga. Hundreds of tonnes of smoked fish were

transported by porters, To encourage the industry, the State

gave the traders (Commerçants) – mostly Greeks – a number of

incentives in form of soft loans. The state also

constructed an all-weather road connecting Kasenga with in

Elisabethville (now Lubumbashi) which became the distribution

centre in Katanga. After the end of the First World War, the

traders introduced motor vehicles (camio) to transport fish,

and later by lorries owned by the Renaud Brothers of Katanga,

The Brothers also owned a number of large boats on the

Luapula sand Lake Mweru,

. In 1932, experiments were made in transporting

fresh fish laid on ice to the urban markets. It was an

immediate success. In 1936, some Greek traders built a

number of flat-bottomed boats called ifyombo; sing. Ichombo which

plied the lower Luapula River carrying good and passengers and

stopping at important places and fishing places to off –load

and load goods. As they went down stream, they also bought

fresh fish from the fishermen which they laid on ice. As they

returned to Kasenga, they bought game meat, both smoke-dried

and fresh fish, fruits like bananas, pineapples, mangoes,

quavas, oranges; small livestock –goats and sheep. At Kasenga,

some of the fresh fish was dispatched to the mining area and

what remained was either smoke-dried or prepared as salted

fish (posison sale)which was well received by consumers. The

trade in fish helped the people of LuapulaValley to add a

number of modified French words to their vocabulary. Among

these were:

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Amenshi maksa glace ice

Salele poisson salé salted fish

Kamyo Camion Lorry

Shofele Chauffeur Driver

Esansi Essence Petrol

Mekanishe Mécanicien Mechanic

Ngala Garè Station

Teleefiti Très vite

Fast

Lentema Lentamente Slow/slowly

vii. Affluence

With the money earned for the sale of fish, many

fishermen built very beautiful houses using burnt or sun dried

bricks, with several bedrooms. This also helped to introduce

some French words.

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Ichumba chambre Bedroom

Ifyumba chambres Bedrooms

Kali/Ka chumba petite chamber Small room

Ci/cili cumba grande chambre Big room

Sema Cement Cement

Fenele Fenêtre Window

viii.Popular Culture (Entertainment)

Being in close proximity to Katanga, the Luapula Valley

was strongly influenced by and integrated into the prevailing

social life across the Luapula. Migrant workers and their

families were deeply absorbed in the Katangan popular culture

and brought some of this to the Luapula Valley. On his first

visit to the Valley, Mulala found many young people playing

Swahili rumba pieces on their guitars, and danced to songs

composed in Katanga. One of the most respected singer from

Elisabethville was Jean Bosco Mwenda, a prolific composer who

was loved by many people. His songs were blended by songs from

Leopoldville (now Kinshasa) sung in Lingala and from Kananga

sung in Chiluba or Kasai but with a strong blend of French

words.. The proliferation of the songs was encouraged by the

presence of bars – owned by single and even some women,

selling bottled Simba beer, brewed and bottled in

Elisabethville. The beer was smuggled into LuapulaValley by

European fish traders who plied up and own the Luapula and

Lake Mweru buying fish and selling or bartering merchandise

for fish. This social life brought with it French words which

quickly formed part of the local vocabulary.

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Akabale Petit Bar Small Bar

Utubale Bars Bars

Biyele/Byele Bière Beer

Ibute Bouteille Bottle

Amabute Bouteeilles Bottles

Kashe Caisse Case

Ama Kashe Caisses Beer Cases

Ama Ve/fele Verres Tumblers or glasses

Icitunshi Tasse A cup

Am/Ifi tanshi Tasses Cups

Icitale Guitare Guitar

Tansho Danse Dance

Bonisante Bonne sante Good health

Important days of Christmas and New Year were also known

by their corrupted French names:

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Nweli Noel Christmas

Bunane Bonne année New Year

ix. Medicine

Medicine was another medium which helped to spread and

encourage the assimilation of French words into the Chibemba

of Luapula Valley. The Belgian side of the river had large,

well equipped and well staffed hospitals at Kaboka west of

Kasenga by the Salessians, Chibambo (ten kilometres north of

Kasenga), Luanza on the north western shore of Lake Mweru, and

Mpweto(by the Christian Mission in Many Lands), on the

northern shore of the lake, east of where the Luvua leaves the

Lake to joint the Lualaba and form the Congo River, and a

number of dispensaries in the small centres. The eastern

side, on the other hand, was poorly equipped and staffed

hospitals at JohnsonFalls (Mambilima run by the Christians

Missions in Many Lands) and Mbereshi with very few

dispensaries. The Belgian medical staff was rated as being

more efficient than the Northern Rhodesia staff. Therefore,

many people in the LuapulaValley preferred to receive their

medical treatment in the medical institutions on the west

bank, and naturally this led to the assimilation of French

words.

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Lupitalo L’hopital hospital

Ndokotele docteur doctor

malale maladie sickness

emfelemye l’infirmier orderly

sofisi syphilis syphilis

x. Catholicism

The presence of Catholics contributed to the spread of a

number of French words. Among these were:

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Mumpe Mon Père Father/Priest

Folela Frère Brother

Ba Folela Frères Brothers

Ma sele Ila soeur Nun/sister

Ba Masele Soeur Nun/sisters

These terms were, to a large extent perpetuated in the

vocabulary of the study area due to the presence of among the

Catholic clergy of French priests and nuns to the order of the

White Fathers on the Northern Rhodesian side and the Silesian

on the Belgian Congo side.

xi.Names

As part of the process of acculturation, French names

were adopted. These, like other French words, were modified

to fit the Bemba structure. Among the most common names were:

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Zya/Sha Jean John

Pyeele /Pyle Pierre Peter

Chosefu/yusuf Joseph Joseph

Moize/Moise Moise Moses

Astrita/Ashtilita Astrida Astrida

Mali Marie Mary

xii. Post-Independence

After the coming of independence to the Belgian Congo,

now the Democratic Republic of the Congo, new words have been

adopted. This has been assisted by the popularization first

of the ruling party Movement Pour la Revolution (Movement for

Revolution) headed by President Mobute Sese Seko and secondly

of the national ideology of Otansitite from L’Authenticite

(Authenticity). These developments have brought with them new

words as follows:

BEMBA FRENCH ENGLISH

Miglashio immigration immigration

Kafana Gouvernor Governor

Lipanda L’Independence Independence

Minisita minister Minister

Plezida President President

Sitwaye Citoyen/Citoyenne Citizen

Sone Zone Zone

Talafika Trafiquant Smuggler

Another word that has been adopted thought not from

French is Salongo – from Lingala meaning self-help work.

As the Congo went from one level of civil strife to

another, Zambians from Mweru-Luapula, gradually reduced their

contacts with Katanga. As the economy and security

deteriorated, they turned their focus and interest to Zambia

for work, trade in many items which included mealie- meal,

varieties of groceries, and many other goods. From Katanga,

Simba beer, some plastic shoes, second hand clothes (Salaula)

and Fitenge remained attractive items. As the Congolese Franc

deteriorated in it rate of exchange, the Kwacha was found to

be more stable and was used as foreign exchange. The

reversal of the situation gave rise to smuggling (trafficking)

giving rise to a term talafika –smuggler. Gradually, however, the

better performance of the economy in Zambia, made Zambians

look inward. Gradually, the desire to borrow French terms

weaned. And is now pushed into remembered oral history And as

the older generation passes away, French terms that were

adopted are forgotten, consigned to oral traditions. They are

replaced by English terms.

Conclusion

The process of borrowing of words from French to Chibemba

was for many ion Mweru-Luapula, an unconscious and careful

selective process involving words that were not available in

the local language or replacing those that were there but did

not sound attractive to the users. It was not, therefore, a

(or conscious and elitist development, but a functional one

in which all sections of the population-educated or not- were

involved in as part of their communication to kins and those

who were not. French words which added flair to the language

became, overtime domesticated in their corrupted forms to

become part and parcel of the everyday speech. The adoption of

French words in a language that was spoken across the boundary

in a country that was ruled by the British, reflected (i) the

porosity of the boundaries allowing afree and continuous

interaction between populations living along the boundary;

(ii) that languages were not stopped by the European imposed

boundaries; iii. The critical roles played by labour migration

from Northern Rhodesia to Katanga, commerce and trade with

most shops located on the Katangan side and the use of

Congolese Francs ; the fishing industry, and wide acceptance

of Congolese currency socialisation and the influence of dance

and music: iii.Provision of medical facilities on the Katangan

side;. Religion – mostly Catholicism propagated by the

Silesians,.and Education . and (iv).Katanga was generally

viewed as being sophisticated, advanced and more prosperous

as compared to Northern Rhodesia. Our study shows very clearly

that the cross-border influences were lubricated by many

others- overt and covert- from one side of theof European

boundary or border to other dictated and determined by a

number of economic and social factors over which colonial

authorities had no control and could not stop. As .

highlighted above, there was no force used. Necessity was the

primary determinant.

The task of this paper has been to trace the process in

which French words were borrowed and assimilated in a modified

form in the Bemba of Luapula Valley using a historical

background. The process was not by the non-existence of

indigenous vocabulary for many of the terms borrowed. On the

contrary the local language did have some of the local terms.

Where this was not the case words were borrowed from Kiswahili

and English. The adoption of the French words allowed the

people of Mweru-Luapula to use them interchangeably with local

words, and those borrowed from English and Swahili consciously

or unconsciously. French terms however, appeared fashionable

to many and portrayed assign of acculturation. As such, they

were used more in speech by many people ad Mulala’s report

shows. From the evidence presented above, it is clear that

the adoption of French words was a result of the existing

factors which led to the absorption of LuapulaValley into the

Katangan Economic and Social System.

Note to the reader.

This paper is an offshoot from my larger study in the Fishing

Industry in Mweru Luapula which provided smoke-dried, fresh

and salted fish to the urban areas of Katanga and later the

Zambian Copperbelt. I wish to thank the University of Zambia

through the Staff Development programme for funding my

research in 1975 and 1979, my wife for supporting me in the

many research trips that I undertook in the area between 1970

and 1975, and my grandmother to whom this paper is dedicated.

I have been working on this paper for many years and want to

thank the National; Archives of Zambia, FENZA in Bauleni, and

many informants in Mweru-Luapula.

DedicationThis paper is dedicated to my grandmother Chabala Kafutu-

Kamilimo. She spent her early years in Katanga, spoke Ki-

Swahili of Katanga fluently and a smattering of Congolese

languages including French. Later she introduced many of

the French words discussed above to her grand children. Later,

I got interested with the topic when I visited the Luapula

Valley area in 1964, and when I taught in the Lake Mweru area

between 1966 and 1970, and when carried out field research

for my doctoral dissertation in the Luapula Valley and Lake

Mweru-area in 1975 and 1978 -12979,

1.This is a point that was stressed by Father Emile Foulon, one of

the first priests to establish the Catholic Church in North East

Zambia. He observed that “Several European explorers travelled around

the districts presently occupied by the Ba Bemba in the past hundred

years. But they were only passing through; they never really stayed

for any appreciable length of time. Moreover they did not know the

language, and this explains why they did not leave behind many data

on the history of the country”. FENZA/Bauleni/Lusaka: Father: Emile

Foulon tells his story”, dated 1899-1906 (Translated by Fr. M.

Gruffat). For the Congo, Samarian (1989: 232 – 249) makes the same

observation. George Grenfell added an important observation that for

the White men, “till the language mastered [more than a mere

colloquial acquaintance is necessary [not much w3ork can be done. In

a country like this, it is impossible to get interpreters who are

able to do more than talk about the simplest everyday things, and

then very imperfectly”. This is a point that was stressed by Father

Emile Foulon, one of the first priests to establish the Catholic

Church in North East Zambia. He observed that “Several European

explorers travelled around the districts presently occupied by the Ba

Bemba in the past hundred years. But they were only passing through;

they never really stayed for any appreciable length of time. Moreover

they did not know the language, and this explains why they did not

leave behind many data on the history of the country” (Gruffat, 1899-

1906). For the Congo, Samarian makes the same observation (. See .

Samarin, 1989:, 232 – 249.) George Grenfell (1960: 320)added an

important observation that for the White men, “till the language

mastered [more than a mere colloquial acquaintance is necessary [not

much w3ork can be done. In a country like this, it is impossible to

get interpreters who are able to do more than talk about the simplest

everyday things, and then very imperfectly”.

Notes1. Borrowing is a consequence of cultural contact between two

language communities. Borrowing of words can go in both

directions between the two languages in contact, but often

there is an asymmetry, such that more words go from one side

to the other. In this case the source language community has

some advantage of power, prestige and/or wealth that makes the

objects and ideas it brings desirable and useful to the

borrowing language community.

The actual process of borrowing is complex and involves many

usage events (i.e. instances of use of the new word).

Generally, some speakers of the borrowing language know the

source language too, or at least enough of it to utilize the

relevant word. They (often consciously) adopt the new word

when speaking the borrowing language, because it most exactly

fits the idea they are trying to express.

2. Loanwords are words adopted by the speakers of one language

from a different language (the source language). A loanword

can also be called a borrowing. The abstract noun borrowing

refers to the process of speakers adopting words from a source

language into their native language. "Loan" and "borrowing"

are of course metaphors, because there is no literal lending

process. There is no transfer from one language to another,

and no "returning" words to the source language. The words

simply come to be used by a speech community that speaks a

different language from the one these words originated in.

.

.

.

.

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,About the Author

The author was born in Mansa at Kaunda’sVillage on 13 May,

1945. He is a graduate of the Universities of Zambia in Lusaka

(1974), Wisconsin at Madison, USA (1976, 1981) and Uppsala,

Sweden (1994). He has taught at the Universities of Zambia

1974 –1997, 2005 - to the present). As a member of staff at

the University of Zambia from 1974 to 1997, the author served

in many positions as Head of Department, Dean of the School of

Education, Director of the Institute of Human Relations and

Research and Graduate Studies He was also a visiting professor

at Miami University, oxford, Ohio), in United States of

America(1984 to 1985); Cape Town (1991) and Natal,

Pietermaritzburg, South Africa(1993); Chancellor College,

Malawi (1995) the several universities in the USA, South

Africa, Malawi, Switzerland, Germany, Sweden, Burundi,

Madagascar and France. Between 1997 and 2000, he was

Professor and Head of the Department of History at the

University of Namibia. (1997 –2000). He is a recipient of many

awards. He served as Zambia’s Ambassador and Permanent

Representative at the United Nations, New York (September 2000

to February 2005). Currently, he is Professor of History at

the University of Zambia He has done extensive research and

published widely on in political, economic, social, health,

veterinary, and environmental issues in Eastern and Southern

Africa.

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