Phrases › Rukiga
Phrases
Early draft: There was little reliable source material for this language, so some lines may be wrong. Check with a speaker before relying on them.
In Rukiga, hello is Agandi? and thank you is Webare. Here are 11 everyday Rukiga phrases with pronunciation, for travel and a first conversation.
How to say hello in Rukiga · How to say thank you in Rukiga · How to say goodbye in Rukiga · How to say please in Rukiga
| English | Rukiga |
|---|---|
| Hello | Agandi? All-purpose informal greeting, literally 'what news?'; confirmed in University of Wisconsin-Madison 'Resources for Self-Instructional Learners' Rukiga chapters (a dedicated, cited Rukiga self-study resource) and karungicamp.com Rukiga phrase list. Reply: 'Ni marungi' (good news). |
| Goodbye | Osiibegye Confirmed in University of Wisconsin-Madison 'Resources for Self-Instructional Learners' Rukiga chapters (a dedicated, cited Rukiga self-study resource) dialogue (afternoon/general farewell); the shared manual gives 'Ogumeho' for Runyankole. |
| Please | Bambe Confirmed in the shared manual ('Bambe!' - dear me/please); plural 'nyaabura'mwe' also occurs. |
| Thank you | Webare Confirmed in both the shared manual and karungicamp.com Rukiga phrase list ('Webare, munonga' = thank you very much). |
| Yes | Eego Confirmed in the shared manual and on the JW.org Runyankore-Rukiga (nyn) site, which treats Runyankore and Rukiga as one written language; also spelled Ego. |
| No | Ngaaha Confirmed in the shared manual and the JW.org Runyankore-Rukiga site; also spelled Ngaha. |
| I don't understand | Tindakyega Confirmed directly in karungicamp.com Rukiga phrase list for Rukiga (differs from the Runyankole phrase 'Tinkumanya', which literally means 'I don't know'). |
| Please speak slowly | Gamba mpora mpora Confirmed in the shared manual. |
| How much is it? | Ni shiringi zingahi? Built from confirmed 'shiringi' (shilling) and 'zingahi' (how many/how much), both in the shared manual; the Wisconsin dialogue confirms the same pattern ('ni shiringi zingahi?'). |
| Where is …? | ___ kiri nkahi? Template: put the thing you're looking for first (agreeing with its noun class) before 'kiri nkahi?' ('is it where?'); e.g. Eirwariro kiri nkahi? 'Where is the hospital?' (eirwariro confirmed in the shared manual). |
| Help! | Yamba! Derived from the confirmed stem '-yamba' (to help, shared manual) using the bare-stem imperative rule. |
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