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Luchazi (also called Lucazi[3] or Chiluchazi) is a Bantu language of Angola and Zambia. Luchazi is the principal language of the Ngangela people.[4] Ngangela is a term coined by the Vimbundu traders and missionaries in 18th century to describe the tribes occupying the area of eastern-central Angola.[5]

Distribution

Luchazi is spoken in eastern Angola, around the town of Muié. It is part of a dialect continuum that includes Nyemba, Mbunda, Ngonzela, and other dialects. Luchazi and Ngangela can also be used as blanket terms for all variants within the dialect continuum. Based on the similarities and differences across these dialects, it appears that Luchazi speakers migrated from their original settlements, explaining some geographically disparate connections to other dialects.[6]: 100–104, 108 

Phonology

Consonants

The following table displays all the consonants in Luchazi:[7][8]

Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Nasal m n ɲ ŋ
Plosive voiceless p t tʲ1 k
prenasalized ᵐb ⁿd ᵑɡ
prenasalized asp. ᵐpʰ ⁿtʰ ᵑkʰ
Affricate voiceless t͡s t͡ʃ
prenasalized ⁿt͡s ᶮt͡ʃ
prenasalized vd. ⁿd͡z ᶮd͡ʒ
Fricative voiceless f s ʃ1 h
voiced β z ʒ1 ɦ
Approximant l j w
^1 Occur rarely, may only exist in loanwords.

The position of the speech-organs in producing the consonants is different from the positions taken in producing the similar sounds in European languages. T and D, for example, are lower than in English but higher than in Portuguese. L is flatter-tongued than in either English or Portuguese. The language contains many consonantal glides, including the prenasalized plosives and the voiceless alveolar sibilant affricate (the ts sound).[4]

Vowels

Source:[4][8]

Front Back
Close ɪ iː ʊ uː
Mid ɛ ɛː ɔ ɔː
Open a aː
Diphthongs eɪ   aɪ   au   ia   ie
io   iu   ua   ue   ui   uo

The close front vowel (i), when occurring before another vowel, becomes a semi-consonant and is written y, unless it is immediately preceded by a consonant, when it remains i. Examples: yange, viange.

The vowels have the Continental or Italian values. They are shorter when unstressed and are prolonged when doubled or when stressed at the end of a word.

  • The vowel a is Long when accented, as a in tata, nana.

Short when unstressed or before two consonants or y or s and in monosyllabic adverbs, as a in tata, paya, asa, hanga. Prolonged when doubled or stressed at the end of a word or syllable. Example: ku laako.

  • The vowel e is Long when accented, as a in heta, seza.

Short when unstressed, as a in hete, seze. Short with the value of e in henga, lenda before two consonants. Exceptions are hembo and membo (due to coalescence of vowels). Many words derived from Portuguese have the short vowel though not followed by two consonants. Examples: pena, papelo, luneta, ngehena, etc. Prolonged when stressed at the end of a word.

  • The vowel i is Long when accented, as e in tina, sika.

Short when unstressed or before two consonants, as e in citi, linga. In monosyllabics it is short, as i in it. Examples: ni, ndi. Prolonged when stressed. Examples: ti, fui.

  • The vowel o is Long when accented, as o in sota, koka.

Short when unstressed, as o in soko, loto. Short, with value of o in onga, yoya, kosa, luozi, ndo, before two consonants or y or s, and sometimes before z and in some monosyllables. The o is long in zoza and ngozi. Sometimes prolonged when stressed at the end of a word. Example: to.

  • The vowel u is Long when accented, as u in tuta, fula.

Short, when unstressed or before two consonants or before s, as u in futuka, mbunga, kusa.

Orthography

Luchazi is written using the Latin alphabet, with most characters representing the same sound as in English, with some exceptions. c is pronounced like ch in church, n followed by k or g is always nasal like ng in ring, the sound of v is bilabial instead of labiodental.[4]

Alphabet

Majuscules
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S Sh T U V Y Z
Minuscules
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p r s sh t u v y z
Phonetic value
a/aː b t͡ʃ/t͡ʃʰ d/d̪/ð ɛ/e/ɛː f ɡ h ɪ/i/iː d͡ʒ k l/ɭ m n ɔ/o/ɔː p ɹ s ʃ t/t̪/θ ʊ/u/uː/w β j z

B, D, G, J, R, and Sh only exist in loanwords.[9]

Letter combinations

Multigraphs
ai au ei ia ie io iu kh mb mp nc nd ng nj nk nt ny ph th ts ua ue ui uo
IPA
aɪ̯ aʊ̯ eɪ̯ i̯a i̯e i̯o i̯u kʰ ᵐb ᵐpʰ ᶮt͡ʃʰ ⁿd ᵑɡ/ŋ ᶮd͡ʒ ᵑkʰ ⁿtʰ ɲi pʰ tʰ tʲ~t͡s u̯a u̯e u̯i u̯o

References

  1. ^ “Lucazi”. Ethnologue. Retrieved 2018-08-14.
  2. ^ Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
  3. ^ Marten, Lutz; Kula, Lucy Chongo (2002). “Semantic transparency in phonology: Telicity and vowel copying in Dciriku” (PDF). Phonologica.
  4. ^ a b c d Emil Pearson, “Luchazi Grammar”, pp. 5-7
  5. ^ Gerhard Kubik and Moses Yotamu, 1998, “The Luchazi People. Their History and Chieftaincy”, pp. 16, 123
  6. ^ Fleisch, Axel (2009). “Language History in SE Angola. The Ngangela-Nyemba Dialect Cluster”. SUGIA Sprache und Geschichte in Afrika. 20: 97–111. ISSN 0170-5946. Retrieved 2 April 2026.
  7. ^ Gerhard Kubik, 2006, Tusona: Luchazi Ideographs : a Graphic Tradition of West-Central Africa, pp. 300, 303
  8. ^ a b Fleisch, Axel (2000). Lucazi grammar: a morphosemantic analysis. Köln: Rüdiger Köppe.
  9. ^ “Luchazi language and alphabet”. Omniglot. Retrieved 5 March 2021.