Learn how to show respect and apologize
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Matt: Hello and welcome back to SwahiliPod101.com. This is Absolute Beginner, Season 1 lesson 14, Showing Respect and Apologizing in Swahili. I’m Matt. |
| Medina: Jambo, and I'm Medina. |
| Matt: In this lesson, you’ll learn how to show respect and apologize to someone in Swahili. By the end of this lesson, you will know how to say "I'm sorry sir" or "Excuse me, madam" in Swahili. |
| Medina: The conversation takes place in a kitchen where a domestic worker accidentally burns a kitchen towel. |
| Matt: The conversation is between an employee and an employer, therefore they'll be using formal language. Okay, now let’s listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| Mary: Tafadhali punguza moto. |
| Domestic worker: Ndiyo mama. |
| Mary: Hiyo ni harufu ya kuchomeka? (ananusa nusa hewani) |
| Domestic worker: Oh nimeichoma taulo yako ya jikoni. Tafadhali nisamehe. |
| Mary: Ni sawa lakini wakati mwingine upunguze moto. |
| Domestic worker: Pole sana hayo makosa haitatendeka tena. |
| Matt: Let’s hear the conversation one time slowly. |
| Mary: Tafadhali punguza moto. |
| Domestic worker: Ndiyo mama. |
| Mary: Hiyo ni harufu ya kuchomeka? (ananusa nusa hewani) |
| Domestic worker: Oh nimeichoma taulo yako ya jikoni. Tafadhali nisamehe. |
| Mary: Ni sawa lakini wakati mwingine upunguze moto. |
| Domestic worker: Pole sana hayo makosa haitatendeka tena. |
| Matt: Now let’s hear it with the English translation. |
| Mary: Tafadhali punguza moto. |
| Matt: Please reduce the cooking flames. |
| Domestic worker: Ndiyo mama. |
| Matt: Yes madam. |
| Mary: Hiyo ni harufu ya kuchomeka? (ananusa nusa hewani) |
| Matt: What's that burning smell? (smells the air around) |
| Domestic worker: Oh nimeichoma taulo yako ya jikoni. Tafadhali nisamehe. |
| Matt: Oh, I've burnt your kitchen towel. Please forgive me. |
| Mary: Ni sawa lakini wakati mwingine upunguze moto. |
| Matt: It's OK, but use moderate flames. |
| Domestic worker: Pole sana hayo makosa haitatendeka tena. |
| Matt: I'm sorry. It won't happen again. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Matt: Medina, why is it important to know how to say "Yes Sir" or "Yes Madam" in Swahili? |
| Medina: Kenyan workers are very respectful towards their bosses. They use mama for "madam," bwana for "sir," or mkumbwa for “boss." |
| Matt: So the relationship between an employee and an employer is strictly formal. They deal with each other more professionally than casually. |
| Medina: Absolutely, and that’s why employees rarely address their bosses using only their names. |
| Matt: That’s very interesting. So what do employees say when they’re receiving instructions or confirming something? |
| Medina: Ndio mama, for “yes Madam” if they are addressing a lady. Or if it's a man they say ndio bwana for “yes Sir." And for seniors or bosses, we always refer to them as bwana and bi, which is “Mr.” and “Mrs.” respectively. |
| Matt: or Miss for single women. Right? |
| Medina: Certainly. For example, if the boss is Mr. Juma, in Swahili, he'll be addressed as Bwana Juma. It's also practical to apologize for any wrong doing and promise not to repeat the mistake, like we heard in the dialogue. |
| Matt: Good to know. Okay, now let’s move on to the vocab. |
| Vocab list |
| Matt: Let's take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. |
| : The first word we shall see is: |
| Medina: tafadhali [natural native speed] |
| Matt: please |
| Medina: tafadhali [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: tafadhali [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Medina: punguza [natural native speed] |
| Matt: reduce |
| Medina: punguza [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: punguza [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Medina: mama [natural native speed] |
| Matt: madam |
| Medina: mama [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: mama [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Medina: jikoni [natural native speed] |
| Matt: kitchen |
| Medina: jikoni [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: jikoni [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Medina: nisamehe [natural native speed] |
| Matt: forgive me |
| Medina: nisamehe [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: nisamehe [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Medina: wakati mwingine [natural native speed] |
| Matt: next time |
| Medina: wakati mwingine [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: wakati mwingine [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Medina: ndiyo [natural native speed] |
| Matt: yes |
| Medina: ndiyo [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: ndiyo [natural native speed] |
| : And Last: |
| Medina: kupika [natural native speed] |
| Matt: to cook, cooking |
| Medina: kupika [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Medina: kupika [natural native speed] |
| KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES |
| Matt: Let’s take a closer look at the usage of some of the words and phrases from this lesson. |
| Medina: The first phrase is nisamehe. |
| Matt: And it means “forgive me." It's used to express how sorry you are. |
| Medina: It’s a verb that's derived from the Swahili noun msamaha, meaning “forgiveness." This means that you can also say naomba msamaha since it means the same thing. |
| Matt: So the direct translation is “I'm begging for forgiveness." |
| Medina: The words mama and bwana are very important when it comes to showing respect. As we just mentioned, Mama means “madam” while bwana translates as “sir”. |
| Matt: Okay, next we have.. |
| Medina: ndiyo, which means “yes." |
| Matt: It's a very important word that you use when you receive orders from seniors and bosses. |
| Medina: That’s right. And its opposite is la, which means “no." It's used to express an objection. |
| Matt: Can you give us an example? |
| Medina: Sure. La bwana Ali, which means "No, Mr. Ali." |
| Matt: Okay, now onto the grammar. |
| GRAMMAR POINT |
| Matt: In this lesson, you’ll learn how to show respect and give an apology in Swahili. Medina, how can you show that you respect someone in Swahili? |
| Medina: Well, when you want to show your respect, you should use the word Bwana, which means "Mr," or Bi, which means "Mrs" or "Miss." |
| Matt: And you can also address them as "sir" or "madam," right? |
| Medina: That's right. Use bwana for "sir," and mama for "madam." In a sentence, you can say, ndiyo bwana for “yes sir” or la mama for “No madam.” These are very important Swahili communication skills. |
| Matt: can you give us an example from the dialogue? |
| Medina: Sure. In the conversation, the domestic worker said ndiyo mama meaning “Yes, Ma’am.” to confirm that indeed there is a burning smell in the air. She realizes she has offended the boss. |
| Matt: Then she apologized, right? |
| Medina: Yes. And like in the dialogue, by using words such as samahani or naomba msamaha meaning "please forgive me”, you can give apologies. |
| Matt: And we have another phrase too, right.. |
| Medina: Right. You can also use tafadhali nisamehe. It's very polite and usually prompts instant forgiveness. |
| Matt: Also remember that this is the most standard expression for forgiveness, which can be used in both formal and informal situations. |
| Medina: Yes. Whatever you've done wrong, tafadhali nisamehe is a phrase you can always use! |
Outro |
|---|
| Matt: Well, that’s all we have for this lesson. Thanks for listening, and we’ll see you next time. Bye! |
| Medina: Mpaka wakati mwingine, Kwaheri ya kuonana! |
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