Learn 10 autumn vocabulary
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| Yeah, hello everyone. It’s Medina here with you on Swahili top words. Today, we are going to look at 10 Must Know Autumn vocabulary. Autumn? Autumn. I don’t know. That pronunciation is quite tricky but whatever it is, it’s Autumn vocabulary. Yes, welcome and have fun. |
| 1. Fulana "sweater" |
| Huwezi toka nje bila fulana. "You cannot go outdoors without a sweater." |
| Yeah, that’s a common voice from our mothers or perhaps your older brother, older sister, whoever it is but when it is super cold, you don’t want to get out without a sweater because you don’t want to catch a cold, you know. You know what it means? Catching a cold in that cold season. Please get yourself a sweater when it’s autumn. |
| 2. Kuwa na mvua "rainy" |
| Leo ni siku ya kuwa na mvua. "Today is a rainy day." |
| Ah yeah, today is a rainy day. We love rain but not always especially when you want to go for a picnic, but you know what, get yourself an umbrella or if you want to feel the taste of rain, um, just go out. You know, actually during my childhood memories, we will never mind about rain. In fact, it was our favourite thing of course not for the very heavy rain. That one you might get sick but when it rained, we will jump outside and we’re like, yay, it’s raining. We shout to the rain as if it has ears to listen and you know what, the smell of soil was so good. I miss those days because everywhere where I am, it’s tarmac. You can’t feel the taste, the natural taste. Anyway, wherever you are, take care. Take care. Get your umbrella whenever you are going outside. |
| 3. Kuwa na upepo "windy" |
| Hali ya anga leo ni kuwa na upepo. "Today's weather is windy." |
| Huh! You know what, I think I got a practical definition of windy when I came to Japan. I am currently living in Japan and this is what we call a typhoon. I never even knew about it when I was young. I mean, it’s quite hilarious but it’s the truth. Typhoon almost carried me away. I was like what kind of wind is this. I mean, that too is windy for me. Of course, we have, it’s windy in Kenya and sometimes it can be really terrible. It carries away rooftops and all that but you know, it’s not so much like a typhoon. Probably, now we can differentiate between what windy is and typhoon is. Do you get the difference? I don’t know. Try and figure it out by yourself. |
| 4. Kuna baridi "cool" |
| Kama kuna baridi uoge na maji moto. "When it is cool, you should shower with hot water." |
| I mean that was so luxurious to think of showering with hot water when it’s cool. I remember in my boarding school, it was in a forested area and it was always cold but guess what, we will shower with cold water, super cold almost like ice and you’ll not like it but you know what, you get out of there shivering but when you get in class, you are very alert. So it depends on you what you do. But you know what, take care of your health in whichever case. |
| 5. Demani "autumn" |
| Demani hii nitanunua kifaa cha joto. "This autumn I will buy a heater." |
| Yes, you can but not necessarily in Kenya. It’s very different. If you get a heater, imagine and you’ll be wasting money you know. Sell it because, in Kenya, the weather is really good, consistent throughout the year. It’s never that super cold like the winter cold in Japan or other places you know. We don’t get to see snow. I mean, once in a while, a miracle happens you know. That’s what I mean but you don’t have to buy a heater. You can heat your house in a different way. I mean yeah but really not a heater. That will be too much. Yeah, for real, you really don’t have to buy a heater. It’s not that cold for a heater. You can find different other means of heating your house but not necessarily with the heater. Save that money you’ll. |
| 6. Halloween "Halloween" |
| The Day of Monsters. Halloween. It’s just Halloween in Swahili. We don’t have any – we haven’t come up with a better Swahili word. Probably Swahili words cannot just fit that well, you know. I am not sure but um, probably Halloween, Halloween. |
| Halloween inakuja juma lijalo. "Halloween is coming up next week." |
| Yeay! A day of monsters and ghosts. I am freaking out already because I just don’t like those things. Anyway Halloween. Halloween is being introduced in Kenya and people are adopting it slowly by slowly. But it’s not so famous and people are not really, really into it as I see it here. Um yeah, because you know, I think just as me or as I am or whichever way you want to put it, Kenyans really are not into ghosts and blood shedding and all that. It’s kind of freaking, right? Don’t you think so? Anyway, up on you. Anyone who wants to celebrate Halloween can call their friends and they have a Halloween party or something but it’s not so commercial you know as much as people are now adopting it. |
| So we have what you call anniversaries you know. Anniversaries whereby you pay respect for the living dead or for your ancestors and during this time, especially if it was a recent death, after a year, people come together like families and relatives, you come together and you celebrate this person. It’s a celebration actually because there is a lot of eating, a lot of praying, a lot of dancing. Dancing? Yeah, there is a lot of dancing and music and in some places, yes there is just to come together and celebrate the living dead or perhaps your ancestors. Some people do these annually. Some people do not do it. So it depends with your family and your culture. |
| 7. Mboza "chestnut" |
| Ile pale ndio mboza. "There is the chestnut." |
| Chestnuts are not quite common in Kenya. |
| 8. Shati la mikono mirefu "long-sleeved shirt" |
| Duka gani linauzwa shati la mikono mirefu? "Which shop sells long-sleeved shirts?" |
| I don’t remember anything about long-sleeved shirts. It’s just a cloth like any other, right? Especially in Kenya, fashion cuts across any weather. We put on a long-sleeved shirt when it’s super-hot. We put on long-sleeved shirt when it’s cold. I mean, long sleeves are especially when you’re going to work. It’s kind of one of the official wear. So it cuts across every weather and season. Yeah, you can carry one or two or seven to Kenya while you’re there. It suits any season. Of course, you’ll also want to be casual right. When you are going to safari parks or whatever I think, you don’t want to look really official you know. I mean it’s your choice but casual wear will also do. |
| 9. Matawi yanayoanguka "falling leaves" |
| Demani ni musimu unaohusiswa na matawi yanayoanguka. "Autumn is the season associated with falling leaves." |
| Yeah, we have – Actually in Kenya, we have different kinds of trees that shed leaves during the autumn season. And yeah, I remember those experiences. At school, we would pile many sacks of leaves in the name of dirt but you know what, we never used to throw them, we had a big compost, we will pile them and they will stay there for manure. For every year, we didn’t buy manure. That was clever of us but you have something manure, organic to use in our farms and back in my hometown, of course, I will clean up you know. Those are some of the seasons that we know you will not like because you’ll end up. After you clean up, immediately after two minutes, you see lots of leaves piling, again and again, you have to clean up and clean up and clean up and clean up until the Autumn season is over. And you know, it just brings about to be more of these beautiful memories. I miss those days. |
| 10. Jani "leaf" |
| Actually, this is my hand but it’s not a leaf but it just gives you an expression of how a leaf looks like. Does it have this? I mean, leaves look different. |
| Jani “leaf” |
| Majani yanazidi kuanguka. "Leaves are continuously falling." They are continuously falling. |
| You know, we had this tree. It was so huge. It was right in front of our – I mean it’s a little bit distance from our main house but it was in the compound of course and it was really big and it had very huge leaves and you know what, during the autumn season, those leaves will continuously fall and you know what, we had to continuously clean up. Every moment you clean up this side, the other side is already full of leaves like it was wow! Why? I was always wishing that oh, let the Autumn season pass because of that. But you know what, I like the flowers around. So, um you have this that is good and you have that that is not really good but it has to happen. So you’ve got to balance and compromise. I lived with that. Yeah, I mean it brings back childhood memories and I am loving it. |
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