Rha

Rha
Pronounced (ggggaaah); is a Khoikhoi word for “plenty” or “enough”. Used in Xhosa as a term for “That’s enough”often in anger and sometimes in disgust hence mistaken for “ew”.


In Khoikhoi: There is a river in the Eastern Cape called Birha. Bi is milk, and rha is plenty. Hence “a place of milk”. Another use is in the Xhosa chief Gambushe’s nickname: Rharhabe meaning “Minister of Plenty”.
In Xhosa it varies:
In a Dismissal Manner
Someone: I’m going to out race you.
Me: Rha! That would be the day.
To stop a child who is hitting another child a parent could say “Stop it. Rha! That’s enough”
In a Disgusting Manner
When a child see poop usually they used to say “Rha! Poo”
When people hear, smells, or see a disgusting thing they can say “Rha!”
In an Elated Manner
A person recounting an exciting moment of thriumph can say “Rha! I out did myself”
Feeling pretty? “Rha! I’m beautiful”



Biltong

A favorite South African snack made from dried and salted meat, similar to beef jerky. It is mostly loved by white South Africans when watching their rugby games.


Let's grab some biltong before we watch the game.



Amazaza

Amazaza is a South African slang term for Sunglasses.


Why are you wearing amazaza at night?



ilolo

ilolo is a Xhosa term for a loner.


Mna ndililolo, andinamntu.

I am a loner, I have no one.



Exeh

Another word for bro popularly used in zambia


Exeh you good



Khaltsha

Khaltsha is a term that is used to refer to the township of Khayelitsha in Cape Town.


Masambe siye eKhaltsha, mfowethu.



umshologu

properly used to mean a “spirit” from
u -> the
m -> child of, person of, thing of
Shulgi -> an ancient Sumerian king who deified him just like Jesus and so people were said to perform wonders “In the name of Shulgi”.


On seeing a ghost: I saw umshologu.
On seeing a magic performance: He’s using umshologu.
A church was in the old days called: The House of umshologu
On someone who loves to go to church: He’s the ash of the house of umshologu. (you can modernize the expression by using “furniture” instead of “ash”)



Colloquial

(of language) used in ordinary or familiar conversation; not formal or literary.


We use a lot of colloquial terms in our everyday lingo.



Kaizer Chiefs

South African soccer team from Naturena, Soweto. It is arguably the club with the most annoying supporters in South Africa. Kaizer Chiefs fans think their team went to a private school. They think it's the Woolworths of soccer teams.


You also support Kaizer Chiefs? That's why you are so annoying.



Bemba

Bemba refers to both an ethnic group and a language primarily found in Zambia. It is a Bantu language spoken by millions of people, making it one of the most widely spoken indigenous languages in Zambia.


I need to relearn Bemba.




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