Learn → How To Say HELLO in African Languages

Published February 22, 2023 · Updated April 24, 2023

in different languages hello in African languages

Language plays a pivotal role on the continent of Africa. Every language of Africa serves as a treasury of traditions, cultures, beliefs, and history. There is so much to learn about a place, a region, a country, or a continent by the way the citizens express themselves. Saying hello, greeting, and forming connections is a big part of life. Continue reading to learn how to say hello in African languages.

Click here to also learn how to say:
HELLO in different languages around the world.

An important travelling advantage is discovering the local language and it’s always a good idea to know a few travel words of the country you’re visiting.

So the next time you find yourself in Africa, or even live here, I’ve got you covered.

Be sure to bookmark, copy and paste, and save this post on how to say hello in the languages of Africa for future use and ease of reference.

>> Read next:
How to say I love you in African

The African word for hello is used to acknowledge the presence of another person.

Each language of these African greetings uses different words to greet, however the feeling is usually the same.

How do you say hello in Africa? Let’s get into it…. ↓↓

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The most powerful African proverbs and quotes about Africa to live by
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>> Want to learn how to say THANK YOU and GOODBYE too?
Read this guide to say goodbye and thank you in different languages

HELLO IN AFRICAN LANGUAGES

Here’s your ultimate guide: how to say hello in African languages of Africa.

With pronunciation.

In brackets you will find how to pronounce the word as it can often be difficult to know how to vocalise the word just by reading or looking at the direct translation.

I have included hello in all the African languages I could think of. If you don’t spot your language, let me know and I will be happy to add it to this list.

Let’s go…

>> Click here to also learn how to say:
GOOD MORNING, GOOD NIGHT, and FAMILY around the world.

Continue reading to learn how do you say HELLO in languages of Africa?

How do you say hello in African languages?

Afrikaans

hallo (hal-low)
howzit
— A traditional South African greeting and informal word for hello or how are you

Afrikaans is a West Germanic language of Southern Africa mostly derived from Dutch. It developed as Dutch settlers and indigenous African mixed languages beginning in the 17th century. Today, an estimated 15 to 23 million people call Afrikaans their mother tongue. It is mainly spoken in South Africa and Namibia and can also be heard in parts of Botswana and Zimbabwe.

Amharic

Hello in Amharic is:

ጤና ይስጥል: Teanastëllën (teen-as-tell-an) — formal
ታዲያስ: Tadiyas — informal
ሰላም sälam — informal
- salamno (SalamnO) — male
- salamnish (SalamNISH) — female

Amharic is a Semitic language and the official language of Ethiopia. It can also be heard in Egypt and Eritrea, as well as in Israel, Sweden, Canada, and the United States.

Arabic

How to express hello in African language of Arabic:

as-salām ‘alaykum (ahs-sahlahm ‘ah-leh-loom) السلام علیکم — formal hello
meaning peace be with you
This can be shortened to salaam سلام
marhaba (mahr-hah-bah) مرحبا — informal hello
ahlan (ah-lahn) — informal hello

Arabic (العربية) is a Semitic language spoken by over 420 million people as their first language in areas including North Africa, the largest country in Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and other parts of the Middle East. Many more people can also understand it as a second language. Modern Standard Arabic is the liturgical language for 1.6 billion Muslims and is the official written form of the language with the Arabic alphabet, which is written from right to left.

Arabic speaking countries in Africa include Algeria, Chad, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Somalia, Sudan, Tunisia, and Tanzania.

Chichewa

moni bambo to a male
moni mayi to a female
moni moni onse (mooni-mooni-on-se) is used as a general greeting to everyone.

Chichewa, also known as Nyanja, is a Bantu language spoken in much of Southern, Southeast and East Africa. It is the national language of Malawi and is also spoken in Zambia, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe.

Hello African language with pronunciation

English

hello

English is a West Germanic language that was first spoken in Anglo-Saxon England in the early Middle Ages. It is spoken in many countries around the world with over 375 million native speakers. English is the second most spoken language, and the most international language in the world.

The number of African countries that use English as one of their main languages – either as an official language or a de facto working language – equals 24.

>> Continue reading to discover more ways to say hello in Africa language.

French

How to say hello in African French:

bonjour — good day
Bon means “good” and Jour means “day”
Bonjour is flexible and can be used both formally and informally at anytime of the day. You can use it with anyone, from a friend or family member, to someone you’ve just met.
bonsoir — good evening
salut (sah-LUU) is another way of saying hello in multiple languages.
Informal often used with close friends and family.
coucou — very informal. Fun greeting that should only be used with friends, family, and children.
allô when answering the phone

French is a Romance language of the Indo-European family spoken by over 354 million people in France and around the world. It is the third most spoken language in Europe, the official language of 29 countries, spoken in parts of Africa, North America, and South America.

Africa has the largest number of French speakers in the world with over 120 million people in 24 francophone countries. French is the official language of 21 countries in Africa. These include Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Gabon, Guinea, Madagascar, Mali, Niger, Rwanda, Senegal, Seychelles, and Togo.

Fula

a jaaraama
sannu
— informal African greeting

Fula, also referred to as Fulani or Fulah, is a Senegambian branch of the Niger-Congo language family spoken by more than 40 million people in Central and West Africa.

Hausa

sannu (san-NU)

Hausa language, the most important indigenous bridge language in West and Central Africa, spoken as a first or second language by about 40–50 million people. It belongs to the Western branch of the Chadic language family within the Afro-Asiatic language phylum.

It is spoken mainly in northern Nigeria and Niger, and also in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, the Central African Republic (CAR), Chad, Congo, Eritrea, Germany, Ghana, Sudan, and Togo.

Igbo

nnọọ
ndewo

Igbo is the principal native language of the Igbo people of southeastern Nigeria with around 45 million speakers and over 20 dialects.

Kanuri

ushé-ushé
— is the Kanuri phrase for hello in Africa

Kanuri is language within the Saharan branch of the Nilo-Saharan language family spoken by approximately four million people in Nigeria, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon.

Kikuyu

wĩmwega

Kikuyu or Gĩkũyũ is a Bantu language of the Niger-Congo language family that is spoken as a first language by over 6.6 million Agĩkũyũ people in Kenya.

Kinyarwanda

muraho bite — informal
uraho

Kinyarwanda, an official language of Rwanda, is a Bantu language of the Niger-Congo language family that is spoken by at least 10 million people in Rwanda, DR Congo, and Uganda.

Kirundi

bwakeye
amahoro (a-ma-ho-ro)

Kirundi, or Rundi, is a Bantu language of the Niger-Congo language family, spoken by over 9 million people in Burundi where it is the official language. It is also spoken in parts of Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and in Uganda.

Lingala

mbote (mboh-teh)

Lingala is a Bantu language spoken throughout the northwestern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and a large part of the Republic of the Congo by over 70 million people.

Luganda

ki kati (chi kati) — informal hey
oli otya to one person
muli mutya to a group

Luganda, a Bantu language, is an official language of Uganda along with English and Swahili. It is spoken primarily in Kampala, but may be understood in much of the country and in the African Great Lakes region.

Malagasy

salama(sah-lAHm-ah) — hello
manao ahoana (man-ow ah-ohn-ah) — how is it

Malagasy is the national language of Madagascar belonging to the Austronesian Malayo-Polynesia family of languages spoken by 25 million people.

Mauritian Creole

bonzour (bon-zoor)
allo (ah-low) — informal hi

Mauritian Creole or Morisien, the de facto language of Mauritius, is a French-based creole language that is closely related to the Rodriguan, Seychellois, and Chagossian Creoles.

Moroccan

اسلا عليكم (ssalamū ‘lekum)
الو (alu)

Moroccan Arabic, also known as Darija, is a form of vernacular Arabic spoken in Morocco. It is part of the Maghrebi Arabic dialect continuum, with over 30 million native speakers.

Ndebele

salibonani

Ndebele, an African language of the Nguni group of Bantu languages, is spoken by around 5 million Northern Ndebele people of Zimbabwe.

Nkore

oraire ota
osiibire ota

Nkore or Runyankore is a Bantu language of the Niger-Congo language family spoken by approximately 2.3 million Nkore people of south-western Uganda.

Northern Sotho / Sepedi

dumela (doo-MAY-lah) when addressing a single person.
dumelang (doo-MAY-lang) when speaking to more than one person
khotso (coat-so) — casual hello

Northern Sotho is a Bantu language spoken primarily in South Africa, where it is one of the 11 official languages. It is spoken by about 4.2 million people in the South African provinces of Gauteng, Limpopo and Mpumalanga.

Oromo

akkam

Oromo is a Cushitic language spoken by about 30 million people in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Egypt. It is the third largest language in Africa.

Portuguese

How to say hello in African Portuguese:

olá (oh-LAH) — formal hello
oi — casual hi
bom dia — good day

Portuguese (português) is a Romance language spoken as the official language of Portugal and Brazil. It is also the official language of the African islands of Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, São Tomé e Principe, Angola, Mozambique, and the co-official language of East Timor and Macau. There are around 200 million native Portuguese speakers.

There are six countries in Africa where Portuguese is the main language and these include Cape Verde, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Sao Tome, Principe, Angola, and Mozambique.

Sesotho

dumela (doo-meh-lah) when speaking to one person
dumelang (doo-meh-lang) when speaking to more than one, meaning hello to all

Sesotho (Sotho) is a Southern Bantu language of the Sotho-Tswana group, spoken primarily by the Basotho in Lesotho, where it is the national and official language, South Africa, where it is one of the 11 official languages and in Zimbabwe where it is one of 16 official languages.

Seychellois Creole

allo

Seychellois Creole, or Seselwa, is a French-based creole language of the Seychelles, the smallest country in Africa, where it is one of the official languages.

Shona

mhoro

Shona, one of the most widely spoken Bantu languages, is the main language in Zimbabwe.

Somali

salaam alaykum

Somali, an Afro-Asiatic language spoken by over 16 million people, is an official language of Somalia, a national language in Djibouti, and a working language in the Somali Region of Ethiopia.

Spanish

How to say hello in African Spanish:

¡hola! (O-laa)
You can use hola in both formal and informal settings, at any time of day or night.

To be time-specific, you can use:

buenos dias — good morning
buenas tardes — good afternoon
buenas noches — good night

Spanish is the second most widely used language in the world natively spoken by more than 437 million people including Spain, most of Central and South America, Mexico, and the USA. There are over 21 countries in the world that have Spanish as their official language. It is a Romance language that originated in the Iberian Peninsula.

Equatorial Guinea is the only Spanish-speaking country in Africa.

Swahili

Swahili for hello:

hujambo
jambo
habari gani — what is the news?

Swahili is a Bantu languages spoken by the Swahili communities in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Mozambique, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Swati

sawubona (sah-woo-boh-nah)

Swati is a Bantu language of the Nguni group spoken in Eswatini and South Africa by the Swazi people. It is the official language of Swaziland (along with English) and since 1994 one of the nine indigenous languages to enjoy official recognition in South Africa. The number of speakers is estimated to be in the region of 2.4 million.

Tarifit

Hello in Tarifit is azul, which means “peace”
ola

Tarifit is spoken by 8 million speakers in Arrif (Northern Africa) and Schengen countries.

Tigrinya

ሰላም ሃለው (selam halewi)
ቻው (chawi)
ከመይ ዊዕልኩም (kemeyi wī‘ilikumi)

Tigrinya is a Semitic language commonly spoken by around 9.85 million people in Eritrea and in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia.

Tshivenda

ndaa
— as a male
aa
— as a female

Tshivenda or Venda is a Bantu language spoken by the Venda people of South Africa where it is an official language.

Tsonga

minjhani
- when saying hello to adults
kunjhani
- when greeting your friends or children

Tsonga is a Bantu language spoken by the Tsonga people totalling 12 million people mainly in South Africa, but also Mozambique and Eswatini.

Tswana

dumela (doo-meh-lah)

Tswana is a Bantu language spoken by about 4.4 million people in Bostwana, where it is the national and majority language, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa. The majority of speakers, about 3.6 million, live in South Africa, where the language is officially recognised.

Twi

agoo

Twi, or Akan kasa, is a dialect of the Akan Niger-Congo language family spoken by the Akan people in southern and central Ghana.

Wolof

salaam alaikum (sa-laam a-lay-kum)

Wolof is a national language of Senegal, where it is spoken by approximately 5.4 million people as a first language. It belongs to the Atlantic group of the Niger-Congo language family and is the native language of the Wolof people.

Xhosa

molo

Xhosa is a Nguni Bantu language with click consonants and is one of the official languages of South Africa. It is spoken as a first language by approximately 8.2 million people and by another 11 million as a second language in South Africa, mostly in Eastern Cape Province.

Yoruba

bawo ni

Yoruba is a pluricentric language spoken in West Africa with the number of speakers estimated between 30 and 40 million. It is a language spoken principally in Nigeria and Benin, with communities in Sierra Leone, Liberia, other parts of Africa.

Zulu

Hi in African Zulu:

sawubona (sah-woo-boh-nah)

Zulu is a member of the Bantu/Nguni family of languages. It is one of the official languages of South Africa spoken by about 10 million people mainly in Zululand and northern Natal in South Africa and also in Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, and Eswatini.

Thanks for reading this article on how to say hello in African language…