Shona
Bantu language of Zimbabwe and Mozambique
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Summary
Shona is a natural language[1]. Shona ranks in the top 8% of natural language entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (5,647 views/month).[2]
Key Facts
- Country: Zambia[3], Zimbabwe[4], Mozambique[5], Botswana[6]
- Instance of: modern language[7]
- Subclass of: Shona languages[8]
- Writing system: Latin script[9]
- Commons category: Shona language[10]
- Wikimedia language code: sn[11]
- Topic's main category: Category:Shona language[12]
- Number of speakers, writers, or signers: 8,300,000[13], 9,023,000[14]
- Native label: ChiShona[15]
- Different from: Shona languages[16]
- Indigenous to: Central Province[17], Southern Province[18], Lusaka Province[19], Zimbabwe[20], Mashonaland Central Province[21]
- Exact match: http://publications.europa.eu/resource/authority/language/SNA[22]
- Ethnologue language status: 3 Wider Communication[23]
- Linguistic typology: subject–verb–object[24]
- On focus list of Wikimedia project: WikiProject Languages[25], WikiProject Zimbabwe[26], WikiProject Africa[27]
- Category for films in this language: Category:Shona-language films[28]
- Related category: Category:Shona-language albums[29]
- Category for music in this language: Q140395377[30]
Why It Matters
Shona has Wikipedia articles in 26 language editions, a strong signal of global cultural recognition.[31] Shona is known by 58 alternative names across languages and contexts.[32]