University (Sekolo-kholo) July 18, 2007
Posted by Rethabile in education, sesotho, vocabulary.Tags: sesotho
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The history of the National University of Lesotho can be traced back to 1945, when a Catholic University College was founded in Roma by the Roman Catholic authorities of southern Africa. The institution soon teamed up with others in Botswana and Swaziland to form U.B.L.S., the University of Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland. The present National University of Lesotho came into being in 1975 at the site of the former U.B.L.S., which was itself preceded by the Pius XII University College.
Links:
Wikipedia
University of Wisconsin
Thomas Mofolo Library
Aloe (Lekhala) July 18, 2007
Posted by Rethabile in flora and fauna, sesotho, vocabulary.Tags: sesotho
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Aloe polyphylla is a succulent plant indigenous to and confined to mountains in Lesotho. A species valued by the horticultural trade, this succulent has been endangered by uprooting for sale to collectors. It is now protected by law.
The Aloe Polyphylla “does not occur naturally anywhere outside Lesotho with the exception of one record on the Lesotho border with the Free State. And one of the reasons that Aloe Polyphylla is rare plant is that normally, it is extremely difficult to grow in cultivation. Plants which have been removed from their habitat usually do not survive for more than a few years. Besides, it is a criminal offence to remove plants or seed of Aloe polyphylla from the natural habitat or to buy plants from roadside vendors. [source]“
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Neo, Lineo and telephoning September 4, 2006
Posted by Rethabile in sesotho, vocabulary.Tags: sesotho
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“Neo in Sotho means a gift and this is a token the whole of South Africa will hope to receive as Neotel, the second fixed-telephone line operator, rolls out its services. [Source]“
The first three letters of the company name, Neo, are pronounced approximately /NAY-oh/ and indeed do mean “gift.” The plural is lineo in Lesotho and dineo in South Africa, same pronunciation in both countries: /dee-NAY-oh/.
I guess Telkom now has a real rival. Will it bring prices down? What I hope, is for the people of South Africa to receive a real neo. Neo or Lineo is also a forename. The first one can be for girls or boys, whereas the second is mainly for girls, like my daughter. I don’t know a boy named Lineo.
Counting (Palo) January 4, 2004
Posted by Rethabile in sesotho, vocabulary.Tags: sesotho
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Sesotho is a relatively young language, so everything still means what it is supposed to mean. What I mean by that is, like, forenames. My forename, Rethabile, is a full sentence that means We are happy. I guess my folks couldn’t contain their joy when I arrived. In older languages, English for example, James and Elizabeth and Richard, etc., used to have specific, contemporary meanings that are no longer meaningful today, unless one buys a special book of meanings of names.
But this phenomenon is not only apparent with forenames. Here is how we count in from 1 to 10 in Sesotho:
1 = ‘Ngoe ( 2 syllables /NG-wee/)
2 = Peli (pay-DEE)
3 = Tharo
4 = ‘Ne ( 2 syllables /N-eh/ )
5 = Hlano
6 = Tšelela
7 = Supa
8 = Robeli
9 = Robong
10 = Leshome
Ho tšela (6) is the verb to cross, and that’s when we cross from one hand to the other when counting. Ho supa (7) is to point, and that’s the finger we point with. Robeli (8)means break two, and two fingers are indeed down for eight. Robong (9) is break one. Eleven for instance, is literally Ten with one root (leshome le motso o mong).
