Umbundu language
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- noun
- The Umbundu language is one of the most widely spoken languages in Angola, particularly among the Ovimbundu people.
Examples
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The Umbundu language, like my mother's native Xhosa, is a Bantu tongue, intense and alliterative.
Fiction book (1997) -
Many children in Angola learn the Umbundu language as their first language at home.
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Due to its rich oral traditions, the Umbundu language plays a crucial role in preserving the culture of the Ovimbundu community.
Synonyms
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A language spoken in central Angola by the Ovimbundu people
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase 'Umbundu language' is fully compositional: 'Umbundu' names a specific Bantu speech community and 'language' denotes a linguistic system, so together they directly mean the language spoken by the Umbundu people. The 'X language' construction is a common, cross-linguistic pattern and therefore immediately understandable to a learner who knows both constituents.
Etymology
Umbundu language comes from the name of the people called 'Ovimbundu' in central Angola. The word Umbundu simply names their speech, so Umbundu language means 'the language of the Ovimbundu people'.