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Glite Dictionary
🌍 A foreigner 🚶 A traveler
mzungu

mzungu

1 9.9
A person who travels from place to place in old stories
  • noun
  • /mʊˈzuːŋɡu/
  • Archaic
: mzungu
  • Many mzungus come to experience the breathtaking landscapes and diverse wildlife of Africa.

Examples

  • The driver had said that this crazy mzungu periodically "went bush," or wandered unarmed and unequipped into whatever part of the country he happened to find himself.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • The mzungu was fascinated by the local culture and spent hours talking to the villagers.

  • When the mzungu visited the remote village, everyone gathered to learn about his travels.

Synonyms

traveler
vsmzungu
  • US
307 1.0

A person who often goes from place to place

highlights outsider or foreign status rather than ordinary travel
nomad
vsmzungu
29 4.4

A person who moves from place to place to find food or work

denotes an outsider or foreign visitor rather than a moving community member
wanderer
vsmzungu
23 3.9

A person who travels without a fixed home or purpose

is used especially for outsiders or foreigners rather than aimless movement
world traveler
vsmzungu
  • US
7 2.9

A person who goes to many countries around the world

focuses on outsider or foreign identity rather than broad travel patterns
wayfarer
vsmzungu
2 7.6

A person who travels on foot from place to place

emphasizes outsider or foreign role rather than walking as mode
roamer
vsmzungu
1 5.1

A person who moves from place to place without staying long

stresses outsider or foreign origin rather than casual moving about

Surface Forms

mzungu singular
mzungus plural

Etymology

Mzungu comes from the Swahili verb zunguka, 'to go around', so it originally meant someone who travels from place to place — a 'wanderer'. That is why older uses call a travelling or roaming person a mzungu.