Khoekhoegowab.

made simple

Learn how to speak quickly, correctly, and effectively

in just two months

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 Peace Corps
Namibia
Khoekhoegowab Language Manual

Original Copy by:

Tim Habenicht
Sandra Yitanga
Chris Ndara

Translated and Revised in Khoekhoegowab by:

Kaitlynn Jones
JJ Nuganab
Magdalena Vries

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 Table of Contents

Section One
The Essential
The Building Blocks of Khoekhoegowab
Preface: The Inner Workings of Khoekhoegowab pgs. 9-10

1. GREETINGS – How to greet, introduce yourself, and say goodbye pgs. 11-12

1.1 Morning Greetings

1.2 Afternoon Greetings
1.3 Evening Greetings
1.4 Introducing Yourself
1.5 Leave Taking
1.6 Essential Starter Words

2. LIKES/WANTS/NEEDS/EMOTIONS pgs. 13-14

2.1 Likes, Wants, and Needs

2.2 How To Say The Negatives of Likes, Wants, or Needs
2.3 Feelings - How To Express What You Are Feeling

3. Social/Classroom phrases pgs. 15-16

3.1 The Phrases You Just Can’t Live Without

3.2 Basic Questions and Responses for Everyday Situations

4. THE KEY TO UNLOCKING YOUR TONGUE pgs. 17-20

4.1 How To Use Present Tense Verbs

4.2 ***The Top 100 Most Important Verbs***
4.3 The Basic Words

Section Two
The Technical – The Necessary Details
5. COMMANDS – The Key To Speaking With Authority pgs. 22

5.1 How To Form Commands With Any Verb

5.2 The Best Commands To Use When….

6. POSSESSIVES pgs. 23

6.1 The 5 Possessive Stems

6.2 How to Form Possessives Correctly

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7. COMMON GRAMMER ISSUES pgs. 23-24
*Useful things that seem to confuse people

7.1 How To Use have Correctly

7.2 How To Say with…. me, you, him/her, them, and us
7.3 Locatives (in, at, here, there…..)

8. ADJECTIVES pgs. 25

8.1 The Top 20 Most Important Adjective Stems

8.2 How To Use An Adjective Correctly

Section Three
The Practical – Applying What You Know
9. AT SCHOOL pgs. 27-29

9.1 Classroom Vocabulary

9.2 Phrases And Commands You Need To Know As A Teacher

10. AT THE CLINIC pgs. 30-31

10.1 Parts of the Body

10.2 Clinic Vocabulary
10.3 Helpful Phrases To Use At The Clinic

11. AT HOME pgs. 32-35

11.1 Cooking, Food, and Drinks

11.2 Clothing
11.3 Family

12. IN THE VILLAGE pgs. 36-38

12.1 Shopping
12.2 Navigating and Directions
12.3 Plants and Animals

13. DAYS, TIME, AND WEATHER pgs. 39-40

13.1 Days Of The Week

13.2 Time Related Words
13.3 Useful Expressions About Weather
13.4 Months and Seasons

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14. COUNTING – How to count up to 100 pgs. 41

Numbers, from 1 to 100

15. The Phrases You Wish You Knew Coming Into Site pgs. 42

PCV Kaitlynn’s quick reference on phrases learned after PST

16. THE ROAD AHEAD – How to become fluent pgs. 43

Putting The Puzzle Together

10 Tips On How To Become Fluent
Final Advice: A Note From Kaitlynn

17. Cultural Information pgs. 44-49

18. Exercises pgs. 50-54

18. Notes pgs. 55-56

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 Introduction – A Must Read

Khoekhoegowab 101
making sense of the madness

“I’m just not good at learning languages.”

“Khoekhoegowab just doesn’t make any sense to me.”
“I tried learning but..... I gave up.”

Does that sound familiar to you? Well, the truth is - most people are not “bad” at
learning languages. They are bad, as I am, at attempting to memorize zero-
gratification tables, words, and charts that seem utterly useless, confusing, and are
hard to apply. Most people start off strong and motivated, but end up confused or
overwhelmed and then eventually give up learning before any real progress is made.
If that sounds like you, I want you to forget everything you think about your “skill” in
learning a new language. Do you have a brain? Good - then you have more than
enough.

This book will break things down, cut out the fat, and ignore the unimportant. By
avoiding boring memorization of the non-essential and focusing on high frequency
words, learning Khoekhoegowab will actually be easy. There is also very little
linguistic jargon used in this book. You might say, “Well how am I supposed to learn
all the rules without knowing what everything is called then?” That is a great
question, but just think back to when you were a baby back in America: Did you learn
English by your parents telling you? -“Now, this is how you use the present
progressive form of a being verb in noun class 8.” I highly doubt it. You learned by
listening and practicing, regardless of whether you knew what the rules were called. If
you learn everything in this book, you can expect to be relatively conversational in
less than 2 months. How is that even possible? Well, high frequency words are the
key, and here is why:

Let’s take, for example, the 20 volume Oxford English Dictionary, which easily
contains over 250,000 words. Ouch. If you were trying to learn English, how could
you possibly learn that many words? The task is daunting and near impossible, unless
you have the mind of Stephen Hawking and want to spend 30+ years memorizing
words you will never use. Luckily, for the average minded person such as myself, the
100 most common words in English make up for 50% of all printed material in the
U.S. If you expand that list to the top 300 words, then that percentage increases to
65%. So, learning a mere 300 words of English would theoretically allow you to be
able to read 65% of any newspaper or book. You could learn just ten new words a day
and be done with the task in one month. One month! That isn’t so bad is it? Language
learning seems much less scary when you think about like that. As I said, learning
high frequency words is the key to learning Khoekhoegowab, or any language for
that matter.

It is important to realize that Khoekhoegowab is an umbrella term for both the

Damara and the Nama language. While these languages are similar they are not the
same and some of the sayings will be different depending on the tribe you are
surrounded by. (Ex. Telling someone to come: ha re (used largely by Damaras) and
/khî re (used largely by Namas)).

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The Power of Grouping
If you ever feel overwhelmed when learning a new language, it is probably because
you are trying to learn too much, too fast. If you try to learn 100 new words a day,
you most likely will only remember a small fraction of what you learned the next day,
and even less the day after. Breaking the language down into manageable groups will
do the trick. It has been proven that people can remember new vocabulary better
when it is broken into related groups of 10 words or less. It helps anchor the words
into the brain, making them easier to recall when you need to say them. The good
thing for you is, all of the words in this book have already been logically (somewhat
logically at least) grouped into related sets of around 10 words. Grouping words will
accelerate your learning and quickly lead you down the road of success.

The Importance of Small Wins

It is important to know that your learning progression will look something like the
graph below. You will start off strong and motivated in your first month, then get
confused and probably falter, then muster up a small amount of effort to continue, and
then hit a long plateau just before you EXPLODE with knowledge after your brain
and ears adapt to the new language. The problem is, most people give up after they
get confused or are in the plateau stage when they are not seeing a noticeable
improvement. If you plan ahead and expect your learning to be a roller coaster ride,
your are much less likely to give up. Because, if you give up, there is no point in
trying at all. If you focus on learning a small amount each day, you will stay more
motivated because you will continually notice improvement on a daily basis -

consider that a “small win”. You will end up having a smoother roller coaster ride
with smaller lows and higher highs. And remember, the more that you learn, the
easier everything will become. So stay positive, don’t give up, and remember to
celebrate the small wins.

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 Section One

The Essential
The Building Blocks of Khoekhoegowab

“One never realizes how much and how little he knows

until he starts talking.”
-Louis L’ Amour
Author

How much do you know already? If you are just starting to learn Khoekhoegowab,
probably not very much – yet. The Essential contains the first words and phrases you
need to know, as well as the most important concepts to help get you speaking, fast.
These are the building blocks of Khoekhoegowab so you need to drill these words
and phrases into your head with consistent repetition and verbal practice. The better
understanding you have of the basics, the easier everything else will seem that
follows. Before you move on to the other sections, make sure that you have mastered
all of the contents found here. Once you have learned a word or phrase, put a check
by it with a red pen. Seriously, it helps.

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 The Inner Workings of Khoekhoegowab

Explaining the 4 clicks:

/ dental click: tip of the tongue is pressed against the front teeth and quickly
withdrawn.

// lateral click: click sound produced at the side of the tongue when tongue is
held pressed against the palate.

! palatal click: tongue is pressed against the upper palate and released sharply
downwards, something like when a cork is pulled from a bottle.

≠ alveolar-palatal click: tip of the tongue is pressed against the alveolar ridge
and adjacent palate, then released sharply downwards.

Alphabet:
The Khoekhoegowab Alphabet (Abetseb)
The language has 20 letters plus the 4 clicks, which brings the alphabet to 24
.
*Fun fact: If someone has a click in front of his or her surname (//Awases) then you
alphabetize it by the click*

a g m s / (/g /h /kh /n)

b i n t // (//g //h //kh //n)
d (j)* o u ! (!g !h !kh !n)
e k p w ≠ (≠g ≠h ≠kh ≠n)
(f)* l r x
(v)*

*The following are only found in loanwords: f, j and l.

1. VOWELS:
A circumflex is added to vowels ¸e.g. â, î, û) to indicate nasalization. A length-mark
¸indicated through a horizontal line on top of the vowel) is added ¸e.g. ā, ‡, ī, œ, ¡) to
indicate that the vowel is pronounced for a longer duration than normal.

Khoekhoegowab English with similar pronunciation Khoekhoegowab

vowel example
A ‘o’ in dog mapa? (where)?
E ‘ay’ in hay pere-i (bread)
I ‘ee’ in bee pirib (male goat)
O ‘o’in ‘clock’ /oro (old)
U ‘oo’ in moose !upus (egg)

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 2. Diphthongs (Vowel combinations):
The following non-nasalized diphthongs (vowel combinations) are found in
Khoekhoegowab.

Khoekhoegowab English with similar Khoekhoegowab

diphthongs pronunciation example
Ae ‘uy’ in guy ≠gaes (ear)
Ai ‘ay’ in play kai (big); ≠ais (foot)
Ao ‘ow’ in cow aob (man)
Au ‘ow’ in slow ≠au (slow)
Oa ‘oi’ in abbatoir !hoa (speak)
Oe ‘oy’ in toy khoeb (man); khoes
(woman)
Ui ‘ooey’ in gooey /gui (one)

Clicks with vowels and consonants

/a //a !a ≠a
g /ga //ga !ga ≠ga
h /ha //ha !ha ≠ha
n /na //na !na ≠na
kh /kha //kha !kha ≠kha

Diphthongs

Non-nasalised diphthongs

ae ai ao au oa oe ui

Nasalised diphthongs

âi âu ôa ûi îa

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 Chapter 1

GREETINGS
1.1 Morning Greetings
*There are two types of greetings – Formal and Informal.
Type 1 – Formal Greetings (recommended)
A. !Gâi //Goas. Good morning.
B. !Gâi //Goas. Good morning.

A. Mî du re? How are you?

B. !Gâi a. Aitsama du mi re? I am fine. And you?

A. !Gâi a. I am fine.

Type 2 – Informal (for friends).

A. Moro. Morning.
B. Moro. Morning.

A. Matisa? What’s up?

B. !Gâi a. Aitsama? Fine. And you?

A. !Gâi a. Fine.

1.2 Afternoon Greetings

There is only ONE thing that changes in the afternoon. Instead of starting with
!Gâi //Goas or Moro, you start with !Gâi Tses (formal) or Metax (informal), which
means good afternoon.

A. !Gâi Tses. Good afternoon.

B. !Gâi Tses. Good afternoon.

Then, the greeting will either proceed as type 1 or type 2, by either asking Mî du re?
or Matisa?

1.3 Evening Greetings

Just like with the afternoon greeting, the ONE thing that changes is !Gâi !Oes
(formal) or Xoentax or Xoenâu (informal) - which means good evening.

A. !Gâi !Oes. Good evening.

B. !Gâi !Oes. Good evening.

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1.4 Basic Phrases to Introduce Yourself
Key Words
/Ons name
Kurigu years
Matiko? How many/much?
Mapa? Where?

Introduce Yourself
Ti /ons ge a Tim. My name is Tim.
Mati du /on hâ? What is your name?

(how many) (years) (you have)

Matiko kurixa du a? How old are you?
-Tita ge 24 kurixa. I am 24 years old.

Mapaxu du ra ha? Where are you from?

-Tita ge Amerikaba xu ra ha. I am from America.

1.5 Leave Taking

You have several choices when you are leaving.

1. A: !Gâise hâ re. Stay Well (If you are leaving them)

B: !Gâise i re. Go Well (If they are leaving you)

2. !Gâi tsesa û hâ re. Have a nice day.

3. /khī ta ge ra nesi I’m coming now (if you’ll be right back)

4. Ī / !gû ta ge ra I’m going.

5. Ēga da nî /hao We will meet later (many people 3+)

Ēgam nî /hao. (for only 2 -2 females or 1 female and 1 male)

6. //Khawa mûgus. See you again.

Personal Pronouns
ENGLISH KHOEKHOEGOWAB
I Tita (ta) Polite Words
You mas.(fem.) Sats (Sas) Gangans. Thank you.
He/She //îb //îs Kai Aios Great Thanks
We Sida (da) Toxoba. Please.
You (plural) Sadu (du) /ûba te re Excuse me/I’m sorry.
They //în an Sorry

Question Words Mapa? Where?

Mati? What? Mati i ī o? or Why?
Tari-e? or Who? Tare-i !aroma?
Hām-e? Ma//ae? When

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 Chapter 2

Likes/Wants/Needs/Feelings
2.1 Likes, Wants, and Needs

Tita ge ____ !gâibahe. I like...

Tita ge ____ ra ≠gao. I want...
Tita ge ____ ra ≠hâba. I need...

Examples
Tita ge ai-!gais xa !gâibahe. I like to play soccer.
Tita ge stors //ga ra ī gao I want to go to the store.
Tita ge pere-e ra hâba I need bread.
Tita ge pere-e ra //ama gao I want to buy bread

*Technically, hâba means to need and gao means to want. But we normally don’t
say you need to buy bread but instead you want to buy bread.

The questions for these will be written like this:

Tare-i xa du !gâibahe?

2.2 Negatives - Things you simply don’t like, or want, or need. The question will
be:
Tare-i xa du !gâibahe tama hâ? What do you not like?

- To make it negative, add Tama.

Tita ge ____ !gâibahe tama hâ. I don’t like...

Tita ge ____ ≠gao tama hâ. I don’t want...
Tita ge ____ ≠hâba tama hâ. I don’t need...

2.3 Basic Feelings - How to express the way you are feeling

Khoekhoegowab takes the English form when talking about feelings.

1.) Tita ge a !âsa. I am hungry.

2.) Tita ge a khî. I am happy.
3.) Tita ge /aesen hâ. I am sick.
4.) Tita ge tsāu hâ. I am tired.
Tita ge tsāusa.

*example: Tita ge ra //om. Tita ge //om hâ

- I am going to sleep. -I am sleeping.
These both tenses are correct but ra is meaning you’re doing it while the use of hâ
means it is already happening.

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Feelings

Feeling Phrase
!âsa hungry Tita ge a !âsa. I am hungry.
//gâsa thirsty Tita ge a //gâsa. I am thirsty.
/ope lazy/bored Tita ge go /ope. I got lazy/bored.
khî happy Tita ge a khî. I am happy.
tsāusa tired Tita ge a tsāusa. I am tired.
//aixa mad, angry Tita ge go //aixa. I got angry.
!ao afraid Tita ge ra !ao. I am afraid.
!oa sad Tita ge ra !oa. I am sad.
buru surprised Tita ge ra buru. I am surprised.
//âsa full Tita ge a //âsa. I am full. (like with food)
Tita ge //â hâ (Most common I’m full)
sūrixa/tāuxa jealous Tita ge a súrixa / tāuxa. I am jealous.
*Sūrixa jealous of someone’s progress. Tāuxa is when quarreling
about a boyfriend (being jealous).

tao shy Tita ge ra tao. I am shy.

//khoa gao brave Tita ge a //khoa gao. I am brave.
ū//oa mean Tita ge a ū//oa I am mean.
/khe / khaisa smart Tita ge a /khe / khaisa I am smart.
**( khaisa more common)
Ga-ai clever Tita ge a ga-ai I am clever
Sâsa relaxed Tita ge a sâsa . I am relaxed.
âi hansen worried Tita ge ra âi hansen. I am worried.

Common Questions About Feelings

//gâsa du a? - Are you thirsty?

-î. //gâsa ta a – Yes, I am thirsty.

!âsa du a? - Are you hungry?

-î. !âsa ta a! – Yes, I’m hungry!

//â du hâ? / //âsa du a?- Are you full?

-hî-î !âsa ta a– No, I am hungry.

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 Chapter 3
Social/Classroom Language.
ENGLISH KHOEKHOEGOWAB
To speak !hōa re
Speak Slower ≠ause !hōa re
Speak louder !gárise !hōa re
Please Repeat //Khawa mî re toxoba
How do you say … in Mati du ra KKG !nâ … mî?
KKG?
What does … mean? … tare-e ra ≠âibasen
Word? Mîs?
I don’t understand //nâu!a tama ta ge hâ
I can’t hear you //Nâu du tama ta ge hâ
What is that/this? Tare-e //na-e/ ne-e?

3.1 The phrases you can’t live without

/U ta a. – I don’t know.

Tita ge a Khoekhoegowaba !hōa tama hâ. – I don’t speak Khoekhoegowab.

/Apa!aogowab !nâ !hōa u te. – Speak to me in English.
Tita ge khoekhoegowaba /orose ra !hōa. – I speak KKG less.
Tita ge khoekhoegowaba kharirose ra !hōa. I speak a little bit of KKG.

Tita ge khoekhoegowaba ra //kha//khasen. – I study Khoekhoegowab.

Ha re. Come. Ū re. – To Take

/Khī re
Ha re neba Come here. Au te re Give me
/Khī re neba Ma te re Give me

3.2 Basic Questions and Responses for Everyday Situations

Tare-e du ra dī? What are you doing?

- Xu-e ta dī tama hâ. Nothing.
- Tita ge khanisa ra khom-ai I am reading a book.

Mapa du ra ī? / Mapa du ra !gû/í? Where are you going?

- Tita ge stors //gar a ī/!gû? I am going to the store.

Mapa du go hâ i? Where were you?

- Oms tawa At home.
- Okahandjas !nâ. In Okahandja.

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*When you are looking for someone …..
Mapa du hâ? Where are you?
Chrissa mapa hâ? Where is Chris?
//îba / //îsa a tari? Who is he/she?
*When you are going somewhere …..
/Khida ī. Let’s go

Toa du go? Are you done?

//Khoaxa i go i? Was it good?

-Kaise go //khoaxa i. It was very good.
*When you need clarification….
//Nâu!a du ra? Do you understand?
- î. //nâu!a ta ra Yes, I understand.

Tîna du u hâ? Do you have questions?

- Tî-e ta u hâ Yes, I have a question.

Tare-e du go dī? What did you do?

- xu-e ta dī tama hâ. Nothing.

Tare-e du ra ôa? What are you looking for?

- Chrissa ta ra ôa I want Chris.

Toa du go? Are you finished?

- î. toa ta go. I am finished.

Matiko //aexa i go? What time is it?

- Disi(10) ir go. It’s 10 o’clock.

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 Chapter 4

The Key to Unlocking Your Tongue

4.1 How to Use Present Tense Verbs
In Khoekhoegowab the present tense word is ge ra. See how it is used in the
examples below!

Xoa – to write
1. Tita ge ra xoa. I write/I’m writing
2. Tita ge ra xoa gao. I want to write.
3. Tita ge xoas xa !gâibahe. I like to write.

ī / !gû- to go
1. Tita ge ra ī / !gù I am going.
2. Tita ge ra !gù gao. I want to go.

Or, if you are talking about someone

//Kha//khasen- to study/to learn

1. //îb / //îs ge ra //kha//khasen. You are studying.
2. //îb / //îs ge ra //kha//khasen gao . You want to study.
3. //îb / //îs ge //khakhasens xa !gâibahe. You like to study.

Do you see how easy it is to express yourself using just those three expressions that
you already know? On the next two pages, you will find a list of the most used verbs
in any language.

You should focus on learning approximately 10 new verbs per day. Ten words? That
is no problem at all! Do that, and you will be able to express yourself in 99% of all
situations in merely 10 days. Keep with it. Focus on one group of words at a time and
no more. Once you have mastered a verb and can recite it without looking at the
definition, put a check next to it and move on. If there is a verb that you don’t think
you will ever need or use, skip it. There is no need to spend time on learning what you
won’t use. You will be able to say about 500 simple phrases when you are done.
Enjoy.

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 4.2 The Most Used Verbs
Feelings School Part 1
//nâu – to hear !hōa – to speak
âi – to laugh //kha//khasen – to learn
/nam – to love //kha//kha – to teach
/gāipe – to joke khom-ai – to read
gōm – to believe teken – to draw
ā– – to cry verf – to paint
/hūpuba ta ge – to suffer mîba / //gamba – to tell
!gâ – to listen
Travel nû – to sit
/noba – to walk Mâ – to stand
Dī – to do Khaimâ – to stand up
Sari – to visit
/khupi – to borrow School Part 2
/khi-u – to bring Mî!a – to explain
ho – to find Sîsen – to work
hō – to touch Tî – to ask
na – to dance !eream – to answer
//nae – to sing Kō – to watch
gāi – to call Ho-ām – to succeed
/api – to rain âi – to think
/uru – to forget
At Home an – to know
//om – to sleep !gôa – to count
khai – to wake up /napu – to sweep
ana – to dress
daba – to change Kitchen
//ā – to wash û – to eat
//āsen – to bathe a – to drink
di-unu – to fix sâi – to cook
om – to build tsâtsâ – to taste
//an – to live !gao – to cut
ī / //aru – to leave ham – to smell
huni – to stir
Sports nûi / //gui / mai – to put
!khoe – to run nâ / //ho – to pour
/huru – to play /oa/oa - to fill
//kha - can/to be able to
tsâ – to swim
tsûtsû - to hurt
Health
/aesen – to be sick
oa!nâ - to lose
aosen – to sweat gae - to smoke
tsoatsoa - to start/begin !gae – to complain
toa - to finish //ui – to cough
!anu - to clean
//na - to fall
khôa - to break

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The Store Computer
//ama – to buy / to shop Sîsen-u – to use
//amaxu – to sell !eream – to reply
u – to take sî – to send
u hâ – to get / to have !âu – to wait
mû – to see humi – to organize
ma / matare – to give / to pay kuru / di-unu – to fix
//khowa-am – to open tek – to type
gan-am – to close u-!oa – to accept
!nari – to drive //naxu- ui – to cancel
mā- ui – to spend ma-am – to allow

Present tense

Tita ge ra û û ta ra
I am eating

Sida ge ra û û da ra
We are eating

Sadu ge ra û û du ra
You are eating

Future Tense

Tita ge nî û û ta nî
I will eat

Past Tense (recent past) Past Tense (Far Past)

Tita ge go û û ta go Tita ge ge û û ta ge ge
I have eaten. I had eaten.

Using hâ

Tita ge //om hâ //om ta hâ

I’m sleeping

Tita ge go //om hâ i. //om ta go hâ i.

I slept

Tita ge nî //om. //om ta nî

I will sleep

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4.3 THE BASIC WORDS - the one page to success

These are some of the most basic words you can use to form sentences and knowing
them will help you tremendously in the long run. By using these words in
combination with the verb phrases you just learned, you will be able to form much
more complex and meaningful sentences.

Conjunctions
Amaga / !aroma because Quantity Words
Tsî and !nása more
Xawe but kharise little
//khati also !násase most
ai-!â before gūi many
khao-!gâ after /gúi only
tamas ka i o or //aupexa almost
Timely Words Nouns
/nî//ae sometimes Xu-i thing
!na-korobe often !khaib place
hoa//ae always
gúro first Prepositions
nesi now /kha with
/úni last xu from

Examples of More Complex Sentences

Pere-i xa du ga !gâibahe tama i o tā û re (then)

If you don’t like to eat bread, then don’t eat it!

Outjob tamas ka i o /Anes //ga du ra i gao? (or)

Do you want to go to Outjo or Rehoboth?

!Khoe ta ga o ta ge ra aosen, //na amaga ta ge ra //asen. (that’s why)

When I run I sweat, that’s why I am washing/bathing.

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 Section Two

The Technical
The Necessary Details

Kate: “Are you reading the dictionary?”

White: “Oh, you caught me. I like to break a mental sweat too.”

- Dodgeball, the movie

Are you ready to break a mental sweat? The Technical contains the necessary details
about Khoekhoegowab that you need to know in the beginning. Even if you don’t
think you will need to know everything in this section, it will help you in one way or
another. For example, you might think to yourself - I don’t want to waste my time
learning about adjectives. I don’t need that. Well, you might not need to use
adjectives when you are speaking, but it will help you understand other people when
they are speaking, instead of getting “hung up” on part of the phrase that you don’t
understand. It is easy to feel overwhelmed by the details, so expect to feel more
frustrated in this section. However, once you learn everything here (notice how I did
not say if you learn everything here), your understanding of Khoekhoegowab will be
much higher and the rules that guide the language will soon guide you.

Chapter 5

21
 Commands
The Key to Speaking With Authority

6.2 The Best Commands To Use When...

*When telling someone to come with you…

ī //kha da a? Can we go?

Î, a da i re. Yes, Let’s go.

*When telling someone to go away…

oa oms //ga! Go home!

//naba sī . Go there.
oa hoado Get out! (all of you)
//naxu te Leave me alone.
Tā neba /huru! Don’t play here!
Be Go away (rude)
Be xu te Get away from me (rude)
Tā tsâ /kha te Don’t touch me.
Tare-e? What is it?

*When telling someone wait for you…

//nam re! Wait a minute!

!âu te re. Wait for me.

*When you are asking for something…

Au te re…. Give me …
Ma te re

*When you are in a hurry…

!haese di re. Do it fast.

!noe re Hurry up
Ha re !haese. Come here quickly
/Khi re !haese

*When you can’t hear…

!gārise !hōa re. Speak loudly.

ause !hōa re . Speak slowly.
Mîba te re Tell me….
!hōa/û re Stop talking. (all of you)
//Khawa mî re? Say it again

22
 Chapter 6

Possessives
6.1 The 5 possessive stems. Memorize these.
-Ti a mine
-Sa a yours
-//îb / //îs di a his/hers
-//în di a theirs
-sida di a ours

Examples
Ti pencilli. My pencil.
Sa oms. Your house.
//îb / //îs di chalk-i His/her chalk.
//în di stuls. Their chair.
Sida di haweb. Our paper.

Chapter 7

Common Grammar Issues

7.1 How to use have correctly.

Tare-e du u hâ? What do you have?

-Tita ge penna u hâ. I have a pen

7.2 How to say with…. me, you, him/her, them, or us.

Tita ge //îb /kha hâ. I’m with him

//îb ge //în /kha hâ He’s with them.

23
7.3 Locatives
This is certainly an advanced topic that you may or may not want to try to learn if you
don’t want to confuse yourself. If you are going for the gold, then try to learn these.
They will help you in the long run.

* How to say in, on, and at

!Nâ ( Gâ) in
//Naba gâ. Go in there.
gâxa . Come in.

Tawa at
oms tawa hâ. Stay at home.

Ai on
Stuls ai nû. Sit on the chair.

* How to say here, there, over there, and in here.

Neba = here
//gan-e neba nûi re. Put the meat here. (on top of something, like a plate)

//Naba = there
//gan-e //naba nûi re. Put the meat there. (nearby)

Nauba = over there

//gan-e nauba nûi re. Put the meat over there. (over yonder)

24
 Chapter 8

Adjectives
If you feel overwhelmed by this section, skip it and come back once you are more
comfortable with the language. All of the adjectives listed below are called adjective
stems – meaning, they come after the prefix. You will learn how to attach the correct
prefix to the adjectives on the next page.

8.1 The 20 Most Important Adjective Stems

Appearance Temperature
-îsa / îxa beautiful / nice -/gāmsa hot
-//gaisi bad / ugly -!khāi cold

Difficulty Taste
-!gōm difficult/heavy -//khoaxa sweet / delicious
-súpu easy / light -/khuru sour/salty

Intelligence Weight
- khaisa smart -!gōm heavy
-gâre dumb / stupid -súpu light / easy

Size Attitude
-Kai big -!gâi kind
- khari small -khoexa!nâ friendly
-gaxu tall / long - u//oa mean
-!nubu short -/opesa lazy

Colors
-!uri white
- nu black
-/apa red
hoa blue
/hai grey
gama brown
!huni yellow

25
 Section Three

The Practical
Applying What You Know

“My words itch at your ears till you understand them.”

-Walt Whitman
Author

The Practical contains a lot of useful vocabulary that can be helpful depending on
what your job is and where you live. Focus on learning what is applicable to you.
For example, if you are a teacher, you probably don’t need to learn the same words
and phrases as a volunteer that works in the clinic. If you don’t live in the village,
then you probably don’t need to learn about plants and animals. You are almost done
with this book, so keep your spirits high and your tongue ready to speak!

26
 Chapter 9

At School
Teaching will seem much easier if you have a better understanding of words and
phrases that are commonly used and can be helpful inside the classroom. You may not
need to know all of the phrases below, but remember – the more you know, the more
you can say to the learners and the more you will understand them if they ask
questions. All of the phrases are broken up into smaller groups of related ideas. As
always, focus on one group of phrases at a time and start slowly chipping away at the
monster, one group at a time. If you feel overwhelmed, slow down and start with less.

9.1 School Vocabulary

About the School Classroom Vocabulary
Skolli school Tîn questions
Skol-i a school !gōmsi-i problem
//Gau!nâ-ao-i teacher tafels desk, table
skol-/gôan learners stuls chair
khoen people haweb paper
!gubis grade rulerb ruler
!gubis class chalk-i chalk
chalkboards chalkboard
Subjects /napus broom
/apa!aogowab English /apoxawab trash
!gôan Math xóa!nâ khanisnotebook
ans Science xóaxúrub a pencil

Tita ge a //gau!na-ao masenxa-sisen-ao -I am a volunteer teacher

9.2 Commands & Phrases - You Need To Know As A Teacher

Powerful Commands
Tita kō Look at me!
âisa nûi! Pay attention!
!gārise !hōa! Speak loudly!
!hōa /û hoado! Stop talking! (all of you)
//khowa-ama hâ ū! Bring the key!

27
About Comprehension
//nâu!a te du ra? Do you understand me?
Tîna du ū hâ? Do you have questions?
Huiba du hâba hâ? Do you need help?
Toa du go? Are you done? (plural)
Masa !ere-am? What is the answer?
Tari-e / hām-e !ereamsa a an? Who knows the answer?
/khunuba ukhâi an du ga o. Raise your arm if you know.

Commands Regarding Learning

Xoa //nâ. Write this down.
!haese xoa. Write quickly.
âis !nâ u hâ. Remember.
Ne !gōmsib ai sîsen. Work on this problem.
âis !nâ //kha//khasensa u hâ. Remember to study.

Phrases Regarding BOOKS

khanina ganam. Close your books.
khanina //khowa-am. Open your books.
khanina ma !khunigu . Switch notebooks.
Xōa /û. Stop writing.
Hoadu ge nî xōa. Everyone should be writing.
Sadu xōa !nâ khanina hâ u! Bring your notebooks!
Hoadu xoa!nâ khanina ta u hâ? Do I have everyone’s notebooks?
Motivational Statements
//Gāu!nâs ge hâ hâsa. Education is important.
Kaise hâ hâsa. It is very important.
/Gaisase ditsâ. Try harder.
Nen ge nî merk-e. This will be for a grade.
Tā !ao !ereamsa. Don’t be afraid to answer.
//Na-i ge hanu tama hâ. That is not correct.
//Na-i ge hanu. That is correct.
âisa nûi. Pay attention.
!Kharu du nî ditsâ du ka o. You will pass if you try.

28
Basic Phrases and Questions About School In General

Mapa du ra sîsen? – Where do you work?

à Tita ge skolli dawa ra sîsen. – I work at the school.

Tita ge /apa!aogowab di //gau!nâ-ao. – I am an English teacher.

Tita ge !gôan di //gau!nâ-ao. – I am a math teacher
Tare-e du ra //kha//kha? – What do you teach?
à Tita ge !gōana ra //kha//kha - I teach math.

Ma !gubisa du ra //kha//kha? – What grade do you teach?

àTita ge //khaisa //î !gubisa ra //kha//kha. – I teach grade 8.

Matiko /gōana du u hâ sadu !gubis !nâ? – How many learners are in your class?
àTita ge !nonadisi /gōana u hâ. - I have 30 learners.

nu pen-e du u hâ? – Do you have a black pen?

à Ti oms !nâ ta ge pen-e u hâ. – I have a pen in my house.

Add your own helpful phrases here:

29
 Chapter 10

At the Clinic
Head and shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes

10.1 Parts of the body

Head Mid – section
Danas head //ôab arm
Ais face !ommi hand
/ûn hair /khunub / ai/khunub finger/toe
!aos neck !Nab stomach
áms mouth Âis liver
Guis nose Sōgu lungs
nammi tongue
mûs eye Lower Body
//Gaes ear /Nugu leg
//Gûb tooth Ais foot
//Góas knee
Aredi buttocks

I am a Heath Volunteer: Tita ge a urisib masenxa-sîsen-ao

10.2 Clinic Vocabulary

/ae-ao-i patient
/Aedi-ao-i nurse
/Aedi//gâus clinic
/Aedi//gâub hospital
pel-i tablets
vitamin-i vitamin Homecorp 4/6/15 12:58 PM
Comment [1]:
viris-i virus
Kai hakas AIDS
Kondom-i condom
Sat-i sperm
Naldi syringe
!hôa!nâ-oms operating room
//Ora !nâ-oms maternity ward

Sample Dialogue in a Clinic

Mati ta hui du //kha? How can I help you?
à Tita ge !nâ-tsûba u hâ. I have a stomachache.

Ma//ae-i go tsoatsoa? When did it start?

à Aetse ge tsoatsoa. It started the day before yesterday.

!gâi a. u si sadu pelna Ok, go collect your tablets.

àKai gangans. Thank you very much.

30
 10.3 Basic Phrases Regarding Heath
Tita ge /aesen hâ. I am sick.
Tita ge danatsûba uhâ. I have a headache.
Tita ge mû !gómsiba u hâ. I have an eye problem.
Tita ge ra somge-ai. I am dizzy.
Tita ge ra /khûi. I am vomiting.
Tita ge ra uixa I am feeling nauseas
Tita ge !haba u hâ. I have diarrhoea.
Tita ge //uiba u hâ. I have a cough.
Tita ge ra //ui. I am coughing.
Tita ge xansa u hâ. I have asthma.
Tita ge malarisa u hâ. I have malaria.
Tita ge //gûtsûba u hâ I have a toothache.
//îb / //îs ge karo!naba u hâ. He/she has constipation.
//îb / //îs ge chickenpoksa û hâ. He/she has chickenpox.
//îb / //îs ge dora guiba u hâ. He/she has a nosebleed.
//îb / //îs ge ra dora. He/she is bleeding.
//îb / //îs ge measlesa u hâ. He/she has measles.
//îb / //îs ge //khaisa u hâ. He/she has a cold.

Healthcare in Namibia
Namibia is generally a healthy country compared to many African countries (including
those where Peace Corps Volunteers are working), but is not without its problems. Although
the Namibian Government operates a comprehensive health care system, it is limited in its
capacity due to limited resources. Namibia does not have a medical school of its own and
therefore the large majority of doctors are from other countries and often do not speak the local
language (and some do not speak English fluently either). Consequently the Namibian health
care system relies heavily on its nurses and other medical staff. If you require immediate
attention at a local clinic you will most likely be conversing with the nurses, who in most cases
will speak the local language but may or may not be conversant in English. For this reason it
is imperative that volunteers know basic phrases regarding their physical and emotional health.

Additionally, transport may be difficult to and from clinics and hospitals in extremely
rural areas. Namibians in these areas are accustomed to using canoes (in areas near a river),
cattle, and donkey carts to transport extremely ill patients to the clinic. It may be a good idea
to assess the plausibility of transport from your site in case of an extreme emergency.
However, most urban volunteers or volunteers at larger schools will most likely not encounter
this situation. Otherwise, it is best to assume the old Peace Corps adage; an ounce of
prevention is worth a pound of cure.

31
 Chapter 11

At Home
11.1 Cooking, Food, and Drinks
If you find yourself cooking often with locals or your host family, this section will be
helpful. These are the basic words about food and drinks that you will need to know
to get by. However, if you never cook and don’t feel that you will ever cook, skip this
section and come back later if you feel like learning it.

Meal Times
//Goa ûs breakfast Key Verbs
Metax ûs lunch û to eat
!ui ûs supper A to drink
Sâi to cook
In The Kitchen tsâtsâ to taste / to try
!ores plate !gao to cut
//goab spoon !khāba to smell
verkheb fork Huni to stir
Kopis cup
Xlas glass

Helpful Phrases About Cooking

hūmisa i a? Is it ready?
Tita ge û-e ra sâi. I am cooking food.
Tare-e du ra sâi? What are you cooking?
Gangans û-i !aroma. Thank you for the food.
!gâise ra //khoa. It tastes delicious.
!gâise ra ham. It smells delicious.

Helpful Phrases About Chores

//gam-e ta ra u. I am fetching water.
//gam-e da gao tama hâ. We don’t want water.
Sida //gamxaban ge /oa hâ. Our water jugs are full.
Tita ge ti jarsa ra !anu. I am cleaning my yard.
Tita ge ti omsa ra /napu. I am sweeping my house.

32
 Types of Food

The Staple Foods //Gan-i – Meat

û-i food //au-i fish
Mai-i porridge ani//gan-i chicken
Pere-i bread piri//gan-i goat
Raisi-i rice /ho-i sausage
Macaroni-i macaroni Goma//gan-i – beef
//nui-i oil
boter-i butter !hana ûn - Vegetables
sop-i soup /ari-i carrot
tsámpere-i cake !aia-i potatoes
Pata-i sweet potatoes
Hai ûn – Fruits Bonjin beans
Apels apples ui-i onions
lemuns orange papus pumpkin
per-i pear peanut-i groundnuts
banana-i banana kol-i cabbage
draiwe-i grapes
guava-i quava áxun – Drinks
sirlemuns lemon //gam-i water
mango-i mango dai-i milk
te-i tea
kofi-i coffee
auxûib wine
!khari-i beer
whisky-i whisky
!khai khon-i cool drink
Sap-i juice

33
11.2 Clothing
It is highly unlikely that you will have to talk about clothing very often, if ever. But
just in case, here is everything you need to know.

Types of Clothing
Upper – Body Lower –Body
Saran clothes kausigu socks
Paks suit //harodi shoes
Hems shirt purukhoeb trousers
t-hems t-shirt skers skirt
Jersis jersey/sweater rokhoes dress
Bajis jacket !nâ!gun underwear
//gāb necktie purukhoes shorts
bras bra blusis blouse
caps cap bels belt
/gapas hat
scarffi head scarf/beanie
//ae!gôas watch
Verbs
Anatsâ to fit in
hau hau to iron
!gâise ra mûsen it looks nice

Helpful Phrases About Clothes

Tita ge ti sarana ra //a. I am washing my clothes.

Ti saran ge ra nâ. My clothes are drying.
Tita ge sadu di /apa hems tsî hoa /gabas xa !gâibahe.
I like your red shirt and blue hat.

Tita ge !am hems tsî !huni jaketsa ana hâ.

I am wearing a green shirt and a yellow jacket.

34
11.3 Family
If your family comes to visit you from back home, or if you simply want to talk about
your family with those in your community, these are the words that will help you get
by.

Key Words
Familib/omáris Family
Mamas Mother
Dadab Father
//nurisab/s Cousin
Khoeb Man
Khoes Woman

Brothers and sisters

kham !gâsab Younger brother

kham !gâsas Younger sister

Kai !gâsab (Aputib) Older brother

Kai !gâsas (Ausis) Older sister

Potentially Helpful Phrases

Neb ge ti familiba. This is my family.

Nes ge ti mamasa. This is my mother.
Neb ge ti dadaba. This is my father.

//în ge Amerikaba xu ra sari. They are visiting from America.

Tita ge /gui kham !gâsab tsî /gui !gâsasa u hâ.

I have one younger brother and one sister in my family.

35
 Chapter 12

In The Village
12.1 Shopping
Market Vocabulary
Stors shop Sent-i cent
Mark market //amaxus sale
Dir a expensive matiko? how much?
Xudkop a cheap //ama to buy
Mari-i money //amaxu-ao-i seller
Dollar-i dollar //ama-ao-i buyer

Potential and Probable Village Dialog

A. Tare-e du ra //ama gao? – What do you want to buy?

B. Tita ge pere-e ra //ama gao, !âsa ta a amaga.
I need to buy bread because I am hungry.

A. Mari-i au te re. – Give me money.

B. Hî-î, Tita ge ti mari-e hâba hâ. – No, I need my money.
A. Tita ge a !âsa. – But I am hungry.
B. Tita tsîn. – Me too.

A. Pere-e matiko-e ra gan? – How much does the bread cost?

B. Disi Dollarga ra gan. – Ten dollars.

A. Dir a. – Wow, that is expensive.

B. Hî-î, xudkop a. – No, it is cheap.

A. O marisa u re. – Ok, take the money.

B. Gangans. !gâise î re. – Thank you. Go well.
A. !Gâise hâ re. – Stay well.

A: Mapa du go //ama? Where did you buy it?

B: Mr. Price dawa ta go //ama. I bought it at Mr. Price
*You can add an article of clothing by adding it to the end
Ex: Mapa du go //ama hemsa? Where did you buy that shirt?

A: Matiko-e go gan? How much did it cost?

B: korodisi dollarga go gan. It cost $50.

36
12.2 Navigating and Directions
Directions and Key Words
/apas north
!khawagas south
ai oas east
huri oas west

/gapise on top of
!naga on the bottom of
Ams-ai to the right
//ares-ai to the left

!ab river
daob road
drae turn
hanuse / !oa go straight

Sample Dialogue – Practice Make Perfect.

This is a sample dialogue that you could perhaps engage in one day. Pay close
attention to the key words in bold and focus on what the basic meanings of the
questions and responses are – even if you don’t understand everything in between. Go
for basic understanding.

A: Matisa ti /ho? - How are you, friend?

B: !gâi a. I am fine.

A: Postkantorsa mapa hâ? - where is the post office?

B: Postkantors ge dorb !nâ nôa. – It’s in town.

A: Mati ta //naba nî si? – How to I get there?

B: daoba sao. - Just follow this road.
Stors dawa //ares-ai drae. – At the store, turn left.

A. Nebaxu matikose i a !nu? - How far is it from here?

B. nebaxu a disi kilometre. - It is 10 kilometres from here.

A: Postkantorsa //are/khab ai nôa? Is the post office on the left side of the
road?
B: Hî-î, daob am/khab ai. – No, It is on the right side of the road.

A: Kai gangans ti /ho. - Thank you very much friend.

B: !gâi a. – Fine.

37
12.3 Plants and Animals
If you find yourself working with animals, such as milking cows or goats, maybe this
will be helpful for you. If you don’t think you need any of it, at least learn the basic
domestic animals. You will hear those words relatively frequently.

Domestic animals /has hare

Gomas cow Birds
Gomab ///gob ox/bull !ari!khas eagle
//Gob ox napus dove
Piris goat /amis ostrich
Gus sheep kai anis vulture
Varkheb pig /honos owl
Anis chicken
Hāb horse Reptiles
Arib dog /aob snake
/hôas cat gabib turtle
khurutsikhūbeb chameleon
Wild animals Crocodil-i crocodile
Xammi lion
khoab elephant Insects
!góreb zebra /entsib mosquito
!árub cheetah /ginas fly
!garo!naib giraffe !habub bee
!naib Camel
hirab hyena

Plants
/gân grass

38
 Chapter 13

Days, Time, and Weather

13.1 Days of the Week
Mantaxtsēs Monday
Denstaxtsēs Tuesday
Wunstaxtsēs Wednesday
Donertaxtsēs Thursday
Fraitaxtsēs Friday
Satertaxtsēs Saturday
Sontaxtsēs Sunday

A: Netsesa ma tsē? What day is it (today)?

B: Netsēs ge a Mantaxtsē. Today is Monday.

A: //arisa go mâtse i? What day was yesterday?

B: //aris ge go Sontaxtsē i. Yesterday was Sunday.

A: //arisa matse? What day is tomorrow?

B: //aris ge Denstaxtse. Tomorrow is Tuesday.

A: Aetsesa go matse i? What was the day before yesterday?

B: Aetses ge go Satertaxtsē. It was Saturday.

A: Aetsesa matse? What is the day after tomorrow?

B: Aetses ge Wunstaxtsesa. It will be Wednesday.

Wunstaxtsēs ge go !gâi tsē i. Wednesday was a nice day.

13.2 Time Related Words

Days, Weeks, Months
Tsēs day Which Day or Year?
Netsē today oago kuri last year
//aris yesterday / tomorrow Ne kuri this year
Wekheb week Aetsē the day after tomorrow
//khâb month / the moon Aetsē the day before yesterday

Time of Day Descriptions of WHEN

//Goas morning !nubu //aeb !nâ in a short while
Tsēb afternoon //aero-i !kharuhâse a few moments ago
!oes evening nesi just now
!oes night
Time Itself
Time of Day – less common words haib minute
Vru //goaga early in the morning /gâub second
tsēa day time Kamab / //aeb hour
/hōpob moonlight / starlight

39
13.3 Useful Expressions About Weather
Kaise /gāmsa It is very hot.
!khai a. It is cool/cold.
/nanuxa ai a. It is cloudy.
oaxa a. It is windy.
/api ra It is raining.
!khae a. It is dark.
/khurub drought.

A: Netsesa mati tsâ? How is the day?

B: Netses ge oaxa. Today is windy.

13.4 Months and Seasons

It is highly unlikely that you will need to know the names of the months and seasons,
but in case you have an inkling for learning more, here they are:

Seasons
!khā//khaeb spring
//khúnab summer
sāob winter
hai!kharub autumn

Names of the Months

!khanni (Januari//khâb) January
!khan/gôab (februari//khâb) February
/khū//khâb (mar//khâb) March
!hōa khaib (aprel//khâb) April
!khaitsâb (mai//khâb) May
Gama/aeb (juni//khâb) June
khoesāob (juli//khâb) July
Ao//khumû//khâb (Axoste//khâb) August
Tara//khumû//khâb (September//khâb) September
nu//nâiseb (Oktober//khâb) October
/Ho gaeb (November//khâb) November
hôasoreb (Desember//khâb) December

A: Neba ma kuri? Which year is it?

B: Neb ge 2015. It is 2015.

A: Neba ma //khâ? Which month is this?

B: Neb ge gama/aeba. It is June.

A: !goaxa //khâba ma? What is next month?

B: !goaxa ge /ho gaeb. Next month is November.
A: oago //khâba go ma i? What was last month?
B: oago //khâb ge go Oktober//khâb. Last month was October.

40
 Chapter 14

Counting
Counting in Khoekhoegowab is actually very simple.

The First 10 Numbers (1 – 10)

Counting from 11 to 20
/gúi one Disi/gui/a (/gui/a) eleven
/gam two Disi/gam/a (/gam/a) twelve
!nona three Disi!nona/a (!nona/a) thirteen
haka four Disihaka/a (haka/a) fourteen
koro five Disikoro/a (koro/a) fifteen
!nani six Disi!nani/a (!nani/a) sixteen
hû seven Disihû/a(hû/a) seventeen
//khaisa eight Disi//khaisa/a (//khaisa/a) eighteen
khoesa nine Disikhoesa/a (khoesa/a) nineteen
disi ten /gamdisi twenty

Counting beyond 20

!nonadisi 30
hakadisi 40
korodisi 50
!nanidisi 60
hûdisi 70
//khaisadisi 80
khoesedisi 90

kaidisi 100
kai/oadisi 1000

Example Phrases Using Numbers

Tita ge /gamdisi!nani/a (26) kurixa. - I am 26 years old

/Gamdisi!nani/a kurixa ta a

Tita ge hû vetkukde ra //ama gao. - I want to buy 7 fat cakes.

Hû vetkukde ta ra //ama gao

Tita ge /gam perekha ra //ama gao. - I want to buy 2 loafs of bread.

/Gam perekha ta ra //ama gao

A: Matiko //aexa i go? What time is it?

B: Disi/gam/a ir go? It is 12 o’clock.
OR
B: Koron go oa disisa xu? It is 5 past 10
OR
B: !khare disi go. It is half past 9

41
 The Phrases You Wish You Knew Coming Into Site:

*A note from PCV Kaitlynn:

It took me a while to figure out these fun (and more practical) things to say at site.
Have a little fun with the language and the people! I do stay with Damaras and our
language differs from the Namas, so some things are different depending on the tribe.

For many of these you can insert your own words (ex: where I put Clinic feel free to
say skolli or oms)

/hûb or /hûs White man or lady (Make sure to remember this one!)

Huiba ta ge haba hâ. I want help.

U ha re ī Nicole sa si ma. Come take this to Nicole.

/Hoe te its koro? Are you gossiping me?
//Ae ma ta ge hâ. I don’t care.
//Ore xats ge a. You are naughty (easily my most used phrase)
kliniks //gâ ta ge ra i. I’m going to the Clinic.
Outjob //gâ ta ge ra i. I’m going to Outjo
/ae//gams //gâ ta ge go i. I went to Windhoek.
Kai//khaes //gâ ta ge nî i. I will go to Okahandja.
Ta !ga si. Don’t Listen.
Matiko //aeba nî ū. How long will it take?

oa re i tsi /huru. Go outside and play.

!nō re Quiet

Mati tsâ Kamanjaba? How is Kamanjab?

Sa naweksa mati go tsâ i? How was your weekend? (for one person)
Sa omaris xa mi re? How is your family?
/Gam xu /gui ge One or the other (ex. You either say or you go.) Can be
used for any this or that scenario.

Na re Dance (telling someone to do it)

xu-i /khai There is nothing

Toa go It’s finished
Matits ta mî? What did you say? (less polite i.e. for friends or people
talking about you while you’re standing right there.)

42
 The Road Ahead
How To Become Fluent In Khoekhoegowab

Becoming fluent? Isn’t that really hard? Well, the simple answer is yes. Becoming
fluent in a language will take a lot of practice and determination on your part. If you
have finished this book and absorbed all of its contents, then you have certainly
learned a lot of helpful vocabulary, verbs, and rules, but are by no means fluent. You
have taken the first step to speaking the language well, but how exactly do you obtain
fluency?

You have to change the way you approach speaking and more importantly - thinking.
Instead of just saying something in English because it is easier, first stop and think –
“Do I know how to say this in Khoekhoegowab?” You may not know the exact words
to say what you want, but you can probably piece it together.

The Puzzle Pieces

See, you already learned how to say everything in that phrase. You just have to put the
pieces together. And guess what? Even if you don’t say it perfectly, they will certainly
understand the point you are trying to make. Don’t be afraid to try to say things you
don’t know yet. You can put it together. Do you think the Namibians’ English is
perfect? No, but they get their ideas across by saying what they know after putting the
pieces of the language puzzle together.

10 Tips On How To Become Fluent

1. Stop - Using English as a crutch to lean on

2. Be Proactive - tell people to only speak to you in Khoekhoegowab unless you ask for
English
3. Think - Do you know the words for what you want to say?
4. Act - Put the pieces (the words) together the best you can
5. Follow Up - Ask if what you said was correct
6. Learn - Take note of what you did wrong (if anything)
7. Ask - If you have no idea how to say something, ask someone and write it down
8. Practice - Continually practice everyday
9. Be Persistent – Keep trying and don’t be lazy, you know more than you think
10. Be Confident - Don’t be afraid to say things incorrectly

I would seriously encourage you to continue on with language learning at site.

Learning the language has helped greatly in my integration (If people are unsure of my
name they always describe me as the one who can speak Damara). As you well
know/will learn becoming integrated into your community will make you feel more
secure and safe in your community. Not only will it help with integration but you will
be able to listen, understand, and respond to people in your community which makes
life much easier, and slightly more fun if/when people are talking about you and don’t
think you know how to speak the language! There will be times when you hate it and
don’t think you will ever get it (I still have these days) but just keep trying because
eventually it just clicks! (pun intended)

Last advice: Even though it is very hard at times language is what you make it so
make it fun!

43
 Cultural Information

Meet and Greet

Although there are many different traditions in Namibia, it is generally accepted
that upon entering a room, one should greet each individual and shake his or her hand
using the ‘African’ handshake. One should always greet elders first. One should also
greet another person before engaging in conversation. In some tribes it is considered
respectful to support one arm while shaking hands, while in others it is expected that
one should bend at the knee and /or clap their hands. Also, in some traditions, it is a
form of respect to stand upon greeting another, to remove one’s hat, and to use eye
contact. It is important to be culturally sensitive to cultural taboos when introducing
yourself. For example, in the Ovaherero tradition, younger persons are not to ask their
elders how they are, and in many cases, it is disrespectful to offer the left hand in
greeting.

Cultural Note
As you are walking around, you will find that you attract a lot of attention. Children will want
to touch your hair or your clothes or your skin. Adults will ask you many questions about who
you are, where you come from, and why you are in their village. A certain degree of attention
to foreigners in a small community is completely natural, and you can expect this kind of
curiosity.
It is also very normal for individuals to express very
strong feelings towards volunteers. Some will say things
like, “I love you,” “I want to marry you,” or “You must
take me home to America.” They may request your phone
number or claim they will visit you soon. Sometimes this
is just a joke, or a casual way of expressing admiration. It
can safely be treated as such, and you may find yourself
sharing a laugh with this stranger. However, if the
individual persists and makes you uncomfortable, you
should find a way to get out of the situation. Depending
upon the situation, you could respond firmly, “You are making me uncomfortable,” walk
away, or find people you trust.

44
 Namibian Eating
When visiting different parts of Namibia, you may come across different people eating
different types of food. Go to the North and north west and you will find that the
Khoekhoegowab-speaking Namibians, the Damara people eating donkey.

Visit the south of Namibia, where the Nama people mostly live, and you will see them
eating a lot of goat meat and lamb, as well as drinking a lot of tea, especially when it is
hot during the day to cool them down.

The Culture of Eating

Namibians eat very differently from Americans. Children will often sit on the floor.
Both children and adults usually eat with their fingers, and you will find that if you
join them, they will believe that you are a true African at heart. The customary drink
with meals is maxau or just water.

Mealtime is an important part of socializing in Namibia. Braais, or barbecues as we

say in America, are often held as social functions with families and friends. Picnics—
during which Namibians travel outside their home area to eat together—are also a
common occurrence.

You will find that any important celebration or ritual involves food. Weddings often
last for days, and every guest expects to be fed, and fed well. While Americans tend to
consider it polite to turn down food, Namibians will feel honored by your acceptance
of their food and drink

House Calls
When you receive visitors in your new Namibian home, there are some general practices to
consider. If your home has multiple rooms, then your private bedroom should be off limits to
acquaintances, and they should instead be entertained in your kitchen or sitting room. Be
careful of receiving a visitor of the opposite sex alone—this invites gossip, which can be
harmful to a volunteer’s reputation and at worst can result in a dangerous situation.

It is polite to offer your visitor refreshment. Often, tea, juice, cool drink, or even cool water is
an appropriate beverage. If you have small food items—crackers, chips, sweets—your guest
will undoubtedly appreciate those as well, particularly if they are unusual to the culture or
sent/brought from America.

When you have visitors, be aware that Namibians tend to be more accustomed to silence,
and though it may feel awkward to you, it is probably more normal to your guest.

45
 Cultural Note
• In our culture, men are not permitted to enter a woman’s bedroom, and
vice-versa. Therefore, be careful about which rooms you are wandering
into!

• Also, children are not permitted to enter an adult’s bedroom. If the kids of
the house are charging in and want to play, tell them no way.

• Most importantly, do not leave your underwear in the bathroom! It’s taboo!

My Cousin “It”
The definition of “brother” and “sister” can be somewhat confusing to
Americans new to Namibian society. This is due to a very interesting cultural norm. In
several cultures in Namibia it is considered that your mother’s sisters are also your
mothers and therefore that her children are considered your brothers and sisters.
Similarly, your father’s brothers are considered your fathers, and his children are
consequently also considered your siblings.

It is also interesting to note that in many cultures in Namibia the uncles are
responsible for their nieces’ and nephews’ well being. This can include financial well
being, education, and approving a marriage partner. What exactly the uncles are
responsible for varies by culture and to lesser extent by family, but is particularly
prevalent in our Damara and Nama culture and traditions.

Age & Beauty

Weight may also seem to be an awkward introduction. Female volunteers are often
shocked when their community members say enthusiastically, “You are getting fat!”
Far from an insult, this is a comment on the general perception of beauty and happiness.
It tends to be a very high compliment and should be taken as such! Though it may take
some getting used to, consider that your village is proud of you for being a beautiful and
healthy woman.

Prayer time
It is important to note that, as a largely Christian country, meetings in Namibia- official
and unofficial- are very commonly opened and closed with prayer.

46
 The Joy of Farming
Farming is one of the most predominant jobs in Namibia. You will find that almost
everyone either owns and works a farm, or is related to someone who does. Cattle and
goats are the most popular livestock, and in fertile areas, crops like
mahangu, mielie, grapes, vegetables, sorghum, and sugar cane abound.

Many people, practice farming as a hobby and not as an occupation. Men

and women will do one job during the week—perhaps teacher or banker—
but will spend weekends and holidays at their farm with the rest of their family.

Finding Your Way

Namibians are very generous people. They are always willing to help in whatever way
they can. As the saying goes “Your mouth is your passport”, you are expected to
always be vocal about your needs. In a village, if you are walking around, and
someone suspects you are lost, they can walk up to you and ask you if you need help.
They will direct you and can even offer to walk you or take you to the place. If you
feel comfortable being walked to the place, you should say, “Thank you, I really
appreciate that”. If you would rather take the directions and find your way, you would
say “Thank you very much sir/madam, I’m sure I’ll find my way”. Like in most other
places in the world, people have their intentions, good or at times bad. It is therefore
much safer to ask for help when lost from an elderly, or a security guard if there is one
in sight.

Inviting People Out

If you have not experienced this yet, you will notice that when you are invited out, your
host will usually pay for everything. This is common in Namibia: if you invite another
person out, you are expected to pay for them. Therefore, be careful when you make plans
with a colleague! Be prepared to pay for your friend, or make it clear that you will each
be paying your own way.

Bargaining
In the open market people will stop you and ask you to buy an item from them. They will
offer a price. If the price seems to be too expensive for you, just say: “I don’t have much
money. Please come down with your price.” If you are insistent but polite, they will surely
do it.
Though the vendors are usually very friendly, they may mistake you for someone you are
not. Many foreigners who visit their country are tourists with far more money than the
average volunteer. Using the local language is a great way to show respect to them, and to
explain your unique financial situation. You can say ‘ I am a volunteer, I do not get paid for
my work. I do not have much money. If they refuse to lower the price, consider saying “
Thank you, I cannot afford this, I will try another vender/shop,” and walking away. For
expensive purchases, returning at a later time often helps convince a vendor to lower his
price.

47
 Avoiding Harassment
My name is Hannah, and I’m a volunteer in a very beautiful, small village in the northern
Namibia. I have great pride in my local language ability because it is my only tool to
deal with unwanted attention. It allows me to diffuse potentially irritating situations
much easier and quicker than I would be able to if I was using English. In Namibia, just
like in most other African cultures, the term ‘harassment’ is a relatively foreign concept.
Many people, especially in more remote/rural areas might not even know what you are
talking about if you say someone is harassing you. This is more so if the term is
expressed in English (it appears to be one term that has found no connection yet in the
culture). If someone is always harassing me, I say to them ‘‘I do not like being bothered
or played around with like that. You must stop it’. I then leave the situation right away if
I can to show that I mean what I have just said. If someone is touching me while talking
to me, I say “I do not touch people when I talk to them, I do not like to be touched when
being talked to”. If someone proposes to marry me, I tell them “I do not want to get
married”. If they say they love me, I tell them “I love someone else, I cannot love you
back”. When one driver once insisted on dropping me off at my house, I told him “Thank
you, but I always pass by my friend’s place on my way home. I am not going straight
home, I have to get off here”.

Getting a Ride:
You will find that most Namibians are friendly, helpful people. Especially in rural areas,
almost anyone will offer you a lift if they have room in their vehicle. But remember that
transportation can be an important source of income for which drivers compete. Because of this, you
will find that many combi and mini-bus drivers will grab your luggage and YOU to try to bring your
business to their vehicle. Watch your bags closely – you could end up on one combi and your bags in
another.
Combis and mini-busses generally leave only when full. If they leave before they are
completely full, you will stop for more passengers. So that their vehicle looks more full than others,
drivers will hire people to sit on their mini-bus and wait. You may see people leave as the mini-bus
fills.
There are official rates for almost all transportation – even for hitchhiking. While people from
your village may not have it, mini-bus drivers must show you an official document with price lists if
you ask to see it. Sometimes the driver may add a small fee for large bags, but remember, the driver
probably has competition. Learn the busy times for your combi ranks. Especially if you are in a large
group, you may be able to negotiate a lower fare. Also, drivers do not always collect the money for
their vehicle; other people may do this. Just be certain that the person you negotiate price with is the
one responsible for the mini-bus you are boarding. During some times of the day, there may only be
one driver still waiting to fill his vehicle, and the best fare you will get is the official price.
Because of police checkpoints on long trips, it is unusual for combis and mini-busses to
overload. However, this is not the case for taxis and hikes to villages. Sometimes a sedan will have 7
people in its 5 seats. Bakkies (pickup trucks) may have 10 or 11 adults in the back – more if people
can stand. It will be difficult to communicate with the driver in these cases, but remember that
Namibians frequently navigate by landmarks – if your taxi driver does not know where your
destination is, or recognize the street name, you may need to give directions using landmarks.

FOR YOUR SAFETY:

• Watch your bags
• If someone drives unsafely, stop and get a different ride. But remember:
• Be sure you can get another ride or place to stay if something goes wrong
• Learn when you can and cannot get rides easily to avoid getting stranded

48
 Quality Time

Integrating not only satisfies the goals of Peace Corps but also has many personal
benefits to the volunteer. When a volunteer begins to integrate into the community they are
much more safe than those who have not, as they are looked after by the community
members. Additionally, (and you may not believe this now) it is imperative to both the
success and the emotional well being of volunteers to have close relationships in their
communities. Also, integration into your community guarantees opportunity to learn more
about your new culture. Volunteers are often expected to attend events in the community
(e.g. church services, weddings, funerals, baptisms, etc.) and must be careful to conform to
cultural norms, within reason, at such events. Fortunately, you can expect to eat and drink a
great deal at nearly all such events in most Namibian cultures. Each culture in Namibia has
very different attitudes towards these important events.

Weddings
While nearly all cultures in Namibia have, and often celebrate traditional weddings, Church
weddings (traditional Christian weddings) are also very popular. Another option for a wedding is
simply to go to the magistrate and be married legally. Often people will be married in a traditional
ceremony or in the church and not be married by the magistrate. In these cases the couple, while
considered married by society is not legally married. This can cause serious problems if one
partner then passes away. This is due to cultural differences in inheritance laws. In some cultures
if a woman’s husband passes away, she may find herself penniless, as the husband’s family has the
right to take all of his belongings. To avoid this tragedy, many men now have a living will, or will
be married in the magistrate specifically to avoid this situation. Also, in come cultures in Namibia
men are required to pay a “Bride Price” or Lobola. This is a price paid to the parents of the bride,
as a payment for transferring the woman from her family to her husbands care. However, all of
these traditions differ drastically by culture, so you may want to explore the issue with your host
family or facilitator.

49
 Exercises

1. What would you say?

You are meeting your host father for the first time. Greet and introduce
yourself to him.

PCT: _______________. Good morning Dad.

Dadab: !Gâi //goas ti ôa.
!Gâi ¸angus
PCT: !Gâi ≠angus
Dadab: Mati du /on ha? [Matits (male); Matis¸female); du (respect or plural)]
PCT: _________________________. My name is …

2. You are thirsty. Your family is offering you maxau you do not like it. You
want water instead.

Host Mom : Maxau-e ū re î a.

PCT: ____________________. I do not like Maxau.
Toxoba //gam-e au te re.

3. Some one stops you on your way to the shop / school. He is asking for money.

Axarob: Mari-e au te re toxoba.

PCT: ______________________. I don’t have money.
Tita ge a masenxa sîsenao.

Dictation exercise

1. Money
Hungry

2. Draw up / compile a list eat / like and another one for those that you do not eat
/ like.

3. Compile a list of 5 verbs you need to know and 5 nouns.

Homework.

1. Trainees go and listen to the news broadcast in Khoekhoegowab. Trainees will

report what they understood.
2. Trainees learn the names of their host family members and try to correctly
pronounce them the following day.

50
Exercise
Hello! What’s up? Brian is walking around town, and he is meeting many people—
some that he knows and others that he doesn’t know. Fill in the blanks with
appropriate words and expressions from this unit. Be sure to pay careful attention to
how you should address a person in each situation.
Brian and his neighbor Mother Goreses (formal)
1.Brian: _____________________ ? Good Morning How are you?
Mother Goreses: _____________________? I am fine, and you?
Brian: ___________________. I am fine too.
Brian: ___________________. Good. Stay well.
Mother Goreses: ___________________. Go Well.
Brian and his friend Mia (informal)
2. Brian: Moro Mia _______________? What’s up?

Mia: _________________? I’m fine and you?

Brian: ________________________. It’s good. Enjoy the day!
Mia: ___________________________! Yes. You too!
Brian meeting Mr. Xoagub for the first time
3. Brian: __________________________________ Good afternoon sir.
Mr. Xoagub: _______________________________?. Where are you from?

Brian: ____________________________________ I’m from the United States.

Mr. Xoagub: ________________________? What are you doing in Namibia?

Brian:. ______________________. I am a volunteer teacher.

Exercise
Beneath each picture, write one sentence in the local language to describe what
is happening. Use I, You, or He/She to complete your sentences in the continuous
present tense.

______________________________. _________________________________.

_______________________________. _________________________________.

51
Exercise
1) After class tonight, discuss with a friend or host family member your food
preferences.
2) Learn 5 food related words you didn’t know before from your friend or host
family member.
3) Cook dinner with or for your host family. If they refuse watch and try to recite
the steps that they take when preparing dishes.

4) Answer the following questions using full sentences:

a. What are you eating?

_____________________________________________________.

b. Are you hungry?

_____________________________________________________.

c. What do you like to eat?

_____________________________________________________.

d. Do you drink alcohol?

_____________________________________________________.

e. Where is the food?

_____________________________________________________.

Exercise
Label Italiana’s Family:

_________. (grandfather) __________ - (elder brother) __________. (mother)

___________. (Father) ___________ (baby sister) ___________ (Grandma)

52
Exercise
Below are some pictures of different professions. Listen to the facilitator read a
description of a family [including their professions]. Then, write the name of each
family member under the picture of his or her correct profession.

______________________ _____________________

_____________________ _____________________

_____________________ _____________________

_____________________ _______________________

Homework
1. When you go home to your homestead tonight, create labels in the local language
for some of the household items there.

2. Make flash cards or matching cards, with pictures of household items and the
vocabulary word in Khoekhoegowab. Use the cards with other trainees in your group,
or ask your host siblings to play with you.

53
 Exercise:
Fill in the blank with numbers to describe how many of different items.
Learners do not need to understand proper adjective formation.
(5) goats _____________ (25) people ______________
(6) friends________________ (12) doctors ______________
(39) trees ______________ (15) cows_________________
(95) dollars ______________ (50) houses______________
(3) schools________________ (100) dogs ______________
(4) books________________ (20) clocks_______________

Exercise 1:
Find a ball, toy, or other small item with which to play catch. Each time you catch the
ball you must tell the group one thing you enjoy doing as a hobby. Throw the ball on
to anyone in the group, and continue. You may not repeat anything that has been said
before. If you can think of nothing to say, you are out. Winner is the last one standing.
Variation: The person throwing the ball asks a question, and the person who catches it
must answer.

Exercise 2:
Draw a poster of yourself that includes many of your likes, dislikes, hobbies,
and interests. If you like to play tennis, draw a tennis racket in one hand, for example,
label each interest in the local language. Present your posters to the training class using
the vocabulary.

Exercise:
‘My sister is…’ game
PCT1: _________________. My sister is short.
PCT2: _______________________. My sister is short and thin.
PCT3: __________________________. My sister is short and thin and she
has green eyes.
PCT4: _____________________________________.
My sister is short and thin and she has green eyes and she is American.

Homework
What would you say in each of the following situations? Write your response on the
lines below and share your answer in class tomorrow.

1. In an open market a vender offers you an item you really like. You do not have
enough money.
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________

2. A woman in your villages, who makes traditional dresses is selling you a

dress. She says she has made it specifically for you.
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________

54
NOTES:

55
NOTES:

56