5 uncommon death and funerary customs of the Shona
The Shona have a number of beliefs and practices that relate to remembering and respecting the dead. These may differ in one way or another … Read more
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Indigenous religion in Zimbabwe| 5 key ‘chivanhu’ ritual festivals
Recurring cycle-based religious festivals For this story, I will refer to indigenous religion in Zimbabwe as chivanhu. This is a term used to refer to … Read more
Tsumo| 20 Shona proverbs to inspire good work habits
Tsumo on work tell a story of a hard-working society, and give the picture that agriculture was the mainstay of the economy of the Shona … Read more
Nyaudzosingwi| Breaking down 70 ideophones of breaking
In lay terms, ideophones are words that stand out (are ‘marked’) and whose form betrays something of (is depictive of) their meaning. The following 70 … Read more
My 5 Shona learning ingredients
This post was last updated on 28 August 2025. Culture and language are inextricably intertwined. Over the past few years, I’ve spent considerable time researching … Read more
63 Shona words you didn’t know were borrowed from Afrikaans
It is common knowledge that a few Shona words have an Afrikaans influence. I recently came across one that I found surprising, leading me to … Read more
35 different sorts of sadza. Or, is it porridge?
There is more to porridge than a simple breakfast cereal dish. Sadza, generally described in English as a stiff meal porridge, is the highlight of … Read more
Tsumo| 6 things I have learned through analysing over 200 Shona proverbs
Over the past few months, I have taken time to analyse over 200 Shona proverbs, just out of interest. Some of them have motivated me … Read more
Tsumo| 25 Shona proverbs inspired by children
Shona proverbs that relate to children help portray what the Shona understand about children and childhood. Below are 25 such proverbs. 1. Chikomo shata divi, … Read more
5 reasons children struggle with Shona language learning
I have seen corporate advertisements with glaring irregularities, following a poor attempt by salesmen and marketers to communicate in the Shona language. In almost similar … Read more