Chichewa

Chichewa, also known as Chewa, Chinyanja, or Nyanja, is a Bantu language of the Niger-Congo family spoken in Malawi, Zambia, and Mozambique. In Malawi it is the most widely spoken language and one of the official languages, used in government, education, media, and daily life. In neighboring countries, varieties of the language are spoken under names such as Nyanja or Chinyanja, often treated as related but distinct regional forms.

It belongs to the Bantu subgroup and features the noun class system common to Bantu languages, which governs agreement in verbs and adjectives. It is written with the Latin alphabet using a standard orthography and typically relies on word order SVO (subject–verb–object), though word order can shift for emphasis. The language has several dialects and registers, and includes loanwords from English and Portuguese.

Major dialect groups include the central Malawi Chewa and the Nyanja varieties spoken in eastern Zambia and northern Mozambique. Standardization efforts are led by linguistic and educational bodies in Malawi, with Chichewa widely used in schools, radio, newspapers, and literature. The language plays a central role in cultural practices, music, and storytelling in its speech communities.