Kwanza

Kwanza is a Swahili word meaning "first." It is used in ordinary speech as an ordinal indicator and as an adverb meaning "firstly" or "in the first place." In Swahili, it commonly marks the initial item in a list or highlights priority in a discussion. The form is widely recognized across East Africa and appears in various dialects with little variation in meaning.

Origin and scope: Kwanza is a native Swahili term. While Swahili speakers may pair it with other words to build phrases describing beginning or precedence, it remains primarily a lexical item for order rather than a standalone grammatical class.

Name in popular culture: The term is best known in the Anglophone world as the root of the name of the holiday Kwanzaa, established in 1966 by Maulana Karenga. The holiday’s name is derived from the Swahili phrase matunda ya kwanza, meaning "first fruits," chosen to emphasize African heritage and community.

See also: Swahili language; Kwanzaa.