malimu

Malimu is a term used primarily in Kenyan and Tanzanian Swahili to describe an individual who is overly familiar or cloyingly friendly, often to the point of annoyance. The word is derived from the root “mali” which means wealth or dignity, suggesting that a malimu is one who has a sense of entitlement to affect others. While the literal meaning of the word is not literally someone who teaches, the connotation may be that a malimu portrays themselves as more knowledgeable or superior than they really are. The term is often employed in colloquial speech as a mild form of criticism or reproach. It may occur as a nickname or in titles that are used to address a person in a way that highlights their self-important or overbearing behaviour. Some speakers also use the word malimu to describe people who are opinionated or open minded. The term is used in place where a upward reflexive nuance targeting so-called wrong self‑confidence, with a sense that this opponent is confronted with a network that may be thought as a fealty approach. The resulting understanding is that a malimu is someone who has an inaccurate sense that they are a master of knowledge or prestige that is not in contact with reality.