umuntu

Umuntu is a noun in the Nguni languages, particularly Zulu and Xhosa, meaning a person or human being. The singular form is umuntu, and the corresponding plural term for people is abantu. The word functions as a basic unit of social identity and personhood in everyday speech as well as in literature and law. A related concept in the same linguistic and cultural sphere is ubuntu, which denotes humanness or a moral disposition toward communal care.

In African philosophy and ethics, the concept of personhood expressed by umzuntu is often linked to the proverb umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu, meaning a person is a person through other people. This proverb encapsulates the idea that personhood arises through social relations and communal responsibility. The related concept ubuntu expresses a broader sense of shared humanity, reciprocity, and moral obligation. These ideas have influenced debates on social cohesion, governance, and human rights in Southern Africa and beyond.

In contemporary usage, umuntu appears in academic writing, cultural criticism, and public discourse as part of discussions of community, dignity, and interpersonal respect. The term is often translated into English as personhood or humanness. It sits within a family of ideas about collective well-being that can contrast with emphasis on individual rights in some Western frames.