Two related languages share the name Ndebele. Northern Ndebele (isiNdebele) is spoken mainly in Matabeleland in western Zimbabwe, around Bulawayo, and is one of Zimbabwe's official languages. Southern Ndebele is a separate language spoken in South Africa, where it is also official. Most guides in this category mention Zimbabwe.
Both belong to the Nguni group of Bantu languages, and Northern Ndebele is very close to Zulu. Like Zulu it has click sounds, written c, q and x. A common Northern Ndebele greeting is salibonani.
| Family | Niger-Congo, Bantu (Nguni) |
|---|---|
| Official in | Zimbabwe (Northern Ndebele), South Africa (Southern Ndebele) |
| Script | Latin alphabet |
| Codes | nd, nde for Northern Ndebele and nr, nbl for Southern Ndebele (ISO 639-1, 639-3) |
Classification: Wikidata. Retrieved 26 September 2026.
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