How to say good night in Shona
Do you want to learn how to say good night in Shona?
We would say it’s pretty easy. But then again we are delightfully biased.
But fear not! Because although it might seem uncertain there is actually an etiquette. As you no doubt will discover with much of Shona language speaking.
The easiest is of course speaking to a friend or casual acquaintance. In that situation you can pretty much say whatever you like. You can even say:
Palater – slang for see you later
And while that is just fine for communicating with a friend, when you are addressing someone respectable here is how to say good night in Shona.
Amangwana”
This translates literally to “It is tomorrow” but it means we shall see each other tomorrow. A nice way of wishing someone a peaceful and uneventful sleep don’t you think?
The second one is
“Murare zvakanaka”
This means “sleep well”
Again this is wishing the other person a good night’s sleep.
Now we’ll use that in a conversation.
Let’s pretend Rudo is going to sleep and is saying goodnight to her parents.
Amai na Baba. Ndave kuenda kunorara”
Mother and father. I am going to sleep
“Zvakanaka mwanangu urare zvakanaka.”
Very well my child. Sleep well
Nemiwo. Murare zvakanaka”
You too. Sleep well
“Waita mwanangu. Amangwana.”
Thank you my child. “It is tomorrow.” (meaning see you tomorrow).
So that is how you say good night in Shona.
We hope you found it helpful.
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If you have any phrases you would like us to translate from English to Shona then leave a comment below and we will post it as a Shona Phrase of the Day on our site.
