On the variability of Kiswahili in Bujumbura (Burundi)

The variety of Kiswahili spoken in Bujumbura (Burundi) is central to the present sociolinguistic and structural analysis. Swahili in Burundi looks back upon a long history: first having been introduced by the German colonial administration, it has turned into a trade language along both the naval and non-naval trade routes between Uvira (DR Congo), Kigoma (Tanzania) and Bujumbura. Initially stigmatized as a language of ruthless urban rioters in the post-conflict era, it has increasingly gained popularity in Bujumbura, and is nowadays considered as one of the languages of Burundi, alongside Kirundi, French and English. Especially in the lively neighborhoods of the big- gest city, where there is a pulsating nightlife, Kiswahili can be heard in many interactions, and of- ten reveals influence from Kirundi, French, English and sometimes even Lingala. Structurally, the Swahili of Bujumbura combines elements from East Coast Swahili (ECS) as spoken in Tanzania and from Congo Swahili regiolects such as Kivu Swahili, and reveals a high degree of variability, depending upon interlocutors, contexts of interaction and communicative purpose. In this contribution, apart from summarizing the sociohistorical background and suggesting sociolinguistic approaches to grasping the high degree of variability in Kiswahili in Burundi, I discuss the most salient phonological and morphosyntactic patterns of variation and explain their situational distribution