Swahili Poetry Is Written To Be Sung: Traditional Form Versus New
Dr. Shani Omari, senior lecturer and professor at the University of Dar es Salaam
Mmerikani’s Substack consists of sourced, edifying quotes in a dual-language format (Swahili & English). I am a Quaker, runner, and was formally trained in Swahili.
KISWAHILI
[Dondoo lililofuatia kutoka kwa utafiti wa Shani Omari uliochapishwa katika Jarida la Kioo cha Lugha kama “‘Mgogoro’ wa Ushairi wa Kiswahili bado Upo?: Uchunguzi wa Nyimbo za Muziki wa Hip hop na Bongo fleva nchini Tanzania” (2017).]
[Kupanga mandhari: “Mgogoro” ambao Dk. Shani Omari anazungumzia ni ule unaotambuliwa umbo la kimapokeo la ushairi wa Kiswahili (muziki) unaosongalea dhidi ya mtindo mpya wa ushairi wa Kiswahili (muziki) usio na kikomo chache zaidi kwenye umbo wake. Mtindo wa baadaye uliibuka katika miaka ya 1970 na unaonekana Tanzania Hop Hop na baadhi ya muziki wa Bongo Fleva wa siku hizi. Mtu anayesema "Hiyo sio muziki" angeweza kuanguka katika kambi ya wanamapokeo. Kwa kuongezea, kulingana na Encyclopedia.com, tofauti moja kati ya ushairi wa Kiswahili na wa Magharibi ni kwamba mashairi ya Kiswahili hutungwa ili kuimbwa.]
“…[Salim Ali] Kibao (1983:102), ambaye ni miongoni mwa washairi wa kimapokeo [wa Kiswahili], anasisitiza kanuni sita za ushairi wa Kiswahili, nazo ni mizani, vina, urari, muwala, utoshelezo, na kuwa na maana (taz. pia Abedi, 1954; Mnyampala, 1970). Afande Sele, kama ilivyo kwa washairi wa kimapokeo, anaona pia kuwa tungo zenye mafundisho (maana), kutotumia lugha ya utesi, matusi na kashfa na lugha za kigeni ni kunga muhimu ya ushairi [wa kimapokeo] wa Kiswahili….”
ENGLISH TRANSLATION
[Excerpt from academic research by Shani Omari published in the Kioo cha Lugha Journal as “Does the 'Crisis' in Swahili Poetry Still Exist? A Study of Hip Hop and Bongo Fleva Music in Tanzania” (2017).]
[Scene-setter: “The crisis of which Dk. Shani Omari speaks is the recognized, traditional form of Swahili poetry (music) pressing up against the newer, less constrained Swahili poetry (music) style. The latter emerged in the 1970s and appears in Tanzania Hop Hop and some Bongo Fleva music of today. Someone who says “That isn’t music” may fall in the traditionalist camp. Additionally, according to Encyclopedia.com, one distinction between Swahili and Western poetry is that Swahili poems are composed to be sung.]
“…[Salim Ali] Kibao (1983:102), is a poet who follows the traditional [Swahili poetry] format, emphasizing the six principles of Swahili poetry, which are meter (beat), rhyme, balance, form (or structure), sufficiency (or completeness), and having meaning (see also Abedi, 1954; Mnyampala, 1970). Afande Sele, as another who follows the traditional Swahili poetry format, posits that possessing lessons (meaning); circumventing vulgar language, insults and slander; and avoiding foreign vocabulary are also important aspects of Swahili [traditional] poetry….”
- Dk. Shani Omari is a senior lecturer and associate professor at the University of Dar es Salaam. She is the author or contributor to over thirty publications on the intersections of music, youth culture, and gender in Swahili oral and written literature.
Chanzo (source): Shani Omari. “‘Mgogoro’ wa Ushairi wa Kiswahili bado Upo?: Uchunguzi wa Nyimbo za Muziki wa Hip hop na Bongo fleva nchini Tanzania.” [“Does the 'Crisis' of Swahili Poetry Still Exist? A Study of Hip Hop and Bongo Fleva Music in Tanzania”] Kioo cha Lugha, vol. 15, no. 1 (2017): 131-148. Kioo cha Lugha ni jarida la Taasisi ya Taaluma za Kiswahili, Chuo Kikuu cha Dar es Salaam. Article published on African Journals Online (AJOL) on November 14, 2017 at https://www.ajol.info/index.php/kcl/article/view/162916. Accessed June 14, 2025.
Sonds like traditional Swahili poetry is challenging to write. You would need a good command of the language to be able to express your thoughts without swearing or missing a beat! How refreshing.