Language code: sw

Technical information about ISO 639 language code sw

The table below provides technical details for the Swahili language, designated by the sw code from the ISO 639-1 standard.

Code

sw

Name

Official

Swahili

Native

Kiswahili

Family
Bantu
Text direction

Left-to-Right

Language varieties
Zanzibar Swahili (Kiunguja)Pemba Swahili (Kipemba)Mombasa Swahili (Kimvita)Lamu Swahili (Kiamu/Amu)Congo Swahili (Kingwana)Bajuni Swahili (Kibajuni)
Related languages
ComorianMijikendaPokomoElwanaMwani
Key facts
Contains a large proportion of Arabic loanwordsHistorically used an Arabic-based Ajami script before Latin became standardFunctions as a major lingua franca for more than 100 million peopleEarliest recorded poem is the 1728 epic Utendi wa TambukaUnlike many Bantu tongues, Swahili is non-tonal.
Sample phrase

Hujambo, unaendeleaje?

Character encodings

UTF-8, UTF-16, UTF-32

Supported in Localizely

Swahili belongs to the Niger-Congo language family, specifically to the Bantu subgroup. It is one of the official languages in Tanzania, Rwanda, Kenya, and Uganda. It is also used by Swahili minority communities in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, and Zambia. Swahili is written using both Latin and Arabic scripts. It is estimated that there are between 80 and 100 million speakers worldwide.

Language presence globally

*The graph shows a rough estimate of Swahili speakers in countries where it is an official or minority language.

Related locale codes

sw-CD Swahili (Democratic Republic of the Congo)

sw-KE Swahili (Kenya)

sw-TZ Swahili (Tanzania)

sw-UG Swahili (Uganda)

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