How to tell the time in Swahili (Kiswahili), a Bantu language spoken in much of east Africa.
Telling the time | Days of the week | Months of the year | Seasons
Note: in the Swahili-speaking world, daytime runs from sunrise (6am) to sunset (6pm), so saa moja asubuhi ("the first hour of the morning") is equivalent to 7am elsewhere.
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| English | Swahili |
|---|---|
| What time is it? | Ni saa ngapi? |
| 06:00 | Saa Kumi na mbili asubuhi (12:00 in the morning) |
| 07:00 | Saa moja asubuhi (1:00 in the morning) |
| 08:00 | Saa mbili asubuhi (2:00 in the morning) |
| 09:00 | Saa tatu asubuhi (3:00 in the morning) |
| 10:00 | Saa nne asubuhi (4:00 in the morning) |
| 11:00 | Saa tano asubuhi (5:00 in the morning) |
| 12:00 | Saa sita mchana (6:00 in the afternoon) |
| 13:00 | Saa saba mchana (7:00 in the afternoon) |
| 14:00 | Saa nana mchana (8:00 in the afternoon) |
| 15:00 | Saa tisa mchana (9:00 in the afternoon) |
| 16:00 | Saa kumi jioni (10:00 in the evening |
| 17:00 | Saa kumi na moja jioni (11:00 in the evening) |
| 18:00 | Saa kumi na mbili jioni (12:00 in the evening) |
| 19:00 | Saa moja usiku (1:00 in the night) |
| 20:00 | Saa mbili usiku (2:00 in the night) |
| 21:00 | Saa tatu usiku (3:00 in the night) |
| 22:00 | Saa nne usiku (4:00 in the night) |
| 23:00 | Saa tano usiku (5:00 in the night) |
| 00:00 (midnight) | Saa sita usiku (6:00 in the night) |
| 01:00 | Saa saba usiku (7:00 in the night) |
| 02:00 | Saa nane usiku (8:00 in the night) |
| 03:00 | Saa tisa usiku (9:00 in the night) |
| 04:00 | Saa kumi asubuhi (10:00 in the morning) |
| 05:00 | Saa kumi na moja asubuhi (11:00 in the morning) |
| 09:45 | Saa nne kasorobo |
| 11:30 | Saa tano unusu, Sano tano na nusu |
| 10:15 | Saa nne na robo |
| 12:15 | Saa sita na dakika kumi na tano |
| in the morning (06:00-11:59) | asubuhi |
| in the afternoon (12:00-16:59) | mchana |
| in the evening (17:00-18:59) | jioni |
| at night (19:00-05:59) | usiku |
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Hear how to tell the time in Swahili:
| Monday | jumatatu |
|---|---|
| Tuesday | jumanne |
| Wednesday | jumatano |
| Thursday | alhamisi |
| Friday | ijumaa |
| Saturday | jumamosi |
| Sunday | jumapili |
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| January | januari |
|---|---|
| February | februari |
| March | machi |
| April | aprili |
| May | mei |
| June | juni |
| July | julai |
| August | agosti |
| September | septemba |
| October | oktoba |
| November | novemba |
| December | desemba |
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| Spring | bamvua |
|---|---|
| Summer | kiangazi |
| Autumn/Fall | demani |
| Winter | majira ya baridi |
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If you would like to make any corrections or additions to this page, or if you can provide recordings, please contact me.
https://www.swahilipod101.com/blog/2020/07/31/telling-time-in-swahili/
https://www.spokenswahili.com/blog/telling-the-time-in-swahili/
Information about Swahili | Phrases | Numbers | Time | Tower of Babel | Books about Swahili on: Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk [affilate links]
Days of the week | Months of the year | Seasons | Telling the Time | Dates
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