A Good Xhosa Peace Poem
Peace Poetry can save a life and the brain.
A Good Xhosa Peace
Yenzani uxolo pakati kwenu
uxololu yinto e lungileyo
in Xhosa spoken in South Africa
Make peace one with another
peace is a good thing
uxolo is peace
ukuba nozolo literally to be at peace
Topic(s) of this poem: Africa, peace, peace day, peaceful, world peace, Form: Prose Poem
Peace of Mind Through Apology
Sometimes we have to apologize
in order to find peace of mind
in the South African language IsiXhosa
“Uxolo lwengqondo” means peace of mind
“lwengqondo” is of mind
and “uxolo” means peace
sorry, pardon me, I apologize
and excuse me
“Uxolo kodwa andiqondi”
means I’m sorry but I don’t understand
A Stick of Peace
There is a saying in isiXhosa
“musa ukuhamba indle
a uyindoda ngaphandle kwentonga”
never travel without carrying a stick
a man does not do that
a stick a symbol of dignity and peace
a stick carried by a man
two by a boy before entering manhood
every head of household who carried it
respected
the stick there for protection
never for offence or aggression
hidden under the mat of the head of the family
when not used
a symbol
a weapon for fighting
the problems of life
boys always carried two sticks
one for parrying opponents
other for striking during stick practice
Peace Name
My name is Noxolo
peaceable in Xhosa
what I like about this name
which represents the tribal group
in South Africa I come from
The Xhosa as well Zulu languages
have three distinct clicks “X”, “C” and “Q”
but Xhosas use more clicks than Zulus
in their everyday conversations
When my mother was pregnant
she was always fighting with my father and his family
in this constant state of depression
there was no “uxolo” or “inzolo” in Xhosa or isiXhosa
When I was born
she gave me this name Noxolo
she wanted the peace
my birth restored in my family
My name reflects my personality
I hate fights and arguments
I am a peaceful person.
Noxolo Ncapayi, South Africa
What does your name mean to you? Have you given a name to a child or an animal or a doll? How did you choose that name?
Noxolo (Peacemaker) in Xhosa
They changed my name today
my wedding day
giving new responsibilities
“Noxolo” peacemaker
My husband’s older brother married last year
his new bride arrived
souring the mood influencing him
he began to hate parents and siblings
They are telling me to be a different bride
expected instead to bring peace and unity
restore tranquility to this family
to be “Noxolo” peacemaker
South Africa: The Constitution of South Africa names eleven official languages. “The official languages of the Republic are Northern Sotho/Sepedi (9.4% of population) “Khutšo” (peace); Sesotho (7.9%) “Kgotso” (peace); Setswana, Tswana (8.2%) “Kagiso” (peace); siSwati, Swati “Lucolo” (peace), “Kuthula” (peace); Tshivenda, Venda “Mulalo” (peace); Xitsonga, Tsonga (4.4%) “Kurhula” (peace); Afrikaans (13.3%) “Vrede” (peace); English (8.2%) “Peace” (peace); isiNdebele, Ndebele “Ukuthula” (peace); isiXhosa, Xhosa (17.6%) “Uxolo” (peace), “Zoxolo” (peace); isiZulu, Zulu (23.8%) “Ukuthula” (peace, silence, calmness), “Thula” (quiet, calm), “Nokuthula” (peace), “Ngokuthula” (peace), “Kuthula” (peace), “Ukuba nokuthula” (peace of mind).
The Rabbit Hole Of Peace In Javanese
Today I went looking
for the word for peace in Javanese
and found it
slamet or rahaju
in a safe, peaceful condition or
sranta / saranta
patient and calm or
sepi which is quiet and still
in Javanese or Ngoko
Also in non-Ngoko languages
“wiludjeng” is a safe, peaceful condition
or similarly “srantos” is patient and calm
“epen” is quiet and still in Krama Standard
rahadjeng in Krama Substandard
or sugeng in a safe, peaceful condition
in Kromo Inggel
But half a world away
I found along the path
uxolo (peace)in South African Xhosa
xolile to be at peace
“uizwe lixolile” to make peace
“nku Xolisa” to be at peace with each other
uku Xolelana, noxolo, ngoxolo ngo kuxolileyo, Noxolo Xolileyo,
peaceable, peaceably, peaceful, peacefully
The search rolled out
different languages spoken with
different tongues
bringing the world together
a little tighter
Topic(s) of this poem: peace, peace day, peaceful, world peace; Form: Prose Poem
Originally published at https://www.poemhunter.com on June 17, 2018.
