Swazi
/ˈswɑːzi
/noun (plural same or Swazis)
1A member of a people traditionally inhabiting Swaziland and Mpumalanga province in South Africa.Many Swazis find work in South African mines, and much of Swaziland's electricity is imported from South Africa....
- The Zulu kingdom on the east coast, north of Natal, was the largest; the Swazi, Tswana, Pedi, Venda, Mpondo, and Thembu remained substantial chiefdoms.
- Chilufya was one of the two members from Southern Africa, together with a Swazi, elected on the board dominated by North and West Africa.
1.1A native or inhabitant of Swaziland.The turnout was far smaller than the 250,000 Swazis who came to the last national gathering several years ago, where Mswati announced the appointment of a new prime minister....
- Mashaba also claimed the Swazis cancelled their scheduled friendly against Lesotho in Maseru on Sunday because they feared that Mashaba would send his spies to watch the game.
- The Swazis, however, with their lack of resources have never featured at either the World Cup or Nations Cup levels.
2 [mass noun] The Nguni language of the Swazi, an official language in Swaziland and South Africa with about 1.6 million speakers. Also called Siswati.
adjective
Relating to Swaziland, the Swazis, or their language.The Swazi language is referred to as ‘siSwati.’...
- The sight of a woman's buttocks is a strong insult in Swazi culture.
- No barrier divides them, but the transition between gardened avenues and ramshackle Swazi township is stark.
Origin
From the name of Mswati, a 19th-century king of the Swazis.