Decorative banner

Swahili Language & Culture

Man and elephant

Swahili is one of the easiest languages to learn. Today it is the native language of approximately 50 million people. The official language of both Kenya and Tanzania, Swahili is also spoken in the Congo, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, and Zaire.

Swahili language and culture classes in Madison
Instructor for Swahili classes

Conversational Swahili classes in Madison

computer iconBrowse upcoming Swahili classes in the Continuing Education Catalog online.

Swahili language and culture: Swahili is a national or official language of Tanzania and Kenya. Within the Congo, as in much of East Africa, it often acts as a lingua franca. This class gives you the resources you need to start planning your next trip to East Africa. Learn to order in a bar or restaurant, book a hotel room, greet people, ask for information about a destination, and much more. Instructor: David Kyeu.

textbooksTextbooks for language classes are available for preview and purchase on campus in the University Book Store's lower level, in the outreach section. The University Book Store is located at 711 State St., Madison (at Lake St., on the Library Mall). See campus map.

Your instructor

Picture of David Wambua KyeuDavid Wambua Kyeu The current chairperson of Egerton University Graduate Students Swahili council, David has a B Ed and an MA in Swahili Linguistics and Literature from Egerton University, Kenya. He taught Swahili at Brown University as a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant. A former exchange student at Karlstads University-Sweden, David also doubles as a Kiswahili, Gikuyu, and Kamba languages translator with JTG Inc. based in Virginia. He is currently a graduate student and a TA of First-Year Swahili in the UW-Madison Dept. of African Languages and Literature. His research interests are African children's literature and African language pedagogy.

How to register

Call 608-262-2451, 7:00 am-4:00 pm, M-F. Specific program numbers and links to the mail-in registration form or to register online can be found in the continuing education catalog.

Contact us

 Back to top