Languages · Africa
What Language Do They Speak in Zimbabwe?
The official languages of Zimbabwe are Shona, English and North Ndebele. In total about 24 living languages are spoken there, the most common being Shona (81%), English (42%) and North Ndebele (12%).
3
Official languages
24
Living languages · #60
0
Regional official languages
3
Endangered languages
Official languages of Zimbabwe
Most spoken languages in Zimbabwe
Shona Official
81%English Official
42%North Ndebele Official
12%9%
Manyika
7%Ndau
6%5%
2%
Tewe
1%1%
Kunda
0.82%Share of the population who speak the language (first or second language).
Languages commonly listed for Zimbabwe
Languages of neighbouring countries
All languages of Zimbabwe (24)
| Language | Speakers here | Family | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shona | 13,891,824 · 81% | Atlantic-Congo | Official |
| English | 7,203,168 · 42% | Indo-European | Official |
| North Ndebele | 2,058,048 · 12% | Atlantic-Congo | Official |
| Tonga (Zambia) | 1,500,000 · 9% | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Dombe | 1,500,000 · 9% | Atlantic-Congo | Vulnerable |
| Manyika | 1,114,776 · 7% | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Ndau | 1,046,174 · 6% | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Kalanga | 908,971 · 5% | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Chichewa | 325,857 · 2% | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Tewe | 255,430 · 1% | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Xhosa | 200,000 · 1% | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Kunda | 140,000 · 0.82% | Atlantic-Congo | Threatened |
| Venda | 109,762 · 0.64% | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Nambya | 100,000 · 0.58% | Atlantic-Congo | Vulnerable |
| Southern Sotho | 50,000 · 0.29% | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Tswana | 37,730 · 0.22% | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Birwa | 30,000 · 0.17% | Atlantic-Congo | Threatened |
| Tsoa | 3,500 · 0.02% | Khoe-Kwadi | Vulnerable |
| Tsonga | — | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Malawi Sena | — | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Sena | — | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
| Shua | — | Khoe-Kwadi | Vulnerable |
| Barwe | — | Atlantic-Congo | Threatened |
| Tawara | — | Atlantic-Congo | Safe |
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Frequently asked questions
What language do they speak in Zimbabwe?
The official languages of Zimbabwe are Shona, English and North Ndebele. In total about 24 living languages are spoken there, the most common being Shona (81%), English (42%) and North Ndebele (12%).
What is the official language of Zimbabwe?
Shona, English and North Ndebele.
Is English spoken in Zimbabwe?
Yes — English is official in Zimbabwe, spoken by about 42% of people.
How many languages are spoken in Zimbabwe?
About 24 living languages — #60 in the world for linguistic diversity. 3 of them are endangered.
Data: Languages of the World dataset (MIT) — ISO 639-3, Glottolog (CC BY 4.0), Unicode CLDR, Google LinguaMeta (CC BY 4.0) and Wikidata; country lists: samayo/country-json (MIT).