A Niger-Congo language and a member of the Nguni subgroup of Bantu (along with Xhosa, Zulu and Swati).
Northern Ndebele, also known as isiNdebele or Sindebele, is spoken by approx. 1.5 million Ndebele or Matabele people in Zimbabwe, where it is one of the main languages (together with Shona and English). [MARC lang code: NDE]
Southern Ndebele also known as Tabele or Sindebele (or isiKhethu), is also spoken by approx. half a million people in the Transvaal District of the Republic of South Africa (one of the 11 official languages). [MARC lang code: NBL]
Nguni languages are unique among the Bantu family in the use of click sounds as consonants. These sounds were borrowed form the neighbouring Khoisan languages. Like many other Bantu languages, Ndebele is also a tonal language.
| Dictionaries | |
| A practical Ndebele dictionary | NDEB DICO 1 |
| Courses | |
| Asikhulume IsiNdebele : A multidimensional approach to the teaching and learning of Ndebele as a foreign language | NDEB CBEG 1(PACK) |
| Grammar | |
| Lessons in Ndebele | NDEB GRAM 1 |
| Reading | |
| Amadlelo | NDEB RFICT 1 |