Swahili gestures: comments (vielezi) and exclamations (viingizi)

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

E-ISSN: 1474-0699|48|2|321-332

ISSN: 0041-977x

Source: Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, Vol.48, Iss.2, 1985-06, pp. : 321-332

Disclaimer: Any content in publications that violate the sovereignty, the constitution or regulations of the PRC is not accepted or approved by CNPIEC.

Previous Menu Next

Abstract

In this paper a number of gestures used by Kenya coastal Swahili speakers is described. We describe gestures that are associated with speech in various ways ranging from some requiring speech as they are performed to others referred to via verbs or phrases which are performed non-verbally. We attempt to place the verbal-dependent gestures on a continuum of verbal—non-verbal communication. We also describe verbally-independent gestures and gesturally independent speech forms that function similarly in discourse.