Meaning of the name Ntomb'khona

[AfricanAwakening]

My name is Frederick Webb and I live in the USA. I have a question about the name Ntomb'khona. Can anyone write out how it is pronouced and what it means? I heard it means "the girl is here" but is that true? If so, what name means "the boy is here?" Is this a Zulu name? On what occasions would a child be named Ntomb'khona? I would really like for someone to tell me the meaning of Ntomb'khona, how to pronounce it, and also what the name is for "the boy is here". Lastly, has anyone ever heard of Ntomb'khona Dlamini?





SECONDLY......





Also, has anyone HEARD OF or MET Ntomb'khona Dlamini Nhlanhla Ngema, Mbongeni Ngema, Thandi Zulu, Pat Mlaba, Dumisani Dlamini, Leleti Khumalo, or Thandani Mavimbela? Does anyone know how I can contact anyone them?..especially Ntomb'khona Dlamini, Dumisani Dlamini, and Mbongeni Ngema?...Thanks for your time!

[IronMan]

Hi Frederick,

the name Ntomb'khona comes from "intombi ikhona" which, as you said, means "the girl is here" (intombi = girl; ikhona = it is present). The full form of the name is uNtomb'khona as all personal names in Zulu start with "u" regardless of their origin. However, in addressing a person the initial vowel is dropped ("Sawubona, Ntomb'khona" - "Hello, Ntomb'khona").

Maybe a native Zulu would like to answer your question regarding the right pronounciation. I could just guess.

"The boy is here" means "umfana ukhona" in Zulu. I'm not sure how you'd make a name from that, i.e. which of the vowels you'd drop when joining the words.


Carsten.

[AfricanAwakening]

Oh ok..Thanks Carsten! But I am still confused. What would the real spelling of the child's name be? If you drop all the vowels like "u" in uNtomb'khona would the child's name be uNtomb'khona or Ntomb'khona? I am confused but you did clear some things up...THANKS!

[IronMan]

The real spelling of the name is uNtomb'khona. This is what you use when talking about her to someone else. When you address her directly you drop the leading "u".

[AfricanAwakening]

Oh OK...Thanks for your help. I know there is a lot I do not know about the Zulu language but I would like to learn..

[IronMan]

Feel free to ask me. I'm still learning the language but I'll be glad to help out where I can.

[AfricanAwakening]

Well, I know some spanish and when I was first learning, they told us how to say all the letters of the alphabet with the spanish way. Could you do me that only with the Zulu language?