What is "mzungu"

n. (context in some African countries English) A white person.

Mzungu is a Bantu language term used in the African Great Lakes region to refer to people of European descent. It is a commonly used expression among Bantu peoples in Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia, dating back to the 18th century. Literally translated it meant "someone who roams around" or "wanderer." The term was first used in the African Great Lakes region to describe European explorers in the 18th century, apparently as a result of their propensity to get lost in their wanderings in Africa. The word Mzungu comes from Kiswahili, where ‘zungu’ or 'zunguka' is the word for spinning around on the same spot. The word was assigned to the first white people arriving in the African Great Lakes because they often became lost. Kizunguzungu is Kiswahili for a dizziness. The term is now used to refer to "someone with white skin" or " white skin".

The possessive kizungu (or chizungu) translates as "behaving rich". However, in some areas, such as in Rwanda and Burundi, it does not necessarily refer to the colour of one's skin. Traditionally Europeans were seen to be people of means and rich and so the terminology was extended to denote affluent persons regardless of race. It would therefore not be unusual to find any employer being referred to as "mzungu." In the Bantu Swahili language, the plural form of mzungu is wazungu. The possessive kizungu (or chizungu) translated literally means "of the wanderers". It has now come to mean "language of the wanderers" and more commonly English, as it is the language most often used by Wazungu in the African Great Lakes. However it can be used generally for any European language. Wachizungu, Bachizungu, etc. – literally "wandering people" – have come to mean people who adopt the Western culture, cuisine and lifestyle.