Greetings
Dumela rra / Dumela mma
doo-MEH-la RRAH / MMAH
'Hello sir' / 'Hello madam' in Setswana. Botswana is a formal society — you greet before you ask for anything, every time.
Le kae?
leh KAH-eh
'How are you?' The answer is 'Ke teng' — I am here. Skipping this exchange reads as rude in a way it does not in most places.
Ke a leboga
keh ah leh-BO-ha
'Thank you.' 'Ke a leboga thata' is thank you very much.
Social
Go siame
ho see-AH-meh
'It's fine' / 'okay' — the universal closing of a conversation, a transaction or a phone call.
Culture
Pula
POO-la
'Rain' — the currency, the national motto and what you shout as a toast. In a semi-arid country, naming the money after rain is not a metaphor.
Thebe
TEH-beh
'Shield' — the hundredth part of a pula. Rain and shield: the two things the country was founded on.
Kgotla
K-HOT-la
The traditional community assembly where matters are debated and decided in public. Still a functioning part of Botswana's governance, not a museum piece.
Daily life
Omang
OH-mang
The national identity card, literally 'who are you?'. Citizens carry it; non-citizens carry a passport and their permits instead.
Combi
KOM-bee
The shared minibus taxis that run fixed routes across Gaborone. Cheap, and how most of the city moves.
Food
Seswaa
seh-SWAH
Pounded, slow-cooked beef, salted and served with pap. The national dish and the centre of every wedding and funeral.
Emergency
999 / 997 / 998
—
Police, ambulance and fire respectively. 112 is not reliable here — use the local numbers.
Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.