Sepedi is one of three official names for the Northern Sotho language (also called Sesotho sa Leboa, ISO 639-3: nso). Se- is the Sotho-Tswana prefix meaning "language of"; Pedi refers to the historically dominant Pedi (BaPedi) dialect group centred on what is now the Polokwane area of Limpopo Province [1] . All three names — Sepedi, Northern Sotho, and Sesotho sa Leboa — refer to the same standardised language. South African government documents typically use Sepedi; academic linguistics often uses Northern Sotho; the full native name is Sesotho sa Leboa ("Sotho of the North") [3] .

The Sepedi Alphabet — Northern Sotho Consonants, Lateral Affricate tlh & Vowels of South Africa's Limpopo Province

Q: Is Sepedi the same as Sesotho?

Sepedi (Northern Sotho) and Sesotho (Southern Sotho) are related but distinct standardised languages. Both belong to the Sotho-Tswana sub-group of Southern Bantu and share the tlh lateral affricate, aspirated stops (ph, th, kh), and the five-vowel system. However, they have separate ISO codes (nso vs. st) and are not mutually intelligible in all contexts [2] . Key differences: Sesotho is the national language of Lesotho and official in South Africa; Sepedi is official only in South Africa and concentrated in Limpopo Province. Sesotho and Sepedi share approximately 60–70% of core vocabulary — linguists compare their relationship to that between Spanish and Portuguese [1] .

Q: What is the tlh consonant in Sepedi?

The tlh (/tɬ/) is a voiceless lateral affricate — a stop consonant (T) that releases as a lateral fricative (like the Welsh "ll" in Lloyd, or the Zulu "hl"). The tongue tip touches the alveolar ridge as for T; when it releases, air flows over the sides of the tongue with friction rather than through the centre [2] . The tlh sound appears in core Sepedi vocabulary: tlhako (footprint), tlhapa (wash), tlhong (shame), tlhatlha (jump). This lateral affricate is the most characteristic phoneme of all Sotho-Tswana languages and is often the last sound learned by non-native speakers [1] .

Q: What language family does Sepedi belong to?

Sepedi belongs to the Sotho-Tswana sub-group of the Southern Bantu branch of the Niger-Congo language family. The Sotho-Tswana sub-group includes Sepedi (Northern Sotho), Sesotho (Southern Sotho), and Setswana (Tswana). These three languages share the tlh affricate, aspirated stops, and similar noun-class systems [2] . All Sotho-Tswana languages descend from Proto-Bantu, a reconstructed ancestor language spoken approximately 3,000–5,000 years ago in the Congo Basin region. The split between Sotho-Tswana and Nguni (Zulu/Xhosa) occurred when ancestral Bantu populations migrated southward via different routes into southern Africa [1] .

Q: Where is Sepedi spoken?

Sepedi is spoken primarily in Limpopo Province (South Africa's northernmost province), where it is the dominant home language. Major speaker areas include the Polokwane, Bela-Bela, Tzaneen, and Giyani sub-regions. Significant communities also exist in Gauteng Province [1] . The South Africa Census 2022 showed approximately 4–5 million home language speakers, making Sepedi the fourth or fifth most spoken home language in South Africa. The University of Limpopo in Polokwane and UNISA are the primary institutions for Sepedi academic study and language development [3] .

Q: How many letters are in the Sepedi alphabet?

The Sepedi Latin alphabet uses all 26 standard ISO letters plus multiple digraphs (bj, kh, ng, ny, ph, sh, th, ts, tsh) and one trigraph (tlh) representing additional phonemes. The total inventory of letters and multi-letter phoneme representations is around 35–40 distinct phonological units [2] . The trigraph tlh is the most distinctive — three letters representing a single consonant sound /tɬ/. Digraphs like kh, ph, th represent aspirated stops (distinguished from plain k, p, t by aspiration, not the English sounds). PanSALB maintains these orthographic conventions in official Sepedi education and government materials [1] .

Q: What is the ISO 639-3 code for Sepedi?

The ISO 639-3 code for Sepedi (Northern Sotho, Sesotho sa Leboa) is nso . It also has the ISO 639-1 two-letter code ns . The SIL International database lists all three names — Sepedi, Northern Sotho, Sesotho sa Leboa — as names for the same language (nso) [1] . Having an ISO 639-1 two-letter code reflects Sepedi's official status as one of South Africa's eleven constitutionally recognised languages. The PAN South African Language Board and the Department of Basic Education use the Sepedi orthographic standards in all official educational and government materials [3] .

Q: What are the aspirated consonants in Sepedi?

Sepedi has three aspirated stop consonants : ph (/pʰ/) — aspirated bilabial stop; th (/tʰ/) — aspirated alveolar stop; kh (/kʰ/) — aspirated velar stop. Aspiration means the consonant is followed by a noticeable puff of air, distinguishing ph from p, th from t, and kh from k [2] . Examples: phiri (hyena) with aspirated ph; thipa (knife) with aspirated th; khukhu (chicken) with aspirated kh. Note: Sepedi th is NOT the English "th" sound — it is a strongly aspirated T, not a dental fricative like in "think" or "this" [1] .

Sepedi at a Glance

Sepedi is the most widely used official name for the Northern Sotho language (Sesotho sa Leboa, ISO 639-3: nso) in South African government and educational contexts. Se- is the Sotho-Tswana noun-class prefix meaning "language of" — Sepedi = "language of the Pedi people". The Pedi sub-group was historically dominant in the Pietersburg (now Polokwane) area ^[1]
Sepedi (Northern Sotho) is spoken by approximately 4–5 million people, primarily in Limpopo Province, South Africa. It is one of eleven official languages of South Africa under the 1996 Constitution. The PAN South African Language Board (PanSALB) maintains official orthographic standards for Sepedi ^[1]
Sepedi shares the Sotho-Tswana lateral affricate tlh (/tɬ/) with Sesotho (Southern Sotho) and Setswana. This consonant — a stop that releases as a lateral fricative — is characteristic of the entire Sotho-Tswana sub-branch and is absent from the Nguni languages (Zulu, Xhosa) spoken further east and south ^[2]
Sepedi has three aspirated stop consonants: ph (/pʰ/), th (/tʰ/), and kh (/kʰ/) — each produced with a strong burst of breath that distinguishes them from the unaspirated p, t, k. These aspirates, written as digraphs, are a feature shared with Sesotho and Setswana ^[2]
The go particle is the infinitive marker and Class 15 prefix in Sepedi — go bua (to speak), go ya (to go), go ja (to eat). This makes Sepedi distinct from Sesotho which uses a different infinitive marker convention ^[3]
The University of Limpopo in Polokwane is the primary academic centre for Sepedi studies. The University of South Africa (UNISA) offers Sepedi language studies by distance learning. Sepedi is the medium of instruction in Limpopo Province primary schools and is broadcast on SABC radio channels ^[3]

Sepedi Vowels

Sepedi (Northern Sotho) has five vowel qualities (a, e, i, o, u) shared across the Sotho-Tswana group. Tones carry lexical and grammatical meaning but are not marked in the standard orthography used in South African schools and official documents ^[2].

The five-vowel Bantu system (a, e, i, o, u) is shared by virtually all Bantu languages from Cameroon to South Africa, reflecting their common descent from Proto-Bantu. Sepedi's vowels are relatively simple compared to languages with additional tonal marking in the script ^[1].

Northern Sotho Vowels:

[a]

[e]

[i]

[o]

[u]

Sepedi Consonants

The Sepedi consonant inventory includes the lateral affricate tlh (/tɬ/), aspirated stops ph, th, kh, the palatalised stop bj, and prenasalized consonants. The tlh trigraph is the most characteristic orthographic feature of Sotho-Tswana languages and the sound most unfamiliar to English speakers learning Sepedi ^[2].

Sepedi has no click consonants — a key distinction from the Nguni languages. The Sotho-Tswana languages developed in the interior highveld plateau of southern Africa, away from the Khoisan populations whose click consonants were borrowed by coastal Nguni speakers over centuries of contact ^[1].

Northern Sotho Consonants:

[b]

[bj]

[d]

[f]

[ɡ]

[h]

[dʒ]

[k]

[kʰ]

[l]

[m]

[n]

[ŋ]

[ɲ]

[p]

[pʰ]

[r]

[s]

[ʃ]

[t]

[tʰ]

tlh

[tɬ]

[ts]

tsh

[tʃ]

[w]

[j]

[z]

[b]

Voiced bilabial stop /b/ — B as in "bat"; Northern Sotho: bua (speak), bana (children)

[bj]

Palatalised voiced bilabial stop /bʲ/ — B followed by palatal glide; Northern Sotho: bjala (sorghum beer)

[d]

Voiced alveolar stop /d/ — D as in "dog"; Northern Sotho: dula (sit/stay), dilo (things)

[f]

Voiceless labiodental fricative /f/ — F as in "fun"; Northern Sotho: fela (only/just), feta (pass)

[ɡ]

Voiced velar stop /ɡ/ — G as in "go"; Northern Sotho: gata (press/tread)

[h]

Voiceless glottal fricative /h/ — H as in "house"; Northern Sotho: hola (grow up)

[dʒ]

Voiced palatal affricate /dʒ/ — J as in "joy"; Northern Sotho: jaaka (like/as)

[k]

Voiceless velar stop /k/ — K as in "kit"; Northern Sotho: ka (by/with), kua (there)

[kʰ]

Aspirated voiceless velar stop /kʰ/ — K with strong puff of air; Northern Sotho: khukhu (hen/chicken), khumo (wealth)

[l]

Alveolar lateral approximant /l/ — L as in "lamp"; Northern Sotho: lapa (home/household), lefase (land/earth)

[m]

Bilabial nasal /m/ — M as in "mother"; Northern Sotho: motho (person), morago (later/behind)

[n]

Alveolar nasal /n/ — N as in "night"; Northern Sotho: nna (I/me), noka (river)

[ŋ]

Velar nasal /ŋ/ — NG as in "sing"; Northern Sotho: lenga (wait), tlhong (shame)

[ɲ]

Palatal nasal /ɲ/ — NY as in "canyon"; Northern Sotho: nyaka (want/seek), nyalo (marriage)

[p]

Voiceless bilabial stop /p/ — P as in "pin"; Northern Sotho: pela (next to/near)

[pʰ]

Aspirated voiceless bilabial stop /pʰ/ — P with puff of air; not the English "ph" sound; Northern Sotho: phiri (hyena), phepa (be clean)

[r]

Alveolar trill or flap /r/ — R as in "run"; Northern Sotho: rata (love/like), rena (us/we)

[s]

Voiceless alveolar fricative /s/ — S as in "sun"; Northern Sotho: se (not/Class 7 prefix), sala (stay/remain)

[ʃ]

Voiceless postalveolar fricative /ʃ/ — SH as in "ship"; Northern Sotho: shuka (sugar)

[t]

Voiceless alveolar stop /t/ — T as in "top"; Northern Sotho: taba (matter/news), tla (come)

[tʰ]

Aspirated voiceless alveolar stop /tʰ/ — T with puff of air; not the English "th"; Northern Sotho: thipa (knife), thata (hard/difficult)

tlh

[tɬ]

Voiceless lateral affricate /tɬ/ — a stop released as a lateral fricative; characteristic of the Sotho-Tswana group; Northern Sotho: tlhako (footprint), tlhapa (wash)

[ts]

Voiceless alveolar affricate /ts/ — TS blend as one phoneme; Northern Sotho: tsa (of/belonging to), tsela (path/way)

tsh

[tʃ]

Voiceless postalveolar affricate /tʃ/ — CH as in "church"; Northern Sotho: tshwana (resemble/be like)

[w]

Labio-velar approximant /w/ — W as in "water"; Northern Sotho: wa (fall), wena (you)

[j]

Palatal approximant /j/ — Y as in "yes"; Northern Sotho: ya (go), yena (he/she/it)

[z]

Voiced alveolar fricative /z/ — Z as in "zoo"; Northern Sotho: zula (roam/wander)

Sepedi Function Words

The three most important function words in Sepedi are go (infinitive/Class 15 prefix), ke (copula/first-person subject), and le (conjunction and Class 5 prefix). These words are multifunctional — the same phonological form carries different grammatical meanings depending on context ^[3].

Understanding go, ke, and le is essential for reading Sepedi text — they appear in nearly every sentence. The go marker before a verb signals an infinitive or verbal noun; ke before a noun signals "it is" (identification); le before a noun in the right context signals "and" (conjunction) ^[2].

Northern Sotho Special Characters:

[ɡɔ]

[kɛ]

[lɛ]

Digits (1–10 in Sepedi)

Sepedi numerals use Sotho-Tswana roots shared with Sesotho and Setswana: -nngwe (one), -bedi (two), -raro (three), -nne (four), -hlano (five). The Sotho numeral for ten is lesome — contrasting with Zulu ishumi, Swahili kumi, and Tumbuka khumi, reflecting the deep divergence between Sotho-Tswana and Eastern/Nguni Bantu ^[1].

The Sepedi numeral -hlano (five) uses the same hl lateral fricative as the tlh affricate — showing how this distinctive Sotho-Tswana sound appears systematically in the core vocabulary as well as in the consonant inventory. Numerals in Sepedi take agreement prefixes matching the noun class of the noun they modify ^[3].

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[1]

One in Northern Sotho — -nngwe (the root changes prefix with noun class; e.g., mongwe = one person, nngwe = one thing)

[2]

Two in Northern Sotho — -bedi / bobedi (the -bedi root is shared across Sotho-Tswana: Sesotho -bedi, Setswana -bedi)

[3]

Three in Northern Sotho — -raro / boraro (compare Sesotho -raro, Setswana -raro — common Sotho-Tswana root)

[4]

Four in Northern Sotho — -nne / bonne (the -nne root for four appears across the Sotho-Tswana group; compare Zulu -ne)

[5]

Five in Northern Sotho — -hlano / bohlano (the -hlano root for five is characteristic of Sotho-Tswana; compare Zulu -hlanu, Xhosa -hlanu)

[6]

Six in Northern Sotho — -tshela / botshela (six; formed from a root related to "crossing over" five)

[7]

Seven in Northern Sotho — -supa / bosupa (seven; the -supa root meaning "to point" is shared with Sesotho and Setswana)

[8]

Eight in Northern Sotho — -seswai / boseswai (eight; a Sotho-Tswana numeral with parallels in Sesotho robedi and Setswana -robedi)

[9]

Nine in Northern Sotho — -senyane / bosenyane (nine; the -senyane root is the Sotho-Tswana form of nine)

[10]

Ten in Northern Sotho — lesome / bolesome (ten; -some is the Sotho-Tswana root for ten, contrasting with -kumi in Eastern Bantu languages like Swahili kumi and Tumbuka khumi)

Complete Sepedi Alphabet

The complete Sepedi (Northern Sotho) Latin alphabet uses standard ISO letters plus digraphs and the distinctive trigraph tlh (/tɬ/). PanSALB maintains the official orthographic standards used in Limpopo Province schools and government materials ^[1].

The University of Limpopo has published Sepedi dictionaries, grammars, and reference materials. UNISA provides Sepedi language courses. The SABC (South African Broadcasting Corporation) broadcasts daily radio programming in Sepedi on Radio Lebowa and other regional stations ^[3].

[a]

[b]

[bj]

[d]

[e]

[f]

[ɡ]

[h]

[i]

[dʒ]

[k]

[kʰ]

[l]

[m]

[n]

[ŋ]

[ɲ]

[o]

[p]

[pʰ]

[r]

[s]

[ʃ]

[t]

[tʰ]

Tlh

[tɬ]

[ts]

Tsh

[tʃ]

[u]

[w]

[j]

[z]

Expand All Collapse All

What is Sepedi?

Is Sepedi the same as Sesotho?

What is the tlh consonant in Sepedi?

What language family does Sepedi belong to?

Where is Sepedi spoken?

How many letters are in the Sepedi alphabet?

What is the ISO 639-3 code for Sepedi?

What are the aspirated consonants in Sepedi?

References:

[1] Statistics South Africa (Stats SA). "Census 2022 — Languages Most Spoken at Home in South Africa". Retrieved from Statistics South Africa — Language Statistics
[2] University of South Africa (UNISA), Department of African Languages. "Sesotho sa Leboa (Northern Sotho / Sepedi) Language Studies". Retrieved from University of South Africa (UNISA) — African Languages
[3] University of Limpopo, Faculty of Humanities. "African Languages — Sepedi / Northern Sotho Studies". Retrieved from University of Limpopo — Faculty of Humanities