Popular Kenyan saying ‘Kitawaramba’, popularized by controversial Coast preacher Paul Mackenzie, has found its way to the Associated Press (AP) Word of the Year list, sitting pretty amongst viral global wordings like ‘rizz’, ‘AI’ and ‘Bwa Kale’.
Pastor Mackenzie, accused of leading a starvation doomsday cult that led to the deaths of more than 400 people, infamously uttered the word ‘Kitakuramba’ as a warning to anyone involved in a campaign of crucifying him, swearing that people would face the repercussions of their actions towards him.
The novel word, which sounded like a threat, quickly took a life of its own with Kenyans now using it in their everyday conversations as a verbal harbinger of trouble ahead.
Ever an innovative lot, Kenyans applied the word in various situations using it to warn their friends or associates to stay away from certain situations or people or else, ‘Kitawaramba’.
The word, which could be used in all tenses – past, present, future – was also widely applied after Kenyans started feeling the vicious effects of President William Ruto’s numerous harsh policies, saying that, by electing him, ‘Kilituramba’.
Besides ‘Kitawaramba’, other viral words which dominated 2023 also made it to the Word of the Year list. Sitting pretty on the list was the word ‘rizz’ which Gen Z have widely used to mean charisma or charm. ‘Rizz’ is a corruption from the English word ‘charisma’ which loosely means, ‘compelling attractiveness or charm that can inspire devotion in others.’
The Haitain slang ‘Bwa Kale’, which became a death cry against violent gangs in Haiti this year, chanted widely by civilians as they hunted down criminals, also made the list. The term had long been used in Haitian street slang to insinuate male dominance and power. It then quickly spread across the globe and even on football stadiums across Latin America, used as a chant especially after a team scored a goal.
South Africa too contributed a word – Kuningi. It gained popularity among South Africans to express frustration over multiple controversies occurring at the same time.
After battling endemic power outages, runaway crime and a dysfunctional government, South Africans, tired and swamped by the national tragedies, simply sighed, ‘Kuningi!’
Kenneth Gachie, “Kenyan Slang ‘Kitawaramba’ Makes It to the List of AP Word of the Year 2023,” Citizen Digital (Citizen Digital, December 14, 2023), https://www.citizen.digital/entertainment/kenyan-slang-kitawaramba-makes-it-to-the-list-of-ap-word-of-the-year-2023-n333172.
