CHOOSING A GLOBAL PAN-AFRICAN LANGUAGE: ETHIOPIA’S AMHARIC WINS. REASONS. The Smart African 17 September 2026
The need for a Global and Pan-African language for all Black people is self-evident. It is unifying, it helps spread a message globally and quickly, and it stops wasteful repetition. By the last, I mean for instance, regarding books and articles – we will not need to translate a book or article into many languages, that one all-African language would do.
Please NOTE, this is not about stopping Africans from speaking their own indigenous language, or their own regional language. Folks can still go ahead with those. This is about selecting just ONE African language to be used to COMMUNICATE easily with ALL BLACK PEOPLE EVERYWHERE. Therefore, we do not need to get emotional about it or frustrated if our own particular language does not become the Global and Pan-African language.
Many people would say that we should go for the most widely spoken African language. However, that in itself is the wrong criterion. If we take English, it was only a tiny population that spoke it. The Irish, Scots and Welsh had their own native tongues, so too the other tribes of Europe. Yet, English has gotten to be the dominant world language. For us Africans, the FIRST criterion for choosing a Pan-African language MUST be that it has its own African script.
A satisfactory and completely Decolonised Pan-African language cannot use any European alphabet, or Arabic script, or Chinese/Oriental script, or Indian script. It is not about numbers of people speaking the language, it must first and foremost be about having its own AFRICAN script.
I did some research. Several living languages, still in use today have their own African scripts for example:
- N’Ko (Guinea/West Africa).
- Mandombe (DRC): used for Kikongo, Lingala, and Swahili.
- Vai (Liberia): A syllabary used by the Vai people.
- Nsibidi (Nigeria/Cameroon).
- Ge’ez (Ethiopia/Eritrea): Used for Amharic, Tigrinya, and Tigre.
The SECOND criterion is that the language must be as old as possible. This shows its ability for longevity and there will likely be a greater number of ancient/older books, manuscripts, writings and artefacts in that language. It also helps children see that we are an ancient people with an ancient civilisation. Here is how old each of the scripts above are:
N’Ko – was created in April 1949.
Mandombe – is a script proposed in 1978
Vai – was invented in the 1930s.
Nsibidi – There is a wide origins range for Nsibidi: from 2000(?!) BC to 600 AD. It is in limited use today but no longer as a common widespread writing system. It is used in certain kinds of cultural and ceremonial events.
Ge’ez – is the oldest continuously used script in Africa. It is about 2500 years old.
The THIRD criterion is that the script be typed on a keyboard, one way or another. This is the information that I copied from AI Overview (retrieved on 16 September 2026):
“N'Ko has multiple dedicated keyboard layouts and software options, though it most commonly uses phonetic QWERTY layouts or its native N. Wa. Sa. Ja (ߒ. ߥ. ߛ. ߖ) layout.
Mandombe script can be typed using a standard QWERTY keyboard, but it requires a specialized computer program or customized fonts to work.
Vai script has specialized digital keyboard layouts and tools available for computers and mobile devices, though it uses standard QWERTY physical hardware.
Nsibidi can be typed using a QWERTY keyboard, but it requires special software tools or apps because it is not yet built into standard computer systems.
Ge'ez does not use a stand-alone physical keyboard; instead, it uses software and digital input methods that map the script onto standard QWERTY keyboards using phonetic transliteration.”
Choosing the most appropriate language-script to become the Global and Pan-African language. The “winning” language would be Amharic that uses Ge’ez script. Amharic is the language of Ethiopia. Let us consider some great things about Ethiopia that become associated with Ethiopia’s language of Amharic and its Ge’ez script.
For a long time Ancient Ethiopia was almost synonymous with Africa, taking in all of Africa and its nearby islands, the lands of the Black Race. African and Ethiopian meant the same thing and could be used interchangeably. Arabs are newcomers, immigrant settlers and current occupiers of North Africa after a terribly violent jihad in the 7th century AD.
Let us appreciate that Amharic-Ge’ez of Ethiopia is a befitting language that is associated with:
A people never colonised. Not by Arabs and not by Europeans. When Arabs tried their jihad in the 7th century AD they were successfully resisted and repelled by the Axum Empire. Also, no European country colonised Ethiopia – Ethiopia was very briefly under Italian military occupation from 1936 to 1941. Therefore, Amharic-Ge’ez is associated with a historic symbol of African resistance and Sovereignty.
A people with a very ancient civilisation. Fossils and artefacts have been discovered showing that African ancestors were a well-organised and highly capable people. This lives on in the culture and traditions, including in Amharic-Ge’ez.
A country widely known as “the Beacon of African Freedom” and the “Center of Pan-Africanism.” The green, yellow, and red national colours of the Ethiopian flag is a colour palette of various Pan-African groups and of African unity. People will be thinking of these things while writing or reading in Amharic-Ge’ez.
Furthermore, as a Global Pan-African language, Amharic-Ge’ez would be evolving and expand its vocabulary to include words from other African languages and African/Black concepts as the people desire. So, words like Ubuntu, Maafa, Kwanzaa, Yurugu etc would come into it.
As stated earlier, having ONE Global Pan-African language does not and should not stop Africans and Black people continuing to speak their indigenous languages or Creole languages.
Finally, we honour our ancestors by forging ahead from where they stopped and using their instructions to continue on. They made it very clear that we must come up with a Global Pan-African language, which is a component to push away the evil colonialism policy of “Perpetual Disunity in Africa”.
I believe that this message helps us. We should not look to Africa’s leaders to get involved since too many of them are puppet leaders and sell-outs who are in place to destroy anything helpful, and to prevent African and Black Unity and the progress of our people. We are able as ordinary people to start to make Amharic-Ge’ez the Global Pan-African language. We are a creative and capable people. We just need to be on the look out for those with negative energy, and who look for or make up a problem in every solution... Until the next time, this is The Smart African signing off.
https://thesmartafrican.substack.com/p/choosing-a-global-pan-african-language
