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Ngai. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
Ngai, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
Ngai in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
Ngai you have here. The definition of the word
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English
Etymology 1
The Cantonese romanization of any of three different surnames: 魏 (ngai6), 倪 (ngai4), and 危 (ngai4).
Pronunciation
Proper noun
Ngai
- Any of three Chinese surnames of Cantonese origin, used primarily in Hong Kong.
Derived terms
Statistics
- According to the 2010 United States Census, Ngai is the 17,392nd most common surname in the United States, belonging to 1623 individuals. Ngai is most common among Asian/Pacific Islander (94.58%) individuals.
Etymology 2
Proper noun
Ngai
- The monolithic creator god of the Kikuyu and related groups of Kenya, and the Maasai of Kenya and Tanzania.
Anagrams
- Agin, Agni, Angi, Gain, Gina, NGIA, Nagi, a- -ing, ag'in, agin, gain, gain-, gina, inga
Kikuyu
Etymology
Cf. Maasai Enkai (“God”).[1]
Pronunciation
- As for Tonal Class, Benson (1964) classifies this term into Class 2.
- (Kiambu)
- (Limuru) As for Tonal Class, Yukawa (1981) classifies this term into a group including gĩkwa (pl. ikwa), ithangũ (pl. mathangũ), kiugũ, kĩboko, kĩgunyũ, kĩnya, kĩroboto, kĩrũũmi, mbogo, mũcinga, mũgate, mũhaka, mũrangi, mũrũthi, ndaraca, ndirica, njohi, nyũmba, thĩ, and so on.[2]
Noun
Ngai class 1
- God
- Synonym: Mũrungu
Usage notes
Formerly referred to a native deity dwelling in evergreen trees possessing milky red sap,[1] but later associated with Christianity.[3]
Derived terms
(Nouns)
(Proverbs)
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 “ngai” in Benson, T.G. (1964). Kikuyu-English dictionary, p. 304. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
- ^ Yukawa, Yasutoshi (1981). "A Tentative Tonal Analysis of Kikuyu Nouns: A Study of Limuru Dialect." In Journal of Asian and African Studies, No. 22, 75–123.
- ^ Kinyua, Johnson Kiriaku (2017). "A Postcolonial Analysis of Bible Translation and Its Effectiveness in Shaping and Enhancing the Discourse of Colonialism and the Discourse of Resistance: The Gikuyu New Testament—A Case Study". In Musa W. Dube and R. S. Wafula (eds.), Postcoloniality, Translation, and the Bible in Africa, p. 79. Eugene, Oregon: Pickwick Publications. DOI 10.1179/17431670X13A.0000000004