kwela

See also: kwe'la

English

Etymology

From Zulu -khwela (“get up”).

Noun

kwela (uncountable)

1. (South Africa, music) A style of music, first played in the townships, whose principal instrument is the penny whistle.

Usage notes

• The term "kwela" is derived from the Zulu for "get up", though in township slang it also referred to the police vans, the "kwela-kwela". Thus it could be an invitation to join the dance as well as a warning. It is said that the young men who played the pennywhistle on street corners also acted as lookouts to warn those enjoying themselves in the illegal drinking dens of the arrival of the cops. [1]

Anagrams

• Walke, walke

Tagalog

Adjective

kwela (Baybayin spelling ᜃ᜔ᜏᜒᜎ)

1. Superseded, pre-2007 spelling of kuwela.

Usage notes

This spelling does not follow the rule of double vowel clusters with an /i/ or /u/ as the first vowel following a double consonant (where the standard is to retain the vowel cluster and add a ⟨y⟩ or ⟨w⟩ in between). See Appendix:Tagalog spellings for details.