Mayotte Languages

Mayotte's official language is French. It is the language used in administration and schools. French was introduced in the country when France colonized the archipelago. Other languages spoken are Shimaore, a local dialect of Comorian origin, Kibushi, local dialect of Malagasy language, and Kiantalaotsi, which is also a local dialect of Malagasy origin. There are also local dialects of the Comorian language including Shindzwani, Shingazidja, and Shimwali. Arabic is also spoken in the archipelago. Although French is the official language, the majority of citizens speak the local dialects.

Shimaore is spoken by 55.1% of the population followed by shindzwani at 22.3%. The third and fourth languages are Kibushi and Shingazidja which are spoken by 13.6% and 7.6% respectively. French, the official language is spoken by 1.4% of the population while 0.8% speaks Shimwali. 0.4% of the population speaks Arabic. Kiantalaotsi is spoken by 0.2% of the population while other languages are spoken by 0.4% of the population.

In Shindwazi, “gege” which means hello, and "kwaheri" means goodbye. To ask how somebody is doing, one can say "wa fete?"

The minority languages in Mayotte Comoros are bushi, Kiantalaotsi, Shimwali and other languages. These minority languages are the local dialects used by the ethnic groups in Mayotte. The minority languages were brought in by the immigrants who came to work on the island. The island has different ethnic groups because different countries occupied the island before it became a French territory.