The official languages of Kenya are English and Swahili. English is the language of big business, higher education and government. Most bills presented to the National Assembly, for example, are drafted in English. Swahili, a Bantu language, is almost universal in small-scale trade and the media and schools through primary education. It is closely connected with urban life and with certain occupations. Television broadcasts and print materials are in Swahili and English.[1] Radio broadcasts may be heard in Swahili, English, and various African languages.
There is considerable variation in spoken Swahili since seven dialects and three sub-dialects are spoken in the country. The standard spoken Swahili is usually considered the dialect of Zanzibar. In rural areas, Swahili is usually encountered only in radio and television broadcasts, local Asian shops, or in Swahili newspapers. In rural schools, children are taught in their local language, but are given instruction in Swahili as well as English. Swahili developed as a common coastal language as early as the thirteenth century and has been greatly influenced by Arabic. It easily incorporates foreign words (primarily from Arabic, Hindi, Persian, and English) and consequently has been considered the most flexible of all languages in East Africa.