the Semantic Evolution in EkeGusii: A Diachronic Study of Meaning Shifts

Abstract

This study examines the diachronic semantic evolution of EkeGusii, a Bantu language spoken in southwestern Kenya, to understand how lexical meanings have shifted over the past century in response to cultural, social, and political transformations. Drawing on historical-comparative linguistics and frame semantics, the research analyzes diverse sources, including oral histories, missionary translations, colonial administrative records, and contemporary discourse. It maps semantic changes across domains such as religion, health, kinship, and governance, revealing processes of metaphorical extension, semantic narrowing, pejoration, and amelioration. Findings indicate that Christian missionary influence reshaped religious vocabulary, colonial structures recontextualized leadership terms, and biomedical paradigms reinterpreted indigenous concepts of illness. EkeGusii demonstrates both resilience, by adapting traditional frames to new referents, and erosion, where original meanings are marginalized or replaced. By providing a case-based methodology for tracking lexical change in under-documented languages, this study contributes to Bantu historical linguistics and highlights the dynamic interplay between language, culture, and socio-historical pressures.