Amavuna subculture dominates Cowdray Park

WHEREVER a group of teenagers are gathered different trends are set and leading ones tend to see the light of day. In Cowdray Park, Bulawayo Dovuna is dominating.

The slang called Dovuna is a cryptic communication tool which Amavuna, as they identify themselves, only understand. Outsiders have a torrid time relating to Dovuna slang.

As a subculture Dovuna slang has been around for the past six years and is slowly finding its way to different parts of one of the fastest growing locations in Bulawayo, Cowdray Park.

In a bid not to be left out, many teenagers have learnt the street language. Unlike most subculture groups, Amavuna dress like normal teens and young youths only differing in the manner in which they speak.

Also differing from many slangs where different languages like Shona and Ndebele are mixed, Dovuna is an entity of its own that can command a full conversation without borrowing from other languages.

One of the teens that speaks the slang, Raise Mandaza, said that the slang started as a means of having a private conversation in public spaces.

“Dovuna was created as a means of speaking without other people understanding us,” said Mandaza.

What Mandaza didn’t know is that they were setting a trend that would spread amongst many teens.

“After six years we are impressed it has become so popular. Almost all teens are now speaking this way,” he said.

Different linguistic experts attributed Dovuna culture to the desire to belong to a different and unique group in society.

Chairperson of the department of languages at Lupane State University Mbulisi Ndlovu said that Dovuna was more of a social dialect common among many teenagers.

“It’s a form of slang which we can identify as a social dialect. They want to be different from anyone else and gain attention. In some cases this can be seen in the manner which they dress and behave, all to attract attention,” said Ndlovu.

In the same tone a PHD linguist student at the KwaZulu Natal University of South Africa said the subculture is all about prestige and dominance.

“Slang as a language only survives for a short time. It probably won’t be passed to the next generation. It simply ends with the generation that created it,” he said.