Zaireannoun & adjective
Factsheet
What does the word Zairean mean?
There are two meanings listed in OED's entry for the word Zairean. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.
Entry status
OED is undergoing a continuous programme of revision to modernize and improve definitions. This entry has not yet been fully revised.
How common is the word Zairean?
| 1970 | 0.093 |
| 1980 | 0.089 |
| 1990 | 0.089 |
| 2000 | 0.089 |
| 2010 | 0.1 |
How is the word Zairean pronounced?
British English
U.S. English
Where does the word Zairean come from?
Earliest known use
1970s
The earliest known use of the word Zairean is in the 1970s.
OED's earliest evidence for Zairean is from 1972, in the Observer (London).
From a proper name, combined with English elements.
Etymons: proper name Zaïre, ‑an suffix, ‑ian suffix.
Nearby entries
- zag, n., adv., & v.1793–
- zagaie | zagaye, n.1590–1698
- Zaghlulist, n. & adj.1921–
- zaguan, n.1851–
- Zahal, n.1959–
- zaibatsu, n.1937–
- Zaidi, n.1709–
- zaikai, n.1968–
- zaim, n.1807–
- zaire, n.1967–
- Zairean, n. & adj.1972–
- Zairese, adj. & n.1974–
- Zairois, n. & adj.1973–
- zaitech, n.1986–
- zakat, n.1668–
- Zakka Khel, n.1860–
- zakuska, n.1885–
- zalambdodont, adj.1885–
- zalcitabine, n.1991–
- zamacueca, n.1855–
- Zamak, n.1926–
Etymology
Summary
Meaning & use
- noun
- 1972–A native or inhabitant of the Republic of Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo).
- 1972
Dead victims..have been found dumped close to the frontier with Zaire... They were taken there by contract drivers, many of them Zaireans.
Observer 19 November 2/1 - 1973
None of the young Zairians danced.
Times 11 December (Zaire Supplement) p. vii/2 - 1977
Both the Moroccans and Zaireans are using their own planes to transport the troops.
Times 12 April 13/1
the world people nations native or inhabitant of Africa native or inhabitant of West Africa [nouns] countries or regions- Guinean1589–An inhabitant of Guinea.
- Kongo1600–A member of a people living in the region along the lower Congo river; (also) this people; = Bakongo, n.
- Gambian1744–A native or inhabitant of Gambia (see sense B.1.); a person of Gambian descent.
- Guinea Negro1748–= Guinea-man, n. 3; also elliptical.
- Congoese1765–A native or inhabitant of various geographical regions around the Congo river; (now) spec. a native or inhabitant of the Republic of the Congo or the…
- Sierra Leonean1791–A person born or living in Sierra Leone; a person descended from people from Sierra Leone.
- Congolese1800–A native or inhabitant of various geographical regions around the Congo river; (now) spec. a native or inhabitant of the Republic of the Congo or…
- Senegambian1809–A native or inhabitant of a region in Western Africa surrounding the Senegal River and the Gambia River, known historically as Senegambia; (now…
- Liberian1826–A native or inhabitant of Liberia. Cf. Americo-Liberian, n.
- Guinea-man1830–A native of Guinea.
- Lagosian1860–A person born or living in Lagos.
- Nigerian1860–A native or inhabitant of Nigeria.
- Basenji1906–With reference to the Congo basin: an Indigenous person who has not adopted European customs or converted to Christianity. Now historical.
- Ghanaian1949–A native or inhabitant of Ghana, a West African state formerly known as the Gold Coast.
- assimilado1953–In the former Portuguese colonies of Africa: an African who has been admitted to Portuguese citizenship. Also attributive.
- Upper Voltan1955–A person born or living in Upper Volta; a person of Upper Voltan descent. Cf. Burkinabe, n., Voltaic, n. B.1b.
- Voltaic1959–A speaker of a language in this branch of the Niger-Congo family, considered collectively. Chiefly in plural (also with unchanged plural).
- Mali1960–= Malian, n.
- Malian1960–A native or inhabitant of Mali, an ancient empire (of the 13th and 14th centuries) and a modern republic (founded in 1960) in West Africa; = Mali, n.³
- Voltaic1960–A person born or living in Upper Volta in West Africa (now called Burkina Faso); a person of Upper Voltan descent. Cf. Burkinabe, n. Now historical.
- Katangese1962–A native or inhabitant of the Congolese province of Katanga, or of the shortlived independent state of the same name (1960–3); esp. (historical) a…
- Biafran1967–A native or inhabitant of Biafra.
- Zairean1972–A native or inhabitant of the Republic of Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo).
- Ivorian1973–A native or inhabitant of the Ivory Coast.
- Zairois1973–= Zairean, n. & adj.
- Zairese1974–= Zairean, n. & adj. Cf. Zairois, n. & adj.
- Burkinabe1984–A person born in the western African country of Burkina Faso (called Upper Volta before 1984); a descendant of people from Burkino Faso. Also with the…
- Naija2000–A native or inhabitant of Nigeria; a person of Nigerian descent.
- adjective
- 1973–Of or relating to Zaire.
- 1973
The dollar value of this manpower is considerable and most of it is defrayed by the Zairian Government.
Black World May 80 - 1973
Two British geologists yesterday described their fortnight's ordeal under armed Zairean Gendarme guards.
Daily Telegraph 1 October 19 - 1977
The spokesman said that on Saturday two Zairean jets violated Zambian airspace.
Daily Telegraph 14 April 1/8 - 1982
The logistic support of the Zairian army.
S. Johnson, Marburg Virus x. 121
- Nigritian1757–Originally: of, relating to, or characteristic of Nigritia. Also more generally, and in later use: black African or African American.
- Sudanic1802–Of, belonging to, or relating to Sudan or its inhabitants; spec. to a proposed family of languages spoken in the Sahelian region of Africa, which…
- Sudanese1853–Of, belonging to, or relating to Sudan or its inhabitants.
- Mozambican1875–Of or relating to Mozambique or its inhabitants.
- Nigerian1876–Of or relating to Nigeria or its inhabitants.
- Zanzibari1884–Of, belonging to, or relating to Zanzibar or its inhabitants.
- Rhodesian1892–Of, relating to, or from Rhodesia (see etymological note).
- Lagosian1894–Of or relating to Lagos; (also) designating a person born or living in Lagos.
- Chadian1960–Of, pertaining to, or characteristic of Chad or its people.
- Katangese1962–Of, relating to, or belonging to Katanga. Cf. Congolese, n. & adj.
- Tanzanian1964–Of, belonging to, or relating to Tanzania or its inhabitants.
- Namibian1968–Of or relating to Namibia or its inhabitants.
- Malawian1970–Of or relating to Malawi or its inhabitants.
- Zairean1973–Of or relating to Zaire.
- Zairois1973–= Zairean, n. & adj.
- Zairese1974–= Zairean, n. & adj. Cf. Zairois, n. & adj.
Pronunciation
British English
U.S. English
Consonants
- ppea
- ttea
- kkey
- bbuy
- ddye
- ɡguy
- tʃchore
- dʒjay
- ffore
- θthaw
- ssore
- ʃshore
- vvee
- ðthee
- zzee
- ʒbeige
- xloch
- hhay
- llay
- ɬrhingyll
- rray
- wway
- jyore
- mmay
- nnay
- ŋsing
Some consonants can take the function of the vowel in unstressed syllables. Where necessary, a syllabic marker diacritic is used, hence
Vowels
- iːfleece
- ihappy
- ɪkit
- ɛdress
- atrap, bath
- ɑːstart, palm, bath
- ɒlot
- ɔːthought, force
- ʌstrut
- ʊfoot
- uːgoose
- əletter
- əːnurse
- ɪənear
- ɛːsquare
- ʊəcure
- eɪface
- ʌɪpride
- aʊmouth
- əʊgoat
- ɔɪvoice
- ãgratin
- ɒ̃salon
- ᵻ(/ɪ/-/ə/)
- ᵿ(/ʊ/-/ə/)
Other symbols
- The symbol ˈ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with primary stress.
- The symbol ˌ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with secondary stress.
- Round brackets ( ) in a transcription indicate that the symbol within the brackets is optional.
View the pronunciation model here.
Consonants
- ppea
- ttea
- kkey
- bbuy
- ddye*
- ɡguy
- tʃchore
- dʒjay
- ffore
- θthaw
- ssore
- ʃshore
- vvee
- ðthee
- zzee
- ʒbeige
- xloch
- hhay
- llay
- rray
- wway
- jyore
- mmay
- nnay
- ŋsing
* /d/ also represents a 'tapped' /t/ as in
Some consonants can take the function of the vowel in unstressed syllables. Where necessary, a syllabic marker diacritic is used, hence
Vowels
- ifleece, happy
- ɪkit
- ɛdress
- ætrap, bath
- ɑlot, palm, cloth, thought
- ɑrstart
- ɔcloth, thought
- ɔrnorth, force
- ʊfoot
- ugoose
- əstrut, comma
- ərnurse, letter
- ɪ(ə)rnear
- ɛ(ə)rsquare
- ʊ(ə)rcure
- eɪface
- aɪpride
- aʊmouth
- oʊgoat
- ɔɪvoice
- ɑ̃gratin
- æ̃salon
- ᵻ(/ɪ/-/ə/)
- ᵿ(/ʊ/-/ə/)
Other symbols
- The symbol ˈ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with primary stress.
- The symbol ˌ at the beginning of a syllable indicates that that syllable is pronounced with secondary stress.
- Round brackets ( ) in a transcription indicate that the symbol within the brackets is optional.
View the pronunciation model here.
Simple text respell breaks words into syllables, separated by a hyphen. The syllable which carries the primary stress is written in capital letters. This key covers both British and U.S. English Simple Text Respell.
Consonants
b, d, f, h, k, l, m, n, p, r, s, t, v, w and z have their standard English values
- gguy
- jjay
- yyore
- chchore
- khloch
- shshore
- ththaw
- dhthee
- zhbeige
Vowels
- atrap
- ahpalm
- airsquare
- arstart
- arrcarry (British only)
- awthought
- ayface
- a(ng)gratin
- edress
- eefleece
- eerdeer
- errmerry
- ikit
- ighpride
- irrmirror
- olot (British only)
- ohgoat
- oogoose
- oorcure
- orforce
- orrsorry (British only)
- owmouth
- oyvoice
- o(ng)salon
- ustrut
- uhletter
- urnurse
- urrhurry
- uufoot
Forms
Variant forms
Also Zairian.Frequency
Zairean typically occurs about 0.09 times per million words in modern written English.
Zairean is in frequency band 3, which contains words occurring between 0.01 and 0.1 times per million words in modern written English. More about OED's frequency bands
Frequency of Zairean, n. & adj., 1970–2010
* Occurrences per million words in written English
Historical frequency series are derived from Google Books Ngrams (version 2), a data set based on the Google Books corpus of several million books printed in English between 1500 and 2010.
The overall frequency for a given word is calculated by summing frequencies for the main form of the word, any plural or inflected forms, and any major spelling variations.
For sets of homographs (distinct entries that share the same word-form, e.g. mole, n.¹, mole, n.², mole, n.³, etc.), we have estimated the frequency of each homograph entry as a fraction of the total Ngrams frequency for the word-form. This may result in inaccuracies.
Smoothing has been applied to series for lower-frequency words, using a moving-average algorithm. This reduces short-term fluctuations, which may be produced by variability in the content of the Google Books corpus.
| Decade | Frequency per million words |
|---|---|
| 1970 | 0.093 |
| 1980 | 0.089 |
| 1990 | 0.089 |
| 2000 | 0.089 |
| 2010 | 0.1 |