chiuta

Tonga (Malawi)

Etymology

From chi- (“Class 7 noun prefix”) +‎ uta (“bow”). In reference to the fact that Orion is a hunter. Cognate with Tumbuka chiuta (“god”).

Noun

chiuta class 1a

1. Orion

References

• William Y. Turner (1996), Tumbuka/Tonga-English and English - Tumbuka/Tonga Dictionary‎, Central Africana Limited, pages 135, 235

Tumbuka

Etymology

Cognate with Tonga (Malawi) chiuta (“Orion”).

Noun

chiuta class 1a (plural ŵachiuta class 2)

1. god
   2. A deity or supreme being; a supernatural, typically immortal, being with superior powers, to which personhood is attributed.

References

• William Y. Turner (1996), Tumbuka/Tonga-English and English - Tumbuka/Tonga Dictionary‎, Central Africana Limited, page 18