Igbo for Kids: A Parent's Guide to Getting Started
Want your child to speak Igbo? Where to start, the Igbo alphabet and its 8 vowels, why tones matter, 20 first words for children, and a simple weekly plan for busy families.
By The KidsLingua Team · · 4 min read
Many Igbo parents tell us the same story: they speak Igbo with their own parents, but somehow English became the language of the house. The children understand a little, answer in English, and the gap grows each year.
It doesn't have to stay that way. Children pick up languages remarkably well when the language is part of play and everyday life. Here's how to start.
Start with listening, not lessons
Before any alphabet or grammar, children need to hear Igbo, often and in happy moments. A few ideas that cost nothing:
- Narrate small routines in Igbo: getting dressed, brushing teeth, cooking.
- Use Igbo for praise and affection. Nwa m (my child) and Daalụ (thank you) said warmly every day do more than any worksheet.
- Put on Igbo songs in the car and at bath time.
- Let grandparents speak Igbo only on video calls, even if your child answers in English at first. Understanding comes before speaking.
The Igbo alphabet
Standard Igbo is written with 36 letters:
a b ch d e f g gb gh gw h i ị j k kp kw l m n ṅ nw ny o ọ p r s sh t u ụ v w y z
Two things stand out:
- Eight vowels: a, e, i, ị, o, ọ, u, ụ. The dotted vowels are pronounced with a more open, relaxed mouth than their plain partners.
- Letters made of two characters, like ch, gb, kp, nw and ny, each count as one letter. Gb and kp are said with both sounds at once.
Why tones matter in Igbo
Igbo is a tonal language: the pitch of each syllable changes the meaning. The famous example is akwa, which can mean four different things:
| English | Igbo |
|---|---|
| cry (high-high) | ákwá |
| bed (low-low) | àkwà |
| egg (low-high) | àkwá |
| cloth (high-low) | ákwà |
Everyday Igbo writing usually leaves the tone marks out, so children can't learn tones from reading. They learn them by listening to native speakers, which is exactly what young children are brilliant at.
20 first Igbo words for children
Start with words your child can use today, about the people and things they see every day.
| English | Igbo |
|---|---|
| mother | nne |
| father | nna |
| brother or sister | nwanne |
| child | nwa |
| friend | enyi |
| English | Igbo |
|---|---|
| one | otu |
| two | abụọ |
| three | atọ |
| four | anọ |
| five | ise |
| English | Igbo |
|---|---|
| head | isi |
| eye | anya |
| ear | ntị |
| mouth | ọnụ |
| hand | aka |
| food | nri |
| water | mmiri |
| yam | ji |
| house | ụlọ |
| thank you | daalụ |
Try this: play “touch your…”. Call out isi, anya or ntị and your child touches the right body part as fast as they can. Speed it up until everyone is giggling.
“But Grandma speaks a different Igbo”
Igbo has many dialects, and the Igbo your family speaks may differ from Standard Igbo in some words and sounds. That's normal, and it's a strength: your child is learning a living language. Standard Igbo gives them a shared base to read and write, and family dialect words are a lovely extra to learn from the people who use them.
A simple weekly plan
You don't need hours. Fifteen minutes a day is plenty:
- Monday to Friday: five new words a week. Use them in routines, then play one quick game.
- Saturday: a video call with a relative who speaks Igbo, with a mission: say three of this week's words.
- Sunday: a story or song in Igbo, then let your child “teach” you the week's words.
Celebrate effort, not perfection, and don't correct every tone. Repeat the word back correctly and move on with a smile.
Keep going
Next, learn Igbo greetings and how to say thank you, or read our guide to raising bilingual kids in the diaspora.
