Eastern Africa
Video Chat with People from Zimbabwe
Chat with people from Zimbabwe and you might meet someone from Harare's leafy suburbs, from Bulawayo, the country's second city, or from Mutare near the misty mountains of the Eastern Highlands. Zimbabwe recognizes many official languages. English is the one used in business and government and is widely spoken, while Shona and Ndebele are the most common home languages, and plenty of people move between all three in a single conversation.
Being on Central Africa Time, two hours ahead of GMT all year, means a 9 PM chat in Harare is mid-afternoon in New York and evening in London. Ask about sadza, the maize staple eaten with stews and leafy greens, the bright sound of the mbira thumb piano, sungura and Zimdancehall music, the stone walls of Great Zimbabwe, safaris in Hwange, or the roar of Victoria Falls on the Zambian border. Chatting in English as a second language yourself? Our English page has simple phrases for keeping a conversation flowing.
Zimbabwe at a glance
| Flag | 🇿🇼 |
|---|---|
| Official name | Republic of Zimbabwe |
| Capital | Harare |
| Region | Africa · Eastern Africa |
| Official languages | Chibarwe, English, Kalanga, Khoisan, Ndau, Northern Ndebele, Chewa, Shona, Sotho, Tonga, Tswana, Tsonga, Venda, Xhosa and Zimbabwean Sign Language |
| Currencies | Botswana pula (P, BWP), Chinese yuan (¥, CNY), Euro (€, EUR), British pound (£, GBP), Indian rupee (₹, INR), Japanese yen (¥, JPY), United States dollar ($, USD), South African rand (Rs, ZAR) and Zimbabwean bonds ($, ZWB) |
| Calling code | +263 |
| Time zone | Central Africa Time (Africa/Harare) |
How to say hello
A few words of Chibarwe make a great first impression, even if you switch to English right after.
| Language | Phrase | Say it | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shona | Mhoro! | MHOH-roh | Hi! |
| Shona | Makadii? | mah-kah-DEE-ee | How are you? (polite) |
| Ndebele | Salibonani! | sah-lee-boh-NAH-nee | Hello! (polite) |
| Ndebele | Unjani? | oon-JAH-nee | How are you? |
Tips for chatting with people from Zimbabwe
- If your "Makadii?" gets the reply "Ndiripo, makadiiwo?", they're saying they're fine and asking after you. Answer "Ndiripo" and you've had a complete Shona exchange.
- Ask which part of the country they call home. Shona is more common in the north and east, Ndebele around Bulawayo and the southwest, and people are usually glad to teach a word or two.
- Polite greetings matter, especially with older adults, so ask how someone is doing before diving into questions.
- Music is a great opener: ask who they're listening to right now and you'll probably come away with a few artists to look up.
Only meet people from Zimbabwe
Omlet matches you Worldwide by default. To meet only people from Zimbabwe, use the country filter, the only filter Omlet has:
- Open Omlet and press Country on the control panel.
- Search for Zimbabwe and select it.
- Press Start. Press Next to meet someone else from Zimbabwe, or switch back to Worldwide any time.
Your first day is free: you add a card through Stripe to start it, and nothing is charged that day. When the 24 hours end, the country filter costs $3 one time, charged to that card, unless you cancel before then in Settings (if you cancel, you can still pick a country until the day ends). It's not a subscription, and it stays unlocked on that device and browser. It doesn't carry over to other devices or browsers, and clearing your browser data removes it. There's one free day per device, home network and card. Payment goes through Stripe, so Omlet never sees your card number.
The filter works both ways, and matching can be slower when fewer people from Zimbabwe are online. Chatting itself is free, and Worldwide matching never costs anything.
Your own country is detected automatically and shown to the people you meet as a flag.
Neighboring countries
Zimbabwe borders 4 countries. Curious about the people next door? Meet them too: