NOTE FROM THE EDITOR IN CHIEF
The Bemba language is extremely diverse and complicated. The Bemba language spoken in Chinsali may differ slightly from that spoken in Mporokoso. The Bemba spoken in Mansa is different from that spoken in Kasama. The proverbs and and idioms are also slightly different from one region to another.

Therefore, users of the dictionary must bear in mind that these differences exist.

Inevitably, in such a big project, there will be mistakes, be they typos or as a matter of fact. Please let the editorial team know about the mistakes so that they can be corrected by sending a message to OBED2026@gmail.com

Finally, a confession: None of the editors of this online dictionary are linguists or lexicologists. What the editors and all the other people who got together for this project have is a deep love of the Bemba language and culture and the need to ensure the language survives the maelstrom of globalisation and "modernisation. "

The people in the group had plenty of conviction and a belief that this was something that was long overdue and needed to be availed to the CiBemba speaking public and others interested in the language, NOW.

An online dictionary, like this one, will help preserve the language and indirectly the Bemba culture.

Going forward, there will be a need to further edit the dictionary and bring it to a higher standard. You are all invited to ensure that this website perseveres and reaches higher heights

Thank you

Dr Chishimba M Lumbwe - www.chishimbalumbwe.com

NOTE ON USING THE WEBSITE

Once you click on the OBED portal, you will be taken to a landing page. The landing page displays a search window on top. The page also displays the word of the day and the proverb of the day. Below that is a link that takes you to the main dictionary page. Below that is a link that takes you to the page with NOTES FROM THE EDITOR. Below that link is another link that takes you to the CREDITS page.

On the landing page, typing in a word in the search window will take you to the main dictionary page. On this page, you will find the word you searched for and any other related words. Click on the word you want, and the entries/explanations will come up.

Similarly, pressing on the word of the day on the landing will take you to the main dictionary page and the entries/explanations for the word.

Pressing on main dictionary link on the landing page will also take you to the main dictionary page. On the page, there's a search window on top. In this window, you can type in a BEMBA word that you want to look up. At the moment, only Bemba words can be looked up.

The word, together with related words, will appear below the second window or to the right of the window. Click on the word, and the entries/explanation will appear in the window above or to the left.

Below the second window or on the right side, depending on whether you're using a smartphone or a computer, there's a list of all the words in the online dictionary. Scroll down this list and choose the word you want to look up.

At the moment, the pronunciation facility, the phrase book, the conjugation, and the translation have not been activated.