zama zama, noun phrase
- Origin:
- IsiZuluShow more From isiZulu zama try, make an attempt.
An informal miner who works illegally, typically in disused mineshafts and under hazardous conditions. Also attributive.
2011 rivertonstud.co.za (DSAE Corpus)[T]he heavy rains had left a dam between the questing
zama zama (illegal miner) and his goal.
2017 citizen.co.za (DSAE Corpus)Another four bodies of illegal zama zama gold miners have been recovered from a gold mine in the Free State, bringing to 29 the number killed in what is believed to have been an underground explosion.
An informal miner who works illegally, typically in disused mineshafts and under hazardous conditions. Also attributive.
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