Lingala results: be realistic
Lingala is spoken by many millions of people in both Congos, but the speech model has seen very little of it. Expect a rough draft with many corrections. It works best on slow, clear speech from one person close to the microphone. Rumba or ndombolo in the background, street noise, phone calls and several people talking at once all make the draft much weaker.
Even so, correcting timed lines is often faster than writing a long recording out by ear.
Upload the recording as it is: MP3, M4A, WAV, OGG, OPUS, FLAC, a voice message or a phone recording. You can also record from your microphone in the upload box. Nothing needs converting first.
Spelling in the transcript
Lingala spelling is not fully standardised in everyday use, and the draft may not match how you write. Things to check:
- The open vowels ɛ and ɔ are often written as plain e and o in everyday writing; the draft may use either.
- Tone is not usually written, so words that differ only by tone can be confused.
- Prefixes such as ba-, mo-, mi- and li- may be joined to or split from the word.
- French words keep French spelling in some places and Lingala spelling in others.
French and Kinshasa Lingala
The Lingala of Kinshasa mixes in a great deal of French, and slang changes quickly. Formal Lingala, as in church or older radio, uses more Lingala vocabulary and is easier for the model. Keep Lingala selected when most of the recording is Lingala. A French speech with some Lingala should be transcribed with French.
Kikongo, Tshiluba and Swahili are also spoken in the DR Congo. Swahili is in the language list and has its own setting; Kikongo and Tshiluba are not, and will not transcribe correctly as Lingala.
The transcript opens next to a player that highlights the current line. Click a line to hear it again, correct the word in place, and your changes save automatically.
What people record in Lingala
Common files are church sermons and prayer meetings, voice messages from family, interviews with Congolese communities in Brussels, Paris, London and South Africa, radio programmes, and research or NGO interviews in Kinshasa and Brazzaville. Song lyrics are also requested, but sung Lingala over music is hard and needs heavy editing.
Export TXT, DOCX, PDF, CSV, SRT or VTT, with timestamps and speaker names switched on or off per export. Speaker labels are available on paid plans or with a Minute Pack.
For video files, see the Lingala video to text page.