Swazi For Loops (kwa)

SwaziLang provides two powerful types of for loops:

• Normal for loop (counting/step-based)
• For-each loop (iterating over arrays and objects)

Both use the kwa keyword ("for" in Swahili), but with different syntax and use cases.

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1. Normal For Loop

This loop lets you repeat code a specific number of times, or while a condition is met.

Syntax:

kwa(init; condition; updater) {
  // loop body
}

INFO

Things to notice and be carefully with.

• You must wrap the parameters in parentheses ( ).
• parameters are optional in the kwa loop, but make sure you keep the two semicolons between them. kwa(;;){}
• init can only be an assignment statement eg. a = 3 do not use data a = 3
• condition runs after every iteration, if true the loop iterates if false it stops
• it can be anything that resolves to true/false
• swazi supports two kinds of updater can only be i++/i-- as increment/decrement.
• Invalid updater patterns like i+=2 or i=i+1 are not allowed if you want to use these you should omit the updater and use it inside the loop body as a statement. eg.

data i = 0; # init used outside here
kwa(;i < 10;) {
  
  i+=2  # step by two
}

kwa(x=0; x<10; x++):
    chapisha x

or with C-style braces:

kwa(x=0; x<10; x++) {
    chapisha x
}

• Parameters required in parentheses:
  • Start value: x=0
  • Condition: x<10
  • Increment/update: x++

Single-line shorthand (C-style only):

kwa(x=0; x<5; x++) { chapisha "Hello, " + x }

Invalid patterns:

kwa x=0; x<10; x++ {}         // ❌ Parameters not wrapped: Invalid!
kwa(x=0; x<10; x++): chapisha "Hello world"  // ❌ Pythonic single-line: Invalid!

Always use parentheses for parameters, and only use single-line shorthand with braces {}.

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2. For-Each Loop (kwa kila)

When you want to loop through items in an array, or keys/values in an object, use kwa kila.

Array Iteration

data arr = [1, 2, 4, 10]

kwa kila value, index katika arr:
    chapisha value + ", index: " + index

• value: the current item
• index: optional; position in array (0, 1, 2...)

You can omit the index:

kwa kila value katika arr {
    chapisha value
}

Object Iteration

data obj = { a: 4, b: 17, c: 21 }

kwa kila key, value katika obj:
    chapisha key + " => " + value

• For objects:
  • key: property name (required)
  • value: optional; property value

Note:

• Object keys are unordered; don't expect a specific order.
• Array iteration uses values (with optional index), object iteration uses keys (with optional value).

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Important Note: Iterables in kwa kila Loops

• Non-iterable values like numbers cannot be used directly:

  kwa kila value katika 9:
      // ❌ Invalid! 9 is not iterable

• To create a range for iteration, use the built-in function Orodha(n):

  • Orodha(n) creates an array of n null values.
  • Now you can safely iterate:

  kwa kila val, i katika Orodha(100):
      // val is always null
      // i (optional) is the position/index (0 to 99)
      chapisha "Current index: " + i

• This pattern is useful for running code a set number of times, or generating indices for further logic.

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Loop Controls: simama & endelea

SwaziLang supports loop control keywords:

• simama — "break" (stops the loop immediately)
• endelea — "continue" (skips to the next loop iteration)

Example with endelea (continue):

kwa(i=1; i<=10; i++):
    kama i == 2:
        endelea;

    kama i % 2 sawa 1 :
        chapisha i

• When i == 2, the loop skips the rest of the body and continues to next i.

Example with simama (break):

kwa kila val, i katika Orodha(100):
    kama i > 10:
        simama;
    chapisha i

• The loop stops entirely when i > 10.

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Practical Patterns

Counting Loop

kwa(i=1; i<=5; i++):
    chapisha "Count: " + i

Looping Over an Array

data colors = ["red", "green", "blue"]

kwa kila color katika colors:
    chapisha "Color: " + color

Looping Over Object Properties

data person = { name: "Amina", age: 22, city: "Dar" }

kwa kila key, value katika person:
    chapisha key + ": " + value

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Common Mistakes

• Missing parentheses in normal kwa loop:

  kwa x=0; x<10; x++ {}     // ❌ Invalid!

• Pythonic single-line for is not allowed:

  kwa(x=0; x<5; x++): chapisha "Hello"   // ❌ Invalid!

• Confusing array/object kwa kila params:
  • Array: kwa kila value, index katika arr { ... }
  • Object: kwa kila key, value katika obj { ... }
• Trying to use a number as an iterable:

  kwa kila val katika 5: ...   // ❌ Invalid!

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Summary Table

Loop Type	Syntax Example	Use Case
Normal kwa loop	kwa(x=0; x<10; x++) { ... }	Counting, custom steps
For-each kwa kila	kwa kila value katika arr { ... }	Loop through array values
For-each kwa kila	kwa kila key, value katika obj { ... }	Loop through object keys
Range loop	kwa kila val, i katika Orodha(n) { ... }	Loop n times (val is null)
Loop break/continue	simama, endelea	Control loop execution

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Practice Challenge

Write a loop to print all odd numbers from 1 to 10, skipping 2.

Solution

kwa(i=1; i<=10; i++):
    kama i == 2:
        endelea;

    kama i % 2 sawa 1 :
        chapisha i

Write a loop to print indices 0 to 10 using kwa kila and simama.

Solution

kwa kila val, i katika Orodha(100):
    kama i > 10:
        simama;
    chapisha i

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Remember:

• Always wrap normal kwa loop parameters in parentheses.
• Use kwa kila for arrays (values/index) or objects (key/value).
• Use Orodha(n) for range-style loops.
• Use simama and endelea for loop control.
• Prefer one block style per loop for clarity.