Bana language

Last updated
Bana
Native to Cameroon
Region Far North Region, Cameroon
Native speakers
23,000 (2007) [1]
Afro-Asiatic
Language codes
ISO 639-3 bcw
Glottolog bana1305
ELP Bana
Bana
Languagekoma kabana

Bana is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken in northern Cameroon. Dialects include Gamboura and Gili. [1]

Contents

Bana is spoken in the canton of Guili, in the northern part of the commune of Bourrha (department of Mayo-Tsanaga, Far North Region). The speakers call their language koma kabana 'the language of the Bana'. [2]

Phonology

Consonants
Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Labialized velar Uvular Labialized uvular Glottal
Nasal mnŋŋʷ
Voiceless plosive ptkkʷʔ ʔʷ
Voiced plosivebdɡɡʷ
Prenasalized plosivembnd ndzŋɡŋɡʷ
Implosive ɓɗ
Affricate ts dz
Fricative f vs zχ ʁχʷ ʁʷ
Flap ⱱɾ
Approximant jw

The vowels of Bana are /ɨ ə ɛ/, which can occur with high, falling, low, or rising tone. [3]

Notes

  1. 1 2 Bana at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. ↑ Binam Bikoi, Charles, ed. (2012). Atlas linguistique du Cameroun (ALCAM)[Linguistic Atlas of Cameroon]. Atlas linguistique de l'Afrique centrale (ALAC) (in French). Vol. 1: Inventaire des langues. Yaoundé: CERDOTOLA. ISBN   9789956796069.
  3. ↑ Hofmann, Erica (1990). A preliminary phonology of bana (MA thesis). University of Victoria.

Related Research Articles

Fang is a Central African language spoken by around 1 million people, most of them in Equatorial Guinea, and northern Gabon, where it is the dominant Bantu language; Fang is also spoken in southern Cameroon, the Republic of the Congo, and small fractions of the islands of São Tomé and Príncipe. It is related to the Bulu and Ewondo languages of southern Cameroon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Voiced labiodental flap</span> Consonantal sound represented by ⟨ⱱ⟩ in IPA

In phonetics, the voiced labiodental flap is a speech sound found primarily in languages of Central Africa, such as Kera and Mangbetu. It has also been reported in the Austronesian language Sika. It is one of the few non-rhotic flaps. The sound begins with the lower lip placed behind the upper teeth. The lower lip is then flipped outward, striking the upper teeth in passing.

Massa is a Chadic language spoken in southern Chad and northern Cameroon by the Masa people. It has approximately 200,000 speakers.

Bulu is a Bantu language of the Bulu people of Cameroon. The language had 174,000 native speakers in 1982, with some 800,000 second language speakers in 1991. Its dialects include Bene, Yelinda, Yembana, Yengono, and Zaman. Bulu was formerly used by colonial and missionary groups as a lingua franca in the region for commercial, educational, and religious purposes, though it is today becoming less frequent in those spheres.

Kera is an East Chadic language spoken by 45,000 people in Southwest Chad and 6,000 people in North Cameroon.

Zulgo-Gemzek is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken in northern Cameroon. Dialects are Gemzek, Mineo, and Zulgo (Zəlgwa). Blench (2006) considers Zəlgwa-Minew and Gemzek to be distinct languages.

Lagwan (Logone) is a Chadic language spoken in northern Cameroon and southwestern Chad. Dialects include Logone-Birni and Logone-Gana.

Mser (Msər), or Kousseri (Kuseri), is a moribund Afro-Asiatic language spoken in northern Cameroon and southwestern Chad. Dialects are Gawi, Houlouf, Kabe, Kalo, Mser (Kuseri).

Hya is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken in northern Cameroon and neighboring regions of Nigeria.

Psikye is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken in northern Cameroon and eastern Nigeria. Varieties include Psikyɛ and Zləngə. Blench (2006) classifies it as a dialect of Kamwe.

Cuvok is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken in northern Cameroon.

Mafa is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken in northern Cameroon and Northern Nigeria by the Mafa people.

Mbuko is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken in the canton of Doulek, Méri subdivision, department of Diamaré, and also in parts of the canton of Serawa, Tokombéré subdivision, department of Mayo-Sava, in the Far North Region of Cameroon.

Nzanyi is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Nigeria in Adamawa State in Maiha LGA, and along the border in Cameroon. Dialects are Dede, Hoode, Lovi, Magara, Maiha, Mutidi, Nggwoli, Paka, and Rogede.

Yedina, also known as Buduma (Boudouma), is a Chadic language of the Biu–Mandara branch spoken around Lake Chad in western Chad and neighbouring Cameroon and Nigeria.

Kol is a Niger–Congo language of the Bantu family, associated with the Bikélé ethnic group. It is spoken in the East Province of Cameroon, in the vicinity of Messaména. Alternate names for Kol language include Bikele-Bikay, Bikele-Bikeng, Bikélé, and Bekol.

Iyasa is a Bantu language spoken in Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea by the Iyasa and Ndowe coastal fishing peoples. It is also spoken by Pygmies, perhaps Babongo, in Gabon. Approximately 3,000 people speak Iyasa, though some note that this number may be an overestimation.

Mmen (Bafmeng) is a Grassfields Bantu language of Cameroon.

The Bambalang language, also called Chrambo or Mbawyakum (Mboyakum), is a Grassfields Bantu language of Cameroon.

Kwakum is classified as belonging to the Bantu subgroup A90 (Kaka) of the Zone “A” Bantu languages, and specifically labelled A91 by Guthrie. According to one of the newest updates to the Bantu classification system, other languages belonging to this subgroup are: Pol (A92a), Pɔmɔ (A92b), Kweso (A92C) and Kakɔ (A93). The Kwakum people refer to themselves as either Kwakum or Bakoum. However, they say that the "Bakoum" pronunciation only began after the arrival of Europeans in Cameroon, though it is frequently used today. Kwakum is mainly spoken in the East region of Cameroon, southwest of the city Bertoua.

References


Flag of Cameroon.svg

This Cameroon-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.