Bonjo language

Last updated
Bonjo
Native to Republic of Congo
Native speakers
(undated figure of 3,000) [1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3 bok
Glottolog bonj1234
C143 [2]
ELP Bonjo

Bonjo, also known as Mbonzo or Impfondo, is a Bantu language spoken by around 3,000 people in northern Republic of Congo, particularly the Likouala Department near the town of Impfondo. Speakers are gradually shifting to Lingala.

The classification of Bonjo has shifted over time. Ethnologue formerly classified it as a southern Gbaya language, [3] but as of the twenty-sixth edition has reclassified it as a Bantoid and member of the Ngondi–Ngiri family. [4] Some sources continue to list it as a southern Gbaya language. [5]

Bonjo is closely related to the Bomitaba language, spoken in the same region. [6] [2]

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gbaya people</span>

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Kresh is a small language group of South Sudan. It is generally considered to be a branch of the Central Sudanic languages. Boyeldieu (2010) judges that this has yet to be demonstrated satisfactorily, but Starostin (2016) finds convincing evidence, and that its closest relative within that family appears to be Birri.

Northwest Gbaya is a Gbaya language spoken across a broad expanse of Cameroon and the Central African Republic. The principal variety is Kara, a name shared with several neighboring languages; Lay (Làì) is restricted to a small area north of Mbodomo, with a third between it and Toongo that is not named in Moñino (2010), but is influenced by the Gbaya languages to the south.

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Bomitaba (Mbomitaba) is a Bantu language of the Republic of Congo, with a couple hundred speakers in the Central African Republic.

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References

  1. Bonjo at Ethnologue (15th ed., 2005) Closed Access logo transparent.svg
  2. 1 2 Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
  3. Gordon, Raymond G., Jr. (ed.), 2005. Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Fifteenth edition. Dallas, Texas: SIL International. Online version: http://www.ethnologue.com/15.
  4. Eberhard, David M., Gary F. Simons, and Charles D. Fennig (eds.). 2023. Ethnologue: Languages of the World. Twenty-sixth edition. Dallas, Texas: SIL International. https://www.ethnologue.com/language/bok/
  5. "Bonjo". Endangered Language Project. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
  6. "Spoken L1 Language: Impfondo". Glottolog. Retrieved 27 May 2023.