Daasanach language

Last updated
Daasanach
Af Daasanach, ’Daasanach
Native to Ethiopia, Kenya, South Sudan
RegionLower Omo River, Lake Turkana
Ethnicity Daasanach
Native speakers
71,000 (2007–2019) [1]
Latin
Language codes
ISO 639-3 dsh
Glottolog daas1238
ELP Daasanach

Daasanach (also known as Dasenech, Daasanech, Dathanaik, Dathanaic, Dathanik, Dhaasanac, Gheleba, Geleba, Geleb, Gelebinya, Gallab, Galuba, Gelab, Gelubba, Dama, Marille, Merile, Merille, Morille, Reshiat, Russia) is a Cushitic language spoken by the Daasanach in Ethiopia, South Sudan and Kenya whose homeland is along the Lower Omo River and on the shores of Lake Turkana. [2]

Contents

Phonology

Consonants

Labial Dental/
Alveolar
Post-
alveolar
Palatal Velar Glottal
Plosive plain b     c     ɟ k     ɡ ʔ
implosive ɓ ɗ̠ ʄ ɠ
Fricative central f    ( v ) ð ( h )
sibilant s    ( z ) ʃ
Nasal m n ɲ ŋ
Trill r
Lateral l
Approximant w j

Vowels

Front Central Back
Close ɪ ʊ
Mid ɛ ɛː ɔ ɔː
Open a

Writing system

Jim Ness and Susan Ness of Bible Translation and Literacy and Wycliffe Bible Translators devised a practical spelling and published a 1995 alphabet book. Yergalech Komoi and Gosh Kwanyangʼ published another alphabet book in 1995. An edition of the Gospel of Mark was published in 1997, and other Bible translations were published with this spelling in 1999. [4] The alphabet was later revised, with the digraph dh replaced by a bowl-struck đ (approximately ).

Daasanach alphabet [5] [6] [4]
Lettersʼabʼbchdʼdđefgʼghiʼjklmnngʼnyorsshtuvwy
Pronunciation ʔ a b ɓ c d ɗ ð e f g ɠ h i ɟ k l m n ŋ ɲ o r s ʃ t u v w j

Vowels can be given with the acute accent, á, é, í, ó, ú, or the circumflex accent â, ê, î, ô, û. [5] [6]

Notes

  1. Daasanach at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024) Closed Access logo transparent.svg
  2. Raymond G. Gordon Jr., ed. 2005. Ethnologue: Languages of the World. 15th edition. Dallas: Summer Institute of Linguistics.
  3. Tosco 2001, p. 16-34.
  4. 1 2 Tosco 2001, p. 7.
  5. 1 2 Nyingole & Kwanyangʼ 2013a.
  6. 1 2 Nyingole & Kwanyangʼ 2013b.

Further reading