Eloyi language

Last updated

Eloyi
Afu
Native to Nigeria
Region Benue State, Nassarawa State
Native speakers
100,000 (2021) [1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3 afo
Glottolog eloy1241

Eloyi, or Afu (Afo) or Ajiri, [2] is a Plateau language of uncertain classification. It is spoken by the Eloyi people of Agatu LGA and Otukpo LGA of Benue State and Nassarawa State in Nigeria.

Contents

Classification

Armstrong (1955, 1983) [3] [4] classified Eloyi as Idomoid, but that identification was based on a single word list and Armstrong later expressed doubts. [5] Other preliminary accounts classify it as Plateau, [6] and Blench (2008) leaves it as a separate branch of Plateau. [7]

Blench (2007) considers Eloyi to be a divergent Plateau language that has undergone Idomoid influence, rather than vice versa. [8]

Phonology

Consonants

Consonants [9]
Bilabial Labio-
dental
Alveolar Post-
alveolar
Palatal Velar Labial-
velar
Glottal
Plosive voiceless p t k k͡p
voiced b d g g͡b
Affricate d͡z d͡ʒ
Fricative voiceless f s ʃ h
voiced v z
Nasal m n ɲ ŋ
Rhotic r / ɾ
Approximant l j w

Vowels

Vowels [10] [11]
Front Central Back
Close i u
Close-mid e o
Open-mid ɛ ɔ
Open a

Notes

  1. Eloyi at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) Closed Access logo transparent.svg
  2. Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin; Bank, Sebastian (eds.). "Ajiri". Glottolog . 5.0. Archived from the original on 18 July 2024. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
  3. Blench 2007, citing Armstrong, R. G. (1955). "The Idoma-speaking peoples". In Forde, C. D. (ed.). Peoples of the Niger-Benue confluence. Ethnographic Survey of Africa. Vol. X. London: IAI. pp. 77–89.
  4. Blench 2007, citing Armstrong, R. G. (1983). "The Idomoid languages of the Benue and Cross River Valleys". Journal of West African Languages. 13 (1): 91–149.
  5. Blench 2007, citing Armstrong, R. G. (1984). "The consonant system of Akpa". Nigerian Language Teacher. 5 (2): 29.
  6. 1 2 3 Blench 2007, p. 5.
  7. Blench, Roger (24 April 2008). "Prospecting proto-Plateau" (PDF). Draft. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 April 2014.
  8. Blench 2007, p. 26.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Muniru et al. 2021, p. 21.
  10. 1 2 3 Muniru et al. 2021, p. 22.
  11. Blench 2007, p. 2.
  12. Muniru et al. 2021, p. 23.

References