Guruntum | |
---|---|
Guruntum-Mbaaru | |
gùrdùŋ | |
Region | Nigeria |
Native speakers | (15,000 cited 1993) [1] |
Afro-Asiatic
| |
Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 | grd |
Glottolog | guru1271 |
ELP | Guruntum |
Guruntum is a Chadic language spoken in Bauchi and Alkaleri LGAs, Bauchi State, Nigeria. In 1993 it was spoken by about 15,000 people.
Guruntum is a West Chadic language of the Barawa (B.3) group.
Major dialects include Kuuku, Gayar, Mbaaru, Dooka, Gar and Karakara.
Guruntum contrasts long and short forms for all vowels except for /ɨ/. In addition, two nasalized vowel phonemes exist: /ũː//ãː/.
Front | Central | Back | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
short | long | short | long | short | long | |
Close | i | iː | ɨ | u | uː ũː | |
Mid | e | eː | o | oː | ||
Open | a | aː ãː |
There are two diphthongs, /ai/ and /au/.
Labial | Alveolar | Postalveolar or palatal | Velar | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Plain | Palatalized | Labialized | Plain | Palatalized | Labialized | ||||
Nasal | m | mʲ | mʷ | n | nʲ | ŋ | |||
Stop | prenasalized | ᵐb | ⁿd | ᶮdʒ | ᵑɡ | ᵑɡʲ | ᵑɡʷ | ||
voiceless | p | pʲ | t | k | kʲ | kʷ | |||
voiced | b | bʲ | d | dʒ | ɡ | ɡʲ | ɡʷ | ||
implosive | ɓ | ɗ | |||||||
Fricative | voiceless | f | fʲ | fʷ | s | ʃ | |||
voiced | v | vʷ | z | ʒ | |||||
Trill | r | ||||||||
Approximant | l | j | w |
/r/ is realized as a flap intervocalically before back vowels; elsewhere it is a trill.
Guruntum has four tones: high, low, rising (low-high) and falling (high-low).
Afroasiatic (Afro-Asiatic), also known as Afrasian or Hamito-Semitic or Semito-Hamitic, is a large language family of about 300 languages that are spoken predominantly in West Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa and parts of the Sahel.
The Chadic languages form a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken in parts of the Sahel. They include 150 languages spoken across northern Nigeria, southern Niger, southern Chad, Central African Republic and northern Cameroon. The most widely spoken Chadic language is Hausa, a lingua franca of much of inland Eastern West Africa.
Hausa is a Chadic language spoken by the Hausa people, mainly within the territories of Niger and the northern half of Nigeria, and with significant minorities in Chad, Ghana, and Cameroon.
Goemai is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken in the Great Muri Plains region of Plateau State in central Nigeria, between the Jos Plateau and Benue River. Goemai is also the name of the ethnic group of speakers of the Goemai language. The name 'Ankwe' has been used to refer to the people, especially in older literature and to outsiders. As of 2008, it was estimated there were around 200,000 ethnic Goemai, but it is unknown how many of these are native speakers of the language.
There are over 525 native languages spoken in Nigeria. The official language of Nigeria is English, the language of former colonial British Nigeria. As reported in 2003, Nigerian English and Nigerian Pidgin were spoken as a second language by 60 million people in Nigeria. Communication in the English language is much more popular in the country's urban communities than it is in the rural areas, due to globalization.
Bade is a West Chadic language spoken by the Bade people in Yobe State and Jigawa State, Nigeria. Their traditional ruler is the Emir of Bade. Similar to many other Western African languages, Bade is a vulnerable language at great risk of extinction. With 250,000 speakers, the language and the culture of the Bade people have suffered over the last several years. As the language continues to fade, the culture and historic value associated with the language perishes as well. The local dialect is shifting from Bade to Hausa. Across West Africa, the impact on local communities through the loss of the indigenous tongues will be significant. The endangerment of the Bade language represents the worldwide language diversity that is at risk. Many African languages have only received little linguistic attention, impacting these African languages.
The West Chadic languages of the Afro-Asiatic family are spoken principally in Niger and Nigeria. They include Hausa, the most populous Chadic language and a major language of West Africa.
Kera is an East Chadic language spoken by 45,000 people in Southwest Chad and 6,000 people in North Cameroon.
The Angas, Angas–Sura, or Central West Chadic languages are a branch of West Chadic languages spoken in Plateau State, north-central Nigeria.
The North Bauchi languages are a branch of West Chadic languages that are spoken in Bauchi State, northern Nigeria.
Bure, also known as Bubbure, is an Afro-Asiatic language belonging to the Bole-Tangale group of the West branch of the Chadic family. It is spoken in northern Nigeria in the village of Bure and in some small settlements nearby. The language is used mostly by a very few speakers, of great-grandparental generation. Except for Hausa, which is lingua franca in the area, Bure is surrounded by other Chadic languages such as Gera, Giiwo and Deno . Compared to other languages of the same group, the endangerment of Bure is by far the most critical.
The South Bauchi & East Plateau languages are a branch of West Chadic languages that are spoken in Bauchi State & Plateau State Nigeria.
Boghom is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken by the majority of people in Kanam & Wase local government of Plateau State, Nigeria.
Mantsi is an endangered Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Mangas town in Bauchi State, Nigeria. Blench (2020) reports that it is also called Mantsi. According to Blench, the structure of Mantsi differs significantly from the other South Bauchi languages.
Zeem, or Chaari, is an endangered Chadic dialect cluster of Nigeria, whose speakers are shifting to Hausa. Dyarim is closely related.
Margi, also known as Marghi and Marghi Central, is a Chadic language spoken in Nigeria, Cameroon, and Chad. It is perhaps the best described of the Biu–Mandara branch of that family. Marghi South language and Putai are closely related and sometimes considered dialects of Margi.
Jarawan is a dialect cluster That is spoken mostly in Bauchi State, with some also scattered in Taraba State and Adamawa State.
The Kwaami language, also known as Komawa, Kwam, Kwamanchi, Kwami, or Kwom, is a West Chadic language spoken in Bauchi State, Nigeria, near the city of Gombe.
Polci is an Afro-Asiatic language of Bauchi State, Nigeria. It is part of the Barawa cluster, which is in turn part of the West Chadic language family.
Geji (Gezawa) is a minor Chadic dialect cluster of Bauchi State, Nigeria. The three varieties are Buu, Gyaazi and Mәgang. The latter two are quite close.