Jarawa language (Nigeria)

Last updated
Jarawa
Regionnorthern Nigeria, near Bauchi
Native speakers
250,000 (dialects with ISO codes) (2006–2011) [1]
Dialects
  • Zhár (Bankal)
  • Zugur (Duguri)
  • Gwak (Gingwak)
  • Ndaŋshi
  • Dòòrì
  • Mbat (Bada)
  • Mùùn
  • Kantana
  • Dàmùl
Language codes
ISO 639-3 Variously:
jjr   Zhár (Bankal)
dbm   Zugur (Duguri)
bau   Mbat (Bada)
jgk   Gwak (Gingwak)
Glottolog jara1263

Jarawa (also known as Jhar, or in Hausa: Jaranci) is the most populous of the Bantu languages of northern Nigeria. It is a dialect cluster consisting of many varieties.

Contents

Phonology

Consonants in the Mbat dialect [2]
Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Plosive voiceless p t k ( ʔ )
voiced b d ɡ
implosive ɓ ɗ
Affricate voiceless k͡x
voiced d͡ʒ ɡ͡ɣ
Fricative voiceless f s ʃ
voiced( β ) z
Nasal m n ɲ ŋ
Rhotic r
Approximant w l j
Vowels in the Mbat dialect [2]
Front Central Back
Close i u
Near-close ɪ ʊ
Mid ( ɛ ) ə ( ɔ )
Open a

Dialects

Jarawa dialects are:

Kantana may be a distinct language.

Blench (2019) lists these varieties as dialects of Jar (Jarawa). [3]

References

  1. Zhár (Bankal) at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
    Zugur (Duguri) at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
    Mbat (Bada) at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
    Gwak (Gingwak) at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. 1 2 Green, Christopher R. (2020). Harmony and disharmony in Mbat (Jarawan Bantu) verbs. In Linguistique et Langues Africaines 6: Syracuse University. pp. 43–72.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  3. Blench, Roger (2019). An Atlas of Nigerian Languages (4th ed.). Cambridge: Kay Williamson Educational Foundation.