Kogo language

Last updated
Kogo
Bakoko
Native to Cameroon
Ethnicity Bakoko
Native speakers
(50,000 cited 1982) [1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3 bkh
Glottolog bako1249
A.43b [2]

Kogo, also referred to as Bakoko [1] and Basoo, [1] is a Bantu language of Cameroon. North and South Kogo are as distinct from each other as they are from Basaa; they might be considered three dialects of a single language. [3]

Contents

Demographics

Traditionally, Bakoko and Basaa societies had a very close relationship, especially on a religious level. The Bakoko language was the language of ritual for both the Bakoko and Basaa, and the Basaa language was also familiar to the Bakoko. After the Second World War, as the ritual relations gradually receded, this social and linguistic symbiosis declined. Today, the two languages are sociolinguistically distinct. Bakoko speakers also tend to speak Basaa today, but Basaa speakers typically do not speak Bakoko. [4]

There are many dialects because of the geographical fragmentation of the Bakoko-speaking area. ALCAM (2012) lists the following dialects. [4]

Central dialects:

In the south:

Detached from the southern contiguous group mentioned above are four separate Bakoko groups, each with its own dialect:

In the west:

In the northwest:

In the northeast:

There are around 50,000 speakers. [4]

Orthography

Kogo uses the Latin script. [1] Its alphabet is based on the General Alphabet of Cameroon Languages and consists of 7 vowels and 20 consonants. [5] [6]

Letters (upper case)ABƁCDEƐFGHIJKLMNŊOƆPSTUVWYZ
Letters (lower case)abɓcdeɛfghijklmnŋoɔpstuvwyz
IPA abɓt͡ʃdeɛfɡhid͡ʒklmnŋoɔpstuvwjz

Sample text

The Lord's Prayer in Kogo and English: [7]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Kogo at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. ↑ Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
  3. ↑ Maho 2009
  4. 1 2 3 Binam Bikoi, Charles, ed. (2012). Atlas linguistique du Cameroun (ALCAM)[Linguistic Atlas of Cameroon]. Atlas linguistique de l'Afrique centrale (ALAC) (in French). Vol. 1: Inventaire des langues. Yaoundé: CERDOTOLA. ISBN   9789956796069.
  5. ↑ "Bakoko Orthography Guide" (PDF). silcam.org. Retrieved March 2, 2018.
  6. ↑ Njeck and Anderson 2009
  7. ↑ "Bakoko Language Sample". language-museum.com. Retrieved March 2, 2018.
  8. ↑ Matthew 6:9–13


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