Kuria language

Last updated
Kuria
Igikuria
Native to Kenya, Tanzania [1]
Ethnicity Kuria people
Native speakers
690,000 (2005–2009) [2]
Dialects
  • Kuria proper
  • Simbiti
  • Hacha
  • Surwa
  • Sweta
Latin, Arabic
Language codes
ISO 639-3 kuj
Glottolog kuri1259
JE.43,431–434 [3]

Kuria is a Bantu language spoken by the Kuria people of Northern Tanzania, with some speakers also residing in Kenya.

Contents

Maho (2009) treats the Simbiti, Hacha, Surwa, and Sweta varieties as distinct languages.

Alphabet

Kuria alphabet (Kenya) [4] [5] [6]
UppercaseABChEËGHIKMNNdNyNg'OÖRRrSTUWY
Lowercaseabcheëghikmnndnyng'oörrrstuwy
IPA Symbolaβt͡ʃeɛɣhikmnn͡dɲŋoɔɾrstuwj

Phonology

Consonants

Kuria consonant phonemes [5]
Bilabial Alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Stop t k
Fricative β s ɣ h
Nasal m n ɲ ŋ
Trill r
Flap ɾ
Glide j
Prenasalized Stops m͡bn͡dŋ͡g
Affricates t͡ʃ

Vowels

Kuria vowels [5]
Advanced Tongue Root (+ATR) -ATR
Front Central Back Front Central Back
Close i u
Close-Mid e o
Open-Mid ɛ ɔ
Open a

All vowels contrast length, and can be either short or long.

Bibliography

References

  1. Ethnologue entry for Kuria
  2. Kuria at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  3. Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
  4. Rhonda L. Hartell, ed. 1993. The Alphabets of Africa. Dakar: UNESCO and Summer Institute of Linguistics
  5. 1 2 3 Nyauma, Shem (2014). "A Phonological Reconstruction Of Ekegusii And Egekuria Nouns: A Comparative Analysis" (PDF). Masters Thesis, University of Nairobi.
  6. Hartell, Rhonda, ed. (1993). Alphabets of Africa. UNESCO Regional Office in Dakar (BREDA). p. 186. ISBN   92-9091-020-3.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: ignored ISBN errors (link)