Lagwan language

Last updated
Lagwan
Logone
Native to Cameroon, Chad
Region Far North Province, Cameroon; west Chad
Ethnicity Kotoko people
Native speakers
10,000 in Cameroon (2004) [1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3 kot
Glottolog lagw1237
ELP Lagwan

Lagwan (Logone) is a Chadic language spoken in northern Cameroon and southwestern Chad. Dialects include Logone-Birni and Logone-Gana.

Contents

Lagwan is spoken in the northern part of Logone-Birni, from the banks of the Logone River to the Nigerian border (Logone-et-Chari Department, Far North Region). It is also spoken in Chad and Nigeria. It has 38,500 speakers in Cameroon. [2]

Phonology

Consonants
Labial Alveolar Lateral alveolar Dorsal Labialized dorsal
plosive Voiceless p t k kʷ
Voiced b d g gʷ
Glottalic ɓ ɗ kʼ kʷʼ
fricative Voiceless f s ɬ χ χʷ
Voiced v z ɮ ʁ ʁʷ
Glottalic sʼ ɬʼ
sonorant Nasal m n
Tap ɾ
Approximant l j w

As is common in Chadic languages, the principal vowel is the low central vowel /a/; where there is no underlying V-slot, an epenthetic ‘zero vowel’ is inserted. Despite the limited distribution of the other vowels, /i, u, e, o/ have emerging phonological status. However, as has been observed in other Chadic languages, certain contrasts are productive only word-finally, excluding the sub-lexicon of loan words.

Lagwan has two contrastive tones, low and high. Mid tone is also found on a few nouns loaned from Classical Arabic. On intensifiers the phonological high tone has an extra-high realisation. [3]

Notes

  1. ↑ Lagwan at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. ↑ 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.
  3. ↑ Ruff, Joy Naomi (2005). "Phonology of Lagwan": 48.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

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References


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