Izere language

Last updated
Izere
Afusare
Izarek
Native to Nigeria
Region Kaduna State, Bauchi State, Plateau
Native speakers
500,000 (2006–2016) [1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3 Variously:
izr   NE & NW Izere
cen   Cèn (Chen)
gne   Ganàng (Gashish)
Glottolog None
izer1242   Izeric, incl. Firan

Izere is a dialect continuum of Plateau languages in Nigeria. According to Blench (2008), it is four languages, though Ethnologue does not distinguish NW and NE Izere. The Cen and Ganang varieties are spoken by only 2000 each. Cen has added Berom noun-class prefixes and consonant alternation to an Izere base.

Contents

Dialects

Blench (2019) lists the following Izere dialects. [2]

Phonology

The Izere phonetic inventory includes 29 consonants and seven vowels and distinguishes three tone levels; two additional contour tones appear only rarely, in loanwords and due to onomatopoeia. [3]

Consonants

The consonant phonemes of Izere are shown in the following table.

Bilabial Labiodental Alveolar Palato-alveolar Palatal Velar Labial–velar Glottal
Stop p  bt  dc  ɟk  ɡk͡p  ɡ͡b
Nasal mnɲŋŋ͡m
Trill (r)
Fricative f  vs  zʃ  ʒh
Affricate ts
Approximant j, ɥw
Lateral l

Vowels

The vowel phonemes of Izere are shown in the following table.

Vowel phonemes
Front Back
Close i u
Close-mid e o
Open-mid ɛ
Open a

Tonemes

There are three level (L, M & H) and two contour tonemes (LM & HL) in Izere; the latter two are found only in loanwords and onomatopoeia.

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References

  1. NE & NW Izere at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
    Cèn (Chen) at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
    Ganàng (Gashish) at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. Blench, Roger (2019). An Atlas of Nigerian Languages (4th ed.). Cambridge: Kay Williamson Educational Foundation.
  3. Blench, Roger; Kaze, Bitrus. Dictionary of the Izere language.