Gorowa is a
Cushitic
The Cushitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken primarily in the Horn of Africa, with minorities speaking Cushitic languages to the north in Egypt and the Sudan, and to the south in Kenya and Tanzania. As ...
language spoken in
Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
in the
Dodoma
Dodoma ( in Gogo), officially Dodoma City, is the national capital of Tanzania and the capital of the Dodoma Region, with a population of 410,956.
In 1974, the Tanzanian government announced that the capital would be moved to Dodoma for social a ...
and
Manyara Region
Manyara Region (''Mkoa wa Manyara'' in Swahili) is one of Tanzania's 31 administrative regions. The regional capital is the town of Babati. According to the 2012 national census, the region had a population of 1,425,131, which was lower than the ...
s.
It is also known as Fiome, Goroa, Gorwaa, Kimbulu, Ufiomi.
As of 2014, an estimated 79,000 people (approx. 60% of the ethnic population) use this language on a daily basis. Older Gorwaa speakers in rural areas tend to be enthusiastic about their language and have contributed to a large body of data including songs, traditional stories, uncommon vocabulary, etc. Younger Gorwaa in urban areas view the language as less useful and may be reticent to speak it. Some use the exonym Mbulu (from a large Iraqw settlement) and say they speak Kimbulu; however, this is still the Gorwaa language. Codeswitching with Swahili is ubiquitous. Young speakers involved in documentation of Gorwaa have become researchers and assumed ownership of the project.
Instances of Gorwaa writing are rare, and show a great variety of non-standard spellings. It is common to use the orthography of Iraqw for Gorwaa written communication.
See also
*
Gorowa people The Gorowa, also known as Fyomi are a Cushitic ethnic group and Iraqw Comunities inhabiting the Manyara and Dodoma regions in Tanzania. They speak the Gorowa language as a mother tongue, which belongs to the South Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asia ...
Notes
External links
Link to ELAR documentation of GorwaaBrief introduction to Gorwaa by Andew T. HarveyAn archive of language and cultural material from the Gorwaa people of Babati
South Cushitic languages
Languages of Tanzania
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