The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur or Mabia, belong to the
Niger–Congo languages
Niger–Congo is a hypothetical language family spoken over the majority of sub-Saharan Africa. It unites the Mande languages, the Atlantic-Congo languages (which share a characteristic noun class system), and possibly several smaller groups of ...
. They are spoken in the
Sahel
The Sahel (; ar, ساحل ' , "coast, shore") is a region in North Africa. It is defined as the ecoclimatic and biogeographic realm of transition between the Sahara to the north and the Sudanian savanna to the south. Having a hot semi-arid cli ...
ian and
savanna
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland- grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground ...
regions of
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali ...
, namely: in most areas of
Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana t ...
, and in south-central
Mali
Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Ma ...
, northeastern
Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre i ...
, the northern halves of
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and Tog ...
and
Togo
Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...
, northwestern
Benin
Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the nort ...
, and southwestern
Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languages[Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...](_blank)
. Additionally, a single Gur language,
Baatonum, is spoken in Benin and in the extreme northwest of Nigeria. Three other single Gur languages, the
Tusya,
Vyemo and
Tiefo languages, are spoken in Burkina Faso. Another unclassified Gur language,
Miyobe, is spoken in Benin and Togo. In addition,
Kulango,
Loma
Loma may refer to:
Geography
United States
* Loma, Colorado
* Loma, Montana
* Loma, Nebraska
* Loma, North Dakota
Other countries
* Loma, Ladakh, a town in Ladakh, India
* Loma (woreda), a district in Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peo ...
and
Lorhon, are spoken in Ghana, Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso. Additionally, a few
Mossi speakers are in
Senegal
Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
, and speakers of the
Dagaare language are also found in
Cameroon
Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the ...
. The
Samu languages of Burkina Faso are Gur languages.
Typological features
Like most Niger–Congo languages, the ancestor of Gur languages probably had a
noun class system; many of today's languages have reduced this to a system of nominal
gender
Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most culture ...
s or declensions or no longer have a class system. A common property of Gur languages is the verbal
aspect marking. Almost all Gur languages are
tonal, with
Koromfé being a notable exception. The tonal systems of Gur languages are rather divergent. Most Gur languages have been described as following the model of a two tone
downstep system, but the languages of Oti-Volta branch and some others have three phonemic tones.
History of study
Sigismund Wilhelm Koelle first mentions twelve Gur languages in his 1854 ''
Polyglotta Africana
''Polyglotta Africana'' is a study published in 1854 by the German missionary Sigismund Wilhelm Koelle (1823–1902), in which the author compares 280 words from 200 African languages and dialects (or about 120 separate languages according to toda ...
'', which represent ten languages in modern classification. Notably, he correctly identified these languages as being related to one another; his 'North-Eastern High Sudan' corresponds to Gur in modern classification.
The Gur family was previously called Voltaic, following the French name ''(langues) Voltaïques'' (named after the
Volta River
The Volta River is the main river system in the West African country of Ghana. It flows south into Ghana from the Bobo-Dioulasso highlands of Burkina Faso. The main parts of the river are the Black Volta, the White Volta, and the Red Volta. ...
). It was once considered to be more extensive than it is often regarded today, including the
Senufo languages
The Senufo or Senufic languages (''Senoufo'' in French) has around 15 languages spoken by the Senufo in the north of Ivory Coast, the south of Mali and the southwest of Burkina Faso. An isolated language, Nafaanra, is also spoken in the west o ...
and a number of small language isolates. The inclusion of Senufo within Gur has been rejected by many linguists, including
Tony Naden
Tony Naden is a British lexicographer who specializes on Western Oti-Volta subgroup of Gur languages
The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur or Mabia, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. They are spoken in the Sahelian and savanna ...
. Williamson and Blench place Senufo as a separate branch of
Atlantic–Congo, while other non-Central Gur languages are placed somewhat closer as separate branches within the
Savannas
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...
continuum.
Kleinewillinghöfer (2014) notes that the closest relatives of Gur appear to be several branches of the obsolete
Adamawa family, since many "Adamawa" languages in fact share more similarities with various (Central) Gur languages than with other Adamawa languages. He proposes that early Gur-Adamawa speakers had cultivated
guinea corn
''Sorghum bicolor'', commonly called sorghum () and also known as great millet, broomcorn, guinea corn, durra, imphee, jowar, or milo, is a grass species cultivated for its grain, which is used for food for humans, animal feed, and ethanol produ ...
and millet in a wooded savanna environment.
Classification
The regions on the map denote regional distribution of the Central Gur languages. The tree-diagram below denotes the relations between these languages and their closest relatives:
The position of Dogoso–Khe in Southern Gur is not clear; it is not closely related to other members of the branch.
Bodomo (2017)
Bodomo (2017) refers to the entire Central Gur group as ''Mabia''. The term ''Mabia'' is a portmanteau of the two lexical innovations ''ma''- 'mother' + ''bia'' 'child'.
The following is a classification of the Mabia (or Central Gur) languages from Bodomo (2017), as cited in Bodomo (2020).
[Bodomo, Adams. 2020.]
Mabia: Its Etymological Genesis, Geographical Spread, and some Salient Genetic Features
" In: Bodomo A., Abubakari H. & Issah, S. 2020. ''Handbook of the Mabia Languages of West Africa''. Galda Verlag, Berlin, Germany. 400 pages, ISBN 978-3-96203-117-6 (Print) ISBN 978-3-96203-118-3 (E-Book) Bodomo divides Mabia into three primary branches, namely West, East, and Central.
* Mabia
**
East
East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth.
Etymology
As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...
(or Gurunsi, Grũsi)
***
Kasem
***
Sisaala
***
Kabiye
**
West
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...
(or Gurma)
***
Bassari
The Bassari are people who live in Senegal, Gambia, Guinea and Guinea-Bissau. The total population is between 10,000 and 30,000. Most of the Bassari are concentrated on either side of the Senegal-Guinea border southwest of Kedougou, Kédougou Regi ...
***
Konkomba
***
Moba
**
Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...
*** Dagaare
****
Dagaare
****
Wali
****
Birifor
****
Safaliba
*** North
****
Moore
Moore may refer to:
People
* Moore (surname)
** List of people with surname Moore
* Moore Crosthwaite (1907–1989), a British diplomat and ambassador
* Moore Disney (1765–1846), a senior officer in the British Army
* Moore Powell (died c. 1 ...
*** Mid-Central
****
Mabiene
****
Frafra (Nankanè)
****
Nabit
*** South
****
Dagbani
Dagbani (or Dagbane), also known as Dagbanli and Dagbanle, is a Gur language spoken in Ghana and Northern Togo. Its native speakers are estimated around 3,160,000. It is a compulsory subject in primary and junior high school in the Dagbon King ...
****
Mampruli
The Mampruli language is a Gur language spoken in northern Ghana, Northern Togo, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast and Mali by the Mamprusi people. It is partially mutually intelligible with Dagbani. The Mamprusi language is spoken in a broad belt ac ...
****
Nanuni (a dialect of Dagbani)
*** Kusaal
****
Kusaal (Kusasi)
****
Talni
*** Buli–Konni
****
Buli
****
Konni
*** Hanga–Kamara
****
Hanga
Hanga is a village in Parner taluka in Ahmednagar district of the state of Maharashtra.Maps of India, Map of Haga Village. https://www.mapsofindia.com/villages/maharashtra/ahmadnagar/parner/hanga.html.
Temple
Hanga has a popular temple of ...
****
Kamara
The term ''Mabia'', instead of ''Gur'', is also used by Naden (2021).
[Naden, Tony. 2021. ''Comparative Dictionary of Central Mabia Languages (Formerly Western Oti-Volta) / Dictionnaire Comparatif Des Langues Mabia-Central (anciennement Western Oti-Volta)''. m.s.]
Naden (2021) lists the languages of the Southern/Eastern Mabia group as
Dagbani
Dagbani (or Dagbane), also known as Dagbanli and Dagbanle, is a Gur language spoken in Ghana and Northern Togo. Its native speakers are estimated around 3,160,000. It is a compulsory subject in primary and junior high school in the Dagbon King ...
,
Hanga
Hanga is a village in Parner taluka in Ahmednagar district of the state of Maharashtra.Maps of India, Map of Haga Village. https://www.mapsofindia.com/villages/maharashtra/ahmadnagar/parner/hanga.html.
Temple
Hanga has a popular temple of ...
,
Kantoosi,
Kamara,
Kusaal (Kusasi),
Mampruli (Mamprusi),
Nabit,
Nanun/Nanuni (also considered a dialect of Dagbani), and
Talni.
Comparative vocabulary
Sample basic vocabulary of Gur languages:
''Note'': In table cells with slashes, the singular form is given before the slash, while the plural form follows the slash.
Numerals
Comparison of numerals in individual languages:
References
* Manessy, Gabriel (1968/71) 'Langues voltaïques sans classes' in Actes du huitième congres international de linguistique africaine.
ongress was 1968, proceedings published 1971Abidjan, Université d'Abidjan, 335-346.
* Naden, Anthony J. (1989) 'Gur', in Bendor-Samuel, John & Hartell, Rhonda L. (eds) ''The Niger–Congo languages. A classification and description of Africa's largest language family.'' Lanham, New York, London: University Press of America, 140-168.
* Roncador, Manfred von; Miehe, Gudrun (1998) ''Les langues gur (voltaïques). Bibliographie commentée et inventaire des appelations des langues.'' Köln: Rüdiger Köppe Verlag.
*Williamson, Kay & Blench, Roger (2000) 'Niger–Congo', in Heine, Bernd & Nurse, Derek (eds.) ''African languages: an introduction'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 11-42.
External links
Journal of West African Languages: Gur languagesProto-Gur Swadesh lists(Gabriel Manessy 1969, 1975, 1979)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gur Languages
*
Volta–Congo languages
Dagbon