Bulu is a

Bantu language The Bantu languages (English: , Proto-Bantu: *bantʊ̀) are a large family of languages spoken by the Bantu people of Central, Southern, Eastern africa and Southeast Africa. They form the largest branch of the Southern Bantoid languages. The t ...

of the Bulu people of Cameroon. The language had 174,000 native speakers in 1982, with some 800,000 second language speakers in 1991. Its dialects include Bene, Yelinda, Yembana, Yengono, and Zaman. Bulu was formerly used by colonial and missionary groups as a ''

lingua franca A lingua franca (; ; for plurals see ), also known as a bridge language, common language, trade language, auxiliary language, vehicular language, or link language, is a language systematically used to make communication possible between groups ...

'' in the region for commercial, educational, and religious purposes, though it is today becoming less frequent in those spheres. Bulu belongs to the group of Beti languages and is intelligible with Eton, Ewondo, and

Fang A fang is a long, pointed tooth. In mammals, a fang is a modified maxillary tooth, used for biting and tearing flesh. In snakes, it is a specialized tooth that is associated with a venom gland (see snake venom). Spiders also have external fang ...

Distribution

Bulu speakers are concentrated primarily in Cameroon's South Province, with the largest number at Ebolowa and

Sangmélima Sangmélima is a town on the Lobo River, and also the chief town of Lobo division ("Dja et Lobo"), in the South Province ('Province du Sud'), Republic of Cameroon, Africa. The language spoken there is Bulu. French, is also spoken as it is one ...

. Some speakers live in the

Nyong-et-Mfoumou division Nyong-et-Mfoumou is a department of Centre Province in Cameroon. The department covers an area of 6,172 km and as of 2001 had a total population of 130,321. The capital of the department lies at Akonolinga. Subdivisions The department is divid ...

of the Centre and the Haut-Nyong division of the East. According to ALCAM (2012), Bulu is spoken in the departments of Mvila and

Dja-et-Lobo Dja-et-Lobo is a department of South Province in Cameroon. The department covers an area of 19,911 km and as of 2005 had a total population of 196,951. The capital of the department lies at Sangmélima. Subdivisions The department is divi ...

(Southern Region), and also the south of the department of

Haute-Sanaga Haute-Sanaga is a department of Central Region in Cameroon. The department covers an area of 11,854 km and as of 2001 had a total population of 115,305. The capital of the department lies at Nanga-Eboko. Subdivisions The department is divided ...

(Central Region) where the Yezum dialect of Ewondo is also spoken. Along with the Yébékóló and Omvan languages, it is also spoken in the north of

Nyong-et-Mfoumou Nyong-et-Mfoumou is a department of Centre Province in Cameroon. The department covers an area of 6,172 km and as of 2001 had a total population of 130,321. The capital of the department lies at Akonolinga. Subdivisions The department is divide ...

department (Central Region) and part of

Haut-Nyong Haut-Nyong is a department of East Province in Cameroon. The department covers an area of 36,384 km and as of 2001 had a total population of 216,768. The capital of the department lies at Abong-Mbang. Subdivisions The department is divided ...

department (south of Nguelemendouka commune, Eastern Region).

Phonology

Consonants

Vowels/Nasals

Writing system

The Bulu language was codified by the first Presbyterian missionaries who arrived in Cameroon. They made it a language of instruction in Protestant doctrine during the colonial era. This language has a dictionary (French-Bulu/Bulu-French) one of whose authors is Moïse Eyinga. The first novel written in Boulou is Nnanga Kôn.

EPC Alphabet

The Bulu alphabet of the Presbyterian Church of Cameroon consists of 24 letters: a, b, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, ñ, o, ô, p, s, t, u, v, w, y, z. é and è are variants of e in this alphabet.

PROPELCA alphabet

PROPELCA has also coded Bulu with an alphabet based on the

General Alphabet of Cameroonian Languages The General Alphabet of Cameroon Languages is an orthographic system created in the late 1970s for all Cameroonian languages. Consonant and vowel letters are not to contain diacritics, though is a temporary exception. The alphabet is not used suf ...

References

Beti languages Languages of Cameroon {{Bantu-lang-stub