Jibyal (also known as Ankwey, a former name for the Goemai people) is a West Chadic language spoken in

Plateau State Plateau State is the twelfth-largest Nigerian state. It is in the centre of the country includes a range of hills surrounding the Jos Plateau, its capital, and the entire plateau itself. Plateau State is described as "The Home of Peace and To ...

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 of G ...

. It was discovered by

Roger Blench Roger Marsh Blench (born August 1, 1953) is a British linguist, ethnomusicologist and development anthropologist. He has an M.A. and a Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge and is based in Cambridge, England. He researches, publishes, and wor ...

in 2017.Blench, Roger. 2017.
Current research on the A3 West Chadic languages
'. Jibyal most likely belongs to the Pan cluster of languages, which includes Kofyar. Some similarities with Cakfem-Mushere have also been noted by Blench (2019). Jibyal is spoken in Jibyal town, and in the hamlets of Monkwat, Lamalang, Shimər, and Dalu. Blench (2017) reports 2,000 speakers total. Jibyal speakers intermarry with Bwal speakers. Children still speak the language, but it is still threatened by

Hausa Hausa may refer to: * Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa * Hausa language, spoken in West Africa * Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states * Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse See also ...

Names

Jibyal speakers refer to themselves as ''Ankwei'' �ŋkwéy which was also the name that the Goemai had formerly used to refer to themselves.

Geographical distribution

Jibyal is spoken in

Nasarawa State Nasarawa State is a state in the North Central region of Nigeria, bordered to the east by the states of Taraba and Plateau, to the north by Kaduna State, to the south by the states of Kogi and Benue, and to the west by the Federal Capital Terr ...

, near the border with

. It is spoken in Mangu LGA, situated to the west of the Panyam-Shendam road, to the south of Mushere. Villages and hamlets are Jibyal village, and Monkwat, Lamalang, Shimәr, and Dalu hamlets. Jibyal is situated to the north of Nteng, and to the west of Jipal (a distinctive language from Jibyal, despite the similar-sounding name).

Phonology

Jibyal has vowel length contrast. Examples below:

References

* *Blench, Roger. 2017.
Current research on the A3 West Chadic languages
'. {{DEFAULTSORT:Jibyal language West Chadic languages Languages of Nigeria