Tikar (also called Tigé, Tigré or Tikari) is a
Northern Bantoid,
semi-Bantu language that is spoken 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; th ...
by the
Tikar people
The Tikar (also Tikari, Tige, Tigar, Tigre, Tikali) are a central African people who inhabit the Western High Plateau in Cameroon. They are known as great artisans and storytellers. Once a nomadic people, some oral traditions trace the origin ...
, as well as by the
Bedzan Pygmies, who speak their own dialect of the language''.''
A recent hypothesis 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 ...
suggests that the Tikar language could be a divergent language in the
Niger-Congo language family with an uncertain origin.
Classification
The little evidence available suggests that it is most closely related to the
Mambiloid and
Dakoid languages.
Dialects
The Tikar language has four dialects, including ''Tikari'', ''Tigé'', and ''Túmú''.
References
Northern Bantoid languages
Languages of Cameroon
African Pygmies
Tikar people
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