Guere language

Guéré (Gere), also called Wè (Wee), is a Kru language spoken by over 300,000 people in the Dix-Huit Montagnes and Moyen-Cavally regions of Ivory Coast.

Not to be confused with Neyo language.
Guéré
Wè
Native toIvory Coast
RegionDix-Huit Montagnes, Moyen-Cavally
Native speakers
400,000 (2017)[1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3Either:
gxx – Central Gere (Southern Wee)
wec – Neyo (Western Wee)
Glottologguer1240

Phonology

The phonology of Guere (here the Zagna dialect of Central Guere / Southern Wè)[2] is briefly sketched out below.

Consonants

The consonant phonemes are as follows:

Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Labial-
velar		 Labialized
velar
Stops voiceless p t c k k͡p kʷ
voiced b d ɟ ɡ ɡ͡b ɡʷ
implosive ɓ
Nasal m n ɲ
Fricative voiceless f s
voiced v z
Approximant l j w

Allophones of some of these phonemes include:

  • [k͡m] is an allophone of /k͡p/ before nasal vowels
  • [ŋ͡m] is an allophone of /ɡ͡b/ before nasal vowels
  • [ŋʷ] is an allophone of /w/ before nasal vowels
  • [ɗ] is an allophone of /l/ in word-initial position
  • [r] is an allophone of /l/ after a coronal consonant (alveolar or palatal)

In addition, while the nasal consonants /m, n/ and contrast with /ɓ/ and /l/ before oral vowels, and are thus separate phonemes, before nasal vowels only the nasal consonants occur. /ɓ/ and /l/ do not occur before nasal vowels, suggesting that historically a phonemic merger between these sounds and the nasals /m, n/ may have occurred in this position.

Vowels

Like many West African languages, Guere makes use of a contrast between vowels with advanced tongue root and those with retracted tongue root. In addition, nasal vowels contrast phonemically with oral vowels.

  Oral Nasal
Front Back Front Back
Close (ATR) iuĩũ
Close (RTR) ɪʊɪ̃ʊ̃
Mid (ATR) eo õ
Mid (RTR) ɛɔɛ̃ɔ̃
Open (RTR)  a ã

Tones

Guere is a tonal language and contrasts ten tones:

Tone IPA Example Gloss
Low  ˩ɡ͡ba˩"to scatter"
Mid  ˧ɡ͡ba˧"to destroy"
High  ˦mɛ˦"to die"
Top  ˥ji˥"full"
Low–high rising  ˩˦ɡ͡bla˩˦"hat"
Low–top rising  ˩˥k͡plɔ̃˩˥"banana"
Mid–high rising  ˧˦ɓlo˧˦"wall"
High–top rising  ˦˥de˦˥"younger brother"
High–low falling  ˦˩ɡ͡ba˩a˦˩"goat"
Mid–low falling  ˧˩sre˧˩"penis"

See also
  • Wobe a.k.a. Northern Wè

References
  1. Central Gere (Southern Wee) at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) closed access
    Neyo (Western Wee) at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) closed access
  2. Paradis, Carole (1983). Description phonologique du guéré. Abidjan: Institut de Linguistique Appliquée, Université d'Abidjan.
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