Bana language
Bana is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken in northern Cameroon. Dialects include Gamboura and Gili.[1]
| Bana | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Cameroon |
| Region | Far North Region, Cameroon |
Native speakers | 23,000 (2007)[1] |
Afro-Asiatic
| |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | bcw |
| Glottolog | bana1305 |
| ELP | Bana |
| Bana | |
|---|---|
| Language | koma kabana |
Bana is spoken in the canton of Guili, in the northern part of the commune of Bourrha (department of Mayo-Tsanaga, Far North Region). The speakers call their language koma kabana 'the language of the Bana'.[2]
Phonology
| Labial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Labialized velar | Uvular | Labialized uvular | Glottal | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ŋ | ŋʷ | ||||
| Voiceless plosive | p | t | k | kʷ | ʔ ʔʷ | |||
| Voiced plosive | b | d | ɡ | ɡʷ | ||||
| Prenasalized plosive | mb | nd ndz | ŋɡ | ŋɡʷ | ||||
| Implosive | ɓ | ɗ | ||||||
| Affricate | ts dz | |||||||
| Fricative | f v | s z | χ ʁ | χʷ ʁʷ | ||||
| Flap | ⱱ | ɾ | ||||||
| Approximant | j | w |
The vowels of Bana are /ɨ ə ɛ/, which can occur with high, falling, low, or rising tone. [3]
Notes
- Bana at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
- Binam Bikoi, Charles, ed. (2012). Atlas linguistique du Cameroun (ALCAM) [Linguistic Atlas of Cameroon]. Atlas linguistique de l'Afrique centrale (ALAC) (in French). Vol. 1: Inventaire des langues. Yaoundé: CERDOTOLA. ISBN 9789956796069.
- Hofmann, Erica. 1990. A preliminary phonology of bana. University of Victoria. (MA thesis).
References
- Hofmann, Erica (1990). A Preliminary Phonology of Bana (PDF) (M.A. thesis). University of Victoria. OCLC 27946722.
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