Balo Language
Balo is a Grassfields language of Cameroon. Alunfa is distinct and perhaps should be considered a different language. Balo and Alunfa are poorly documented and for a time had been considered Tivoid languages The Tivoid languages are a branch of the Southern Bantoid languages spoken in parts of Nigeria and Cameroon. The subfamily takes its name after Tiv, the most spoken language in the group. The majority are threatened with extinction. The largest .... References Southwest Grassfields languages Languages of Cameroon {{gras-lang-stub ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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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; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Its coastline lies on the Bight of Biafra, part of the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean. Due to its strategic position at the crossroads between West Africa and Central Africa, it has been categorized as being in both camps. Its nearly 27 million people speak 250 native languages. Early inhabitants of the territory included the Sao civilisation around Lake Chad, and the Baka hunter-gatherers in the southeastern rainforest. Portuguese explorers reached the coast in the 15th century and named the area ''Rio dos Camarões'' (''Shrimp River''), which became ''Cameroon'' in English. Fulani soldiers founded the Adamawa Emirate ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Southern Bantoid
Southern Bantoid (or South Bantoid) is a branch of the Bantoid language family. It consists of the Bantu languages along with several small branches and isolates of eastern Nigeria and west-central Cameroon (though the affiliation of some branches is uncertain). Since the Bantu languages are spoken across most of Sub-Saharan Africa, Southern Bantoid comprises 643 languages as counted by '' Ethnologue'', though many of these are mutually intelligible. History Southern Bantoid was first introduced by Williamson in a proposal that divided Bantoid into North and South branches. The unity of the North Bantoid group was subsequently called into question, and Bantoid itself may be polyphyletic, but the work did establish Southern Bantoid as a valid genetic unit, something that has not happened for (Narrow) Bantu itself. Internal classification According to Williamson and Blench, Southern Bantoid is divided into the various Narrow Bantu languages, Jarawan, Tivoid, Beboid, Mamfe (N ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Grassfields Languages
The Grassfields languages (or Wide Grassfields languages) are a branch of the Southern Bantoid languages spoken in the Western High Plateau of Cameroon and some parts of Taraba state, Nigeria. Better known Grassfields languages include the Eastern Grassfields languages Bamun, Yamba and the Ring language, Kom, Nso, Oku, Bali, Bafut. Almost all of these languages are closely related, sharing approximately half of their vocabulary. Classifications The Grassfields languages were previously known as ''Grassfields Bantu'' and ''Semi-Bantu.'' They are sometimes classified on two levels, ''Wide Grassfields,'' which includes all the languages, and ''Narrow Grassfields,'' which excludes Menchum, Ambele and sometimes the Southwest Grassfields languages. These may form a group of their own, which Nurse (2003) calls Peripheral Grassfields but rejects. Blench (2010) notes there is little evidence for the traditional assumption that the non-Western Momo languages belong in Grassfields a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Southwest Grassfields Languages
The Southwest Grassfields, traditionally called Western Momo when considered part of the Momo group or when Momo is included in Grassfields, are a small branch of the Southern Bantoid languages spoken in the Western grassfields of Cameroon. The languages are Manta (Tanka, Batakpa), Balo (Alunfa), Osatu, Busam, Menka– Atoŋ. Several of these have been classified as Tivoid, a position reflected in ''Ethnologue''. Classification Blench (2010) recognises five coordinate subgroups within Southwest Grassfields. ;Southwest Grassfields * Busam * Menka, Atong *Tanka, Bantakpa, Manta Manta or mantas may refer to: * Manta ray, large fish belonging to the genus ''Manta'' Arts and entertainment Fictional entities * Manta (comics), a character in American Marvel Comics publications * Manta (''Uridium''), a spaceship in the Br ... * Osatu *Alunfa, Balo Footnotes References *Blench, Roger (2010Classification of Momo and West Momo*Roger Blench (2010The Tivoid Languages Gra ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Grassfields Language
The Grassfields languages (or Wide Grassfields languages) are a branch of the Southern Bantoid languages spoken in the Western High Plateau of Cameroon and some parts of Taraba state, Nigeria. Better known Grassfields languages include the Eastern Grassfields languages Bamun, Yamba and the Ring language, Kom, Nso, Oku, Bali, Bafut. Almost all of these languages are closely related, sharing approximately half of their vocabulary. Classifications The Grassfields languages were previously known as ''Grassfields Bantu'' and ''Semi-Bantu.'' They are sometimes classified on two levels, ''Wide Grassfields,'' which includes all the languages, and ''Narrow Grassfields,'' which excludes Menchum, Ambele and sometimes the Southwest Grassfields languages. These may form a group of their own, which Nurse (2003) calls Peripheral Grassfields but rejects. Blench (2010) notes there is little evidence for the traditional assumption that the non-Western Momo languages belong in Grassfields a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tivoid Languages
The Tivoid languages are a branch of the Southern Bantoid languages spoken in parts of Nigeria and Cameroon. The subfamily takes its name after Tiv, the most spoken language in the group. The majority are threatened with extinction. The largest of these languages by far is the Tiv language for which the group is named; it had 2 million speakers in 1991. The second largest is the Bitare language; it had 110,000 speakers in 2000. Most apart from Tiv are extremely poorly known, and the next best, Esimbi, has not even been demonstrated to be Tivoid. Languages Following Blench (2010), Tivoid languages fall into three branches, though North Tivoid languages are almost unattested. The names in parentheses are dialects per ''Ethnologue'', separate languages per Blench: ;Central Tivoid: A: Tiv– Iyive– Otank, Evant; Ceve (Oliti) : B: Caka (Batanga, Asaka), Ipulo (Olulu), Eman (Amanavil) ; Mesaka (Ugarə) ;North Tivoid: Batu (Afi, Kamino), Abon, Bitare, ? Ambo Esimbi is well ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |