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Somyev Language
Somyev (Somyewe), also known as Kila ("blacksmith" in Fulfulde), is a nearly extinct Mambiloid language of two villages, one in Nigeria and one in Cameroon, that is spoken by a caste of blacksmiths that live among the Mambila The Mambilla or Mambila people of Nigeria live on the Mambilla Plateau (in 'Sardauna' local government area of Taraba State in Nigeria). A small fraction of Mambilla migrants left the Mambilla Plateau for the Ndom Plain (also known as northern Tik .... Although the language is still used for daily communication, the youngest generation of speakers were born in the 1950s. Transmission of the language ceased when the profession of blacksmithing lost its social status, partly due to imports of foreign tools.Connell, B. (1997)Moribund languages of the Nigeria-Cameroon borderland In M. Brezinger (ed.), ''Endangered Languages in Africa.'' Cologne, Germany: Rüdiger Köppe Verlag. Pp 197–213. References Mambiloid languages Languages of Cameroon Languages ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 Guinea to the south in the Atlantic Ocean. It covers an area of , and with a population of over 225 million, it is the most populous country in Africa, and the world's sixth-most populous country. Nigeria borders Niger in the north, Chad in the northeast, Cameroon in the east, and Benin in the west. Nigeria is a federal republic comprising of 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, where the capital, Abuja, is located. The largest city in Nigeria is Lagos, one of the largest metropolitan areas in the world and the second-largest in Africa. Nigeria has been home to several indigenous pre-colonial states and kingdoms since the second millennium BC, with the Nok civilization in the 15th century BC, marking the first ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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] |
Mambiloid Languages
The twelve Mambiloid languages are languages spoken by the Mambila and related peoples mostly in eastern Nigeria and in Cameroon. In Nigeria the largest group is Mambila (there is also a small Mambila population in Cameroon). In Cameroon the largest group is Vute. Languages The following classification follows Blench (2011). Languages with (?) are not listed in that source, but close to other languages according to ''Ethnologue''. Ndoro–Fam may be a separate branch of Benue–Congo. * Ndoola (Ndoro) *Mambiloid proper ** Nizaa (Suga) **Mambila–Konja ***Konja: Kwanja, ? Twendi ***Mambila–Vute ****Mambila–Kamkam *****Magu–Kamkam–Kila: Mbongno, Mvanip (Mvano), ? Somyev, ? Ndunda *****Mambila ****Tep–Vute *****Tep *****Vute: Vute, Wawa ''Ethnologue'' also lists Njerep, which most likely lies somewhere in the Mambila–Kamkam branch. The extinct Yeni, Luo and Kasabe languages were apparently Mambiloid, the first two close to Njerep. Fam is sometimes classified ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fulfulde
Fula ,Laurie Bauer, 2007, ''The Linguistics Student’s Handbook'', Edinburgh also known as Fulani or Fulah (, , ; Adlam: , , ), is a Senegambian language spoken by around 30 million people as a set of various dialects in a continuum that stretches across some 18 countries in West and Central Africa. Along with other related languages such as Serer and Wolof, it belongs to the Atlantic geographic group within Niger–Congo, and more specifically to the Senegambian branch. Unlike most Niger-Congo languages, Fula does not have tones. It is spoken as a first language by the Fula people ("Fulani", ff, Fulɓe, link=no) from the Senegambia region and Guinea to Cameroon, Nigeria, and Sudan and by related groups such as the Toucouleur people in the Senegal River Valley. It is also spoken as a second language by various peoples in the region, such as the Kirdi of northern Cameroon and northeastern Nigeria. Nomenclature Several names are applied to the language, just as to the Fu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mambiloid Language
The twelve Mambiloid languages are languages spoken by the Mambila and related peoples mostly in eastern Nigeria and in Cameroon. In Nigeria the largest group is Mambila (there is also a small Mambila population in Cameroon). In Cameroon the largest group is Vute. Languages The following classification follows Blench (2011). Languages with (?) are not listed in that source, but close to other languages according to ''Ethnologue''. Ndoro–Fam may be a separate branch of Benue–Congo. * Ndoola (Ndoro) *Mambiloid proper ** Nizaa (Suga) **Mambila–Konja ***Konja: Kwanja, ? Twendi ***Mambila–Vute ****Mambila–Kamkam *****Magu–Kamkam–Kila: Mbongno, Mvanip (Mvano), ? Somyev, ? Ndunda *****Mambila ****Tep–Vute *****Tep *****Vute: Vute, Wawa ''Ethnologue'' also lists Njerep, which most likely lies somewhere in the Mambila–Kamkam branch. The extinct Yeni, Luo and Kasabe languages were apparently Mambiloid, the first two close to Njerep. Fam is sometimes classified ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blacksmiths Of Western Africa
Blacksmiths emerged in West Africa around 1500 BCE. They are feared in some societies for their skill in metalworking, considered a form of magic. They are also much admired and hold high social status. Because the trade is so specialised and dangerous, blacksmiths are often requisitioned by towns and villages where there are none. Other ironworking societies such as the Mandé peoples of Mali and the Bamana exist in West Africa. Nigeria The Nok people of Nigeria show the art of blacksmiths, which date back to the sixth century BC. Ironworking made farming, hunting, and war much more efficient. Iron allowed for greater growth in societies. With the ability to support larger communities came social growth and the development of large kingdoms, which spread across Western Africa. Throughout Nigeria two more very important West African civilizations arose. The Ife and the Oyo people of Yorubaland Yorubaland () is the homeland and cultural region of the Yoruba people in West ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mambila Language
Mambila is a dialect chain stretching across Nigeria and Cameroon. It is one of the Mambiloid languages, a branch of Benue–Congo. Notable dialects are Barup, Bang, Dorofi, Gembu, Hainari, Kabri, Mayo Ndaga, Mbamnga, Tamien, Warwar (in Nigeria); Sunu Torbi (Torbi), Ju Naare (Gembu), and in Cameroon, Ju Ba and Langa. Mambila goes by numerous names, which, besides the dialectical names, include Bea, Ble, Juli, Lagubi, Nor, Nor Tagbo, Tongbo, and the spellings Mabila, Mambere, Mambilla. Tep is generally considered a dialect by those in Tep and by speakers of other varieties of Mambila, but though Tep speakers are ethnically Mambila, their speech is not intelligible to other varieties. In terms of linguistic classification it may be more accurate to call it a different Mambiloid language. See Connell references below. Blacksmiths among the Mambila The Mambilla or Mambila people of Nigeria live on the Mambilla Plateau (in 'Sardauna' local government area of Taraba State in Niger ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Languages Of Cameroon
Cameroon is home to at least 250 languages. However, some accounts report around 600 languages. These include 55 Afro-Asiatic languages, two Nilo-Saharan languages, four Ubangian languages, and 169 Niger–Congo languages. This latter group comprises one Senegambian language (Fulfulde), 28 Adamawa languages, and 142 Benue–Congo languages (130 of which are Bantu languages). French and English are official languages, a heritage of Cameroon's colonial past as a colony of both France and the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1961. Eight out of the ten regions of Cameroon are primarily francophone, representing 83% of the country's population, and two are anglophone, representing 17%. The anglophone proportion of the country is in constant regression, having decreased from 21% in 1976 to 20% in 1987 and to 17% in 2005, and is estimated at 16% in 2015 (whose fourth census should take place in 2015). The nation strives toward bilingualism, but in reality very few (11.6%) Cameroonians ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
