Mai-Mai, commonly spelled Maay Maay (also known as ''Af-Maay'', ''Af-Maymay'', or simply ''Maay''; the ''Mai-Mai'' spelling is rarely used but it is most often spoken), is a dialect of the
Somali language of the
Cushitic
The Cushitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken primarily in the Horn of Africa, with minorities speaking Cushitic languages to the north in Egypt and the Sudan, and to the south in Kenya and Tanzania. As o ...
branch of the
Afro-Asiatic
The Afroasiatic languages (or Afro-Asiatic), also known as Hamito-Semitic, or Semito-Hamitic, and sometimes also as Afrasian, Erythraean or Lisramic, are a language family of about 300 languages that are spoken predominantly in the geographic su ...
family. It is mainly spoken in
Somalia
Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...
and adjacent parts of
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
and
Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
. In Somalia, it is spoken in
South West
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
state, Jubaland state, and Banadir. It is one of the dialects of the
Somali language
Somali (Latin script: ; Wadaad writing, Wadaad: ; Osmanya: 𐒖𐒍 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘 ) is an Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language belonging to the Cushitic languages, Cushitic branch. It is spoken as a mother tongue by Somalis in ...
.
Overview
Somali linguistic varieties are divided into three main groups: Northern,
Benadir, and Maay. Northern Somali (or Northern-Central Somali) forms the basis for Standard Somali.
Maay is principally spoken by the Digil and Mirifle (
Rahanweyn
The Rahanweyn (Maay: ''Reewin or Roowing'', Northern Somali: ''Raxanweyn'', ar, رحنوين), also known as the Digil and Mirifle () are a Somali clan. It is one of the major Somali clans in the Horn of Africa, with a large territory and dense ...
) clans in the southern regions of
Somalia
Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...
, particularly in
South West
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
.
Its speech area extends from the southwestern border with
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
to a region close to the coastal strip between
Mogadishu
Mogadishu (, also ; so, Muqdisho or ; ar, مقديشو ; it, Mogadiscio ), locally known as Xamar or Hamar, is the capital and List of cities in Somalia by population, most populous city of Somalia. The city has served as an important port ...
and
Kismayo
Kismayo ( so, Kismaayo, Maay Maay, Maay: ''Kismanyy'', ar, كيسمايو, ; it, Chisimaio) is a port city in the southern Lower Juba (Jubbada Hoose) province of Somalia. It is the commercial capital of the autonomous Jubaland region.
The cit ...
, including the city of
Baidoa
Baidoa (, Somali: Maay.html"_;"title="f-Maxaa:_Baydhabo,_Maay">f-Maxaa:_Baydhabo,_Maay:_''Baydhowy)''_is_the_largest_city_of_the_South_West_State_of_Somalia.
Between_2002_and_2014,_Baidoa_was_the_capital_of_the_South_West_State_of_Somalia.html ...
.
Maay is not
mutually comprehensible
In linguistics, mutual intelligibility is a relationship between languages or dialects in which speakers of different but related varieties can readily understand each other without prior familiarity or special effort. It is sometimes used as an ...
with Northern Somali or
Benadir, and it differs considerably in sentence structure and phonology.
It is also not generally used in education or media. However, Maay speakers often use Standard Somali as a
lingua franca
A lingua franca (; ; for plurals see ), also known as a bridge language, common language, trade language, auxiliary language, vehicular language, or link language, is a language systematically used to make communication possible between groups ...
.
It is learned via mass communications, internal migration, and urbanisation.
Although past scholars have maintained the assumption that Maay is not mutually comprehensible with Northern Somali it was done so without it being tested for. A more recent study by Deqa Hassan tested the mutual intelligibility between Af-Maay and Af-Maxaa speakers (Northern Somali).
The study found that Af-Maay is partially mutually intelligible to Af-Maxaa (Northern Speakers) and that intelligibility increases with increased understanding of Standard Somali. Which implies understanding of standard Somali (Northern Somali) increases the chance of understanding Af-Maay. This accounts for the most significant linguistic factor that ties both language variations together. Therefore Af-Maay is categorized as a Type 5 dialect for the overlapping common cultural history it shares with Af Maxaa speakers which explains its somewhat mutual intelligibility.
Grammar
Phonology
Consonants
A nasal consonant preceding a /n/ sound will always be realized as a
sound. A
sound is an intervocalic allophone of /ɡ/.
Vowels
Maay Maay exhibits significant amounts of
epenthesis
In phonology, epenthesis (; Greek ) means the addition of one or more sounds to a word, especially in the beginning syllable ('' prothesis'') or in the ending syllable (''paragoge'') or in-between two syllabic sounds in a word. The word ''epenth ...
, inserting central or high-central vowels to break up consonant clusters. Vowel length is contrastive; minimal pairs such as ''bur'' 'flour' and ''buur'' 'mountain' are attested.
Words
Maay Maay is fairly
agglutinative
In linguistics, agglutination is a morphological process in which words are formed by stringing together morphemes, each of which corresponds to a single syntactic feature. Languages that use agglutination widely are called agglutinative langu ...
. It has complex verb forms, inflecting at least for tense/aspect and person/number of both subject and object. There is also a prefix indicating negation. In addition, verbs exhibit derivational morphology, including a
causative
In linguistics, a causative (abbreviated ) is a valency-increasing operationPayne, Thomas E. (1997). Describing morphosyntax: A guide for field linguists'' Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 173–186. that indicates that a subject either ...
and an
applicative. Nominal morphology includes a
definiteness
In linguistics, definiteness is a semantic feature of noun phrases, distinguishing between referents or senses that are identifiable in a given context (definite noun phrases) and those which are not (indefinite noun phrases). The prototypical d ...
suffix, whose form depends on the gender of the head noun, and possessive suffixes.
Sentences
Maay Maay exhibits
SVO and SOV word orders, apparently in fairly free variation. When the object is postverbal, the prefix ''maay'' appears on the verb. Within the noun phrase, the
head noun
In linguistics, the head or nucleus of a phrase is the word that determines the syntactic category of that phrase. For example, the head of the noun phrase ''boiling hot water'' is the noun ''water''. Analogously, the head of a compound is the ste ...
is generally initial. Possessors, adjectives and some strong quantifiers follow the head noun. Numerals and the indefinite quantifier precede the head noun.
Poetry
Maay has retained a rich
oral
The word oral may refer to:
Relating to the mouth
* Relating to the mouth, the first portion of the alimentary canal that primarily receives food and liquid
**Oral administration of medicines
** Oral examination (also known as an oral exam or oral ...
tradition and evocative poetry that differed from the more well known northern style. In southern Somalia the poet and reciter would be one and the same. British ethnologist Virginia Luling noted during her visit to
Afgooye
Afgooye ( so, Afgooye, ar, أفجويى, it, Afgoi) is a town in the southwestern Somalia Lower Shebelle (Shabellaha Hoose) region of Somalia. It is the center of the Afgooye District. Afgooye is the third largest city of Southwest State. Afgo ...
that poetry was to be conceived and recited simultaneously with no prior preparation. The poets or ''Laashin'' relied on their wit and memory to construct beautiful poems and entertain the audience.
Geledi
The Geledi are a Somali clan that live predominantly in the environs of Afgooye city. They are a sub-clan of the Rahanweyn and led the Geledi sultanate during the late 17th to early 20th century. They are divided into two main lineage groups: the ...
''Laashins'' during Luling's 1989 stay in
Afgooye
Afgooye ( so, Afgooye, ar, أفجويى, it, Afgoi) is a town in the southwestern Somalia Lower Shebelle (Shabellaha Hoose) region of Somalia. It is the center of the Afgooye District. Afgooye is the third largest city of Southwest State. Afgo ...
sang about the ever present issue of land theft by the Somali government. The Sultan in these poems was asked to help the community and reminded of his legendary
Gobroon forefathers of the centuries prior.
The poem ''The law then was not this law'' was performed by the leading ''Laashins'' of Afgooye, Hiraabey, Muuse Cusmaan and Abukar Cali Goitow alongside a few others, addressed to the current leader Sultan Subuge. It evoked the memories of the mighty
Geledi Sultanate
The Sultanate of the Geledi ( so, Saldanadda Geledi, ar, سلطنة غلدي) also known as the Gobroon Dynasty Somali Sultanate: The Geledi City-state Over 150 Years - Virginia Luling (2002) Page 229 was a Somali kingdom that ruled parts of th ...
of years prior and was a sharp contrast to their current situation.
Here the richest selection of the poem
References
External links
Cultural Orientation Resource Center
{{Authority control
East Cushitic languages
Somali language
Languages of Somalia
Languages of Ethiopia