Dongolawi is a
Nubian language
The Nubian languages ( ar, لُغَات نُوبِيّة, lughāt nūbiyyah) are a group of related languages spoken by the Nubians. They form a branch of the Eastern Sudanic languages, which is part of the wider Nilo-Saharan phylum. Initially, ...
of northern
Sudan
Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...
. It is spoken by a minority of the
Danagla The Danagla (, "People of Dongola") are a tribe in northern Sudan of partial Arab descent, primarily settling between the third Nile cataract and al Dabbah. Along with Kenzi, Fadicca, Halfawi, Sikot, and Mahas, they form a significant part of the S ...
in the
Nile Valley
The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest rive ...
, from roughly (south of
Kerma
Kerma was the capital city of the Kerma culture, which was located in present-day Sudan at least 5,500 years ago. Kerma is one of the largest archaeological sites in ancient Nubia. It has produced decades of extensive excavations and research, in ...
) upstream to the bend in the Nile near
ed Debba
Al Dabbah (also known as ''Ed Debba'', ''El Debba'', ''El Debbah'' or ''Ed Debbah'') is a town on the river banks of the Nile, which is served by the Al Dabbah Airport. It has an estimated population of 52,000.
The town is antipodal to Tahiti
...
.
''Dongolawi'' is an Arabic term based on the town of
Old Dongola
Old Dongola (Old Nubian: ⲧⲩⲛⲅⲩⲗ, ''Tungul''; ar, دنقلا العجوز, ''Dunqulā al-ʿAjūz'') is a deserted town in what is now Northern State, Sudan, located on the east bank of the Nile opposite the Wadi Howar. An important c ...
, the centre of the historic Christian kingdom of
Makuria
Makuria (Old Nubian: , ''Dotawo''; gr, Μακουρία, Makouria; ar, المقرة, al-Muqurra) was a Nubian kingdom located in what is today Northern Sudan and Southern Egypt. Makuria originally covered the area along the Nile River from the ...
(6th to 14th century). Today's Dongola was founded during the 19th century on the western side of the Nile. The Dongolawi call their language Andaandi "(the language) of our home".
Nearly all Dongolawi speakers are also speakers of Sudanese Arabic, the lingua franca of Sudan. Arabic–Dongolawi bilingualism is replacive in the sense that Dongolawi is threatened by complete replacement by Arabic (Jakobi 2008).
Dongolawi is closely related to Kenzi language, Kenzi (Mattokki), spoken in southern Egypt. They were once considered dialects of a single language, ''Kenzi-Dongolawi''. More recent research recognises them as distinct languages without a "particularly close genetic relationship."
[Bechhaus-Gerst, Marianne. ''The (Hi)story of Nobiin — 1000 Years of Language Change''. Peter Lang, 2011, p. 22.] Apart from these two languages spoken along the Nile, three extinct varieties were included under Kenzi-Dongolawi.
References
External links
Dongolawi basic lexicon at the Global Lexicostatistical Database
Nubian languages
Languages of Egypt
Nubians in Sudan
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