Kupsabiny (Sabiny), or ''Sebei'', is a

Kalenjin language Kalenjin may refer to: * Kalenjin people of Kenya ** keiyo people ** Kipsigis people ** Marakwet people ** Nandi people ** Pokot people ** Terik people ** Tugen people ** Sebei people * Kalenjin language * Kalenjin languages The Kalenjin lan ...

of eastern

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...

Classification

Kupsabiny and a dozen other languages form the Southern Nilotic branch of the Nilotic family. The closest relative of Kupsabiny is Sabaot, spoken across the border in

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

Speakers

There are about 360,000 people in the world who currently speak the language, most of them being

native speakers A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongu ...

of it. The number of speakers is currently growing and the language is considered developing. Although the language is spoken primarily by

Sebei people The Sebei are a Southern Nilotic ethnic group inhabiting eastern Uganda. They speak Kupsabiny, a Kalenjin language. The Sapiiny occupy three districts, namely Bukwo, Kween and Kapchorwa. Culture The Sebei people lead a fairly simple life style ...

, it is taught in many primary schools and even beyond to boost communication levels.

Language

The language Kupsabiny of the

sebei The Sebei are a Southern Nilotic ethnic group inhabiting eastern Uganda. They speak Kupsabiny, a Kalenjin language. The Sapiiny occupy three districts, namely Bukwo, Kween and Kapchorwa. Culture The Sebei people lead a fairly simple life style ...

is solely spoken in

. The native speakers of the language are the

, an ethnic group who live in Uganda. Kupsabiny is a

Nilotic language The Nilotic languages are a group of related languages spoken across a wide area between South Sudan and Tanzania by the Nilotic peoples. Etymology The word Nilotic means of or relating to the Nile River or to the Nile region of Africa. Dem ...

; along with many other languages of the

Nilotic peoples The Nilotic peoples are people Indigenous peoples of Africa, indigenous to the Nile Valley who speak Nilotic languages. They inhabit South Sudan, Sudan, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania. ...

. The language is highly tonal. There are 9

vowels A vowel is a syllabic speech sound pronounced without any stricture in the vocal tract. Vowels are one of the two principal classes of speech sounds, the other being the consonant. Vowels vary in quality, in loudness and also in quantity (leng ...

and 14

consonants In articulatory phonetics, a consonant is a speech sound that is articulated with complete or partial closure of the vocal tract. Examples are and pronounced with the lips; and pronounced with the front of the tongue; and pronounced wit ...

. The language is written with

Latin script The Latin script, also known as Roman script, is an alphabetic writing system based on the letters of the classical Latin alphabet, derived from a form of the Greek alphabet which was in use in the ancient Greek city of Cumae, in southern Italy ...

since 1975 (revised in 2010). Kupsabiny is taught in primary schools and is backed by literacy campaigns to help aid with communication across Uganda.

Phonology

13 consonants are in Sebei (Kupsabiny): There are a variety of consonant allophones in Sebei (Kupsabiny): Sebei (Kupsabiny) has 6 vowels: Vowels with short and long vowel allophones listed in brackets are below: Tone is marked as high, mid, or low.

References

{{Eastern Sudanic languages Kalenjin languages Nilotic languages Southern Nilotic languages Languages of Uganda