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Majang People
The Majang people, or ''Majangir'', live in southwestern Ethiopia and speak Majang language, a Nilo-Saharan language of the Surmic cluster. The 1998 census gave the total of the Majangir population as 15,341, but since they live scattered in the hills in dispersed settlements (Stauder 1971), their actual total number is undoubtedly much higher. They live around cities of Tepi, Ethiopia, Tepi, Mett'i, and scattered southwest of Mizan Teferi and towards Gambela (city), Gambela. Culture They traditionally lived in small groups, farming for three to five years, then moving on as the fertility of the soil diminished (Stauder 1971). They were active bee keepers, collecting honey from hives consisting of hollowed logs placed in trees. They did some hunting and snaring of game and trapping of fish. They raised the bulk of their own food by farming, animals providing only a small part of their diet. Food production has changed since Stauder's time. The single most obvious change is that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Majang Language
The Majang language is spoken by the Majangir people of Ethiopia. Although it is a member of the Surmic language cluster, it is the most isolated one in the group (Fleming 1983). A language survey has shown that dialect variation from north to south is minor and does not seriously impede communication. The 2007 Ethiopian Census lists 6,433 speakers for Majang (Messengo), but also reports that the ethnic group consists of 32,822 individuals (Messengo and Mejengir). According to the census, almost no speakers can be found in Mezhenger Zone of Gambela Region; a total of eleven speakers are listed for the zone, but almost 10,000 ethnic Mejenger or Messengo people. Phonology Vowel length is distinctive in Majang, so all vowels come in pairs of long and short, such as ''goopan'' 'punishment' and ''gopan'' 'road'. The vowel inventory is taken out of Joswig (2012) and Getachew (2014, p. 65). Unseth (2007) posed a 9-vowel system with a row of -ATR closed vowels ɪ and ʊ. Mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
