Eastern Nilotic languages
| Eastern Nilotic | |
|---|---|
| Geographic distribution: |
southwestern Ethiopia, eastern South Sudan, northeastern Uganda, western Kenya, northern Tanzania |
| Linguistic classification: | Nilo-Saharan?
|
| Subdivisions: |
|
| Glottolog: | east2418[1] |
The Eastern Nilotic languages are one of the three primary branches of the Nilotic languages, themselves belonging to the Eastern Sudanic subfamily of Nilo-Saharan; they are believed to have begun to diverge about 3,000 years ago, and have spread southwards from an original home in Equatoria in South Sudan. They are spoken across a large area in East Africa, ranging from Equatoria to the highlands of Tanzania. Their speakers are mostly cattle herders living in semi-arid or arid plains.
Contents
Classification
According to Vossen (1982), the Eastern Nilotic languages are basically classified as follows by the comparative method.
- Bari languages
- Teso–Lotuko–Maa:
- Teso–Turkana (or Ateker; incl. Karimojong)
- Lotuko–Maa:
- Lotuko languages
- Ongamo–Maa
- Ongamo language
- Maa languages
- Maasai language (see also Mukogodo-Maasai)
- Camus language
- Samburu language (see also Elmolo-Samburu)
It is generally agreed upon that Bari forms a primary branch, but lower-level splits are less clear.
Swadesh approach (Vossen 1982)
Vossen's classification using the Swadesh approach is as follows (Vossen 1982:114).
- Eastern Nilotic
- Bari languages
- Mondari
- Kakwa
- Nyanggwara
- Kuku
- Pöjulu
- Ngyepu
- Bari
- Ngyepu
- Pöjulu
- Kuku
- Nyanggwara
- Kakwa
- Mondari
- Lotuko–Maa languages
- Lotuko languages
- Lopit, Dongotono
- Lotuko, Lokoya
- Ongamo–Maa languages
- Ongamo
- Maasai
- Camus, Samburu
- Maasai
- Ongamo
- Lotuko languages
- Teso–Turkana languages
- Teso
- Nyangatom
- Turkana, Karimojong
- Nyangatom
- Teso
Gleason approach (Vossen 1982)
Vossen's classification using the Gleason approach is as follows (Vossen 1982:119).
- Eastern Nilotic
- Bari languages
- Kuku, Ngyepu
- Pöjulu
- Kakwa
- Bari
- Nyanggwara, Mondari
- Lotuko languages
- Lopit, Dongotono
- Lotuko, Lokoya
- Teso–Turkana languages
- Nyangatom
- Teso
- Turkana, Karimojong
- Teso
- Ongamo–Maa languages
- Ongamo
- Maasai
- Camus, Samburu
- Maasai
- Ongamo
- Nyangatom
See also
Footnotes
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- Rainer Vossen. 1982. The Eastern Nilotes: Linguistic and Historical Reconstructions. Berlin: Dietrich Reimer Verlag. ISBN 3-496-00698-6.
External links
- A Classified Vocabulary of the Turkana in Northwestern Kenya, by Itaru Ohta, 1989.
- Vowel Harmony and Cyclicity in Eastern Nilotic, Eric Bakovic
- The Consequences of Microvariation in Eastern Nilotic, Eric Bakovic
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