Maban languages

The Maban languages are a small family of languages which have been included in the proposed Nilo-Saharan family. Maban languages are spoken in eastern Chad, the Central African Republic and western Sudan (Darfur).

For the Western Nilotic language, see Mabaan language.
Maban
Geographic
distribution		Chad, Sudan, Central African Republic
Linguistic classificationNilo-Saharan?
Subdivisions
Glottologmaba1274

Languages

The Maban branch includes the following languages:

The languages attested in two word lists labelled "Mimi", collected by Decorse (Mimi-D) and Nachtigal (Mimi-N), have also been classified as Maban, though this has been contested. Mimi-N appears to have been remotely related to Maban proper, while Mimi-D appears to have not been Maban at all, with the similarities due to language contact with locally dominant Maba.

Blench (2021) gives the following classification:[1]

External relationships

Based on morphological evidence such as tripartite number marking on nominals, Roger Blench (2021) suggests that closest relatives of the Maban languages may be the Eastern Sudanic languages, especially the Taman languages, which form a branch within Northern Eastern Sudanic. Maban also shares lexical similarities with the Fur languages, Saharan languages, and even Songhay languages, but generally has more lexical matches with Eastern Sudanic languages.[1]

Comparative vocabulary

Sample basic vocabulary for Maban languages:

Languageeyeearnosetoothtonguemouthbloodbonetreewatereatname
Proto-Maban[1]*kàSì-k*dúrmì*sati-k; *sàdí-k / *sadi-ɲi*delemi-k*fàrí-ŋ*ta-k / *ta-si*-aɲɔ-*mílí-ik
Maba[2]kàʃì-k/-ñikoi-kboiñsati-kdelmi-kkan-a/-tuàríikàñjí-ksoŋgo-kinji-añ-mílí-i/-síi
Masalit[2]kóo-gí/-síkwóyɛ̀dúrmìkácìŋgigélmèdìkánàfàríŋkónjìsíŋgìsá-iny-mirsi/-ldiŋ
Aiki[2]kàs-`k/-òkàsámùndúsàdíàdìyímyù-kpày/-ó; fáaijìŋg`r/jùŋgɔ̀rɔ̀rí-ktà-k-ñɔ̀-mèek-í/-ú
Kibet[2]kàs/-ukàsámùndùsàdíàd`lɛ́myù-kfal/-u; arinjekedi/njùkùdúri-kta-ñɔ̀-m lk-i/-udɔ
Mimi of Nachtigal[3]kalkuyihurziːkmilarikadʒisun (< Fur?)
Mimi of Decorse[4]dyofeɾfirɲainɲyosuengiɲyam

Numerals

Comparison of numerals in individual languages:[5]

ClassificationLanguage12345678910
MabaMabatɛ́ɡ, tɔ́ːmbàːr, mbíːr, mbùlkùŋàːl, káyáŋàssàːl, ássíːtùːr, túːrsit̀tàːl, síttíː < Arabic sittamɛ́ndrìːíyyáːɔ̀ddɔ̀yíɔ̀ttúɡ
MasalitMasalit (1)tíyóŋmbárákáaŋáástóórít̪ímàríàd̪áàyiùt̪úk
MasalitMasalit (2)tîyom (without noun), tîle (with n.)mbarakaŋasturitimâriayaadeyûtuk
MasalitMasalit (3)tyǒm (without noun), tíiilò (with n.)mbárákáaŋástúrítímàríàyáàdɛ́iùtúk
Runga-KibetKibetdoˈwaimbaʀkʰasaŋˈɡalʔaːtaltorʔiˈsalmɪndɪrˈsɪʔmbaːkʰlkʰaˈdɛijəjuˈtʊk̚
Runga-KibetRungakʰanˈdambakʰazaŋɡaattɛiturizɛimɪnˈdirsimbɑkadelikʰaddɛljtuk̚

See also

References
  1. Blench, Roger. 2021. The Maban languages and their place within Nilo-Saharan.
  2. Edgar, John T. 1991. Maba-group Lexicon. (Sprache und Oralität in Afrika: Frankfurter Studien zur Afrikanistik, 13.) Berlin: Dietrich Reimer.
  3. Lukas, Johannes & Otto Völckers. 1938. G. Nachtigal's Aufzeichnungen über die Sprache der Mimi in Wadai. Zeitschrift für Eingeborenensprachen 29. 145‒154.
  4. Gaudefroy-Demombynes, Maurice. 1907. Document sur les Langues de l'Oubangui-Chari. In Actes du XVIe Congrès International des Orientalistes, Alger, 1905, Part II, 172-330. Paris: Ernest Leroux.
  5. Chan, Eugene (2019). "The Nilo-Saharan Language Phylum". Numeral Systems of the World's Languages.
  • Calvain Mbernodji, Katharina Wolf. 2008. Une enquête sociolinguistique des parlers Kibet, Rounga, Daggal et Mourro du Tchad. SIL International.

Further reading
  • Edgar, John T. 1991. Maba-group Lexicon. (Sprache und Oralität in Afrika: Frankfurter Studien zur Afrikanistik, 13.) Berlin: Dietrich Reimer.
  • Edgar, John. 1991. First Steps Towards Proto-Maba. African Languages and Cultures 4: 113-133.
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