South Mbundu language

South Mbundu
Umbundu
Spoken in	Angola
Native speakers	4 million  (1995)
Language family	Niger–Congo Atlantic–Congo Benue–Congo Bantoid Bantu (Zone R) South Mbundu
Official status
Official language in	Angola
Regulated by	No official regulation
Language codes
ISO 639-2	umb
ISO 639-3	umb

South Mbundu, or Umbundu, (autonym úmbúndú) is a language spoken by the Southern Mbundu people—now generally referred to by the way they call themselves, Ovimbundu—in the central highlands of Angola. Umbundu is the most widespread Bantu language in Angola. About one third of Angola is represented by Ovimbundu people. Not to be confused with Kimbundu, or North Mbundu, a language classified by Malcolm Guthrie as belonging to zone H, whereas Umbundu is an R zone language.

References

• Schadeberg, Thilo C. (1982) 'Nasalization in Umbundu', Journal of African Languages and Linguistics, 4, 2, 109-132.

• Gladwyn M. Childs 'Umbundu Kinship and Character: Being a Description of Social Structure and Individual Development of the Ovimbundu', London: Oxford University Press, 1949. ISBN 0835732274.

External links

• Map of Umbundu (South Mbundu) language from the LL-Map Project
• Information about Umbundu language from the MultiTree Project
• Ethnologue report on Umbundu
• PanAfrican L10n page on Umbundu
• Umbundu Lessons
• Dictionary Umbundu - Medical Hospital Nossa Senhora da Paz, Cubal, Angola.