Luhya language
| Luhya | |
|---|---|
| Luyia | |
| Oluluhya | |
| Native to | Kenya |
| Ethnicity | Luhya people |
Native speakers | 15 million, incl. West Nyala (2019 census)[1] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | luy – inclusive code (includes all languages spoken by ethnic Luhya, not just the following)[2]Individual codes: lrm – Maramalwg – Wanga (Hanga)lks – Kisalto – Tsotsolkb – Kabrasnle – (East) Nyala |
| Glottolog | cent2288 Central Luyia (incl. some Nyore)kabr1240 Kabras |
JE.32[3] | |
Luhya (/ˈluːjə/; also Luyia, Luhia or Luhiya) is a Bantu language of western Kenya.
Dialects
The various Luhya tribes speak several related languages and dialects, though some of them are no closer to each other than they are to neighboring non-Luhya languages. For example, the Bukusu people are ethnically Luhya, but the Bukusu dialect is a variety of Masaba. (See Luhya people for details.) However, there is a core of mutually intelligible dialects that comprise Luhya proper:[4]
- Hanga (OluWanga)
- Tsotso (OluTsotso)
- Marama (OluMarama)
- Kisa (OluShisa)
- Kabras (LuKabarasi)
- East Nyala (LuNyala)
Comparison
A comparison between two dialects of Luhya proper, and to two other Bantu languages spoken by the Luhya:
| English | Kisa | Logoli | Nyole | Wanga |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I (me) | eshie | nzi/ inze | ise | esie |
| words | amakhuwa | makuva | amang'ana, amakhuwa | amakhuwa |
| chair | eshifumbi | indeve/ endeve | indebe | eshisala |
| head | omurwe | mutwi | omurwe | om'rwe |
| money | amapesa | mang'ondo | amang'ondo, am'mondo, etsilupia | amapesa, irupia |
Comparison to Bantu
| English | Luhya | Kikuyu | Kinyarwanda | Lingala | Luganda | Shona | Swahili | Zulu |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| children | abana, baana, otwana, orwana, vaana | twana | abana | bana | baana, abaana | vana | wana | abantwana |
| dog | imbwa | ngui (pron. gui) | imbwa | mbwa | mbwa, embwa | mbwa, imbwa | mbwa | inja |
| fire | omuliro | mwaki | umuriro | moto | omuliro | moto | moto | umlilo |
Phonology
The following is the phonology of the Luwanga dialect:[5]
Vowels
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i iː | u uː | |
| Mid | e eː | o oː | |
| Open | a aː |
Consonants
| Bilabial | Labio- dental |
Alveolar | Post- alveolar |
Palatal | Velar | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stop | plain | p | t | k | |||
| prenasal | ᵐb | ⁿd | ᶮɟ | ᵑɡ | |||
| Affricate | ts | tʃ | |||||
| Fricative | plain | β | f | s | ʃ | x | |
| prenasal | ⁿz | ||||||
| Nasal | m | n | ɲ | ŋ | |||
| Trill | r | ||||||
| Approximant | l | j | w | ||||
External links
- Eshitabo Eshiokhulaama nende Tsisakalamendo nende Akebiima Bindi Bieikanisa 1967 Anglican liturgical text digitized by Richard Mammana
References
- ^ Luhya at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
Marama at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
Wanga (Hanga) at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
Kisa at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
Tsotso at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
Kabras at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
(East) Nyala at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required) - ^ "639 Identifier Documentation: luy". SIL International.
- ^ Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
- ^ Maho (2019)
- ^ Abdulmajid, Akidah Mohammed (2000). Luwanga morphophonemics: a natural generative phonology. University of Nairobi.
