Asa language
| Asa | |
|---|---|
| Aasá | |
| Region | Tanzania |
| Ethnicity | Asa people |
| Extinct | mid 20th century |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | aas |
| Glottolog | aasa1238 |
| ELP | Aasáx |
The Asa (Aasá) language, commonly rendered Aasax, was spoken by the Asa people of Tanzania. The language is extinct; ethnic Assa in northern Tanzania remember only a few words they overheard their elders use, and none ever used it themselves. Little is known of the language; what is recorded was probably Aasa lexical words used in a register of Maasai like the mixed language Mbugu.
Classification
Asa is usually classified as Cushitic, most closely related to Kw'adza. However, it might have retained a non-Cushitic layer from an earlier language shift, and might be best left unclassified.[1]
The Aramanik (Laramanik) people once spoke Asa, but shifted to Nandi (as opposed to Maasai).
Vocabulary
- wataka - all
- buʕurita - burn
- dah - claw
- ga - cloud
- ki=te - die
- wa-t--dog
- rakaš-dry
- yatara -drink
- haǯa-t -earth
- ʔag- ~ ʔag-im- - eat
- ila-t - - eye
- ʔoreʔ-ek -far [2]
Notes
- ^ "Towards a new classification of African languages", Linguistic Contribution to the History of Sub-Saharan Africa, University of Lyons
- ^ https://archive.org/stream/rosettaproject_irk_swadesh-1/irk.txt
- Petrollino, Sara & Maarten Mous, 2010, Recollecting Words and Expressions in Aasá, a Dead Language in Tanzania
External links