Ngangam language
| Ngangam | |
|---|---|
| Gangam | |
| Native to | Togo, Benin |
| Ethnicity | Gurma, Dye |
Native speakers | 200,000 (2012–2021)[1] |
| Official status | |
Recognised minority language in | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | gng |
| Glottolog | ngan1299 |
Ngangam or Dye[2] (Gangam) is a language of the Gurma people spoken in Togo and Benin.
Phonology
Consonants
| Labial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Labial- velar |
Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plosive/Affricate | voiceless | p | t | t͡ʃ | k | kp | (ʔ) |
| voiced | b | d | d͡ʒ | g | gb | ||
| Nasal | m | n | ɲ | ŋ | ŋm | ||
| Fricative | f | s | (h) | ||||
| Approximant | l | j | w | ||||
- Reimer uses ⟨c, ɟ, y⟩ in place of /t͡ʃ, d͡ʒ, j/.[4]
- /p, b, t, d, k/ are usually aspirated before close vowels.[5]
Vowels
| Front | Back | |
|---|---|---|
| Close | i | u |
| Close-mid | e | o |
| Open-mid | ɛ | ɔ |
| Open | a |
- Ngangam has three vowel lengths—short, long weak, and long strong. The long weak vowels shorten in some cases, while the long strong vowels are always realized as long.[6]
Tones
Ngangam has three phonemic tones: high, mid, and low.[4]
Notes
- ^ Ngangam at Ethnologue (26th ed., 2023)
- ^ Reimer 2022, p. iii.
- ^ Reimer 2022, p. 2.
- ^ a b Reimer 2022, p. 3.
- ^ Reimer 2022, p. 157.
- ^ a b Reimer 2022, p. 1.
References
- Reimer, A. Jeanette (2022). The Segmental Phonology and Tonology of Dye (Gangam) and its Verb Classification System. SIL e-Books. Vol. 80. SIL International. ISSN 1934-2470. Archived from the original on 3 September 2024. Retrieved 3 September 2024.
Further reading
- Bakpa, Mimboabe (2014). Etude du ngbem, parler gangam de Koumongou: Description et analyse comparative. Beiträge zur Afrikaforschung (in French). Vol. 54. Münster: LIT. ISBN 9783643122612.
- Higdon, Lee M. (2001). An overview of Gangam grammar. Lomé: SIL Togo. ISBN 9782951361621. OCLC 63129036.
- Higdon, Lee M. (1998). "The line of importance in Gangam narrative discourse". Cahiers Voltaïques / Gur Papers. 3: 45–53.
- Higdon, Lee M. (1996). Tense, aspect, and modality in Gangam narrative and hortatory discourse (MA thesis). Arlington, TX: University of Texas.
- Reimer, A. Jeanette (1983). "Etude préliminaire sur le système des genres nominaux en gangam". In Nicole, Jacques (ed.). Etudes linguistiques préliminaires en quelques langues du Togo. Lomé, Togo: SIL International. pp. 81–97.