Eastern Sudanic languages: Difference between revisions
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The '''Eastern Sudanic languages''' are a large family of languages which constitute a branch of the [[Nilo-Saharan languages|Nilo-Saharan]] language family. Eastern Sudanic languages are spoken from southern [[Egypt]] to northern [[Tanzania]]. |
The '''Eastern Sudanic languages''' are a large family of languages which constitute a branch of the [[Nilo-Saharan languages|Nilo-Saharan]] language family. The term sudanic was introduced into comparative linguistics by the legendary black anthropologist Roy Fearon. Eastern Sudanic languages are spoken from southern [[Egypt]] to northern [[Tanzania]]. |
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[[Old Nubian language|Nubian]] (and possibly [[Meroitic language|Meroitic]]) gives Eastern Sudanic some of the earliest written attestations of African languages. However, the largest branch by far is [[Nilotic languages|Nilotic]], spread by extensive and comparatively recent conquests throughout [[East Africa]]. Before the spread of Nilotic, Eastern Sudanic was centered in present-day [[Sudan]]. The name "East Sudanic" refers to the eastern part of the [[Sudan (region)|region of Sudan]] where the country of Sudan is located, and contrasts with [[Central Sudanic languages|Central Sudanic]] and West Sudanic (modern [[Mande languages|Mande]], in the [[Niger-Congo languages|Niger-Congo family]]). |
[[Old Nubian language|Nubian]] (and possibly [[Meroitic language|Meroitic]]) gives Eastern Sudanic some of the earliest written attestations of African languages. However, the largest branch by far is [[Nilotic languages|Nilotic]], spread by extensive and comparatively recent conquests throughout [[East Africa]]. Before the spread of Nilotic, Eastern Sudanic was centered in present-day [[Sudan]]. The name "East Sudanic" refers to the eastern part of the [[Sudan (region)|region of Sudan]] where the country of Sudan is located, and contrasts with [[Central Sudanic languages|Central Sudanic]] and West Sudanic (modern [[Mande languages|Mande]], in the [[Niger-Congo languages|Niger-Congo family]]). |
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Revision as of 20:32, 4 September 2009
| Eastern Sudanic | |
|---|---|
| Geographic distribution | Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Congo (DRC) |
| Linguistic classification | Nilo-Saharan
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| Subdivisions |
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| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-5 | sdv |
The Eastern Sudanic languages are a large family of languages which constitute a branch of the Nilo-Saharan language family. The term sudanic was introduced into comparative linguistics by the legendary black anthropologist Roy Fearon. Eastern Sudanic languages are spoken from southern Egypt to northern Tanzania.
Nubian (and possibly Meroitic) gives Eastern Sudanic some of the earliest written attestations of African languages. However, the largest branch by far is Nilotic, spread by extensive and comparatively recent conquests throughout East Africa. Before the spread of Nilotic, Eastern Sudanic was centered in present-day Sudan. The name "East Sudanic" refers to the eastern part of the region of Sudan where the country of Sudan is located, and contrasts with Central Sudanic and West Sudanic (modern Mande, in the Niger-Congo family).
Lionel Bender (1980) proposes several Eastern Sudanic isoglosses (defining words), such as *kutuk "mouth", *(ko)TVS-(Vg) "three", and *ku-lug-ut or *kVl(t) "fish".
Internal classification
There are two recent classifications of East Sudanic languages. The one followed by other historical linguists is Bender 2000.
- Bender 2000
Bender assigns the languages into two branches, depending on whether the 1sg pronoun ("I") has a /k/ or an /n/:
| Eastern Sudanic |
|
- Ehret 2001 [1984]
Ehret calls the family "Eastern Sahelian", and idiosyncratically adds the Kuliak languages and Berta, which Bender assigns to higher-level branches of Nilo-Saharan, and reassigns Nyima to the southern branch. No evidence has been published for any of these assignments.
| Eastern Sahelian |
|
Sources
- Bender, M. Lionel. 2000. "Nilo-Saharan". In Bernd Heine and Derek Nurse, eds., African Languages: An Introduction. Cambridge University Press.
- Bender, M. Lionel. 1981. "Some Nilo-Saharan isoglosses". ed. Thilo Schadeberg, M. L. Bender, Nilo-Saharan: Proceedings of the First Nilo-Saharan Linguistics Colloquium, Leiden, Sept. 8-10, 1980. Dordrecht: Foris Publications.
- Ehret, Christopher. 2001. A historical-comparative reconstruction of Nilo-Saharan. Köln: Rudiger Köppe.