Naki language
Naki, or Munkaf, is an Eastern Beboid language of Cameroon and Nigeria. There is no name for the language; it is known by the villages it is spoken in, including Naki and Mekaf (Munkaf) in Cameroon and Bukwen and Mashi in Nigeria, the latter listed as separate languages by Ethnologue, though they are not distinct.
| Naki | |
|---|---|
| Munkaf | |
| Region | Cameroon, Nigeria |
Native speakers | (undated figure of 3,000 in Cameroon (1993), 2,000 in Nigeria)[1] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | Variously:mff – Naki (Cameroon)buz – Bukwenjms – Mashi |
| Glottolog | naki1240 |
| ELP | Naki |
Phonology
Naki is a tonal language. It has a high tone /á/, a low tone /à/, a rising tone /ǎ/, and a falling tone /â/.
Naki has eight phonemic vowels. These are as follows:
| Front | Mid | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i | u | |
| Close-mid | e | ə | o |
| Open-mid | ɛ | ɔ | |
| Open | a |
The consonants are as follows.
| Bilabial | Labiodental | Alveolar | Postalveolar/Palatal | Velar | ||
| Plosive | Voiceless | p | t tʷ | c cʷ | k kʷ | |
| Voiced | b bʷ bʲ | d | g gʷ | |||
| Affricate | Voiceless | f fʷ fʲ | t͡s t͡sʷ t͡sʲ | |||
| Voiced | d͡z | d͡ʒ d͡ʒʷ | ||||
| Fricative | Voiceless | s | ʃ ʃʷ ʃʲ | |||
| Voiced | ʒ | |||||
| Nasal | m mʷ | n | ɲ | ŋ | ||
| Approximant | w | l | j jʷ | |||
References
- Naki (Cameroon) at Ethnologue (15th ed., 2005)
Bukwen at Ethnologue (15th ed., 2005)
Mashi at Ethnologue (15th ed., 2005) - Kum Nang, Julius (2002). A sketch phonology and a step towards the standardization of Naki (masters thesis). Université de Yaoundé.
Sources
- Blench, Roger, 2011. 'The membership and internal structure of Bantoid and the border with Bantu'. Bantu IV, Humboldt University, Berlin.
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