Lagwan language

Chadic language spoken in Central Africa
Lagwan
Logone
Native toCameroon, Chad
RegionFar North Province, Cameroon; west Chad
EthnicityKotoko people
Native speakers
10,000 in Cameroon (2004)[1]
Language family
Afro-Asiatic
Language codes
ISO 639-3kot
Glottologlagw1237
ELPLagwan

Lagwan (Logone) is a Chadic language spoken in northern Cameroon and southwestern Chad. Dialects include Logone-Birni and Logone-Gana.

Lagwan is spoken in the northern part of Logone-Birni, from the banks of the Logone River to the Nigerian border (Logone-et-Chari Department, Far North Region). It is also spoken in Chad and Nigeria. It has 38,500 speakers in Cameroon.[2]

Phonology

Consonants
Labial Alveolar Lateral alveolar Dorsal Labialized dorsal
plosive Voiceless p t k kʷ
Voiced b d g gʷ
Glottalic ɓ ɗ kʼ kʷʼ
fricative Voiceless f s ɬ χ χʷ
Voiced v z ɮ ʁ ʁʷ
Glottalic sʼ ɬʼ
sonorant Nasal m n
Tap ɾ
Approximant l j w

As is common in Chadic languages, the principal vowel is the low central vowel /a/; where there is no underlying V-slot, an epenthetic ‘zero vowel’ is inserted. Despite the limited distribution of the other vowels, /i, u, e, o/ have emerging phonological status. However, as has been observed in other Chadic languages, certain contrasts are productive only word-finally, excluding the sub-lexicon of loan words.

Lagwan has two contrastive tones, low and high. Mid tone is also found on a few nouns loaned from Classical Arabic. On intensifiers the phonological high tone has an extra-high realisation.[3]

Notes

  1. ^ Lagwan at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
  2. ^ Binam Bikoi, Charles, ed. (2012). Atlas linguistique du Cameroun (ALCAM) [Linguistic Atlas of Cameroon]. Atlas linguistique de l'Afrique centrale (ALAC) (in French). Vol. 1: Inventaire des langues. Yaoundé: CERDOTOLA. ISBN 9789956796069.
  3. ^ Ruff, Joy Naomi (2005). "Phonology of Lagwan": 48. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

References

  • Johannes Lukas. 1936. Die Logone-Sprache im Zentralen Sudan. Leipzig: DMG.
  • Joy Naomi Ruff. 2005. Phonology of Lagwan. Cameroon.
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Italics indicate extinct languages. See also: Chadic languages


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