Maban languages

The Maban languages are a small family of languages which have been included in the proposed Nilo-Saharan family. Maban languages are spoken in eastern Chad, the Central African Republic and western Sudan (Darfur).

Maban
Geographic distribution	Chad, Sudan, Central African Republic
Linguistic classification	Nilo-Saharan? Maba–Kunama? Maban
Subdivisions	Mimi-N Maban proper
Glottolog	maba1274[1]

Languages

The Maban branch includes the following languages:

• Mimi of Nachtigal
• Maban proper
  • Kenjeje (Yaali, Faranga)
  • Masalit: Surbakhal, Masalit
  • Aiki (Runga and Kibet, sometimes considered separate languages)
  • Mabang: Karanga, Marfa, Maba

The languages attested in two word lists labelled "Mimi", collected by Decorse (Mimi-D) and Nachtigal (Mimi-N), have also been classified as Maban, though this has been contested. Mimi-N appears to have been remotely related to Maban proper, while Mimi-D appears to have not been Maban at all, with the similarities due to language contact with locally dominant Maba.

Comparative vocabulary

Sample basic vocabulary for Maban languages:

Language	eye	ear	nose	tooth	tongue	mouth	blood	bone	tree	water	eat	name
Maba[2]	kàʃì-k/-ñi	koi-k	boiñ	sati-k	delmi-k	kan-a/-tu	àríi	kàñjí-k	soŋgo-k	inji	-añ-	mílí-i/-síi
Masalit[2]	kóo-gí/-sí	kwóyɛ̀	dúrmì	kácìŋgi	gélmèdì	kánà	fàríŋ	kónjì	síŋgì	sá	-iny-	mirsi/-ldiŋ
Aiki[2]	kàs-`k/-ò	kàsá	mùndú	sàdí	àdìyím	yù-k	pày/-ó; fáai	jìŋg`r/jùŋgɔ̀rɔ̀	rí-k	tà-k	-ñɔ̀-	mèek-í/-ú
Kibet[2]	kàs/-u	kàsá	mùndù	sàdí	àd`lɛ́m	yù-k	fal/-u; ari	njekedi/njùkùdú	ri-k	ta	-ñɔ̀-	m lk-i/-udɔ
Mimi of Nachtigal[3]	kal	kuyi	hur	ziːk		mil	ari	kadʒi		sun (< Fur?)
Mimi of Decorse[4]	dyo	feɾ	fir	ɲain		ɲyo			su	engi	ɲyam

Numerals

Comparison of numerals in individual languages:[5]

Classification	Language	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Maba	Maba	tɛ́ɡ, tɔ́ː	mbàːr, mbíːr, mbùl	kùŋàːl, káyáŋ	àssàːl, ássíː	tùːr, túːr	sit̀tàːl, síttíː < Arabic sitta	mɛ́ndrìː	íyyáː	ɔ̀ddɔ̀yí	ɔ̀ttúɡ
Masalit	Masalit (1)	tíyóŋ	mbárá	káaŋ	áás	tóór	ít̪í	màrí	àd̪á	àyi	ùt̪úk
Masalit	Masalit (2)	tîyom (without noun), tîle (with n.)	mbara	kaŋ	as	tur	iti	mâri	aya	adey	ûtuk
Masalit	Masalit (3)	tyǒm (without noun), tíiilò (with n.)	mbárá	káaŋ	ás	túr	ítí	màrí	àyá	àdɛ́i	ùtúk
Runga-Kibet	Kibet	doˈwai	mbaʀ	kʰasaŋˈɡal	ʔaːtal	tor	ʔiˈsal	mɪndɪrˈsɪʔ	mbaːkʰl	kʰaˈdɛijə	juˈtʊk̚
Runga-Kibet	Runga	kʰanˈda	mba	kʰazaŋɡa	attɛi	tur	izɛi	mɪnˈdirsi	mbɑkadeli	kʰaddɛl	jtuk̚

See also

• Maban word lists (Wiktionary)

References

1. Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2017). "Maban". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
2. Edgar, John T. 1991. Maba-group Lexicon. (Sprache und Oralität in Afrika: Frankfurter Studien zur Afrikanistik, 13.) Berlin: Dietrich Reimer.
3. Lukas, Johannes & Otto Völckers. 1938. G. Nachtigal's Aufzeichnungen über die Sprache der Mimi in Wadai. Zeitschrift für Eingeborenensprachen 29. 145‒154.
4. Gaudefroy-Demombynes, Maurice. 1907. Document sur les Langues de l'Oubangui-Chari. In Actes du XVIe Congrès International des Orientalistes, Alger, 1905, Part II, 172-330. Paris: Ernest Leroux.
5. Chan, Eugene (2019). "The Nilo-Saharan Language Phylum". Numeral Systems of the World's Languages.

• Calvain Mbernodji, Katharina Wolf. 2008. Une enquête sociolinguistique des parlers Kibet, Rounga, Daggal et Mourro du Tchad. SIL International.

Further reading

• Edgar, John T. 1991. Maba-group Lexicon. (Sprache und Oralität in Afrika: Frankfurter Studien zur Afrikanistik, 13.) Berlin: Dietrich Reimer.
• Edgar, John. 1991. First Steps Towards Proto-Maba. African Languages and Cultures 4: 113-133.

External links

• G. Starostin, 2011. On Mimi