Cross River languages

{{short description|Branch of Benue–Congo languages spoken in Nigeria and Cameroon}} {{Infobox language family |name=Cross River |altname=Delta–Cross |region=Southeastern Nigeria, southwestern Cameroon |familycolor=Niger-Congo |fam2=Atlantic–Congo |fam3=Volta-Congo |fam4=Benue–Congo |fam5=Bantoid–Cross |child1=Upper Cross |child2=Lower Cross |child3=Ogoni (Kegboid) |child4=Central Delta |glotto=delt1251 |glottorefname=Delta Cross |map=Map of the Cross River languages.svg |mapcaption=The Cross River languages shown within Nigeria and Cameroon: {{legend|#ffa5a5|Central Delta}} {{legend|#fff991|Ogoni}} Lower Cross: :{{legend|#9eff91|Obolo}} :{{legend|#91ffec|Lower Cross proper}} Upper Cross: :{{legend|#91abff|Upper Cross besides Central}} :Central Upper Cross: ::{{legend|#a691e9|North–South}} ::{{legend|#e7afff|East–West}} }}

The '''Cross River''' or '''Delta–Cross languages''' are a branch of the Benue–Congo language family spoken in south-easternmost Nigeria, with some speakers in south-westernmost Cameroon. The branch was first formulated by Joseph Greenberg; it is one of the few of his branches of Niger–Congo that has withstood the test of time.

Greenberg's ''Cross River'' family originally included the Bendi languages''.'' The Bendi languages were soon seen to be very different and thus were made a separate branch of Cross River, while the other languages were united under the branch ''Delta–Cross.'' However, the inclusion of Bendi in Cross River at all is doubtful, and it has been tentatively reassigned to the Southern Bantoid family, making the terms ''Cross River'' and ''Delta–Cross'' now synonymous.

==Demographics== In Nigeria, these languages are spoken in Cross River State, Akwa Ibom state, Rivers State, Bayelsa State, Ebonyi State and Benue State. The Ibibio language is also spoken in Abia State.

==Languages== There are four primary branches of Cross River: *Central Delta; 8 languages, the most populous being Ogbia with 100,000 speakers *Ogoni; 5 languages, with Ogoni proper (Khana) having 200,000 speakers *Upper Cross River; 22 languages, the most populous being Lokaa with 120,000 speakers *Lower Cross River; 23 languages, the most populous being Ibibio language (3.5 million speakers)

==Branches and locations== Below is a list of major Cross River branches and their primary locations (centres of diversity) in southeast Nigeria and southwest Cameroon based on Blench (2019).<ref name="BlenchAtlas4">{{Cite book|title=An Atlas of Nigerian Languages|last=Blench|first=Roger|publisher=Kay Williamson Educational Foundation|year=2019|edition=4th|isbn=|location=Cambridge|pages=}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable" |+ '''Distributions of Cross River branches in Nigeria'''<ref name="BlenchAtlas4"/> ! Branch !! Primary locations |- | Upper Cross River || Obubra, Abi, Biase, Yala, Yakurr, Odukpani, Ikom and Akamkpa LGAs, Cross River State The Korring, Kukele, Mbembe language of Ebonyi State The Korop language of Southwest Cameroon |- | Lower Cross River || Akwa Ibom State (All local Government Areas) Andoni LGA, Rivers State Lower Cross River State The Usaghade language of Southwest Cameroon

|- | Ogoni || Gokana, Tai, Khana and Eleme LGAs, Rivers State |- | Central Delta || Abua–Odual, Ahoada West LGAs, Rivers State Ogbia, Yenagoa LGAs, Bayelsa State |}

==Internal classification== Roger Blench (2008: 4)<ref>Blench, Roger. 2008. ''[http://www.rogerblench.info/Language/Niger-Congo/BC/Cross%20River/Ogoni/Comparative%20Ogonic%20RMB.pdf The Ogoni languages: comparative word list and historical reconstructions]''.</ref> classifies the Cross River languages as follows.

{{tree list}} *'''Cross River''' **? Bendi (Yakoro, Bendi, Alege, Bumaji, Bokyi, etc.) **Delta-Cross ***Upper Cross ****Core *****North-South (Koring, Kukele, Kohumono, Agwagwune, etc.) *****East-West (Ikom, Mbembe, Legbo, etc.) ****Ukpet-Ehom ****Agoi, Doko, Iyongiyong ****Kiong, Korop ***Lower Cross ****East (Efik, Ibibio, Anaang, Efiat, etc.) ****Central (Enwang, Uda) ****West (Ebughu, Oro, Usakade, Obolo, etc.) ***Ogoni ****Eleme; Baan (Ogoi) ****Gokana; Tẹẹ (Tai); Kana ***Central Delta ****Abuan, Odual ****Kugbo, Ogbia, etc. {{tree list/end}}

Although Blench (2004) tentatively included the Bendi languages as possibly being a Cross River outlier branch, the Bendi languages are generally classified as Southern Bantoid.

==See also== * Cross River (Nigeria), the namesake of the language group

==References== {{reflist}}

==Bibliography== * {{Cite book |title=An Atlas of Nigerian Languages |last=Blench |first=Roger |publisher=Kay Williamson Educational Foundation |year=2019 |edition=4th |location=Cambridge}} * {{cite journal |last=Connell |first=Bruce |year=1994 |title=The lower Cross river languages: A prolegomena to the classification of the Cross river languages |journal=Journal of West African Languages |volume=24 |issue=1 |pages=3–46 |url=https://journalofwestafricanlanguages.org/index.php/downloads/download/69-volume2401/327-the-lower-cross-languages-a-prolegomena-to-the-classification-of-the-cross-river-languages}} * {{cite journal |last=Faraclas |first=Nicholas |year=1986 |title=Cross river as a model for the evolution of Benue-Congo nominal class/concord systems |url=https://journals.linguisticsociety.org/elanguage/sal/article/download/1189/1189-2331-1-PB.pdf |journal=Studies in African Linguistics |volume=17 |issue=1 |pages=39–54 |doi=10.32473/sal.v17i1.107495 |s2cid=126381408 |doi-access=free}} * {{cite book |last=Greenberg |first=Joseph H. |title=The Languages of Africa |location=Bloomingtom |publisher=Indiana University |year=1963}}

==External links== *[http://comparalex.org/ ComparaLex], database with Cross River word lists *[https://web.archive.org/web/20120302065005/http://www.journalofwestafricanlanguages.org/CrossRiver.aspx Journal of West African Languages: Cross River Languages]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cross River Languages}} Category:Cross River languages Category:Benue–Congo languages