Kanembu language

{{Short description|Nilo-Saharan language of Chad}} {{Infobox language |name=Kanembu |nativename=كَنٜݦُ |altname=Kanembou |states=Chad |region= Barh el Gazel, Hadjer-Lamis |ethnicity=Kanembu |speakers={{sigfig|877,200|2}} |date=2019 |ref=e25 |dia1=Karkawu |dia2=Mando |dia3=Nguri |script=*Latin *Ajami |familycolor=Nilo-Saharan |fam2=Saharan |fam3=Western |fam4=Kanuri |ancestor=Old Kanembu |iso2=kbl |lc1=kbl |ld1=Kanembu |lc2=txj |ld2=Old Kanembu |glotto=kane1243 |glottorefname=Kanembu |lingua=02-AAA-b }}

'''Kanembu''' is a Nilo-Saharan language spoken in Chad by the Kanembu people. It is also spoken by a smaller number of people in Niger. It is closely related to Kanuri.

== Phonology ==

=== Consonants === {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" ! colspan="2" | !Labial !Alveolar !Palatal !Velar !Glottal |- ! colspan="2" |Nasal |{{IPA link|m}} |{{IPA link|n}} |{{IPA link|ɲ}} |{{IPA link|ŋ}} | |- ! rowspan="3" |Plosive !voiceless |{{IPA link|p}} |{{IPA link|t}} |{{IPA link|c}} |{{IPA link|k}} |{{IPA link|ʔ}} |- !voiced |{{IPA link|b}} |{{IPA link|d}} |{{IPA link|ɟ}} |{{IPA link|ɡ}} | |- !prenasal |{{IPA link|ᵐb}} |{{IPA link|ⁿd}} |{{IPA link|ᶮɟ}} |{{IPA link|ᵑɡ}} | |- ! colspan="2" |Fricative |{{IPA link|f}} |{{IPA link|s}} |{{IPA link|ʃ}} | |{{IPA link|h}} |- ! colspan="2" |Trill | |{{IPA link|r}} | | | |- ! colspan="2" |Approximant |{{IPA link|w}} |{{IPA link|l}} |{{IPA link|j}} | | |}

* {{IPA|/f, b/}} can also have allophones of {{IPA|[ɸ, β]}}.{{Sfn|Jouannet|1982}}

=== Vowels === {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" ! !Front !Central !Back |- !Close |{{IPA link|i}} | |{{IPA link|u}} |- !Near-close |{{IPA link|ɪ}} | |{{IPA link|ʊ}} |- !Close-mid |{{IPA link|e}} |{{IPA link|ə}} |{{IPA link|o}} |- !Open-mid |{{IPA link|ɛ}} |{{IPA link|ɜ}} |{{IPA link|ɔ}} |- !Open | |{{IPA link|a}} | |}

* Vowel length is also distributed.

==Writing system== Kanembu is written with the Latin script and Ajami alphabets.

In 2009, the Chadian government standardized both Latin and Ajami scripts for all indigenous languages of the country, including Kanembu, in what is known as Chadian National Alphabet.<ref name="WR">Warren-Rothlin, Andy. (2014). West African Scripts and Arabic-Script Orthographies in Socio-Political Context. DOI: [https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004256804_013 10.1163/9789004256804_013].</ref><ref name="unicode">{{cite book | lang = en | first1 = Lorna A. | last1 = Priest | first2 = Martin | last2 = Hosken | title = Proposal to add Arabic script characters for African and Asian languages | url = https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2010/10288r-arabic-proposal.pdf | date = 12 August 2010}} ([https://web.archive.org/web/20231016155611/https://unicode.org/L2/L2010/10288-arabic-proposal.pdf Archive])</ref>

{|class="wikitable" |+ Kanembu Latin alphabet {{sfn|SIL Chad|2017a}}{{sfn|SIL Chad|2017b}} | A a || B b || C c || D d || E e | Ə ə || F f || G g || H h || I i || J j || K k |- | {{IPAblink|a}} ||{{IPAblink|b}} ||{{IPAblink|t͡ʃ}} ||{{IPAblink|d}} ||{{IPAblink|e}} ||{{IPAblink|ə}} ||{{IPAblink|f}} ||{{IPAblink|g}} ||{{IPAblink|h}} ||{{IPAblink|i}} ||{{IPAblink|d͡ʒ}} || {{IPAblink|k}} |- | L l || M m || N n || O o || Pp | R r || S s || T t || U u || W w || Y y |- |{{IPAblink|l}} ||{{IPAblink|m}} ||{{IPAblink|n}} ||{{IPAblink|o}} ||{{IPAblink|p}} ||{{IPAblink|r}} ||{{IPAblink|s}} ||{{IPAblink|t}} ||{{IPAblink|u}} ||{{IPAblink|w}} ||{{IPAblink|j}} |} The letters {{angle bracket|â, ê, î, ô, û}} are also used. The orthography also uses the digraphs {{angle bracket|ch, mb, nd, ng, nj}}.

The Ajami script has been used for Kanembu, since the time of Dunama Dabbalemi, and still today in the Tarjumo language or in religious works.

{|class="wikitable Unicode" dir="rtl" |+ Kanembu Arabic alphabet<ref name="WR"/><ref name="unicode"/> |- ! Arabic (Latin) <nowiki>[</nowiki>IPA<nowiki>]</nowiki> | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|أ إ}} ‌( - ) {{IPAblink|∅}}/{{IPAblink|ʔ}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ب}} (B b) {{IPAblink|b}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ت}} (T t) {{IPAblink|t}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" bgcolor="#FFEFD5" | {{script/Arabic|ث}} (S s) {{IPAblink|s}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ج}} (J j) {{IPAblink|ɟ}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ڃ}} (Nj nj) {{IPAblink|ᶮɟ}} |- ! Arabic (Latin) <nowiki>[</nowiki>IPA<nowiki>]</nowiki> | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|چ}} (C c) {{IPAblink|t͡ʃ}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" bgcolor="#FFEFD5" | {{script/Arabic|ح}} (H h) {{IPAblink|h}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" bgcolor="#FFEFD5" | {{script/Arabic|خ}} (Kh kh) {{IPAblink|x}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|د}} (D d) {{IPAblink|d}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ڊ}} (Nd nd) {{IPAblink|ⁿd}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" bgcolor="#FFEFD5" | {{script/Arabic|ذ}} (S s) {{IPAblink|s}} |- ! Arabic (Latin) <nowiki>[</nowiki>IPA<nowiki>]</nowiki> | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ر}} (R r) {{IPAblink|r}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" bgcolor="#FFEFD5" | {{script/Arabic|ز}} (S s) {{IPAblink|s}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|س}} (S s) {{IPAblink|s}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ش}} (Ch ch) {{IPAblink|ʃ}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" bgcolor="#FFEFD5" | {{script/Arabic|ص}} (S s) {{IPAblink|s}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" bgcolor="#FFEFD5" | {{script/Arabic|ض}} (D d) {{IPAblink|d}} |- ! Arabic (Latin) <nowiki>[</nowiki>IPA<nowiki>]</nowiki> | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" bgcolor="#FFEFD5" | {{script/Arabic|ط}} (T t) {{IPAblink|t}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" bgcolor="#FFEFD5" | {{script/Arabic|ظ}} (Z z) {{IPAblink|z}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" bgcolor="#FFEFD5" | {{script/Arabic|ع}} ( - ) {{IPAblink|ʔ}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" bgcolor="#FFEFD5" | {{script/Arabic|غ}} (Kh kh) {{IPAblink|x}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ڠ}} (Ng ng) {{IPAblink|ᵑɡ}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ف}} (F f) {{IPAblink|f}} |- ! Arabic (Latin) <nowiki>[</nowiki>IPA<nowiki>]</nowiki> | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ق}} (G g) {{IPAblink|g}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ك}} (K k) {{IPAblink|k}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ل}} (L l) {{IPAblink|l}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|م}} (M m) {{IPAblink|m}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ݦ}} (Mb mb) {{IPAblink|ᵐb}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ن}} (N n) {{IPAblink|n}} |- ! Arabic (Latin) <nowiki>[</nowiki>IPA<nowiki>]</nowiki> | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ه}} (H h) {{IPAblink|h}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|و}} (W w) {{IPAblink|w}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ؤ}} ‌( - ) {{IPAblink|ʔ}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ي}} (Y y) {{IPAblink|j}} | style="width:7em; text-align:center; padding: 3px;" | {{script/Arabic|ئ}} ‌( - ) {{IPAblink|ʔ}} |}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" |+Vowel at beginning of word |- ! A || E || Ə || I || O || U |-dir="rtl" | {{Script/Arabic|أَ}} | {{Script/Arabic|إٜ}} | {{Script/Arabic|أ٘}} | {{Script/Arabic|إِ}} | {{Script/Arabic|أٗ}} | {{Script/Arabic|أُ}} |- ! Aa || Ee || Əə || Ii || Oo || Uu |-dir="rtl" | {{Script/Arabic|آ}} | {{Script/Arabic|إٜيـ}} | - | {{Script/Arabic|إِيـ}} | {{Script/Arabic|أٗو}} | {{Script/Arabic|أُو}} |}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" |+Vowel at middle and end of word |- ! a || e || ə || i || o || u |-dir="rtl" | {{Script/Arabic|◌َ}} | {{Script/Arabic|◌ٜ}} | {{Script/Arabic|٘◌}} | {{Script/Arabic|◌ِ}} | {{Script/Arabic| ٝ◌}} | {{Script/Arabic|◌ُ}} |- ! aa || ee || əə || ii || oo || uu |-dir="rtl" | {{Script/Arabic|◌َا / ـَا}} | {{Script/Arabic|◌ٜيـ / ـٜيـ}} {{Script/Arabic|◌ٜي / ـٜي}} | {{Script/Arabic|٘◌ا / ـ٘ا}} | {{Script/Arabic|◌ِيـ / ـِيـ}} {{Script/Arabic|◌ِي / ـِي}} | {{Script/Arabic| ٝ◌و / ـٝو}} | {{Script/Arabic|◌ُو / ـُو}} |}

==Notes== {{Reflist}}

==References== *{{cite book |last=Jouannet |first=Francis |year=1977 |chapter=Essai d'inventaire phonétique du parler kanembou des Ngaldoukou du Sud-Kanem |title=Études phonologiques tchadiennes |editor-first=Jean-Pierre |editor-last=Caprile |pages=129–143 |location=Paris |publisher=SELAF |isbn=2-85297-019-8}} *{{cite book |last=Jouannet |first=Francis |year=1982 |title=Le kanembou des Ngaldoukou : langue saharienne parlée sur les rives septentrionales du lac Tchad : phonématique et prosodie |location=Paris |publisher=SELAF |isbn=2-85297-129-1}} *{{cite book |last=Lukas |first=Johannes |year=1931 |title=Die Sprache der Káidi-Kanembú in Kanem |location=Hamburg |publisher=C. Boysen}} * {{cite book |language=fr |author=SIL Chad |title=Kakadu Kanembu Kərânei, Kakadu 1 [Nous lisons le kanembou, livre 2] |date=2017a |publisher=SIL Tchad |location=N’Djamena, Tchad |url=https://www.sil.org/system/files/reapdata/54/72/99/54729998750848391194202669728554659842/KBL_Syllabaire_Kanembu_1_5e_2017.pdf}} * {{cite book |language=fr |author=SIL Chad |title=Kakadu Kanembu Kərânei, Kakadu 2 [Nous lisons le kanembou, livre 2] |date=2017b |publisher=SIL Tchad |location=N’Djamena, Tchad |url=https://www.sil.org/system/files/reapdata/15/37/37/153737706171933160934569236096090388988/KBL_Syllabaire_Kanembu_2_4e_2017.pdf}}

==External links== *[http://www.bisharat.net/wikidoc/pmwiki.php/PanAfrLoc/Kanuri PanAfriL10n page on Kanuri (includes Kanembu)] *[http://kanembou.net "http://kanembou.net – photos and language recordings"] *[https://digital.soas.ac.uk/okim Old Kanembu Islamic Manuscripts]

Category:Saharan languages Category:Languages of Chad