Luyana | |
---|---|
Esiluyana | |
Native to | Zambia; immigrants in Namibia, Angola |
Region | Okavango River |
Native speakers | 480 Luyana proper (2010 census)
[1] 2,900 all Luyana (Kwandi, Kwangwa, and Luyana proper) (2010 census) [1] |
Latin | |
Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 |
lyn |
Glottolog |
luya1241 |
K.31
[2] |
Luyana (Luyaana), also known as Luyi (Louyi, Lui, Rouyi), is a Bantu language spoken in Zambia and perhaps in small numbers in neighboring countries. It appears to be a divergent lineage of Bantu. [3] It is spoken by the Luyana people, a subgroup of the Lozi people.
Ethnologue lists Kwandi, Mbowe, Mbume, and possibly Kwangwa ("Kwanga") as dialects. Maho (2009) classifies these as distinct languages; it is not clear if any of them are part of the divergent Luyana branch of Bantu, or if they are Kavango languages. [2]
The writing system of the Luyana language was developed in 2011 [4] and uses the Latin script. [4]
The language is taught in primary schools and secondary schools. [4]
Luyana has five simple vowels: a, e, i, o, and u. [5] o is almost always open and is rarely closed. [5] Wherever there may be hesitation between o and u, u should be used. [5]
There are no diphthongs. [5] When two vowels meet, they contract, or one is omitted. [5]
The consonant inventory of Luyana is shown below. [6]
Bilabial | Dental | Alveolar | Postalveolar | Palatal | Velar | Labialized Velar | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Plosive | p b | t̪ d̪ | k ɡ | ||||
Nasal | m | n | ɲ | ŋ | |||
Fricative | s | ʃ | |||||
Approximant | j | ||||||
Affricate | dz | dʒ | |||||
Lateral approximant | l | w |
Luyana | |
---|---|
Esiluyana | |
Native to | Zambia; immigrants in Namibia, Angola |
Region | Okavango River |
Native speakers | 480 Luyana proper (2010 census)
[1] 2,900 all Luyana (Kwandi, Kwangwa, and Luyana proper) (2010 census) [1] |
Latin | |
Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 |
lyn |
Glottolog |
luya1241 |
K.31
[2] |
Luyana (Luyaana), also known as Luyi (Louyi, Lui, Rouyi), is a Bantu language spoken in Zambia and perhaps in small numbers in neighboring countries. It appears to be a divergent lineage of Bantu. [3] It is spoken by the Luyana people, a subgroup of the Lozi people.
Ethnologue lists Kwandi, Mbowe, Mbume, and possibly Kwangwa ("Kwanga") as dialects. Maho (2009) classifies these as distinct languages; it is not clear if any of them are part of the divergent Luyana branch of Bantu, or if they are Kavango languages. [2]
The writing system of the Luyana language was developed in 2011 [4] and uses the Latin script. [4]
The language is taught in primary schools and secondary schools. [4]
Luyana has five simple vowels: a, e, i, o, and u. [5] o is almost always open and is rarely closed. [5] Wherever there may be hesitation between o and u, u should be used. [5]
There are no diphthongs. [5] When two vowels meet, they contract, or one is omitted. [5]
The consonant inventory of Luyana is shown below. [6]
Bilabial | Dental | Alveolar | Postalveolar | Palatal | Velar | Labialized Velar | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Plosive | p b | t̪ d̪ | k ɡ | ||||
Nasal | m | n | ɲ | ŋ | |||
Fricative | s | ʃ | |||||
Approximant | j | ||||||
Affricate | dz | dʒ | |||||
Lateral approximant | l | w |