| Babanki | |
|---|---|
| Kejom, Finge | |
| Kəjòm[1] | |
| Native to | Cameroon |
| Region | Northwest |
| Ethnicity | Kejom [fr] |
Native speakers | 39,000 (2011)[2] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | bbk |
| Glottolog | baba1266 |
| ELP | Babanki |
 Linguistic map of theGrassfields languages of northwestern Cameroon. | |
| This article containsIPA phonetic symbols. Without properrendering support, you may seequestion marks, boxes, or other symbols instead ofUnicode characters. For an introductory guide on IPA symbols, seeHelp:IPA. | |
Babanki, orKejom (Babanki:Kəjòm [kɘ̀d͡ʒɔ́m]), is aBantoid language that is spoken by the Babanki people of theWestern Highlands ofCameroon.
Babanki is a member of theCenter Ring subfamily of theGrassfields languages, which is in turn a member of the extensiveSouthern Bantoid subfamily of theAtlantic-Congo branch of the hypotheticalNiger-Congo language family.
According toEthnologue, there were 39,000 speakers of Babanki as of 2011, although theEndangered Languages Project states that the 39,000 figure represents the ethnic population while actual speakers of the language number around 20,000.[3]
It is mainly spoken in the villages ofKejom Ketinguh [fr] andKejom Keku [fr] (also known as Babanki Tungo and Big Babanki, respectively),[4][5] which are located in theMezam department of theNorthwest region ofCameroon. Languages spoken nearby include the closely relatedRing languagesKom,Vengo, andNsei to the east, and the more distantly relatedEastern Grassfields languagesBafut,Mbili-Mbui, andAwing to the west.English, in particularCameroonian Pidgin English, is commonly spoken as well, to the extent that the latter is beginning toreplace Babanki in all domains, including the home.[5] Additionally, some speakers may speakFrench, Cameroon's other official language besides English, and speakers living in Kejom Keku may also speak the nearbyKom language, depending on their level of interaction with theKom community.[5]
It has two main varieties, based on the two villages it is spoken in. They exhibit slight phonetic, phonological, and lexical differences but are mutually intelligible.[5] A distinct variety spoken by some members of a group of ethnicFula who live in the hills surrounding Kejom Ketinguh has also been attested.[6]
Babanki has 25 consonant phonemes. Most consonants also appear in phonemicprenasalized,labialized, andpalatalized forms, although it remains ambiguous as to whether Babanki actually has thesesecondary articulations or if they are simplyconsonant clusters of simple consonants withplacelessnasals,/w/, or/j/, respectively.[5]
Babanki has some allophonic palatalization before front vowels/ie/. The velar plosives/kg/ are realized as palatalized [kʲgʲ], respectively, and the labial-velar approximant/w/ is realized as alabial-palatal approximant[ɥ]. This variation also applies to labialized consonants (e.g./kʷì/→[kᶣì] "up"), although labialized bilabials and labiodentals retain labial-velar secondary articulation.
Prenasalized consonants in Babanki (alloral consonants but/v/ can appear as prenasalized) are realized in several ways depending upon themanner of articulation of the consonant in question. Preceding anobstruent and following a vowel, prenasalization is generally realized as ahomorganicnasal stop (e.g. /kɘ̀ⁿt͡ʃík/→[kɘ̀ɲt͡ʃíʔ] "lid"), while preceding asonorant and following a vowel, prenasalization is generally realized without full oral closure which tends to cause the preceding vowel to benasalized (e.g./fɘ̀ⁿʃìk/→[fɘ̃̀ʃìʔ] "grass beetle"). Additionally, when a prenasalized consonant is word initial and has no preceding vowel, the nasal portion is often audiblysyllabic and using the low tone (e.g./ⁿdɔ̏ŋ/→[ǹdɔ̏ŋ] "potato").
Babanki has eight vowel phonemes contrasting in height, roundness, and backing.Length distinction andnasalization also occur non-contrastively. Babanki is unusual in that it contrasts both therounded and theunrounded close central vowels and theclose andclose-mid central unrounded vowels.
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i | ɨ •ʉ | u |
| Close-mid | e | ɘ | o |
| Open-mid | (ɛː)[b] | (ɔː)[b] | |
| Open | a |
In open syllables, vowels/e/ and/o/ are realized as close-mid[e] and[o], while in closed syllables they are realized as open-mid[ɛ] and[ɔ] (compare[àbé] "liver" and[bɛ̀ʔ] "snatch",[ɘ̀kó] "money" and[kɔ́ʔ] "chop").
Babanki has both lexical tone and grammatical tone. At the phonological level it is described as simply having a distinction between low /˨/ and high /˦/tonemes,[5] although a number of derived surface tonal sequences have been observed. Rarely, contour tones can occur in non-derived environments.
| Name | Notation |
|---|---|
| High | ˦ |
| Downstepped high | ꜜ˦ |
| Mid | ˧ |
| Low | ˨ |
| Low falling | ˨˩ |
| High-mid falling | ˦˧ |
| High-low falling | ˦˨ |
| Low-high rising | ˨˦ |
The downstepped high and mid tones are phonetically identical, but are otherwise distinct; the downstepped high tone[ꜜ˦] occurs much more freely and creates a tone ceiling for successive high tones in the same tonal phrase, while the mid tone[˧] must precede a high tone and is restricted to a few specific environments.[7]
Typically, Babanki words are composed of a CV(C) stem with optional (C)V prefixes and suffixes.[5] The stem-initialonset is where the majority of Babanki consonants occur exclusively;[c] onsets of affixes and function words only permit the phonemes/tkfvsʃmnjɰ/, and the only permissiblecoda consonants are/mnŋfsk/.Allophony is much more distinct in coda consonants;/k/ is realized as aglottal stop[ʔ], and rimes ending in thealveolar nasal/n/ whose nuclei are the non-high vowels/aeo/ (i.e./anenon/)diphthongize, surfacing as[aɪ̯n~aɪ̯̃ɛɪ̯n~ɛɪ̯̃ɔɪ̯n~ɔɪ̯̃].[5]
Vowel coalescence is also quite significant in Babanki. It occurs in/Vɘ/ and/VCɘ/ sequences (excluding those where/C/ is/m/), where the finalclose-mid central unrounded vowel and (in the case of the latter) the coda consonant coalesce to a single phonetically long vowel[Vː], the quality of which cannot necessarily be determined by either vowel (although in/Vɘ/ sequences the phonetic long vowel is usually of the same quality as the phonemic first vowel). For example, the phrase[kɘ̀zɔ̀ːkɔ́m] "myspeargrass" would be phonemically parsed:
Here, the sequence/ònɘ́/ coalesces into the long vowel[ɔː]. Although virtually all long vowels that occur in Babanki are due to this process, there are a few instances of long vowels that are not clearly derived, such as in the words[ɘ̀kɔ̀ː] "which" and[ⁿbɛ̀ː] "term of address forfon".[5]
| Phonetic transcription[d] | Translation |
|---|---|
| ɘ̀fʷɔ́fꜜɘ́gɘ̀ːkᶣìwɛ̂ːt͡ʃᶣìt͡ʃᶣìǹtáŋmɘ́láàtóːndɘ̀t͡ʃòːndɘ̀lósɘ́t͡sɛ̀ɪ̯nwùd͡ʒèʔmûɰmɔ̀ʔdàlɘ́lɨ̀mtɘ́vȉ vwěꜜɰʉ́mɘ́láɥìʔáɰɘ́t͡ʃòːmbȉɘ̀nɘ̀láwùd͡ʒèʔnájìt͡súʔdàlɘ́lɨ̀mtɘ́ːwɛ́ɪ̯nmwâtóːwɛ́ɪ̯nt͡ʃòːwút͡sɛ́ɪ̯n ɘ̀fɔ́fꜜɘ́gɘ̀ːkᶣìːmɘ̀zìtɘ̀sɘ̀t͡ʃǒnôːnàntô ɰɘ̌lìt͡ʃǒːɰɔ́ʔtɘ̀wùd͡ʒèʔjíbɔ̀ŋsɘ̀fʷɔ́mtɘ̀dàlɘ́lɨ̀mtɘ́ːwɛ́ɪ̯náwɛ́ːwɛ̏ɪ̯n kɘ̀ɲʉ̃ːkʲíkɘ́ɰɔ́ʔɘ̀fʷɔ́fꜜɘ́gɘ̀ːkᶣìɰɘ̀kʲé t͡ʃᶣìt͡ʃᶣǐːzìtɘ̀báɪ̯nɘ̀lɨ̀mɘ̀vȉwùd͡ʒèʔjízàŋsɘ̀t͡sùʔdàlɘ́lɨ̀mtɘ́ːwɛ́ɪ̯n kɘ́t͡ʃòːɘ̀fɔ́fꜜɘ́gɘ̀ːkᶣìɰɘ̀bʲɨ́mɘ́lát͡ʃᶣìt͡ʃᶣǐːꜜtóːt͡ʃòːjȉ | The North Wind and the Sun were arguing about who was stronger than who, until a traveler wearing a warm gown came. They agreed that the person who would first make the traveler take off his gown was stronger than the other. The North Wind then began to blow with great force. As he blew stronger, the traveler instead wrapped his warm gown around his body. This thing was too much, and the North Wind gave up. Then the Sun began to shine and make places hot, and the traveler quickly took off his gown. This surpassed the North Wind; he accepted that the Sun was stronger than him. |
| Phonemic transcription with interlinear gloss | |
ɘ̀-fʷóf gɘ̀ part ɘ̀ kʷì above wénɘ̀ with t͡ʃʷìt͡ʃʷì sun(C1) ǹ-táŋmɘ́ lá à tó-ɘ be.strong-PROG ndɘ̀ who t͡ʃò-ɘ pass-PROG ndɘ̀ who ló, sɘ́t͡sèn until wù-d͡ʒèk mú while mòk wear dálɘ̀ gown(C1) lɨ̀mtɘ́ hot vì. come ɘ̀-fʷófɘgɘ̀ɘ̀kʷìwénɘ̀t͡ʃʷìt͡ʃʷìǹ-táŋmɘ́láàtó-ɘndɘ̀t͡ʃò-ɘndɘ̀ló,sɘ́t͡sènwù-d͡ʒèkmúɰɘ̀mòkdálɘ̀lɨ̀mtɘ́vì. C3-wind ASS.C3 part DIR above with sun(C1) PST-quarrel COMP FOC be.strong-PROG who pass-PROG who EMPH until C1.NMLZ-travel while 3SG.C1 wear gown(C1) hot come The North Wind and the Sun were arguing about who was stronger than who, until a traveler wearing a warm gown came. ɰʉ́mɘ́ agree lá ɥìk person(C1) á t͡ʃò-ɘ pass-PROG mbì first ɘ̀ nè cause lá wù-d͡ʒèk nájì t͡súk remove dálɘ̀ gown(C1) lɨ̀mtɘ́ hot mú so à tó-ɘ be.strong-PROG t͡ʃò-ɘ pass-PROG wú-t͡sén. vɘ̀wéɰʉ́mɘ́láɥìkáɰɘ́t͡ʃò-ɘmbìɘ̀nèláwù-d͡ʒèknájìt͡súkdálɘ̀lɨ̀mtɘ́ɘ́wénmúàtó-ɘwént͡ʃò-ɘwú-t͡sén. 3PL.C2 agree COMP person(C1) REL 3SG.C1 pass-PROG first CONJ cause COMP C1.NMLZ-travel DEM remove gown(C1) hot ASS.C1 3SG.POSS.C1 so FOC be.strong-PROG 3SG.C1 pass-PROG C1.NMLZ-certain They agreed that the person who would first make the traveler take off his gown was stronger than the other. ɘ̀-fʷóf gɘ̀ part ɘ̀ kʷì above mɘ̀ then zìtɘ̀ start sɘ̀ t͡ʃò-ɘ pass-PROG nókɘ̀ really nàntô. much ɘ̀-fʷófɘgɘ̀ɘ̀kʷìɘ́mɘ̀zìtɘ̀sɘ̀t͡ʃò-ɘnókɘ̀nàntô. C3-wind ASS.C3 part DIR above SUBJ.C3 then start PRS pass-PROG really much The North Wind then began to blow with great force. lì so t͡ʃò-ɘ pass-PROG ɰóktɘ̀ be.big wù-d͡ʒèk jí bòŋsɘ̀ instead fʷómtɘ̀ fold dálɘ̀ gown(C1) lɨ̀mtɘ́ hot á to ɘ̀-wén. ɰɘ̀ɘ́lìt͡ʃò-ɘɰóktɘ̀wù-d͡ʒèkjíbòŋsɘ̀fʷómtɘ̀dálɘ̀lɨ̀mtɘ́ɘ́wénáwénɘ̀-wén. 3SG.C3 SUBJ.C3 so pass-PROG be.big C1.NMLZ-travel DEM instead fold gown(C1) hot ASS.C1 3SG.POSS.C1 to 3SG.POSS.C3 C3-body As he blew stronger, the traveler instead wrapped his warm gown around his body. kɘ̀-ɲʉ́ kí-kɘ́ this-C7 ɰɔ́k be.big ɘ̀-fʷóf gɘ̀ part ɘ̀ kʷì above ké. allow kɘ̀-ɲʉ́ɘ̀kí-kɘ́ɰɔ́kɘ̀-fʷófɘgɘ̀ɘ̀kʷìɰɘ̀ké. C7-thing ASS.C7 this-C7 be.big C3-wind ASS.C3 part DIR above 3SG.C3 allow This thing was too much, and the North Wind gave up. t͡ʃʷìt͡ʃʷì sun(C1) zìtɘ̀ start bán shine ɘ̀ lɨ̀mɘ̀ hot-PROG vì come wù-d͡ʒèk jí zàŋsɘ̀ hurry t͡sùk remove dálɘ̀ gown(C1) lɨ̀mtɘ́ hot t͡ʃʷìt͡ʃʷìzìtɘ̀bánɘ̀lɨ̀mɘ̀vìwù-d͡ʒèkjízàŋsɘ̀t͡sùkdálɘ̀lɨ̀mtɘ́ɘ́wén. sun(C1) start shine CONJ hot-PROG come C1.NMLZ-travel DEM hurry remove gown(C1) hot ASS.C1 3SG.POSS.C1 Then the Sun began to shine and make places hot, and the traveler quickly took off his gown. t͡ʃò pass ɘ̀-fʷóf gɘ̀ part ɘ̀ kʷì above bʲɨ́mɘ́ accept lá t͡ʃʷìt͡ʃʷì sun(C1) tó-ɘ be.strong-PROG t͡ʃò-ɘ pass-PROG kɘ́t͡ʃòɘ̀-fʷófɘgɘ̀ɘ̀kʷìɰɘ̀bʲɨ́mɘ́lát͡ʃʷìt͡ʃʷìɘ́tó-ɘt͡ʃò-ɘjì. 3SG.C7 pass C3-wind ASS.C3 part DIR above 3SG.C3 accept COMP sun(C1) SUBJ.C1 be.strong-PROG pass-PROG 3SG.C3 This surpassed the North Wind; he accepted that the Sun was stronger than him. | |
Linguistic research has been conducted in the Babanki community since the late 1970s.SIL Cameroon and the Cameroon Association for Bible Translation and Literacy (CABTAL) have been actively engaged with the Babanki language and community since 1988 and 2004, respectively.[4]
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link), with supplementary sound recordings.
Text was copied from this source, which is available under aCreative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.C1:noun class 1C2:noun class 2C3:noun class 3C7:noun class 7ASS:associative markerSUBJ:subject markerDIR:directiveCONJ:conjunction that appears specifically between serialized verbs
