| Jibu | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Nigeria |
| Region | Taraba State |
Native speakers | (30,000 cited 1997)[1] |
Niger–Congo?
| |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | jib |
| Glottolog | jibu1239 |
Jibu is aJukunoid language spoken in theTaraba State ofNigeria by 30,000 people.
In Jibu, there are 18 consonant phonemes, 9 vowels (which are represented just using three letters), and three tones (rising, mid-level, and falling). In Jibu, nasalization, labialization, and palatalization are considered to be part of the syllable, and are written along with it after the vowel.Nasalization is represented withn, except when it is at the end of a syllable it becomes doubled (/kʲã/ becomeskyann).Labialization is represented withw, andpalatalization withy respectively.[2]
In Jibu, there are 9 phonemically differentvowels, which are represented by⟨a⟩,⟨i⟩, and⟨o⟩. A tenth sound resembling/u/, is only used in loanwords from other languages, such as the neighboringHausa, and is represented by⟨u⟩.
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i/i/ | i/ɨ/ | u/u/ |
| Open Mid | a/ɛ/ | ||
| Close Mid | a/e/ | o/o/ | |
| Open Mid | a/ɔ/ | ||
| Near Open | a/æ/ | ||
| Open | a/a/ |
Jibu has 18 differentconsonant phonemes. Some different phonemes are represented by the same symbol, such as/ʃ/ and/s/ being both represented as⟨s⟩ in their older modifiedAmericanist Phonetic Notationorthographic forms. If all of the consonant phonemes are represented using their olderAmericanist Phonetic Notation counterparts, there is no orthographic overlap. The sound/ɗ/, which is used in someHausa loanwords, is commonly represented using⟨'d⟩.
| Labial | Alveolar | Palato-alveolar | Palatal | Velar | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m/m/ | n, l/n/ | ng/ŋ/ | |||
| Plosive | unvoiced | p/p/ | t/t/ | k/k/ | ||
| voiced | b/b/ | d/d/ | g, ꞡ/g/ | |||
| Fricative | unvoiced | f/f/ | s/s/ | s, š/ʃ/ | ||
| voiced | v/v/ | z, đ/z/ | j, z/ʒ/ | |||
| Flap | r, ř/ɾ/ | |||||
| Approximant | y/j/ | w/w/ | ||||
Jibu has three tones (four if the base tone is included). These tones are high (´), lowered-mid (') and low (`). The base tone is not written on words and in more recent publications, neither is the lowered-mid tone.
| Jibu | English | IPA | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rising Tone | káb | all, finish (idiophone) | /kɛ́b/ |
| Mid-Tone | kab | to dip out, to dig, to snap off, surpass | /kɛb/ |
| Falling Tone | kàb | provisional hut | /kɛ̀b/ |
The system used today in Jibu includes some symbols for transcribing sounds in Hausa loanwords, the older system, which is a slightly modified version of Americanist Phonetic Notation, does not include a symbol for the transcription ofh, and includes the fact that multiple phonemes aretranscribed as a single symbol in multiple cases.
| Modern System[3] | Previous System (ModifiedAPN)[2] | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| m | m | /m/ |
| n | n, l | /n/ |
| ng, ŋ | ng, ŋ | /ŋ/ |
| b | b | /b/ |
| d | d | /d/ |
| g | g, ꞡ | /g/ |
| p | p | /p/ |
| t | t | /t/ |
| k | k | /k/ |
| v | v | /v/ |
| f | f | /f/ |
| y | y | /j/ |
| w | w | /w/ |
| r | r, ř | /ɾ/ |
| z | z, đ | /z/ |
| j | j, z | /ʒ/ |
| s | s | /s/ |
| sh | s, š | /ʃ/ |
| 'd | 'd | /ɗ/ |
| h | - | /h/ |
In Jibu, verbs are not conjugated, which is a common aspect among Junkanoid languages. Instead, the pronoun is placed before the verb, and all aspect markers are placed before the pronoun.[3]
Intransitive: á (work! -á sar)
Continuative action: ri (are working -ri sar)
Completed action: hiŋ (did work -hiŋ sar)
Completive action: rìg, rìghiŋ (work has been completed -rìg sar)
Jibu pronouns do not reflect gender, the wordwá meaning he, she, or it, unlike English, does not have multiple forms based on gender.[2]
| 1st Person | 2nd Person | 3rd Person | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | mí (I) | wú (you) | wá (he, she, it) |
| Plural | yá (we) | ná (you pl.) | bá (they) |
This text of the 100th psalm is presented in the standardized non-Americanist Phonetic Notation literary orthography.[4]
| Line | Original | IPA | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| [1] | Mpirká á byar á myann níng bidim pár, | /m͡piɾ.káábʲaɾámʲæ̃níŋbɨ.dimpáɾ/ | Shout to the Lord all the earth! |
| Abig dài swam yan Shinn Luyí ma pìkyinn àjwár. | /æ.bɨgdàisʷamyanʃĩlu.jímapì.kʲĩà.ʒʷáɾ/ | ||
| [2] | Aning wib Shinn Luyi ma pìkyinn mìmìg, | /an.iŋwibʃĩlu.jimapì.kʲĩmì.mìg/ | Serve the Lord with joy. |
| Aning bi á pyànnwá ni ma jonn àjwár. | /an.iŋbɨápʲàn.nʷánimaʒõà.ʒʷáɾ/ | Come before him with a joyful shout! | |
| [3] | Aning yì rag Shinn Luyí shi sig ni Shìdun. | /an.iŋjìɾagʃĩlu.jíʃisignɨʃì.dun/ | Acknowledge that the Lord is God. |
| Ku màm sig yi ínì, Yi shi sig í buwá, Yi í bìr mpìrká buwá. | /kumàmsɨgjiɨ́nì–jiʃisɨgíbu.wá–jiíbìrm͡pìr.kábu.wá/ | He made us and we belong to him; | |
| Ku ri pyag yi àràg barà, mpìr ri pyag bu apyagká buwá. | /kuɾipʲagjiàræ̀gba.rà–m͡pìɾɾipʲagbuapʲag.kábu.wá/ | We are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. | |
| [4] | Aning kà bi á lu Shìdun ma jonn, Aning sa ya ku í soko. | /a.niŋkàbiáluʃì.dunmaʒõ,a.niŋsajakuíso.ko/ | Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise. |
| Aning swam yan ku sai-à na kà á fir luwá ni. | /a.niŋsʷamjankusaiànækàáfiɾlu.wáni/ | Thank him and bless his name, | |
| Aning sa ya ku í soko, ma aning swam yan zìnnwá. | /a.niŋsayækuíso.ko–maa.niŋsʷamjanzìn.nʷá/ | ||
| [5] | Shinn Luyí sàn hing, á zìm-à ku ri zìm yi níng, ma vinn fig á vinn bána. | /ʃĩlu.jísànhɨŋ,ázɨ̀màkuɾizìmjinɨ́ŋ,mavĩfigávĩbǽ.næ/ | for the Lord is good, and his gracious love stands forever. |
| Pìkyinn ǹsànwá shi sig hár kinn kinn. | /pɨ̀.kʲĩǹ.sàn.wáʃisɨgháɾkĩkĩ/ | His faithfulness remains from generation to generation. |
