Pongo is a dialect of theDuala language, spoken on the coast ofCameroon, in the district ofDibombari, by the Pongo tribe. It belongs to theBantu languages, Code A26 according toGuthrie classification.[1][2]
The Pongo language is, according todialectometrics data, closest to theDouala standard, with which it seems to share nearly 95% of its basic vocabulary.[3] Both languages are mutually intelligible despite some difficulties on the Douala side due to limited exposure to the Pongo dialect. The Douala dialect is used as alingua franca in theLittoral region between members of theSawabantu ethnic group. The standard Douala has been used to evangelize in the region and is the preferred language of theMakossa musical genre.
The town ofDibombari is the centre of Pongo. This area is located north of the city ofDouala, above theBonabéri district. The term "Pongo" is also used to designate the north cardinal point in Douala.[4] There, the Pongo tribe coexists with other ethnic groups such as theBankon and theMpoo.
Pongo differs from Duala in the use of the verbèndè instead of the verbwala(to go), unusual in Douala, which serves as anauxiliary verb in thefuture tense in both languages. Another noticeable difference is the use of the conjunctionndi ("but") instead ofndé and a tendency to favor thephoneme/d / over /l /. For example: Ekwali, written Ekwadi ("History") in Douala, becomes systematically Ekwadi in Pongo. In addition, the Douala prefixma, usually placed before the basic form of the verb, is replaced by an n',in Pongo. An example is the Douala sentence "di ma topo, ndé ba bato si ma senga", which becomes in Pongo "di n'topo Di , ndi ba bato n'senga" "we talk, but people do not listen."
Comparative glossary of Douala and Pongo dialects. Boxes with two words indicate that these words are both present in the dialect and that they are interchangeable.
| Pongo Word | Douala Word | English Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Dinga | Linga, dinga | to get mad |
| moopo, mulopo | mulopo | head |
| ilèndi | diwèndi | knife |
| ikom (plural:lokom), dikom | dikom (plural, makom) | friend(s) |
| budu | bulu, budu | night |
| djibö | don | Market |
| djibö | dibö | beach |
| mudjodi (plural : midjodi) | mudongo (plural : midongo) | hill, mountain |
| eka, enka | nika, ninka | thus, this way |
| mwato (plural : baato) | muto (pluriel : bito) | Woman |
| sèkibanè | sèkèméyè | to shake something |
| ilodi | idodi | Filariasis |
| mwéma | mulema | heart |
| mö | mö | him, her |
| yö | mö | it |
| ëndë, wala | wala | to go |
| mpèlè | mpöm | uniqueness |
| na bodi | na boli, na bodi | I did |
| ndi, nde | nde | but |
| yöngö (pluriel : löngö) | wöngö (pluriel : löngö) | pot |