| Talodi–Heiban | |
|---|---|
| Geographic distribution | Nuba Hills,Sudan |
| Linguistic classification | Niger–Congo?
|
| Subdivisions | |
| Language codes | |
| Glottolog | None narr1279 (Talodi) heib1242 (Heiban) |
 | |
TheTalodi–Heiban languages are a proposed branch of the hypotheticalNiger–Congo family, spoken in theNuba Mountains ofSudan. The Talodi and Heiban languages are thought to be distantly related by Dimmendaal,[1] thoughGlottolog 4.4 does not accept the unity of Talodi–Heiban pending further evidence.[2]
Roger Blench (2016) notes that the Talodi and Heiban branches share many typological similarities, but few lexical similarities. Blench (2016) considers Talodi and Heiban to each be separate, independentNiger-Congo branches that had later converged due to mutual contact.
Talodi and Heiban had each constituted a group of theKordofanian branch of Niger–Congo that was posited byJoseph Greenberg (1963); Talodi has also been called Talodi–Masakin, and Heiban has also been called Koalib or Koalib–Moro.Roger Blench notes that the Talodi and Heiban families have thenoun-class systems characteristic of theAtlantic–Congo core of Niger–Congo, but that theKatla languages (another putative branch of Kordofanian) have no trace of ever having had such a system, whereas theKadu languages and some of theRashad languages appear to have acquired noun classes as part of aSprachbund, rather than having inherited them. He concludes that the Kordofanian languages do not form a genealogical group, but that Talodi–Heiban is core Niger–Congo, whereas Katla and Rashad form a peripheral branch (or perhaps branches) along the lines ofMande. The Kadu languages may beNilo-Saharan.
| Talodi–Heiban | |
Lafofa (Tegem), sometimes classified as a divergent Talodi language, has a different set of cognates with other Niger–Congo and has been placed in its own branch of Niger–Congo.
Norton & Alaki (2015: 76, 126)[3] classify the Talodi languages as follows. Proto-Talodi, Proto-Lumun-Torona, and Proto-Narrow Talodi have also been reconstructed by Norton & Alaki (2015).
| Talodi | |
Lexical correspondences between Proto-Heiban and Proto-Talodi according to Blench (2016):[4]
| Gloss | Proto-Heiban | Proto-Talodi |
|---|---|---|
| belly | *k-aaRi / ɲ- | *C-a[a]rәk / kә- |
| dry | *Ø-undu / k- | *Øandu[k] / t~k |
| ear | *k-ɛɛni / ɲ- | *k-ɛ[ɛ]nu / Ø- |
| fire | *iiga | *t̪-ɪ[ɪ]k / ḷ- |
| give | *N-d̪ɛ-d̪í | *N-d̪í |
| guts | *t̪-y / n̪-u | *t-u[u]k / n- |
| hear | *g-aani / n- | *g-eenu / w- |
| hole | *li-buŋul / ŋu- | *t-ʊbʊ / n- |
| horn | *l-uuba / ŋ- | *t~C-uubʊk / n~m- |
| left side | *t̪-agur | *Ø-ʊgʊlɛ / C- |
| name | *C-iriɲ | *k-әḷәŋaŋ / N~Ø- |
| pull | *uud̪i | *aadu |
| red | *k-ʊʊrɪ | *ɔɔɽɛ |
| rope | *d̪-aar / ŋw- | *t̪-ɔ[ɔ]ḷәk / ḷ- |
| small | *-itti(ɲ) | *ɔt̪t̪ɛ(ŋ) |
| star | *l-ʊrʊm / ŋ- | *C-ɔ[ɔ]d̪ɔt̪ / m |
| stone | *k-adɔl / y- | *p-әd̪ɔk / m |
| tongue | *d̪-iŋgәla / r- | *t̪-ʊlәŋɛ / ḷ- |
| tooth | *l-iŋgat / y- | *C-әɲi[t] / k- |
| wing | *k-ibɔ / ʧ- | *k-ʊbɪ / Ø- |
Noun class prefix comparison between Proto-Heiban and Proto-Talodi according to Blench (2016):[4]
| Noun class | Proto-Heiban | Proto-Talodi |
|---|---|---|
| Persons | *kʷ,gʷ-/l- | *p,b-/Ø- |
| Trees and plants | *k,g/y- | *p-/k- |
| Round things, vital body parts | *li-/ŋʷ- | *ʧ-/m- |
| Symmetrical body parts | *l-/j- | *ʧ-/k- |
| Long thin objects, bushy objects | *ð-/r- | *t/n |
| Small objects, animals | *ŋ-, t-/ɲ- | *ŋ-/ɲ- |
| Liquids | *ŋ- | *ŋ- |
| Uncountables, [dust, grass] | *k- | *t- |