| Atlantic–Congo | |
|---|---|
| Geographic distribution | Africa |
| Linguistic classification | Niger–Congo?
|
| Subdivisions | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-5 | alv |
| Glottolog | atla1278 |
 The Atlantic–Congo languages shown within the Niger–Congo language family. Non-Atlantic–Congo languages are greyscale. | |
TheAtlantic–Congo languages make up the largest demonstrated family of languages in Africa. They have characteristicnoun class systems and form the core of theNiger–Congo family hypothesis. They comprise all of Niger–Congo apart fromMande,Dogon,Ijoid,Siamou,Kru, theKatla andRashad languages (previously classified asKordofanian), and perhaps some or all of theUbangian languages. Hans Gunther Mukanovsky's "Western Nigritic" corresponded roughly to modern Atlantic–Congo.[1]
In the infobox, the languages that appear to be the most divergent are placed at the top.[2] TheAtlantic branch is defined in the narrow sense (asSenegambian), while the former Atlantic branchesMel and the isolatesSua,Gola andLimba are split out as primary branches; they are mentioned next to each other because there is no published evidence to move them;Volta–Congo is intact apart fromSenufo andKru.
Glottolog, based primarily on Güldemann (2018), has a more limited evaluation of what has been demonstrated to be Atlantic–Congo, consisting basically of Volta–Congo and erstwhileWest Atlantic:
Pεrε,Mprε andAproumu Aizi appear to be Atlantic–Congo or more specifically Volta–Congo but otherwise remain unclassified within the family.
In addition, Güldemann (2018) lists the West Atlantic languagesNalu andRio Nunez as unclassified languages within Niger-Congo.[3]
There are a few poorly attested languages, such asBayot andBung, which may prove to be additional branches.[citation needed]
Sample basic vocabulary for reconstructedproto-languages of different Atlantic-Congo branches:
| Branch | Language | eye | ear | nose | tooth | tongue | mouth | blood | bone | tree | water | eat | name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Western Nigritic" (roughly Atlantic–Congo) | Proto-"Western Nigritic"[1] | *-nín-, *-nínu | *-thúi, *-thú- | *-míl-, *-míla | *-nín- (*-níghin-) | *-líma (*-líami); *-lélum- (*-lúm-) | *-níana; *-níuna (*-núa) | *-ghìá; *-kàl- | *-khwúpà | *-tí | *-lingi | *di- | *-ghínà |
| Benue-Congo | Proto-Benue-Congo[4] | *-lito | *-tuŋi | *-zua | *-nini, *-nino; *-sana; *-gaŋgo | *-lemi; *-lake | *-zi; *-luŋ | *-kupe | *-titi; *-kwon | *-izi; *-ni | *-zina | ||
| Bantu | Proto-Bantu[5] | *i=jíco | *kʊ=tʊ́i | *i=jʊ́lʊ | *i=jíno; *i=gego | *lʊ=lɪ́mi | *ka=nʊa; *mʊ=lomo | *ma=gilá; *=gil-a; *ma=gadí; *=gadí; *mʊ=lopa; *ma=ɲínga | *i=kúpa | *mʊ=tɪ́ | *ma=jíjɪ; *i=diba (HH?) | *=lɪ́ -a | *i=jína |
| Yoruboid | Proto-Yoruboid language[6] | *é-jú | *é-tí | *ímṵ́ | *éŋḭ́ | Yor. ahá̰ | *ɛ́lṵ ? | *ɛ̀-gyɛ̀ | *égbṵ́gbṵ́ | Yor. igi | *ó-mḭ | *jɛṵ | *órú- ? |
| Gbe | Proto-Gbe[7] | *-tó | *aɖú | *-ɖɛ́ | *-ɖũ; *-ɖũkpá | *-ʁʷũ | *-χʷú | *-tĩ́ | *-tsĩ | *ɖu | *yĩ́kɔ́ | ||
| Gur | Proto-Central Gur[8] | *me (Oti-Volta, Gurunsi) | *ye (Gurunsi, Kurumfe) | *ñam, *ñim (Oti-Volta, Kurumfe) | *ʔob, *ʔo | *tɪ (Oti-Volta, Gurunsi) | *ni, *ne; *nã (Oti-Volta, Gurunsi) | *di | *yɪɗ, *yɪd (Oti-Volta, Gurunsi) | ||||
| Gbaya | Proto-Gbaya[9] | *gbà.l̥í/l̥í | *zɛ̀rà | *zɔ̰̀p | *ɲín | *léɓé ~ lémbè | *nú | *tɔ̀k | *gbà̰là̰ | *l̥ì | *tè | *ɲɔŋ/l̥i | *l̥ín ~ l̥íŋ |