Bangolan language
| Bangolan | |
|---|---|
| Region | Cameroon |
| Ethnicity | Bamileke |
Native speakers | 14,000 (2011)[1] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | bgj |
| Glottolog | bang1356 |
Bangolan is a Grassfields Bantu language of Cameroon.
Phonology
Consonants
| Labial | Coronal | Back | Labial-velar | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plosive | voiceless | t | k | kp | |
| voiced | b | d | g | gb | |
| Fricative | voiceless | f | s | h | |
| voiced | v | z | |||
| Affricate | t͡s | ||||
| Nasal | m | n | ŋ | ||
| Approximant | j | w | |||
- /b/ is [b] after nasals (e.g., [mbé] 'nail') and [p] elsewhere (e.g., [pà] 'bag').[3]
- /d/ is [d] after nasals (e.g., [ndɔ́ŋ] 'horn'), [l]~[ɾ] between vowels or after syllable-final consonants (e.g., [túŋlə̀]~[túŋɾə̀] 'ear'), and [l] elsewhere (e.g., [lə̀ŋ] 'chair').[3]
- /g/ is [g] after nasals (e.g., [ŋgùt] 'skin') and [ɣ] elsewhere (e.g., [ɣàtə́] 'divide').[3]
- /t/ is [tʰ] before [u] in open syllables (e.g., [tʰú] 'dig (verb)') and [t] elsewhere (e.g., [túŋ] 'dig (verb)').[3]
- /k/ is [ʔ] between vowels or syllable-finally (e.g., [nàʔ] 'cow') and [k] elsewhere (e.g., [kú] 'die(verb)').[3]
- /z/ is [d͡ʒ] in labialized or palatalized syllables after nasal consonants (e.g., [nd͡ʒìŋ] 'darkness'), [ʒ] in labialized or palatalized syllables (e.g., [wǎʒwí] 'lion'), [d͡z] after nasal consonants (e.g., [nd͡zə̀] 'dream', and [z] elsewhere (e.g., [zí] 'face').[4]
- /s/ is [ʃ] in labialized or palatalized syllables (e.g., [ʃíʃí] 'vein') and [s] elsewhere (e.g., [sáŋ] 'corn').[4]
- /t͡s/ is [t͡ʃ] in labialized or palatalized syllables (e.g., [t͡ʃì] 'blood') and [t͡s] elsewhere (e.g., [t͡sɔ̀t] 'mouth').[4]
- /ʔ, t, ŋ/ are the only syllable-final consonants.[5]
Vowels
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i | ɨ | u |
| Close-mid | e | o | |
| Open-mid | ɛ | ə | ɔ |
| Open | a |
/ɨ/ does not occur in labialized or palatalized syllables, and /ə, u, o, ɔ/ do not occur in palatalized syllables.[7] /e, o, ɨ/ cannot occur in closed syllables before /ŋ/.[6]
Tone
Bangolan has lexical and grammatical tone. Lexical tone contrasts [nd͡zɔ̂ŋ] 'clitoris' with [nd͡zɔ̏ŋ] 'thorn',[6] while grammatical tone contrasts [à wé] 'he has gone' with [à wē] 'he is going'.[8]
There are three level tones (high [á], mid [ā], low [à]) and three contour tones (low-rising [ǎ], high-low falling [â], and low-falling [ȁ]).[5] The mid tone is rare but contrasts with the high and low-falling tones.[8]
Notes
- ^ Bangolan at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
- ^ Njeck 2003a, p. 12.
- ^ a b c d e Njeck 2003a, pp. 10–11.
- ^ a b c Njeck 2003a, p. 11.
- ^ a b Njeck 2003a, p. 16.
- ^ a b c Njeck 2003a, p. 14.
- ^ Njeck 2003a, p. 13.
- ^ a b Njeck 2003a, p. 18.
References
- Njeck, Mathaus (2003a). Phonological sketch of Bangolan (Report). Yaoundé: NACALCO. Retrieved 26 October 2025 – via SIL Global.
Further reading
- Njeck, Mathaus Mbah (2003b). A Phonology of Bǎŋgulaŋ and a Proposed Orthography (Maîtrise thesis). Univeersity of Yaoundé I. Retrieved 26 October 2025.