Socotra Swahili language
| Socotra Swahili | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Yemen |
| Region | Socotra |
| Extinct | late 20th century |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | None (mis) |
| Glottolog | None |
G.411[1] | |
| IETF | sw-u-sd-yesu |
Socotra Swahili is an extinct variety of Swahili, a Bantu language, that was formerly spoken on the island of Socotra in Yemen.[1] It was reported to be spoken by a fifth of the island (c. 2,000 people) in 1962.[2]
Classification
Socotra Swahili belongs to the Sabaki branch of Northeast Coast Bantu, within the broader Swahili dialect cluster.[3]
The Swahili group as a whole is treated as a single language with ISO 639-3 code swh and glottocode swah1253, covering both mainland and insular varieties.[4]
Status and coding
A mid-20th-century account estimated that Socotra Swahili was spoken by about 2,000 people, around one fifth of Socotra's population at the time.[2]
Socotra Swahili does not have a separate ISO 639-3 or Glottolog code; instead it falls under the general Swahili entry (ISO 639-3 swh).[4] In the ISO 639-2 and ISO 639-1 standards, the macrolanguage Swahili is assigned the alpha-3 code swa and alpha-2 code sw, respectively, without distinguishing Socotra Swahili.[5] In Guthrie-based Bantu classifications, however, Socotra Swahili is explicitly identified as G.411, marking it as a distinct Swahili lect associated specifically with Socotra.[1][3]
Further reading
- "Special issue: On variation in Swahili: Current approaches, trends and directions". Swahili Forum (in Swahili). 26. Universität Leipzig. 2019. ISSN 1614-2373.
References
- ^ a b c Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
- ^ a b Freeman-Grenville (1965). The French at Kilwa Island. cited in Ruete; van Donzel (1993). An Arabian Princess Between Two Worlds: Memoirs, Letters Home, Sequels to the Memoirs. p. 172, fn. 48.
- ^ a b Hammarström, Harald (2019). "An inventory of Bantu languages". In Van de Velde, Mark; Bostoen, Koen; Nurse, Derek; Philippson, Gérard (eds.). The Bantu Languages. Routledge Language Family Series (2nd ed.). Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. pp. 17–78. doi:10.4324/9781315755946-2.
- ^ a b "Swahili". Glottolog 5.2. Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. Retrieved 24 November 2025.
- ^ "Results for Search "swa" in ISO 639-2 Language Codes". ISO 639-2 Language Codes. Library of Congress. 22 July 2024. Retrieved 24 November 2025.