Tunni language
| Tunni | |
|---|---|
| Af-Tunni | |
| Native to | Somalia |
| Region | Lower Shabelle, Middle Juba |
| Ethnicity | Tunni Somalis |
Native speakers | 34,000 (2020)[1] |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | tqq |
| Glottolog | tunn1238 |
| ELP | Tunni |
Tunni (also known as Af-Tunni) is a Somali language spoken by the Tunni who reside in the Lower Shebelle, Middle Juba, Lower Juba and part of Bay regions in southern Somalia. The language is typically classified among the Digil group of Somali languages. Tunni is distinct from Somali, with a different phonology and sentence structure.[2][3]
Phonology
Just like in in other Somali varieties, Tunni is a tonal accent language, in which tone is determined primarily morphosyntactically.[4]
Differences from somali include
- Short /ɛ/ to /i/
- /ħ/ to /ʔ/
- /d(ː)/ to /j(ː)/ before long /ɛː/
Vocabulary
Numerals
The tunni numerals are [5]
| 1. ków | 21. labaatón i ków * |
| 2. lámma | 22. labaatón i lámma |
| 3. síddiʔ | 23. labaatón i síddiʔ |
| 4. áfar | 24. labaatón i áfar |
| 5. ʃán | 25. labaatón i ʃán |
| 6. líʔ | 26. labaatón i líʔ |
| 7. toddóbo | 27. labaatón i toddóbo |
| 8. siyéed | 28. labaatón i siyéed |
| 9. saɡáal | 29. labaatón i saɡáal |
| 10. tómon | 30. sóddon |
| 11. tómon i ków * | 40. áffartón |
| 12. tómon i lámma | 50. kóntón |
| 13. tómon i síddiʔ | 60. lihdón |
| 14. tómon i áfar | 70. toddobátan |
| 15. tómon i ʃán | 80. siyyéetan |
| 16. tómon i líʔ | 90. saɡáaʃan |
| 17. tómon i toddóbo | 100. boqol |
| 18. tómon i siyéed | 200. |
| 19. tómon i saɡáal | 1000. kún |
| 20. labaatón | 2000. |
Notes
- ^ Tunni at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024)
- ^ Raymond G. Gordon Jr., ed. 2005. Ethnologue: Languages of the World. 15th edition. Dallas: Summer Institute of Linguistics.
- ^ Tosco, Mauro (1997), Af Tunni: Grammar, texts, and glossary of a southern Somali dialect, Rüdiger Köppe, ISBN 3896450603
- ^ "Rüdiger Köppe Verlag - African Studies / Africanistics, Cultural and Legal Anthropology, History of Christian Missions, and Sociology | Publication Details". www.koeppe.de. Retrieved 2025-11-17.
- ^ "Tunni". lingweb.eva.mpg.de. Archived from the original on 2024-08-16. Retrieved 2025-11-17.
References