Mbu’ language

Mbu’, or Ajumbu, is a Southern Bantoid language of Cameroon. It is traditionally classified as a Western Beboid language, but that has not been demonstrated to be a valid family. Inasmuch as Western Beboid may be valid, Mbu’ would appear to be the most divergent of its languages.

Mbu’
Ajumbu
Native toCameroon
Native speakers
200 (2011)[1]
Language codes
ISO 639-3muc
Glottologmbuu1238[2]

"Mbu’" is the name of the village the language is spoken in.

Phonology

Mbu' Consonant phonemes[3]
Labial Dental Palatal Velar Glottal
Plain Labialized Plain Labial
Nasal m ɲ ŋ
Plosive voiceless k kp ʔ
voiced b g gb
Affricate voiceless t̪s̪
voiced d̪z̪
Fricative voiceless f ʃ
voiced v ʒ ɣ
Approximant j ɥ w
Mbu' Vowel Phonemes[3]
Front Central Back
Close i y ɨ u
Mid e ɛ ə o ɔ
Open a

There are three tones; high, mid, and low.

References

  1. Mbu’ at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
  2. Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2017). "Ajumbu". Glottolog 3.0. Jena, Germany: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
  3. Good, Jeff and Lovegren, Jesse and Mve, Jean Patrick and Tchiemouo, Nganguep Carine and Voll, Rebecca and Di Carlo, Pierpaolo. 2011. The languages of the Lower Fungom region of Cameroon: Grammatical overview. Africana Linguistica 17. 101–164.


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