Basaa language

{{About||a Kru language spoken in Liberia and Sierra Leone|Bassa language|a Kainji language spoken in Nigeria|Basa language (disambiguation){{!}}Basa language}}

{{Infobox language

|name=Basaa

|altname=Mbene

|nativename=ɓasaá, ɓàsàa

|states=Cameroon

|region=Centre and Littoral Provinces

|speakers=300,000

|ethnicity=Basaa people

|date=2005 SIL

|ref = e18

|familycolor=Niger-Congo

|fam2=Atlantic–Congo

|fam3=Benue–Congo

|fam4=Southern Bantoid

|fam5=Bantu (Zone A)

|fam6=Basaa languages (A.40)

|iso2=bas

|iso3=bas

|glotto=basa1284

|glottorefname=Basa (Cameroon)

|guthrie=A.43a

|notice=IPA

}}

Basaa (also spelled Bassa, Basa, Bissa), or Mbene, is a Bantu language spoken in Cameroon by the Basaa people. It is spoken by about 300,000 people in the Centre and Littoral regions.

Maho (2009) lists North and South Kogo as dialects.

Background and Origin

Basaa is spoken by 230,000 speakers. They live in Nyong-et-Kelle (Central Region) and Sanaga Maritime (with the exception of the Edéa commune, which has a Bakoko majority) and most of Nkam commune (Littoral Region). In the western and northern parts of this department, the peripheral Basaa dialects are spoken: Yabasi in the commune of Yabassi, Diɓuum in the commune of Nkondjok (Diboum Canton), north of Ndemli and Dimbamban.

Similarly, Basaa Baduala is spoken in Wouri Department (Littoral Region), traditional Basaa territory that is being transformed by the growth of Douala. Basaa is also found in Océan Department (commune of Bipindi, Southern Region).

Hijuk is spoken only in the quarter of Niki in Batanga commune, in Yangben Canton (Ch. Paulian (1980)) by 400 people. Hijuk is a Basaa dialect, despite its geographical location in the southeast of Bokito arrondissement (Mbam-et-Inoubou department, Central Region).{{cite book|editor-last=Binam Bikoi|editor-first=Charles|date=2012|title=Atlas linguistique du Cameroun (ALCAM)|trans-title=Linguistic Atlas of Cameroon|volume=1: Inventaire des langues|language=fr|location=Yaoundé|publisher=CERDOTOLA|series=Atlas linguistique de l'Afrique centrale (ALAC)|isbn=9789956796069}}

Phonology

=Vowels=

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" ! ! Front ! Back
Close \| {{IPAlink\|i}} {{IPAlink\|iː}} \| {{IPAlink\|u}} {{IPAlink\|uː}}
Close-mid \| {{IPAlink\|e}} {{IPAlink\|eː}} \| {{IPAlink\|o}} {{IPAlink\|oː}}
Open-mid \| {{IPAlink\|ɛ}} {{IPAlink\|ɛː}} \| {{IPAlink\|ɔ}} {{IPAlink\|ɔː}}
Open \|colspan="2"\| {{IPAlink\|a}} {{IPAlink\|aː}}

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"

!

! Front

! Back

Close

| {{IPAlink|i}} {{IPAlink|iː}}

| {{IPAlink|u}} {{IPAlink|uː}}

Close-mid

| {{IPAlink|e}} {{IPAlink|eː}}

| {{IPAlink|o}} {{IPAlink|oː}}

Open-mid

| {{IPAlink|ɛ}} {{IPAlink|ɛː}}

| {{IPAlink|ɔ}} {{IPAlink|ɔː}}

Open

|colspan="2"| {{IPAlink|a}} {{IPAlink|aː}}

=Consonants=

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" ! colspan="2" \| ! Bilabial ! Coronal ! Palatal ! Velar ! Labial-velar !Uvular !Glottal
rowspan="3" \|Plosive ! voiceless \| {{IPAlink\|p}} \| {{IPAlink\|t}} \| {{IPAlink\|tʃ}}{{spaces\|3}}{{IPAlink\|dʒ}} \| {{IPAlink\|k}} \| {{IPAlink\|kʷ}}{{spaces\|3}}{{IPAlink\|ɡʷ}} \| \|
prenasal \| {{IPAlink\|ᵐb}} \| {{IPAlink\|ⁿd}} \| {{IPAlink\|ᶮdʒ}} \| {{IPAlink\|ᵑɡ}} \| \| \|
implosive \| {{IPAlink\|ɓ}} \| \| \| \| \| \|
colspan="2" \|Fricative \| {{IPA link\|ɸ}}{{spaces\|3}}{{IPA link\|β}} \| {{IPAlink\|s}} \| \| {{IPAlink\|x}}{{spaces\|3}}{{IPA link\|ɣ}} \| \| {{IPA link\|χ}} \| {{IPA link\|h}}{{spaces\|3}}{{IPA link\|ɦ}}
colspan="2" \|Nasal \| {{IPAlink\|m}} \| {{IPAlink\|n}} \| {{IPAlink\|ɲ}} \| {{IPAlink\|ŋ}} \| {{IPAlink\|ŋʷ}} \| \|
colspan="2" \|Tap \| \| {{IPA link\|ɾ̥}}{{spaces\|3}}{{IPA link\|ɾ}} \| \| \| \| \|
colspan="2" \|Lateral \| \| {{IPAlink\|l}} \| \| \| \| \|
colspan="2" \|Approximant \| \| \| {{IPAlink\|j}} \| \| {{IPAlink\|w}} \| \|

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"

! colspan="2" |

! Bilabial

! Coronal

! Palatal

! Velar

rowspan="3" |Plosive

| {{IPAlink|p}}

| {{IPAlink|t}}

| {{IPAlink|tʃ}}{{spaces|3}}{{IPAlink|dʒ}}

| {{IPAlink|k}}

| {{IPAlink|kʷ}}{{spaces|3}}{{IPAlink|ɡʷ}}

|

prenasal

| {{IPAlink|ᵐb}}

| {{IPAlink|ⁿd}}

| {{IPAlink|ᶮdʒ}}

| {{IPAlink|ᵑɡ}}

|

implosive

| {{IPAlink|ɓ}}

|

colspan="2" |Fricative

| {{IPA link|ɸ}}{{spaces|3}}{{IPA link|β}}

| {{IPAlink|s}}

|

| {{IPAlink|x}}{{spaces|3}}{{IPA link|ɣ}}

|

| {{IPA link|χ}}

| {{IPA link|h}}{{spaces|3}}{{IPA link|ɦ}}

colspan="2" |Nasal

| {{IPAlink|m}}

| {{IPAlink|n}}

| {{IPAlink|ɲ}}

| {{IPAlink|ŋ}}

| {{IPAlink|ŋʷ}}

|

colspan="2" |Tap

|

| {{IPA link|ɾ̥}}{{spaces|3}}{{IPA link|ɾ}}

|

colspan="2" |Lateral

|

| {{IPAlink|l}}

|

colspan="2" |Approximant

|

| {{IPAlink|j}}

|

| {{IPAlink|w}}

|

When not root-initial and not after a pause, the voiceless stops {{IPA|/p t k/}} are realized as voiced stops or voiced fricatives.

=Tone=

Basaa contrasts four tones: high, low, high-to-low (falling) and low-to-high (rising).

Orthography

The language uses a Latin-based alphabet, with the addition of the letters Ɓɓ, Ɛɛ, Ŋŋ, Ɔɔ, ten multigraphs, as well as acute, grave, and circumflex accents:{{Cite book|last=Hartell|first=Rhonda L.|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/35148690|title=Alphabets of Africa|publisher=Regional Office for Education in Africa, Summer Institute of Linguistics, Unesco-Dakar Regional Office|year=1993|location=Dakar, Senegal|pages=66|oclc=35148690|ol=45066553M}}

class="wikitable"

!Capital

!Small

A

|a

B

|b

Ɓ

|ɓ

C

|c

D

|d

E

|e

Ɛ

|ɛ

F

|f

G

|g

GW

|gw

H

|h

HY

|hy

I

|i

J

|j

K

|k

KW

|kw

L

|l

M

|m

MB

|mb

N

|n

NJ

|nj

NY

|ny

ND

|nd

Ŋ

|ŋ

ŊG

|ŋg

ŊGW

|ŋgw

ŊW

|ŋw

O

|o

Ɔ

|ɔ

P

|p

R

|r

S

|s

T

|t

U

|u

V

|v

W

|w

Y

|y

Macron and caron diacritics may be used for marking tone in reference works, for example the dictionary by Pierre Emmanuel Njock.