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Ngwii language

{{Short description|Bantu language of the DRC}}

{{Infobox language

|name = Ngwii

|nativename = Ngul

|states = DRC

|speakers = 8,000{{cite web |title=Ngul |url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/nlo/ |website=Ethnologue |access-date=20 November 2023}}

|familycolor = Niger-Congo

|fam2 = Atlantic–Congo

|fam3 = Volta–Congo

|fam4 = Benue-Congo

|fam5 = Bantoid

|fam6 = Southern Bantoid

|fam7 = Bantu (Zone B)

|iso3 = nlo

|glotto = ngul1247

}}

Ngwii or Ngul is a Bantu language spoken in the Kwilu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Despite having a relatively small speech community, use of the language is prevalent.

Phonology

Ngwii has 37 consonants and 7 vowels:{{cite journal |last1=Pacchiarotti |first1=Sara |last2=Maselli |first2=Lorenzo |last3=Bostoen |first3=Koen |title=The emergence of interior vowels and heterosyllabic vowel sequences in Ngwi |journal=Papers in Historical Phonology |date=2021 |volume=6 |page=4 |doi=10.2218/pihph.6.2021.6693 |url=https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/8732612 |access-date=20 November 2023|doi-access=free |hdl=1854/LU-8732612 |hdl-access=free }}

= Consonants =

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

! colspan="2" |

! scope="col" | Bilabial

! scope="col" | Labio-dental

! scope="col" | Labiovelar

! scope="col" | Alveolar

! scope="col" | Post-alveolar

! scope="col" | Palatal

! scope="col" | Velar

! scope="col" | Uvular

rowspan="2" scope="row" | Plosive

! scope="row" | plain

| {{IPA link|p}}, {{IPA link|b}}

|

|

| {{IPA link|d}}, {{IPA link|t}}

|

|

| {{IPA link|k}}

|

scope="row" | prenasalized

| {{IPA link|ᵐb}}, {{IPA link|ᵐp}}

|

|

| {{IPA link|ⁿd}}, {{IPA link|ⁿt}}

|

|

| {{IPA link|ᵑk}}, {{IPA link|ᵑg}}

|

colspan="2" scope="row" | Nasal

| {{IPA link|m}}

|

|

| {{IPA link|n}}

|

| {{IPA link|ɲ}}

| {{IPA link|ŋ}}

|

rowspan="2" scope="row" | Fricative

! scope="row" | plain

|

| {{IPA link|f}}, {{IPA link|v}}

|

| {{IPA link|s}}

| {{IPA link|ʃ}}, {{IPA link|ʒ}}

|

|

| {{IPA link|ʁ}}

scope="row" | prenasalized

|

| {{IPA link|ᵐf}}, {{IPA link|ᵐv}}

|

|

|

|

|

|

rowspan="2" scope="row" | Affricative

! scope="row" | plain

|

| {{IPA link|p͡f}}

|

| {{IPA link|t͡s}}, {{IPA link|d͡z}}

| {{IPA link|t͡ʃ}}, {{IPA link|d͡ʒ}}

|

|

|

scope="row" | prenasalized

|

| {{IPA link|ᵐp͡f}}

|

| {{IPA link|ⁿt͡s}}, {{IPA link|ⁿd͡z}}

| {{IPA link|ⁿt͡ʃ}}, {{IPA link|ⁿd͡ʒ}}

|

|

|

colspan="2" scope="row" | Approximant

|

|

| {{IPA link|w}}

|

|

| {{IPA link|j}}

|

|

colspan="2" scope="row" | Lateral

|

|

|

| {{IPA link|l}}

|

|

|

colspan="2" scope="row" | Trill

|

|

|

| {{IPA link|r}}

|

|

|

|

= Vowels =

class="wikitable"

|+

!

!Front

!Central

!Back

High

|i

|

|u

Mid-high

|

|

|ɤ

Mid/Mid-low

|e [ɛ]

|ə

|o [ɔ]

Low

|

|a

|

Numerals

Like other Niger-Congo languages, Ngwii has a base ten counting system where numbers after ten use the conjunction "ni" to add another number to reach higher values.

The first 20 numerals in Ngwii are{{cite web |title=Numeral system of the world's languages |url=https://lingweb.eva.mpg.de/channumerals/Ngwii.htm |access-date=5 October 2023}}

  1. mo
  2. ipe
  3. isar
  4. ini
  5. itɛan
  6. isom
  7. sjambja
  8. ɲani
  9. ɲa
  10. dzum
  11. dzum ni mo
  12. dzum ni pe
  13. dzum ni sar
  14. dzum ni ni
  15. dzum ni tjan
  16. dzum ni som
  17. dzum ni sjambja
  18. dzum ni ɲani
  19. dzum ni iwaj
  20. dzum na dzum

References

{{reflist}}

Category:Bantu languages

Category:Languages of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Category:Kwilu Province