Shubi language

{{Short description|Bantu language}}

{{distinguish|Subi language}}

{{Infobox language

|name=Shubi

|region=Kagera Region in Tanzania

|ethnicity=Shubi people

|speakers=153,000

|date=1987

|ref=e18

|familycolor=Niger-Congo

|fam2=Atlantic–Congo

|fam3=Volta-Congo

|fam4=Benue–Congo

|fam5=Bantoid

|fam6=Bantu

|fam7=Northeast Bantu

|fam8=Great Lakes Bantu

|fam9=Ruanda-Rundi

|fam10=Hangaza-Shubi

|iso3=suj

|glotto=shub1238

|glottorefname=Shubi

|guthrie=JD.64

|notice=IPA

}}

Shubi is a Bantu language spoken by the Shubi people in north-western Tanzania. It may use labiodental plosives {{IPAslink|p̪}}, {{IPAslink|b̪}} (sometimes written ȹ, ȸ) as phonemes, rather than as allophones of {{IPA|/p, b/}}. Peter Ladefoged wrote:

:We have heard labiodental stops made by a Shubi speaker whose teeth were sufficiently close together to allow him to make an airtight labiodental closure. For this speaker this sound was clearly in contrast with a bilabial stop; but we suspect that the majority of Shubi speakers make the contrast one of bilabial stop versus labial-labiodental affricate (i.e. bilabial stop closure followed by a labiodental fricative), rather than bilabial versus labiodental stop.[https://linguistlist.org/issues/5/5-219/ LINGUIST List 5.219: Labiodental nasals]