Sinyar language

{{Short description|Central Sudanic language spoken in Chad}}

{{Infobox language

|name=Sinyar

|nativename=Shemya

|states=Chad

|ethnicity=Sinyar

|speakers={{sigfig|33000|2}}

|date=2023

|ref=e27

|familycolor=Nilo-Saharan

|fam2=Central Sudanic

|fam3=Bongo-Bagirmi

|iso3=sys

|glotto=siny1243

|glottorefname=Sinyar

}}

Image:Darfur Linguistic Map.svg

Shemya (tàar ʃàmɲà) is the language of the Sinyar people. It is a Central Sudanic language spoken in Chad and formerly in Darfur, Sudan. It is variously spelled Shamya, Shamyan, Shemya, Sinya, and known as Symiarta, Taar Shamyan, Zimirra.

The language is spoken in Goz Beïda, Chad and Foro Boranga, Sudan. There are two level tones and downstepped low tones. Word order is SVO.Boyeldieu, Pascal. 2013. Case alignment(s) in Sinyar. Paper presented at the Nilo-Saharan Linguistics Colloquium, 22-24 May, 2013.Boyeldieu, Pascal. 2015. Case alignment(s) in Sinyar. In Angelika Mietzner and Anne Storch (eds.), Nilo-Saharan: Models and Descriptions, 21-36. Cologne: Köppe.

Dimmendaal leaves it as a language isolate, whereas Blench groups it with Formona.Blench, Roger. [http://www.rogerblench.info/Language/Nilo-Saharan/Central%20Sudanic/CS%20overview.pdf Central Sudanic overview].

Doornbos records 18 Sinyar clans. The Kijaar clan, located close to the Kujargé, likely intermarried with the Kujargé.{{cite journal|url=http://journals.pan.pl/dlibra/publication/125628/edition/109618/content/on-the-position-of-kujarke-within-chadic-blazek-vaclav?language=en|title=On the position of Kujarke within Chadic|journal=Folia Orientalia|issn=0015-5675|volume=52|date=2015|authorlink=Václav Blažek|first=Václav|last=Blažek}}