Tarok language

{{Short description|Benue-Congo language spoken in northern Nigeria}}

{{Infobox language

| name = Tarok

| nativename = iTárók

| states = Nigeria

| region = Plateau State, Taraba State

| ethnicity = Tarok

| speakers = 520,000

| date = 2020

| ref = {{Cite web |title=Tarok {{!}} Ethnologue Free |url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/yer/ |access-date=2025-01-28 |website=Ethnologue (Free All) |language=en}}

| familycolor = Niger-Congo

| fam2 = Atlantic–Congo

| fam3 = Benue–Congo

| fam4 = Plateau

| fam5 = Tarokoid

| fam6 = Tarok–Pai

| iso3 = yer

| glotto = taro1263

| glottorefname = Tarok

}}

Tarok ({{langx|yer|iTárók}}), also known as Yergam{{ref|a|a}} or Appa is a language spoken by around 520,000{{Cite web |title=Tarok {{!}} Ethnologue Free |url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/yer/ |access-date=2025-01-28 |website=Ethnologue (Free All) |language=en}} people primarily in the southeast of Nigeria's Plateau State, where it serves as a local lingua franca.{{Citation needed|date=January 2025}} Tarok is a member of the Plateau group of the Atlantic–Congo family.

Phonology

= Vowels =

Tarok has seven phonemic vowels, /i ɨ u ɛ ə ɔ a/. The IPA symbols are included in the table below along with the orthographic form in angular brackets.

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" \|+ caption \|Tarok Vowels ! !Front !Central !Back
High \|{{IPA link\|i}} {{angbr\|i}} \|{{IPA link\|ɨ}} {{angbr\|ə}} \|{{IPA link\|u}} {{angbr\|u}}
Low-Mid \|{{IPA link\|ɛ}} {{angbr\|e}} \|{{IPA link\|ə}} {{angbr\|a̱}} \|{{IPA link\|ɔ}} {{angbr\|o}}
Low \| \|{{IPA link\|a}} {{angbr\|a}} \|

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

|+ caption |Tarok Vowels

!Front

!Central

!Back

High

|{{IPA link|i}} {{angbr|i}}

|{{IPA link|ɨ}} {{angbr|ə}}

|{{IPA link|u}} {{angbr|u}}

Low-Mid

|{{IPA link|ɛ}} {{angbr|e}}

|{{IPA link|ə}} {{angbr|a̱}}

|{{IPA link|ɔ}} {{angbr|o}}

Low

|{{IPA link|a}} {{angbr|a}}

= Consonants =

Tarok has an inventory of twenty-seven phonemic consonants, shown in the table below. Allophones are provided in parentheses.

class="wikitable" \|+Tarok Consonants{{cite journal \|last1=Onah \|first1=Patrick El-Kanemi \|last2=Israel \|first2=T. Gamypal \|title=A Phonological Description of Tarok \|journal=Journal of English and Communication in Africa \|date=Dec 2022 \|volume=5 \|issue=3&4 \|pages=1–24 \|url=https://www.jecaoauife.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/A-Phonological-Description-of-Tarok.pdf \|access-date=27 January 2025}}{{Cite book \|last=Longtau \|first=Selbut \|title=Tarok language : its basic principles and grammar \|year=2008 \|url=https://www.academia.edu/67635781 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250127170142/https://www.academia.edu/67635781/Tarok_language_its_basic_principles_and_grammar \|archive-date=27 January 2025}} ! ! !Bilabial !Labiodental !Alveolar !Palato-Alveolar !Palatal !Velar !Labiovelar !Glottal
rowspan="2" \|Plosive / Affricate !voiceless \|{{IPA link\|p}} \| \|{{IPA link\|t}} \|{{IPA link\|t͡ʃ}} \| \|{{IPA link\|k}} \|{{IPA link\|k͡p}} \|{{IPA link\|ʔ}}
voiced \|{{IPA link\|b}} \| \|{{IPA link\|d}} \|{{IPA link\|d͡ʒ}} \| \|{{IPA link\|g}} \|{{IPA link\|g͡b}} \|
colspan="2" \|Implosive \|{{IPA link\|ɓ}} \| \|{{IPA link\|ɗ}} \| \| \| \| \|
rowspan="2" \|Fricative !voiceless \| \|{{IPA link\|f}} \| \|{{IPA link\|ʃ}} \| \| \| \|{{IPA link\|h}}
voiced \| \|{{IPA link\|v}} \| \|{{IPA link\|ʒ}} \| \|{{IPA link\|ɣ}} \| \|
colspan="2" \|Nasal \|{{IPA link\|m}} \| \|{{IPA link\|n}} \| \|{{IPA link\|ɳ}} \|{{IPA link\|ŋ}} \|({{IPA link\|ŋ͡m}})* \|
colspan="2" \|Lateral \| \| \|{{IPA link\|l}} \| \| \| \| \|
colspan="2" \|Vibrant \| \| \|{{IPA link\|r}} \| \| \| \| \|
colspan="2" \|Semivowel \| \| \| \| \|{{IPA link\|j}} \| \|{{IPA link\|w}} \|

class="wikitable"

|+Tarok Consonants{{cite journal |last1=Onah |first1=Patrick El-Kanemi |last2=Israel |first2=T. Gamypal |title=A Phonological Description of Tarok |journal=Journal of English and Communication in Africa |date=Dec 2022 |volume=5 |issue=3&4 |pages=1–24 |url=https://www.jecaoauife.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/A-Phonological-Description-of-Tarok.pdf |access-date=27 January 2025}}{{Cite book |last=Longtau |first=Selbut |title=Tarok language : its basic principles and grammar |year=2008 |url=https://www.academia.edu/67635781 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250127170142/https://www.academia.edu/67635781/Tarok_language_its_basic_principles_and_grammar |archive-date=27 January 2025}}

!Bilabial

!Labiodental

!Alveolar

!Palato-Alveolar

!Palatal

!Velar

!Labiovelar

!Glottal

rowspan="2" |Plosive / Affricate

!voiceless

|{{IPA link|p}}

|{{IPA link|t}}

|{{IPA link|t͡ʃ}}

|{{IPA link|k}}

|{{IPA link|k͡p}}

|{{IPA link|ʔ}}

voiced

|{{IPA link|b}}

|{{IPA link|d}}

|{{IPA link|d͡ʒ}}

|{{IPA link|g}}

|{{IPA link|g͡b}}

colspan="2" |Implosive

|{{IPA link|ɓ}}

|{{IPA link|ɗ}}

rowspan="2" |Fricative

!voiceless

|{{IPA link|f}}

|{{IPA link|ʃ}}

|{{IPA link|h}}

voiced

|{{IPA link|v}}

|{{IPA link|ʒ}}

|{{IPA link|ɣ}}

colspan="2" |Nasal

|{{IPA link|m}}

|{{IPA link|n}}

|{{IPA link|ɳ}}

|{{IPA link|ŋ}}

|({{IPA link|ŋ͡m}})*

colspan="2" |Lateral

|{{IPA link|l}}

colspan="2" |Vibrant

|{{IPA link|r}}

colspan="2" |Semivowel

|{{IPA link|j}}

|{{IPA link|w}}

* The labiovelar nasal [ŋ͡m] occurs as an allophone of the syllabic nasal consonant before labiovelar plosives /k͡p/ and /g͡b/.

Names for other languages

As the local lingua franca, the Tarok feature prominently in the local ethnic composition of southeast Plateau State. Many Tarok clans can also trace their ancestries back to Chadic-speaking peoples, pointing to a long history of Chadic peoples assimilating into Tarok society. Some Tarok names for neighbouring languages according to Longtau (2004):{{cite conference|url=https://www.academia.edu/11341916|title=Some Historical Inferences from Lexical Borrowings and Traditions of Origins in the Tarokoid/Chadic Interface|last=Longtau|first=Selbut|conference=International Symposium on Endangered Languages in Contact: Nigeria’s Plateau Languages|date=25–26 March 2004|location=Hamburg|publisher=Asien-Afrika-Institut, Universität Hamburg}}

class="wikitable sortable" ! Language !! Classification !! Tarok name
Ngas	West Chadic A.3	Dúk
Boghom	West Chadic B.3	Burom
Duguri	Jarawan	Duguri
Goemai	West Chadic A.3	Lar
Jukun-Wase	Jukunoid	Jor
Kanam	West Chadic B.3 ?	(not known by Tarok)
Kantana	Jarawan	Kantana
Tel	West Chadic A.3	Dwal
Pe	Tarokoid	Pe
Tal	West Chadic A.3	Tal
Sur	Tarokoid	(not known by Tarok)
Yangkam	Tarokoid	Yangkam
Yiwom	West Chadic A.3	Zhan
Zaar	West Chadic B.3	Zhim

Orthography

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

|+ Tarok alphabet

| a

a̲

| d

| gb

| l

| o

| u

| zh

Notes

{{note|a}} Variants of this name are Yergəm and Yergum.

References

Category:Tarokoid languages

Category:Languages of Nigeria