Nama language
From Freepedia
| Nama (Khoekhoegowab) | |
|---|---|
| Spoken in: | Namibia, Botswana, South Africa |
| Region: | Orange River, Great Namaland |
| Total speakers: | 250,000 Namibia: approx. 176,000 |
| Ranking: | Not in top 100 |
| Genetic classification: | Khoisan Khoe |
| Official status | |
| Official language of: | National language in Namibia |
| Regulated by: | - |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-1 | - |
| ISO 639-2 | khi |
| SIL | NAQ |
| See also: Language – List of languages | |
Nàmá, previously called Hottentot, is the most populous and widespread of the Khoisan languages. It belongs to the Khoe language family, and is spoken in Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa by the Namaqua, Damara, and Hai‖om, as well as smaller ethnic groups such as the ‡Khomani. The name for Nama speakers, Khoekhoen, is from the Nama word kxòe "person", with reduplication and the suffix -n to indicate the plural. According to Ethnologue, there were 250,000 speakers as of 1998.
Contents |
Classification
Nama is in the Khoe family, which is part of a hypothetical Khoisan phylum.
Geographic distribution
Image:Nama-Damara taalkaartje NL.png Nama has 250,000 speakers in Namibia, South Africa, and (a few in) Botswana.
Dialects
- Damara
- Sesfontein Damara
- Namidama
- Central Damara
- Nama (proper)
- Gimsbok Nama
- Hai‖om
Sounds
Phonemes
Nama has 31 consonants, 20 clicks and a very simple set of 11 non-clicks.
There are 5 vowel qualities, oral [i e a o u] and nasal [ĩ ã ũ]. The vowels may be long or short, and there are several sequences or diphthongs: [əi ae əu ao ui oa oe] and nasal [ə̃ĩ ə̃ũ ũĩ õã]. [ə] is phonemically /a/.
Nama three tones, [à, ā, á], which may occur on vowels and the nasals. The mid tone is not written.
Consonental Phonemes
Non-clicks
/p/ is pronounced [β] and /t/ is pronounced [ɾ] between vowels.
| bilabial | alveolar | velar | glottal | |
| stop | p ~ β | t ~ ɾ | k | ʔ |
| affricate | ts | kx | ||
| fricative | s | x | h | |
| nasal | m | n |
Clicks
The clicks are doubly articulated consonants, consisting of four "releases" or "influxes" (forward articulations) and five "accompaniments" or "effluxes" (rearward articulations), for twenty combinations.
The aspirated clicks are often pronounced as affricates. That is, /kǀˣ/ may be pronounced anywhere from [kǃʰ] to [kǃx].
The voiceless nasal accompaniment is difficult to hear when not between vowels, so to foreign ears it may sound like a longer but less raspy version of the aspirated accompaniment.
| accompaniment | affricated clicks | 'sharp' clicks | spelling (with "!") | ||
| dental clicks | lateral clicks | alveolar clicks | palatal clicks | ||
| Tenuis | kǀ | kǁ | kǃ | kǂ | <!> or <!g> |
| Aspirated | kǀˣ | kǁˣ | kǃˣ | kǂˣ | <!x> or <!k> |
| Nasal | ŋǀ | ŋǁ | ŋǃ | ŋǂ | <n!> or <!n> |
| Voiceless nasal with delayed aspiration | ŋ̊ǀʰ | ŋ̊ǁʰ | ŋ̊ǃʰ | ŋ̊ǂʰ | <!h> |
| Tenuis with glottal stop | kǀʔ | kǁʔ | kǃʔ | kǂʔ | <!’> or <!> |
Grammar
Nama has a Subject Object Verb word order.
Example
Xam-i ke 'a /úrún hòán tì kàó'ao káísep 'a /aísa, /óm //xáí, xápú kxáó, tsií !háése ra !xóés !'áróma.
Tsií maátsekám //óakas hòásàp ke =xam xam-à !árop !naa ='oá tsií //'iip tì /aísìpà síí kèrè /noóku náú /úrún /xáa. Tsií maá tsèes hòásàp ke //'iipà kèrè 'óa-/xií tàn'aose. Tsií nee =hòas ke /úrún !húùp hòárákap !naa kè //nàúhè tsií ='ánhè 'ií xam-i 'a /úrún tì kàó'ao !xáisà. Tsií maá tsèes híí'ap kèrè 'óa-/xií tàn tsiís kxáó!áa 'oos ke //'iip tì //uusà kèrè koápi "tíí 'óátse! /óm !nórótse! xápú kxáótse! /óm //xáítse! 'áore kxòetse!" tí.
Xapes ke /úí tsekám //óaka kxàí-máá tsiíp ke =xam xam-à kàrósn 'oo !xóó/xáapi "/óm //xáítse! /óm !nórótse! xam //'oatse! xápú kxáótse!" tí, !xóó/xáapi tóá tsií kè míí "am'aseta ke ra =óm saáts maá /úrún hòán xaa 'a /aísa !xáisà. Maá tsèes hòásàts ke saátsà ='oá !árop !naa tsií 'óa-/xií tsií ra //aute 'am'asets saátsà 'a /úrún tì kàó'ao !xáisà. Xape, tíí 'óátse! /úí tsèets ke nìí ='oá !árop !naa. Tsií ='oá tsiíts !árop !naa ra !uumaa híí'ats ke =xarí xuuróp =hanúse ra !úu !xoótì !naa =nùa tànásepà nìí mùu. Tsií, tíí 'óátse! /óm //xáítse! /óm !nórótse! xápú kxáótse! //naá =xarí xuuróp /xáats kàrà /haó'ú tsèes //naás 'áís ke sóresà nìí =aa 'óa-/xií tamats hàa híí'a. //naá xuuróp tì /'òns ke "kxòep" tí ra =aíhè.
English Translation
The lion is king of all the beasts because he is very strong, thick of chest, slim of waist, and runs fast.
Every morning, the young lion would go out into the forest and compare his strength with the other beasts. And every day he would return the victor. This news was heard and known throughout the animal world: that the lion was king of the beasts. Every day that he would return victorious, his mother would praise him, "Son of mine! Thick of neck! Thick of chest! He-man!"
But one morning, when having got up the young lion was stretching, she praised him, "Thick of chest! Thick of neck! Lion-armed! Slim of waist!," finished praising him and said, "I truly believe that you are strongest of all the beasts. Every day you go out into the forest and return, and show me that you are truly king of the beasts. But, my son, one day you will go out into the forest. And while you are out walking around in the forest, you will see a little thing which walks straight, its head sitting on its shoulders. And, Son of mine! Thick of chest! Thick of neck! Slim of waist!, the day you meet that little thing, on that day the sun will set while you have not returned. The name of that little thing is called 'man'.
Trivia
- Nama is a national language in Namibia, and doctorates in the study of the language can be earned at the University of Namibia.
- In Namibia and South Africa, radio programs are broadcast in Nama.
- There is a dictionary of the Nama language available.
External links
- Nama Swadesh Word List from Rosetta Project
- The Ethnologue report for Nama
- The Ethnologue report for Hai‖’om
| Edit | |
| ‖Ani | G‖ana | G/wi | Hadza | ‡Hõã | Ju/’hoan | Korana | !Kung (!Xũũ) | Kwadi | ‡Kx’au‖’ein | Kxoe |
Nama | Naro | N/u | Sandawe | Seroa | Shua | Tsoa | /Xam | ‖Xegwi | Xiri | !Xóõ |
Categories: Khoisan languages | Languages of Botswana | Languages of Namibia | Languages of South Africa
