Edo language

Edo
Bini
Ẹ̀dó
Native toNigeria
RegionEdo State
EthnicityEdo
Native speakers
2 million (2020)
Latin
Language codes
ISO 639-2bin
ISO 639-3bin
Glottologbini1246
Location of Edo speakers in Nigeria.

Edo (Ẹ̀dó [ɛ̀.dó]; English: /ˈɛdoʊ/, locally: /ˈedo/), also known as Bini, is the language spoken by the Edo people in Edo State, Nigeria. It was the primary language of the Benin Empire and its predecessor, Igodomigodo. It is the majority language spoken in the state, particularly in Benin City, and the surrounding local governments and senatorial districts in the southern parts of the state.

Distribution

Most Edo speakers live in the southern parts of Edo State in Nigeria; the state was named for the Edo speakers. A smaller number of Edo speakers are also found in Delta State and Ondo State and in other parts of Nigeria.

Edo is an Edoid language. These languages are also spoken in Rivers State and Bayelsa State, Nigeria.

Phonology

Vowels

There are seven vowels, /i e ɛ a ɔ o u/, all of which but /e o/ can also occur nasalised. Additionally, all vowels are phonetically nasalised in the immediate vicinity of a nasal consonant or vowel.

Front Central Back
oralnasal oralnasal oralnasal
Close i ĩ u ũ
Close-mid e o
Open-mid ɛ ɛ̃ ɔ ɔ̃
Open a ã

Consonants

Edo has a rather average consonant inventory for an Edoid language. It maintains only a single phonemic nasal, /m/, but has 13 oral consonants, /r, l, ʋ, j, w/ and the 8 stops, which have nasal allophones such as [n, ɲ, ŋʷ], and nasalized allophones [ʋ̃, j̃, w̃] before nasal vowels.

Labial Labiodental Alveolar Palatal Velar Labio-velar Glottal
Nasal m
Plosive p  b
[pm bm]		 t  d
[tn dn]		 k  ɡ
[kŋ ɡŋ]		 k͡p  ɡ͡b
[k͡pŋ͡m ɡ͡bŋ͡m]
Fricative f  v s  z x  ɣ ɦ
Trill r
Close approximant ɹ̝̊  ɹ̝
Open approximant ʋ
[ʋ̃]		 l
[n]		 j
[ɲ] [j̃]		 w
[ŋʷ] [w̃]

The three rhotics have been described as voiced and voiceless trills as well as a lax English-type approximant. However, Ladefoged & Maddieson (1996) found all three to be approximants – with the voiced–voiceless pair being raised (albeit with very little frication) and perhaps at a slightly different place of articulation compared to the third – and none as trills.

Tone

There are three tones.

Phonotactics

Syllable structure is simple, being maximally CVV, where VV is either a long vowel or /i, u/ a different oral or nasal vowel.

Orthography

The Edo alphabet has separate letters for the nasalised allophones of /ʋ/ and /l/, mw and n:

ABDEẸFGGbGhHIKKhKpLMMwNOỌPRRhRrSTUVVbWYZ
/a//b//d//e//ɛ//f//ɡ//⁠ɓˠ⁠//ɣ//ɦ//i//k//x//kp//l//m/[ʋ̃][n]/o//ɔ//p//r//ɹ̝̊//ɹ̝//s//t//u//v//ʋ//w//j//z/

Long vowels are written by doubling the letter. Nasal vowels may be written with a final -n or with an initial nasal consonant. Tone may be written with acute accent, grave accent, and unmarked, or with a final -h (-nh with a nasal vowel).

See also

References

  1. ↑ Edo at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) Closed access icon
  2. ↑ Laurie Bauer, 2007, The Linguistics Student's Handbook, Edinburgh
  3. ↑ "Edo". Oxford English Dictionary (online ed.). Oxford University Press. Retrieved 30 September 2024. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  4. ↑ Emovon 1979, pp. 46–47.
  5. ↑ Adénéyì 2007, p. 6.
  6. ↑ Emovon 1979, p. 46.
  7. ↑ Emovon 1979, pp. 87–95.
  8. ↑ Evbuomwan 2025, p. 2.
  9. ↑ Ladefoged, Peter; Maddieson, Ian (1996). The Sounds of the World's Languages. Oxford: Blackwell. p. 241. ISBN 0-631-19815-6.

Sources

Further reading