Attié language

Attié
Native toIvory Coast
EthnicityAttie people
Native speakers
642,000 (2017)
Language codes
ISO 639-3ati
Glottologatti1239

Attié (Akie, Akye, Atche, Atie, Atshe) is a language of uncertain classification within the Kwa branch of the Niger–Congo family. It is spoken by perhaps half a million people in Ivory Coast.

Phonology

Consonants

Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Labio-
velar
Glottal
Nasal m [n] [ɲ] [ŋ] [ŋw]
Plosive voiceless p t c k k͡p
voiced b d ɟ ɡ ɡ͡b
Affricate voiceless t͡s t͡ʃ
voiced (d͡z) d͡ʒ
Fricative voiceless f s ʃ h
voiced v z
Approximant j w
Lateral l
Trill (r)

Vowels

Oral vowels
Front Central Back
High i u
High-mid e ɨ o
Low-mid ɛ ə ɔ
Low a

Sounds /ɨ, ə/ are phonetically heard as [ɨ̞, ɘ] or [ə̞, ɜ].

Nasal vowels
Front Central Back
High ĩ ũ
Low-mid ɛ̃ ə̃ ɔ̃
Low ã

Writing system

Attié Alphabet
aanbcd dzheëënɛ
ɛnfggbh iinjkkp
lmnoö ɔɔnprs
shttstshu unvwyz

A vowel followed by <n> indicates nasalisation.

Tones are indicated with a diacritic before or after the syllable :

Tone notation
ToneSignWritingExampleTranslation
Lowhyphen before syllable˗˗kathing
Midnothing∅wuacheke
Highapostropheʼ’mimouth
Very highdouble apostropheˮˮvinchildren
Fallinghyphen after syllable˗be˗pestle

References

  1. ↑ Attié at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) Closed access icon
  2. ↑ Kutsch Lojenga, Constance; Hood, Elizabeth (1983). L'Attié. In Hérault, Georges (ed.), Atlas des langues kwa de Cote d'Ivoire: Abidjan & Paris: Institut de Linguistique Appliquée (ILA); Agence de Coopération Culturelle et Technique (ACCT). pp. 227–253.
  3. ↑ Hood, Kouachi & Lojenga 1984, p. 5-6.
  4. ↑ Hood, Kouachi & Lojenga 1984, p. 6.

Works cited