Gbeya language

Gbeya
Native toCentral African Republic
Native speakers
(ca. 250,000 cited 1996–2005)
Niger–Congo?
Language codes
ISO 639-3Either:
gbp – Gbaya-Bossangoa
sqm – Suma
Glottologgbey1244
dekk1240

Gbeya (Gbɛ́yá, Gbaya-Bossangoa) is a Gbaya language of the Central African Republic. Ethnologue reports it may be mutually intelligible with Bozom.

Suma (Súmā) is a language variety closely related to Gbeya.

Phonology

Consonants

Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Labialvelar Glottal
Plosive voiceless p t k k͡p ʔ
voiced b d ɡ ɡ͡b
prenasal ᵐb ⁿd ᵑɡ ᵑᵐɡ͡b
implosive ɓ ɗ
Nasal preglottal ˀm ˀn
plain m n ŋ ŋ͡m
Fricative voiceless f s h
voiced v z
Lateral l
Tap/Flap ⱱ ɾ
Approximant j w

Vowels

Front Central Back
Close i u
Close-mid e o
Open-mid ɛ ɔ
Open a

References

  1. ↑ Gbaya-Bossangoa at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) Closed access icon
    Suma at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022) Closed access icon
  2. ↑ Samarin, William J. (1966). The Gbeya language: Grammar, texts, and vocabularies (PDF). ASIN B000S2UYWE. hdl:1807/67174. OCLC 897343. Book reviewed in both Courtenay, Karen (1 January 1968). "Review of The Gbeya Language: Grammar, Texts, and Vocabularies". Language. 44 (2): 420–423. doi:10.2307/411642. hdl:1807/67174. JSTOR 411642, and Crabb, David W. (1969). "The Gbeya Language: Grammar, Texts, and Vocabularies . William J. Samarin". American Anthropologist. 71 (2): 365–366. doi:10.1525/aa.1969.71.2.02a00600.
  3. ↑ "Suma materials from Raymond Boyd". Archived from the original on 2022-10-17. Retrieved 2020-01-05.
  4. ↑ Samarin, William J. (1966). The Gbeya Language Grammar, Texts, and Vocabularies (PDF). University of California Press Berkeley and Los Angeles.