West Kilimanjaro language

West Kilimanjaro
West Chaga
Native toTanzania
RegionMachame, Kilimanjaro Region
EthnicityChaga
Language codes
ISO 639-3Either:
jmc – Machame
rwk – Rwa
Glottologwest2852
E.621 (ex-E.61,62a)

West Kilimanjaro, or West Chaga, is a Bantu language of Tanzania spoken by the Chaga people.

Dialects

There are several dialects:

Phonology

Vowels

Front Central Back
High i iː u uː
Mid e eː o oː
Low a aː

Consonants

Consonants in the Mashame dialect
Labial Alveolar Palatal Velar Glottal
Nasal m n ɲ ŋ
Stop voiceless p t k
voiced b d (ɟ)
prenasal ᵐb ⁿd ᵑɡ
Fricative voiceless f s ʃ (h)
voiced β ɣ
Rhotic r
Lateral glide l
fricative ɮ
Approximant w j

References

  1. 1 2 Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
  2. 1 2 Rugemalira, Josephat Muhozi (2008). Kimashami: Kamusi ya Kimashami-Kiingereza-Kiswahili. Dar es Salaam: Dept. of Foreign Languages and Linguistics, University of Dar es Salaam.
  3. 1 2 Rugemalira, Josephat M.; Phanuel, Benedictor (2012). A grammatical sketch of Kimashami. University of Dar es Salaam.