Languages of Mali
Encyclopedia
| Languages of Mali | |
| Official language Official language An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically a nation's official language will be the one used in that nation's courts, parliament and administration. However, official status can also be used to give a... |
French French language French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts... (Standard Standard French Standard French is an unofficial term for a standard variety of the French language... ) |
| National language National language A national language is a language which has some connection—de facto or de jure—with a people and perhaps by extension the territory they occupy. The term is used variously. A national language may for instance represent the national identity of a nation or country... s |
Bambara Bambara language Bambara, more correctly known as Bamanankan , its designation in the language itself , is a language spoken in Mali by as many as six million people... , Bomu, Tieyaxo Bozo, Toro So Dogon, Maasina Fulfulde Maasina Fulfulde Maasina Fulfulde is a Fula language spoken primarily as a first language by Fula people and associated groups in the Inner Niger Delta area traditionally known as Macina in the center of what is now the West African state of Mali... , Hasanya Arabic, Mamara Senoufo, Kita Maninkakan, Soninke Soninke language The Soninke language is a Mande language spoken by the Soninke people of West Africa. The language has an estimated 1,096,795 speakers, primarily located in Mali, and also in Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, The Gambia, Mauritania, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea and Ghana... , Koyraboro Senni Songhay, Syenara Senoufo, Tamasheq, Xaasongaxango |
| Lingua franca Lingua franca A lingua franca is a language systematically used to make communication possible between people not sharing a mother tongue, in particular when it is a third language, distinct from both mother tongues.-Characteristics:"Lingua franca" is a functionally defined term, independent of the linguistic... s |
Bambara Bambara language Bambara, more correctly known as Bamanankan , its designation in the language itself , is a language spoken in Mali by as many as six million people... , French African French African French is the generic name of the varieties of French spoken by an estimated 115 million African people spread across 31 francophone African countries... , Fula Fula language The Fula or Fulani language is a language of West Africa. It is spoken as a first language by the and related groups from Senegambia and Guinea to Cameroon and Sudan... (esp. in Mopti region), Songhai |
| Other important languages | Arabic (Classical Classical Arabic Classical Arabic , also known as Qur'anic or Koranic Arabic, is the form of the Arabic language used in literary texts from Umayyad and Abbasid times . It is based on the Medieval dialects of Arab tribes... ), English English language English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria... |
Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
is a multilingual country. The languages spoken there reflect ancient settlement patterns, migrations, and its long history. Ethnologue counts 50 languages. Of these, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
is the official language
Official language
An official language is a language that is given a special legal status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically a nation's official language will be the one used in that nation's courts, parliament and administration. However, official status can also be used to give a...
and Bambara
Bambara language
Bambara, more correctly known as Bamanankan , its designation in the language itself , is a language spoken in Mali by as many as six million people...
is the most widely spoken. Altogether 13 of the indigenous languages of Mali have the legal status of national language
National language
A national language is a language which has some connection—de facto or de jure—with a people and perhaps by extension the territory they occupy. The term is used variously. A national language may for instance represent the national identity of a nation or country...
.
Usage
FrenchFrench language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, which was introduced during the colonial period, was retained as the official language at independence and is used in government and formal education. However, estimates of the number of people who actually speak it are low. Figures estimated in 1986 give a number of 386,000 speakers of French in Mali, derived from the numbers of school attendees. This would mean roughly 21% of the population speak French, by 1986 figures, a number considerably lower than those who speak Bambara. Almost all people who speak French in Mali speak it as a second language. 1993 estimates are that there are only around 9,000 Malian speakers of French as a first language. French is more understood in urban centres, with 1976 figures showing a 36.7% "Francophone" rate in urban areas, but only an 8.2% rate in rural areas. French usage is gender weighted as well, with 1984 figures showing 17.5% percent of males speaking French, but only 4.9% of women.
Bambara, a Manding
Manding languages
The Manding languages are a fairly mutually intelligible group of dialects or languages in West Africa, belonging to the Mande languages. Their best-known members are Bambara, the most widely spoken language in Mali; Mandinka, the main language of Gambia; Maninka or Malinké, a major language of...
language (in the Mande family) is said to be spoken by 80% of the population as a first or second language. It is spoken mainly in central and Southern Mali. Bambara and two other very closely related Manding languages Malinke
Maninka language
Maninka, or more precisely Eastern Maninka, is the name of several closely related languages and dialects of the southeastern Manding subgroup of the Mande branch of the Niger–Congo languages...
or Maninkakan in the southwest and Kassonke
Xaasongaxango language
The Kassonke language, Xaasongaxango , or Western Maninka , is a Manding language spoken by the Khassonké of western Mali and by the Malinke of eastern Senegal. The Kassonke variety is a national language in Mali...
(in the region of Kayes
Kayes
Kayes is a city in western Mali on the Sénégal River, with a population of roughly 100,000 people. Kayes is the capital of the administrative region of the same name. The name "Kayes" comes from the Soninké word "karré", which describes a low humid place that floods in rainy season...
in the west), are among the 13 national languages. Bambara is used as a trade language in Mali between language groups.
(Bambara is also very close to the Dioula
Dioula language
Jula is a Mande language spoken in Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire and Mali. It is one of the Manding languages, and is most closely related to Bambara, being mutually intelligible with Bambara as well as Malinke. It is a trade language in West Africa and is spoken by millions of people, either as a...
or Jula language (Julakan), spoken mainly in Ivory Coast
Côte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
and Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso – also known by its short-form name Burkina – is a landlocked country in west Africa. It is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north, Niger to the east, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Côte d'Ivoire to the southwest.Its size is with an estimated...
. The name "Jula" (Dioula in French transcription) is actually a Manding word meaning "trader.")
Other Mande languages (not in the Manding group) include Soninke
Soninke language
The Soninke language is a Mande language spoken by the Soninke people of West Africa. The language has an estimated 1,096,795 speakers, primarily located in Mali, and also in Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, The Gambia, Mauritania, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea and Ghana...
(in the region of Kayes
Kayes
Kayes is a city in western Mali on the Sénégal River, with a population of roughly 100,000 people. Kayes is the capital of the administrative region of the same name. The name "Kayes" comes from the Soninké word "karré", which describes a low humid place that floods in rainy season...
in western Mali), Dogon
Dogon languages
The Dogon languages are spoken by the Dogon of Mali. There are about 600,000 speakers of a dozen languages. They are tonal languages, most like Dogul having two tones, some like Donno So having three....
languages (of Pays Dogon or Dogon country in central Mali), the Bozo languages
Bozo languages
Bozo is spoken by the Bozo, the principal fishing people of the Inner Niger Delta in Mali. According to the 2000 census, the Bozo people number about 132,100. The Bozo dialect cluster is often considered to be one language, but there is quite a bit of diversity...
(along the middle Niger
Niger River
The Niger River is the principal river of western Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in southeastern Guinea...
).
Other languages include Senufo in the Sikasso
Sikasso
Sikasso is a city in the south of Mali and the capital of the Sikasso Region. With 130,700 residents, Sikasso recently passed Ségou to become Mali's second-largest city.-Geography:...
region (south), Fulfulde
Fula language
The Fula or Fulani language is a language of West Africa. It is spoken as a first language by the and related groups from Senegambia and Guinea to Cameroon and Sudan...
(Peul in French) as a widespread trade language in the Mopti
Mopti
Mopti is a city at the confluence of the Niger and the Bani in Mali, between Timbuktu and Ségou. The city lies on three islands linked by dykes: the New Town, the Old Town and Medina Coura. As a result it is sometimes known as the "Venice of Mali".-History:The city of Mopti derives its name from...
region and beyond, the Songhay languages
Songhay languages
The Songhay, Songhai, or Songai languages are a group of closely related languages/dialects centered on the middle stretches of the Niger River in the west African states of Mali, Niger, Benin, Burkina Faso, and Nigeria. They have been widely used as a lingua franca in that region ever since the...
along the Niger, Tamasheq
Tuareg languages
Tuareg is a Berber language or family of very closely related languages and dialects spoken by the Tuareg Berbers, in large parts of Mali, Niger, Algeria, Libya and Burkina Faso, with a few speakers, the Kinnin, in Chad.- Description :Other Berber languages and Tamashaq are quite mutually...
in the eastern part of Mali's Sahara
Sahara
The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...
and Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
in its western part.
Thirteen of the most widely spoken indigenous languages are considered "national language
National language
A national language is a language which has some connection—de facto or de jure—with a people and perhaps by extension the territory they occupy. The term is used variously. A national language may for instance represent the national identity of a nation or country...
s."
Descriptions
Most of the languages of Mali are part of the Mande language familyMande languages
The Mande languages are spoken in several countries in West Africa by the Mandé people and include Mandinka, Soninke, Bambara, Bissa, Dioula, Kagoro, Bozo, Mende, Susu, Yacouba, Vai, and Ligbi...
, which is generally accepted as part of Niger–Congo
Niger–Congo languages
The Niger–Congo languages constitute one of the world's major language families, and Africa's largest in terms of geographical area, number of speakers, and number of distinct languages. They may constitute the world's largest language family in terms of distinct languages, although this question...
, Africa's largest phylum. Other languages include the Dogon languages
Dogon languages
The Dogon languages are spoken by the Dogon of Mali. There are about 600,000 speakers of a dozen languages. They are tonal languages, most like Dogul having two tones, some like Donno So having three....
, perhaps another Niger–Congo branch, and the Senufo languages
Senufo languages
The Senufo or Senufic languages comprise ca. 15 languages spoken by the Senufo in the north of Côte d'Ivoire, the south of Mali and the southwest of Burkina Faso. An isolated language, Nafaanra, is also spoken in the west of Ghana. The Senufo languages are generally considered a branch of the Gur...
, which are unquestionably part of that family. Mande, Senufo, and Dogon stand out among Niger–Congo because of their deviant SOV basic word order. The Gur languages
Gur languages
The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 70 languages belonging to this group. They are spoken in Burkina Faso, southern Mali, northeastern Côte d'Ivoire, northern Ghana, northern Togo, northwestern Benin, and southwestern Niger.Like most...
are represented by Bomu on the Bani River
Bani River
The Bani River is the principal tributary of the Niger River in Mali. Its length is about 1100 km. The Bani is formed from the confluence of the Baoulé and Bagoé rivers some 160 km east of Bamako and merges with the Niger near Mopti.-Geography:...
of Mali and Burkina Faso. Fulfulde, spoken throughout West Africa, is a member of the Atlantic
Atlantic languages
The Atlantic or West Atlantic languages of West Africa are an obsolete proposed major group of the Niger–Congo languages. They are those languages west of Kru which have the noun-class systems characteristic of the Niger–Congo family; in this they are distinguished from their Mande neighbors, which...
branch.
Other language families include Afro-Asiatic
Afro-Asiatic languages
The Afroasiatic languages , also known as Hamito-Semitic, constitute one of the world's largest language families, with about 375 living languages...
, represented by the Berber
Berber languages
The Berber languages are a family of languages indigenous to North Africa, spoken from Siwa Oasis in Egypt to Morocco , and south to the countries of the Sahara Desert...
language Tamasheq and by Arabic, and the Songhay languages
Songhay languages
The Songhay, Songhai, or Songai languages are a group of closely related languages/dialects centered on the middle stretches of the Niger River in the west African states of Mali, Niger, Benin, Burkina Faso, and Nigeria. They have been widely used as a lingua franca in that region ever since the...
, which have traditionally been classified as Nilo-Saharan
Nilo-Saharan languages
The Nilo-Saharan languages are a proposed family of African languages spoken by some 50 million people, mainly in the upper parts of the Chari and Nile rivers , including historic Nubia, north of where the two tributaries of Nile meet...
but may constitute an independent language family.
Spoken languages
The following table gives a summary of the 49 spoken languages reported by Ethnologue (NB- the sort by numbers of speakers does not work optimally):| Language (Ethnologue) | Cluster]] | Language family Language family A language family is a group of languages related through descent from a common ancestor, called the proto-language of that family. The term 'family' comes from the tree model of language origination in historical linguistics, which makes use of a metaphor comparing languages to people in a... |
Legal status | L1 First language A first language is the language a person has learned from birth or within the critical period, or that a person speaks the best and so is often the basis for sociolinguistic identity... speakers in Mali* |
L2 Second language A second language or L2 is any language learned after the first language or mother tongue. Some languages, often called auxiliary languages, are used primarily as second languages or lingua francas .... speakers in Mali** |
Main region |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| French French language French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts... |
Indo-European Indo-European languages The Indo-European languages are a family of several hundred related languages and dialects, including most major current languages of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and South Asia and also historically predominant in Anatolia... |
Official | 9,000 | 1,500,001 | All (esp. urban) | |
| Arabic, Hasanya | Arabic | Afro-Asiatic: Semitic Semitic In linguistics and ethnology, Semitic was first used to refer to a language family of largely Middle Eastern origin, now called the Semitic languages... |
National | 106,100 | ? | NW |
| Bambara, Bamanankan Bambara language Bambara, more correctly known as Bamanankan , its designation in the language itself , is a language spoken in Mali by as many as six million people... |
Manding Manding languages The Manding languages are a fairly mutually intelligible group of dialects or languages in West Africa, belonging to the Mande languages. Their best-known members are Bambara, the most widely spoken language in Mali; Mandinka, the main language of Gambia; Maninka or Malinké, a major language of... |
Mande | National | 2,700,000 | 8,000,000 ?? | South, most of country |
| Bomu | Niger–Congo / Gur Gur languages The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 70 languages belonging to this group. They are spoken in Burkina Faso, southern Mali, northeastern Côte d'Ivoire, northern Ghana, northern Togo, northwestern Benin, and southwestern Niger.Like most... |
National | 102,000 | ? | SE | |
| Bozo, Tiéyaxo | Bozo Bozo languages Bozo is spoken by the Bozo, the principal fishing people of the Inner Niger Delta in Mali. According to the 2000 census, the Bozo people number about 132,100. The Bozo dialect cluster is often considered to be one language, but there is quite a bit of diversity... |
Mande | National | 117,696 | ? | Central |
| Dogon, Toro So | Dogon Dogon languages The Dogon languages are spoken by the Dogon of Mali. There are about 600,000 speakers of a dozen languages. They are tonal languages, most like Dogul having two tones, some like Donno So having three.... |
National | 50,000 | ? | Central-east | |
| Fulfulde, Maasina Maasina Fulfulde Maasina Fulfulde is a Fula language spoken primarily as a first language by Fula people and associated groups in the Inner Niger Delta area traditionally known as Macina in the center of what is now the West African state of Mali... |
Fula Fula language The Fula or Fulani language is a language of West Africa. It is spoken as a first language by the and related groups from Senegambia and Guinea to Cameroon and Sudan... |
Niger–Congo / Atlantic Atlantic languages The Atlantic or West Atlantic languages of West Africa are an obsolete proposed major group of the Niger–Congo languages. They are those languages west of Kru which have the noun-class systems characteristic of the Niger–Congo family; in this they are distinguished from their Mande neighbors, which... |
National | 911,200 | ? (some L2 speakers) | Central |
| Maninkakan, Kita | Manding Manding languages The Manding languages are a fairly mutually intelligible group of dialects or languages in West Africa, belonging to the Mande languages. Their best-known members are Bambara, the most widely spoken language in Mali; Mandinka, the main language of Gambia; Maninka or Malinké, a major language of... |
Mande | National | 600,000 | ? | W |
| Senoufo, Mamara (Miniyanka) | Senufo Senufo languages The Senufo or Senufic languages comprise ca. 15 languages spoken by the Senufo in the north of Côte d'Ivoire, the south of Mali and the southwest of Burkina Faso. An isolated language, Nafaanra, is also spoken in the west of Ghana. The Senufo languages are generally considered a branch of the Gur... |
Niger–Congo | National | 737,802 | ? | S |
| Senoufo, Syenara | Senufo Senufo languages The Senufo or Senufic languages comprise ca. 15 languages spoken by the Senufo in the north of Côte d'Ivoire, the south of Mali and the southwest of Burkina Faso. An isolated language, Nafaanra, is also spoken in the west of Ghana. The Senufo languages are generally considered a branch of the Gur... |
Niger–Congo | National | 136,500 | ? | S |
| Songhay, Koyraboro Senni | Songhay Songhay languages The Songhay, Songhai, or Songai languages are a group of closely related languages/dialects centered on the middle stretches of the Niger River in the west African states of Mali, Niger, Benin, Burkina Faso, and Nigeria. They have been widely used as a lingua franca in that region ever since the... (Southern) |
National | 400,000 | ? (a trade language) | N | |
| Soninke Soninke language The Soninke language is a Mande language spoken by the Soninke people of West Africa. The language has an estimated 1,096,795 speakers, primarily located in Mali, and also in Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, The Gambia, Mauritania, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea and Ghana... (& Marka/Maraka) |
Mande | National | 700,000 | ? | NW | |
| Tamasheq | Tamashek Tuareg languages Tuareg is a Berber language or family of very closely related languages and dialects spoken by the Tuareg Berbers, in large parts of Mali, Niger, Algeria, Libya and Burkina Faso, with a few speakers, the Kinnin, in Chad.- Description :Other Berber languages and Tamashaq are quite mutually... |
Afro-Asiatic / Berber Berber languages The Berber languages are a family of languages indigenous to North Africa, spoken from Siwa Oasis in Egypt to Morocco , and south to the countries of the Sahara Desert... |
National | 250,000 | ? | N |
| Xaasongaxango, Khassonke Xaasongaxango language The Kassonke language, Xaasongaxango , or Western Maninka , is a Manding language spoken by the Khassonké of western Mali and by the Malinke of eastern Senegal. The Kassonke variety is a national language in Mali... |
Manding Manding languages The Manding languages are a fairly mutually intelligible group of dialects or languages in West Africa, belonging to the Mande languages. Their best-known members are Bambara, the most widely spoken language in Mali; Mandinka, the main language of Gambia; Maninka or Malinké, a major language of... |
Mande | National | 120,000 | ? | NW |
| Bankagooma | Mande | None? | 5,085 | ? | S | |
| Bobo Madaré, Northern | Mande | None? | 18,400 | ? | SE | |
| Bozo, Hainyaxo | Bozo Bozo languages Bozo is spoken by the Bozo, the principal fishing people of the Inner Niger Delta in Mali. According to the 2000 census, the Bozo people number about 132,100. The Bozo dialect cluster is often considered to be one language, but there is quite a bit of diversity... |
Mande | None? | 117,696 | ? | Central |
| Bozo, Jenaama | Bozo Bozo languages Bozo is spoken by the Bozo, the principal fishing people of the Inner Niger Delta in Mali. According to the 2000 census, the Bozo people number about 132,100. The Bozo dialect cluster is often considered to be one language, but there is quite a bit of diversity... |
Mande | None? | 100,000 | ? | Central |
| Bozo, Tièma Cièwè | Bozo Bozo languages Bozo is spoken by the Bozo, the principal fishing people of the Inner Niger Delta in Mali. According to the 2000 census, the Bozo people number about 132,100. The Bozo dialect cluster is often considered to be one language, but there is quite a bit of diversity... |
Mande | None? | 2,500 | ? | Central |
| Dogon, Bangeri Me | Dogon Dogon languages The Dogon languages are spoken by the Dogon of Mali. There are about 600,000 speakers of a dozen languages. They are tonal languages, most like Dogul having two tones, some like Donno So having three.... |
None? | 1,200 | ? | Central-east | |
| Dogon, Bondum Dom | Dogon Dogon languages The Dogon languages are spoken by the Dogon of Mali. There are about 600,000 speakers of a dozen languages. They are tonal languages, most like Dogul having two tones, some like Donno So having three.... |
None? | 24,700 | ? | Central-east | |
| Dogon, Dogul Dom | Dogon Dogon languages The Dogon languages are spoken by the Dogon of Mali. There are about 600,000 speakers of a dozen languages. They are tonal languages, most like Dogul having two tones, some like Donno So having three.... |
None? | 15,700 | ? | Central-east | |
| Dogon, Donno So | Dogon Dogon languages The Dogon languages are spoken by the Dogon of Mali. There are about 600,000 speakers of a dozen languages. They are tonal languages, most like Dogul having two tones, some like Donno So having three.... |
None? | 45,300 | ? | Central-east | |
| Dogon, Jamsay | Dogon Dogon languages The Dogon languages are spoken by the Dogon of Mali. There are about 600,000 speakers of a dozen languages. They are tonal languages, most like Dogul having two tones, some like Donno So having three.... |
None? | 130,000 | ? | Central-east | |
| Dogon, Kolum So | Dogon Dogon languages The Dogon languages are spoken by the Dogon of Mali. There are about 600,000 speakers of a dozen languages. They are tonal languages, most like Dogul having two tones, some like Donno So having three.... |
None? | 24,000 | ? | Central-east | |
| Dogon, Tene Kan | Dogon Dogon languages The Dogon languages are spoken by the Dogon of Mali. There are about 600,000 speakers of a dozen languages. They are tonal languages, most like Dogul having two tones, some like Donno So having three.... |
None? | 127,000 | ? | Central-east | |
| Dogon, Tomo Kan | Dogon Dogon languages The Dogon languages are spoken by the Dogon of Mali. There are about 600,000 speakers of a dozen languages. They are tonal languages, most like Dogul having two tones, some like Donno So having three.... |
None? | 132,800 | ? | Central-east | |
| Dogon, Toro Tegu | Dogon Dogon languages The Dogon languages are spoken by the Dogon of Mali. There are about 600,000 speakers of a dozen languages. They are tonal languages, most like Dogul having two tones, some like Donno So having three.... |
None? | 2,900 | ? | Central-east | |
| Duungooma | Mande | None? | 70,000 | ? | S | |
| Jahanka | Mande | None? | 500 | ? | SW | |
| Jalunga, Dyalonke | Mande | None? | 9,000 | ? | SW | |
| Jowulu | Mande | None? | 10,000 | ? | SE | |
| Jula, Dioula Dioula language Jula is a Mande language spoken in Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire and Mali. It is one of the Manding languages, and is most closely related to Bambara, being mutually intelligible with Bambara as well as Malinke. It is a trade language in West Africa and is spoken by millions of people, either as a... |
Manding Manding languages The Manding languages are a fairly mutually intelligible group of dialects or languages in West Africa, belonging to the Mande languages. Their best-known members are Bambara, the most widely spoken language in Mali; Mandinka, the main language of Gambia; Maninka or Malinké, a major language of... |
Mande | None? | 50,000 | ? (very close to Bambara) | SE, all? |
| Kagoro | Manding Manding languages The Manding languages are a fairly mutually intelligible group of dialects or languages in West Africa, belonging to the Mande languages. Their best-known members are Bambara, the most widely spoken language in Mali; Mandinka, the main language of Gambia; Maninka or Malinké, a major language of... |
Mande | None? | 15,000 | ? | W |
| Koromfé | Niger–Congo / Gur Gur languages The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 70 languages belonging to this group. They are spoken in Burkina Faso, southern Mali, northeastern Côte d'Ivoire, northern Ghana, northern Togo, northwestern Benin, and southwestern Niger.Like most... |
None? | 100 | ? | SE | |
| Maninkakan, Western | Manding Manding languages The Manding languages are a fairly mutually intelligible group of dialects or languages in West Africa, belonging to the Mande languages. Their best-known members are Bambara, the most widely spoken language in Mali; Mandinka, the main language of Gambia; Maninka or Malinké, a major language of... |
Mande | None? | 100,000 | ? | SW |
| Marka | Mande | None? | 25,000 | ? | SE | |
| Mòoré More language The Mossi language, Mòoré is one of two official regional languages of Burkina Faso, closely related and mutually intelligible with the Dagbani language spoken in northern Ghana... |
Niger–Congo / Gur Gur languages The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 70 languages belonging to this group. They are spoken in Burkina Faso, southern Mali, northeastern Côte d'Ivoire, northern Ghana, northern Togo, northwestern Benin, and southwestern Niger.Like most... |
None? | 17,000 | ? | SE | |
| Pana | Niger–Congo / Gur Gur languages The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 70 languages belonging to this group. They are spoken in Burkina Faso, southern Mali, northeastern Côte d'Ivoire, northern Ghana, northern Togo, northwestern Benin, and southwestern Niger.Like most... |
None? | 2,800 | ? | Central-east | |
| Pulaar | Fula Fula language The Fula or Fulani language is a language of West Africa. It is spoken as a first language by the and related groups from Senegambia and Guinea to Cameroon and Sudan... |
Niger–Congo / Atlantic Atlantic languages The Atlantic or West Atlantic languages of West Africa are an obsolete proposed major group of the Niger–Congo languages. They are those languages west of Kru which have the noun-class systems characteristic of the Niger–Congo family; in this they are distinguished from their Mande neighbors, which... |
None? | 175,000 | ? | W |
| Pular Pular language Pular is a Fula language spoken primarily by Fula people in the Fouta Jalon area in Guinea. It is also spoken in parts of Guinea Bissau, Sierra Leone, and Senegal. There are a small number of speakers in Mali. Pular is spoken by 2.5 million Guineans, about 28% of the national population. This makes... |
Fula Fula language The Fula or Fulani language is a language of West Africa. It is spoken as a first language by the and related groups from Senegambia and Guinea to Cameroon and Sudan... |
Niger–Congo / Atlantic Atlantic languages The Atlantic or West Atlantic languages of West Africa are an obsolete proposed major group of the Niger–Congo languages. They are those languages west of Kru which have the noun-class systems characteristic of the Niger–Congo family; in this they are distinguished from their Mande neighbors, which... |
None? | 50,000 | ? | SW |
| Sàmòmá | Niger–Congo / Gur Gur languages The Gur languages, also known as Central Gur, belong to the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 70 languages belonging to this group. They are spoken in Burkina Faso, southern Mali, northeastern Côte d'Ivoire, northern Ghana, northern Togo, northwestern Benin, and southwestern Niger.Like most... |
None? | 6 villages | ? | SE | |
| Senoufo, Sìcìté | Senufo Senufo languages The Senufo or Senufic languages comprise ca. 15 languages spoken by the Senufo in the north of Côte d'Ivoire, the south of Mali and the southwest of Burkina Faso. An isolated language, Nafaanra, is also spoken in the west of Ghana. The Senufo languages are generally considered a branch of the Gur... |
Niger–Congo | None? | 4 villages | ? | SE |
| Senoufo, Supyire | Senufo Senufo languages The Senufo or Senufic languages comprise ca. 15 languages spoken by the Senufo in the north of Côte d'Ivoire, the south of Mali and the southwest of Burkina Faso. An isolated language, Nafaanra, is also spoken in the west of Ghana. The Senufo languages are generally considered a branch of the Gur... |
Niger–Congo | None? | 364,000 | ? | S |
| Songhay, Humburi Senni | Songhay Songhay languages The Songhay, Songhai, or Songai languages are a group of closely related languages/dialects centered on the middle stretches of the Niger River in the west African states of Mali, Niger, Benin, Burkina Faso, and Nigeria. They have been widely used as a lingua franca in that region ever since the... (Southern) |
None? | 15,000 | ? | N | |
| Songhay, Koyra Chiini | Songhay Songhay languages The Songhay, Songhai, or Songai languages are a group of closely related languages/dialects centered on the middle stretches of the Niger River in the west African states of Mali, Niger, Benin, Burkina Faso, and Nigeria. They have been widely used as a lingua franca in that region ever since the... (Southern) |
None? | 200,000 | ? | N | |
| Tadaksahak | Songhay Songhay languages The Songhay, Songhai, or Songai languages are a group of closely related languages/dialects centered on the middle stretches of the Niger River in the west African states of Mali, Niger, Benin, Burkina Faso, and Nigeria. They have been widely used as a lingua franca in that region ever since the... (Northern) |
None? | 30,000 | ? | N | |
| Tamajaq | Tamashek Tuareg languages Tuareg is a Berber language or family of very closely related languages and dialects spoken by the Tuareg Berbers, in large parts of Mali, Niger, Algeria, Libya and Burkina Faso, with a few speakers, the Kinnin, in Chad.- Description :Other Berber languages and Tamashaq are quite mutually... |
Afro-Asiatic / Berber Berber languages The Berber languages are a family of languages indigenous to North Africa, spoken from Siwa Oasis in Egypt to Morocco , and south to the countries of the Sahara Desert... |
None? | 190,000 | ? | N |
| Zarmaci | Songhay Songhay languages The Songhay, Songhai, or Songai languages are a group of closely related languages/dialects centered on the middle stretches of the Niger River in the west African states of Mali, Niger, Benin, Burkina Faso, and Nigeria. They have been widely used as a lingua franca in that region ever since the... (Southern) |
None? | 2 villages | ? | NE |
* First language / mother tongue speakers. Figures from Ethnologue.
** Second or additional language speakers. It is difficult to get accurate figures for this category.
Berber
might be similar in Mali:In the Sahara:
- Tumzabt languageTumzabt languageMozabite, or , is a dialect of the Berber language spoken by the Mozabites, an Ibadi group inhabiting the seven cities of the M'zab in the northern Saharan Algeria. It is also spoken by small numbers of Mozabite emigrants in the cities of Algeria and elsewhere...
in the Mzab - Ouargli languageOuargli languageOuargli, or Teggargrent, is a Zenati Berber variety spoken in the oases of Ouargla and N'Goussa in Algeria. As of 1987, it had no more than 10,000 speakers; the Ethnologue estimated only 5,000 speakers as of 1995...
at OuarglaOuarglaOuargla is the capital city of Ouargla province, in the Sahara Desert, in southern Algeria. It has a flourishing oil industry, and hosts one of Algeria's universities. The city had a population of 129,402 in 1998 .... - language of Touat and Gourara (called "Taznatit" by the Ethnologue, but that name is in fact used for most of the Zenati languages)
- language of TouggourtTouggourtTouggourt is a city in Ouargla Province, Algeria, built around an oasis in the Sahara. It is notable for its date trees. It was formerly surrounded by a moat, which the French filled up. The surrounding oasis is very fertile. From Touggourt a road 61 miles long leads across the desert north-east...
and Temacine - Tidikelt
- TamahaqTamahaq languageTamahaq is the only known Northern Tuareg language, spoken in Algeria, western Libya, and northern Niger. It varies little from the southern languages of Ayr, Azawagh or Adagh, with the differences mostly being substitution of sounds, for instance Tamahaq instead of Tamajaq or...
, among the Tuareg of the Hoggar (see Tuareg languagesTuareg languagesTuareg is a Berber language or family of very closely related languages and dialects spoken by the Tuareg Berbers, in large parts of Mali, Niger, Algeria, Libya and Burkina Faso, with a few speakers, the Kinnin, in Chad.- Description :Other Berber languages and Tamashaq are quite mutually...
) - "Tachelhit", the dialect of the western ksours (see also FiguigFiguigFiguig - Ifiyey is a town in eastern Morocco near the Atlas Mountains, on the border with Algeria.The town is built around an oasis of date palms, called Tazdayt in the Berber languages, surrounded by rugged, mountainous wilderness...
). Despite the name, this is not the same as Moroccan "Tachelhit". These languages, though the most common, are not found in many parts of the country. An interesting tidbit: in 1566 a man by the name of Francis DuBway [doo-BWaw] was traveling in Mali and heard a very obscure language (the splelling has been lost, but it is likely that this was Tamahaq language), was inspired and wrote a poem. This prose, eventually, after much much revision became what we now call "The Mockeraina"
Songhay languages
The Korandje languageKorandje language
Korandje is by far the most northerly of the Songhay languages. It is spoken around the oasis of Tabelbala by about 3000 people; its name literally means "village's language"...
of the Saharan oasis
Oasis
In geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...
of Tabelbala
Tabelbala
Tabelbala is an oasis between Béchar and Tindouf in southwestern Algeria, notable for being the only town in Algeria to speak a language neither Arabic nor Berber, Korandje.Tabelbala is divided into four settlements...
is a heavily Berber-influenced variety of Songhay, a language more widely spoken far to the south in Niger
Niger
Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...
.