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Cangin languages

Cangin
Geographic
distribution		Senegal, the Gambia
EthnicitySerer
Linguistic classificationNiger–Congo?
Subdivisions
  • Saafi-Saafi
  • Lehar–Noon
  • Palor–Ndut
Language codes
Glottologcang1245

The Cangin languages [ˈtʃaŋin] are spoken by 200,000 people (as of 2007) in a small area east of Dakar, Senegal. They are the languages spoken by the Serer people who do not speak the Serer language (Serer-Sine). Because the people are ethnically Serer, the Cangin languages are commonly thought to be dialects of the Serer language. However, they are not closely related; Serer is closer to Fulani than it is to Cangin.

Languages

The Cangin languages are:

Safen, or Saafi-Saafi, the language of the Saafi people. Spoken inland from the Petite Côte, an area southeast of Dakar. The largest Cangin language, with over 100,000 speakers and growing (2007).

Lehar (Laalaa), the language of the Serer-Laalaa (or Serer-Lehar), spoken in a small area north of Thiès.

Noon, the language of the Serer-Noon, spoken around Thiès.

Palor, the language of the Palor people, spoken in a small area between Rufisque and Thies.

Ndut, the language of the Serer-Ndut people, spoken in the Mont-Roland, an area northwest of Thies and in the Kingdom of Biffeche on the Senegal River.

Lehar and Noon are particularly close, as are Ndut and Palor, though not quite to the point of easy intelligibility. Safen is transparently closer to Lehar–Noon than to Palor–Ndut.

Reconstruction

Merrill (2018: 451) reconstructs Proto-Cangin as follows.[1]

gloss Proto-Cangin Noon Lehar Safen Ndut Palor
eye *ɣi̟d/ɣad has kuu-koas has i̟l ’i̟l
tongue *pe-ɗem peɗim p- pi̟ri̟m peɗem pereem pereem
eat *ñam ñam ñam ñaam ñam ñam
breast *ɓi̟iɓ ɓi̟iɓ ɓi̟iɓ (w)ɓip ɓi̟iɓ ɓi̟iɓ
four *nixiid nikiis nikis iniil iniil
dog *ɓuh ɓu̟u ɓuh f- ɓuh f- ɓux f-
intestine *loox look look rook loo loo
wing *paɓ paɓ paɓ (d)pab pap
cow *-noɣ enoh f- enoh ’inoh fana f- fana’ f-
blow = nose *ñii̟nd ñii̟d-uk ñii̟d-uk ñii̟d~ñii̟n
pound *hoɗ oɗ oɗ ’oɗ xoɗ
jaw *kaɓaɓ ? kaaɓ ‘cheek’ kaɓaɓ k- kabaap
new *has as as ’as has xas
see *ɣot hot hot hot ot~ol- od~ol-
swallow *hon on on ’on (d)hon xon
bury *hac ac ac ’ac hac xac
bear child *li̟m li̟m li̟m (w)rim li̟m
dance *ɣam ham ham
hold in teeth *ŋaɓ ŋaaɓ ŋaɓ ŋaɓ ŋaɓ
year *kV-(h)id̟ kii̟s k- kii̟s kiis k- kii̟l kii̟l
tree *ki-rik kedik k- kedek kiɗig k- kilik kilik k-
bird *sel sel sel sel
bury *hu̟umb u̟ub~u̟um uumb
be able *mi̟n mi̟n min mi̟n min
resemble *mand mad~man man mad~man mad~man
be short *luH- looƴ (lohoƴ) looƴ (s)rohoƴ (d)luh lux
leaf/bark *huɓ to̟oɓ t-, oɓ po̟o (w)’op huɓ
sun *noɣ noh noh noh (d)na’ na’
ear *nuf nof nof (w)noef nuf nuf
head *ɣaf haf haf haf ’af ’af
liver *keeñ keeñ keeñ keeñ k- (d)keeñ
star *Hul hol ol hor hul xul
rain *toɓ toɓ toɓ toɓ tooɓ
pestle *kuɗ koɗ k- koɗ kuɗ k- kuɗ k-
goat *pe pe’ f- peɗ peh f- pe f- pe f-
cloth/rag *lii̟l lii̟l lii̟l lii̟l lii̟l
baobab *ɓoɣ ɓoh ɓoh ɓoh ɓa ɓa’
finger *kun jokun j- jokon ndukun kun kun
sneeze *ti̟s tes ti̟s (s)tisoh (d)ti̟s ti̟s
ant *ñii̟ñ ñii̟ñ ñii̟ñ ñiñoh f- (d)ñii̟ñ f- ñii̟n f-
rear/raise *koɗ koɗ koɗ koɗ kod
honey *kV-(C)u̟m ku̟um k- ku̟um (d)ku̟um k- ku̟um k-
horse *panis̟ pen̟is̟ f- pan̟is̟ panis pan̟is̟ f-
causative *-iɗ̟ -iɗ̟ -iɗ̟ -iɗ -iɗ̟ -iɗ̟
anticausative *-ox -uk -ok -uk -oh -ox
reversive *-i̟s -i̟s -i̟s -is -i̟s -i̟s
negative *-ɗii -ɗii -ɗi

See also

Footnotes

  1. ^ Merrill, John Thomas Mayfield. 2018. The Historical Origin of Consonant Mutation in the Atlantic Languages. Doctoral dissertation, University of California, Berkeley.

References

  • Walter Pichl, The Cangin Group: A Language Group in Northern Senegal, Pittsburgh, PA : Institute of African Affairs, Duquesne University, Coll. African Reprint Series, 1966, vol. 20
  • Guillaume Segerer & Florian Lionnet 2010. "'Isolates' in 'Atlantic'". Language Isolates in Africa workshop, Lyon, Dec. 4
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