Search results
Dendi. The Songhay, Songhai or Ayneha [3] [4] languages ( [sõʁaj], [soŋaj] or [soŋoj]) are a group of closely related languages / dialects centred on the middle stretches of the Niger River in the West African countries of Mali, Niger, Benin, Burkina Faso and Nigeria. In particular, they are spoken in the cities of Timbuktu, Djenné, Niamey ...
- Nilo-Saharan?Songhay–Saharan?Songhay
The Songhai people (autonym: Ayneha) are an ethnolinguistic group in West Africa who speak the various Songhai languages. Their history and lingua franca is linked to the Songhai Empire which dominated the western Sahel in the 15th and 16th century.
- 406,000 (2.9%)
- 5,106,423 (21.2%)
- 1,984,114 (5.9%)
People also ask
Where are Songhay & Songhai languages spoken?
What is the Southern Songhay language?
Is Songhay a linguistic name?
Where is Songhay located?
Zarma (Zarma Ciine/Sanni; Ajami: زَرْمَ ݘِينٜ / زَرْمَ سَنِّ) is one of the Songhay languages. It is the leading indigenous language of the southwestern lobe of the West African nation of Niger, where the Niger River flows and the capital city, Niamey, is located.
- 4.2 million (2019)
- Southwestern Niger
Southern Songhay is the more populous branch of the Songhay languages, centered on the Niger River, including Timbuktu and the old capital of Gao. It includes Zarma (Djerma), a major language of Niger .
nort2823. Northern Songhay is the smaller of the two branches of the Songhay languages. It is a group of heavily Berber -influenced dialects spoken in scattered oases of the Sahara .
Songhay is a close-knit language family spoken by more than four million people, including some 6% of Malians and 21% of Nigeriens. The best-known hypothesis on its wider genetic affiliation is Greenberg’s ( 1963 ), linking it to Nilo-Saharan, but the comparisons are questionable (Lacroix 1971 ).
History of research on the Songhay language. Although the study of ancient Arabic manuscripts reveals some writings in the Fulfulde (Fulani) and soŋay (Songhay) languages, the systematic analysis of soŋay did not begin until the end of the nineteenth century, at the beginning of the colonial period. Delafosse is interested in the geopolitics ...
