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The Niger-Congo languages are probably the largest group of the world in terms of different languages. Some of the African languages with the largest number of speakers belong to it. A common property of many Niger-Congo languages is the use of a noun class system. Joseph H. Greenberg was the first to identify the boundaries of this family, which he called Niger-Kordofanian, in his book Languages of Africa. John Bendor-Samuel introduced the name Niger-Congo for the whole family, which is in current use among linguists. (see Kordofanian languages)
The major languages or subgroups belonging to Niger-Congo are
- Westatlantic: includes Wolof, spoken in Senegal, and Fulfulde, a language spoken across the Sahel.
- Mande: spoken in West Africa; includes Bambara, the language spoken in Mali.
- Kwa: includes AkanThe Akan language belongs to the Kwa language family. It is spoken in Ghana, and is made up of a group of similar languages which are mutually intelligible. Among the twelve dialects are Ashanti, Fante, Akuapem, Akyem, Twi, Kwahu and Brong. The Akan langu, spoken in GhanaThe Republic of Ghana is a nation of western Africa. It borders Cote d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso in the north, Togo to the east, and borders the Gulf of Guinea to its south. Republic of Ghana ( In Detail) (Full size) National motto: Freedom and Jus and the Gbe languagesIntroduction The Gbe languages form a dialect continuum stretching across the area between eastern Ghana and western Nigeria. More specifically, the Volta river in Ghana forms the western border of the Gbe area and the Weme river in Nigeria forms the east, spoken in GhanaThe Republic of Ghana is a nation of western Africa. It borders Cote d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso in the north, Togo to the east, and borders the Gulf of Guinea to its south. Republic of Ghana ( In Detail) (Full size) National motto: Freedom and Jus, TogoRepublique Togolaise ( In Detail) National motto: Travail, Liberte, Patrie(Work, Liberty, Homeland Official language French Capital Lome President Gnassingbe Eyadema Prime minister Koffi Sama Area Total % water Ranked 122nd 56,785 km² 4. 2 Population Tota, BeninThe Republic of Benin is a nation of western Africa, formerly known as Dahomey . It has a small coast line with the Bight of Benin in the south, borders Togo in the west, Nigeria in the east, and Burkina Faso and Niger in the north. History Main article:, and NigeriaThe Federal Republic of Nigeria is a country in West Africa. It borders on Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, Niger in the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the south. Major cities include the capital Abuja, the former capital Lagos, Abeokuta, of which EweEwe (pronounced like "ay-way") is a Niger-Congo language spoken in Ghana and Togo. Ewe is a tonal language, part of a dialect continuum commonly called Gbe. Other Gbe languages include Fon, Gen, Anlo, Aja and Gu. Ewe is one of the better documented langua is best known.
- The Yoruba and Igbo languages, spoken in Nigeria.
- Gur: spoken among others in Côte d'Ivoire, Togo, Burkina Faso and Mali.
- Kru: spoken in West Africa, include Bété, Nyabwa, and Dida.
- Adamawa-Ubangi: includes Sango, spoken in the Central African Republic)
- Bantu: a very large group, includes Swahili ( Kiswahili).
Some linguists link the thirty or so Kordofanian languages to the Niger-Congo family, forming a Niger-Kordofanian language family. While a plausible hypothesis, this idea is still generally regarded as not proven.
The Laal, Mpre, and Jalaa languages are often linked with Niger-Congo, but have yet to be conclusively classified.
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