| Yansi | |
|---|---|
| Eyansi | |
| Native to | DR Congo |
Native speakers | (100,000 cited 1997)1 |
Niger–Congo?
| |
| Dialects |
|
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | yns |
| Glottolog | yans1239 Yansi |
B.852 | |
Yans (Yanzi) is a Bantu language spoken in the Democratic Republic of the Congo by the Bayanzi.
There are six language varieties Guthrie classified as Bantu B.85 (Yans):
- B.85A Mbiem, West Yansi
- B.85B East Yans
- B.85C Yeei
- B.85D Tsong (Itsong, Nsong, Ntsuo, "Songo")
- B.85E Mpur (Mput)
- B.85F Tsambaan
According to Nurse (2003), most belong to the Yaka languages, but one or two are among the Boma–Dzing languages. Maho (2009) notes that the Tsong variety is the then-unclassified "Songo" language (ISO [soo]) of Ethnologue and is the one that does not belong with the rest. Glottolog likewise classifies "Nsong-Mpiin" [soo] apart from Yansi.
Phonology
Most of dialects have these sounds:
Consonants
| Labial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Labio- velar | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | (ɲ) | ŋ | ||
| Plosive | voiceless | p ᵐp | t ⁿt | (c) (ᶮc) | k ᵑk | |
| voiced | b ᵐp | d ⁿt | (ɟ) (ᶮɟ) | ɡ ᵑɡ | ||
| Fricative | voiceless | f ᵐf v | s ⁿs t͡s ⁿt͡s | |||
| voiced | z ⁿz | |||||
| Rhotic | ɾ | |||||
| Lateral | l | |||||
| Approximant | j | w | ||||
Vowels
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i iː | ɨ ɨː | u uː |
| Close-mid | e eː | ə əː | o oː |
| Open-mid | ɛ ɛː | ɜ ɜː | ɔ ɔː |
| Open | a | ɐ ɐː | ɑ ɑː |
References
References
- Yansi at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
- Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online