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Kordofanian languages
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Kordofanian languages

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Written by
John T. Bendor-Samuel
Executive Director, Summer Institute of Linguistics Ltd., High Wycombe, England. Editor of The Niger-Congo Languages: A Classification and Description of Africa's Largest Language Family.
John T. Bendor-Samuel
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Kordofanian languages, a branch of the Niger-Congo language family that is geographically separated from the rest of the Niger-Congo languages and is believed to represent the oldest layer of languages in the region. The Kordofanian branch consists of some 20 languages spoken by 250,000 to 500,000 people, mainly in the Nuba Hills of southern Sudan. Kordofanian is divided into four main groups of languages: Heiban, Talodi, Rashad, and Katla. Ten of the 20 Kordofanian languages belong to the Heiban group.

An interesting feature of Kordofanian consonant systems is the low functional load of the voiced/voiceless distinction. Many consonants are voiced if they occur between sonorants (vowels, nasals, liquids) and voiceless in consonant sequences or at the end of a word. Most Kordofanian languages have noun class systems—that is, systems in which every noun is marked by one of a set of affixes—and other elements in a clause (numerals and adjectives, for example) are also marked by an affix determined by the respective noun class.

John T. Bendor-Samuel