Gǀwi language

Gǀwi or Unicode|Gǀui (sometimes spelled Dcui) is a Khoisan language of Botswana with 2,500 speakers (2004 Cook). It is part of the Gǁana-Gǀwi dialect cluster of the Tshu-Khwe family, and is closely related to Naro.

Phonology

Clicks

Gǀwi may have up to 48 click consonants. As with many of the Tshu-Khwe languages, clicks have lost some of their importance under the influence of neighboring Bantu languages. Many words which previously began with clicks (as shown by cognates in related languages) have lost them over the past few centuries in Gǀwi.

Gǀwi has both velar and uvular clicks. (However, see Nǀu language for an alternative analysis of this distinction.) Altogether there are thirteen such accompaniments, or "effluxes;" all 52 possible clicks are found. Except for the lack of a bilabial click release, this inventory is nearly identical to that of ǂHõã.

Other consonants

Most words are of the form CV, CVV, CVCV, CVN, where C stands for a consonant, V for a vowel, and N for a nasal consonant (m, n). In CVCV words, only a limited set of consonants (b m ɾ n j w) may occur in medial position (the second syllable). Of these, two (n, ɾ) may not occur at the beginning of a word. /ŋ/ only occurs in mimesis.

Vowels

The five modal vowels a e i o u occur in monosyllabic roots, which except for the noun χò 'thing, place, case' are all grammatical morphemes.

The modal vowels and the pharyngeal vowels aˤ oˤ oaˤ occur as the first vowel of disyllabic roots, CVCV (CVV), whereas o u do not occur with a nasal coda, CVN, although a diphthong not found elsewhere, oa, does. There are restrictions on which vowels may follow which consonants.

The modal vowels and the nasal vowels ã ẽ õ occur as the second vowel of disyllabic roots, CVCV or CVV, though only modal vowels may follow the medial consonants b r, and only nasal vowels follow the medial consonants m n.

Tone

Monosyllabic morphemes carry one of two tones, HIGH or LOW. Disyllabic morphemes carry one of six tones, the level tones HIGH, MID, LOW, and the contour tones HIGH FALLING, FALLING, LOW RISING. It is possible that the contour tones are sequences of two different register tones, whereas the level tones may be sequences of two similar register tones.

Dialect

* Khute

References

* Hirosi Nakagawa, 1995. "A Preliminary Report on the Click Accompaniments of |Gui". "Journal of the International Phonetic Association", 25.2, 49-63.
* Nakagawa, 1996. "An Outline of |Gui Phonology". "African Study Monographs", Suppl. 22, 101-124.

External links

* [http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=gwj The Ethnologue Report for Gǀwi]