Somyev language
| Somyev | |
|---|---|
| Kila | |
| Native to | Nigeria, Cameroon |
Native speakers | 2 (2010)[1] |
Niger–Congo?
| |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | kgt |
| Glottolog | somy1238 |
| ELP | Somyev |
Somyev (Somyewe), also known as Kila ("blacksmith" in Fulfulde), is a nearly extinct Mambiloid language of two villages, one in Nigeria and one in Cameroon, that is spoken by a caste of blacksmiths that live among the Mambila. Although the language is still used for daily communication, the youngest generation of speakers were born in the 1950s. Transmission of the language ceased when the profession of blacksmithing lost its social status, partly due to imports of foreign tools.[2][1]
References
[edit]- 1 2 Connell, Bruce (February 2010). Mambiloid Inside and Out: Mambiloid Integrity revisited and the situation of Somyev within Mambiloid (PDF). Genealogical classification of African languages beyond Greenberg.
- ↑ Connell, B. (1997). Moribund languages of the Nigeria-Cameroon borderland. In M. Brezinger (ed.), Endangered Languages in Africa. Cologne, Germany: Rüdiger Köppe Verlag. Pp 197–213.