| Comorian | ||
|---|---|---|
| Shikomor | ||
| Spoken in | Comoros and Mayotte | |
| Region | Throughout Comoros and Mayotte; also in Madagascar and Réunion | |
| Total speakers | 350,702 (2004) | |
| Language family | Niger-Congo | |
| Language codes | ||
| ISO 639-1 | None | |
| ISO 639-2 | bnt | |
| ISO 639-3 | variously: zdj – Ngazidja dialect wni – Ndzwani dialect swb – Maore Comorian wlc – Mwali dialect |
|
| Note: This page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. | ||
Comorian (Shikomor) is the most widely used language on the Comoros (independent islands in the Indian Ocean, off Mozambique and Madagascar) and Mayotte. It is a set of Swahili dialects but with a much stronger Arabic influence than standard Swahili. Each island has a different dialect; that of Anjouan is called Shindzuani, that of Mohéli Shimwali, that of Mayotte Shimaore, and that of Grande Comore Shingazija. No official alphabet existed in 1992, but Arabic and Latin scripts were both used.
Shimasiwa is another name for Comorian, meaning "language of islands". It is the language of Udzima wa ya Masiwa, the national anthem.
Bibliography
- Ahmed-Chamanga, Mohamed. (1992) Lexique Comorien (shindzuani) - Français. Paris: L'Harmattan.
- Ahmed-Chamanga, Mohamed. (1997) Dictionnaire français-comorien (dialecte Shindzuani). Paris: L'Harmattan.
- Johansen, Aimee. A History of Comorian Linguistics. in John M. Mugane (ed.), Linguistic Typology and Representation of African Languages. Africa World Press. Trenton, New Jersey.
External links
- Comorian language at Ethnologue
- Mwali Comorian at Ethnologue
- Ndzwani Comorian at Ethnologue
- Ngazidja Comorian at Ethnologue
- Shingazidja
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