Manjak or Manjack (French: Mandjak, Mandyak; Portuguese: Manjaco) or Njak is a Bak language of Guinea-Bissau and Senegal. The language is also known as Kanyop.
In 2006, the total number of speakers was estimated at 315,300, including 184,000 in Guinea-Bissau, 105,000 in Senegal and 26,300 in The Gambia.
Dialects
The Manjak dialects below are distinct enough that some might be considered separate languages.[citation needed]
- Bok (Babok, Sarar, Teixeira Pinto, Tsaam)
- Likes-Utsia (Baraa, Kalkus)
- Cur (Churo)
- Lund
- Yu (Pecixe, Siis, Pulhilh)
- Unhate (Binhante, Bissau)
The Manjak dialects listed by Wilson (2007) are[2]
- Canchungo (kancuŋuʔ) – central dialect
- Baboque (babɔk) (formerly Teixeira Pinto) – eastern dialect
- Churo (cuur) – northern dialect
- Pecixe (locally called pəhlihl; otherwise pəsiis), on an island to the south
- Calequisse (kaləkiis), to the west of Canchungo
Writing system
The official spelling system for Manjak established by the Senegalese government is regulated by Decree No. 2005-983 of 21 October 2005.
| A | B | C | D | E | Ë | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | Ñ | Ŋ | O | P | R | S | Ŝ | T | [illegible] | U | W | Y | Z |
| a | b | c | d | e | ë | f | g | h | i | j | k | l | m | n | ñ | ŋ | o | p | r | s | ŝ | t | [illegible] | u | w | y | z |
References
- ^ Manjak at Ethnologue (27th ed., 2024)
- ^ Wilson, William André Auquier. 2007. Guinea Languages of the Atlantic group: description and internal classification. (Schriften zur Afrikanistik, 12.) Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang.
Further reading
- Karlik, Jan (1972). A Manjako Grammar with Special Reference to the Nominal Group (PhD thesis). University of London.
External links
- Decree no. 2005-983 of 21 October 2005 relating to the spelling and the separation of words in Manjakú via the website of the Journal officiel.
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