Language/Mandinka/Pronunciation/Alphabet-and-Pronunciation
Al be ñaading, Mandinka Learners! 😃
➡ In today's lesson you will learn how to write and pronounce the Mandinka alphabets.
Happy learning!
Overview[edit | edit source]
Writing[edit | edit source]
Mandinka sometimes uses the Latin alphabet and sometimes the Arabic alphabet, the use of the latter being more traditional.
But since 1949 there has also been a new script specific to the Mande languages, n'ko, developed by the Guinean linguist Souleymane Kante.
Latin Alphabet[edit | edit source]
Consonants[edit | edit source]
| Latin | ('), aa, ee | (', with madda ŋ) | b, p | t | t | t | c, j | h | h | d | r | s | s (sh) | s | s | s | f | l | m | n, ñ, ŋ | w | y | k, g | la |
|---|
Vowels[edit | edit source]
| Latin | a, e | i, e, ee | o, u | (no following vowel) | e | aŋ, eŋ | iŋ, eeŋ, eŋ | oŋ, uŋ | aa | ii | oo, uu |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mandinka names of Arabic marks: | sira tilidiŋo; | sira tilidiŋo duuma; | ŋoo biriŋo; | sira murumuruliŋo; | tambi baa duuma; | sira tilindiŋo fula; | sira tilindiŋo duuma fula; | ŋoo biriŋo fula. |
Arabic Alphabet[edit | edit source]
Consonants[edit | edit source]
| Arabic | ا | ع | ب | ت | ط | ض | ج | ه | ح | خ | د | ر | س | ش | ص | ث | ظ | ڢ | ل | م | ن | و | ي | ك | لا |
|---|
Vowels[edit | edit source]
| Arabic | ـَ | ـِ | ـُ | ـْ | ـִ | ـً | ـٍ | ـٌ | ـَا | ـِي | ـُو |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mandinka names of Arabic marks: | sira tilidiŋo; | sira tilidiŋo duuma; | ŋoo biriŋo; | sira murumuruliŋo; | tambi baa duuma; | sira tilindiŋo fula; | sira tilindiŋo duuma fula; | ŋoo biriŋo fula. |
N'ko[edit | edit source]
Vowels[edit | edit source]
| ô
/ɔ/ |
o
/o/ |
ou
/u/ |
è
/ɛ/ |
i
/i/ |
é
/e/ |
a
/a/ |
| ߐ | ߏ | ߎ | ߍ | ߌ | ߋ | ߊ |
Consonants[edit | edit source]
| ra
/ɾa/ |
da
/da/ |
tcha
/t͡ʃa/ |
dja
/d͡ʒa/ |
ta
/ta/ |
pa
/pa/ |
ba
/ba/ |
| ߙ | ߘ | ߗ | ߖ | ߕ | ߔ | ߓ |
| ma
/ma/ |
la
/la/ |
ka
/ka/ |
fa
/fa/ |
gba
/ɡ͡ba/ |
sa
/sa/ |
rra
/ra/ |
| ߡ | ߟ | ߞ | ߝ | ߜ | ߛ | ߚ |
| n'
/n̩/ |
ya
/ja/ |
wa
/wa/ |
ha
/ha/ |
na
/na/ |
nya
/ɲa/ | |
| ߒ | ߦ | ߥ | ߤ | ߣ | ߢ |
Phonology[edit | edit source]
Tone[edit | edit source]
Mandinka has two tones, high and low.
- /búŋ/ 'a room' > /búŋò/ 'the room
- /tèŋ/ 'a palm tree' > /tèŋô/ 'the palm tree'
- /kídí/ 'a gun' > /kídòò/ 'the gun'
- /kòrdàà/ 'a house' > /kòrdáà/ 'the house'
In Senegal and Gambia, Mandinka is approaching a system of pitch accent under the influence of local non-tonal languages such as Wolof, Serer, and Jola.
Vowels[edit | edit source]
Vowel may be long or short:
- vowels: a e i o u
- long vowels: aa ee ii oo uu
Consonants[edit | edit source]
- consonants: b c d f g h j k l m n ñ ŋ pr s t w y
The letter g is rare.
| Labial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Glottal | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasal | m | n | ɲ ⟨ñ⟩ | ŋ | ||
| Stop | voiceless | (p) | t | t͡ʃ ⟨c⟩ | k | |
| voiced | b | d | d͡ʒ ⟨j⟩ | (g) | ||
| Fricative | voiceless | f | s | h | ||
| Approximant | w | l (r) | j ⟨y⟩ | |||
Videos[edit | edit source]
Mandinka Alphabet[edit | edit source]
How to write the N'ko alphabet (ߒߞߏ) of West Africa: A tutorial![edit | edit source]
ARABIC ALPHABET IN ENGLISH AND MANDINKA[edit | edit source]
Sources[edit | edit source]
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandinka_language
- https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/N%27ko
- https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandinka
- https://omniglot.com/writing/mandinka.htm
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMOCUQE4XI8
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SwHBlUNPko&vl=en
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlVff252f3E