Non daté
Mozambique and neighbouring Tanzania
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
Makhuwa is a Bantu language and speech community concentrated in Mozambique, with additional speakers in neighbouring Tanzania. The language has a phonemic distinction between aspirated and non-aspirated voiceless plosives and affricates. Its phonology is examined through restrictions on multiple aspirates, deaspiration in causative and reduplicated stems, historical strengthening, and contact with Swahili.
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Makhuwa is spoken principally in Mozambique and also in neighbouring Tanzania. It is classified as P.31 in Guthrie’s referential classification, and its phonological descriptions follow orthographic conventions customary in Mozambique and accepted by NELIMO. The language distinguishes aspirated from non-aspirated voiceless plosives and affricates at several points of articulation, although the exact inventory varies by dialect and description.
The contrast between aspiration and non-aspiration carries a high functional load because Makhuwa lacks distinctive voicing in its phonological system. Minimal pairs distinguish meanings such as ‘to do’ and ‘to befriend’, ‘to build’ and ‘to peel’, and ‘to hit with a hammer’ and ‘to blow’. Aspirated consonants may occur in different positions within a stem, including stems containing other voiceless plosives capable of aspiration.
Makhuwa also displays a process of deaspiration associated with causative derivation and reduplication. The proposed Katupha’s Law removes aspiration from all but the last aspirated consonant in a stem, although the process is less regular in full reduplication and varies across dialects and contexts. Historical aspiration is linked to prenasalized voiceless stops and voiceless stops before high closed vowels, while some aspirated consonants in Makhuwa vocabulary are interpreted as loans from Swahili.
Non daté
Mozambique and neighbouring Tanzania
Traduction non disponible · Original (anglais) · français indisponible
Makhuwa is a Bantu language and speech community concentrated in Mozambique, with additional speakers in neighbouring Tanzania. The language has a phonemic distinction between aspirated and non-aspirated voiceless plosives and affricates. Its phonology is examined through restrictions on multiple aspirates, deaspiration in causative and reduplicated stems, historical strengthening, and contact with Swahili.
Poursuivre l’exploration
Le récit
Makhuwa is spoken principally in Mozambique and also in neighbouring Tanzania. It is classified as P.31 in Guthrie’s referential classification, and its phonological descriptions follow orthographic conventions customary in Mozambique and accepted by NELIMO. The language distinguishes aspirated from non-aspirated voiceless plosives and affricates at several points of articulation, although the exact inventory varies by dialect and description.
The contrast between aspiration and non-aspiration carries a high functional load because Makhuwa lacks distinctive voicing in its phonological system. Minimal pairs distinguish meanings such as ‘to do’ and ‘to befriend’, ‘to build’ and ‘to peel’, and ‘to hit with a hammer’ and ‘to blow’. Aspirated consonants may occur in different positions within a stem, including stems containing other voiceless plosives capable of aspiration.
Makhuwa also displays a process of deaspiration associated with causative derivation and reduplication. The proposed Katupha’s Law removes aspiration from all but the last aspirated consonant in a stem, although the process is less regular in full reduplication and varies across dialects and contexts. Historical aspiration is linked to prenasalized voiceless stops and voiceless stops before high closed vowels, while some aspirated consonants in Makhuwa vocabulary are interpreted as loans from Swahili.