Bozo
Language · official in 1 country
Bozo takes its name from Bambara boso, "house of straw". It is the Mande language of the fishing people of Mali's Inner Niger Delta, a cluster of varieties rather than one uniform speech, with three lexical tones and Soninke as its closest relative.
The language on record
- Script
- Not recorded
- Family
- Mande
- Official in
- 1 country
Where Bozo is official
Mali is the only country on record, though Bozo fishing communities also speak it in Nigeria, Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast.
Official beside Bozo
About Bozo
How many Bozo languages there are
Bozo is treated as one dialect cluster, but it is diverse, and Ethnologue counts four languages for the purpose of literacy materials. Hainyaxo, or Kelengaxo, spoken by the Hain, lies in the west, at two spots on the Niger. Tiéyaxo is its eastern neighbour around Diafarabé. Jenaama, or Sorogama, is the central variety, with 200,000 speakers in 2005, and itself has four dialects: Pondori, Kotya, Korondugu and Debo. Tiɛma Cɛwɛ, with 2,500 speakers in 1991, is spoken near Lake Debo.
Why Bozo is heard on distant rivers
Fishing takes many Bozo to rivers and dams elsewhere in West Africa. In Nigeria the Jenaama dialect is called Sorko and is spoken in Niger, Kebbi and Kwara states, around Lake Kainji. Many Bozo also speak Bambara, Fula or Western Songhay. The 2000 census counted about 132,100 Bozo people.
How long vowels are spelled
Bozo belongs to the northwestern branch of Mande. Its spelling doubles a letter for a long vowel, as in aa or ɔɔ, and marks a nasal vowel with a following n, as in an or ɛn.
Common questions
Questions about Bozo
What does the name Bozo mean?
It comes from the Bambara word boso, meaning "house of straw".
Which language is Bozo closest to?
Soninke, another Mande language, spoken in western Mali, eastern Senegal and southern Mauritania.
Is Bozo spoken in Nigeria?
Yes. Its Jenaama dialect, known there as Sorko, is spoken in Niger, Kebbi and Kwara states.