Mooré
Language · official in 1 country
Mooré, also called Mossi, is the Gur language of the Mossi people and the main language of Ouagadougou. Its nearest relative is Frafra, with Dagbani further off. In 2008, 48% of Burkinabe spoke it. It is official in 1 country on record, Burkina Faso, one of whose two names it supplies.
The language on record
- Own name
- mòoré
- ISO 639-3
- MOS
- Script
- Latin
- Family
- Gur
- Official in
- 1 country
Where Mooré is official
Burkina Faso alone, where Mooré is official with Dioula, Bissa and Fula and French is kept as a working language.
Official beside Mooré
About Mooré
Where the word Burkina comes from
Burkina means man of integrity in Mooré. The second word, Faso, is Dioula for father's house. The country article dates the official standing of Mooré, Dioula and Fula to 1998, and speakers of other languages protested at being left out. In December 2023 a revision of the constitution made the indigenous languages of Burkina Faso official and reduced French to a working language.
What sounds does Mooré keep apart
Every vowel can be short or long, and every vowel except e and o can be nasal. Some linguists count ɛ and ɔ as vowels of their own, while others write them as the diphthongs ea and oa. Before a nasal vowel, y is pronounced as a palatal nasal.
In Burkina Faso Mooré is written with the letters of the national Burkinabe alphabet. A newer script, the Goulsse alphabet, has been devised for it as well.
Common questions
Questions about Mooré
Is Mooré the same as Mossi?
Yes. Mossi is the people and a second name for the language; Mooré is the name of the language itself.
Which alphabets write Mooré?
The national Burkinabe alphabet, based on Latin letters, and the Goulsse alphabet, a script devised more recently.