The Southern Luo languages are a subgroup of the Luo languages and form a dialect cluster spoken from Uganda and neighboring countries.
The Southern Luo dialects are classified within the Glottolog database as follows:
The Southern Luo languages are linguistically distinct from the Kumam and Lango languages, which are associated with the Ateker (also known as Hamitic) peoples.
The modern Kumam language is documented as a hybrid dialect combining elements of Luo and Ateso. Historical evidence indicates that the Kumam people adopted aspects of the Luo language following their migration to their present-day location in Uganda..
Some scholars challenge that the Lango language is not a Southern Luo language. According to one perspective, the Lango people acquired Luo linguistic elements after settling in their current territory in Uganda, due to geographical proximity to Luo-speaking communities. Contemporary Lango is characterised as a mixed dialect that incorporates modified Luo speech patterns while preserving Hamitic vocabulary from their ancestral language.
On 27th to 29th November 2024, Kumam people and Lango people reunited back to the Ateker peoples the Hamites. Uganda government hosted this historical event. The Kumam people and Lango people are not ethnically related to Luo peoples.