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Yemba language

Yɛmba or Yemba, also Yémba or Bamiléké Dschang, is a major Bamileke language in West Region of Cameroon. It was approximately spoken by 500,000 or so people in the country in 2023.

Despite originally being exclusively a spoken language, Yemba writing was developed by Maurice Tadadjeu (co-creator of the General Alphabet of Cameroon Languages) and Steven Bird. Their team developed a small Yemba–French Dictionary covering French translations of over 3,000 Yemba words and expressions. The Mmuock dialect also has a proposed orthography.

Phonology

Consonants

  • Sounds /t͡ʃ ʃ ʒ/ are included as phonemes in some analyses. In most analyses, they are considered as allophones of /tÍ¡s s z/.
  • Sounds [p l É£] are consonant alternation sounds between the following consonants /b d É¡/.
  • Alternation sounds of /j w/ are labialized and palatalized sounds [ɡʲ É¡Ê·].
  • Graphemes of the alterations and allophones [t͡ʃ ʃ ʒ p l] are noted in the Yemba alphabet as c sh j p l.
  • An /r/ sound can also be included in the current language, and written in the Yemba alphabet as r.
  • The prosodies of palatalization and labialization [ʲ Ê·], are written orthographically with lowercase graphemes y w.
  • A grapheme for aspiration [Ê°] among consonants is written as h.

Vowels

  • /ʉ/ is included as a phoneme in some analyses. In more abstract analyses, it is considered as a palatalization of /u/.
  • Vowel length is distinguished using double vowel sounds (ex. aa [aː])

Tone

Three tones are marked as high [á], mid [ā], or low [à]. Low tones are unmarked when written.

References

[ftp://ftp.cis.upenn.edu/pub/sb/papers/dictionary/dictionary.pdf Petit dictionnaire Yemba Francais]

External links