Myene language
Bantu language spoken in Gabon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Myene is a cluster of closely related Bantu varieties spoken in Gabon by about 46,000 people. It is perhaps the most divergent of the Narrow Bantu languages,[3] though Nurse & Philippson (2003) place it in with the Tsogo languages (B.30). The more distinctive varieties are Mpongwe (Pongoué), Galwa (Galloa), and Nkomi.
Phonology
- /ɡ/ is also heard as [ɣ] in free variation when preceding vowels or semivowels depending on articulation.
- Voiced sounds /b, d, dʒ/ may also be heard as implosives [ɓ, ɗ, ɗ̠ʲ] in free variation across dialects.
- In the Adyumba dialect /dʒ/ may also be heard as [dz] in free variation.
- Sounds /ᶮtʃ, ᶮdʒ/ may also be heard as prenasal alveolar affricates [ⁿts, ⁿdz] across dialects.
- /w/ may be heard as more palatal [ɥ] when before front vowel sounds.
- A nasalized labio-velar sound /w̃/ may also be attested in the Mpongwe dialect.
| Front | Back | |
|---|---|---|
| Close | i | u |
| Close-mid | e | o |
| Open-mid | ɛ | ɔ |
| Open | a | |
Dictionary
Jean-Rémy Bessieux published a Pongwe dictionary in 1847.[7][8]
