Baṭḥari language facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Baṭḥari |
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|---|---|
| Batahari | |
| Pronunciation | [batˤħari] |
| Native to | Oman |
| Region | Dhofar Province |
| Native speakers | Under 100 (2013) |
| Language family | |
Modern South Arabian Languages
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Baṭḥari is a special language spoken in Oman, a country in the Middle East. It is found on the southeast coast, near the Khuriya Muriya Islands. Baṭḥari is part of the Afro-Asiatic language family.
This language is very similar to another language called Mehri. Because they are so alike, some people from the Baṭḥari tribe actually speak Mehri instead of Baṭḥari. A man named Bertram Thomas was the first Westerner to find out about the Baṭḥari language in 1929.
What's in a Name?
The name Baṭḥari can be spelled in different ways. You might see it as Batahari, Bautahari, Botahari, or Bathara.
In Baṭḥari, words usually have a special sound called stress. This stress falls on the last long part of a word. If a word only has short parts, the stress goes on the first part.
Like other languages from the Modern South Arabian group, Baṭḥari nouns have two genders: masculine and feminine. They also have three numbers: singular (for one), dual (for two), and plural (for many). However, the dual form is not used much anymore. Feminine nouns often end with -(v)t. But if a word comes from Arabic, it might end with -h instead.
Some Baṭḥari words were written down in books about the Mehri and Jibbali languages in 1981. Some experts think Baṭḥari is just a different way of speaking Mehri. Others believe it is its own separate language. However, most agree that Baṭḥari is very closely related to Mehri.
In 2018, a lot of important work was done by Gasparini to describe the grammar of the Baṭḥari language. This helped us understand how the language works.
How Many People Speak Baṭḥari?
Sadly, not many people speak Baṭḥari today. While Mehri has over 180,000 speakers, Baṭḥari has very few.
Why Baṭḥari is in Danger
The Baṭḥari language is in serious danger of disappearing forever. This is because of two main reasons:
- The influence of Arabic: The main language in Oman is Arabic. Many people, especially younger ones, learn and use Arabic more often.
- The influence of Mehri: Since Mehri is spoken by more people and is similar, it sometimes replaces Baṭḥari.
Modern schools in Oman teach only in Arabic. This means children are not learning Baṭḥari in school. Because of these reasons, the Baṭḥari language is almost extinct.
Experts believe there are fewer than 100 Baṭḥari speakers left. In 2016, one estimate said there were only 12 to 20 speakers. By 2019, a newspaper reported that only 12 to 17 elderly people were still fluent. A few dozen middle-aged speakers also mix Baṭḥari with Arabic.
See also
In Spanish: Idioma bathari para niños
