Khoisan languages facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Khoisan |
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|---|---|
| Khoesaan | |
| Geographic distribution: |
Kalahari Desert, central Tanzania |
| Linguistic classification: | (term of convenience) |
| Subdivisions: |
Khoe–Kwadi
Kxʼa
Tuu
Sandawe
Hadza
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| ISO 639-2 and 639-5: | khi |
 Map showing the ancestral distribution of the Khoisan languages (yellow)
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The Khoisan languages (pronounced KOY-sahn) are a group of languages found in Africa. They were once thought to be a single "family" of languages. However, today, experts agree they are actually several different language groups.
What makes these languages special is their use of click sounds. These clicks are like regular consonants, but they are made by sucking air into your mouth. Most Khoisan languages are spoken in southern Africa, mainly in the Kalahari Desert. Two others are found in central Tanzania.
Before the Bantu expansion (a big movement of people across Africa), languages like Khoisan were probably spoken all over southern and eastern Africa. Today, many of these languages are in danger of disappearing. Some have very few speakers left, and some have already died out.
The most widely spoken Khoisan language is Khoekhoe. It has about 250,000 speakers in Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa. Another important one is Sandawe in Tanzania, with about 40,000 to 80,000 speakers.
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What Makes Khoisan Languages Special?
Khoisan languages are famous for their unique click consonants. These are sounds made by clicking your tongue in different ways. You might see them written with symbols like ǃ (like a pop) or ǂ (like a sharp click).
Clicks are very flexible sounds. This means that Khoisan languages often have a huge number of different consonants. For example, the Juǀʼhoan language has 48 different click sounds! Some languages, like ǃXóõ, are even more complex.
Are They One Language Family?
For a long time, people thought all Khoisan languages were related, like branches on the same family tree. This idea was suggested by a linguist named Joseph Greenberg.
However, most language experts who study Khoisan languages now disagree. They use the name "Khoisan" just as a way to group them together. It does not mean they are all related.
Experts believe that the similarities between some Khoisan languages, especially the Tuu and Kxʼa families, might be because they were spoken close to each other for a long time. This is called a Sprachbund. It means languages share features because of contact, not because they came from the same ancient language.
How Different Are They?
Even though all Khoisan languages use clicks, they are very different from each other. Imagine trying to understand someone speaking a language from a different family – it would be hard!
The table below shows how different some common words are across various Khoisan language groups.
| Sandawe | Hadza | Khoe | Ju | ǃXóõ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 'person' | ǀnomese | ʼúnù | khoe | ʒú | tâa |
| 'man' | ǀnomese | ɬeme | kʼákhoe | ǃhõá | tâa á̰a |
| 'child' | ǁnoό | waʼa | ǀūá | dama | ʘàa |
| 'ear' | kéké | ɦatʃʼapitʃʼi | ǂée | ǀhúí | ǂnùhã |
| 'eye' | ǀgweé | ʼákhwa | ǂxái | ǀgàʼá | ǃʼûĩ |
| 'ostrich' | saʼútà | kénàngu | ǀgáro | dsùú | qûje |
| 'giraffe' | tsʼámasu | tsʼókwàna | ǃnábe | ǂoah | ǁqhūũ |
| 'buffalo' | ǀeu | nákʼóma | ǀâo | ǀàò | ǀqhái |
| 'to hear' | khéʼé | ǁnáʼe | kúm | tsʼàʼá | tá̰a |
| 'to drink' | tsʼee | fá | kxʼâa | tʃìi | kxʼāhã |
The Different Khoisan Language Groups
Since linguists no longer see Khoisan as one big family, they now group these languages into several independent families.
Hadza Language
Hadza language The Hadza language is spoken by about 800 people in Tanzania. Experts now think it is not related to any other language family. The Hadza people themselves are also not closely related to the Khoisan people of Southern Africa.
Sandawe Language
Sandawe language Sandawe is also spoken in Tanzania, by about 40,000 people. There are some clues that Sandawe might be related to the Khoe family, but more proof is needed. Even though Hadza and Sandawe are spoken close to each other, they are not related.
Khoe Languages
Khoe–Kwadi languages The Khoe family is the largest and most varied group of Khoisan languages. It has seven living languages and over 250,000 speakers.
- ?Khoe–Kwadi
- Kwadi (This language is no longer spoken.)
- Khoe
- Khoekhoe
- Nama (This includes dialects like ǂAakhoe and Haiǁom.)
- Eini (No longer spoken.)
- South Khoekhoe
- Khoekhoe
*Korana (Very few speakers left.) *Xiri (Very few speakers left; it's a group of dialects.)
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- Tshu–Khwe (Also called Kalahari) Many of these languages have lost some of their click sounds.
- East Tshu–Khwe (East Kalahari)
- Tshu–Khwe (Also called Kalahari) Many of these languages have lost some of their click sounds.
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*Shua (A group of dialects including Deti, Tsʼixa, ǀXaise, and Ganádi.) *Tsoa (A group of dialects including Cire Cire and Kua.)
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- West Tshu–Khwe (West Kalahari)
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*Kxoe (A group of dialects including ǁAni and Buga.) *Naro (A group of dialects, including ǂHaba.) *Gǁana–Gǀwi (A group of dialects including Gǁana and Gǀwi.)
The Haiǁom people used to speak a Ju dialect, but now they speak a different dialect of Nama.
Tuu Languages
Tuu languages The Tuu family has two main groups of languages. They are very similar to the Kxʼa languages (see below). However, experts haven't proven that they are related by ancestry. The similarities might be because they were spoken in the same area.
- Tuu
- Taa
- ǃXoon (4,200 speakers. It's a group of dialects.)
- Lower Nossob (Two dialects, ǀʼAuni and ǀHaasi. No longer spoken.)
- ǃKwi
- Nǁng (Only 1 speaker left.)
- ǀXam (A group of dialects. No longer spoken.)
- ǂUngkue (A group of dialects. No longer spoken.)
- ǁXegwi (No longer spoken.)
- Taa
Kxʼa Languages
Kxʼa languages The Kxʼa family is a group of languages that were formally shown to be related in 2010.
- Kxʼa
- ǂʼAmkoe (200 speakers in Botswana. Very few speakers left. It's a group of dialects including Nǃaqriaxe, (Eastern) ǂHoan, and Sasi).
- ǃKung (Also called ǃXun or Ju). This is a group of dialects with about 45,000 speakers. Juǀʼhoan is the most well-known dialect.
Other Languages with Clicks
Click consonant#Languages with clicks Not all languages that use clicks are considered Khoisan. Many other languages in southern Africa, especially Bantu languages, have adopted clicks. This often happened through mixing with or learning from Khoisan-speaking people.
Examples include Xhosa and Zulu. These languages have many click sounds. Other languages, like Sotho, have fewer.
There is also the Dahalo language in Kenya, which has a few click sounds. It's thought that the Dahalo people kept these clicks from an older language they spoke before switching to Cushitic.
Comparing Words in Khoisan Languages
Here are some basic words from different Khoisan language families, so you can see how they compare:
| Language | eye | ear | nose | tooth | tongue | mouth | blood | bone | tree | water | eat | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proto-Khoe | *≠xai | *≠ai | *≠ui | *//ũ | *kxʔam | */ʔao | *≠̃a | *≠ʔũ | */xʔon | |||
| Proto-Khoekhoe | *≠xai | *≠ai | *≠ui | *//kxʔam | */ʔau | *≠ʔũ | */xʔon | |||||
| Proto-Central Khoisan | *ǂxai | *ǂae | *ǂuii | *ǁõõ | *dham | *kx’am | *ǀ’ao | *zei | *tsaa; *ǁami | *ǂ’ũ | *ǀkx’on | |
| Proto-Tuu | *tsʼaa | *nǂ(u)i | *nǀu, *nǀũ | *ǁkha(i) | *ǀʼãri > *ǀʼani | *thu | *ʘho, *nʘo, *nʘa | *!khaa | *ãa, *ãi | *ǀãe, *ǁae | ||
| Žuǀʼhõansi (Tsumkwe) | gǀà’a̍ | ǀ’hū̍ | ts’ũ | ts’àu | dhārì | ts’i | ǀ’àng | |||||
| Sandawe | ǀʷěː | kéké | ⁿǀáti̥ | !’àkʰã̌ː | !ʰẽ̂ː | ⁿ!ũ̂ː | ǁ’ék’â | !î | tʰěː | ts’â | mántʃʰâ | ǁʷâ |
| Hadza | ʔakʷʰa | ɦat͜ʃ’apit͜ʃʰi | ʔiƞtʰawe | ʔaɦa | ⁿǀata | ʔawati | ʔatʰama | mic͜ʎ̥˔’a | t͜s’iti | ʔati | seme |
See also
- Khoisan word lists (Wiktionary)
- Languages of Botswana
- Languages of Namibia
