Comorian languages

Comorian
shikomori
شِكُمُرِ / شیكهمهری‎[1]
Native toComoros and Mayotte
RegionThroughout Comoros and Mayotte; also in Madagascar and Réunion
Native speakers
800,000 in Comoros (2011)[2]
300,000 in Mayotte (2007)[3][4]
Dialects
Arabic
Latin
Official status
Official language in
 Comoros
Language codes
ISO 639-3Variously:
zdj – Ngazidja dialect
wni – Ndzwani (Anjouani) dialect
swb – Maore dialect
wlc – Mwali dialect
Glottologcomo1260
G.44[5]

Comorian (Shikomori, or Shimasiwa, the "language of islands") is the name given to a group of four Bantu languages spoken in the Comoro Islands, an archipelago in the southwestern Indian Ocean between Mozambique and Madagascar. It is named as one of the official languages of the Union of the Comoros in the Comorian constitution. Shimaore, one of the languages, is spoken on the disputed island of Mayotte, a French department claimed by Comoros.

Like Swahili, the Comorian languages are Sabaki languages, part of the Bantu language family. Each island has its own language, and the four are conventionally divided into two groups: the eastern group is composed of Shindzuani (spoken on Ndzuani) and Shimaore (Mayotte), while the western group is composed of Shimwali (Mwali) and Shingazija (Ngazidja). Although the languages of different groups are not usually mutually intelligible, only sharing about 80% of their lexicon, there is mutual intelligibility between the languages within each group, suggesting that Shikomori should be considered as two language groups, each including two languages, rather than four distinct languages.[6][7]

Historically, the language was written in the Arabic-based Ajami script. The French colonial administration introduced the Latin script. In 2009 the current independent government decreed a modified version of the Latin script for official use.[7] Many Comorians now use the Latin script when writing the Comorian language although the Ajami script is still widely used, especially by women.[citation needed] Recently, some scholars have suggested that the language may be on its way to endangerment, citing the unstable code-switching and numerous French words used in daily speech.[8]

It is the language of Umodja wa Masiwa, the national anthem.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference lafon was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Udzima wa Komori". Université Laval, 2325, rue de l'Université. Archived from the original on 4 March 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2018.
  3. ^ Daniel Barreteau. "Premiers résultats d'une enquête sociolinguistique auprès des élèves de CM2 de Mayotte" (PDF) (in French). Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 June 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-17.
  4. ^ "Population of Mayotte". INSEE. Archived from the original on 2019-04-03. Retrieved 2018-12-04.
  5. ^ Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
  6. ^ Breslar, Jon Haskell (1981). An ethnography of the Mahorais (Mayotte Comoro Islands) (Thesis). OCLC 9174567. ProQuest 303167533.[page needed]
  7. ^ a b Ahmed-Chamanga, Mohamed (2010). Le shiNdzuani. Introduction à la grammaire structurale du comorien. Moroni (Comores): Komedit CNDRS Palashiyo. ISBN 978-2-914564-74-8.
  8. ^ Alnet, Aimee Johansen (2009). The Clause Structure Of The Shimaore Dialect Of Comorian (Bantu). Shimaore.net. Archived from the original on 2024-02-27. Retrieved 2024-02-24.