mə-daba
Daba
Afro-Asiatic (Chadic, Central, Mafa-Bata — Daba subgroup)
Daba is a Chadic language of the Mandara Mountains in northern Cameroon, sister to other Mafa-Bata languages of the same general region. Linguistically, Daba shares Central Chadic family features (rich consonant inventory with implosives ɓ ɗ, vowel harmony, gender-based agreement) with neighboring Mafa, Bata, Hide (xed), and other Mandara group languages. The Daba people are subsistence farmers and traders in the rocky Mandara terrain, with strong historical interactions with neighboring Fulani pastoralists. Mouchet's 1966 reference grammar Le parler daba is the foundational documentation; SIL Cameroon has produced contemporary literacy materials.
Where it is spoken
31 core words in Daba
Water
yam
/jam/
Fire
kʷu
/kʷu/
Sun
ɓa
/ɓa/
Moon
paɗ
/paɗ/
Star
gwevar
/ɡʷevar/
Mother
mma
/mːa/
Father
daa
/daː/
I
nə
/nə/
You
ka
/ka/
Name
zlim
/ɮim/
Eye
ɓəh
/ɓəh/
Hand
xən
/xən/
Heart
ɓəl
/ɓəl/
Love
saw
/saw/
Tree
hin
/hin/
House
gəy
/ɡəj/
Dog
ɓəzaŋ
/ɓəzaŋ/
Cat
mərz
/mərz/
Eat
za
/za/
Drink
sa
/sa/
One
mma
/mːa/
Two
sɨla
/sɨla/
Hello
salaŋ
/salaŋ/
Thank you
ndzaŋ
/ndzaŋ/
Good
ɗəfa
/ɗəfa/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Afro-Asiatic (Chadic, Central, Mafa-Bata — Daba subgroup) languages
| Meaning | Daba | Hdi | Kera | Beja | Lomwe | Hausa | Pashto |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | yam /jam/ | yam /jam/ | mam /mam/ | yam /jam/ | mahi /mahi/ | ruwa /ɾuwaː/ | اوبه /obə/ |
| Fire | kʷu /kʷu/ | hu /hu/ | ákə̀rə /akərə/ | neʼaat /neʔaːt/ | moro /moɾo/ | wuta /wuta/ | اور /oːɾ/ |
| Sun | ɓa /ɓa/ | vah /vah/ | kêr /keːɾ/ | yint /jint/ | nsuwa /nsuwa/ | rana /ɾaːnaː/ | لمر /lmər/ |
| Moon | paɗ /paɗ/ | ʔir /ʔir/ | mə̀sə̀rə /məsərə/ | tirig /tiɾiɡ/ | mweri /mweɾi/ | wata /wata/ | سپوږمۍ /spoːʐmaj/ |
| Star | gwevar /ɡʷevar/ | gùvàkw /ɡuvakʷ/ | tùwrò /tuwro/ | hayúk /hajuːk/ | nyenyeeri /ɲeɲeːri/ | tauraro /tauraːro/ | ستوری /storaj/ |
| Mother | mma /mːa/ | nəh /nəh/ | nâ /naː/ | indee /iːndeː/ | ammai /amːai/ | uwa /uwaː/ | مور /moːɾ/ |
| Father | daa /daː/ | baba /baba/ | bâ /baː/ | baab /baːb/ | atati /atati/ | uba /ubaː/ | پلار /plɑːɾ/ |
| I | nə /nə/ | yà /ja/ | kə́ŋ /kəŋ/ | ané /ʔane/ | miyo /mijo/ | ni /niː/ | زه /zə/ |
| You | ka /ka/ | kà /ka/ | kə /kə/ | barúk /baruːk/ | weyo /wejo/ | kai /kai/ | ته /tə/ |
| Name | zlim /ɮim/ | ɮùm /ɮum/ | sumo /sumo/ | sim /sim/ | nsina /nsina/ | suna /suːnaː/ | نوم /num/ |
| Eye | ɓəh /ɓəh/ | ɓah /ɓah/ | gìr /ɡir/ | liili /liːli/ | nito /nito/ | ido /idoː/ | سترګه /stərɡa/ |
| Hand | xən /xən/ | xen /xen/ | kéu /keu/ | ay /aj/ | nthata /ntʰata/ | hannu /hanːu/ | لاس /lɑːs/ |
| Heart | ɓəl /ɓəl/ | ɓal /ɓal/ | gùm /ɡum/ | ginʼa /ɡinʔa/ | murima /muɾima/ | zuciya /zutʃija/ | زړه /zɽə/ |
| Love | saw /saw/ | ɓəz /ɓəz/ | kùm /kum/ | kima /kima/ | osivela /osivela/ | ƙauna /kʼauna/ | مینه /miːna/ |
| Tree | hin /hin/ | ʔən /ʔən/ | kòsō /kosoː/ | hindeb /hindeb/ | mwiri /mwiɾi/ | bishiya /biʃija/ | ونه /wəna/ |
| House | gəy /ɡəj/ | gay /ɡaj/ | gòl /ɡol/ | gaw /ɡaw/ | nupa /nupa/ | gida /ɡida/ | کور /koːɾ/ |
| Dog | ɓəzaŋ /ɓəzaŋ/ | ɓəzaŋ /ɓəzaŋ/ | kŋā /kŋaː/ | yas /jas/ | nampwe /nampwe/ | kare /kaɾe/ | سپی /spaj/ |
| Cat | mərz /mərz/ | mərz /mərz/ | mūsā /muːsaː/ | kabsoot /kabsoːt/ | paka /paka/ | kyanwa /kʲanwa/ | پیشو /piːʃo/ |
| Eat | za /za/ | za /za/ | nà /na/ | tame /tame/ | olya /oʎa/ | ci /tʃiː/ | خوړل /xwəɽəl/ |
| Drink | sa /sa/ | sa /sa/ | sā /saː/ | gwaʼa /ɡʷaʕa/ | omwa /omwa/ | sha /ʃaː/ | څکل /tskəl/ |
| One | mma /mːa/ | kələ /kələ/ | ká /ka/ | gaal /ɡaːl/ | mosaa /mosaː/ | ɗaya /ɗaja/ | یو /jaw/ |
| Two | sɨla /sɨla/ | sìɗá /siɗa/ | cèw /tʃɛw/ | maloob /maloːb/ | eli /eli/ | biyu /biju/ | دوه /dwa/ |
| Hello | salaŋ /salaŋ/ | ʔaza /ʔaza/ | ásālāmā /asaːlaːmaː/ | salaam /salaːm/ | salama /salama/ | sannu /sanːu/ | سلام /sɑlɑːm/ |
| Thank you | ndzaŋ /ndzaŋ/ | ʔusi /ʔusi/ | shùkūr /ʃukuːɾ/ | baraʼoo /baɾaʕoː/ | ekoshelele /ekoʃelele/ | na gode /na ɡode/ | مننه /mənəna/ |
| Good | ɗəfa /ɗəfa/ | ɗəfa /ɗəfa/ | kúɗá /kuɗa/ | dabaab /dabaːb/ | orera /oɾeɾa/ | nagari /naɡaɾi/ | ښه /ʂə/ |
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