Dogosò
Donno So
Niger-Congo
Donno So (also called Tomo Kan Dogon) is a Dogon language of the Niger-Congo family, spoken by around 50,000 people in the Mopti region of Mali along the Bandiagara escarpment. The Dogon people are internationally famous for their cliff-dwelling settlements along the 150 km Bandiagara escarpment, their elaborate traditional cosmology (extensively documented by French anthropologist Marcel Griaule in the mid-20th century, though his ethnography is now considered partly fanciful), and their distinctive masked dance traditions for Dama funerary rites. Linguistically, the Dogon family is small and distinctive, with around 13 traditional Dogon languages including Donno So, Toro So, Tommo So, Toro Tegu, Tomo Kan, and Jamsay; the languages are mutually unintelligible despite their geographic proximity. The Dogon languages preserve features of considerable historical-comparative interest, with their position within Niger-Congo still debated.
Where it is spoken
20 core words in Donno So
Water
di
/di/
Fire
yɔ
/jɔ/
Sun
naa
/naː/
Moon
ele
/ele/
Mother
na
/na/
Father
ba
/ba/
Eat
kɔɔ
/kɔː/
Drink
nɔ
/nɔ/
Love
suuli
/suːli/
Heart
kɛɛla
/kɛːla/
Tree
ti
/ti/
House
gina
/ɡina/
Dog
gɛɛ
/ɡɛː/
Cat
monyi
/moɲi/
Hand
nu
/nu/
Eye
gi
/ɡi/
Hello
agandɛla
/aɡandɛla/
Thank you
biguƞ
/biɡũ/
One
tum
/tum/
Good
suuli
/suːli/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Niger-Congo languages
| Meaning | Donno So | Dagbani | Dii | Mampruli | Kera | Lisu | Embu |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | di /di/ | kom /kɔm/ | mam /mam/ | kuom /kuom/ | mam /mam/ | yi /ji/ | mai /mai/ |
| Fire | yɔ /jɔ/ | buɣim /buɣim/ | mvə̀ /mvə/ | booma /boːma/ | ákə̀rə /akərə/ | a-mi /ami/ | mwaki /mwaki/ |
| Sun | naa /naː/ | wuntaŋa /wuntaŋa/ | ngə̄ə̀ /ŋɡəə/ | wuntiri /wuntiri/ | kêr /keːɾ/ | mei-lo /mejlo/ | rĩũa /ɾiua/ |
| Moon | ele /ele/ | goli /ɡoli/ | mboɔn /mbɔɔn/ | gɔoŋ /ɡɔːŋ/ | mə̀sə̀rə /məsərə/ | cha-mi /tʃami/ | mweri /mweɾi/ |
| Mother | na /na/ | ma /ma/ | na /na/ | ma /ma/ | nâ /naː/ | ma /ma/ | mami /mami/ |
| Father | ba /ba/ | ba /ba/ | ba /ba/ | ba /ba/ | bâ /baː/ | a-pa /apa/ | baba /baba/ |
| Eat | kɔɔ /kɔː/ | di /di/ | kpén /kpen˥/ | di /di/ | nà /na/ | dza /tsa/ | kũrĩa /kuɾia/ |
| Drink | nɔ /nɔ/ | nyu /ɲu/ | kpɔ̀ /kpɔ/ | nyu /ɲu/ | sā /saː/ | dao /dao/ | kũnyua /kuɲua/ |
| Love | suuli /suːli/ | yu /ju/ | kūngí /ku˧ŋɡi˥/ | paaba /paːba/ | kùm /kum/ | gu-hpa /ɡupʰa/ | wendo /wendo/ |
| Heart | kɛɛla /kɛːla/ | suhu /suhu/ | ngēli /ŋɡeli/ | suuri /suːri/ | gùm /ɡum/ | ni-ma /nima/ | ngoro /ŋɡoɾo/ |
| Tree | ti /ti/ | tia /tia/ | ngà /ŋɡa/ | tia /tia/ | kòsō /kosoː/ | shi-pa /ʃipa/ | mũtĩ /muti/ |
| House | gina /ɡina/ | yili /jili/ | gā /ɡa/ | yiri /jiri/ | gòl /ɡol/ | hkyim /tɕim/ | nyũmba /ɲumba/ |
| Dog | gɛɛ /ɡɛː/ | baa /baː/ | mvù /mvu˩/ | baaga /baːɡa/ | kŋā /kŋaː/ | kwe /kwɛ/ | ngui /ŋɡui/ |
| Cat | monyi /moɲi/ | jɛŋkuno /dʒɛŋkuno/ | ngwā /ŋɡwa/ | nyusi /ɲusi/ | mūsā /muːsaː/ | a-nyi /aɲi/ | nyau /ɲau/ |
| Hand | nu /nu/ | nuu /nuː/ | paà /paa/ | nuusi /nuːsi/ | kéu /keu/ | la /la/ | guoko /ɡuoko/ |
| Eye | gi /ɡi/ | nini /nini/ | ngə̀ə /ŋɡəə/ | nini /nini/ | gìr /ɡir/ | mai-mei /majmei/ | riitho /ɾiːθo/ |
| Hello | agandɛla /aɡandɛla/ | dasiba /dasiba/ | mbóò /mboo/ | n na ti bʋɔ /n na ti bʊɔ/ | ásālāmā /asaːlaːmaː/ | ngo-lan /ŋolan/ | mwega /mweɡa/ |
| Thank you | biguƞ /biɡũ/ | mpaɣya /mpaɣja/ | vɛɛɛ /vɛːɛ/ | barika /barika/ | shùkūr /ʃukuːɾ/ | ti-tu /titu/ | nĩ baba /ni baba/ |
| One | tum /tum/ | yini /jini/ | hīn /hin/ | yini /jini/ | ká /ka/ | ti /ti/ | ĩmwe /imwe/ |
| Good | suuli /suːli/ | viɛla /viɛla/ | gáà /ɡa˥a˩/ | vɛla /vɛla/ | kúɗá /kuɗa/ | nyi /ɲi/ | mwega /mweɡa/ |
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