kura kera
Kera
Afro-Asiatic (Chadic, East, A subgroup — Kera-Kwang sub-cluster)
Kera is an East Chadic language of Chad and northern Cameroon, spoken by ~50,000-80,000 people in the Léré and Pala areas of southwestern Chad. Linguistically, Kera shares typical East Chadic features: tonal (3 tones), gender-based verb agreement, complex consonant clusters, and an elaborate system of pluractional verbs. The Kera people are subsistence farmers in the Sahel transition zone. Karen Ebert's 1979 reference grammar (Sprache und Tradition der Kera) and modern Bible translation work since the 1990s have produced standardized literacy materials. Kera shows interesting typological convergence with Niger-Congo neighbors despite its Afro-Asiatic affiliation.
Where it is spoken
20 core words in Kera
Water
mam
/mam/
Fire
ákə̀rə
/akərə/
Sun
kêr
/keːɾ/
Moon
mə̀sə̀rə
/məsərə/
Mother
nâ
/naː/
Father
bâ
/baː/
Eat
nà
/na/
Drink
sā
/saː/
Love
kùm
/kum/
Heart
gùm
/ɡum/
Tree
kòsō
/kosoː/
House
gòl
/ɡol/
Dog
kŋā
/kŋaː/
Cat
mūsā
/muːsaː/
Hand
kéu
/keu/
Eye
gìr
/ɡir/
Hello
ásālāmā
/asaːlaːmaː/
Thank you
shùkūr
/ʃukuːɾ/
One
ká
/ka/
Good
kúɗá
/kuɗa/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Afro-Asiatic (Chadic, East, A subgroup — Kera-Kwang sub-cluster) languages
| Meaning | Kera | Hdi | Daba | Beja | Dii | Saraiki | Sanskrit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | mam /mam/ | yam /jam/ | yam /jam/ | yam /jam/ | mam /mam/ | پاݨی /paːɳiː/ | जलम् /dʑalam/ |
| Fire | ákə̀rə /akərə/ | hu /hu/ | kʷu /kʷu/ | neʼaat /neʔaːt/ | mvə̀ /mvə/ | اَگ /əɡ/ | अग्निः /aɡniɦ/ |
| Sun | kêr /keːɾ/ | vah /vah/ | ɓa /ɓa/ | yint /jint/ | ngə̄ə̀ /ŋɡəə/ | سُورج /suːrəd͡ʒ/ | सूर्यः /suːɾjaɦ/ |
| Moon | mə̀sə̀rə /məsərə/ | ʔir /ʔir/ | paɗ /paɗ/ | tirig /tiɾiɡ/ | mboɔn /mbɔɔn/ | چن /tʃən/ | चन्द्रः /tɕandɾaɦ/ |
| Mother | nâ /naː/ | nəh /nəh/ | mma /mːa/ | indee /iːndeː/ | na /na/ | ماں /maːŋ/ | माता /maːtaː/ |
| Father | bâ /baː/ | baba /baba/ | daa /daː/ | baab /baːb/ | ba /ba/ | ابا /əbbaː/ | पिता /pitaː/ |
| Eat | nà /na/ | za /za/ | za /za/ | tame /tame/ | kpén /kpen˥/ | کھاوݨ /kʰaːʋəɳ/ | खादति /kʰaːdati/ |
| Drink | sā /saː/ | sa /sa/ | sa /sa/ | gwaʼa /ɡʷaʕa/ | kpɔ̀ /kpɔ/ | پیوݨ /piːʋəɳ/ | पिबति /pibati/ |
| Love | kùm /kum/ | ɓəz /ɓəz/ | saw /saw/ | kima /kima/ | kūngí /ku˧ŋɡi˥/ | پیار /pjaːr/ | प्रेम /preːma/ |
| Heart | gùm /ɡum/ | ɓal /ɓal/ | ɓəl /ɓəl/ | ginʼa /ɡinʕa/ | ngēli /ŋɡeli/ | دل /dɪl/ | हृदयम् /hr̩dajam/ |
| Tree | kòsō /kosoː/ | ʔən /ʔən/ | hin /hin/ | hindeb /hindeb/ | ngà /ŋɡa/ | ٻوٹا /ɓoːʈaː/ | वृक्षः /vr̩kʂaɦ/ |
| House | gòl /ɡol/ | gay /ɡaj/ | gəy /ɡəj/ | gaw /ɡaw/ | gā /ɡa/ | گھر /ɡʱəɾ/ | गृहम् /ɡr̩ham/ |
| Dog | kŋā /kŋaː/ | ɓəzaŋ /ɓəzaŋ/ | ɓəzaŋ /ɓəzaŋ/ | yas /jas/ | mvù /mvu˩/ | کتا /kʊtːaː/ | श्वा /ɕvaː/ |
| Cat | mūsā /muːsaː/ | mərz /mərz/ | mərz /mərz/ | kabsoot /kabsoːt/ | ngwā /ŋɡwa/ | ٻلی /ɓɪlːiː/ | मार्जारः /maːɾdʑaːɾaɦ/ |
| Hand | kéu /keu/ | xen /xen/ | xən /xən/ | ay /aj/ | paà /paa/ | ہتھ /hətʰ/ | हस्तः /hastaɦ/ |
| Eye | gìr /ɡir/ | ɓah /ɓah/ | ɓəh /ɓəh/ | liili /liːli/ | ngə̀ə /ŋɡəə/ | اکھ /əkʰ/ | नेत्रम् /neːtɾam/ |
| Hello | ásālāmā /asaːlaːmaː/ | ʔaza /ʔaza/ | salaŋ /salaŋ/ | salaam /salaːm/ | mbóò /mboo/ | السلام علیکم /əssəlaːm əleːkum/ | नमस्ते /namasteː/ |
| Thank you | shùkūr /ʃukuːɾ/ | ʔusi /ʔusi/ | ndzaŋ /ndzaŋ/ | baraʼoo /baɾaʕoː/ | vɛɛɛ /vɛːɛ/ | شکریہ /ʃukrijaː/ | धन्यवादः /dʱanjaʋaːdaɦ/ |
| One | ká /ka/ | kələ /kələ/ | mma /mːa/ | gaal /ɡaːl/ | hīn /hin/ | ہک /hɪk/ | एकः /eːkaɦ/ |
| Good | kúɗá /kuɗa/ | ɗəfa /ɗəfa/ | ɗəfa /ɗəfa/ | dabaab /dabaːb/ | gáà /ɡa˥a˩/ | چنگا /tʃəŋɡaː/ | साधु /saːdʱu/ |
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