Af kawooti
Konso
Afro-Asiatic
Konso (Af kawooti, "Konso speech") is an East Cushitic language of southern Ethiopia, closely related to Oromo (om) and to other Konso-Diraytata cluster members. The Konso are famous for elaborate terraced hillside agriculture and stone tower-stelae (waka), which UNESCO listed as a World Heritage Site in 2011. Linguistically, Konso has the East Cushitic features of two-tone system, focus markers, gender-based subject-verb agreement, and a complex case system. The Konso community has a strong oral tradition including riddle competitions and the "Pakawati" autobiographical narrative genre. Significant Bible translation work since the 1990s.
Where it is spoken
20 core words in Konso
Water
inanta
/inanta/
Fire
iya
/ija/
Sun
kawa
/kawa/
Moon
ayeena
/ajeːna/
Mother
eedda
/eːdːa/
Father
abba
/abːa/
Eat
ihaa
/ihaː/
Drink
inakkaa
/inakːaː/
Love
jaalla
/dʒaːlːa/
Heart
onna
/onːa/
Tree
ergaa
/erɡaː/
House
mana
/mana/
Dog
kareta
/kaɾeta/
Cat
adurree
/aduɾːeː/
Hand
harka
/haɾka/
Eye
ila
/ila/
Hello
akkam
/akːam/
Thank you
galta
/ɡalta/
One
takka
/takːa/
Good
fayye
/fajːe/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Afro-Asiatic languages
| Meaning | Konso | Oromo | Sidamo | Gedeo | Wolaytta | Daasanach | Aari |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | inanta /inanta/ | bishaan /biʃaːn/ | waayyo /waːjːo/ | woyye /wojːe/ | haatta /haːtːa/ | no /no/ | waki /waki/ |
| Fire | iya /ija/ | ibidda /ibidːa/ | giiraa /ɡiːraː/ | gira /ɡiɾa/ | tama /tama/ | mes /mes/ | mola /mola/ |
| Sun | kawa /kawa/ | aduu /aduː/ | arrishshe /arːiʃːe/ | ayyaʼne /ajːaʔne/ | awa /awa/ | sicho /sitʃo/ | saba /saba/ |
| Moon | ayeena /ajeːna/ | jiʼa /dʒiʔa/ | agana /aɡana/ | agina /aɡina/ | ageena /aɡeːna/ | mar /mar/ | ama /ama/ |
| Mother | eedda /eːdːa/ | haadha /haːɗa/ | ama /ama/ | aaki /aːki/ | aaya /aːja/ | waana /waːna/ | inde /inde/ |
| Father | abba /abːa/ | abbaa /abːaː/ | anna /anːa/ | eke /eke/ | aawa /aːwa/ | kaaba /kaːba/ | baba /baba/ |
| Eat | ihaa /ihaː/ | nyaachuu /ɲaːtʃuː/ | itaa /itaː/ | ittu /itːu/ | miya /miːja/ | icho /itʃo/ | itte /itːe/ |
| Drink | inakkaa /inakːaː/ | dhuguu /ɗuɡuː/ | aguraa /aɡuraː/ | agittu /aɡitːu/ | ushiya /uʃija/ | ʔurro /ʔuro/ | ushe /uʃe/ |
| Love | jaalla /dʒaːlːa/ | jaalala /dʒaːlala/ | baxa /baxa/ | baxxa /baxːa/ | siiqaa /siːqaː/ | kashed /kaʃed/ | gaya /ɡaja/ |
| Heart | onna /onːa/ | onnee /onːeː/ | wodanaa /wodanaː/ | mishi /miʃi/ | wozanaa /wozanaː/ | lubeen /lubeːn/ | lubba /lubːa/ |
| Tree | ergaa /erɡaː/ | muka /muka/ | haqqe /haqːe/ | haqqa /haqːa/ | mittaa /mitːaː/ | hecho /hetʃo/ | miza /miza/ |
| House | mana /mana/ | mana /mana/ | mine /mine/ | mine /mine/ | keettaa /keːtːaː/ | mar /maɾ/ | kara /kara/ |
| Dog | kareta /kaɾeta/ | saree /saɾeː/ | minceeti /mintʃeːti/ | kaneessa /kaneːsːa/ | kanaa /kanaː/ | kashe /kaʃe/ | kana /kana/ |
| Cat | adurree /aduɾːeː/ | adurree /aduɾːeː/ | adurree /adurːeː/ | adurre /aduɾːe/ | gaaduwaa /ɡaːduwaː/ | paka /paka/ | shanɡo /ʃaŋɡo/ |
| Hand | harka /haɾka/ | harka /haɾka/ | anga /anɡa/ | anga /aŋɡa/ | kushiyaa /kuʃijaː/ | hark /haɾk/ | kushum /kuʃum/ |
| Eye | ila /ila/ | ija /idʒa/ | ille /ilːe/ | ille /ilːe/ | ayfee /ajfeː/ | ill /ilː/ | aafo /aːfo/ |
| Hello | akkam /akːam/ | akkam /akːam/ | nagaa yi'ne /naɡaː jiʔne/ | mooye /moːje/ | saro /saro/ | nagaya /naɡaja/ | saro /saro/ |
| Thank you | galta /ɡalta/ | galatoomi /ɡalatoːmi/ | gali'ne /ɡaliʔne/ | galaata /ɡalaːta/ | galatay /ɡalataj/ | galche /ɡaltʃe/ | galatoma /ɡalatoma/ |
| One | takka /takːa/ | tokko /tokːo/ | mitto /mitːo/ | mitto /mitːo/ | issino /isːino/ | takka /takːa/ | kollo /kolːo/ |
| Good | fayye /fajːe/ | gaarii /ɡaːriː/ | danchu /dantʃu/ | danee /daneː/ | lo'o /loʔo/ | ash /aʃ/ | goodi /ɡoːdi/ |
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