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
31 core words in Konso
Water
pishaa
/piʃaː/
Fire
apitta
/apitːa/
Sun
piirtuta
/piːrtuta/
Moon
leya
/leja/
Star
hikkitta
/hikːitːa/
Mother
aayyaa
/aːjːaː/
Father
aappaa
/aːpːaː/
I
anti
/anti/
You
atti
/atti/
Name
maχχa
/maχːa/
Eye
ilta
/ilta/
Hand
harka
/harka/
Heart
sataʔta
/sataʔta/
Love
ʄaalaɗiyaa
/ʄaːlaɗijaː/
Tree
ʛoyra
/ʛojra/
House
tika
/tika/
Dog
kuta
/kuta/
Cat
aturraata
/aturːaːta/
Eat
ɗamiyaa
/ɗamijaː/
Drink
ikiyaa
/ikijaː/
One
takka
/takːa/
Two
lakki
/lakːi/
Hello
nakaytaa
/nakajtaː/
Thank you
—
/—/
Good
paʛaari
/paʛaːri/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Afro-Asiatic languages
| Meaning | Konso | Oromo | Sidamo | Gedeo | Maharastri Prakrit | Tharu | Hindi |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | pishaa /piʃaː/ | bishaan /biʃaːn/ | waayyo /waːjːo/ | woyye /wojːe/ | उदग /udaɡa/ | पानी /paːniː/ | पानी /paːniː/ |
| Fire | apitta /apitːa/ | ibidda /ibidːa/ | giiraa /ɡiːraː/ | gira /ɡiɾa/ | अग्गि /aɡɡi/ | आग /aːɡ/ | आग /aːɡ/ |
| Sun | piirtuta /piːrtuta/ | aduu /aduː/ | arrishshe /arːiʃːe/ | ayyaʼne /ajːaʔne/ | सूर /suːɾa/ | सूरज /suːrədʒ/ | सूरज /suːɾədʒ/ |
| Moon | leya /leja/ | jiʼa /dʒiʔa/ | agana /aɡana/ | agina /aɡina/ | चंद /tʃanda/ | चांद /tʃãːd/ | चाँद /tʃãːd/ |
| Star | hikkitta /hikːitːa/ | urjii /urdʒiː/ | beeddakko /beːdːakko/ | urje /urdʒe/ | तारा /taːɾaː/ | तारा /taːraː/ | तारा /taːɾaː/ |
| Mother | aayyaa /aːjːaː/ | haadha /haːɗa/ | ama /ama/ | aaki /aːki/ | माय /maːja/ | माई /maːiː/ | माँ /mãː/ |
| Father | aappaa /aːpːaː/ | abbaa /abːaː/ | anna /anːa/ | eke /eke/ | पिअ /piaː/ | बबा /bəbaː/ | पिता /pitaː/ |
| I | anti /anti/ | ani /ani/ | ani /ani/ | ani /ani/ | अहं /ahan/ | हम /ɦəm/ | मैं /mɛ̃ː/ |
| You | atti /atti/ | ati /ati/ | ati /ati/ | ati /ati/ | तुमं /tuman/ | तैं /tɛ̃ː/ | तुम /tʊm/ |
| Name | maχχa /maχːa/ | maqaa /makʼaː/ | suʼma /suʔma/ | su'ma /suʔma/ | णाम /ɳaːma/ | नाम /naːm/ | नाम /naːm/ |
| Eye | ilta /ilta/ | ija /idʒa/ | ille /ilːe/ | ille /ilːe/ | अच्छि /atʃːʰi/ | आंख /ãːkʰ/ | आँख /ãːkʰ/ |
| Hand | harka /harka/ | harka /haɾka/ | anga /anɡa/ | anga /aŋɡa/ | हत्थ /hatːʰa/ | हाथ /haːtʰ/ | हाथ /haːtʰ/ |
| Heart | sataʔta /sataʔta/ | onnee /onːeː/ | wodanaa /wodanaː/ | wodana /wodana/ | हिअ /hiaː/ | मन /man/ | दिल /dil/ |
| Love | ʄaalaɗiyaa /ʄaːlaɗijaː/ | jaalala /dʒaːlala/ | baxa /batʼa/ | baxxa /baxːa/ | पेम /peːma/ | माया /maːjaː/ | प्यार /pjaːɾ/ |
| Tree | ʛoyra /ʛojra/ | muka /muka/ | haqqe /haqːe/ | haqqa /haqːa/ | रुक्ख /rukːʰa/ | पेड़ /peːɽ/ | पेड़ /peːɽ/ |
| House | tika /tika/ | mana /mana/ | mine /mine/ | mine /mine/ | घर /ɡʱaɾa/ | घर /ɡʱəɾ/ | घर /ɡʱəɾ/ |
| Dog | kuta /kuta/ | saree /saɾeː/ | minceeti /mintʃeːti/ | kaneessa /kaneːsːa/ | सुणग /suɳaɡa/ | कुकुर /kukur/ | कुत्ता /kutːaː/ |
| Cat | aturraata /aturːaːta/ | adurree /aduɾːeː/ | adurree /adurːeː/ | adurre /aduɾːe/ | मज्जार /madʒːaːra/ | बिलार /bilaːɾ/ | बिल्ली /bilːiː/ |
| Eat | ɗamiyaa /ɗamijaː/ | nyaachuu /ɲaːtʃuː/ | itaa /itaː/ | ittu /itːu/ | खा /kʰaː/ | खाना /kʰaːnaː/ | खाना /kʰaːnaː/ |
| Drink | ikiyaa /ikijaː/ | dhuguu /ɗuɡuː/ | aguraa /aɡuraː/ | agittu /aɡitːu/ | पिब /piba/ | पीना /piːnaː/ | पीना /piːnaː/ |
| One | takka /takːa/ | tokko /tokːo/ | mitto /mitːo/ | mitto /mitːo/ | एग /eɡa/ | एक /eːk/ | एक /eːk/ |
| Two | lakki /lakːi/ | lama /lama/ | lame /lame/ | lame /lame/ | दो /do/ | दुइ /dui/ | दो /d̪oː/ |
| Hello | nakaytaa /nakajtaː/ | akkam /akːam/ | nagaa yi'ne /naɡaː jiʔne/ | mooye /moːje/ | — /—/ | राम राम /raːm raːm/ | नमस्ते /namasteː/ |
| Thank you | — /—/ | galatoomi /ɡalatoːmi/ | gali'ne /ɡaliʔne/ | galaata /ɡalaːta/ | — /—/ | धन्यवाद /dʱənjəbaːd/ | धन्यवाद /dʱanjaʋaːd/ |
| Good | paʛaari /paʛaːri/ | gaarii /ɡaːriː/ | danchu /dantʃu/ | danee /daneː/ | साहु /saːhu/ | नीक /niːk/ | अच्छा /atʃːʰaː/ |
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