Meta'
Niger-Congo
Meta' (also Menemo or Bameta) is a Bantu Grassfields language of the Northwest Region of Cameroon, sister to Aghem (agq) within the Ring sub-branch of Western Grassfields. The Grassfields Bantu cluster (~30 languages, ~3M total speakers) occupies the Cameroonian highlands, with each language often associated with a specific village or chiefdom. Meta' is spoken in the Mbengwi and Bali areas of Momo Division. Linguistically, Meta' shares Grassfields Bantu features: tonal (3+ tones with downstep), 5-vowel system with ATR harmony, complex noun-class concord, and SVO constituent order. Cameroon's 2017 separatist crisis has affected the Northwest Region, displacing many Meta' speakers.
Where it is spoken
31 core words in Meta'
Water
mə
/mə/
Fire
mɔŋ
/mɔŋ/
Sun
nyam
/ɲam/
Moon
nuŋ
/nuŋ/
Star
ntsə́
/ntsə́/
Mother
ma
/ma/
Father
ta
/ta/
I
mə̀
/mə̀/
You
ò
/ò/
Name
ə́ɲə́
/ə́ɲə́/
Eye
dzi
/dzi/
Hand
boa
/boa/
Heart
mu
/mu/
Love
kɔŋ
/kɔŋ/
Tree
ti
/ti/
House
nda
/nda/
Dog
mbu
/mbu/
Cat
guŋ
/ɡuŋ/
Eat
mé
/me/
Drink
nyo
/ɲo/
One
mɔ
/mɔ/
Two
bɛ́
/bɛ́/
Hello
mɔlɔŋ
/mɔlɔŋ/
Thank you
nfɔn
/nfɔn/
Good
mwa
/mwa/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Niger-Congo languages
| Meaning | Meta' | Aghem | Ewondo | Bulu | Fang | Lingala | Sango |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | mə /mə/ | mê' /meʔ/ | medzim /medzim/ | medim /medim/ | mendim /mendim/ | máí /mai/ | ngu /ŋɡu/ |
| Fire | mɔŋ /mɔŋ/ | ìmáa' /imáaʔ/ | ndoa /ndoa/ | ndoa /ndoa/ | ndoa /ndoa/ | mɔ́tɔ /mɔtɔ/ | wa /wa/ |
| Sun | nyam /ɲam/ | kû' /kuʔ/ | dzōb /dʒoːb/ | zobé /zobe/ | zòp /zop/ | mói /moi/ | lâ /la/ |
| Moon | nuŋ /nuŋ/ | nâa' /naːʔ/ | ngɔn /ŋɡɔn/ | ngon /ŋɡon/ | ngɔn /ŋɡɔn/ | sánzá /sanza/ | nzë /nzɛ/ |
| Star | ntsə́ /ntsə́/ | ntsə́ /ntsə́/ | ôtɛtɛ /ótɛtɛ/ | ôtɛtɛ /ótɛtɛ/ | ótéteŋ /ótéteŋ/ | monzoto /monzɔtɔ/ | tongoro /toŋɡoro/ |
| Mother | ma /ma/ | mò /mo/ | nyia /ɲia/ | nyia /ɲia/ | nyia /ɲia/ | mamá /mama/ | mama /mama/ |
| Father | ta /ta/ | tâ /ta/ | tara /taɾa/ | tata /tata/ | tara /tara/ | tatá /tata/ | babâ /baba/ |
| I | mə̀ /mə̀/ | à /à/ | ma /má/ | ma /má/ | me /me/ | ngai /ⁿɡai/ | mbi /mbi/ |
| You | ò /ò/ | ò /ò/ | wa /wá/ | wô /wô/ | wè /wè/ | yo /jo/ | mo /mo/ |
| Name | ə́ɲə́ /ə́ɲə́/ | yə́ŋ /jə́ŋ/ | jôé /ʒóé/ | jôé /ʒóé/ | djoè /dʒoɛ/ | nkombo /ⁿkombo/ | iri /iri/ |
| Eye | dzi /dzi/ | dyiá /djia/ | dzìs /dʒis/ | zis /zis/ | dis /dis/ | líso /liso/ | lê /lɛ/ |
| Hand | boa /boa/ | kwô' /kwoʔ/ | woó /woʔo/ | wo /wo/ | wɔ /wɔ/ | lobɔ́kɔ /lobɔkɔ/ | maboko /maboko/ |
| Heart | mu /mu/ | mwâ /mwa/ | nlem /nlem/ | nlem /nlem/ | nle /nle/ | motéma /motema/ | bê /bɛ/ |
| Love | kɔŋ /kɔŋ/ | nkòŋ /ŋkoŋ/ | nye'e /ɲeʔe/ | nye'a /ɲeʔa/ | ndzem /ndzem/ | bolíngo /boliŋɡo/ | ndoyê /ndojɛ/ |
| Tree | ti /ti/ | kpa' /kpaʔ/ | elé /ele/ | élé /ele/ | eli /eli/ | nzété /nzete/ | kêkê /kɛkɛ/ |
| House | nda /nda/ | ndô /ndo/ | nda /nda/ | nda /nda/ | nda /nda/ | ndáko /ndako/ | dâ /da/ |
| Dog | mbu /mbu/ | mbî /mbi/ | mvu /mvu/ | mvu /mvu/ | mvu /mvu/ | mbwá /mbwa/ | mbo /mbo/ |
| Cat | guŋ /ɡuŋ/ | gò /ɡo/ | esìŋga /esiŋɡa/ | esinga /esiŋɡa/ | esin /esin/ | nyáu /ɲau/ | nyao /ɲao/ |
| Eat | mé /me/ | nîa /nia/ | di /di/ | dzia /dʒia/ | di /di/ | kolía /kolia/ | te /te/ |
| Drink | nyo /ɲo/ | nyâa /ɲaː/ | nyu /ɲu/ | nyu /ɲu/ | nyu /ɲu/ | komɛ́la /komɛla/ | nyon /ɲon/ |
| One | mɔ /mɔ/ | mò /mo/ | fok /fok/ | fok /fok/ | bok /bok/ | mɔ̌kɔ́ /mɔkɔ/ | oko /oko/ |
| Two | bɛ́ /bɛ́/ | bɔ́ʔɔ́ /bɔ́ʔɔ́/ | bɛ̌ /bɛ̌/ | bɛ̌ /bɛ̌/ | bɛ̀ /bɛ̀/ | mibale /mibale/ | ûse /use/ |
| Hello | mɔlɔŋ /mɔlɔŋ/ | kâa' /kaːʔ/ | mbɔlɔ /mbɔlɔ/ | mbolo /mbolo/ | mbolo /mbolo/ | mbóte /mbote/ | bara mo /bara mo/ |
| Thank you | nfɔn /nfɔn/ | ŋyaa' /ŋjaːʔ/ | akiba /akiba/ | akiba /akiba/ | akiba /akiba/ | matɔ́ndɔ /matɔndɔ/ | singila /siŋɡila/ |
| Good | mwa /mwa/ | mwâ' /mwaʔ/ | mbaŋ /mbaŋ/ | mbamba /mbamba/ | mbeng /mbeŋ/ | malámu /malamu/ | nzöni /nzəni/ |
Part of LangMap — a linguistic visualization project. This is a static, crawlable summary; the interactive maps offer pronunciation audio, filters, and a globe view.