Sooninkanxannen
Soninke
Niger-Congo (Mande, Western)
Soninke (Sooninkanxannen) is a Western Mande language of the Senegal River valley and adjoining Sahel. The Soninke people founded the medieval Ghana Empire (c. 300-1200 CE), the first major sub-Saharan empire to be widely documented in Arabic sources, with its capital at Koumbi Saleh. Soninke remained a major Sahel trade language thereafter, and Soninke merchants (Wangara) were instrumental in spreading Islam across West Africa. The N'Ko script (developed 1949 for Manding languages) is also used.
Where it is spoken
20 core words in Soninke
Water
jiyi
/dʒiji/
Fire
ñaaxe
/ɲaːxe/
Sun
kiye
/kije/
Moon
kullu
/kulːu/
Mother
ma
/ma/
Father
baba
/baba/
Eat
lawu
/lawu/
Drink
mini
/mini/
Love
ñaxando
/ɲaxando/
Heart
nene
/nene/
Tree
yiribirinde
/jiɾibiɾinde/
House
ka
/ka/
Dog
wulle
/wulːe/
Cat
mussu
/musːu/
Hand
kitte
/kitːe/
Eye
ñaa
/ɲaː/
Hello
an na siri
/an na siɾi/
Thank you
inkawu
/iŋkawu/
One
baane
/baːne/
Good
ñaxa
/ɲaxa/
Sources
Words compared
Compared with related Niger-Congo (Mande, Western) languages
| Meaning | Soninke | Western Maninkakan | Xaasongaxango | Kita Maninkakan | Eastern Maninka | Dyula | Konabéré |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | jiyi /dʒiji/ | ji /dʒi/ | ji /dʒi/ | ji /dʒi/ | ji /dʒi/ | ji /dʒi/ | ji /dʒi/ |
| Fire | ñaaxe /ɲaːxe/ | tasuma /tasuma/ | tasuma /tasuma/ | tasuma /tasuma/ | tasuma /tasuma/ | tasuma /tasuma/ | ta /ta/ |
| Sun | kiye /kije/ | tile /tile/ | tile /tile/ | tle /tle/ | tile /tile/ | tile /tile/ | tile /tile/ |
| Moon | kullu /kulːu/ | kalo /kalo/ | kalo /kalo/ | kalo /kalo/ | kalo /kalo/ | kalo /kalo/ | kalo /kalo/ |
| Mother | ma /ma/ | na /na/ | ba /ba/ | ba /ba/ | ba /ba/ | ba /ba/ | ba /ba/ |
| Father | baba /baba/ | fa /fa/ | fa /fa/ | fa /fa/ | fa /fa/ | fa /fa/ | fa /fa/ |
| Eat | lawu /lawu/ | don /don/ | domu /domu/ | don /don/ | domu /domu/ | dun /dun/ | don /don/ |
| Drink | mini /mini/ | min /min/ | min /min/ | min /min/ | min /min/ | min /min/ | min /min/ |
| Love | ñaxando /ɲaxando/ | kanu /kanu/ | kanu /kanu/ | kanu /kanu/ | kanu /kanu/ | kanu /kanu/ | kana /kana/ |
| Heart | nene /nene/ | dusu /dusu/ | dusu /dusu/ | dusu /dusu/ | dusu /dusu/ | dusu /dusu/ | dusu /dusu/ |
| Tree | yiribirinde /jiɾibiɾinde/ | yiri /jiɾi/ | yiri /jiɾi/ | yiri /jiɾi/ | yiri /jiɾi/ | yiri /jiri/ | yiri /jiri/ |
| House | ka /ka/ | so /so/ | so /so/ | so /so/ | lu /lu/ | so /so/ | so /so/ |
| Dog | wulle /wulːe/ | wulu /wulu/ | wulu /wulu/ | wulu /wulu/ | wuli /wuli/ | wulu /wulu/ | fugo /fuɡo/ |
| Cat | mussu /musːu/ | nyaakuma /ɲaːkuma/ | jakuma /dʒakuma/ | ñaakuma /ɲaːkuma/ | jakuma /dʒakuma/ | jakuma /dʒakuma/ | nyukuma /ɲukuma/ |
| Hand | kitte /kitːe/ | bolo /bolo/ | bolo /bolo/ | bolo /bolo/ | bolo /bolo/ | bolo /bolo/ | bolo /bolo/ |
| Eye | ñaa /ɲaː/ | nya /ɲa/ | ɲa /ɲa/ | ña /ɲa/ | ɲa /ɲa/ | ɲɛ /ɲɛ/ | ɲɛ /ɲɛ/ |
| Hello | an na siri /an na siɾi/ | i ni sögöma /i ni soɣoma/ | i ni sogoma /i ni soɡoma/ | i ni soɣoma /i ni soɣoma/ | i ni se /i ni se/ | i ni soɣoma /i ni soɣoma/ | ka kɛ /ka kɛ/ |
| Thank you | inkawu /iŋkawu/ | i ni baara /i ni baːɾa/ | i ni baara /i ni baːɾa/ | i ni baara /i ni baːɾa/ | i ni se /i ni se/ | i ni ce /i ni tʃe/ | baraka /baɾaka/ |
| One | baane /baːne/ | kelen /kelen/ | kele /kele/ | kelen /kelen/ | kelen /kelen/ | kelen /kelen/ | kelen /kelen/ |
| Good | ñaxa /ɲaxa/ | nyuman /ɲuman/ | nyi /ɲi/ | ñuman /ɲuman/ | ka ɲi /ka ɲi/ | ɲuman /ɲuman/ | ɲuman /ɲuman/ |
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