Sierra Leone Languages
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Description[edit | edit source]
Sierra Leone is a multilingual country. English is the de facto official language, and Krio is the most widely spoken. Although English, as the official language, is spoken in schools, government administration and the media, Krio is spoken as a lingua franca in virtually all parts of Sierra Leone. [1]. Approximately 97% of the 7.4 million citizens in the country speak the Krio language (either natively or as a second or third language) which evolved from English Creole. Krio provides a mutual method of communication between the various tribes and ethnic groups within Sierra Leone. There are approximately 23 languages that exist in Sierra Leone, but some are in danger of going extinct due to Krio being used the most.
Sierra Leone Krio is the lingua franca and the de facto national language spoken throughout the West African nation of Sierra Leone. Krio is the native language for some 300,000 Krios—the descendants of slaves from the West Indies, United States and Britain, who overwhelmingly live in Freetown. Krio is an English-based creole, but is closer to being a fully-fledged language, as it has fixed grammatical structures and rules. Most of its vocabulary comes from English, but its sound system and grammar are closer to that of nearby African languages, in particular Yoruba. (Krio Phrasebook)
Other languages found in Sierra Leone include: [2]
- Mende - spoken by 31% of the population [3]
- Temme - spoken by 37% [4]
- Kono [5]
- Kissi [6]
- Kuranko [7]
- Limba [8]
- Fula (Pular) [9] [10]
- Mandingo [11]
- Susu [12]
Word List(s)[edit | edit source]
| Krio word [13] | English meaning |
|---|---|
| Salone | Sierra Leone |
| Kushɛh | Hello, Hi |
| Padi | Friend |
| Titi | Girl |
| Bɔbɔ | Boy |
| Pikin | Child |
| Wɔwɔh | Ugly |
| Plabah | Conflict |
| bɔku | Many, Too much |
| Uman | Woman |
| Lef | Stop |
| Wetin | What |
| Usay | Where |
| Wetin Mek | Why |
| Ustɛm | When |
| Vɛx | Angry |
| Dia | Expensive |
| Waka | Walk |
| Cham | Chew |
| Motocar | Car |
| Sabi | Know |
| Fεt | Fight |
| Wεf | Wife |
| Lεf | Stop |
| Mama | Mother |
| Papa | Father |
| Granny | Grandmother |
| Grandpa | Grandfather |
| tif | Steal |
| Jomp | Jump |
Alphabet and Pronunciation[edit | edit source]
Krio uses the Latin script but without Qq and Xx and with three additional letters from the African reference alphabet, Ɛɛ (open E), Ŋŋ (eng), and Ɔɔ (open O). Three tones can be distinguished in Krio and are sometimes marked with grave (à), acute (á), and circumflex (â) accents over the vowels for low, high, and falling tones respectively but these accents are not employed in normal usage. [14]
| Krio letter or digraph | Example word | English meaning |
|---|---|---|
| A,a | watar | water |
| Aw, aw | naw (nau) | now |
| Ay, ay | na im | that's him |
| B, b | bòku (bohku) | many, very much (< French beaucoup) |
| Ch, ch | cham | chew |
| D, d | diar (dya) | expensive (< dear) |
| E, e | let (leyt) | late |
| Ɛ, ɛ | hèp (ep) | help |
| F, f | fùrs (fohs) | first |
| G, g | got(goat) | goat |
| Gb, gb | gbana/tranga | difficult (from Temne) |
| H, h | argyu/argyumènt (agyu/agyument) | argument |
| I, i | titi | girl |
| J, j | jomp | jump |
| K, k | kòntry (kohntri) | country |
| Kp, kp | kpatakpata | completely |
| L, l | liv | live |
| M, m | muf/muv | move |
| N, n | nak | knock |
| Ny, ny | niu | new |
| Ŋ, ŋ | siŋ (sing) | sing |
| O, o | work | work |
| Ɔ, ɔ | bòrn (bohn) | born, give birth, conceive |
| Ɔy, ɔy | òil (ohyl) | oil |
| P, p | padi | friend |
| R, r | ren (reyn) | rain |
| S, s | saf | soft |
| Sh, sh | sharp | sharp |
| T, t | tif | steal (< thief) |
| U, u | uman | woman |
| V, v | vot | vote |
| W, w | waka | walk |
| Y, y | yala | yellow |
| Z, z | zero | zero |
| Zh, zh | plèzhùr (plehzhoh) | pleasure |
Pronunciation Guides
Language Aids and Dictionaries[edit | edit source]
Language Aids
- Mende Language - Dialects, Sound System, Vowels, Consonants, Tones, Grammar, Vocabulary, Writing
- Temme Language - Vowel pronunciations and word list
Dictionaries
- Berry, Jack. A dictionary of Sierra Leone Krio. Evanston, Ill: Northwestern University, 1966. Available at: WorldCat.
- Fyle, Clifford N and Eldred D Jones. A Krio-English dictionary. New York: Oxford Univ. Pr, 1980. Available at: WorldCat.
- Thompson, Hanne-Ruth and Momoh Taziff Koroma. Krio dictionary & phrasebook. New York, NY: Hippocrene Books, Inc, 2014. Available at: WorldCat.
- Innes, Gordon. A Mende-English dictionary. Cambridge: University Press, 1969. Available at: WorldCat.
- Eaton, M. A Dictionary of the Mende language. Freetown: Albert Academy Press, 1950. Available at: WorldCat.
- Schlenker, Christian Frederick. An English-Temme dictionary. London: Printed for the Church missionary Society, 1880. Available at: WorldCat.
Online Dictionaries
Additional Resources[edit | edit source]
- Peterson, John. Province of freedom : a history of Sierra Leone, 1787-1870. Evanston: Northwestern University Press, 1969. Available at: WorldCat.
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Languages of Sierra Leone," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_Sierra_Leone, accessed 10 March 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Languages of Sierra Leone," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_Sierra_Leone, accessed DATE.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Mende language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mende_language, accessed 21 March 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Temne language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temne_language, accessed 21 March 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Kono language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kono_language_(Sierra_Leone), accessed 21 March 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Kissi language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kissi_language, accessed 21 March 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Kuranko language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuranko_language, accessed 21 March 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Limba language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limba_language, accessed 21 March 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Fula language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fula_language, accessed 21 March 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Pular language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pular_language, accessed 21 March 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Mandinka language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandinka_language, accessed 21 March 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Susu language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susu_language, accessed 21 March 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Krio language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krio_language, accessed 10 March 2021.
- ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Krio language," in Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krio_language, accessed 10 March 2021.