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Burji

Burji is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Ethiopia and Kenya, by about 70.1 thousand people. Glottolog rates it threatened.

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Burji · 4.4°N 38.5°E

Burji language (alternate names: Bembala, Bambala, Daashi) is an Afro-Asiatic language spoken by the Burji people who reside in Ethiopia south of Lake Chamo. There are over 49,000 speakers in Ethiopia, and a further 36,900 speakers in Kenya. Burji belongs to the Highland East Cushitic group of the Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic family.

The language has the SOV (subject–object–verb) word order common to the Cushitic family. The verb morphology distinguishes passive and middle grammatical voice, as well as causative. Verbal suffixes mark the person, number, and gender of the subject.

The New Testament was published in the Burji language in 1993. A collection of Burji proverbs, translated into English, French, and Swahili, is available on the Web.

From Wikipedia · Burji language · CC BY-SA 4.0

Words in Burji

MeaningWordRomanization
womanama
personlami*
namemaka*
eyeila*
eardaga*
nosesuna*
toothirka
tonguearab*
handaNa*
bloodCeji*
bonemiCa*
skingoga*
kneegilba*
breastununa*
liverafala*
waterwáa
firejira*
sunhin7iCo*
startolinte*
stonedaha*
mountainura*
treehaka*
leafbakala*
nightyedi*
dogwaCo*
fishkurtume*
snakehamasi
louseiba*
onemiCa*
twolama*

* in the simplified ASJP transcription

Most similar languages

Vocabulary

Grammar

Vocabulary compares 40 basic words (ASJP); grammar compares 195 features (Grambank). Similar is not always related.

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Glottolog · burj1242 · Wikipedia (English) · Ethnologue · bji