アフリカの言語 : 概説(<特集>アフリカ諸語の音声)

• Published in: Onsei kenkyū Vol. 2; no. 3; pp. 4 - 8
• Main Author: 加賀谷, 良平
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: Japanese
• Published: Tokyo 日本音声学会 01.01.1998; Japan Science and Technology Agency
• Subjects: African languages; Bantu languages; Khoisan languages; Language status; Nilo-Saharan languages; Phonetics; Phonology; Topics; 研究方法; 言語の分類; 言語状況; 音声; 音調形; Niger
• ISSN: 1342-8675; 2189-5961
• DOI: 10.24467/onseikenkyu.2.3_4

Over 1,000 languages are spoken in the African continent. They are classified into four major language families, i.e., the Afro-Asian, the Nilo-Saharan, the Niger-Congo and the Khoisan language families. Bantu languages belong to the Niger-Congo family. As an overview, the classification of the African languages, the language situation and some linguistic topics are briefly described in this article. In the following articles, some topics on phonetic and phonological phenomena of each language family will be presented and discussed by scholars specializing in the languages. The scholars are all field-workers and use mainly their own data collected in the fields. The following are their main subjects: (1) the sound system in the Afro-Asian family, referring to uvularization, (2) phonetic and phonological topics in the Nilo-Saharan family, (3) the click sounds in the Khoisan family, and (4) the tonological characteristics and velarized consonants of Bantu languages in the Niger-Congo family. Though, there are many other interesting phenomena in African languages that are not dealt with in these feature articles, the authors hope the reader will become interested in African languages.