Chopi language

Bantu language spoken in Mozambique From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Chopi, (also spelled Copi, Tschopi, and Txopi), is a Bantu language spoken along the southern coast of Mozambique.

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Chopi
Chichopi
Native toMozambique
Native speakers
1.1 million (2017)[1]
Dialects
  • Lenge
Language codes
ISO 639-3cce
Glottologchop1243
S.61,611[2]
Linguasphere99-AUT-cc
incl. varieties
99-AUT-cca...-ccd
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Maho (2009) lists the possibly extinct Lenge dialect as a distinct language.[2]

Phonology

Consonants

  1. Voiced fricative sounds are heard mostly as realizations of voiced affricates among modern speakers
  • Sounds /t͡sᶲ, t͡sᶲʰ, d͡zᵝ, ⁿd͡zᵝ/, are typically heard as labial-alveolar affricates [p͡sᶲ, p͡sᶲʰ, b͡zᵝ, ᵐb͡zᵝ], however in recent years there has been a shift in pronunciation having them pronounced purely as alveolar.
  • Consonants when preceding /j, w/ are always either palatalized [Cʲ] or labialized [Cʷ].
  • /ɟ/ may also be heard as an implosive [ʄ] in free variation.
  • /v/ may also be heard as an affricate [b͡v] in free variation.

Vowels

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  • Nasalized vowel sounds [Ṽ] may be heard when preceding nasal consonants.[3]

References

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