Taullemmet

In the directory of world languages Ethnologue, the language of taullemmet (or Tamazhak) is included in the southern group of Tuareg languages ​​along with the languages ​​of Tamas and Air (or Tamazh) . The range of the taullemmet language is divided into two main dialects: the western taullemmet and the eastern taullemmet ^[2] .

In the classification of A. Yu. Aichenwald and A. Yu. Militarev, the dialects of the western taullemmet and eastern taullemmet not only stand out as separate independent languages, but also belong to different groups of the Tuareg branch: western taullemmet - to the southern group; eastern taullemmet with dialects of azavagh, kel ansango and others - to the northern group ^[3] .

In the classification published in the work of S. A. Burlak and S. A. Starostin , the idioms of the western taullemmet and eastern taullemmet are also assigned to different groups: the western taullemmet is assigned to the West Tareg group, and the eastern taullemmet is to the East Tarem group ^[4] .

According to the classification of the British linguist Roger Blench , taullemmet is considered as a single language with two dialects in the Tuareg branch, not differentiated into separate groups ^[5] .

Range and abundance

Taullemmet is spoken in the desert Sahara , mainly in western Niger : in the Agadez region ( Chirozerin department), in the Doso region ( Dogonduchi department), in the northwestern part of the Maradi region, as well as in the Tahua and Tillaberi regions. Some native speakers of Taullemmet inhabit the eastern regions of Mali . The main area of ​​distribution of the Taullemet language in Mali is the southeastern regions of the Gao region ( Menaka district). In addition, small groups of native speakers of Taullemmet inhabit a number of areas in Nigeria and Burkina Faso . These areas are located in the province of Udlan (Burkina Faso) and in the state of Sokoto (Nigeria) on the border with those territories in the countries of Niger and Mali that form the main area of ​​the taullemmet language.

The number of speakers in Niger is about 450,000 people (1998), in Mali - about 190,000 people (1991), total - about 640,000 people ^[1] .

Sociolinguistic information

The language of taullemmet is the main language of communication of the Tuareg illemiden of all ages, although there are cases in cities where the taullemmet is no longer transmitted. In addition to home communication, taullemmet is used as the language of market trade and as the language of teaching in elementary school; in addition, taullemmet is used only in writing. In the region of residence of the Yullemiden people in Niger, an experimental curriculum was introduced in 16 primary schools, according to which, after only three years of study, the language of Taullemmet is gradually replaced by French , after which French becomes the main language of instruction in high school ^[1] .

Taullemet is used as a second language by native speakers of the mixed Songai-Berber language and the language ^{[6] [7]} .

Dialects

According to the data presented in the Ethnologue reference book, the linguistic range of the taullemmet language is divided into two large dialect regions: western (tan ataram) and eastern (tan dannag, or yullemiden). The western dialect is distributed to the west, north and northwest of the capital of Niger - the city of Niamey . The eastern dialect is distributed mainly in the central regions of the Tahua region - from the border of Mali and Niger in the west to the city of in the region of Agadez in the east. In Nigeria, dialects of the taullemmet language are known under the name Buzu, in Burkina Faso - under the name Tudalt, or removed ^{[8] [9]} .

• Koryakov Yu. B. Register of the Berbero-Guanche languages (Neopr.) (Html). Register of World Languages S. 9–11. Lingvarium. (Retrieved December 7, 2015)
• OLAC resources in and about the Tawallammat Tamajaq language (html). Language-archives.org. (Retrieved December 7, 2015)