North Bauchi

In the classification of the Chadian languages ​​of the American linguist languages ​​of Vardzhi (sirzakvay) , Tsagu (Chivogay) , Kariya , Miya , Pa'a (Afrava) , Siri , Mburku (Mburuku , barque) , jimbin (zumbun) and diri ^[2] . The same composition of languages ​​is given in the classification of the Afro-Asiatic languages ​​of the British linguist R. Blench and in the classification of the Czech linguist V. Blazek . The languages ​​of the northern Bauchi (vardzhi - according to the authors' terminology) and the bad-nghizim of R. Blench and V. Blazhek are combined into the bad-varj group, opposed to the southern Bauchi group ^{[3] [8] [9]} . In the classifications presented in the Ethnologue world language reference book and in the world language , the extinct Ajawa language ^{[1] [6] is} also included in group B.2 (northern bauci). In the classification based on the works of the British researcher A. N. Skinner, which is provided by the Glottolog database , the Varji-Gala-Kariya cluster with Varji, Kariya and Miia (including the Gala, Faisang, Fursum, Damshin and Feder dialects) is highlighted ^{[6 ] [12]} . In the classification published in the work of S. A. Burlak and S. A. Starostin “Comparative-Historical Linguistics”, the idioms of gala and peace in the group of northern Bauchi are considered as different languages ^[7] .

The languages ​​of the North Bauchi group are common in central Nigeria . The area of ​​this group is located, according to the modern administrative-territorial division of Nigeria , in the northwestern part of the state of Bauchi - in the areas of , , Bauchi and . The range of the northern Bauchi group also slightly enters the territory of the state of Jigava ( region), bordering the territory of the state of Bauchi. The area of ​​distribution of languages ​​North Bauchi forms a compact area, extended chain from north-west to south-east. This area includes, in the extreme north-west, the territory of the distribution of the Dirī and Pa'a languages, then, in the direction of the southeast, the territories of the Siri, Varja, Karia, Miya, Mburku, Tsagu languages ​​are distributed in succession, and in the southeast, the Zumbun language . On all sides, the range of languages ​​of the North Bauchi is surrounded by the area of ​​distribution of the Hausa language. The exception is the range of the Siri language, to the southern part of which the area of ​​the Western Chad language of the Bole Gerum group adjoins ^{[13] [14]} .

The total number of speakers in the Northern Bauchi languages ​​is estimated at about 144,000 people over the years ^[1] . The most common are the Vargi languages ​​(77.7 thousand people, 2000) ^[10] , mission (30 thousand people, 1995) ^[11] , Mburk (12 thousand people, 2000) ^[16] , pa'a (8 thousand people, 1995) ^[17] , Siri (3.8 thousand people, 2006) ^[18] . The number of speakers of other languages ​​does not exceed 2,000 people ^[1] .

One of the languages ​​of the North Bauchi group, Ajawa, became extinct in the first half of the 20th century ^{[19] [20]} .

The diagram of G.S. Starostin (2010), which Václav Blazek cites in his article Afro-Asiatic linguistic migrations: linguistic evidence , shows the time of separation of branches, sub-branches and groups of Chadian languages. According to this scheme, based on the data of lexicostatistics , closest to the North Bauchi group is the South Bauchi group. The division of the proto-languages ​​that gave rise to the indicated linguistic groups occurred around 3950 BC. er Earlier, about 4510 BC. e., there was a separation from the main area of ​​the bauchi-bade (the descendants of which are the modern languages ​​of the northern and southern bauchi groups) of a proto-language, which is the ancestor of the languages ​​of the bad-nghizim group ^[15] .

• Warji-Jimi (English) (html). MultiTree: A Digital Library of Language Relationships (2009). (Verified June 20, 2017)