Ijaw languages


The Ijaw languages, also spelt Ịjọ, are the languages spoken by the Ijo people in southern Nigeria.

Classification

The Ijo languages are traditionally considered a distinct branch of the Niger–Congo family. They are notable for their subject–object–verb basic word order, which is otherwise an unusual feature in Niger–Congo, shared only by such distant potential branches as Mande and Dogon. Like Mande and Dogon, Ijoid lacks even traces of the noun class system considered characteristic of Niger–Congo. This motivated Joseph Greenberg, in his initial classification of Niger–Congo, to describe them as having split early from that family. However, owing to the lack of these features, Linguist Gerrit Dimmendaal doubts their inclusion in Niger–Congo altogether and considers the Ijoid languages to be an independent family.
The following internal classification is based on Jenewari and Williamson & Blench.
Blench moves Southeast Ijo into the West branch.
Below is a list of Ijaw language names, populations, and locations from Blench.
LanguageClusterAlternate spellingsOwn name for languageEndonymOther names Other names for languageSpeakersLocation
Nembe–Akaha clusterNembe–AkahaBrass–Ịjọ71,500 Rivers State, Brass LGA
NembeNembe–AkahaNimbiNembeBrass, Nempe, Itebu ; Brass ; Nembe–Brass ; Ijo ; Brass–Nembe–Ijaw ; Nembe–Ịjọ.66,600 Rivers State, Brass LGA, Nembe, Ọkpọma and Tụwọn towns and nearby villages
AkahaNembe–AkahaAkasa, AkassaaAkahaAkaha4,913 Rivers State, Brass LGA, Opu–Akassa town and nearby hamlets
NkọrọNkọrọNkoroKirika 20,000 Rivers State, Bonny LGA; Opu–Nkọrọ town and 11 villages
ỊjọỊjọ
Inland Ịjọ clusterInland ỊjọRivers State, Yenagoa and Brass LGAs
BiseniInland ỊjọBuseniBiseniBiseniAmegiCommunity consisting of five sectionsRivers State, Yenagoa LGA, Akpeịdẹ, Egbebiri, Kalama,Tẹịn and Tụbụrụ towns
AkịtaInland ỊjọOkordia, Ọkọdi‡AkịtaAkịtaCommunity consisting of six sections, six townsRivers State, Yenagoa LGA
OrumaInland ỊjọTugbeniTugbeni KạạmạA single town surrounded by Central Delta languagesRivers State, Brass LGA
ỊḅanịKOIN Ụḅanị, Bonny, Obani Okuloma, Okoloḅa 60,000 Rivers State, Bonny LGA; Bonny town and 35 towns and villages. There may be some elderly speakers at Opobo, but this is unconfirmed.
KalaḅarịKOIN KalaḅarịKalaḅarịNew Calabar200,000 Rivers State, Degema and Asari–Toru LGAs; 3 major towns and 24 villages
KịrịkẹKOIN OkrikaOkrika townRivers State, Okrika LGA

In the diaspora

, an extinct creole spoken in Guyana, had a lexicon based partly on an Ịjọ language, perhaps the ancestor of Kalabari.

Education and media

In June 2013, the Izon Fie instructional book and audio CDs were launched at a ceremony attended by officials of the government of Bayelsa State. The Niger Delta University is working to expand the range of books available in the Ijo language. Translations of poetry and the Call of the River Nun by Gabriel Okara are underway.