Western Nilotic languages

The Western Nilotic languages are one of the three main groups of Nilotic languages. The other two groups are the Eastern Nilotic languages and the Southern Nilotic languages. All of these languages belong to the larger Eastern Sudanic family, which is part of the Nilo-Saharan language group.

About 22 Western Nilotic languages are spoken by people living in several countries in East and Central Africa. These languages are spoken from southwestern Ethiopia and South Sudan, through northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and northern Uganda, all the way to southwestern Kenya. One of the Luo languages even reaches into northern Tanzania. These languages are important because they help us understand how people in these areas communicate and share their culture.

History

According to historian Christopher Ehret, the original home of the Western Nilotic languages was in the southern part of Blue Nile State around the year 2000 BCE. From there, the language split into two groups: the Burun group stayed in their area, while the Jii group moved southwest. The Jii group later split into the Dinka–Nuer languages and the Luo languages, happening by the end of the second millennium or the beginning of the last millennium before Christ.

Families

The Western Nilotic languages are a group of languages that belong to the larger Nilotic languages family. They are part of the Kir–Abbaian and Eastern Sudan subfamilies, which are themselves part of the Nilo-Saharan language family.

Subdivisions

Western Nilotic languages are split into three main groups: Dinka–Nuer, Luo, and Burun. The Luo languages are the most widely spoken of these groups and include languages such as Shilluk, Luwo, Thuri, Belanda Bor, Burun, Päri, Anuak, and Southern Luo.

The Dinka–Nuer group includes languages like Nuer and Dinka. The Burun group includes Northern and Southern Burun.