Native to Angola, Zambia | ||
Native speakers (undated figure of 900,000) Language family Niger–Congo
Atlantic–Congo
Benue–Congo
Southern Bantoid
Bantu (Zone K)
Chokwe–Luchazi (K.10)
Luchazi Recognised minority
language in Angola (as "Nganguela" or "Ganguela") ISO 639-3 lch – inclusive code
Individual codes:
lch – Luchazi
nba – Nyemba (Ngangela)
mfu – Mbwela Glottolog luch1239 (Luchazi)
nyem1238 (Nyemba)
mbwe1238 (Mbwela) | ||
Luchazi (Lucazi, Chiluchazi) is a Bantu language of Angola and Zambia. Ethnically distinct varieties, many of which are subsumed under the generic term Ngangela, are all "fully intelligible". These are Luchazi itself, Nyemba, Mbwela of Angola (Ambuella, Shimbwera, not to be confused with Mbwela of Zambia) and Ngonzela.
Sounds
Luchazi proper has five vowels (/a ɛ i ɔ u/), three tone levels, and the following consonants:
There are also prenasalized stops, /mpʰ ntʰ ŋkʰ/, /mb nd ɲdʒ ŋɡ/.
There are possibly other consonants, such as /ts/(?) and /tʲ/(?). /ʃ/ and /ŋ/ are rare and may be from loans.
References
Lucazi language Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA