| Luhya | |
|---|---|
| Luyia | |
| Oluluhya | |
| Native to | Kenya |
| Ethnicity | Luhya |
Native speakers | 30 million (2019 census)[1] |
| Latin | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | luy – inclusive code (includes all languages spoken by ethnic Luhya, not just the following)[2]Individual codes: lrm – Maramalwg – Wanga (Hanga)lks – Kisalto – Tsotsolkb – Kabrasnle – (East) Nyala |
| Glottolog | cent2288 Central Luyia (incl. some Nyore)kabr1240 Kabras |
JE.32[3] | |
Luhya (/ˈluːjə/; also Luyia, LuhiaorLuhiya) is a Bantu languageofwestern Kenya.
The various Luhya tribes speak several related languages and dialects, though some of them are no closer to each other than they are to neighboring non-Luhya languages. For example, the Bukusu people are ethnically Luhya, but the Bukusu dialect is a variety of Masaba. (See Luhya people for details.) However, there is a core of mutually intelligible dialects that comprise Luhya proper:[4]
A comparison between two dialects of Luhya proper, and to two other Bantu languages spoken by the Luhya:
| English | Kisa | Logoli | Nyole | Wanga |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I (me) | eshie | nzi/ inze | ise | esie |
| words | amakhuwa | makuva | amang'ana, amakhuwa | amakhuwa |
| chair | eshifumbi | indeve/ endeve | indebe | eshisala |
| head | omurwe | mutwi | omurwe | om'rwe |
| money | amapesa | mang'ondo | amang'ondo, am'mondo, etsilupia | amapesa, irupia |
| English | Luhya | Kikuyu | Kinyarwanda | Lingala | Luganda | Shona | Swahili | Zulu |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| children | abana, baana, otwana, orwana, vaana | twana | abana | bana | baana, abaana | vana | wana | abantwana |
| dog | imbwa | ngui (pron. gui) | imbwa | mbwa | mbwa, embwa | mbwa, imbwa | mbwa | inja |
| fire | omuliro | mwaki | umuriro | moto | omuliro | moto | moto | umlilo |
The following is the phonology of the Luwanga dialect:[5]
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i iː | u uː | |
| Mid | e eː | o oː | |
| Open | a aː |
| Bilabial | Labio- dental |
Alveolar | Post- alveolar |
Palatal | Velar | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stop | plain | p | t | k | |||
| prenasal | ᵐb | ⁿd | ᶮɟ | ᵑɡ | |||
| Affricate | ts | tʃ | |||||
| Fricative | plain | β | f | s | ʃ | x | |
| prenasal | ⁿz | ||||||
| Nasal | m | n | ɲ | ŋ | |||
| Trill | r | ||||||
| Approximant | l | j | w | ||||
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