Ma'di language
| Ma'di | |
|---|---|
| Ma'diti | |
| Region | Uganda, South Sudan |
| Ethnicity | Madi |
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Native speakers
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ca. 320,000 (2002) |
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Nilo-Saharan?
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| Dialects |
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| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | |
| Glottolog | madi1260 |
| Ma'di in the media | |
|---|---|
| Printed material in Ma'di is scarce and hard to find. The only general published works in Ma'di are missionary publications such as the translation of the New Testament, and prayer and song booklets by the Catholic missionaries. The Ma'di Ethnic and Heritage Welfare Association in Britain publishes a quarterly bilingual (English and Ma'di) paper called Ma'di Lelego.
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The Ma'di language (pronounced [màɗí]) is found in Uganda and South Sudan. (The apostrophe before the letter d denotes it as an implosive). The Madi people refer to their language as Ma'di ti literally: Ma'di mouth.
The Ma'di people are found in Magwi County in the Sudan, and in Adjumani and Moyo districts in Uganda. The population is about 390,000 people (90,000 in the Sudan).
Ma'di language is mutuallly intelligible with Olu'bo, Lugbara, Moru, Avokaya, Kaliko and Logo, all of which are part of the Moru-Madi clade.
Most Ma'di people are bilingual. In Uganda, the educated class speak English as the second language. Some also speak Swahili. In South Sudan, the educated Ma'dis speak English and/or Arabic. The South Sudanese Ma'di also speak Juba Arabic, spoken in the South Sudan and not understood in the North. The form of Juba Arabic spoken by the Ma'di is influenced by Nubi/Kinubi spoken in Uganda among Moslems who are mainly descendents of Gordon's troops. Loanwords in Ugandan Ma'di are therefore mainly of English and/or Swahili origin and in Sudanese Ma'di of English and/or Juba Arabic origin.
There is an interesting linguistic interaction between the Ma'di, the Acholi and the Kuku (kuku). Most Ma'dis speak Acholi but hardly any Acholi speak Ma'di. This is possibly because during the first civil war in the Sudan, most Sudanese Ma'di were seuled among the Acholi in Uganda. Possibly for the same reasons, most Kukus speak fluent Ugandan Ma'di. but hardly any Ma'di speaks Kuku. It is still possible even today to find among the Sudanese Ma'di people who can trace their ancestry to the neighbouring tribes – Bari, Kuku, Pajulu. Acholi etc. Hardly any of them can now speak their 'ancestral' languages; they speak Ma'di only and have become fully absorbed into the Ma'di community.
The Ma'di Ethnic and Heritage Welfare Association in Britain publishes a quarterly bilingual (English and Ma'di) paper called Ma'di Lelego.
In the spring 1998, Radio Uganda made the regular broadcasts in Ma'di (all programmes except 'Listeners' Favorite' last 15 minutes).
The programmes included:
...
Wikipedia