Mel languages
| Mel | |
|---|---|
| Southern (West) Atlantic [reduced] | |
| Geographic distribution |
Guinea-Bissau through Liberia |
| Linguistic classification |
Niger–Congo
|
| Subdivisions |
|
| Glottolog | mela1257 (Mel + Gola) |
The Mel languages are a branch of Niger–Congo languages spoken in Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia. The most populous is Temne, with about two million speakers; Kissi is next, with half a million.
Mel has traditionally been classified as the bulk of a southern branch of a West Atlantic branch of Niger–Congo. However, these are geographic and typological rather than genealogical groups; Segerer (2010) shows that there is no exclusive relationship between Mel and the other southern languages, Gola and Limba.
Sua (Mansoanka)
Glottolog retains Golla but removes Sua, classifying the latter with Mboteni and Mbulungish.
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