Samburu | |
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Sampur, ɔl Maa | |
Native to | Kenya |
Region | Samburu district of Rift Valley Province |
Native speakers
|
240,000 (2009 census) (including Camus) |
Nilo-Saharan?
|
|
Dialects |
|
Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 |
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Glottolog | samb1315 |
Samburu is the Eastern Nilotic, North Maa language spoken by the Samburu in the highlands of northern Kenya. The Samburu number about 128,000 (or 147,000 including the Camus/Chamus). Samburu is closely related to Camus (88% to 94% lexical similarity; Camus is sometimes considered a Samburu dialect) and to the South Maa language Maasai (77% to 89% lexical similarity). The word Samburu itself derives from the old Maa word 'saamburr' for the leather bag the Samburu use.
Several different tribes in Kenya use this language, The Ilchamus, for example.