The Kpelle /kəˈpɛlə/[2] language (endonym: "Kpɛlɛɛ"[3]) is spoken by the Kpelle people of Liberia, Guinea and Ivory Coast and is part of the Mande language family. Guinean Kpelle (also known as Guerze in French), spoken by half a million people, is concentrated primarily, but not exclusively, in the southeastern forest regions of Guinea bordering Liberia, Ivory Coast, and Sierra Leone. Half a million Liberians speak Liberian Kpelle, which is taught in Liberian schools.
| Kpelle | |
|---|---|
| Kpɛlɛwoo | |
| Region | Liberia, Guinea, Ivory Coast |
| Ethnicity | Kpelle people |
Native speakers | (1.3 million cited 1991–2012)[1] |
Niger-Congo?
| |
| African reference alphabet, Kpelle syllabary | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-2 | kpe |
| ISO 639-3 | kpe – inclusive codeIndividual codes: gkp – Guinea Kpellexpe – Liberia Kpelleknu – Kono |
| Glottolog | kpel1252 |
Sample
The Lord's Prayer in Kpelle:[4]
- Kunâŋ gáa ŋele sui,
- Tɔɔ ku iláai siɣe a maa waa.
- Tɔɔ Ikâloŋ-laai é pá,
- Tɔɔ ínîa-mɛni é kέ,
- Nɔii ma ɓɛ yɛ̂ɛ berei gáa la Ɣâla-taai.
- I kukɔ sâa a kuɣele-kuu tɔnɔ-tɔnɔ mii-sɛŋ;
- I ipôlu fe kutɔ̂ŋ-karaa-ŋai dîa,
- Yɛ̂ɛ berei kwa kupôlu fè la kuɓarâai ditɔ̂ŋ-karaa-ŋai dîai;
- Tɔɔ kutúɛ kufe pili yee-laa-maa su,
- Kέlɛ, i kukúla mɛni nyɔ́mɔɔ su.
Phonology
Consonants
| Labial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Labial-Velar | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plosive | plain | p | t | k | k͡p | |
| voiced | b | d | ɡ | ɡ͡b | ||
| Implosive | ɓ | |||||
| Fricative | plain | f | s | |||
| voiced | v | z | ɣ | |||
| Trill | r | |||||
| Lateral | l | |||||
| Nasal | m | n | ŋ | |||
| Approximant | j | w | ||||
Vowels
| Front | Central | Back | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Close | i | u | |
| Close-mid | e | o | |
| Open-mid | ɛ | ɔ | |
| Open | a |