Igala language

Igala is a Yoruboid language, spoken by the Igala ethnic group of Nigeria. In 1989 an estimated 800,000 spoke Igala, primarily in Kogi State, though current estimates place the number of Igala speakers at upwards of 10.6 million. Dialects include Ibaji, Idah, Dekina, Ogugu, Ankpa, Olu, the Olumbanasaa group (Anambra West); These lgala dialects share deep lexical (vocabulary) and structural similarities with the Yoruba and Itsekiri languages, with varying degrees of influence from neighbouring languages around the Niger-Benue triangular wedge where the Igala homeland is situated.^[2] Renowned linguist Kay Williamson recorded a cognate/similarity score of 66% between Yoruba and Igala, and a score of 56% between Igala and Itsekiri.^[3]

Igala
Native to	Nigeria
Ethnicity	Igala
Native speakers	11 million (2020)[1]
Language family	Niger–Congo? Atlantic–Congo Volta-Congo Volta–Niger yeai Yoruboid Igala
Writing system	Latin
Language codes
ISO 639-3	igl
Glottolog	igal1242

Igala, living on the left bank of the Niger River below its junction with the Benue River. Their language belongs to the Benue–Congo branch of the Niger–Congo family. Their ruler, the Àtá, traditionally also governed two other groups, the Bassa Nge and the Bass Nkome, who live between the Igala and the Benue River.^[4]

Historical background

The first ruler of the kingdom to hold the title of 'Ata' was Ebule-Jonu, a woman; she was later succeeded by her brother, Agana-Poje, who was the father of Idoko.^[5] The origins of the Igala people are traditionally linked to Abutu-Eje, a legendary ancestor believed to have founded the Igala Kingdom during the 13th or 14th century.^[6] During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Igala Kingdom flourished under the leadership of the Ata Igala, a line of influential monarchs. Dominating the region both politically and militarily, the Igala Kingdom played a central role in shaping regional dynamics, influencing nearby ethnic groups and maintaining active trade and diplomatic networks.

Language and dialect

People in Kogi State speak many languages across its 21 local government areas. Most of these languages are part of the Volta-Niger group of Niger-Congo languages.

The following is a list of indigenous languages and dialects in Kogi State, along with the locations where they are traditionally spoken;^[7]

1. Igala Language;^[8]

In Kogi State, the Igala language consists of six main dialects, such as

Idah

Imane

Ogugu

Ankpa

Ibaji

Dekina

Ife Dialects.

It is spoken across Olamaboro, Ankpa, Idah, Omala, Igalamela/Odolu, Ofu, Dekina, Ajaokuta, Bassa, and Ibaji local government area

2. Ebira Language;^[9]

Ebira-Ta’o,

Ebira-Koto/Mozum

Ebira Panda and

Eganyi Ebira

People speak them in Ajaokuta, Adavi, Okene, Okehi, Kotonkarfi, Lokoja, and Bassa.

3. Yoruba Language;^[10]

Owe

Yagba

Ijumu

Gbede

Bunu

Ikiri and

Oworo.

4.Oko Language;^[11]

Oko is spoken by people in Ogori/Magongo LGA.

5. Osayen Language;

Osayen is spoken by people in Magongo in Ogori/Magongo LGA.

6. Eni Language;

Eni is spoken by people in Ogori/Magongo LGA.

7.Ukaan Language

8. Akpes Language

9. Ahan Language

10. Ayere Language

11. Akoko Language;

People in the border areas of Ijumu LGA, between Kogi and Ondo States, speak Ukaan, Akpes, Ahan, Ayere, and Akoko.

12. Bassa-Komu Language

13. Bassa-Nge Language

14. Kupa Language

15. Kakanda Language

16. Nupe Language

There are about 16 native languages and many dialects spoken by the people of Kogi State.

Phonology

Igala's phonology is as follows:^[12]

Consonants

		Labial	Alveolar	Post-alveolar	Palatal	Velar	Labial–velar	Glottal
Nasal		m	n			ŋ
Plosive	Voiceless	p	t			k	k͡p
	Voiced	b	d			ɡ	ɡ͡b
Affricate	Voiceless			t͡ʃ
	Voiced			d͡ʒ
Fricative	Voiceless	f	s	ʃ				h
	Voiced					ɣ	gʷ
Trill			r
Approximant		w	l		j

Vowels

	Front	Central	Back
Close	i, ĩ		u, ũ
Close-Mid	e		o
Open-Mid	ɛ, ɛ̃		ɔ, ɔ̃
Open		a, ã

Igala has seven oral vowels and five nasal vowels.

Alphabet

The Igala alphabet has a total of 31 letters.^[13][14]

Igala alphabet

Capital	Lowercase
A	a
B	b
Ch	ch
D	d
E	e
Ẹ	ẹ
F	f
G	g
Gb	gb
Gw	gw
H	h
I	i
J	j
K	k
Kp	kp
Kw	kw
L	l
M	m
N	n
Ny	ny
Ñ	ñ
Ñm	ñm
Ñw	ñw
O	o
Ọ	ọ
P	p
R	r
T	t
U	u
W	w

Vowels

Igala has seven vowel qualities and seven vowel letters: ⟨a⟩, ⟨e⟩ ⟨ẹ⟩ ⟨i⟩, ⟨o⟩, ⟨ọ⟩, and ⟨u⟩.^[13]

Tones

Igala also has five tones: extra high, high, mid-high, mid, and low.^[13][14]

1. The high tone is represented with an acute accent ⟨◌́⟩.
2. The mid tone is unmarked ⟨◌⟩.
3. The mid-high tone, which is an infrequent tone, is marked with a macron ⟨◌̄⟩.
4. The low tone is marked with a grave accent ⟨◌̀⟩.
5. The extra-high tone, which is usually found in negative statements, is marked with a dot ⟨◌̇⟩.

Homographs

1. The word spelt, agba, depending on the tones used to pronounce it, may have four different meanings, namely:
   1. agba (casual greeting); pronounced with static, sustained Mid or Neutral tone – / ̩a ̩gba/
   2. àgbá (hand-cuffs); pronounced with Low-High tone combination / ̩à ‘gbá /
   3. àgbà (chin); pronounced with Low tone replicated – / ̩à ̩gbà /
   4. ágbá (Balsam tree); pronounced with the High tone duplicated – / á gbá / –
2. The bi-syllabic noun spelt, iga can generate three other words pronounced differently each having its distinct meaning as follows:
   1. ìga (Weaver bird); pronounced with Low-Mid tones – / ̩ ì ‘ga / – and a secondary-primary stress pattern.
   2. ìgà (net); pronounced with the Low tone duplicated – / ̩ ì ̩ gà / – and a secondary-secondary stress pattern.
   3. ìgá (estate); pronounced with the Low-High tone combination – / ̩ ì ‘gá / – and a secondary-primary stress pattern.^[15]