lingvo.wikisort.org - Language

Lese is a Central Sudanic language of northeastern Congo-Kinshasa, as well as a name for the people who speak this language. The Lese people, live in association with the Efé Pygmies and share their language, which is occasionally known as Lissi or Efe.

Lese
Efé
Native to	Congo-Kinshasa
Region	Ituri forest
Native speakers	(70,000 cited 1991)[1]
Language family	Nilo-Saharan? Central Sudanic Eastern Mangbutu–Lese Lese
Language codes
ISO 639-3	Either: les – Lese efe – Efe
Glottolog	lese1243  Lese efee1239  Efe

Although Efe is given a separate ISO code, Bahuchet (2006) notes that it is not even a distinct dialect, though there is dialectical variation in the language of the Lese (Dese, Karo).

Lese is spoken in Mambasa Territory, Watsa Territory, and Irumu Territory.[2]

Phonology

Consonants

		Labial	Alveolar	Retroflex	Palatal	Velar	Labio- velar	Glottal
Plosive	voiceless	p	t	ʈ		k	k͡p	ʔ
	voiced	b	d			ɡ	ɡ͡b
	implosive	ɓ	ɗ				ɠ͡ɓ
Fricative	voiceless	f	s					h
	voiced	v
Affricate	voiceless	p͡f			t͡ʃ
	voiced	b͡v			d͡ʒ
Nasal		m	n
Lateral			l
Rhotic			r
Approximant					j		w

• Lese can also have a doubly articulated [q͡p].[3]
• /r/ can also be heard as a tap sound [ɾ].[4]

Vowels

	Front	Central	Back
Close	i		u
Near-close	ɪ		ʊ
Close-mid	e		o
Open-mid	ɛ		ɔ
Open		a

• In rare cases, /ɛ/ can be heard in phonological opposition as a rounded [œ].[5]

References

• Bahuchet, Serge. 2006. "Languages of the African Rainforest « Pygmy » Hunter-Gatherers: Language Shifts without Cultural Admixture." In Historical linguistics and hunter-gatherers populations in global perspective. Leipzig.

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