Tonga language (Malawi)

Tonga
Malawi Tonga
ChiTonga
Native to	Malawi
Ethnicity	Tonga
Native speakers	170,000 (2001)[1]
Language family	Niger–Congo? Atlantic–Congo Benue–Congo Bantoid Bantu Nyasa languages Tonga
Official status
Recognised minority language in	Malawi
Language codes
ISO 639-2	tog
ISO 639-3	tog
Glottolog	tong1321
Guthrie code	N.15[2]

Tonga (native name Chitonga) is a Bantu language spoken mainly in the Nkhata Bay District of Malawi.^[3] The number of speakers is estimated to be 170,000 (2001 estimate).^[4] According to the Mdawuku wa Atonga (MWATO) (formerly the Nkhata Bay Tonga Heritage) there are also significant numbers of speakers living elsewhere in Malawi and in neighbouring countries.

The Tonga language of Malawi is described as "similar" to Tumbuka, and Turner's dictionary (1952)^[5] lists only those words which differ from the Tumbuka, with the added comment that "the Tonga folk, being rapid speakers, slur or elide the final syllable of many words, e.g. kulira becomes kuliya, kukura becomes kukuwa, kutola becomes kuto’." Tonga (Nyasa), i.e. Malawian Tonga, is grouped in the Glottolog classification along with Tumbuka in a single group.

Malawian Tonga is classified by Guthrie as being in Zone N15, whereas the Zambian Tonga is classified as Zone M64 and can thus be considered a different language.