Languages of Africa

The number of languages natively spoken in Africa is variously estimated (depending on the delineation of language vs. dialect) at between 1,250 and 2,100,^[1] and by some counts at over 3,000.^[2] Nigeria alone has over 500 languages (according to SIL Ethnologue),^[3] one of the greatest concentrations of linguistic diversity in the world. The languages of Africa belong to many distinct language families, among which the largest are:

Niger–Congo, which include the large Atlantic-Congo and Bantu branches in West, Central, Southeast and Southern Africa.
Afroasiatic languages are spread throughout Western Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa and parts of the Sahel.
Saharan, Nilotic and Central Sudanic languages (previously grouped under the hypothetical Nilo-Saharan macro-family), are present in East Africa and Sahel.
Austronesian languages are spoken in Madagascar and parts of the Comoros.
Khoe–Kwadi languages are spoken principally in Namibia and Botswana.
Indo-European languages, while not indigenous to Africa, are spoken in South Africa and Namibia (Afrikaans, English, German) and are used as lingua francas in Liberia and the former colonies of the United Kingdom (English), former colonies of France and of Belgium (French), former colonies of Portugal (Portuguese), former colonies of Italy (Italian), former colonies of Spain (Spanish) and the current Spanish territories of Ceuta, Melilla and the Canary Islands and the current French territories of Mayotte and La Réunion.

There are several other small families and language isolates, as well as creoles and languages that have yet to be classified. In addition, Africa has a wide variety of sign languages, many of which are language isolates.

Around a hundred languages are widely used for interethnic communication. These include Arabic, Somali, Amharic, Oromo, Igbo, Swahili, Hausa, Manding, Fulani and Yoruba, which are spoken as a second (or non-first) language by millions of people. Although many African languages are used on the radio, in newspapers and in primary-school education, and some of the larger ones are considered national languages, only a few are official at the national level. In Sub-Saharan Africa, most official languages at the national level tend to be colonial languages such as French, Portuguese, or English.^[4]^[5]^[6]

The African Union declared 2006 the "Year of African Languages".^[7]

^ Heine & Nurse (2000)
^ Epstein, Edmund L.; Kole, Robert, eds. (1998). The Language of African Literature. Africa World Press. p. ix. ISBN 0-86543-534-0. Retrieved 23 June 2011. Africa is incredibly rich in language—over 3,000 indigenous languages by some counts, and many creoles, pidgins, and lingua francas.
^ "Ethnologue report for Nigeria". Ethnologue Languages of the World.
^ Oluwole, Victor (12 September 2021). "A comprehensive list of all the English-speaking countries in Africa". Business Insider Africa. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
^ Stein-Smith, Kathleen (17 March 2022). "Africa and the French language are growing together in global importance". The Conversation. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
^ Yates, Y. "How Many People Speak Portuguese, And Where Is It Spoken?". Babbel Magazine. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
^ "African Union Summit 2006: Khartoum, Sudan". Southern African Regional Poverty Network. Archived from the original on 30 May 2006.

[1] Heine & Nurse (2000)

[2] Epstein, Edmund L.; Kole, Robert, eds. (1998). The Language of African Literature. Africa World Press. p. ix. ISBN 0-86543-534-0. Retrieved 23 June 2011. Africa is incredibly rich in language—over 3,000 indigenous languages by some counts, and many creoles, pidgins, and lingua francas.

[3] "Ethnologue report for Nigeria". Ethnologue Languages of the World.

[4] Oluwole, Victor (12 September 2021). "A comprehensive list of all the English-speaking countries in Africa". Business Insider Africa. Retrieved 2 September 2023.

[5] Stein-Smith, Kathleen (17 March 2022). "Africa and the French language are growing together in global importance". The Conversation. Retrieved 2 September 2023.

[6] Yates, Y. "How Many People Speak Portuguese, And Where Is It Spoken?". Babbel Magazine. Retrieved 2 September 2023.

[7] "African Union Summit 2006: Khartoum, Sudan". Southern African Regional Poverty Network. Archived from the original on 30 May 2006.

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