Kxoe language
Encyclopedia
Khwe Kxoe is a dialect continuum
of the Khoe
family of Namibia
, Angola
, Botswana
, South Africa
, and small parts of Zambia
, with some 11,000 speakers. It is learned locally as a second language in Namibia, but the language is being lost in Botswana as speakers shift to Tswana
, under threat of deportation if they do not speak that language. Thousands of Kxoe were murdered in Angola after independence, as they had been used by the Portuguese as trackers, and the survivors fled to Zambia. However, some may have returned to Angola more recently.
There is currently a dictionary
of the Kxoe language.
Angola: ~800
Botswana: ~5,000
South Africa: ~1,100
Zambia: ~100
DR Congo: ~50 (refugees from Angola)
Dialect continuum
A dialect continuum, or dialect area, was defined by Leonard Bloomfield as a range of dialects spoken across some geographical area that differ only slightly between neighboring areas, but as one travels in any direction, these differences accumulate such that speakers from opposite ends of the...
of the Khoe
Khoe languages
The Khoe languages are the largest of the non-Bantu language families indigenous to southern Africa. They are often considered to be a branch of a suspected Khoisan language family, and are known as Central Khoisan in that scenario. The nearest relative of the Khoe family is the extinct and poorly...
family of Namibia
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
, Angola
Angola
Angola, officially the Republic of Angola , is a country in south-central Africa bordered by Namibia on the south, the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the north, and Zambia on the east; its west coast is on the Atlantic Ocean with Luanda as its capital city...
, Botswana
Botswana
Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, and small parts of Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
, with some 11,000 speakers. It is learned locally as a second language in Namibia, but the language is being lost in Botswana as speakers shift to Tswana
Tswana language
Tswana or Setswana is a language spoken in Southern Africa by about 4.5 million people. It is a Bantu language belonging to the Niger–Congo language family within the Sotho languages branch of Zone S , and is closely related to the Northern- and Southern Sotho languages, as well as the Kgalagadi...
, under threat of deportation if they do not speak that language. Thousands of Kxoe were murdered in Angola after independence, as they had been used by the Portuguese as trackers, and the survivors fled to Zambia. However, some may have returned to Angola more recently.
There is currently a dictionary
Dictionary
A dictionary is a collection of words in one or more specific languages, often listed alphabetically, with usage information, definitions, etymologies, phonetics, pronunciations, and other information; or a book of words in one language with their equivalents in another, also known as a lexicon...
of the Kxoe language.
User breakdown
Namibia: ~4,000Angola: ~800
Botswana: ~5,000
South Africa: ~1,100
Zambia: ~100
DR Congo: ~50 (refugees from Angola)
Dialects
- Khoe-dam or Khwedam or Khwe or Xun or Huhwe
- ǁXo-kxoe
- ǁXom-kxoe
- Buma-kxoe
- Buga-kxoe or -khwe
- ǁAni or ǁAni-kxoe or ǀAnda or Tsʼéxa or Tannekwe or Gani-khwe or various combinations of Handá + kwe + dam.