Bobo language

Bɔbɔ
Bobo Fing
Region	Burkina, Mali
Ethnicity	Bobo
Native speakers	220,000 (1995–2007)[1]
Language family	Niger–Congo Mande Western Mande Northwestern Soninke–Bobo Bɔbɔ
Language codes
ISO 639-3	Either: bwq – Southern bbo – Konabéré
Glottolog	bobo1253[2]
Majority areas of Bobo speakers, in medium yellow, on a map of Burkina Faso

Bobo (Bɔbɔ; also known as Bobo Fi, Bobo Fign, Bobo Fing, Bobo Mandaré, Black Bobo) is a major Mande language of Burkina Faso; the western city of Bobo Dioulasso is named partly for the Bobo people. Bobo consists of:

• Southern dialects: Syabéré (Sya), Benge, Sogokiré, Voré, Zara (Bobo Dioula/Jula)
• Northern AKA Konabéré dialects: Yaba, Sankuma (Sarokama), Jèrè, Tankri, Kure, Kukoma (Koma).

Northern and Southern Bobo share only 20%–30% intelligibility according to Ethnologue, and by that standard are considered separate languages.

The terms Bobo Fing 'Black Bobo' and Bobo Mandaré are used to distinguish them from Bobo Gbe 'White Bobo' and the Bobo Oule 'Red Bobo' of Burkina.

References

1. Southern at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
   Konabéré at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015)
2. Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, eds. (2013). "Bobo". Glottolog. Leipzig: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology.

External links

• Bobo basic lexicon at the Global Lexicostatistical Database