Khoe languages
Encyclopedia
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 attested Kwadi language
of Angola
. This larger group, for which pronouns and some basic vocabulary have been reconstructed, is called Kwadi–Khoe. Beyond that, the nearest relative may be the Sandawe
isolate; the Sandawe pronoun system is very similar to that of Kwadi–Khoe, but there are not enough known correlations for regular sound correspondences to be worked out.
The most numerous and only well known Khoe language is Nama
of Namibia
, also known as Khoekhoegowab or Hottentot. The rest of the family is found predominantly in the Kalahari Desert
of Botswana
.
The Khoe languages were the first Khoisan languages known to European colonists, and are famous for their clicks
, though these are not as extensive as in other Khoisan language families. There are two primary branches of the family, Khoekhoe of Namibia and South Africa
, and Tshu–Khwe of Botswana and Zimbabwe
. Except for Nama, they are under pressure from national or regional languages such as Tswana
.
) continued west, whereas those who settled in the Kalahari absorbed speakers of Juu languages. Thus the Khoe family proper has a Juu influence. These immigrants were ancestral to the north-eastern Kalahari peoples (Eastern Tshu–Khwe branch linguistically), whereas Juu neighbors (or perhaps Kx'a neighbors more generally) to the southwest who shifted to Khoe were ancestral to the Western Tshu–Khwe branch.
Later desiccation of the Kalahari led to the adoption of a hunter-gatherer
economy, and preserved the Kalahari peoples from absorption by the agricultural Bantu when they spread south.
Those Khoe who continued southwestwards retained pastoralism, and became the Khoekhoe. They mixed extensively with speakers of Tuu languages
, absorbing features of their languages. The expansion of the Nama people into Namibia, and their absorption of client peoples such as the Damara and Haiǁom, took place in the 16th century and later, at about the time of European contact and colonization.
Bantu languages
The Bantu languages constitute a traditional sub-branch of the Niger–Congo languages. There are about 250 Bantu languages by the criterion of mutual intelligibility, though the distinction between language and dialect is often unclear, and Ethnologue counts 535 languages...
language families
Language family
A language family is a group of languages related through descent from a common ancestor, called the proto-language of that family. The term 'family' comes from the tree model of language origination in historical linguistics, which makes use of a metaphor comparing languages to people in a...
indigenous to southern Africa. They are often considered to be a branch of a suspected Khoisan
Khoisan languages
The Khoisan languages are the click languages of Africa which do not belong to other language families. They include languages indigenous to southern and eastern Africa, though some, such as the Khoi languages, appear to have moved to their current locations not long before the Bantu expansion...
language family, and are known as Central Khoisan in that scenario. The nearest relative of the Khoe family is the extinct and poorly attested Kwadi language
Kwadi language
Kwadi is a "click language" of uncertain classification once spoken in the southwest corner of Angola. It is believed to be extinct. There were only fifty Kwadi in the 1950s, of which only 4–5 were competent speakers of the language...
of 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...
. This larger group, for which pronouns and some basic vocabulary have been reconstructed, is called Kwadi–Khoe. Beyond that, the nearest relative may be the Sandawe
Sandawe language
Sandawe or Sandawi is a tonal language spoken by about 40,000 Sandawe people in the Dodoma region of Tanzania. Language use is vigorous among both adults and children, with people in some areas monolingual. Sandawe had generally been classified as a member of the defunct Khoisan family since Albert...
isolate; the Sandawe pronoun system is very similar to that of Kwadi–Khoe, but there are not enough known correlations for regular sound correspondences to be worked out.
The most numerous and only well known Khoe language is Nama
Nama language
The Khoekhoe language, or Khoekhoegowab, also known by the ethnic term Nàmá and previously the now-discouraged term Hottentot, is the most widespread of the Khoisan languages. It belongs to the Khoe language family, and is spoken in Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa by three ethnic groups, the...
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...
, also known as Khoekhoegowab or Hottentot. The rest of the family is found predominantly in the Kalahari Desert
Kalahari Desert
The Kalahari Desert is a large semi-arid sandy savannah in Southern Africa extending , covering much of Botswana and parts of Namibia and South Africa, as semi-desert, with huge tracts of excellent grazing after good rains. The Kalahari supports more animals and plants than a true desert...
of 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...
.
The Khoe languages were the first Khoisan languages known to European colonists, and are famous for their clicks
Click consonant
Clicks are speech sounds found as consonants in many languages of southern Africa, and in three languages of East Africa. Examples of these sounds familiar to English speakers are the tsk! tsk! or tut-tut used to express disapproval or pity, the tchick! used to spur on a horse, and the...
, though these are not as extensive as in other Khoisan language families. There are two primary branches of the family, Khoekhoe of Namibia and 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 Tshu–Khwe of Botswana and Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
. Except for Nama, they are under pressure from national or regional languages such as 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...
.
History
Tom Güldemann believes agro-pastoralist people speaking the Khoe–Kwadi proto-language entered modern-day Botswana about 2000 years ago from the northeast (that is, in the direction of the modern Sandawe), where they had likely acquired agriculture from the expanding Bantu, at a time when the Kalahari was more amenable to agriculture. The ancestors of the Kwadi (and perhaps DamaraDamara people
The Damara are an ethnic group who make up 8.5% of Namibia's population...
) continued west, whereas those who settled in the Kalahari absorbed speakers of Juu languages. Thus the Khoe family proper has a Juu influence. These immigrants were ancestral to the north-eastern Kalahari peoples (Eastern Tshu–Khwe branch linguistically), whereas Juu neighbors (or perhaps Kx'a neighbors more generally) to the southwest who shifted to Khoe were ancestral to the Western Tshu–Khwe branch.
Later desiccation of the Kalahari led to the adoption of a hunter-gatherer
Hunter-gatherer
A hunter-gatherer or forage society is one in which most or all food is obtained from wild plants and animals, in contrast to agricultural societies which rely mainly on domesticated species. Hunting and gathering was the ancestral subsistence mode of Homo, and all modern humans were...
economy, and preserved the Kalahari peoples from absorption by the agricultural Bantu when they spread south.
Those Khoe who continued southwestwards retained pastoralism, and became the Khoekhoe. They mixed extensively with speakers of Tuu languages
Tuu languages
The Tuu or Taa–ǃKwi languages are a language family consisting of two language clusters spoken in Botswana and South Africa. The relationship between the two clusters is not doubted, but is not close. The name Tuu comes from a word for person common to both branches of the family...
, absorbing features of their languages. The expansion of the Nama people into Namibia, and their absorption of client peoples such as the Damara and Haiǁom, took place in the 16th century and later, at about the time of European contact and colonization.
Classification
Language classifications may list one or two dozen Khoe languages. Because many are dialect clusters, there is a level of subjectivity involved in identifying them. Counting each dialect cluster as a unit results in nine languages, not counting two questionably related languages:- NamaNama languageThe Khoekhoe language, or Khoekhoegowab, also known by the ethnic term Nàmá and previously the now-discouraged term Hottentot, is the most widespread of the Khoisan languages. It belongs to the Khoe language family, and is spoken in Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa by three ethnic groups, the...
(ethnonyms Khoekhoen, Nama, Damara) is a dialect cluster including ǂAakhoe and Haiǁom - XiriXiri languageXiri or Xirikwa, in Afrikaans orthography Gri or Griqua , is a Khoe language of South Africa. It is related to Nama...
is a dialect cluster also known as Griqua (Afrikaans spelling) or Cape Hottentot. - ShuaShua languageShwa or Shwakhwe, commonly spelled Shua, is a Khoe language of Botswana. It is spoken in central Botswana , and in parts of the Chobe District in the extreme north of Botswana. There are approximately 6,000 speakers . The term Shwakhwe means people from the salty area...
is a dialect cluster including Shwa, Deti, Tsʼixa, ǀXaise, and Ganádi - TsoaTsoa languageTsoa or Tshwa, also known as Kua and Hiechware, is a Khoe language spoken by about 9300 speakers in Botswana and Zimbabwe .-Dialects:Tsoa–Kua is a dialect cluster....
is a dialect cluster including Cire Cire and Kua - KxoeKxoe languageKhwe 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...
is a dialect cluster including ǁAni and Buga - NaroNaro languageNaro is a Khoe language spoken in the Ghanzi District of Botswana and in eastern Namibia, where it is sometimes called Nharo. There are about 14,000 speakers: 10,000 in Botswana and 4,000 in Namibia . This makes it probably the most-spoken of the Tshu–Khwe languages...
is a dialect cluster - Gǁana is a dialect cluster including Gǁana proper, Gǀwi. ǂHabaǂHaba languageǂHaba is a variety of the Khoe languages spoken in Botswana. Traditionally included in the Gǁana–Gǀwi dialect cluster, it may actually be closer to Naro. It is endangered, with most ǂHaba speaking Naro.-Phonology:...
is often included here, but may be closer to Naro.