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ᵐb


ᵐba v. able (be) pouvoir (7 groups, 14 languages) A
This is the regular verb 'to be able'. A final *n is found in Sharwa, Gemzek and Kirya, but is not part of the original root.
1Proto-Bata *ᵐba able pouvoir 1.1) Bachama (Skinner) ᵐba(m) be able, master 1.2) Sharwa (Gravina) ᵐban Capable
2Proto-Daba *ᵐbaj able pouvoir 2.1) Daba (Lienhard) ᵐbāj connaître, capable
3Proto-Hurza *ᵐba able pouvoir 3.1) Mbuko (Gravina) ᵐba can pouvoir
4Proto-Mandara *ᵐba able pouvoir 4.1) Podoko (Swackhammer) ᵐba faire attention; savoir (faire)
5Proto-Mofu *ᵐba able pouvoir 5.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbì être capable, pouvoir 5.1.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbàkò pouvoir 5.2) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbà (áhə́r) vaincre, surpasser; pouvoir, avoir la faculté de 5.3) Gemzek (Sabatai) maᵐbana (be) able (être) capable 5.4) Merey (Gravina) ᵐba faja (be) able (être) capable 5.5) Dugwor (Jubumna) maᵐbij hafaŋ know how to savoir (être capable de) 5.5.1) Dugwor (Jubumna) maᵐbij fahaŋ (be) able (être) capable 5.6) Merey (Gravina) ᵐba able pouvoir
6Proto-Higi *ᵐba able pouvoir 6.1) Kirya (Blench) ᵐbànə́ to be able to, can 6.2) Bana (Lienhard) ᵐbà(j) savoir faire (doit être suivi par pronom obj.)
7Proto-Gidar *ɨbapa able pouvoir 7.1) Gidar (Hungerford) əbapa savoir (être capable de), pouvoir
ᵐbaɮa nm. beer bière (7 groups, 14 languages) A syn: ɣʷɨzɨm, vɨhʷ.
This is one of three widespread roots for 'millet beer'. It may be cognate with the Kanuri ᵐbal. If so, it is more likley that the Kanuri borrowed from Central Chadic than vice versa. If the word was borrowed from Kanuri, the change *l→ɮ would have been natural at the time of Proto-Central Chadic when *l was not a phoneme in the language. *l developed in Proto-Central Chadic North as a result of the regular change *r→l, so if the word was borrowed into Central Chadic after that time the change would have been unnatural. For this reason it is more likely that this is a native Central Chadic root.
1Proto-Daba *ᵐbaɮa beer bière 1.1) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) ⁿdaɮa corn beer bière de maïs 1.2) Daba (Lienhard) ᵐbàɮāʼ le vin non-filtré, la bière épaisse
2Proto-Sukur *mɨpaɮɨ beer bière 2.1) Sukur (Thomas) məpaɮə beer; is the general term for beer.
3Proto-Mandara *ᵐbaɮa beer bière 3.1) Mandara (Fluckiger) ᵐbaɮa vin (m), toute boisson alcoolisée 3.2) Malgwa (Löhr) ᵐbadhla, hʷa, wuʃike alcoholic beverage (beer, wine)
4Proto-Mofu *ᵐbaɮa beer bière 4.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbàɮà bière épaisse ; (mouyangué) 4.2) Muyang (Smith) ᵐbɑɮɑ white wine vin blanc 4.3) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbaɮa white wine made in the village fabriqué au village 4.3.1) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbaɮa 4.4) Mofu North (Barreteau) ᵐbàɮà bière de mil chaude 4.5) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ᵐbaɮa bière de mil chaude
5Proto-Maroua *ᵐbaɮa beer bière 5.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ᵐbaɮa la bière du mil, vin 5.1.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ᵐbaɮa bière de mil blanche épaisse
6Proto-Higi *ᵐbaɮɨ beer bière 6.1) Kamwe-Nkafa (Harley) baɮə wine 6.1.1) Kamwe-Nkafa (Harley) bàɮə̀ local wine. 6.2) Bana (Lienhard) ᵐbèɮ(ì) bière de mil blanc, vin blanc
7Proto-Gidar *ᵐbaɮa beer bière 7.1) Gidar (Schuh) ᵐbaɮa bière non-tamisée
ᵐbatuɓ n. baobab baobab (4 groups, 6 languages) C syn: kʷɨkaɗ.
This root is far less widespread than *kʷɨkaɗ. It is problematic in that it contains a back vowel, and back vowels were not present in Proto-Central Chadic. It must be assumed that this root was either coined in Proto-Mafa, or else was borrowed into the languages of the Mandara Mountains at an early stage.
1Proto-Daba *matuɓ baobab baobab 1.1) Buwal (Viljoen) mɑtɑɓ baobab tree baobab 1.2) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) matu ɓ baobab tree baobab
2Proto-Mafa *ᵐbota baobab baobab 2.1) Mafa (Barreteau) ᵐboto-ᵐbótá baobab 2.2) Cuvok (Gravina) ᵐbaataj baobab tree baobab
3Proto-Sukur *ᵐbutɨ baobab baobab 3.1) Sukur (David) ᵐbutə tree, baobab
4Proto-Mofu *ᵐbaataɓ baobab baobab 4.1) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) máataɓ baobab 4.1.1) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ᵐbáataj baobab (Gudur)
ᵐbɨɗa v. change changer (8 groups, 24 languages) A
This root has the basic sense 'to change', with extended meanings including 'to turn', 'to exchange', 'to translate' etc. There was a regular word-final change *ɗ→r in part of the Higi group, but otherwise this root has been transmitted largely unchanged.
1Proto-Daba *ᵐbaɗ change changer 1.1) Buwal (Viljoen) ᵐbɑɗ exchange échanger 1.1.1) Buwal (Viljoen) ᵐbɑɗ change changer 1.2) Gavar (Viljoen) ᵐbɑɗ alter, change (tr) changer (tr), modifier 1.2.1) Gavar (Viljoen) ᵐbɑɗ barter, exchange échange (de marchandises)
2Proto-Sukur *ᵐbɨɗa change change 2.1) Sukur (Thomas) ᵐbəɗa change; to exchange position, place, etc. With something else, so that you have what they have, and they have what you have.
3Proto-Hurza *ᵐbɨɗa change changer 3.1) Mbuko (Gravina) ᵐbəɗa transform transformer 3.2) Vame (Kinnaird) ᵐbə̀ɗédè ʒèk transform transformer
4Proto-Mandara *ᵐbɨɗa change changer 4.1) Matal (Branger) mabəɗla change changer 4.2) Podoko (Swackhammer) ᵐbə́ɗa changer, échanger 4.3) Mandara (Fluckiger) ᵐbéɗá changer, tomber - v. int. = mbádá 4.3.1) Mandara (Fluckiger) ᵐbáɗá (se) changer, (se) transformer 4.4) Malgwa (Löhr) ᵐbaɗa lakʷa change place temporarily 4.5) Dghwede (Frick) ᵐbətʼa to change
5Proto-Mofu *ᵐbɨɗ change changer 5.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbaɗ aɬam exchange échanger 5.1.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbaɗ aɬam replace remplacer 5.2) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbaɗ transform transformer 5.2.1) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbaɗ turn tourner 5.2.2) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbaɗ change changer 5.2.3) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbaɗ become devenir 5.3) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbə̀ɗ changer, se modifier 5.4) Gemzek (Sabatai) ᵐbəɗ change (intr) changer (intr) 5.5) Dugwor (Jubumna) məᵐbəɗeŋ alter, change (tr) changer (tr), modifier 5.5.1) Dugwor (Jubumna) məᵐbəɗej change (intr) changer (intr) 5.6) Mofu North (Barreteau) méᵐbə̀ɗēj tourner, se retourner 5.6.1) Mofu North (Barreteau) méᵐbə̀ɗēj verser 5.6.2) Mofu North (Barreteau) méᵐbə̀ɗēj échanger, tranformer 5.6.3) Mofu North (Barreteau) méᵐbə̀ɗēj traduire 5.7) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ᵐbəɗ ́ turn around (se) tourner, retourner 5.7.1) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ᵐbəɗ ́ changer, échanger, (se) transformer ; traduire
6Proto-Maroua *ᵐbɨɗa ʸ change changer 6.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ᵐbiɗi changer 6.2) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) ᵐbiɗe alter, change (tr) changer (tr), modifier
7Proto-Lamang *ᵐbɨɗa change changer 7.1) Lamang (Wolff) ᵐboɗo change, turn 7.2) Hdi (Bramlett) ᵐbəɗaj to transform, to turn échanger,tourner
8Proto-Higi *ᵐbɨɗɨ change changer 8.1) Kamwe-Nkafa (Harley) ᵐbə́rə́ntə́ Changed. 8.2) Kirya (Blench) ᵐbə̀rá to change, exchange 8.3) Bana (Lienhard) ᵐbə́rə́ varier, changer, échanger, remplacer, devenir
ᵐbɨkʷɨm n. horn corne (4 groups, 7 languages) C syn: lagan, dɨrɨm, mahʷa.
This is one of the less common roots for 'horn'. The roots given come from three very distant areas, so this may be a root which had a far wider range, or it may be that this word exists in more languages but hasn't yet been recorded, or else these may simply be chance similarities.
1Proto-Tera *ᵐbaʔʷamⁿda horn corne 1.1) Gaʼanda (Gwaji) ᵐboʼomⁿda animal horn
2Proto-Hurza *ɓaᵑgʷam horn corne 2.1) Vame (Kinnaird) ɓáŋgʷàm antenna ; horn ; antler antenne ; corne
3Proto-Mofu *ᵐbɨkʷam horn corne 3.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) āᵐbə́kām horn corne 3.2) Moloko (Friesen) moᵑgom horn, all types corne; toutes_sortes 3.3) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbùkúm corne f. 3.4) Gemzek (Sabatai) ᵐbukom horn corne
4Proto-Musgum *amakʷ horn corne 4.1) Vulum (Tourneux) amok corne d'animal
ᵐbɨlala ʸ n. elephant éléphant (3 groups, 6 languages) A syn: dzɨwɨn ʸ, gɨwɨn, nɨvi.
This root is found in five contiguous languages, and in Tsuvan which is very distant from these languages. The Tsuvan root follows the right patterning to be the result of contact with the other languages, but the physical and genetic distance between it and the other languages makes it more likely that this is a chance similarity.
1Proto-Bata *ᵐbaɮa elephant éléphant 1.1) Tsuvan (Johnston) ᵐbaɮa l'éléphant
2Proto-Hurza *ᵐbɨla ʸ elephant éléphant 2.1) Mbuko (Gravina) ᵐbəle elephant éléphant 2.2) Vame (Kinnaird) ᵐbèlèlèk elephant éléphant
3Proto-Mofu *ᵐbala ʸ elephant éléphant 3.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbèlè elephant éléphant 3.2) Muyang (Smith) ᵐbeli elephant éléphant 3.3) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbəlele elephant éléphant 3.3.1) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbəlele
ᵐbɨr v. to get well guérir (6 groups, 17 languages) A
This verb has the sense of getting better after an illness, and can be used transitively with a human object for curing a person of an illness. The *r→l in the North sub-branch and in Proto-Daba is a regular change. The change *r→ɗ in the Bata group is an irregular change.
1Proto-Bata *ᵐbɨɗ cure guérir 1.1) Gude (Hoskinson) əᵐbi cure, get well, heal up 1.1.1) Gude (Hoskinson) əᵐbi be enough 1.1.2) Gude (Hoskinson) ᵐbii heal (of sore only, not of sickness) 1.1.3) Gude (Hoskinson) ᵐbii be enough 1.2) Jimi (Djibi) ᵐbəɗən 1 - Rester; qui est resté quand les autres sont ou ont fini.; 2 - Guérir;
2Proto-Daba *ᵐbɨl cure guérir 2.1) Gavar (Viljoen) ᵐbəl get well, recover se remettre, se guérir 2.2) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) ᵐbəl heal (trans.), cure (v) guérir 2.2.1) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) kəᵐbəl get well se remettre, se guérir
3Proto-Hurza *ᵐbar cure guérir 3.1) Mbuko (Gravina) ᵐbar heal être guéri, donner naissance, revenir de la mort 3.2) Vame (Kinnaird) ᵐbə̀rà 1 cure guérir 3.2.1) Vame (Kinnaird) ᵐbə̀rà 2 care for ; take care of soigner
4Proto-Mofu *ᵐbɨl cure guérir 4.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbə̀l get well guérir 4.1.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbēléŋ heal guérir 4.2) Mada (Nkoumou) meᵐbleŋa guérir 4.3) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbar heal guérir 4.3.1) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbar care for soigner 4.4) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbə́l guérir, recouvrer la santé 4.4.1) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbə́l (də́r) guérir, délivrer d'un mal 4.5) Gemzek (Sabatai) meᵐbəle guérir 4.5.1) Gemzek (Sabatai) ᵐbəl heal (trans.), cure (v) guérir 4.6) Merey (Gravina) ᵐbəl heal (trans.), cure (v) guérir 4.7) Dugwor (Jubumna) məᵐbəlej heal (trans.), cure (v) guérir 4.8) Mofu North (Barreteau) méᵐbə̀lèj guèrir, se remettre, reprendre (pour une plante repiquée) ressuciter 4.9) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ́ᵐbəl guérir, se remettre, reprendre (pour une plante repiquée), ressusciter
5Proto-Maroua *ᵐbɨl ʷ cure guérir 5.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ᵐbul guérir (ne se dit pas d'une plaie lèpre, folie, infirmité)
6Proto-Gidar *ɨᵐbɨla heal guérir 6.1) Gidar (Hungerford) ɨᵐbəla guérir
ᵐbɨw v. to give birth accoucher (3 groups, 9 languages) C syn: wahaj.
This is the less common of the two roots for 'to give birth'. The Proto-Musgum root is possibly cognate, but more likely to be a chance similarity.
1Proto-Bata *ᵐbʷɨ give birth naitre 1.1) Gude (Hoskinson) poo give birth, give birth to 1.1.1) Gude (Hoskinson) pàwá -ə birth 1.2) Jimi (Djibi) puaan Accoucher ; 1.3) Sharwa (Gravina) mbʷə accoucher
2Proto-Daba *ᵐbɨw give birth naitre 2.1) Buwal (Viljoen) ᵐbɑw bear (child), give birth accoucher, donner naissance 2.2) Gavar (Viljoen) ᵐbəw (be) born naître 2.2.1) Gavar (Viljoen) ᵐbəw give birth 2.3) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) kəᵐbu (be) born naître 2.3.1) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) kəᵐbu i ᵐbu bear (child), give birth accoucher, donner naissance 2.4) Daba (Lienhard) ᵐbù accoucher, naître, enfanter ; produire des fruits
3Proto-Musgum *pɨk ʷ give birth naitre 3.1) Mulwi (Tourneux) puki accoucher 3.2) Mbara (Tourneux) puk give birth accoucher
ᵐbɨwran nm. tamarind tree tamarinier (10 groups, 28 languages) B
This, along with the baobab, is one of two tree species reconstructed for Proto-Central Chadic. There was a regular change *r→l in the languages of the North sub-branch and Cuvok, and in Sukur as an irregular change. In the Mandara group, Podoko has the expected /l/, but the other languages have /r/, which is unestablished. The final consonant presents problems. It is *m in Proto-Mafa, Proto-Sukur, Proto-Maroua and Proto-Lamang, *ŋ in Proto-Higi, *r in Proto-Mofu and absent in Proto-Margi and Proto-Mandara. There is a regular change *n→r word-final in the Margi-Mandara-Mofu major group, which accounts for the final *r in Proto-Mofu if the final consonant was originally *n. The absence of *r in Proto-Margi and Proto-Mandara may possibly be due to a constraint forbidding adjacent *l and *r, though this constraint has not been established. The presence of *m as the final consonant in the other groups is irregular. *w is reconstructed to account for the widespread presence of /u/ in groups where the proto-language had no back vowels.
1Proto-Bata *mbɨwran tamarind tamarinier 1.1) Tsuvan (Johnston) ᵐburne le tamarin, le tamarinier 1.2) Jimi (Djibi) guraᵐbalan Le tamarinier
2Proto-Mafa *ᵐbɨwram tamarind tamarinier 2.1) Mafa (Ndokobai) ᵐburom tamarin 2.2) Cuvok (Gravina) ᵐbəlam tamarind tree tamarinier
3Proto-Tera *ᵐbɨrɨn tamarind tamarinier 3.1) Nyimatli (Harley) ᵐbu̱ru̱n tamarind tree
4Proto-Sukur *ᵐbɨlɨm tamarind tamarinier 4.1) Sukur (David) ᵐbələm tree, tamarind 4.2) Sukur (Thomas) ᵐbələm tamarid; a tropical tree that produce fruit, also called tamarids, that are preserved for cooking porage.
5Proto-Margi *ᵐbɨwla tamarind tamarinier 5.1) Bura (Blench) ᵐbula Tamarind tree 5.2) Bura (Blench) ᵐbula Tamarindus indica 5.3) Margi South (Harley) ᵐbəla tamarind 5.3.1) Margi South (Harley) ᵐbila tamarind 5.4) Kilba (Schuh) ᵐbəla/a tamarind
6Proto-Mandara *amɨrɨ tamarind tamarinier 6.1) Matal (Branger) āmᵊ̀r tamarind tamarinier 6.2) Podoko (Swackhammer) ᵐbulá,-ə tamarinier, tamarin 6.3) Mandara (Fluckiger) ure tamarin (m), tamarinier (m) 6.4) Malgwa (Löhr) ure tree sp., tamarind, Tamarindus indica, and his seeds 6.4.1) Malgwa (Löhr) nafuure tree sp., Tamarindus indica 6.5) Glavda (Owens) áw tamarind 6.5.1) Glavda (Nghagyiva) àwùɾa tamarind tree
7Proto-Mofu *ᵐbɨwlar tamarind tamarinier 7.1) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbə́lár tamarinier m. 7.1.1) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbə́lár fruits (m. pl.) du tamarinier 7.2) Gemzek (Sabatai) ᵐbular tamarinier 7.2.1) Gemzek (Sabatai) dereɮ ᵐbulor tamarind tree tamarinier 7.3) Merey (Gravina) ᵐbulor tamarind tree tamarinier 7.3.1) Merey (Gravina) ᵐbəlar tamarinier 7.4) Dugwor (Jubumna) hʷaf j ᵐbəlor tamarind tree tamarinier 7.5) Mofu North (Barreteau) ᵐbə́lár tamarinier 7.5.1) Mofu North (Barreteau) ᵐbə́lár tamarin
8Proto-Maroua *ᵐbɨwlam tamarind tamarinier 8.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ᵐbulam tamarin, tamarinier 8.2) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) ᵐbulam tamarind tree tamarinier 8.3) Mbazla (Tourneux) ᵐbəlaŋ tamarinier
9Proto-Lamang *ᵐbɨlam tamarind tamarinier 9.1) Hdi (Bramlett) ᵐbəlam tamarind tree le tamarinier
10Proto-Higi *ᵐbɨwlaŋ tamarind tamarinier 10.1) Kamwe-Nkafa (Harley) ᵐbúlá Tamarine tree. 10.2) Kamwe-Futu (Harley) ᵐbula tamarind tree 10.3) Kirya (Blench) ᵐbə́láᵑg tamarind 10.4) Bana (Lienhard) ᵐb(ə̀)láŋ tamarinier
ᵐburi nm. donkey âne (5 groups, 6 languages) C syn: koro, ziᵑgʷa.
This is one of three roots for 'donkey' within Central Chadic. The forms cited come from three distinct areas, and may or may not be cognate. The root found in the Kotoko groups is almost certainly a fairly recent borrowing.
1Proto-Bata *ᵐbɨrse donkey âne 1.1) Bata (Boyd) ᵐbɨrse donkey
2Proto-Daba *bardzaŋ ʸ donkey âne 2.1) Buwal (Viljoen) berdʒeŋ donkey âne
3Proto-Kotoko North *ɓoro donkey âne 3.1) Afade (Allison) ɓoro donkey âne
4Proto-Kotoko Centre *ᵐbori donkey âne 4.1) Lagwan (Allison) ᵐburi donkey âne 4.2) Mser (Allison) ᵐbori donkey âne
5Proto-Kotoko South *ᵐburi donkey âne 5.1) Mazera (Allison) ᵐburi donkey âne


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ᵐb


ᵐba v. able (be) pouvoir (7 groups, 14 languages) A
This is the regular verb 'to be able'. A final *n is found in Sharwa, Gemzek and Kirya, but is not part of the original root.
1Proto-Bata *ᵐba able pouvoir 1.1) Bachama (Skinner) ᵐba(m) be able, master 1.2) Sharwa (Gravina) ᵐban Capable
2Proto-Daba *ᵐbaj able pouvoir 2.1) Daba (Lienhard) ᵐbāj connaître, capable
3Proto-Hurza *ᵐba able pouvoir 3.1) Mbuko (Gravina) ᵐba can pouvoir
4Proto-Mandara *ᵐba able pouvoir 4.1) Podoko (Swackhammer) ᵐba faire attention; savoir (faire)
5Proto-Mofu *ᵐba able pouvoir 5.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbì être capable, pouvoir 5.1.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbàkò pouvoir 5.2) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbà (áhə́r) vaincre, surpasser; pouvoir, avoir la faculté de 5.3) Gemzek (Sabatai) maᵐbana (be) able (être) capable 5.4) Merey (Gravina) ᵐba faja (be) able (être) capable 5.5) Dugwor (Jubumna) maᵐbij hafaŋ know how to savoir (être capable de) 5.5.1) Dugwor (Jubumna) maᵐbij fahaŋ (be) able (être) capable 5.6) Merey (Gravina) ᵐba able pouvoir
6Proto-Higi *ᵐba able pouvoir 6.1) Kirya (Blench) ᵐbànə́ to be able to, can 6.2) Bana (Lienhard) ᵐbà(j) savoir faire (doit être suivi par pronom obj.)
7Proto-Gidar *ɨbapa able pouvoir 7.1) Gidar (Hungerford) əbapa savoir (être capable de), pouvoir
ᵐbaɮa nm. beer bière (7 groups, 14 languages) A syn: ɣʷɨzɨm, vɨhʷ.
This is one of three widespread roots for 'millet beer'. It may be cognate with the Kanuri ᵐbal. If so, it is more likley that the Kanuri borrowed from Central Chadic than vice versa. If the word was borrowed from Kanuri, the change *l→ɮ would have been natural at the time of Proto-Central Chadic when *l was not a phoneme in the language. *l developed in Proto-Central Chadic North as a result of the regular change *r→l, so if the word was borrowed into Central Chadic after that time the change would have been unnatural. For this reason it is more likely that this is a native Central Chadic root.
1Proto-Daba *ᵐbaɮa beer bière 1.1) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) ⁿdaɮa corn beer bière de maïs 1.2) Daba (Lienhard) ᵐbàɮāʼ le vin non-filtré, la bière épaisse
2Proto-Sukur *mɨpaɮɨ beer bière 2.1) Sukur (Thomas) məpaɮə beer; is the general term for beer.
3Proto-Mandara *ᵐbaɮa beer bière 3.1) Mandara (Fluckiger) ᵐbaɮa vin (m), toute boisson alcoolisée 3.2) Malgwa (Löhr) ᵐbadhla, hʷa, wuʃike alcoholic beverage (beer, wine)
4Proto-Mofu *ᵐbaɮa beer bière 4.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbàɮà bière épaisse ; (mouyangué) 4.2) Muyang (Smith) ᵐbɑɮɑ white wine vin blanc 4.3) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbaɮa white wine made in the village fabriqué au village 4.3.1) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbaɮa 4.4) Mofu North (Barreteau) ᵐbàɮà bière de mil chaude 4.5) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ᵐbaɮa bière de mil chaude
5Proto-Maroua *ᵐbaɮa beer bière 5.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ᵐbaɮa la bière du mil, vin 5.1.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ᵐbaɮa bière de mil blanche épaisse
6Proto-Higi *ᵐbaɮɨ beer bière 6.1) Kamwe-Nkafa (Harley) baɮə wine 6.1.1) Kamwe-Nkafa (Harley) bàɮə̀ local wine. 6.2) Bana (Lienhard) ᵐbèɮ(ì) bière de mil blanc, vin blanc
7Proto-Gidar *ᵐbaɮa beer bière 7.1) Gidar (Schuh) ᵐbaɮa bière non-tamisée
ᵐbatuɓ n. baobab baobab (4 groups, 6 languages) C syn: kʷɨkaɗ.
This root is far less widespread than *kʷɨkaɗ. It is problematic in that it contains a back vowel, and back vowels were not present in Proto-Central Chadic. It must be assumed that this root was either coined in Proto-Mafa, or else was borrowed into the languages of the Mandara Mountains at an early stage.
1Proto-Daba *matuɓ baobab baobab 1.1) Buwal (Viljoen) mɑtɑɓ baobab tree baobab 1.2) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) matu ɓ baobab tree baobab
2Proto-Mafa *ᵐbota baobab baobab 2.1) Mafa (Barreteau) ᵐboto-ᵐbótá baobab 2.2) Cuvok (Gravina) ᵐbaataj baobab tree baobab
3Proto-Sukur *ᵐbutɨ baobab baobab 3.1) Sukur (David) ᵐbutə tree, baobab
4Proto-Mofu *ᵐbaataɓ baobab baobab 4.1) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) máataɓ baobab 4.1.1) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ᵐbáataj baobab (Gudur)
ᵐbɨɗa v. change changer (8 groups, 24 languages) A
This root has the basic sense 'to change', with extended meanings including 'to turn', 'to exchange', 'to translate' etc. There was a regular word-final change *ɗ→r in part of the Higi group, but otherwise this root has been transmitted largely unchanged.
1Proto-Daba *ᵐbaɗ change changer 1.1) Buwal (Viljoen) ᵐbɑɗ exchange échanger 1.1.1) Buwal (Viljoen) ᵐbɑɗ change changer 1.2) Gavar (Viljoen) ᵐbɑɗ alter, change (tr) changer (tr), modifier 1.2.1) Gavar (Viljoen) ᵐbɑɗ barter, exchange échange (de marchandises)
2Proto-Sukur *ᵐbɨɗa change change 2.1) Sukur (Thomas) ᵐbəɗa change; to exchange position, place, etc. With something else, so that you have what they have, and they have what you have.
3Proto-Hurza *ᵐbɨɗa change changer 3.1) Mbuko (Gravina) ᵐbəɗa transform transformer 3.2) Vame (Kinnaird) ᵐbə̀ɗédè ʒèk transform transformer
4Proto-Mandara *ᵐbɨɗa change changer 4.1) Matal (Branger) mabəɗla change changer 4.2) Podoko (Swackhammer) ᵐbə́ɗa changer, échanger 4.3) Mandara (Fluckiger) ᵐbéɗá changer, tomber - v. int. = mbádá 4.3.1) Mandara (Fluckiger) ᵐbáɗá (se) changer, (se) transformer 4.4) Malgwa (Löhr) ᵐbaɗa lakʷa change place temporarily 4.5) Dghwede (Frick) ᵐbətʼa to change
5Proto-Mofu *ᵐbɨɗ change changer 5.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbaɗ aɬam exchange échanger 5.1.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbaɗ aɬam replace remplacer 5.2) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbaɗ transform transformer 5.2.1) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbaɗ turn tourner 5.2.2) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbaɗ change changer 5.2.3) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbaɗ become devenir 5.3) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbə̀ɗ changer, se modifier 5.4) Gemzek (Sabatai) ᵐbəɗ change (intr) changer (intr) 5.5) Dugwor (Jubumna) məᵐbəɗeŋ alter, change (tr) changer (tr), modifier 5.5.1) Dugwor (Jubumna) məᵐbəɗej change (intr) changer (intr) 5.6) Mofu North (Barreteau) méᵐbə̀ɗēj tourner, se retourner 5.6.1) Mofu North (Barreteau) méᵐbə̀ɗēj verser 5.6.2) Mofu North (Barreteau) méᵐbə̀ɗēj échanger, tranformer 5.6.3) Mofu North (Barreteau) méᵐbə̀ɗēj traduire 5.7) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ᵐbəɗ ́ turn around (se) tourner, retourner 5.7.1) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ᵐbəɗ ́ changer, échanger, (se) transformer ; traduire
6Proto-Maroua *ᵐbɨɗa ʸ change changer 6.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ᵐbiɗi changer 6.2) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) ᵐbiɗe alter, change (tr) changer (tr), modifier
7Proto-Lamang *ᵐbɨɗa change changer 7.1) Lamang (Wolff) ᵐboɗo change, turn 7.2) Hdi (Bramlett) ᵐbəɗaj to transform, to turn échanger,tourner
8Proto-Higi *ᵐbɨɗɨ change changer 8.1) Kamwe-Nkafa (Harley) ᵐbə́rə́ntə́ Changed. 8.2) Kirya (Blench) ᵐbə̀rá to change, exchange 8.3) Bana (Lienhard) ᵐbə́rə́ varier, changer, échanger, remplacer, devenir
ᵐbɨkʷɨm n. horn corne (4 groups, 7 languages) C syn: lagan, dɨrɨm, mahʷa.
This is one of the less common roots for 'horn'. The roots given come from three very distant areas, so this may be a root which had a far wider range, or it may be that this word exists in more languages but hasn't yet been recorded, or else these may simply be chance similarities.
1Proto-Tera *ᵐbaʔʷamⁿda horn corne 1.1) Gaʼanda (Gwaji) ᵐboʼomⁿda animal horn
2Proto-Hurza *ɓaᵑgʷam horn corne 2.1) Vame (Kinnaird) ɓáŋgʷàm antenna ; horn ; antler antenne ; corne
3Proto-Mofu *ᵐbɨkʷam horn corne 3.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) āᵐbə́kām horn corne 3.2) Moloko (Friesen) moᵑgom horn, all types corne; toutes_sortes 3.3) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbùkúm corne f. 3.4) Gemzek (Sabatai) ᵐbukom horn corne
4Proto-Musgum *amakʷ horn corne 4.1) Vulum (Tourneux) amok corne d'animal
ᵐbɨlala ʸ n. elephant éléphant (3 groups, 6 languages) A syn: dzɨwɨn ʸ, gɨwɨn, nɨvi.
This root is found in five contiguous languages, and in Tsuvan which is very distant from these languages. The Tsuvan root follows the right patterning to be the result of contact with the other languages, but the physical and genetic distance between it and the other languages makes it more likely that this is a chance similarity.
1Proto-Bata *ᵐbaɮa elephant éléphant 1.1) Tsuvan (Johnston) ᵐbaɮa l'éléphant
2Proto-Hurza *ᵐbɨla ʸ elephant éléphant 2.1) Mbuko (Gravina) ᵐbəle elephant éléphant 2.2) Vame (Kinnaird) ᵐbèlèlèk elephant éléphant
3Proto-Mofu *ᵐbala ʸ elephant éléphant 3.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbèlè elephant éléphant 3.2) Muyang (Smith) ᵐbeli elephant éléphant 3.3) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbəlele elephant éléphant 3.3.1) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbəlele
ᵐbɨr v. to get well guérir (6 groups, 17 languages) A
This verb has the sense of getting better after an illness, and can be used transitively with a human object for curing a person of an illness. The *r→l in the North sub-branch and in Proto-Daba is a regular change. The change *r→ɗ in the Bata group is an irregular change.
1Proto-Bata *ᵐbɨɗ cure guérir 1.1) Gude (Hoskinson) əᵐbi cure, get well, heal up 1.1.1) Gude (Hoskinson) əᵐbi be enough 1.1.2) Gude (Hoskinson) ᵐbii heal (of sore only, not of sickness) 1.1.3) Gude (Hoskinson) ᵐbii be enough 1.2) Jimi (Djibi) ᵐbəɗən 1 - Rester; qui est resté quand les autres sont ou ont fini.; 2 - Guérir;
2Proto-Daba *ᵐbɨl cure guérir 2.1) Gavar (Viljoen) ᵐbəl get well, recover se remettre, se guérir 2.2) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) ᵐbəl heal (trans.), cure (v) guérir 2.2.1) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) kəᵐbəl get well se remettre, se guérir
3Proto-Hurza *ᵐbar cure guérir 3.1) Mbuko (Gravina) ᵐbar heal être guéri, donner naissance, revenir de la mort 3.2) Vame (Kinnaird) ᵐbə̀rà 1 cure guérir 3.2.1) Vame (Kinnaird) ᵐbə̀rà 2 care for ; take care of soigner
4Proto-Mofu *ᵐbɨl cure guérir 4.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbə̀l get well guérir 4.1.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ᵐbēléŋ heal guérir 4.2) Mada (Nkoumou) meᵐbleŋa guérir 4.3) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbar heal guérir 4.3.1) Moloko (Friesen) ᵐbar care for soigner 4.4) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbə́l guérir, recouvrer la santé 4.4.1) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbə́l (də́r) guérir, délivrer d'un mal 4.5) Gemzek (Sabatai) meᵐbəle guérir 4.5.1) Gemzek (Sabatai) ᵐbəl heal (trans.), cure (v) guérir 4.6) Merey (Gravina) ᵐbəl heal (trans.), cure (v) guérir 4.7) Dugwor (Jubumna) məᵐbəlej heal (trans.), cure (v) guérir 4.8) Mofu North (Barreteau) méᵐbə̀lèj guèrir, se remettre, reprendre (pour une plante repiquée) ressuciter 4.9) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ́ᵐbəl guérir, se remettre, reprendre (pour une plante repiquée), ressusciter
5Proto-Maroua *ᵐbɨl ʷ cure guérir 5.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ᵐbul guérir (ne se dit pas d'une plaie lèpre, folie, infirmité)
6Proto-Gidar *ɨᵐbɨla heal guérir 6.1) Gidar (Hungerford) ɨᵐbəla guérir
ᵐbɨw v. to give birth accoucher (3 groups, 9 languages) C syn: wahaj.
This is the less common of the two roots for 'to give birth'. The Proto-Musgum root is possibly cognate, but more likely to be a chance similarity.
1Proto-Bata *ᵐbʷɨ give birth naitre 1.1) Gude (Hoskinson) poo give birth, give birth to 1.1.1) Gude (Hoskinson) pàwá -ə birth 1.2) Jimi (Djibi) puaan Accoucher ; 1.3) Sharwa (Gravina) mbʷə accoucher
2Proto-Daba *ᵐbɨw give birth naitre 2.1) Buwal (Viljoen) ᵐbɑw bear (child), give birth accoucher, donner naissance 2.2) Gavar (Viljoen) ᵐbəw (be) born naître 2.2.1) Gavar (Viljoen) ᵐbəw give birth 2.3) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) kəᵐbu (be) born naître 2.3.1) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) kəᵐbu i ᵐbu bear (child), give birth accoucher, donner naissance 2.4) Daba (Lienhard) ᵐbù accoucher, naître, enfanter ; produire des fruits
3Proto-Musgum *pɨk ʷ give birth naitre 3.1) Mulwi (Tourneux) puki accoucher 3.2) Mbara (Tourneux) puk give birth accoucher
ᵐbɨwran nm. tamarind tree tamarinier (10 groups, 28 languages) B
This, along with the baobab, is one of two tree species reconstructed for Proto-Central Chadic. There was a regular change *r→l in the languages of the North sub-branch and Cuvok, and in Sukur as an irregular change. In the Mandara group, Podoko has the expected /l/, but the other languages have /r/, which is unestablished. The final consonant presents problems. It is *m in Proto-Mafa, Proto-Sukur, Proto-Maroua and Proto-Lamang, *ŋ in Proto-Higi, *r in Proto-Mofu and absent in Proto-Margi and Proto-Mandara. There is a regular change *n→r word-final in the Margi-Mandara-Mofu major group, which accounts for the final *r in Proto-Mofu if the final consonant was originally *n. The absence of *r in Proto-Margi and Proto-Mandara may possibly be due to a constraint forbidding adjacent *l and *r, though this constraint has not been established. The presence of *m as the final consonant in the other groups is irregular. *w is reconstructed to account for the widespread presence of /u/ in groups where the proto-language had no back vowels.
1Proto-Bata *mbɨwran tamarind tamarinier 1.1) Tsuvan (Johnston) ᵐburne le tamarin, le tamarinier 1.2) Jimi (Djibi) guraᵐbalan Le tamarinier
2Proto-Mafa *ᵐbɨwram tamarind tamarinier 2.1) Mafa (Ndokobai) ᵐburom tamarin 2.2) Cuvok (Gravina) ᵐbəlam tamarind tree tamarinier
3Proto-Tera *ᵐbɨrɨn tamarind tamarinier 3.1) Nyimatli (Harley) ᵐbu̱ru̱n tamarind tree
4Proto-Sukur *ᵐbɨlɨm tamarind tamarinier 4.1) Sukur (David) ᵐbələm tree, tamarind 4.2) Sukur (Thomas) ᵐbələm tamarid; a tropical tree that produce fruit, also called tamarids, that are preserved for cooking porage.
5Proto-Margi *ᵐbɨwla tamarind tamarinier 5.1) Bura (Blench) ᵐbula Tamarind tree 5.2) Bura (Blench) ᵐbula Tamarindus indica 5.3) Margi South (Harley) ᵐbəla tamarind 5.3.1) Margi South (Harley) ᵐbila tamarind 5.4) Kilba (Schuh) ᵐbəla/a tamarind
6Proto-Mandara *amɨrɨ tamarind tamarinier 6.1) Matal (Branger) āmᵊ̀r tamarind tamarinier 6.2) Podoko (Swackhammer) ᵐbulá,-ə tamarinier, tamarin 6.3) Mandara (Fluckiger) ure tamarin (m), tamarinier (m) 6.4) Malgwa (Löhr) ure tree sp., tamarind, Tamarindus indica, and his seeds 6.4.1) Malgwa (Löhr) nafuure tree sp., Tamarindus indica 6.5) Glavda (Owens) áw tamarind 6.5.1) Glavda (Nghagyiva) àwùɾa tamarind tree
7Proto-Mofu *ᵐbɨwlar tamarind tamarinier 7.1) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbə́lár tamarinier m. 7.1.1) Zulgo (Haller) ᵐbə́lár fruits (m. pl.) du tamarinier 7.2) Gemzek (Sabatai) ᵐbular tamarinier 7.2.1) Gemzek (Sabatai) dereɮ ᵐbulor tamarind tree tamarinier 7.3) Merey (Gravina) ᵐbulor tamarind tree tamarinier 7.3.1) Merey (Gravina) ᵐbəlar tamarinier 7.4) Dugwor (Jubumna) hʷaf j ᵐbəlor tamarind tree tamarinier 7.5) Mofu North (Barreteau) ᵐbə́lár tamarinier 7.5.1) Mofu North (Barreteau) ᵐbə́lár tamarin
8Proto-Maroua *ᵐbɨwlam tamarind tamarinier 8.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ᵐbulam tamarin, tamarinier 8.2) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) ᵐbulam tamarind tree tamarinier 8.3) Mbazla (Tourneux) ᵐbəlaŋ tamarinier
9Proto-Lamang *ᵐbɨlam tamarind tamarinier 9.1) Hdi (Bramlett) ᵐbəlam tamarind tree le tamarinier
10Proto-Higi *ᵐbɨwlaŋ tamarind tamarinier 10.1) Kamwe-Nkafa (Harley) ᵐbúlá Tamarine tree. 10.2) Kamwe-Futu (Harley) ᵐbula tamarind tree 10.3) Kirya (Blench) ᵐbə́láᵑg tamarind 10.4) Bana (Lienhard) ᵐb(ə̀)láŋ tamarinier
ᵐburi nm. donkey âne (5 groups, 6 languages) C syn: koro, ziᵑgʷa.
This is one of three roots for 'donkey' within Central Chadic. The forms cited come from three distinct areas, and may or may not be cognate. The root found in the Kotoko groups is almost certainly a fairly recent borrowing.
1Proto-Bata *ᵐbɨrse donkey âne 1.1) Bata (Boyd) ᵐbɨrse donkey
2Proto-Daba *bardzaŋ ʸ donkey âne 2.1) Buwal (Viljoen) berdʒeŋ donkey âne
3Proto-Kotoko North *ɓoro donkey âne 3.1) Afade (Allison) ɓoro donkey âne
4Proto-Kotoko Centre *ᵐbori donkey âne 4.1) Lagwan (Allison) ᵐburi donkey âne 4.2) Mser (Allison) ᵐbori donkey âne
5Proto-Kotoko South *ᵐburi donkey âne 5.1) Mazera (Allison) ᵐburi donkey âne