Bariba language

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Gur language spoken in West Africa

title: "Bariba language" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["languages-of-benin", "languages-of-nigeria", "gur-languages", "bariba-people"] description: "Gur language spoken in West Africa" topic_path: "linguistics" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bariba_language" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Gur language spoken in West Africa ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox language"]

Field	Value
name	Bariba
nativename	Baatɔnum
states	Benin, Nigeria, Togo, Burkina Faso, Niger
region	Borgu
ethnicity	Bariba people
speakers	million
date	1995–2021
ref	e26
script	Latin
familycolor	Niger-Congo
fam2	Atlantic–Congo
fam3	Volta-Congo
fam4	Savannas
fam5	Gur?
minority	Benin
iso3	bba
glotto	baat1238
glottorefname	Baatonum
::

Bariba, also known as Baatonum, is the language of the Bariba people and was the language of the state of Borgu. The native speakers are called Baatombu (singular Baatonu), Barba, Baruba, Berba and a number of various other names and spellings.

It is primarily spoken in Benin, but also across the border in adjacent Kwara State and Niger State, a percentage of speakers are also found in Saki West local government area of Oyo State Nigeria, and some Bariba are in Togo, Burkina Faso and Niger. Welmers (1952) reported the Bariba language as spoken in the cities of Nikki, Parakou, Kandi, gwanara, Bankubu, Boriya, Ilesha Baruba and Natitingou.

Names

The language can be known by different names:

the Bariba people call their language Baatɔnum;
the Yoruba people call the language Baruba;
the Hausa people refer to the language as Borganci (also spelled Borganchi) after Borgu where it is spoken;
the names in the Busa language and the Boko language are Borgu and Borgunya. Other names include Barba or Berba.

One person who speaks Bariba is called Baatɔnu and two or more persons or speakers are called Baatɔmbu and the language of the Baatɔmbu/Borgawa people is called Baatɔnum.

Geographic distribution

In Nigeria, Bariba is spoken mainly in Borgu LGA of Niger State, Saki West LGA and in Baruten LGA of Kwara state. A number of Bariba have migrated to other parts of Nigeria, including Abuja. The Bariba people are referred to as Borgawa in Hausa.

In Benin, Bariba is spoken mainly in Alibori, Donga, Atakora and Borgou departments. A number of Bariba have migrated to other parts of Benin, including Cotonou.

In Togo, Bariba is spoken in the Centrale Region.

In Burkina Faso, Bariba is spoken in Kompienga Province.

There are also some Bariba in Niger in Tillabéri Region and Dosso Region.

Classification

Bariba is usually classed as an independent member of the Savanna languages, but some consider it and a number of other languages, such as Miyobe, as a Gur language. However, other than Bariba, there are other unclassified Gur languages, including Miyobe, Koromfe, Viemo, and Natyoro.

Alphabet

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/30/Church_of_the_Pater_Noster_bba.jpg" caption="The [[Lord's Prayer]] in Bariba at the [[Church of the Pater Noster]], Jerusalem."] ::

There are 23 letters of Batonou alphabet: ::data[format=table]

Alphabet	Upper case	Lower case
A	B	D
a	b	d
::

Phonology

Consonants

::data[format=table] | Labial | Alveolar | Palatal | Velar | Labio- velar | Glottal | Nasal | Plosive | voiceless | voiced | Fricative | voiceless | voiced | Rhotic | Lateral | Approximant | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ::

/ɾ/ may be heard as a lateralized [ɺ] when preceding front vowels.
/s, z/ may be heard as [ʃ, ʒ] when preceding front vowels.

Vowels

::data[format=table]

Front	Central	Back	Close	Close-mid	Open-mid	Open




::

Tone

Bariba is a tonal language. Tonal patterns in Bariba have been claimed to present a challenge to the Two-Feature Model of tonal phonology.

Nouns

Bariba has 7 noun classes:

1. y-class
1. t-class
1. g-class
1. w-class
1. m-class
1. s-class
1. n-class

The data was collected by William E. Welmers in August and September 1949 at Nikki, Benin.

y-class

The y-class is the largest noun class. y-class singular nouns usually in -a.

::data[format=table]

evil spirit	zínì
::

t-class

All forms end in -ru for t-class nouns.

::data[format=table]

frog	yɔ̃ɔ̃ru
::

g-class

Forms usually end in back vowels for g-class nouns.

::data[format=table]

hartebeest	yiiku, -nu
::

w-class

::data[format=table]

enemy	yíbɛ̀rɛ̀
::

m-class

m-class nouns often end in -m.

::data[format=table]

blood	yem
::

s-class

The s-class is a small noun class. Most forms are collectives and end in -su.

::data[format=table]

grass, the bush	yàkàsu
::

n-class

The n-class is a small noun class. Most forms are collectives and end in -nu.

::data[format=table]

okra	yàbonu
::

Verbs

Aspects

There are 7 primary verb aspects in Bariba:

consecutive
habitual
continuative
frequentative
imperative
past
past negative

There are 5 verb classes, which are grouped according to the formation of the past aspect.

List of verbs

Consecutive verb forms are given below. S denotes stative forms.

::data[format=table]

hit	sô
::

Adjectives

Invariable adjectives:

::data[format=table]

difficult	sɛ̃sɔ
::

Adjectives with a class of their own, which remains the same after all nouns; singular and plural forms are like those of nouns:

t-class adjectives: ::data[format=table]

short, small (also g-class)	kpirìrū
::

g-class adjectives: ::data[format=table]

short, small (also t-class)	kpirìbū
::

Attributive adjectives with alternants for each noun class: ::data[format=table]

cold	yĩ́re-
::

Numerals

::data[format=table]

30	tɛ̀nā
::

References

Abdu, Hussaini. (January 2019). "Partitioned Borgu: State, Society and Politics in a West African Border Region (HB)". Adonis and Abbey publishers.
"Bariba language and alphabet".
N.L. Haddock (1959) The tones of Bariba ''Phonetica'' 3:90-94
Clements, Michaud, and Patin, Do we need tone features? In ''Tones and features: phonetic and phonological perspectives'', Goldsmith, Hume, and Whetzels, editors
Welmers, William E. 1952. Notes on Bariba. ''Language'' 28: 82-103.

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