Senegal-Guinea languages

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Senegal-Guinea Northern (West) Atlantic
Geographic distribution:	Mauritania to Guinea
Genetic classification:	Niger-Congo  Atlantic-Congo   Senegal-Guinea
Subdivisions:	Senegambian Cangin Bak-Eastern

The Senegal-Guinea languages are a branch of Niger-Congo languages spoken in southern Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, and Guinea. The transhumant Fula, howewever, have spread with their language from Senegal across the western and central Sahel. The most populous language unified languages is Wolof, the national language of Senegal, with four million native speakers and millions more second-language users. There are perhaps 13 million speakers of the various varieties of Fula, and over a million speakers of Serer.

Senegal-Guinea has traditionally been classified as a northern branch of West Atlantic. However, the unity of West Atlantic has never been demonstrated, and linguists such as Dimmendahl and Blench treat Senegal-Guinea (Northern Atlantic), Limba-Mel (Southern Atlantic), and Bijago as independent families pending such a demonstration.

Senegal-Guinea consists of the Senegambian languages, which are the big three of Wolof, Fula, and Serer; the closely related Cangin languages of southern Senegal; and the Bak-Eastern branch, which constitutes the bulk of the family:

Senegal-  Guinea	Bak  Balanta Jola (Diola) Papel (Mankanya, Mandjak, Papel)  Eastern  Basari-Bedik Konyagi (Wamei) Biafada-Pajade (Badjara) Nun (Kasanga, Kobiana) Banyum Mbulungish-Nalu (Baga Mboteni, Mbulungish, Nalu) Cangin (Lehar, Palor, Ndut, Saafi-Saafi, Noon)  Senegambian  Serer Fula-Wolof (Wolof, Fula (Fulani, Peul, Pulaar, Fulfulde))

[edit] See also

• Atlantic languages, for discussion of some common features of the languages

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