| Also Known As: !Xoo language,Tsasi,Ng/amani,!Xóõ,Ng|amani
Description:
Taa, also known as ǃXóõ, is a Khoisan language with a very large number of phonemes (speech sounds), with at least 58 consonants, 31 vowels, and four tones (Traill 1985, 1994 on East ǃXoon), or at least 87 consonants, 20 vowels, and two tones (DoBeS 2008 on West ǃXoon), by many counts the most of any known language. These include 20 (Trail) or 43 (DoBeS) click consonants and several vowel phonations, though opinions vary as to which of the 130 (Traill) or 164 (DoBeS) consonant sounds are single segments and which are consonant clusters.
As of 2002, Taa is spoken by about 4,200 people worldwide. These are mainly in Botswana (approximately 4,000 people), but some are in Namibia.
Until the rediscovery of a few elderly speakers of Nǀu in the 1990s, Taa was thought to be the last surviving member of the Tuu language family.
ǀʼAuni (extinct), Kakia (extinct), Kiǀhazi (extinct), Nǀgamani (extinct), Ngǀuǁen (extinct), Nǀu-san, Xatia (Katia, Kattea, Khatia, Vaalpens, ǀKusi, ǀEikusi, Masarwa), ǃKwi.
There is much confusion with these names. For example, ǀʼAuni is actually a dialect of Nǀu, in the ǃKwi family, and Nguen, Nǀu-san are alternate names of that language. ǃKwi may also be a ǃKwi..... full article at Wikipedia |
