Argobba language

Argobba is an Ethiopian Semitic spoken in an area north-east of Addis Ababa by the Argobba people. It belongs to the South Ethiopian Semitic subgroup together with Amharic and the Gurage languages. Writing in the mid-1960s, Edward Ullendorff noted that it "is disappearing rapidly in favour of Amharic, and only a few hundred elderly people are still able to speak it.

The language is spoken in a number of pockets and has at least four regional variations (dialects) in Harar (extinct), Aliyu Amba, Shewa Robit and Shonke.

Notes

References

• Ethnologue entry for Argobba
• Cohen, Marcel (1931) Études d'éthiopien méridional (Collection d'ouvrages orientaux). Paris: Geuthner.
• Cohen, Marcel (1939) Nouvelles Études d'éthiopien méridional Paris: Ancienne Honoré Champion.
• Leslau, Wolf (1997) Ethiopic Documents: Argobba. Grammar and dictionary Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz. ISBN 3-447-03955-8.
• Zelealem Leyew and Ralph Siebert (1994) Survey on Least Known Languages of Ethiopia - Argobba. S.L.L.E. Linguistic Reports Addis Ababa: S.I.L./Institute of Ethiopian Studies, Addis Ababa University.
• Zalealem Leyew, Ralph Siebert (2002), Sociolinguistic Survey Report of the Argobba Language of Ethiopia SIL Electronic Survey Reports, SILESR 2002-026 (PDF)

Links