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Languages of Mali

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Languages of Mali
Sign in French at Ouélessébougou town hall
OfficialBambara, Bobo, Bozo, Dogon, Fula, Arabic, Kassonke, Maninke, Minyanka, Senufo, Songhay languages, Soninke, Tamasheq
Semi-officialAfrican French (working language)
IndigenousBambara, Bomu, Bozo, Mamara, Maninkakan, Soninke, Songhay, Syenara, Tamasheq, Xaasongaxango
VernacularArabic
ForeignArabic
SignedFrancophone African Sign Language
Keyboard layout
French AZERTY

Mali is a multilingual country of about 21.9 million people. The languages spoken there reflect ancient settlement patterns, migrations, and its long history. Ethnologue counts more than 80 languages. Of these, Bambara, Bobo, Bozo, Dogon, Fula, Arabic, Kassonke, Maninke, Minyanka, Senufo, Songhay languages, Soninke and Tamasheq are official languages.[1][2]

French is the working language.[1] In 2024, the Francophone population of Mali represents 20%, which is approximately 4,884,000 people. Among them, 6.4% (around 1,491,000 individuals) speak French as their first language[3]. Additionally, approximately 3,329,144 people, or 13.6% of the total population of 24,479,000, use French as a second language[4].

Language usage

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A sign in French at a monument in Bamako.

French was retained as the official language at independence until 2023. As a working language,[5] it is used in government and formal education. Estimates of the number of Malians who actually speak French are low, and almost all of them speak French as a second language. 1993 estimates are that there were only around 9,000 Malian speakers of French as a first language.[6]

Derived from the numbers of school attendees,[7] it was estimated in 1986 that roughly 21% of the population spoke French, a number considerably lower than those who speak Bambara.[8] French is more understood in urban centres, with 1976 figures showing a 36.7% "Francophone" rate in urban areas, but only an 8.2% rate in rural areas. French usage is gender weighted as well, with 1984 figures showing 17.5% percent of males speaking French, but only 4.9% of women.[9]

Bambara (Bambara: Bamanankan), a Manding language (in the Mande family) is said to be spoken by 80% of the population as a first or second language.[citation needed] It is spoken mainly in central and Southern Mali. Bambara and two other very closely related Manding languages Malinke or Maninkakan in the southwest and Kassonke (in the region of Kayes in the west), are among the 13 national languages. It is used as a trade language in Mali between language groups.

(Bambara is also very close to the Dyula language (Dyula: Jula or Julakan; French: Dioula), spoken mainly in Côte d'Ivoire and Burkina Faso. The name "Jula" is actually a Manding word meaning "trader.")

Other Mande languages (not in the Manding group) include Soninke (in the region of Kayes in western Mali) and the Bozo languages (along the middle Niger).

Other languages include Senufo in the Sikasso region (south), Fula (Fula: Fulfulde; French: Peul) as a widespread trade language in the Mopti region and beyond, the Songhay languages along the Niger, the Dogon languages of Pays Dogon or “Dogon country” in central Mali, Tamasheq in the eastern part of Mali's Sahara and Arabic in its western part.

Thirteen of the most widely spoken indigenous languages are considered "national languages."

Most formal education for the deaf in Mali uses American Sign Language, introduced to West Africa by the deaf American missionary Andrew Foster. There are two other sign languages in Mali. One, Tebul Sign Language, is found in a village with a high incidence of congenital deafness. Another, Bamako Sign Language, developed in the after-work tea circles of the cities; it is threatened by the educational use of ASL.

Language descriptions

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Most of the languages of Mali are among the Mande languages, which is generally accepted as a branch of Niger–Congo, Africa's largest language family. Non-Mande languages include the Dogon languages, perhaps another Niger–Congo branch, and the Senufo languages, which are unquestionably part of that family.

Mande, Senufo, and Dogon stand out among Niger–Congo because of their divergent SOV basic word order. The Gur languages are represented by Bomu on the Bani River of Mali and Burkina Faso. Fulfulde, spoken throughout West Africa, is a member of the Senegambian branch.

Other language families include Afro-Asiatic, represented by the Berber language Tamasheq and by Arabic, and the Songhay languages, which have traditionally been classified as Nilo-Saharan but may constitute an independent language family.

Spoken languages

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Languages of Mali (2009)[10]
Languages percent
Bambara
46.3%
Fula
9.4%
Dogon
7.2%
French[3]
6.4%
Soninke
6.4%
Other
6.3%
Malinke
5.6%
Djerma
5.6%
Minianka
4.3%
Tuareg
3.5%
Bobo
2.1%
Unspecified
0.7%

The following table gives a summary of the 63 spoken languages reported by Ethnologue (there are also 3 sign languages):

Language (Ethnologue) Cluster Language family Legal status L1 speakers in Mali* L2 speakers in Mali** Main region
Hassaniya Arabic Arabic Afro-Asiatic: Semitic Official 106,000 ? NW
Bambara, Bamanankan Manding Mande Official 4,000,000 10,000,000 All
Bomu Niger–Congo / Gur Official 102,000 ? SE
Bozo, Tiéyaxo Bozo Mande Official 118,000 ? Central
Dogon, Toro So Dogon Official 50,000 ? Central-east
Fulfulde, Maasina Fula Niger–Congo / Senegambian Official 1,000,000 ? (some L2 speakers) Central
Maninkakan, Kita Manding Mande Official 434,000 ? W
Senoufo, Mamara (Miniyanka) Senufo Niger–Congo Official 738,000 ? S
Senoufo, Syenara Senufo Niger–Congo Official 155,000 ? S
Songhay, Koyraboro Senni Songhay (Southern) Official 430,000 ? (a trade language) N
Soninke (& Marka/Maraka) Mande Official 1,280,000 ? NW
Tamasheq Tamashek Afro-Asiatic / Berber Official 250,000 ? N
Xaasongaxango, Khassonke Manding Mande Official 700,000 ? NW
Bankagooma Mande None? 6,000 ? S
Bobo Madaré, Northern Mande None? 18,400 ? SE
Bozo, Hainyaxo Bozo Mande None? 30,000 ? Central
Bozo, Jenaama Bozo Mande None? 197,000 ? Central
Bozo, Tièma Cièwè Bozo Mande None? 2,500 ? Central
Bangerime Dogon? None? 2,000 ? Central-east
Dogon, Ampari Dogon None? 5,200 ? Central-east
Dogon, Ana Tinga Dogon None? 500 ? Central-east
Dogon, Bankan Tey Dogon None? 1,320 ? Central-east
Dogon, Ben Tey Dogon None? 3,000 ? Central-east
Dogon, Bondum Dom Dogon None? 24,700 ? Central-east
Dogon, Bunoge Dogon None? 1,000 ? Central-east
Dogon, Dogul Dom Dogon None? 15,700 ? Central-east
Dogon, Donno So Dogon None? 45,300 ? Central-east
Dogon, Jamsay Dogon None? 130,000 ? Central-east
Dogon, Kolum So Dogon None? 19,000 ? Central-east
Dogon, Nanga Dama Dogon None? 3,000 ? Central-east
Dogon, Tebul Ure Dogon None? 3,000 ? Central-east
Dogon, Tene Kan Dogon None? 127,000 ? Central-east
Dogon, Tiranige Diga Dogon None? 4,200 ? Central-east
Dogon, Tommo So Dogon None? 60,000 ? Central-east
Dogon, Tomo Kan Dogon None? 133,000 ? Central-east
Dogon, Toro Tegu Dogon None? 2,900 ? Central-east
Dogon, Yanda Dom Dogon None? 2,000 ? Central-east
Duungooma Mande None? 70,000 ? S
Jahanka Mande None? 500 ? SW
Jalunga, Dyalonke Mande None? 9,000 ? SW
Jowulu Mande None? 10,000 ? SE
Jula, Dioula Manding Mande None? 50,000 278,000 SE, all?
Kagoro Manding Mande None? 15,000 ? W
Konabéré Mande None? 25,000 ? SE
Koromfé Niger–Congo / Gur None? 6,000 ? SE
Maninkakan, Eastern Manding Mande None? 390,000 ? SW
Maninkakan, Western Manding Mande None? 100,000 ? SW
Marka Mande None? 25,000 ? SE
Mòoré Niger–Congo / Gur None? 17,000 ? SE
Pana Niger–Congo / Gur None? 2,800 ? Central-east
Pulaar Fula Niger–Congo / Senegambian None? 175,000 ? W
Pular Fula Niger–Congo / Senegambian None? 50,000 ? SW
Sàmòmá Niger–Congo / Gur None? 2,500 ? SE
Senoufo, Shempire Senufo Niger–Congo None? 14,800 ? SE
Senoufo, Sìcìté Senufo Niger–Congo None? 3,000 ? SE
Senoufo, Supyire Senufo Niger–Congo None? 350,000 ? S
Songhay, Humburi Senni Songhay (Southern) None? 15,000 ? N
Songhay, Koyra Chiini Songhay (Southern) None? 200,000 ? N
Tadaksahak Songhay (Northern) None? 100,000 ? N
Tamajaq Tamashek Afro-Asiatic / Berber None? 190,000 ? N
Tondi Songway Kiini Songhay (Southern) None? 3,000 ? N
Zarmaci Songhay (Southern) None? 1,700 ? NE
  • First language / mother tongue speakers. Figures from Ethnologue.
    • Second or additional language speakers. It is difficult to get accurate figures for this category.

Language policies and planning

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General

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French is the working language. According to the Loi 96-049 of 1996 thirteen indigenous languages are recognised by the government as national languages: Bamanankan, Bomu, Bozo, Dɔgɔsɔ, Fulfulde, Hassaniya Arabic, Mamara, Maninkakan, Soninke, Soŋoy, Syenara, Tamasheq, Xaasongaxanŋo.[11][12] This superseded the Decree 159 PG-RM of 19 July 1982 (Article 1).

Education

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French is part of the standard school curriculum. There is a new policy to use Malian languages in the first grades and transition to French. Activists are also teaching literacy to speakers of Manding languages (Bambara, Malinke, Maninkakan, Dyula) in the standardized N'Ko form.[13]

References

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  1. ^ a b "JOURNAL OFFICIEL DE LA REPUBLIQUE DU MALI SECRETARIAT GENERAL DU GOUVERNEMENT - DECRET N°2023-0401/PT-RM DU 22 JUILLET 2023 PORTANT PROMULGATION DE LA CONSTITUTION" (PDF). sgg-mali.ml. 22 July 2023. Retrieved 26 July 2023. Article 31 : Les langues nationales sont les langues officielles du Mali.
  2. ^ "JOURNAL OFFICIEL DE LA REPUBLIQUE DU MALI" (PDF). sgg-mali.ml. 29 September 2017. Retrieved 26 July 2023. Langues nationales : langues considérées comme propres à une nation ou à un pays. Selon la Loi n°96- 049 du 23 août 1996, les langues nationales du Mali sont : le bamanankan (bambara), le bomu (bobo), le bozo (bozo), le dTgTsT (dogon), le fulfulde (peul), l'arabe (maure/hassaniya), le mamara (miniyanka), le maninkakan (malinké) le soninke (sarakolé), le soKoy (songhoï), le syenara (sénoufo), le tamasayt (tamasheq), le xaasongaxanKo (khassonké).
  3. ^ a b French speaking countries
  4. ^ "Accueil-Francoscope". ODSEF (Observatoire démographique et statistique de l'espace francophone de l'Université Laval) & l'Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (in French). Laval, Québec.
  5. ^ Jean-Baptiste François (22 July 2023). "Au Mali, une nouvelle constitution renforce le président et rétrograde la langue française". La Croix (in French). Retrieved 25 July 2023.
  6. ^ ethnologue.com, cites: Johnstone (1993)
  7. ^ Anne Lafage. French in Africa. Carol Sanders (ed.) French Today: Language in Its Social Context. pp 215-238. Cambridge University Press (1993) ISBN 0-521-39695-6 p. 217. This cites a report by the Haut Council du Francophonie, Bull. du FIPF (1986), pp. 10-12.
  8. ^ 386,000 in a population of ~ 8.2 Million in 1986, according to Data faostat, year 2005 : http://faostat.fao.org/faostat/help-copyright/copyright-e.htm (last updated 11 February 2005)
  9. ^ Anne Lafage (1993), p. 219, citing Perrot: 1985 for both 1974 and 1984 figures.
  10. ^ "Africa :: MALI". CIA The World Factbook.
  11. ^ Leclerc, Jacques. L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde, "Mali," Laval University, Canada. Citing: GAUTHIER, François, Jacques LECLERC et Jacques MAURAIS. Langues et constitutions, Montréal/Paris, Office de la langue française / Conseil international de la langue française, 1993, 131 p
  12. ^ Loi 96-049 Portant modalités de promotion des langues nationales
  13. ^ Donaldson, Coleman (1 March 2019). "Linguistic and Civic Refinement in the N'ko Movement of Manding-Speaking West Africa". Signs and Society. 7 (2): 156–185, 181. doi:10.1086/702554. ISSN 2326-4489.