Definition

Noun: A major language family of Africa, comprising the vast majority of languages spoken on the continent south of the Sahara Desert. It is characterized by a wide diversity of languages, many of which are tonal, though notable non-tonal languages also belong to this family.

Usage

The term is used in linguistic classification to group together a large number of African languages based on proposed genetic relationships. - Scholars study the grammatical features common to the Niger-Kordofanian language family. - The classification of a specific dialect as a Niger-Kordofanian language is based on historical-comparative analysis.

Advanced Usage

• As a proper noun: The term is often capitalized ("Niger-Kordofanian") when referring to the language family as a specific entity in academic texts.
• In historical context: The family is sometimes discussed in relation to the migration patterns and history of peoples in sub-Saharan Africa.

Variants and Related Words

• Niger-Congo languages: This is the more modern and widely accepted term, as the Kordofanian branch is now generally considered part of the larger Niger-Congo family. "Niger-Kordofanian" is often seen as a synonym or earlier classification label for Niger-Congo.
• Bantu languages: A very large and prominent sub-branch of the Niger-Congo (Niger-Kordofanian) family, spoken across much of central, eastern, and southern Africa.

Synonyms

• Niger-Congo language family (preferred contemporary synonym)

Related Terms (Contextual)

• Tonal language: A language in which pitch is used to distinguish lexical or grammatical meaning. Many, but not all, Niger-Kordofanian languages are tonal.
• Language family: A group of languages related through descent from a common ancestral language.
• Sub-Saharan Africa: The geographic region where these languages are predominantly spoken.

Noun

1. the family of languages that includes most of the languages spoken in Africa south of the Sahara; the majority of them are tonal languages but there are important exceptions (e.g., Swahili or Fula)