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Glite Dictionary
Nilo-Saharan

Nilo-Saharan

9.9
A group of languages spoken in East Africa from the Sahara to Kenya and Tanzania
  • noun
  • /ˈnaɪloʊ səˈhɑːrən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : nilo-sahariano
  • The researchers studied the Nilo-Saharan languages to understand their unique features.

Examples

  • They speak a southeast Surmic language belonging to the Nilo-Saharan (East Sudanic) group and are 99 percent nonliterate.

    Academic text (1999)

  • As part of their curriculum, students learn about the history and development of Nilo-Saharan languages.

  • Many communities in East Africa speak a variety of Nilo-Saharan languages.

Surface Forms

Nilo-Saharan singular
Nilo-Saharans plural

Morphology

Nilo-Saharan = Nile + Sahara (semi-transparent) = nilo + saharan

Formed from geographic elements referring to the Nile and the Sahara; learners can guess the geographic association but not necessarily that it denotes a language family.

Etymology

Nilo-Saharan comes from two place names: Nilo- from 'Nile', meaning the big African 'river', and -Saharan from 'Sahara', meaning the large 'desert'. So Nilo-Saharan names a group of languages spoken in the area from the Nile to the Sahara, which is why it refers to a family of East African languages.