Idaxo-Isuxa-Tiriki language explained

Idakho, Isukha, and Tirikhi
Nativename:	Luidakho, Luisukha, Lutirichi
States:	Kenya
Ethnicity:	Idakho, Isukha, Tiriki
Speakers:	600,000
Date:	2009 census
Ref:	e18
Familycolor:	Niger-Congo
Fam2:	Atlantic–Congo
Fam3:	Volta-Congo
Fam4:	Benue–Congo
Fam5:	Bantoid
Fam6:	Southern Bantoid
Fam7:	Bantu
Fam8:	Northeast Bantu
Fam9:	Great Lakes Bantu
Fam10:	Masaba-Luhya
Iso3:	ida
Glotto:	idak1243
Glottorefname:	Idakho-Isukha-Tiriki
Guthrie:	JE.411–413

Idakho, Isukha, and Tiriki (Luidakho, Luisukha, Lutirichi) are mutually intelligible Kenyan languages within the Luhya ethnic group. They are a set of languages closely related to some other Luhya ethnic groups like Maragoli, but less so in comparison to others, like Bukusu,Tachoni or Samia.

Tiriki

Tiriki, or known by the autoglossonym Lutirichi, is a language variety spoken in western Kenya and eastern Uganda^[1] within the Luyia language family. It is the southeasternmost of the Luyia dialects, spoken primarily in Hamisi Constituency in Vihiga County, Western Province, Kenya. As reported in the 15th ed. of the Ethnologue,^[2] a 1980 survey by Bernd Heine and Wilhelm Möhlig estimated there to be 100,000 speakers of Tiriki. The 17th ed. of the Ethnologue^[3] indicates a Tiriki-speaking population of 210,000 based on the 2009 Kenyan census, which surveyed ethnicity not language.

Phonology

Consonants^[4] !!Labial!Alveolar!Palatal!Velar!Glottal

Plosive	pronounced as /link/	pronounced as /link/		pronounced as /link/
Prenasalized	pronounced as /link/	pronounced as /link/, pronounced as /link/	pronounced as /link/	pronounced as /link/
Affricate		pronounced as /link/	pronounced as /link/
Fricative	pronounced as /link/, pronounced as /link/	pronounced as /link/	pronounced as /link/		pronounced as /link/
Nasal	pronounced as /link/	pronounced as /link/	pronounced as /link/	pronounced as /link/
Approximant	pronounced as /link/	pronounced as /link/	pronounced as /link/

Vowels!!Front!Central!Back

High	pronounced as /link/		pronounced as /link/
Near-high	pronounced as /link/		pronounced as /link/
Mid	pronounced as /link/		pronounced as /link/
Low		pronounced as /link/

Notes and References

1. Kanyoro. Rachel. April 1985. Bernd Heine, The Waata Dialect of Oromo: grammatical sketch and vocabulary, Language and Dialect Atlas of Kenya, vol. 4, Berlin: Reimer, 1981, 72 pp., DM45, paperback. - Duncan Okoth-Okombo, Dholuo Morphophonemics in Generative Framework, Language and Dialect Atlas of Kenya, supplement 2, Berlin: Reimer, 1982, 118 pp., DM50, paperback. - Lucia Ndong'a Omondi, The Major Syntactic Structures of Dholuo, Language and Dialect Atlas of Kenya, supplement 1, Berlin: Reimer, 1982, 386 pp., DM118, paperback. - Bernd Heine, The Nubi Language of Kibera: an Arabic Creole grammatical sketch and vocabulary, Language and Dialect Atlas of Kenya, vol. 3, Berlin: Reimer, 1982, 84 pp., DM43, paperback. - Bernd Heine, Boni Dialects, Language and Dialect Atlas of Kenya, vol. 10, Berlin: Reimer, 1982, 152 pp., DM118, paperback. - Chet A. Creider, Studies in Kalenjin Nominal Tonology, Language and Dialect Atlas of Kenya, supplement 3, Berlin: Reimer, 1982, 158 pp., DM68, paperback.. Africa. 55. 2. 228–232. 10.2307/1160314. 0001-9720. 1160314.
2. Ethnologue. Languages of the World. 10.1163/_afco_asc_441.
3. Ethnologue. Languages of the World. 10.1163/_afco_asc_441.
4. Ingonga . Lilian I. . 1991. A comparative study of Ekegusii, Lulogooli, and Lwitakho: the phonological, lexical and morphosyntactic structures . Kenyatta University . Nairobi.