| Mantsi | |
| States: | Nigeria |
| Region: | Bauchi State |
| Speakers: | 100 |
| Date: | 1995 |
| Ref: | e18 |
| Familycolor: | Afro-Asiatic |
| Fam2: | Chadic |
| Fam3: | West Chadic |
| Fam4: | Barawa (B.3) |
| Fam5: | Boghom |
| Iso3: | zns |
| Glotto: | mang1416 |
| Glottorefname: | Mangas |
| Nativename: | Pyik Mantsi |
| Pronunciation: | [pʲìk mántsì] |
Mantsi (also known as Ma’as or Mangas) is an endangered Afro-Asiatic language spoken in Mangas town in Bauchi State, Nigeria. Blench (2020) reports that it is also called Mantsi. According to Blench, the structure of Mantsi differs significantly from the other South Bauchi languages.[1]
Word lists of Mantsi had previously been published in Kiyoshi Shimizu's (1978) South Bauchi survey, which first mentioned the existence of the language.[2] An unpublished word list was also recorded by Ronald Cosper (n.d.).[3]
Mantsi speakers refer to their language as Pyik Mantsi [pʲìk mántsì], and to themselves as the Mantsi [mántsì] people. Although there are fewer than 1,000 speakers, the language is still being spoken by children.[1]
Mantsi is spoken in the single village of Mantsi (locally known as Maɗana [mánànā] or Ma’as [màʔās]) in the southern part of Bauchi LGA, Bauchi State. The Kir [Kyiir] and Laar peoples, who speak closely related but distinct languages, live just to the northeast of Mantsi village in the nearby villages of Kir and Laar, respectively.[1]
Mantsi belongs to the Kir branch of the South Bauchi languages. It is most closely related to Kir and Laar, as shown by the lexical comparisons below.[1]
| Gloss | Mantsi | Kir | Laar | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ash | múrə̀m | ŋúreŋ | ŋŋoro | |
| bird | ɗōōr | dot | ɗwoot | |
| blood | púrùm | pirə̀ŋ | firàŋ | |
| bone | gùl | gwàŋàl | gwaŋal | |
| fat | gìndɨ́r | yində̀r | yində̀r | |
| leg | wāsɨ̄m | wasəm | wasəm | |
| moon | pʲāŋ | pyaŋ | pyaŋ | |
| mountain | lamba | lamba | lamba | |
| stone | pʲār | pyat | pyat | |
| kill | túk | tuk | tuk |
Mantsi also has some lexical innovations, which are:
| Gloss | Mantsi | |
|---|---|---|
| fish | kʲáálòŋ | |
| night | dāːhùr | |
| path | da᷄n | |
| nine | krōmsā |
Mantsi has 3 level tones, as well as rising and falling contour tones.[1]
Number is not marked morphologically.[1]
Some Mantsi names of plants and animals:[1]
| Mantsi name | Mantsi name in IPA | English name | Scientific name | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| alade nawe | àládè náwè | |||
| anggulu | àŋgùlú | Necrosyrtes monachus | ||
| asha | áʃà | Digitaria exilis | ||
| baanpɨri | bàːnpɨŕ ì | Erythrocebus patas | ||
| bagərəm | bàgə̀rə̀m | Naja nigricollis | ||
| banggira | bàŋgìrà | |||
| banyangwe | bàɲāŋwé | Canis adustus | ||
| bapakɨr | bàpākɨŕ | Panthera pardus | ||
| barasa | bàràsā | Plectranthus esculentus | ||
| busha | búʃá | Atelerix albiventris | ||
| bəbaamkam | bə̀bàːmkām | |||
| ɓal | ɓāl | bean | Vigna unguiculata | |
| ɓalyagho | ɓàljáɣò | |||
| ɓar | ɓār | Cucurbita pepo | ||
| ɓarwak | ɓàrʷāk | Python sebae | ||
| ɓauna | ɓáwná | Syncerus caffer | ||
| ɓiikhi | ɓíːxì | silk-cotton tree sp. | ||
| ɓindɨr | ɓīndɨr̄ | |||
| ɓoko | ɓókò | Adansonia digitata | ||
| ɓonggutər | ɓòŋgútə̄r | Thryonomys swinderianus | ||
| dabra | dàbrà | Vitellaria paradoxa | ||
| ɗeesi | ɗéːsì | Tamarindus indica | ||
| gar | gàr | black monkey | Cercopithecus tantalus | |
| giginya | gígíɲà | Borassus aethiopum | ||
| giler | gílēr | Ploceus cucullatus | ||
| goprang | gòpràŋ | Abelmoschus esculentus | ||
| gwomli | gʷòmlì | Cricetomys gambianus | ||
| gyerwul | gʲérwúl | Vigna unguiculata | ||
| hangkaka | hànkákà | Corvus albus | ||
| hom | ho᷄m | Papio anubis | ||
| hur | hùr | Hystrix cristata | ||
| iski wandɨr | ískì wàndɨr̀ | Philothamnus angolensis | ||
| kambong | kāmbôŋ | Colocasia esculenta | ||
| koon | kōːn | bush fowl | Francolinus | |
| kursi | kūrsī | sorrel | Hibiscus esculentus | |
| kwongsi | kʷóŋsì | Solanum incanum | ||
| kyap | kʲâp | beniseed | Sesamum indicum | |
| kyoor | kʲóːr | Crocodylus suchus | ||
| lalo | lálò | Corchorus olitorius | ||
| lɨng | lɨŋ̂ | Elephas maximus | ||
| maiwa | màjwā | millet sp. | ||
| mam bakin | mám bàkìn | Dioscorea bulbifera | ||
| mam nawe | mám nàwè | Dioscorea sp. | ||
| min | mīn | Parkia biglobosa | ||
| ndyaar | ndʲáār | Scotophilus sp. | ||
| nnyan | ɲɲân | Vitex doniana | ||
| rama | rámà | Hibiscus cannabinus | ||
| rimi | rímí | Ceiba pentandra | ||
| rwaknisisan barina | rʷàknísīsān bàrīnā | Python regius | ||
| sham | ʃàm | Numida meleagris | ||
| shin | ʃìn | Procavia capensis | ||
| shuwaka | ʃùwākā | Vernonia amygdalina | ||
| tlari | ɬàrì | Xerus erythropus | ||
| tlari kɨɓaryam | ɬàrì kɨɓ́ àrja᷄m | Galago senegalensis | ||
| twang | tʷáŋ | Cyperus esculentus | ||
| wang | wāŋ | Vigna subterranea |
Mantsi numerals:[1]
| Gloss | Mantsi | |
|---|---|---|
| one | nə̄m | |
| two | ɗīːn | |
| three | wéːn | |
| four | úpsí | |
| five | tūːn | |
| six | màɣà | |
| seven | ɲíngí | |
| eight | gàːmfí | |
| nine | krōmsā | |
| ten | zúp | |
| eleven | sūlūŋ nə᷄m |