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Jeddu Dictionary Notes
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what those cryptic letters mean
This public article was written by [Deactivated User], and last updated on 7 Sep 2016, 21:40.

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Menu 1. The Letter System 2. Special Cases 3. Weighting of Languages
[edit] [top]The Letter System

In the dictionary, for words that derive from Proto-Bantu, I systematically go through 6 languages of Northeast Bantu and mark in the dictionary if I can find cognates in those languages. They are:
(B) Lubukusu
(G) Luganda
(K) Gikuyu
(N) Lunyore
(R) Kinyarwanda
(S) Kiswahili


[edit] [top]Special Cases

For cases where there isn't a Proto-Bantu reconstruction but cognates exist in these languages, I've tried to list all the forms I can find and make an educated guess about what the Proto-Bantu form might have looked like. Conversely, when I've invented my own form from Proto-Bantu, I try to justify my choice with some cognate in a language on the list.

Another thing to consider with the letter system is that especially in the case of Gikuyu, where the dictionary I've been able to find is very incomplete, an absence of a letter in the dictionary means that I can't find a cognate, not that it doesn't exist. In addition, sometimes cognate words might be the result of loaning (mainly from Kiswahili to the other languages).

[edit] [top]Weighting of Languages

I tend to rely most heavily on Kinyarwanda cognates due to the excellent online dictionary and the fact that it seems to preserve a lot of words from the reconstruction of Proto-Bantu I can find, whether that's due to biases in the reconstruction, or genuine conservatism.

Lubukusu, Lunyore, and Luganda (the other Great Lakes Bantu languages on the list) are my next go-tos, with Gikuyu and Kiswahili mainly as backups for when I need help going back and finding the Proto-Bantu form, and so I can learn some Kiswahili as I go along..

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