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Buli, or Kanjaga, is a Gur language of Ghana primarily spoken in the Builsa District, located in the Upper East Region of the country. It is an SVO language and has 200 000 speakers.

The Buli dialects are not well researched and claims about these dialects are therefore inconsistent. One dialect is Chuchuliga, spoken in the northern part of Ghana close to Navrongo. This dialect is influenced by Kasem, which is another Gur language spoken in the Upper East Region of northern Ghana and in Burkina Faso. Chuchuliga has specific morphological features such as the lack of diphthongs, a richer nominal morphology and the lack of low tones, which are similar to other varieties of Buli. According to Ethnologue, Buli does not show dialectal variation and is reportedly similar to Konni, which is spoken in the districts of Nangurima and Yikpabongo. Moreover, Buli is lexically similar with Mampruli (77%).

Phonology

Source:

Consonants

Vowels

Tones

There are three tonal levels in Buli, i.e. high, mid and low, and the tone phenomena are very complex. Words deviate from their basic tonal patterns when they occur in a syntactic schema.

Lexical function

Bāng

Bāng

"bangle"

bàng

bàng

"lizard"

Grammatical function

Ateng

a

chēng

yabanga.

Ateng a chēng yabanga.

"Ateng is going to the market."

Ateng

a

chèng

yabanga.

Ateng a chèng yabanga.

"Ateng was going to the market."

Grammar

Noun Class System

There are four singular classes and five plural classes. While the singular class identifiers are not markers of number, the plural markers mark number. This classification is based on semantics rather than morphology. Items in class one are and the suffixes do not mark number, but they mostly serve as determiners. The items in all other classes are and their plural suffixes mark number.

Pronouns

Personal Pronouns/ Possessive Pronouns

In Buli, there is a distinction between speaker, hearer and topic. The speaker corresponds to the first person, while the hearer is second person. Topic on the other hand refers to the third person, but is treated differently from first and second person in that the third person form corresponds to a nominal class pronoun. In contrast, the first and second person pronouns are formed by a strong or weak person pronoun form. In general, these pronouns show number agreement. Moreover, the topic forms not only express person and number, but also gives rise to the differentiation between the five singular and four plural forms of the noun class system.

There is a distinction between strong and deficient (weak) pronouns which differ in their tonal appearance. The strong forms have a high tone, whereas the deficient forms have a low tone. An overview of the inventory of the personal pronouns in Buli is given in the table below.

Interestingly, for the first and second person pronouns in singular there are three different forms. The pronouns in deficient form mə and fə can only appear in object function, while the pronouns ǹ and fì can only serve as subjects. The pronouns in strong form on the other hand can appear in both subject and object position.

Asouk

Asouk

nàgì

hit

mə/fə.

1SG/2SG

Asouk nàgì mə/fə.

Asouk hit 1SG/2SG

„Asouk hit me/you.“

*Mə/fə

1SG/2SG

nágí

hit

Asouk.

Asouk

*Mə/fə nágí Asouk.

1SG/2SG hit Asouk

„I/you hit Asouk.“

Ǹ

1SG

nàgì

hit

Asouk.

Asouk

Ǹ nàgì Asouk.

1SG hit Asouk

"I hit Asouk."

*Asouk

Asouk

nàgì

hit

ǹ.

1SG

*Asouk nàgì ǹ.

Asouk hit 1SG

„Asouk hit me.“

Mí

1SG

nágí

hit

Asouk.

Asouk

Mí nágí Asouk.

1SG hit Asouk

„I hit Asouk."

Asouk

Asouk

nàgì

hit

mí.

1SG

Asouk nàgì mí.

Asouk hit 1SG

„Asouk hit me."

Furthermore, the person pronouns shown in the table above can also be used as possessive pronouns, meaning that they are homonymous. The example below shows that the possessive pronoun can either appear as an independent element or it can be clitically bound with the noun.

Mí

1SG

bìmbìlī

pot

lē

CONJ

ǹnā.

DEM:DET

Mí bìmbìlī lē ǹnā.

1SG pot CONJ DEM:DET

„This is my pot."

M-bìmbìlī

1SG-pot

lē

CONJ

ǹnā.

DEM:DET

M-bìmbìlī lē ǹnā.

1SG-pot CONJ DEM:DET

„This is my pot."

Absolute Pronouns

Pronouns that refer to entities, independent of a verbal predicate, always have to appear in the strong form. In these contexts, there is no possible option of cliticalization, because the focus marker ká as the only preceding element does not obligatorily need to be present. The following examples illustrate this fact.

(Ká)

FOC

mí.

1SG

(Ká) mí.

FOC 1SG

„It's me.“

*(Ká)

FOC

ǹ.

1SG

*(Ká) ǹ.

FOC 1SG

„It's me.“

(Ká)

FOC

fí.

2SG

(Ká) fí.

FOC 2SG

„It's you.“

*(Ká)

FOC

fì.

2SG

*(Ká) fì.

FOC 2SG

„It's you.“

(Ká)

FOC

wá.

1PL

(Ká) wá.

FOC 1PL

„It's us.“

*(Ká)

FOC

wà.

1PL

*(Ká) wà.

FOC 1PL

„It's us.“

Reflexive Pronouns

In order to express reflexivity in Buli, an additional particle dék is used, which can either follow the strong form of a pronoun or it can clitically bind with the deficient form of a pronoun. The strong form is used in order to express logophoric reference, while the deficient form is used in cases, in which the agent and the patient of a predicate are coreferent. An overview of the reflexive pronouns is given in the table below.

Mí

1SG

nàg

hit

ǹ-dēk.

1SG-REFL

Mí nàg ǹ-dēk.

1SG hit 1SG-REFL

„I hit myself."

Mí

1SG

zágí

rise

mí

1SG

dék

REFL

yìtìyā.

get.up

Mí zágí mí dék yìtìyā.

1SG rise 1SG REFL get.up

„I got up (myself)."

Bà-wèènì

3PL.CL1-say

àyēn

COMP

bá

3PL.CL1

dék

REFL

lè

FUT

jām.

come

Bà-wèènì àyēn bá dék lè jām.

3PL.CL1-say COMP 3PL.CL1 REFL FUT come

„They said that they themselves will come."

Reciprocal Pronouns

The particle dék expressing reflexivity in a construction with a pronoun can also be used in reciprocal contexts. In order to disambiguate the expression, the reciprocal nominal element chāāb can be used in object position.

Bà-nàg

3PL.CL1-hit

ká

FOC

bà-dēk.

3PL.CL1-REFL

Bà-nàg ká bà-dēk.

3PL.CL1-hit FOC 3PL.CL1-REFL

„They hit themselves/each other.“

Tì-ɲà

1PL-see

chāāb.

REC

Tì-ɲà chāāb.

1PL-see REC

„We saw each of us.“

Demonstrative Pronouns

In general, there are two demonstrative pronouns in Buli, dɛ, lá.

Dɛ

The demonstrative form dɛ is used in contexts, in which an entity to which the pronoun refers to is visible. The form itself can be translated to here. The pronoun is adjoined to the definite noun as a suffix.

Bà-bòrà-ā

3PL.CL1-LOC.be.there-IPFV

nāg

hit

gɔgtàŋā

dance.PL:DEF

máástàwàdɛ

master:DEF.there

nē

CONJ

dèrì

immediately

tààm

pass

...

...

Bà-bòrà-ā nāg gɔgtàŋā máástàwàdɛ nē dèrì tààm ...

3PL.CL1-LOC.be.there-IPFV hit dance.PL:DEF master:DEF.there CONJ immediately pass ...

„While they drummed to the dance, the teacher immediately came ...“

For this demonstrative form there exists also a second more complex form, actually. The basis of the form comes from a noun class pronoun, to which the demonstrative is adjoined as a suffix and the morphem ɲā is optionally prepended. An overview of the demonstrative noun class pronouns formed with dɛ is given below.

Lá

In contexts, in which the entity to which the demonstrative refers to is not visible, the form lá is used. This demonstrative form is also formed by a noun class pronoun, to which the demonstrative also adjoins as a suffix. This demonstrative can be translated to that. An overview of these forms is given in the table below and an example for a context in which the demonstrative lá is used is given as well.

The demonstrative can also form a compound with a preceding noun.

Bà-nē

3PL.CL1-CONJ

ɲɛ

do

dílá

CL2.SG:DET

nùè-lā

finish-DET

...

...

Bà-nē ɲɛ dílá nùè-lā ...

3PL.CL1-CONJ do CL2.SG:DET finish-DET ...

„After they finished that ...“

Mí

1SG

bísáŋá

child.PL:DET

à

IPFV

yāā

like

ká

FOC

yí-dílá

song-CL2.SG:DET

yīkā.

sing.N

Mí bísáŋá à yāā ká yí-dílá yīkā.

1SG child.PL:DET IPFV like FOC song-CL2.SG:DET sing.N

„My children love to the sing the song.“

Interrogative Pronouns

Which

The interrogative pronoun for which is formed by the pronoun form of the noun classes with the suffix -nà.

Who

The singular and plural forms of the first noun class interrogative pronouns (which) are used as the question word for human referents who?. Note that the abbreviation INT denotes interrogativity.

Ká

FOC

wànàà?

CL1.SG.which.INT

Ká wànàà?

FOC CL1.SG.which.INT

„Who is that?“

How much/many

In order to express how much/many, the interrogative form of the second class singular dìnà is used. It can either appear with the focus marker only or preceded by a substantive as antecedent.

Ká

FOC

dìnàà?

how.much.INT

Ká dìnàà?

FOC how.much.INT

„How much/many?“

Jà-nàlìŋkàdɛ

Thing-pretty:DEF.here

à

&

da-ká

sell-FOC

dìnàà?

how.much.INT

Jà-nàlìŋkàdɛ à da-ká dìnàà?

Thing-pretty:DEF.here & sell-FOC how.much.INT

„How much is this pretty thing?“

The interrogative form can also combine with the strong form of the personal pronouns from the noun classes in order to function as an adnominal quantifier of a preceding noun.

Nídɔābā

man.PL

bà-dìnà

CL1.PL-how.many

àlē

&:CONJ

jàmìyāā?

come:ASS.INT

Nídɔābā bà-dìnà àlē jàmìyāā?

man.PL CL1.PL-how.many &:CONJ come:ASS.INT

„How many men came?“

What

The interrogative form for what is bɔà, which can either form a compound or which modifies a following noun.

Ká

FOC

yí-bɔà

song-what

àtè

&:CONJ

fàà

2SG.IPFV

wōŋ

say.COMP

fì-yīī?

2SG-sing.INT

Ká yí-bɔà àtè fàà wōŋ fì-yīī?

FOC song-what &:CONJ 2SG.IPFV say.COMP 2SG-sing.INT

„What song are you going to sing?“

Ká

FOC

bɔàn

what

yìīlì

song

àtè

&:CONJ

fàà

2SG.IPFV

wōŋ

say.COMP

fì-yīī?

2SG-sing.INT

Ká bɔàn yìīlì àtè fàà wōŋ fì-yīī?

FOC what song &:CONJ 2SG.IPFV say.COMP 2SG-sing.INT

„What song are you going to sing?“

How

The interrogative pronoun for how is sɛ`, that appears in a position preceded by the focus marker ká.

Fí

2SG

ɲɛ-kú

do-CL4.SG

ká

FOC

sɛ?

how.INT

Fí ɲɛ-kú ká sɛ?

2SG do-CL4.SG FOC how.INT

„How did you do it?“

Where

There are two local question words in Buli, lèē and bɛɛ. The former relates to locations of entities, while the latter is used adverbially.

Fì-yènní

2SG-house:DET

lèē?

where.INT

Fì-yènní lèē?

2SG-house:DET where.INT

„Where is your house?“

Fàà

2SG.IPFV

chēŋ

go

ká

FOC

bɛɛ?

where.INT

Fàà chēŋ ká bɛɛ?

2SG.IPFV go FOC where.INT

„Where are you going (to)?“

When

For the temporal interrogative pronoun there exist several forms in Buli. One form is a compound consisting of the noun tám ("time") and the question word for what. Another and more precise form like "which day/ month/...?" can be formed by the interrogative form for "which" and a noun like "day", as dà-dìnàà. Alternatively, there is a third form dìmpōɔ/dìsàpō, which refers to a more general point in time.

Ká

FOC

tám-bɔà

time-what

tè

CONJ

wà-kpìì?

CL1.SG-die.INT

Ká tám-bɔà tè wà-kpìì?

FOC time-what CONJ CL1.SG-die.INT

„When did he die?“

ɔ-jàm

CL1.SG-come

ká

FOC

dà-dìnàà?

day-CL2.SG.which.INT

ɔ-jàm ká dà-dìnàà?

CL1.SG-come FOC day-CL2.SG.which.INT

„When did he come?“

Wà-kpìì

CL1.SG-die.INT

ká

FOC

dìmpōɔ?

when.INT

Wà-kpìì ká dìmpōɔ?

CL1.SG-die.INT FOC when.INT

„When did he die?“

Syntax

Word Order

Buli has a strict SVO word order with optional focus/wh-movement and no pro-drop. In the following an intransitive clause with an adverb is given, a transitive clause with an adverb and the word order paradigm in an embedded clause. All examples confirm the basic word order of SVO.

Mí

1SG

ɲú-ká

drink-FOC

ɲwūlì.

quickly

Mí ɲú-ká ɲwūlì.

1SG drink-FOC quickly

„I drank quickly.“

Núrúwá

Person:DET

kàlì

sit

mɔātī

himself.next

(ká)

(FOC)

fì.

2SG

Núrúwá kàlì mɔātī (ká) fì.

Person:DET sit himself.next (FOC) 2SG

„The man lives next to you.“

Asibi

Asibi

wìen

say

āyīn

COMP

Asouk

Asouk

dìgì

cook

làmmú.

meat.DEF

Asibi wìen āyīn Asouk dìgì làmmú.

Asibi say COMP Asouk cook meat.DEF

„Asibi said that Asouk cooked the meat.“

Verb Phrase

The verbal system in Buli is characterized by tonal inflection and relatively simple segmental verb morphology. Most of the verbs have a single segmental basic form, to which either a preverbal or postverbal particle is added and a specific tone in order to mark different aspects, modes, affirmation as well as negation.

Preverbal Particles

Preverbal particles mainly mark aspect and polarity. Note that the absence of a preverbal particle indicates perfective aspect.

Á,À

The preverbal particle á, à marks imperfective aspect. In the subjunctive the particle á is used, while its counterpart with low tone à is used in the indicative. In the example below this particle thus occurs in subjunctive or in indicative, respectively.

Núŕmá

Person.PL:DET

á

SUBJ

bōb

tie

nííŋá.

cow.PL:DEF

Núŕmá á bōb nííŋá.

Person.PL:DET SUBJ tie cow.PL:DEF

„The people should tie the cows (again).“

Núŕmá

Person.PL:DET

à

IPFV

bōb

tie

nííŋá.

cow.PL:DEF

Núŕmá à bōb nííŋá.

Person.PL:DET IPFV tie cow.PL:DEF

„The people should tie the cows (again).“

Lè

The preverbal particle lè marks future tense. It can either attach to a preceding pronoun or it can occur as an independent particle.

Tì-lè

1PL-FUT

wēēn

say

núrú-mbàlá.

Person-DEM.3PL.CL1:DET

Tì-lè wēēn núrú-mbàlá.

1PL-FUT say Person-DEM.3PL.CL1:DET

„We will inform the other people.“

Tììmū

tree:DEF

lè

FUT

bōlisi.

cut

Tììmū lè bōlisi.

tree:DEF FUT cut

„The tree will be cut.“

Kán, kàn

This preverbal particle kán, kàn is a preverbal negative marker. Similarly to the tone pattern of the preverbal particle á, à, in the subjunctive the preverbal particle kán has a high tone on the vowel, while in the indicative it has a low tone kàn.

Ǹ-kàn

1SG-NEG

bàntí-fùʔ.

say.goodbye-2SG.NEG

Ǹ-kàn bàntí-fùʔ.

1SG-NEG say.goodbye-2SG.NEG

„I will not say goodbye to you.“

Postverbal Particles

Postverbal particles in Buli mainly express affirmation and negation.

Ya

The postverbal particle yā expresses assertion and is used in cases in which there is no preverbal particle, thus in perfective aspect. In contrast to the preverbal particles, this postverbal particle has to attach to the verb and cannot appear as an independent particle. The following example illustrates that the speaker expresses a particularly surprising aspect of the facts. Moreover, predicates marked with this particle are used by speakers as an unexpected or unforeseeable change of situation, occasionally also adverbially translated as 'just now', 'immediately' or 'suddenly'.

Bà-bòlìsì

3PL.CL1-trim

tììmū-yā.

tree:DEF-ASS

Bà-bòlìsì tììmū-yā.

3PL.CL1-trim tree:DEF-ASS

„They trimmed the tree.“

Kámā

This particle expresses affirmation. Interestingly, the focus marker kà seems to be contained in the morphem ká-, while the morphem -mā seems to be an element with unknown function.1 The emphatic function of this particle is to establish a relation between a truth value of a proposition and an expression from the previous context of the discourse, (i.e. indeed, really). It seems that this particle expresses verum focus, but according to Schwarz (2005) it is an outstanding issue to investigate whether varying positions of the particle in the clause lead to semantic-pragmatic effects.

Mí

1SG

ɲá-wá

see-3SG.CL1

kámā.

AFF

Mí ɲá-wá kámā.

1SG see-3SG.CL1 AFF

„I really saw him.“

Là

The postverbal particle là is formally identical with the demonstrative pronoun lá and also has an emphatic function. In Schwarz (2005), the use of this particle is described as the use of emphasis on the subject, which is characterized to a particular degree by the facts predicated on it as standing out from the crowd of potential alternatives. In the examples below this particle stresses the property of being late and having a big nose.

Fì-bèní-là.

2SG-be.late-EMPH

Fì-bèní-là.

2SG-be.late-EMPH

„You are really late.“

Fì-ɲōnní

2SG-nose:DEF

zùà-là.

big-EMPH

Fì-ɲōnní zùà-là.

2SG-nose:DEF big-EMPH

„Your nose is very big.“

Negation

Negation in Buli is expressed by two negative markers, one occurs preverbally and the other one postverbally. The first example below illustrates negation in the perfective, while the second example illustrates negation in the imperfective. In both examples, there is a preverbal negative marker and a postverbal one, similar to other negation systems like in French ne ... pas.

Fí

2SG

àn

NEG

dìgi

cook

lām

meat

ā.

NEG

Fí àn dìgi lām ā.

2SG NEG cook meat NEG

„You didn't cook the meat.“

Fí

2SG

kàn

NEG

dìgi

cook

lām

meat

ā.

NEG

Fí kàn dìgi lām ā.

2SG NEG cook meat NEG

„You don't cook the meat.“

Preverbal negative markers

The following table gives an overview of the preverbal negative markers, that appear between the subject and the negated verb. The negative markers for the imperative II and the future tense differ only in tones, such that in the imperative II the tone on the vowel is low and the tone on the end is high, while in the future tense it is the exact opposite. The form of the indicative II is the form that deviates the most from the other forms. According to Schwarz (1999), the negative marker àn is associated with a verb in the perfective aspect, while the negative marker kàn is associated with imperfective aspect.

Postverbal negative markers

Contrary to preverbal negative markers, it is not obligatory for postverbal negative markers to show up. These rather stress the negated clause.

Postverbal Glottal Stop

All negated predicates in Buli have a hart glottal stop at the end of the clause. This glottal stop stresses the negation at the end of the clause and thus functions as a second negative marker. Note that this glottal stop is not always included in the glossing.

Wá-kàn

3SG.CL1-NEG

kpì

die

dōnláʔ.

year.DEM.NEG

Wá-kàn kpì dōnláʔ.

3SG.CL1-NEG die year.DEM.NEG

„He will not die this year.“

(Y)ā

For reasons of completeness, the postverbal negative marker (y)ā is listed here as well.

Fí

2SG

àn

NEG

dìgi

cook

lām

meat

ā.

NEG

Fí àn dìgi lām ā.

2SG NEG cook meat NEG

„You didn't cook the meat.“

Fí

2SG

kàn

NEG

dìgi

cook

lām

meat

ā.

NEG

Fí kàn dìgi lām ā.

2SG NEG cook meat NEG

„You don't cook the meat.“

Questions

Source:

Ex situ

Questions that exhibit the question word ex situ are formed by the order QVO, in which the particle ká can optionally precede the question word. Note that this particle is homonymous with the focus marker ká. In subject questions the particle ālì obligatorily follows the subject wh-phrase, whereas in non-subject questions the particle ātì immediately follows the non-subject wh-phrase.

(Ká)

Q

wānā

who

*(ālì)

PTC

dìg

cook

lāmmúː?

meat.DEF

(Ká) wānā *(ālì) dìg lāmmúː?

Q who PTC cook meat.DEF

„Who cooked the meat?“

(Ká)

Q

bwā

what

*(ātì)

PTC

bíːká

child.DEF

dìgìː?

cook

(Ká) bwā *(ātì) bíːká dìgìː?

Q what PTC child.DEF cook

„What is it that the child cooked?“

In situ

In questions, in which the question word occurs in situ, the particle ká obligatorily precedes the question word or the phrase containing the question word, respectively.

Bíːká

child.DEF

dìg

cook

*(ká)

Q

bwāː?

what

Bíːká dìg *(ká) bwāː?

child.DEF cook Q what

„What did the child cook?“

Bíːká

child.DEF

tè

give

*(ká)

Q

wānā

who

lāmmúː?

meat.DEF

Bíːká tè *(ká) wānā lāmmúː?

child.DEF give Q who meat.DEF

„Who did the child give meat to?“

Bíːká

child.DEF

dìg

cook

lāmmú

meat.DEF

*(ká)

Q

bɛ̄ː?

where

Bíːká dìg lāmmú *(ká) bɛ̄ː?

child.DEF cook meat.DEF Q where

„Where did the child cook the meat?“

Bíːká

child.DEF

dìg

cook

lāmmú

meat.DEF

tē

give

*(ká)

Q

wānā:?

who

Bíːká dìg lāmmú tē *(ká) wānā:?

child.DEF cook meat.DEF give Q who

„Who did the child cook meat for?“

Embedded

In embedded questions the question word remains in situ and is embedded via the complementizer āsī, which only occurs in embedded contexts. In declarative contexts the complementizer āyīn is used.

Mary

Mary

bèg

ask

āsī

SUBR

John

John

dìg

cook

*(ká)

Q

bwāː.

what

Mary bèg āsī John dìg *(ká) bwāː.

Mary ask SUBR John cook Q what

„Mary asked what John has cooked.“

Mary

Mary

à-bā

IPFV-wonder

āsī

SUBR

John

John

dìg

cook

*(ká)

Q

bwāː.

what

Mary à-bā āsī John dìg *(ká) bwāː.

Mary IPFV-wonder SUBR John cook Q what

„Mary wonders what John has cooked.“

Multiple Questions

In ex situ, in situ and embedded questions it is possible to have more than one question word. In multiple questions, the particle ká precedes the highest wh-containing phrase.

Ajohn

Ajohn

tè

give

ká

Q

wān

who

bwāː?

what

Ajohn tè ká wān bwāː?

Ajohn give Q who what

„Who did John give what?“

(Ká)

Q

wānā

who

ālì

PTC

dìg

cook

bwāː?

what

(Ká) wānā ālì dìg bwāː?

Q who PTC cook what

„Who cooked what?“

(Ká)

Q

bwā

what

ātì

PTC

wānā

who

dìgìː?

cook

(Ká) bwā ātì wānā dìgìː?

Q what PTC who cook

„What is it that who cooks?“

Further reading

• Kröger, Franz. Buli-English dictionary: with an introductory grammar and an index English-Buli (Forschungen zu Sprachen und Kulturen Afrikas, Bd. 1). Münster: Lit, 1992.
• Schott, Rüdiger (1977). "Sources for a History of the Bulsa in Northern Ghana". Paideuma: Mitteilungen zur Kulturkunde, Bd. 23 (1977), pp. 141–168.

References

1. Buli at Ethnologue (25th ed., 2022)
2. ^ Schwarz, Anne (2005). Aspekte der Morphosyntax und Tonologie im Buli (Ph.D. thesis ed.). Berlin: Humboldt-Universität.
3. "Buli". Ethnologue. Retrieved 2022-09-22.
4. "PHOIBLE 2.0 -". phoible.org. Retrieved 2022-06-10.
5. ^ Bodomo, Adams; Abubakari, Hasiyatu; Issah, Samuel Alhassan (2020). Handbook of the Mabia Languages of Wes Africa. Glienicke: Galda Verlag.
6. Sulemana, Abdul-Razak (2021). Non-finite Complementation: A case study of Bùli (Ph.D.thesis ed.). Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
7. ^ Sulemana, Abdul-Razak (2019). "Q-particles and the nature of covert movement: Evidence from Buli". Glossa: 1–21.

External links

• WALS
• Web version of Ethnologue
• The VP-periphery in Mabia languages

• Oti–Volta languages
• Languages of Ghana