Bila language

Bila
Bila
Forest Bira
Kango, Sua
Native to	Democratic Republic of the Congo
Region	Ituri forest
Ethnicity	Kango (Wochua?)
Native speakers	(40,000 cited 1993–1998)
Language family	Niger–Congo? Atlantic–Congo Benue–Congo Bantoid Bantu (Zone D.20–30) Boan Bomokandian Biran Bila; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
Dialects	Kango (1,000); Sua (1,000); Bombi-Ngbanja; Nyaku; Ibutu;
Language codes
ISO 639-3	Either:; bip – Bila; kzy – Kango–Sua
Glottolog	bila1255 Bila; kang1285 Kango; belu1239 Belueli
Guthrie code	D.211,311,313

Bila, or Forest Bira, is a Bantu language spoken in the Mambasa Territory of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It is also spoken by the Mbuti Pygmies who live in that area. Pygmy groups to the west include the Kango and Sua (Batchua).^[3] Other Mbuti speak Central Sudanic languages. The Kango and Sua speak distinct dialects (southern and northern), but not enough to impair mutual intelligibility with their farming Bila patrons.

Maho (2009) lists Ibutu (Mbuttu, D.313) as a distinct language.

Phonology

		Bilabial	Alveolar	Palatal	Velar	Labio- velar	Glottal
Nasal		m	n	ɲ
Plosive/ Affricate	plain	p	t	t͡ʃ	k	k͡p
	prenasalized	ᵐb	ⁿd	ᶮd͡ʒ	ᵑɡ	ᵑᵐɡ͡b
	implosive	ɓ	ɗ
Fricative		ɸ	s				h
Lateral			l
Semivowel				j		w

^ Bila at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
Kango–Sua at Ethnologue (18th ed., 2015) (subscription required)
^ Jouni Filip Maho, 2009. New Updated Guthrie List Online
^ L'Apare est un ruisseau, affluent de l'Ituri en région des Bantous Babali. La route qui relie Bafwasende à Bomili traverse le village, où réside ce groupe de Pygmées devenus sédentaires. Dans la documentation de l'expédition de 1929 et de 1935, ils étaient désignés sous le nom de Basua [page] Babali aux Bango wa mugwase (ou Pygmées de forêt). Après l'expédition de 1949–50, l'auteur préfère substituer à ces deux appellations, données par les Babali, leurs propres noms : les Pygmées de forêt désignent ceux de village du nom de Balioli (=Belueli) (sing. Dioy) et vice-versa ceux-ci désignent les Pygmées de forêt du nom de Bango (sing. Mwango).

Serge BAHUCHET, 2006. "Languages of the African Rainforest « Pygmy » Hunter-Gatherers: Language Shifts without Cultural Admixture."[1] In Historical linguistics and hunter-gatherers populations in global perspective. Leipzig.
Kutsch Lojenga, Constance. 2003. Bila (D32). In Nurse, Derek and Philippson, Gérard (eds.), The Bantu languages, 450-474. London & New York: Routledge.

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