bete language

The Bete language of Nigeria is a nearly extinct language spoken by a small minority of the 3,000 inhabitants of Bete Town, Takum Local Government Authority, Taraba State; its speakers have mostly shifted to Jukun. It is reported to have been close to Lufu and Bibi. According to the Vienna Yukuben Project, it and Lufu probably belong together in the Southern Jukunoid subfamily of Niger-Congo; the Ethnologue lists it as unclassified. It is not to be confused with the Bt language of Cte d'Ivoire.

Bibliography

Crozier, David H. and Roger M. Blench, editors. 1992. An index of Nigerian languages. Abuja, Nigeria and Dallas: Nigerian Language Development Centre, Department of Linguistics and Nigerian Languages, University of Ilorin, and Summer Institute of Linguistics.

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