Fa d’Ambu

Print

A language of Equatorial Guinea

ISO 639-3
fab
Alternate Names
Annobonense, Annobonés, Annobonese
Population

5,000 in Equatorial Guinea (2010 SIL). No monolinguals. Population total all countries: 5,600. Ethnic population: Almost all.

Location

Annobón Island, isolated from mainland by 360 km of ocean (2,000); Bioko Island, Malabo (500), a few on continental Equatorial Guinea. Also in Spain.

Language Maps
Language Status

6a (Vigorous).

Classification
Creole, Portuguese based
Dialects

Different from Equatorial Guinean Pidgin [fpe] and Crioulo [pov] of Guinea-Bissau and Kabuverdianu. Little variation between Annobonese in Annobón and Malabo. Lexical similarity: 63% with Sãotomense [cri]. 10% of the lexicon comes from Spanish [spa].

Typology

Possible vowel length; vowel harmony; tone sandhi

Language Use

Vigorous use in Annobón and Malabo. All domains except government and education where Spanish [spa] is used. All ages. Positive attitudes. Many on Bioko learn the local trade language, Equatorial Guinean Pidgin [fpe] and Spanish [spa], but less on Annobón. Women on Annobón seem uncomfortable in Spanish. Noncreolized Portuguese [por] used as liturgical language by local Catholics.

Language Development
Literacy rate in L1: Very low. Literacy rate in L2: 95% in Spanish. Grammar. Bible portions: 2009.
Language Resources
OLAC resources in and about Fa d’Ambu
Writing
Latin script, used since 2008.
Other Comments

Famed swimmers, fishermen, and whalers. Christian.