Kiwilwana

A language of Kenya

ISO 639-3

Alternate Names

Ilwana, “Malakote” (pej.)

Population

16,800 (2009 census), increasing.

Location

Coast Province, Tana River district, Tana River north of Pokomo, between Bura and Garissa.

Language Status

6a (Vigorous).

Classification

Dialects

Not intelligible with Kipfokomo Pokomo [pkb]. Lexical similarity: 55%–57% with Kipfokomo [pkb].

Language Use

Vigorous. Home, community. All ages. Positive attitudes. Also use Kiswahili [swh] or English [eng].

Language Development

Literacy rate in L1: Below 1%. Literacy rate in L2: Below 5%. Orthography under development. Poetry.

Language Resources

Writing

Latin script.

Other Comments

Cushitic influence. Muslim.