Samburu

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A language of Kenya

ISO 639-3
saq
Alternate Names
Burkeneji, E Lokop, Lokop, Nkutuk, Sambur, Sampur
Population

237,000 (2009 census), increasing.

Location

Samburu district, Lake Baringo south and east shores; Rift Valley Province (Chamus), Baringo district.

Language Maps
Language Status

6a (Vigorous).

Classification
Nilo-Saharan, Eastern Sudanic, Nilotic, Eastern, Lotuxo-Teso, Lotuxo-Maa, Ongamo-Maa
Dialects

Chamus (Ilcamus, Njemps). Lexical similarity: 94%–88% with the Chamus dialect, 89%–77% with Maasai [mas], 59% with Ngasa [nsg] (Ongamo), 82% between Chamus and Maasai [mas].

Language Use

Home, social gatherings, religion. All ages. Positive attitudes. Also use Kiswahili [swh] or English [eng].

Language Development
Literacy rate in L1: Below 1%. Literacy rate in L2: Samburu: 15%–25%, Chamus: 40%. Poetry. Radio programs. Films. Bible portions: 2012.
Language Resources
OLAC resources in and about Samburu
Writing
Latin script.
Other Comments

Nomadic. Christian, traditional religion.