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Komo

A language of Democratic Republic of the Congo

ISO 639-3: kmw

Population	400,000 (1998 SIL).
Region	Maniema Province, into Former Orientale and Nord-Kivu provinces to Walikale, Opienge, and Punia. Lubutu is center.
Language map	Northern Democratic Republic of Congo
Alternate names	Kikomo, Kikumo, Kikumu, Kikuumu, Kumo, Kumu, Kuumu
Dialects	No identified dialects, but speech varieties have the following differences: up to 10% lexical differences, in comparison with the reference lexicon as found in Lubutu. Most noticeable phonological variation: presence of [l]. Most noticeable relational word variation: shape of the alienable possession marker. Lexical similarity: with 80% Bhele [bhy], 70% with Bila [bip], 58% with Bera [brf], 48% with Bwa [bww], 46% with Bali [bcp], Lika [lik], and Pagibete [pae], 30% with Lingala, [lin], Lega-Shabunda [lea], and Budu [buu].
Classification	Niger-Congo, Atlantic-Congo, Volta-Congo, Benue-Congo, Bantoid, Southern, Narrow Bantu, Central, D, Bira-Huku (D.30)
Language use	Used by Lengola [lej] as L2. All ages except in population centers where L1 is Congo Swahili, and then it is 7 and older for boys. Those around Kisangani are more likely to know Lingala [lin] than Congo Swahili [swc] (more than 10% of the men).
Language development	Literacy rate in L1: 1%. Literacy rate in L2: 50% older men (born before 1970), 30% younger men, less than 10% women. Poetry. Bible portions: 1991.
Writing system	Latin script.
Comments	SVO; prepositions; noun head followed by genitive and relative clause; question word initial; 7 prefixes; 4 suffixes; word order distinguishes subject, object, indirect object; human-animate-inanimate contrast in plural and adjective agreement (no Bantu concord); verb affixes obligatorily mark person and number of subject and object; some ergativity in gerund phrase; middle, stative, unaccusative marked by suffix; causatives marked by suffix; comparisons; CV, V, Nasal CV, CV Nasal, Nasal; tonal. Swidden agriculturalists. Christian, traditional religion, Muslim.

Entries from the SIL Bibliography about this language:

Academic Publications

CAHILL, Michael, author. 2008. "Word games as experimental linguistics."  

THOMAS, J. Paul, author. 1992. A morphophonology of Komo: non-tonal phenomena.

THOMAS, J. Paul, author. 1992. Tone in Komo.

THOMAS, J. Paul, author. Available: 1994; Created: 1986-1994. Rapport sur le système d'orthographe komo;Projet de langue komo, 1994.

THOMAS, John Paul, author. 2011. "A morphophonology of Komo: Non-tonal phenomena."  

WIT, Gert de, editor. 1995. Compendium of survey reports volume 1: Bira-Huku group of Bantu.  

WIT-HASSELAAR, Alie de, author. 1995. "Bira - Huku wordlists."

Vernacular Publications

SIDA, begeande bo?. 1990.

Tanga ka kikomo. 1994.