kura kera

Kera

Afro-Asiatic (Chadic, East, A subgroup — Kera-Kwang sub-cluster)

FamilyAfro-Asiatic (Chadic, East, A subgroup — Kera-Kwang sub-cluster) Speakers~50–80K ScriptLatin CountriesChad (Mayo-Kebbi East prefecture), Cameroon (north) Official inNo (French in Chad/Cameroon official; Kera recognized regional) Vitalityvulnerable ISO 639-3ker

Kera is an East Chadic language of Chad and northern Cameroon, spoken by ~50,000-80,000 people in the Léré and Pala areas of southwestern Chad. Linguistically, Kera shares typical East Chadic features: tonal (3 tones), gender-based verb agreement, complex consonant clusters, and an elaborate system of pluractional verbs. The Kera people are subsistence farmers in the Sahel transition zone. Karen Ebert's 1979 reference grammar (Sprache und Tradition der Kera) and modern Bible translation work since the 1990s have produced standardized literacy materials. Kera shows interesting typological convergence with Niger-Congo neighbors despite its Afro-Asiatic affiliation.

Where it is spoken

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87 core words in Kera

Water

kan

kan

Fire

cəwa

tʃə̄wā

Sun

cəwa

tʃə́wá

Moon

kitir

kitiɾ

Star

seska

seska

Night

duugŋ

duːɡŋ

Rain

ko

ko

Wind

kaŋkaw

kaŋkaw

Earth

seŋka

seŋka

Stone

pərki

pəɾki

Mountain

pərki

pəɾki

Sea

kan kəmtəŋ

kan kəmtəŋ

Mother

nər

nəɾ

Father

bar

baɾ

Daughter

tər

təɾ

I

ten

ten

You

tam

tam

We

áŋ / are

áŋ / aɾe

Name

sam

sam

Person

hulum

hulum

Head

cəərə

tʃəːɾə

Eye

dər

dəɾ

Ear

koso

koso

Mouth

ku

ku

Tooth

kəsəŋ

kəsəŋ

Tongue

kəsəl

kəsəl

Hand

kaasa

kaːsa

Foot

kampar

kampar

Heart

tarmə

taɾmə

Bone

kəskəŋ

kəskəŋ

Blood

kor

kor

Love

bele

bele

Tree

kəbaŋ

kəbaŋ

Dog

kooya

koːja

Cat

baadu

baːdu

Fish

aska

aska

Bird

kasko

kasko

Butterfly

akəwalkəwal

akəwalkəwal

Egg

kiciki

kitʃiki

Horse

gədaamo

ɡədaːmo

House

kuli

kuli

Milk

kaw

kaw

Honey

son bə tum

son bə tum

Salt

manta

manta

Wine

kumuy bə atələələm

kumuj bə atələːləm

Iron

kooso

koːso

Book

kefter

kefteɾ

Eat

hame

hame

Drink

se

se

Sleep

kin

kin

One

məna

məna

Two

ɓasi

ɓasi

Three

sóópe

sóːpe

Four

waaɗe

waːɗe

Five

wiiɗiw

wiːɗiw

Hundred

kəsi

kəsi

Hello

suuse

suːse

Thank you

suuse ablaw

suːse ablaw

Good

pisi

pisi

New

kimirwi

kimiɾwi

Red

kəəli

kəːli

White

bərwa

bəɾwa

Black

sarka

saɾka

Sources

Words compared

Compared with languages in the same classification: Afro-Asiatic (Chadic, East, A subgroup — Kera-Kwang sub-cluster)

Meaning KeraBraj BhashaMarathiSitu rGyalrongDabaAwadhiSylheti
Water kan /kan/ पानी /paːniː/ पाणी /paːɳiː/ tə-tɕi /tətɕi/ yim /jim/ पानी /paːniː/ পানি /pani/
Fire cəwa /tʃə̄wā/ आग /aːɡ/ आग /aːɡ/ tə-mtɕək /təmtɕək/ kuhu /kuhu/ आगि /aːɡi/ আগুন /aɡun/
Sun cəwa /tʃə́wá/ सूरज /suːrədʒ/ सूर्य /suːɾjə/ kə-jam /kəjam/ pic /pitʃ/ सूरज /suːrədʒ/ সুরুজ /suruz/
Moon kitir /kitiɾ/ चंद्र /tʃəndɾ/ चंद्र /tʃəndɾə/ tsə la /tsəla/ təra /təra/ चान /tʃaːn/ চান /tʃan/
Star seska /seska/ तारा /taːraː/ तारा /taːɾaː/ tsəu ri /tsəuri/ gəməzla /ɡəməɮa/ तारा /taːraː/ তারা /tara/
Night duugŋ /duːɡŋ/ रात /raːt/ रात्र /ɾaːtɾə/ tə-mor /təmor/ vùɗu /vùɗu/ राति /raːti/ রাইত /rait/
Rain ko /ko/ बरखा /bəɾkʰaː/ पाऊस /paːus/ tə-mu /təmu/ van /van/ बरखा /bərkʰaː/ মেঘ /mɛɡ/
Wind kaŋkaw /kaŋkaw/ पवन /pəʋən/ वारा /ʋaːɾaː/ kʰa li /kʰali/ mit /mit/ हवा /ɦəʋaː/ বাতাস /batas/
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