ABSTRACT

This chapter presents structural basics of the languages of zones P10-20. With Ndendeuli, Ngoni, Matengo and Mpoto (N10), the P10-20 languages comprise the Rufiji-Ruaha group of Nurse (1999). Proceeding southwards in Tanzania from Dar-es-Salaam, Rufiji (P10) is composed of Ndengereko (110,000 speakers, according to Grimes 2000), Rufiji (200,000), Matuumbi (72,000) south of the Rufiji river, and Ngindo (220,000) around Liwale. Spoken inland around Ifakara, Mbunga (29,000) is also assigned to P10 by Guthrie. Nurse (1988:36-40) discusses the hypothesis that Mbunga was historically a P language much influenced by G50, or the opposite, and concludes that it probably started life as a P language. P20 is composed of Mwera (400,000) in Lindi region south of Ngindo, Machinga (36,000), Yao (1,597,000) spoken from the Makonde Plateau to Tunduru and south into Malawi and northwestern Mozambique, and Makonde (1,260,000) in the southeast corner of Tanzania and northeastern Mozambique. Yao and Mwera are very closely related, and might be treated as dialects: their similarity is comparable to that of the Makonde dialects. Makonde is no closer to Yao and Mwera than P10.