Kako (Mkako)

Kako is a Bantu language spoken by about 70,500 people in Cameroon, the Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo, in particular in the towns of Batouri and Ndélélé in the East Region of Cameroon.

Kako is also known as Mkako or Mkaka. There are three main dialects: the eastern dialect or East Kako (Bεra), which is spoken along the Cameroon-Central African Republic border; the middle dialect (Mgb(w)ako), which is spoken around Batouri, and the western dialect or West Kako (Mbonjɔɔ).

There is a standardized alphabet for Kako in Cameroon, with slight differences between the eastern and western dialects. The eastern dialect does not used the letter z, while the western dialect does, and the eastern dialect uses the letters ɛ̧ and o̧, while the western dialect doesn't. Tones are not usually marked, unless there is ambiguity.

Kako Alphabet

Download alphabet charts for Kako (Excel)
Details of the Kako alphabet provided by Wolfram Siegel (PDF)

Sample text

Ɛ Yesus lɛpɛ nyɛ ɓo nde: «Ŋgɛ wunɛ ŋgwɛta nɛ Njambiyɛ, wunɛ lɛ̂pi ɗekɛ: ‹Saŋsu, kelɔ nde, ɓomɔ ɓôŋ ɗinɔ ɗyɔ kiyɔ. Inja namɔ mbokɔ.
Nyɛkɔ wusɛ mɛɗye mɛte yi ta yaka nɛ wusɛ kɛ yesɔ te ɛ muka.
Tikɔ wusɛ nɛ ŋgwɛtɛ kɛ ɓeya yasi te yi wusɛ kelɛ kɛ́, kɛto wusɛ sendi kɛ tikɔ ɓomɔ hɛnɛ ɓe kelɛ ɓeya yasi nɛ wusɛ. Wɛ tî jaya nde, wusɛ sâŋgwaŋgwɛ nɛ mɛɓoɓilan na.› »

Source: https://www.bible.com/bible/1768/LUK.11.KKJ

Translation (English)

And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.
Give us day by day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.

(The Lord's Prayer - Luke 11: 2-4) Source: https://www.bible.com/bible/1/LUK.11.KJV

Video in Kako

Links

Information about Kako
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kako_language
https://www.silcam.org/resources/archives/47536
https://www.silcam.org/resources/archives/47535
https://glottolog.org/resource/languoid/id/kako1242
https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd/2851/
http://www.language-archives.org/language/kkj
https://www.sil.org/resources/search/language/kkj

Bantu languages

Aka, Bafaw-Balong, Bangi, Basaa, Bemba, Bena, Benga, Bhaca, Bube, Bukusu, Bulu, Central Teke, Chichewa, Chokwe, Chuwabu, Comorian, Dciriku, Digo, Duala, Eton, Ewondo, Fang, Ganda/Luganda, Gogo, Gusii, Gwere, Haya, Hehe, Herero, Ibinda, Ikizu, Ikoma, Jita, Kabwa, Kako, Kamba, Kiga, Kikuyu, Kimbundu, Kinyarwanda, Kirundi, Kisi, Kogo, Komo, Kongo, Konjo, Koti, Kukuya, Kunda, Kuria, Lambya, Lingala, Loma, Lozi, Luba-Katanga, Luchazi, Lunda, Luvale, Makaa, Makonde, Makhuwa, Mandekan, Maore, Masaaba, Mbama, Mbere, Mbukushu, Mbunda, Mbuun, Mende, Mongo, Mpiemo, Mushungulu, Mwani, Nambya, Nande, Ngoni, Nkore, North Teke, Northern Ndebele (South Africa), Northern Ndebele (Zimbabwe), Northern Sotho, Nyamwezi, Nyakyusa, Nyemba, Nyole, Nyoro, Nyungwe, Nzadi, Oroko, OshiWambo, Pagibete, Punu, Ronga, Safwa, Sena, Sengele, Shona, Soga, Songe, Southern Ndebele, Southern Sotho, Sukuma, Swahili, Swati, Tanga, Tembo, Tonga, Tooro, Tshiluba, Tsonga, Tswa, Tswana, Tumbuka, Umbundu, Venda, Vwanji, Xhosa, Yao, Yasa, Zigula, Zinza, Zulu

Languages written with the Latin alphabet

Page create: 08.02.25. Last modified: 08.02.25

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