The five Tarokoid languages are a branch of the Plateau family spoken in central Nigeria, just north of the middle reaches of the Benue River. Tarok itself has 300,000 speakers, with Pe and Sur about 5,000 each. Yangkam is severely endangered, being spoken by around fifty elderly men.
The Tarokoid languages have significantly influenced the Ron languages and later Ngas, but not the other West Chadic languages of Tel, Goemai, Mupun, and Mwaghavul. Most borrowed words went from Tarok to Chadic, although occasionally Chadic words were also borrowed into Tarok. Today, Tarok remains the lingua franca of the southern Plateau region of Nigeria.
Classification The only language with significant data is Tarok. Pe (Pai) has been placed in various branches of Plateau, and Kwang (Kwanka) was only recently added, but it now seems clear that the following five languages belong together. The classification below follows Blench (2004).Blench, Roger. 2004. Tarok and related languages of east-central Nigeria.
Names and locations Below is a list of Tarokoid language names, populations, and locations from Blench (2019).
Language Dialects Alternate spellings Own name for language Endonym(s) Other names (location-based) Other names for language Exonym(s) Speakers Location(s) Tarok iTarok (Plain Tarok), iZini (Hill Tarok), Səlyər, iTarok Oga aSa, iGyang iTarok Appa, Yergam, Yergum Plateau State, Langtang and Wase LGAs Yangkam Yaŋkam Bashiri Basharawa [20,000 (1977 Voegelin and Voegelin)]. Ethnic population given; these groups now speak only Hausa. As of 1996, there were likely fewer than 400 speakers, all over 40 years old. Plateau State, Langtang and Wase LGAs, Bashar town
Reconstruction Reconstructed Proto-Tarokoid forms proposed by Longtau (2016):
Gloss Proto-Tarokoid to burn *bi-ʃi head *iki-ʃi tongue *iki-lerem ~ *iti-lem to monger iron *kɨ-la bed *iki-ler tail *iku-ʃol hyena *mmu-tuŋ duiker *in-tep guinea fowl *iru-nshyok ladder *n-kwaŋ fonio *iti-ʃi head-pad *ati-kat knee *itu-kuruŋ bone *atu-kubi corpse *atu-kum skin *a-tukwa heart *itun-rum money *igi-ʧam fruit bat *igi-gyak husband *u-rom termite *i-ʃum hunger *y-yɔŋ
Footnotes
References Blench (2008) Prospecting proto-Plateau. Manuscript.
External links Roger Blench: Tarokoid materials Plateau materials from Roger Blench