Mooré, also known as Mossi, is a Gur language of the Oti–Volta branch and one of the four official languages of Burkina Faso. It is the language of the Mossi people, spoken by approximately 6.46 million people in Burkina Faso, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Benin, Niger, Mali, Togo, and Senegal as a native language, but with many more L2 speakers. Mooré is spoken as a first or second language by over 50% of the Burkinabé population and is the main language in the capital city of Ouagadougou. It is closely related to Frafra, and less related to Dagbani.
Phonology The Mooré language consists of the following sounds: : (p.44) for the consonants, (p.85-86) for the vowels.
Vowels Front Central Back Close Close-mid Open
Notes All vowels (other than and ) can also be nasalized. All vowels (oral and nasal) can be short or long. Other linguists include the vowels and ; here, they are analysed as diphthongs, ( is considered to be ea and is considered to be oa).
Consonants +Mooré consonant phonemes Labial Alveolar Postalveolar/ palatal Velar Glottal Nasal Stop Fricative LiquidApproximant
Notes The semivowel is pronounced (palatal nasal) in front of nasal vowels.
Orthography In Burkina Faso, the Mooré alphabet uses the letters specified in the national Burkinabé alphabet. It can also be written with the newly-devised Goulsse alphabet.
Burkinabé Mooré alphabet A ʼ B D E Ɛ F G H İ Ɩ K L M N O P R S T U Ʋ V W Y Z a ʼ b d e ɛ f g h i ɩ k l m n o p r s t u ʋ v w y z Phonetic values
References
Citations
Works cited
External links
PanAfrican L10n wiki page on Moore Database of audio recordings in Mòoré - basic Catholic prayers
Learning materials