morphology of numerals in central nigeria
TRANSCRIPT
1
Morphology and Motivations in Counting Systems of Languages of Central Nigeria
By Selbut R. Longtau
Development Alternatives, Research & Training
5 Lugard Road
P.O. Box 1826, Jos, Nigeria
[This is a draft and may be quoted only with the author’s permission.]
1. Introduction
Counting systems in Central Nigeria are diverse. These may include decimal, duodecimal,
various bases like the quinary and so on. The body-part model is in vogue in several places
and may actually be a mirror of some aspects of the culture of such peoples. Thomas‟ (1927:
72) commented that counting systems involving body parts are primitive. This would appear
to be a relic of scholarship of that era. Gerhardt (1987) noted that the duodecimal counting
system is widespread in the Plateau language grouping of genetic relationship terminology.
Thomas (1927: 72) gave an estimate of this system in Nigeria without listing the languages:
Mama1 with a rather exceptional series has a duodecimal scale grafted on the normal
quinary; this can hardly be anything but a loan from the Nigerian Group, which has
twelve or fifteen duodecimal tribes.
Matsushita by way of an update commented thus:
The quinary system of numeration dominates among the languages of West Africa,
decimal counting is found all over the area and a small but sizeable number of
languages in Nigerian Middle Belt have possessed, and still possess, a peculiar
duodecimal system of numeration. A few languages, actually, drifted from one system
to the other in the short time span under the scrutiny of various observers (as C.K.
Meek). Presently, the trend is changing from duodecimal into decimal. However,
somewhere in the past, a dialect had moved the other direction too, from decimal
system to duodecimal. (ms, n.d.)
The motivations for changes in counting systems have not really been studied in Nigeria.
However, one would have expected that the former British monetary denominations that once
flourished in Nigeria would have rather entrenched the duodecimal system of the Plateau area
but that has not been the case because the decimal system is now the vogue in most of the
Plateau language groups. Therefore, it is obvious that the rise and decline in numeration
systems have nothing to do with British colonialism or Hausaisation. Heine (2007: 27) hoped
that Gerhardt‟s position could be contradicted. He noted that:
Counting systems other than the decimal one will lose out in the long run, considering
the ubiquity of body-part model on the one hand and the global evolution of the world
culture and the role played worldwide by English, French, Spanish, Russian, and other
Western languages on the other, Nevertheless other models are still in use, and some of
1 This is Kantana of Kanam LGA and not her relative, the Mama of Nasarawa state. The reference to the
Nigerian Group is current Plateau of genetic language classification.
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them are dynamic and progressive rather than recessive ... (However), in the Plateau
languages of northern Nigeria, for example, a traditional duodecimal system (having
„12‟ as a numerical base is increasingly being replaced by a decimal system. Both
English the official language of Nigeria, and Hausa, the local lingua franca are decimal,
even if Gerhardt (1987) says this fact cannot be immediately held responsible for this
process. The transition from duodecimal to decimal system can be observed in these
languages involves the following patterns: either the traditional numeral „12‟ was
reinterpreted as meaning „10‟, or else the words for „11‟ and „12‟ of the duodecimal
system were replaced by ‟10 + 1‟ or ‟10 + 2‟.
Table 1 shows that unlike the Plateau languages, Hausa has a complete set of equivalent
terms for the imperial monetary system which has been adopted by all the ethnic groups in
Northern Nigeria including the Middle Belt without a wholesome adoption of the counting
system itself:
Table 1 – Hausa equivalent of monetary terms under the Imperial system
Imperial Hausa Tarok
strategy 1
Tarok strategy 2
Pound note Pam iPam iPam pi izɨng “one pound”
Shilling coin Sule aSule aKobo pə gbəci parɨm “twelve pence”
Penny coin Kobo aKobo aKobo pə zɨng “one penny”
Farthing coin Anini aAnini aAnini pə zɨng “one farthing”
Half penny coin Afu aAfu aAfu pə zɨng “one half penny coin”
Three penny coin Tarau aTərau aKobo pə shat “three pennies”
Six penny coin Sisi aSisi aKobo pə kpəɗɨng “six pennies”
Nine penny coin Nai aNəi aKobo pə fangzɨngtɨng “nine pennies”
Matsushita is even more categorical:
At the time of Meek's observation, the all powerful British colonial regime brought the
pervasive duodecimal currency, i.e. one shilling equals 12 pence. Why had these
languages adopted the duodecimal system beforehand? It is an enigma, because all
other languages in the same Plateau group employed decimal or quinary system. The
transition of this direction is rather painless. Simply, duodecimal ten and eleven are
ignored, and duodecimal ten is used in situ as decimal ten. Thus, duodecimal 11
(decimal 13) becomes to mean decimal 11. Moving from one numeration system to
another does not seem to be a big deal. It can be done within a short time span, with the
slightest push from the socio-economic factor. In this respect, the numerals behave as if
they were a part of extra-linguistic institution, like unit of measure, colonial law or
some fancy goods in the market. The speakers, also, do not show any real resistance or
animosity towards the numeric alteration. Many informants describe, matter-of-factly;
„we used to count in old numbers but now, we count in new numbers.‟
The commonest shift to the decimal system involves mainly ten, eleven and twelve.
However, relics of terms for twelve in the endangered duodecimal system are found in
compound numerals.
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The focus of the present study is to elicit data on the morphology of numeracy terminologies
from an emic angle in order to provide evidence that will inform the real motivations for
change in the counting systems of Central Nigeria among other goals. Operative counting
systems of languages are fascinating enough to warrant the above evaluative comments on
the structures of Plateau duodecimals, and Denning & Kemmer (1990: 305) from the point of
view of language universals. However, we wish to go further by analysing the morphology of
numerals to see whether we can find interesting sociolinguistic data. A major thesis of this
paper is to show that counting is not a priority in some people groups. This paper analyses the
synchronic morphological data of the numeracy systems of some central Nigerian languages
whether they are duodecimal or decimal. Our particular interest is to elicit the glosses of
compound numerals between one and twelve and above in order to enrich our cultural
knowledge of the peoples. Meaning of the names for the numerals beyond mere counting is a
mirror of the social life of the people.
The Tarok example illustrates that counting per se is undertaken with much reluctance.
Therefore a mixture of counting strategies will achieve a sense of enigma much better than a
straight forward quinary, decimal or a duodecimal one. Hopefully this paper will shed some
light on the dynamics which impinged on the endangered duodecimal system in particular.
Literal translations of glosses for compound numerals can shed light on the morphological
principles at work in the wider Central Nigerian context. The greatest motivation for
changing from the old to a decimal system in central Nigeria will be socio-economic reasons.
Our case studies are limited to only three East Benue-Congo languages of Tarok, Rigwe and
Mbula within a comparative linguistic and language contact paradigm. Only cardinal
numerals are treated here.
2. Case studies of counting systems in central Nigeria
The morphology of some central Nigerian languages is provided in this section.
2.1 Tarok case
The speakers of the Tarok language live in Southeast Plateau State of Nigeria. Sibomana
(1981) outlined cardinal and ordinal numbers in Tarok. Longtau (2008:106-111) provided
much more details and examples of more counting involving higher numerals. Thomas
(1927:69) noted the similarity in cognates between Tarok and Jarawa-Bantu sub-family. He
was so surprised that a language contact phenomenon between Jarawa-Bantu and Tarok
would yield a relatively high number of shared cognates in a very short wordlist of only 14
items. Table 2 provides the cognates involving numerals and other items:
Table 2 - Comparative Jarawa-Bantu cognates and Tarok in a 1927 list
Jarawa-Bantu Gloss Tarok Commentary
mo-ngo one uzɨng The interest in the item is the –ngo suffix in
Jarawa-Bantu which may be an inspiration
for the –ng ending in Tarok 1,3,4 and 6.
bari two uparɨm Plateau/Chadic root. A further interest is the
suffix-like element in both languages.
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tatu three ushatɗɨng Niger Congo root. A further interest is the
suffix-like element in both languages.
yinu four uneɗɨng Niger Congo root. A further interest is the
suffix-like element in both languages.
tungnu/tong five utukun Plateau root. A further interest is the suffix-
like element in both languages.
This short list clearly shows that the
motivation to have numeral extension is an
innovation in both languages. In the case of
Tarok, it will be shown that it is a device to
make counting enigmatic.
mbe pot nggbɨt According to Thomas (1927) the Jarawa
form is found only in Bamborewa.
ncira blood ncir Vowel erosion might have taken place in
Tarok.
mbil goat iɓɨl Widespread root.
lul nose alur Found in Ten as lol.
gun tree ikun Widespread root.
nyel bird inyil Widespread root.
acwun ear acwang Widespread root.
Older wordlist are invaluable and may be weak in phonemic accuracy, but they are records of
various languages at the stage of minimal contacts with languages of wider communications.
It will not be surprising to see why the lower numerals are remarkably stable in the Middle
Belt region of Nigeria. Thomas (1927: 69) gave the same report on uniformity for Jarawa-
Bantu up to five.
Gerhardt (1983:41) stated that the transformation of the conservative and diagnostic Plateau
canonical CVC to CVCV and CCV are recent innovations. However, in the case of Tarok
numerals and probably in other elements of grammar, the transformation is a compounding of
C1VC2CVC with a loss of C2 in 1-5. Longtau (2007: 39) identified monosyllabic stems as
canonical for Tarok nouns. This will form the basis for analysing the morphology of Tarok
numerical nouns.
Tarok uses non-count numerals as adjectives. There can be full or partial concord between
such numeral and the noun in juxtapositions. It is placed to the right of the noun. Table 3
illustrates Tarok count numerals. They carry the singular humanoid class marker u- and hence
a kind of personification.
Table 3 – Tarok cardinal counting numerals
Numeral Terminology Other glosses where
applicable
Commentary
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one uzɨng Not available but CVC
is standard in the
Plateau area.
A widespread cognate cf. Kulu2
dìzín, Izere zining, Ninkyob zíng,
Sur zhangna, C‟Lela cing, Jibu
zinzo, Saam tsín. The suffixes in
Izere, Sur and Jibu are either
innovations or have been lost in
languages with CVC stems.
Comment for this numeral in Table
2 above will mean that the
motivation to „confuse‟ counting
through extensional element is
widespread.
two uparɨm Meaning of -rim suffix
is not known but see the
suggestions under Table
5.
Cf. cognates as far in Rukul, por in
Fyem.
three ushatɗɨng Meaning of –ɗɨng suffix
is not known and not an
innovation either in
view of comments for 4
and 6 below. See also
the suggestions under
Table 5
Cf. Rukul tat; Hasha atat are
widespread roots
four uneɗɨng Meaning of –ɗɨng suffix
is not known but see the
plausible suggestions
under Table 5.
Cf. Kulu denaa, Fyem naas,
Ninkyob nad, C‟Lela nássé. If –d
in Ninkyob is an eroded suffix, then
it will be a parallel to the Tarok –
ɗɨng.
five utukun If the word is a
compound, then the
Hasha example is
evidence that the
process is deeply rooted.
Cf. Hasha atukun, Berom tungun
and Mada tun. The Berom and
Mada CVN root is a hint that Tarok
might have lost N.
six ukpəɗɨng -kpV could be the stem
–kpa(m) „friend‟. Six
may be a derivative or
The –ɗɨng ending has a similar
shape to the followings in Hasha
nyì-nang „one‟, ànìng „four‟, nà-
nìng „eight‟, nà-nìng mà-reng
2 Dr. Roger Blench‟s Plateau Language Survey Project is the major source for the cognate evidence cited here. I
appreciate the use of the rich database.
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friend of 3 or 4. „nine‟, àmè-ring nyí-náng
„hundred‟.
seven ufangshat Literally „finger-three‟,
but is derived from „ten
fingers subtract three‟.
The noun formation strategy for 7
and 9 are the same and it is clear
that subtraction from ten fingers is
at play. „Seven‟ means subtraction
of three fingers from ten fingers. –
fang „finger‟ is not an innovation as
such.
eight unənne Literally „indeed four‟. Hasha and Kaɗung has a
comparative strategy: Hasha
nànìng „eight‟ from ànìng „four‟;
Kaɗung nanas „eight‟ from nas
„four‟. In Tarok the 1st element of
the compound is an evidentiality
marker „indeed‟.
nine ufangzɨngtɨng Literally „finger-one-
other‟, but is derived
from „ten fingers
subtract one‟.
The formation of „nine‟ is basically
the same as „seven‟. Instead of just
„finger-one‟ it is „finger-the other
one‟. It is a deliberate strategy to
complicate things. The low tone on
the segment meaning another is
arbitrary just to further complicate
things.
ten ugbəpci The –ci ending may be
an adverb.
The -gbəp- element of gbəpci may
be similar to zopi „nine‟ in
Yangkam, zup „ten‟ in Sur,
Shall/Zwall. However, it is not the
expected word for „twelve‟.
eleven ugbəci azɨng Literally: ten with
addition of one.
Straight forward 10 + 1. However
the full form is ugbəpci ka amən
pə zɨng but is now archaic. Note
the deletion of –p- in the shortening
process.
twelve ugbəci aparɨm Literally: ten with
addition of two.
Straight forward 10 + 2. However
the full form is ugbəpci ka am ən
pə parɨm but is now archaic.
thirteen ugbəci Literally: „ten with Straight forward 10 + 3. However
the full form is ugbəpci ka am ən
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ashatɗɨng addition of three‟. pə shatɗɨng but is now archaic.
twenty ìsɨm-pàrɨm „multiplier-ten two‟ It means two ten times.
twenty one ìsɨm-pàrɨm
azɨng
„multiplier-ten two one‟ The implied relation between the 2
nouns in 20 and subsequent
examples is an „and‟ hence ten two
times plus one.
thirty ìsɨm-shátɗɨng „multiplier-ten three‟ It means three ten times.
forty ìsɨm-neɗɨng „multiplier-ten four‟ It means four ten times.
fifty ìsɨm-tukun „multiplier-ten five‟ It means five ten times
sixty ìsɨm-kpəɗɨng „multiplier-ten six‟ It means six ten times.
seventy ìsɨm-fàngshat „multiplier-ten fingers
three‟
It means ten subtract three fingers
ten times
eighty ìsɨm-nənne „multiplier-ten indeed-
four‟
It means eight ten times.
ninety ìsɨm-
fangzɨngtɨng
„multiplier-ten finger
the other‟
It means nine ten times.
hundred igbəl „completed‟ It means „the end‟ in the counting
system.
thousand ìsɨm-kàlong „multiplier-ten plus a
term whose meaning is a
proper noun‟
It means „repeated tens‟ in the
counting system.
million ìsɨm-kàlong
ikálong
„a thousand one
thousand times‟
A most recent coinage.
billion ìgbəl-taktɨràk „hundred of
uncountable‟
A most recent coinage.
infinite ìsɨm-taktɨrak „multiplier-ten
uncountable‟
„Ten uncountable times‟
repeatedly/so
many times
ìsɨm-zɨng „multiplier-ten – once‟ An old expression which captures
the sociology of a reluctance in
counting.
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In the commentaries above, we have been guided by cognate evidence. The word „multiplier-
ten‟ in Tarok is the cognate for „twelve‟ in Plateau. For example: Iten nsok, Shakara, Ndun
sok, Ninzo tsó, Izere kùsók, Hyam shok. This term ìsɨm is an invariable multiplier preceding
higher numbers meaning ten as in Sur „zim‟ and sɛ in Mada, an archaic word for „ten‟ only
found in compounds today. This system is found also in Izere for kusók where currently it is
ten but was twelve in the old system. Note that the u- prefix no longer apply in Tarok but an
invariant i-. The prefix of the 2nd
noun is dropped in the compound numerals. The cognate
evidence is so strong that Blench (in progress) reconstructs it to proto-Plateau:
The (cognate) appears to have originally been a word for „twelve‟ in the former
duodecimal systems characteristic of Plateau. It was adopted for „ten‟ in many
languages and was then replaced in turn, appearing only in compounds. Its appearance
in Eloyi is one factor that makes it appear more a part of Plateau than of Idomoid.
However, the cognate evidence for eleven is weak and unlike twelve, it does not appear in
any compound word. That notwithstanding, we will still consider other factors for a fuller
picture of the morphology of Tarok numerals.
The morphology of numeral terminology in Tarok may be divided into 4 eras: an early stable
quinary (i.e. base-five), post-quinary, duodecimal and decimal. The quinary terms share lot of
cognates with Proto-Plateau. The terms in use under that system are given in Table 4:
Table 4 – Evidence of Tarok quinary counting numerals
Numeral Tarok Commentary
one uzɨng Proto-Plateau
two upar Plateau/Chadic
three ushat Proto Niger-Congo
four une Proto Niger-Congo
five utu(n) Proto-Plateau
The actual natural short forms of the names today are as above.
In the post-quinary phase, extensional elements are introduced plus an additional numbers „6‟
– „10‟given in Table 5.
Table 5 – Evidence of Tarok post-quinary counting numerals
Number Tarok Proposed post-quinary name Cognate evidence
one uzɨng uzɨ(ng)-mi „my one‟ Izere zining, Hyam
zhiìnì, Jari zini
two uparɨm upar-mi „my two‟ Toro faari
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three ushatɗɨng ushat-aɗɨng „three of ɗɨng‟ -
four uneɗɨng une-aɗɨng „three of ɗɨng‟ -
five utukun utu-kun „five of poverty‟ i.e.
that is all that can be counted
Sambe kàtûn, Arum
atúnggù, Toro tunggu
six ukpəɗɨng ukpə-aɗɨng „friend of ɗɨng‟ -
seven ufangshat subtract 3 fingers -
eight unənne evidence that it is only 4 is
incontrovertible
-
nine ufangzɨngtɨng subtract 1 finger -
ten ugbəpci it is turned upside down -
Evidence for the post-quinary terms are extension to the names and a new system with the -
ɗɨng ending. The 3rd
column proposes the names that have crystallised to the present names.
The clearest clue involves the name for 6. The first element appears to be the stem meaning
friend/companion/accompany ‘-kpa’. The second element is being proposed to be a
personification Ɗɨng. In that case the numeration extension is from the verb ɗɨng “to roll
away” but pronounced as ɗɨng in a typical tone concealment strategy discussed in details in
Longtau (in review). The suggestion fits the sociolinguistic scenario that the Tarok people are
very reluctant in engaging themselves to any form of counting whether they be children,
livestock or bundle of sorghum. A good head man would take every care to conceal the worth
of his wealth for fear of being cut down through witchcraft and sorcery in those days.
Indicating even the height of a child or even an animal are dictated by strict norms.
It was only the duration of the reign of a Priest/Chief may be kept by the tying of knots with a
rope. When a person goes on a journey he cuts pieces of straw equivalent to the number of
days s/he would be away called awallang. He keeps his lot and relatives keep an equivalent.
Every day a straw is substracted until he or she returns. Chronological ages are concealed.
Furthermore, all the critical activities of the farming cycle are preceded by rituals called
amulak „secret medicine‟ to wade off evil and wicked people that would want to know the
secret behind the success of the farmer. The verb ɗɨng “to roll away” is a plausible candidate
that captures the low motivation in divulging count information. All the terms for 7-10 when
counting was still in base 5 are mere circuitous terminologies that show much reluctance in
counting. The body-part model is superimposed in a partial manner.
The next phase in the evolution of the Tarok counting system is the adoption of a duodecimal
system. This is completely extinct in Tarokoid. Only Sur and Tarok preserve the relic of the
term for „twelve‟ in compound numerals as in the Table 6 culled from Blench (in progress).
Table 6 - Cognate evidence of relics of duodecimal twelve/ten
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Language Example Gloss
Izere kùsók ten
Hyam shok twelve
Idũ sɔk twelve
Ayu ishók ten
Ninkyob sɔg twelve
Təsu tsɔ twelve
Sambe toro nine
Ndun sɔk ten
Shakara nsok ten
Eloyi -sɔ twelve
Yeskwa usok Twelve (Gerhardt 2005: 37)
Kulu isɔgípààla Twelve in compounds meaning ten (10X2).
Mada sɛ Twelve in compounds meaning ten.
tsɔ Twelve (Blench & Barau, in progress)
Sur ʒim Twelve in compounds meaning ten.
Tarok isɨm Twelve in compounds meaning ten.
Rigwe ʃʷa Twelve but now means ten. Two other base twelve words exist in Rigwe: ɲɲ
wa (12 x 12) but now used for hundred
and its derivable compounds; and ɂci (12 x 12 x 12) now used for a thousand and the derivable compounds.
The Tarok decimal system is already given in Table 1 is the last phase in its development of
the counting system. It is worth explaining further that coinage for one-hundred: igbəl „kill
me‟, a thousand: isɨm-kalong, uncountable: isɨm-zɨng/isɨm-taktərak exhibit elements of
frustration. For example, isɨm-zɨng „multiples of one‟ meaning uncountable is a euphemism.
The term isɨm-kalong means „ten times of the grandson of Long‟. In the case of isɨm-
taktərak, the complaint has led to real anger: let everything be dropped‟. Reluctance in
counting is a plausible explanation that needs to be investigated further in the sociolinguistics
of numerals.
Even in the matter traditional warfare, elders would use several delay tactics so that common
sense would prevail and conflagrations voided. Some would be busy putting arrowheads in a
small fire in the name of performing efficacy rituals while the other elders would be
negotiating with the enemy.
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2.2 Rigwe case
Rigwe speakers live directly West of Jos the capital of Plateau State in Central Nigeria. Gya
(2012) treats Rigwe focus pronouns. Gya and Blench (in progress) is a sketch of Rigwe
phonology. Table 7 gives Rigwe count nouns.3
Table 7: Rigwe counting system
Number Name Other gloss/literal meaning if any
one ɂzrú None but a widespread Plateau root.
two ɂʍ
je None, cf. Ayu àhwà, Tari hwan, Mada há,
Rindre a-ha.
three ɂts
jɛ None
four ɂni None, but a widespread Niger Congo root.
five ɂtɕ
wɔɔ None, cf. Pe cong, Yangkam song.
six ritsjɛ Derived from the term for three in a standard
Plateau fashion and ri- may be a non-
productive fossilised morpheme.
seven natsjɛ Derived from the term for three, na-
elsewhere in the language is a genitive
connector but may be a non-productive
morpheme.
eight klanvà Literally „open hand‟, derived from the
gesture when you show up both palms and
count the fingers excluding the thumbs, it
gives eight, va- is hand, but fingers implied,
klan is opened.
nine kruvaja -ja is a singular marker meaning one item,
i.e. when one finger is folded out of ten, you
have nine, va- is hand, but finger implied,
kru is to fold, implying subtraction. This is
the same strategy as Tarok.
ten ʃʷa This is former twelve of the duodecimal
system but only in recent times it has
replaced former ten: krrunvagbengbe
„folding all fingers together‟. The sheer
3 I appreciate Pst. Daniel Gya of Vu University, Amsterdam for supplying the glosses for the data in this section.
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length of former ten makes it a sure candidate
for replacement by a shorter term.
eleven ʃʷa ne ɔtu zun↓zru Literally, „ten with additional one‟. The
downdrift affects only the phonology and not
counting nouns. The former eleven is
krrunvagbengbe ne ɔtu zunzru „folding all
fingers together with additional one‟.
However, under a typical duodecimal system,
there should be a non-descriptive term for
both „ten‟ and „eleven‟ and not this pseudo-
eleven, especially.
twelve ʃʷa ne ɔtu wȇʍje Literally, „ten with additional two‟. The wȇ-
is a non-productive morpheme.
twenty ʃʷa wȇʍje Literally, „ten two‟ i.e. two times.
hundred ɲɲwa zun zru Literally, „dozen x dozen‟, but opaque
etymology + additional one‟, i.e. ten x ten.
thousand ɂci zun zru Literally, „dozen x dozen x dozen‟, but
opaque etymology + additional one‟, i.e. ten
x ten x ten
The Rigwe shows relics of a quinary system (1-5). A duodecimal system was imposed on it
using the method of counting of body parts. A common intermediary stage in changing from
duodecimal in the Plateau area to decimal is to replace ten with twelve and use the term for
twelve in building compounds in higher numerals. That is the case here. Unfortunately, we
are unable to have data on the old higher numerals. Bundles of millet were the main count
items. There is a term for twelve bundles in twelve places: ɲɲwa (i.e. 144 bundles of millet)
and ɂci for dozen x dozen x dozen, i.e. 1728 bundles. The most recent decimal system
evolved within the last ten years is what is presented above. There was an initial reluctance in
adopting ɲɲwa and ɂci for one-hundred and a thousand respectively, because of the huge
disparity in their values with a typical decimal system. However, due to the success of the
Rigwe literacy project, the terms are now fully adopted.
2.3 Mbula case
Thomas (1927) and especially Ulrich Kleinwillinghöfer‟s 1994 electronic wordlist provided
count nouns for Jarawa-Bantu. For the purpose of this paper, I rely mostly on the
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morphological data provided by a mother tongue speaker4 of Mbula who helped with the
glosses. Table 6 gives count nouns in Mbula.
Table 6 - Mbula counting system
Number Name Gloss Commentary
one mɔɔnì /mwashat one Zaambo mùshèt, Bwazza móón
two ɓáárí two Bille ɓaarí, Duguri, Kulung
ɓaarí
three taaru three Zaambo tààrú, Bwazza táárù,
Duguri táát
four iiné four Zaambo ííní, Bwazza íínè, Bille
ííné
five tongnú five plus placing
things
Zaambo tòngnú, Bwazza
tóngnò, Bille tóngnó, Duguri
tóón, Kulung túngnúng
six tóngnu mwashât five plus placing
things and one
Bwazza tóngnò war mòshèt,
seven tóngnú ɓaari five plus placing
things and two
Bille tóng ɓáàri, Bwazza
tóngnò war rap
eight tóngnú táárú five plus placing
things and three
Bwazza tóngnò wat táárù,
Zaambo twàngà táárú,
nine tóngnú iiné five plus placing
things and four
Bwazza tóngnò war íínè,
ten lú'm ten but meaning
„full/complete‟
Zaambo lûm, Bwazza lú'm,
Bille lúm
eleven lú'm nong mwashat „ten and one‟ duodecimal eleven po in
Kantana/Mama is due to contact
with Plateau.
twelve lú'm nong ɓaari „ten and two‟ duodecimal twelve so in
Kantana/Mama is a Plateau
contact phenomenon.
thirteen lú'm nong táárú „ten and three
fourteen lú'm nong iiné „ten and four‟
fifteen lú'm nong tóngnú „ten and five‟
sixteen lú'm nong tóngnú
mwashat
„ten and five plus
one‟
seventeen lú'm nong tóngnú
ɓaari
„ten and five plus
two‟
eighteen lú'm nong tóngnú
táárú
„ten and five plus
three‟
nineteen lú'm nong tóngnú
iiné
„ten and five plus
four‟
twenty lú'm i ɓaari „ten it is two‟ i is a neuter focus pronoun.
The counting method in Mbula is a simple quinary base five system that fits the decimal
system. Five is made up of root tong- and a suffix which means „and a place for placing
4 I appreciate the glosses provided by Rev. Allen Tanko of Theological College of Northern Nigeria on 18
th
December 2013.
14
things‟. The suffix appears to be a mathematical terminology that is equivalent to „base five‟.
The particle tong is better understood as „with‟. The above data provides a clue in glosses for
5, 10 and 20 that there is reluctance in counting.
3. Conclusion
It is not enough just to describe the counting system of a people. The
morphology of the meaning of the count nouns encodes some aspects of the
culture of the people. They may have a counting system but actual counting are
controlled by cultural norms. It is not as a result of numeracy deficiencies but a
perception that some information must be kept secret.
15
References
Blench, Roger M., (in progress). Prospecting Proto-Plateau.
Gerhardt, Ludwig, 1983. The classification of Eggon: Plateau or Benue Group? Journal of West
African Linguistics 13: 37-50
Gerhardt, Ludwig, 1987. Some remarks on the numerical systems of Plateau languages. Afrika und
Übersee 70: 19-29
Gerhardt, Ludwig, 2005. Some Notes on Yeskwa (North-Western Plateau, Nigeria) with comments on
Koelle‟s Polyglotta Africana HAAP 3: 35 – 52.
Greenberg, Joseph H. 1990. In On Language: Selected Writings of Joseph H. Greenberg by Joseph
Harold Greenberg, Edited by Keith Denning & Suzanne Kemmer. Sanford University Press,
Stanford, California
Heine, Bernd, 1997. Cognitve Foundations of Grammar. Oxford University Press, London, pp. 1-200.
Kleinwillinghöfer, Ulrich, 1994 electronic wordlist
Longtau 2007. Comparative morphology of Tarok and Plateau noun cognates. Nggapak, 1 (3): 31-47.
Longtau, Selbut R., 2008. Tarok Language: Its Basic Principles and Grammar. DART Jos/KWEF, pp.
1-241.
Longtau, Selbut R., in review. Morphology of Derived Tarok Nouns.
Price, N. 1989. Notes on Mada phonology. Language Data, Africa Series, 23. Dallas: SIL.
Thomas, Northcote W., (1927). The Bantu languages of Nigeria. Festschrift Meinhof,
Sprachwissenschaftliche und andere studien , Komissionsverlag Von L. Friederichsen & Co.,
Hamburg , p.65-72.
16
Appendix 1 – Incomplete research on Mada
Price (1989) and Blench (in progress) is an electronic draft of the Mada
dictionary that serves a source of Tables 6-9.
Table a: Mada count nouns 1-10
Numeral Mada name Gloss (if any) Commentary
one gyər
two ywā
three tar
four nlyɛ
five tun
six tānnɛn ?3 plus ?
seven tāmgbā ?3 plus ?
eight tānda ?3 plus ?
nine tīyār ?3 plus ?
ten gùr
Table b: Mada Duodecimal count nouns 11 - 24
eleven pwɔ As under a typical
duodecimal system.
twelve tsɔ As under a typical
duodecimal system.
thirteen tsɔ ɡyər 12 + 1
fourteen tsɔ ywa 12 + 2
fifteen tsɔ tar 12 + 3
sixteen tsɔ nlyɛ 12 + 3
seventeen tsɔ tun 12 + 5
eighteen tsɔ tannɛn 12 + 6
nineteen tsɔ tamɡba 12 + 7
twenty tsɔ tanda 12 + 8
twenty
one
tsɔ tiyar 12 + 9
twenty
two
tsɔ ɡur 12 + 10
twenty
three
tsɔ pwɔ 12 + 11
twenty
four
tsɔ tsɔ ɡyər 12 + 12 (once)
Table c: Mada Modern count nouns 11 and above
eleven ɡur ɡyər
17
twelve ɡur ywa
thirteen ɡur tar
fourteen ɡur nlyɛ
twenty sɛ ywa
thirty sɛ tàr
forty sɛ nlyɛ
fifty sɛ tun
sixty sɛ tānnɛn
seventy sɛ tāmgbā
eighty sɛ tānda
ninety sɛ tiyar
hundred gigyər ? plus ?one
thousand nàgyər ? plus ?one
Table d: Mada count nouns in compounds
one ɡyər
three tàr In compounds
ten sɛ archaic word for „ten‟ only
found in compounds today
which may be a modified
„twelve‟.