• DOI:10.1515/jall.1980.2.1.39
• Corpus ID: 143757407

Reconstructing the Lenis Feature in Proto-Ẹdoid

@inproceedings{Elugbe1980ReconstructingTL,
  title={Reconstructing the Lenis Feature in Proto-Ẹdoid},
  author={Ben Ohi Elugbe},
  year={1980}
}

• B. Elugbe
• Published 1980
• Linguistics

The group of languages here called Edoid are those earlier called "Edo" (Thomas 1910) and the "Beningruppe" (Melzian 1942). Greenberg (1966) does not call them by any common name but says they are a sub-branch of Kwa, listing them äs group "e. Bini, Ishan, Kukuruku, Sobo". None of the above-mentioned scholars, however, seems to have been aware of the presence of Edoid-speaking peoples in the eastern part of the Niger Delta äs well äs in Akoko and Owo Divisions of Ondo State to the north of Bendel (formerly Mid-western) State. In fact, there are Edoid languages in the eastern Niger Delta, namely Epie-Atisa, Egene (Engenni), and Degema. They are first mentioned by Talbot (1932) and discussed extensively in Wescott (1962) and Thomas and Williamson (1967). Wescott applied the term "Delta Edo" to them and it was further made populär by Williamson (1968), Thomas and Williamson (1967), and Elugbe (1973). The Edoid languages spoken to the north and north-west of Bendel State are Uhami, Ehueun (Ekpenmen, Epenmi), Ukue (Ukpe, Dcpe), and lyayu (spoken at Idoani). As far äs I know, these languages are first clearly mentioned in Williamson (1968) while a more detailed account of their geographical spread is given in Elugbe (1971). Elugbe (1973) presents a detailed classification of the Edoid languages in addition to a comprehensive account of their geographical distribution. The classification of 1973, which proposed a primary two-way split of the main Proto-Edoid (henceforth PE) stem, is revised in Elugbe (in press) where an initial four-way split is postulated (see fig. 1). Delta Edoid (DE) languages are the most southerly and are spoken in Rivers State. South-western Edoid (SWE) languages are spoken in the Delta Province of Bendel State and specifically in the Ughelli, Isoko, Ethiope, and Okpe Local Government Areas. Isekiri and some SWE languages exist side by side in the Warri Local Government Area while some