The Kru languages are a family of Liberia and Ivory Coast comprising 19 languages spoken by the Kru people, extending from southeastern Liberia to western Ivory Coast with communities also in Burkina Faso. The family divides into five subgroups, Aizi, Eastern Kru, Kuwaa, Western Kru and the disputed Seme, and its relationship to Niger-Congo is contested: Glottolog treats Kru as an independent family. Kru languages are known for some of the most complex tone systems in Africa.
Facts
Disputed
Proto-Language StatusWhether Kru belongs within Niger-Congo is unresolved. Guldemann (2018) found insufficient lexical and noun-class evidence to conclude a relationship, and Glottolog treats Kru as an independent family rather than a Niger-Congo branch. 1 RegionWest Africa: from southeastern Liberia to western Ivory Coast 1 Sources
1. Wikipedia: Kru languages
WikipediaIntroduction, first sentence
The Kru languages are spoken by the Kru people from the southeast of Liberia to the west of Ivory Coast.
Classification section
Kru lacks sufficient lexical resemblances and noun class resemblances to conclude a relationship with Niger-Congo. Glottolog considers Kru an independent language family.
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