The Mangbutu-Lese languages, also called Mangbutu-Efe, are a cluster of closely related languages within the Central Sudanic branch of the proposed Nilo-Saharan family, spoken in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, bordered by the Moru-Madi languages to the northeast and the Mangbetu languages to the west. The group comprises six languages, Mangbutu, Mvuba, Ndo, also called Membitu, Mamvu, Lese and Bendi, with the language of the Efe Pygmies usually treated as a dialect of Lese rather than a separate member; Ndo is the group's most populous language and is spoken by a caste of blacksmiths.
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Mangbutu-Lese is a branch of Central Sudanic (itself commonly placed within Nilo-Saharan), spoken in northeastern DR Congo; linked here to the direct Central Sudanic parent rather than the remoter Nilo-Saharan ancestor.
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