Map and classification of the Omo-Tana languages (the language group Somali is in), OC (Revised)

[Idilinaa]

I think my skepticism comes from the fact that If you look at the bulk of this list it becomes obvious that most of these lanaguges he's comparing in the omo-tana stuff are basically lamaguges that are right next to each other or would have been the source of slaves that are working in the jubba valley.


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If you look at this picture and imagine the pre-oromo expansion range of these lanaguges then theyre basically the southern Ethiopia region which one of the prime sources of slaves .
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I don’t agree with the Omo-Tana classification. There’s really no such thing as an “Omo-Tana language group” , these are simply closely related languages and dialects that branched off from a common source. Linguists such as M. Nuuh Ali and others have attributed the differences among them primarily to ecological separation and social interaction patterns that shaped their development over time.


The idea of a Southern Somali or Southern Ethiopian origin also makes little sense. It relies too heavily on the “least moves principle,” which assumes that the area with the greatest linguistic diversity must be the point of origin. However, this principle doesn’t hold true for many languages, Somali included.

As for the claim that slavery influenced dialect formation. I find that unconvincing as well. Some of the largest slave owners historically were Northern Somali speakers, not Southerners.

When people are adopted or assimilated into another community, they generally take on the language and dialect of that group; they don’t reshape or alter it significantly.