THE LINGUISTIC STATUS OF BASSA NGE AND BASSA KWOMU

ABSTRACT

This study investigates the linguistic status of Bassa Nge and Bassa Kwomu through a comparative analysis. It aims to disambiguate the earlier notion that Bassa Kwomu and Bassa Nge are the same language. The method used in data collection and analysis includes semi structured interviews of speakers of both Bassa Nge and Bassa Kwomu, consultation of previous works and the translation of words from the English language to both Bassa Nge and Bassa Kwomu by speakers interviewed. The theoretical framework employed is the Lexical Statistics method of comparative analysis by Morris Swadesh. This research shows that both Bassa Nge and Bassa Kwomu are not mutually intelligible and are relatively different.