# Number and animacy in the Teke noun class system

Larry M Hyman, Florian Lionnet, Christophère Ngolele

► To cite this version:

Larry M Hyman, Florian Lionnet, Christophère Ngolele. Number and animacy in the Teke noun class system. African linguistics across the disciplines, Language Science Press; 89–102, 2019, 10.5281/zen-odo.3520573. halshs-04370752

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<figure><img src="image_1.png" /></figure>

Distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
# Number and animacy in the Teke noun class system

Larry M Hyman, Florian Lionnet, Christophère Ngolele

► To cite this version:

Larry M Hyman, Florian Lionnet, Christophère Ngolele. Number and animacy in the Teke noun class system. African linguistics across the disciplines, Language Science Press; 89–102, 2019, 10.5281/zen-odo.3520573. halshs-04370752

HAL Id: halshs-04370752

https://shs.hal.science/halshs-04370752v1

Submitted on 3 Jan 2024

HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access
archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci-
entific research documents, whether they are pub-
lished or not. The documents may come from
teaching and research institutions in France or
abroad, or from public or private research centers.

L'archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est
destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents
scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non,
émanant des établissements d'enseignement et de
recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires
publics ou privés.

<figure><img src="image_1.png" /></figure>

Distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
# Chapter 5

## Number and animacy in the Teke noun class system

Larry M. Hyman

University of California, Berkeley

Florian Lionnet

Princeton University

Christophère Ngolele

Université Catholique d'Afrique Centrale, Yaoundé

In this paper, we trace the development of Proto-Bantu noun classes into Teke (Bantu B71, Ewo dialect), showing that formal reflexes of classes 1, 2, 5–9, and 14 are detectable. We further show that animacy, abstractness, and number allow us to determine the fate of classes 3, 4, 10, 11 and identify the following singular/plural genders: 1/2 (animate <PB 1/2, some 9/10), 1/8 (inanimate, <PB 3/4), 14/8 (abstract, <PB 14/8), 5/6 (<PB 5/6), 5/9 (<PB 11/10, with 10>9 merger), 7/8 (<PB 7/8), and 9/6 (<PB 9/6). Such reassignments provide a window into probing parallel noun class changes in other Northwest Bantu and Niger-Congo in general.

### 1 Introduction

In this paper we have two goals. First, we trace the development of the Proto-Bantu (PB) noun classes into a variety of Teke, a group of closely related, understudied B70 languages spoken in Gabon, the Republic of the Congo, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Second, we discuss how the Teke facts provide a window into probing parallel noun class changes in other Northwest Bantu, Bantu, and Niger-Congo (NC) in general. In this sense we provide an additional contribution and comparison with past work on the restructuring and loss

<figure><img src="image_2.png" /></figure>

Larry M. Hyman, Florian Lionnet & Christophère Ngolele. 2019. Number and animacy in the Teke noun class system. In Samson Lotven, Silvina Bongiovanni, Phillip Weirich, Robert Botne & Samuel Gyasi Obeng (eds.), *African linguistics across the disciplines: Selected papers from the 48th Annual Conference on African Linguistics*, 89–102. Berlin: Language Science Press.

DOI:10.5281/zenodo.3520573

<figure><img src="image_3.png" /></figure>
# Chapter 5

## Number and animacy in the Teke noun class system

Larry M. Hyman

University of California, Berkeley

Florian Lionnet

Princeton University

Christophère Ngolele

Université Catholique d'Afrique Centrale, Yaoundé

In this paper, we trace the development of Proto-Bantu noun classes into Teke (Bantu B71, Ewo dialect), showing that formal reflexes of classes 1, 2, 5–9, and 14 are detectable. We further show that animacy, abstractness, and number allow us to determine the fate of classes 3, 4, 10, 11 and identify the following singular/plural genders: 1/2 (animate <PB 1/2, some 9/10), 1/8 (inanimate, <PB 3/4), 14/8 (abstract, <PB 14/8), 5/6 (<PB 5/6), 5/9 (<PB 11/10, with 10>9 merger), 7/8 (<PB 7/8), and 9/6 (<PB 9/6). Such reassignments provide a window into probing parallel noun class changes in other Northwest Bantu and Niger-Congo in general.

### 1 Introduction

In this paper we have two goals. First, we trace the development of the Proto-Bantu (PB) noun classes into a variety of Teke, a group of closely related, understudied B70 languages spoken in Gabon, the Republic of the Congo, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Second, we discuss how the Teke facts provide a window into probing parallel noun class changes in other Northwest Bantu, Bantu, and Niger-Congo (NC) in general. In this sense we provide an additional contribution and comparison with past work on the restructuring and loss

<figure><img src="image_2.png" /></figure>

Larry M. Hyman, Florian Lionnet & Christophère Ngolele. 2019. Number and animacy in the Teke noun class system. In Samson Lotven, Silvina Bongiovanni, Phillip Weirich, Robert Botne & Samuel Gyasi Obeng (eds.), *African linguistics across the disciplines: Selected papers from the 48th Annual Conference on African Linguistics*, 89–102. Berlin: Language Science Press.

DOI:10.5281/zenodo.3520573

<figure><img src="image_3.png" /></figure>
of NC noun classes. This includes, among others, the considerable work on mergers and loss in Bantoid (cf. the papers in Hyman 1980 and Hyman & Voorhoeve 1980) and Cross-River (Williamson 1985; Faraclas 1986; Connell 1987; Hyman & Udoh 2006). Of particular interest will be the restructuring which takes place on the basis of animacy, something discussed at great length in Northeastern Bantu (Wald 1975; Contini-Morava 2008) and elsewhere in Bantu (Maho 1999: 122–126). We will show that both phonetic and semantic factors have played a role in the changes which have taken place between PB and Teke. All of the above – and more – is covered in very careful detail in Good (2012).

Crucial to the approach taken here is that synchronic noun classes and genders (singular/plural pairings) are established by concord (agreement markers), not by affixal marking on the noun itself. On the other hand, as pointed out by several of the above studies, attention must be paid to both marking on the noun as well as on agreeing elements. Our attention is on the Ewo dialect of Teke B71 (Republic of the Congo), as spoken by the third author, reporting on a several month study together in Berkeley in Spring 2016. We begin by considering the situation in PB in §2, then turn to Teke in §3. The changes which have taken place between the two are enumerated in §4, followed by a presentation of our conclusions in §5.

## 2 Proto-Bantu noun classes

The natural starting point for this kind of study is the Proto-Bantu noun class system, both noun prefixes and (pronominal) concordial elements, which Meeussen (1967: 97) identifies as shown in Table 1.<fnref n="1" />

On the basis of the reconstructions, we can make the following observations: (i) Noun prefixes all have L(ow) tone. (ii) Pronominal concord is H(igh) except for (shaded) classes 1 and 9 which are L. (iii) As indicated, some class pairings show some semantic consistency, e.g. 12, 13 and 19 are diminutive classes. In addition, class 6 *mà-* is also used for mass/liquids, and 16, 17, and 18 are locative classes. In short, at least 19 distinct noun classes can be reconstructed in PB.

<footnote n="1">¹Abbreviations used in the tables are listed at the end of this paper. Vowels are transcribed using IPA symbols, rather than Meeussen's (1967) symbols: /i, ɪ, u,ʊ/ rather than /i, ɪ, u, u/. Note that we choose to reconstruct the concordial prefix of class 1 as *ʊ̃- rather than to adopt Meeussen's (1967)'s *jʊ̃-*, in which the j- might be a confusion with class 9.</footnote>
of NC noun classes. This includes, among others, the considerable work on mergers and loss in Bantoid (cf. the papers in Hyman 1980 and Hyman & Voorhoeve 1980) and Cross-River (Williamson 1985; Faraclas 1986; Connell 1987; Hyman & Udoh 2006). Of particular interest will be the restructuring which takes place on the basis of animacy, something discussed at great length in Northeastern Bantu (Wald 1975; Contini-Morava 2008) and elsewhere in Bantu (Maho 1999: 122–126). We will show that both phonetic and semantic factors have played a role in the changes which have taken place between PB and Teke. All of the above – and more – is covered in very careful detail in Good (2012).

Crucial to the approach taken here is that synchronic noun classes and genders (singular/plural pairings) are established by concord (agreement markers), not by affixal marking on the noun itself. On the other hand, as pointed out by several of the above studies, attention must be paid to both marking on the noun as well as on agreeing elements. Our attention is on the Ewo dialect of Teke B71 (Republic of the Congo), as spoken by the third author, reporting on a several month study together in Berkeley in Spring 2016. We begin by considering the situation in PB in §2, then turn to Teke in §3. The changes which have taken place between the two are enumerated in §4, followed by a presentation of our conclusions in §5.

## 2 Proto-Bantu noun classes

The natural starting point for this kind of study is the Proto-Bantu noun class system, both noun prefixes and (pronominal) concordial elements, which Meeussen (1967: 97) identifies as shown in Table 1.<fnref n="1" />

On the basis of the reconstructions, we can make the following observations: (i) Noun prefixes all have L(ow) tone. (ii) Pronominal concord is H(igh) except for (shaded) classes 1 and 9 which are L. (iii) As indicated, some class pairings show some semantic consistency, e.g. 12, 13 and 19 are diminutive classes. In addition, class 6 *mà-* is also used for mass/liquids, and 16, 17, and 18 are locative classes. In short, at least 19 distinct noun classes can be reconstructed in PB.

<footnote n="1">¹Abbreviations used in the tables are listed at the end of this paper. Vowels are transcribed using IPA symbols, rather than Meeussen's (1967) symbols: /i, ɪ, u,ʊ/ rather than /i, ɪ, u, u/. Note that we choose to reconstruct the concordial prefix of class 1 as *u̥- rather than to adopt Meeussen's (1967)'s *jʊ̥- , in which the j- might be a confusion with class 9.</footnote>
<table><caption>Table 1: Proto-Bantu noun classes and genders</caption><thead><tr><th>Class</th><th>NPfx</th><th>Co</th><th>Class</th><th>NPfx</th><th>Co</th><th>Sg./Pl. genders</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td>*mʊ̊-</td><td>*ʊ̊-</td><td>11</td><td>*lʊ̊-</td><td>*lʊ̊-</td><td>1/2 (humans)</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td>*bà-</td><td>*bá-</td><td>12</td><td>*kà-</td><td>*ká-</td><td>3/4</td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td>*mʊ̊-</td><td>*gʊ̊-</td><td>13</td><td>*tʊ̊-</td><td>*tʊ̊-</td><td>5/6</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td>*mɪ̊-</td><td>*gɪ̊-</td><td>14</td><td>*bʊ̊-</td><td>*bʊ̊-</td><td>7/8</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td>*ì-</td><td>*lɪ̊-</td><td>15</td><td>*kʊ̊-</td><td>*kʊ̊-</td><td>9/10 (incl. animals)</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td>*mà-</td><td>*gá-</td><td>16</td><td>*pà-</td><td>*pá-</td><td>11/10</td></tr><tr><td>7</td><td>*kɪ̊-</td><td>*gɪ̊-</td><td>17</td><td>*kʊ̊-</td><td>*kʊ̊-</td><td>12/13 (diminutives)</td></tr><tr><td>8</td><td>*bì-</td><td>*bí-</td><td>18</td><td>*mʊ̊-</td><td>*mʊ̊-</td><td>14/6 (abstract)</td></tr><tr><td>9</td><td>*Ñ-</td><td>*jɪ̃-</td><td>19</td><td>*pɪ̊-</td><td>*pɪ̊-</td><td>15/6</td></tr><tr><td>10</td><td>*Ñ-</td><td>*jí-</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td>19/13? (diminutives)</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table><caption>Table 2: Noun class reflexes in Teke (Ewo dialect)</caption><thead><tr><th>PB</th><th>NPfx</th><th>As</th><th>Prox</th><th>Dist</th><th>'two'</th><th>SPr</th><th>SAgr/_C</th><th>SAgr/_V</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td>ò-, Ñ-, Ø-</td><td>wà</td><td>wù</td><td>wâ</td><td>—</td><td>ndé</td><td>Ø</td><td>Ø</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td>à-</td><td>bá</td><td>bà</td><td>bâ</td><td>bvwóólè</td><td>bó</td><td>á</td><td>bá</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td>lè-, Ø</td><td>lé</td><td>lì</td><td>lyâ</td><td>—</td><td>ló</td><td>lé</td><td>lé</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td>à-</td><td>má</td><td>mà</td><td>mâ</td><td>mbvwóólè</td><td>mó</td><td>á</td><td>má</td></tr><tr><td>7</td><td>kè-</td><td>ké</td><td>kì</td><td>kyâ</td><td>—</td><td>kó</td><td>ké</td><td>ké</td></tr><tr><td>8</td><td>è-</td><td>bé</td><td>bì</td><td>byâ</td><td>dzíéélè</td><td>jó</td><td>é</td><td>bé</td></tr><tr><td>9</td><td>N(-), Ø</td><td>yè</td><td>yì</td><td>yâ</td><td>yíéélè</td><td>yó</td><td>é</td><td>yé</td></tr><tr><td>14</td><td>ò-</td><td>bó</td><td>bà</td><td>bâ</td><td>—</td><td>ndé</td><td>Ø</td><td>Ø</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table><caption>Table 3: Teke genders (sg./pl. pairings)</caption><thead><tr><th>Gender</th><th>PB cl.</th><th>Sg. pfx</th><th>Pl. pfx</th><th>Prox (sg./pl.)</th><th>#</th><th>Semantics</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>wà/bá</td><td>1/2</td><td>ò-, Ñ-, Ø-</td><td>à-</td><td>wù/bà</td><td>79</td><td>animate, human</td></tr><tr><td>wà/bé</td><td>(1/8)</td><td>ò-</td><td>è-</td><td>wù/bì</td><td>52</td><td>inanimate</td></tr><tr><td>bó/bé</td><td>(14/8)</td><td>ò-</td><td>è-</td><td>bà/bì</td><td>18</td><td>abstract</td></tr><tr><td>lé/má</td><td>5/6</td><td>lè-</td><td>à-</td><td>lì/mà</td><td>92</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>lé/bá</td><td>(5/2)</td><td>lè-</td><td>à-</td><td>lì/bà</td><td>1</td><td>'bird'</td></tr><tr><td>lé/yè</td><td>(5/9)</td><td>lè-</td><td>N-</td><td>lì/yì</td><td>12</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ké/bé</td><td>7/8</td><td>kè-</td><td>è-</td><td>kì/bì</td><td>54</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>yè/má</td><td>(9/6)</td><td>N(-), Ø-</td><td>à-</td><td>yì/mà</td><td>45</td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>
<table><caption>Table 1: Proto-Bantu noun classes and genders</caption><thead><tr><th>Class</th><th>NPfx</th><th>Co</th><th>Class</th><th>NPfx</th><th>Co</th><th>Sg./Pl. genders</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td>*mʊ̊-</td><td>*ʊ̊-</td><td>11</td><td>*lʊ̊-</td><td>*lʊ̊-</td><td>1/2 (humans)</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td>*bà-</td><td>*bá-</td><td>12</td><td>*kà-</td><td>*ká-</td><td>3/4</td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td>*mʊ̊-</td><td>*gʊ̊-</td><td>13</td><td>*tʊ̊-</td><td>*tʊ̊-</td><td>5/6</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td>*mɪ̊-</td><td>*gɪ̊-</td><td>14</td><td>*bʊ̊-</td><td>*bʊ̊-</td><td>7/8</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td>*ì-</td><td>*lɪ̊-</td><td>15</td><td>*kʊ̊-</td><td>*kʊ̊-</td><td>9/10 (incl. animals)</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td>*mà-</td><td>*gá-</td><td>16</td><td>*pà-</td><td>*pá-</td><td>11/10</td></tr><tr><td>7</td><td>*kɪ̊-</td><td>*gɪ̊-</td><td>17</td><td>*kʊ̊-</td><td>*kʊ̊-</td><td>12/13 (diminutives)</td></tr><tr><td>8</td><td>*bì-</td><td>*bí-</td><td>18</td><td>*mʊ̊-</td><td>*mʊ̊-</td><td>14/6 (abstract)</td></tr><tr><td>9</td><td>*Ñ-</td><td>*jɪ̃-</td><td>19</td><td>*pɪ̊-</td><td>*pɪ̊-</td><td>15/6</td></tr><tr><td>10</td><td>*Ñ-</td><td>*jí-</td><td></td><td></td><td></td><td>19/13? (diminutives)</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table><caption>Table 2: Noun class reflexes in Teke (Ewo dialect)</caption><thead><tr><th>PB</th><th>NPfx</th><th>As</th><th>Prox</th><th>Dist</th><th>'two'</th><th>SPr</th><th>SAgr/_C</th><th>SAgr/_V</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td>ò-, Ñ-, Ø-</td><td>wà</td><td>wù</td><td>wâ</td><td>—</td><td>ndé</td><td>Ø</td><td>Ø</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td>à-</td><td>bá</td><td>bà</td><td>bâ</td><td>bvwóólè</td><td>bó</td><td>á</td><td>bá</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td>lè-, Ø</td><td>lé</td><td>lì</td><td>lyâ</td><td>—</td><td>ló</td><td>lé</td><td>lé</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td>à-</td><td>má</td><td>mà</td><td>mâ</td><td>mbvwóólè</td><td>mó</td><td>á</td><td>má</td></tr><tr><td>7</td><td>kè-</td><td>ké</td><td>kì</td><td>kyâ</td><td>—</td><td>kó</td><td>ké</td><td>ké</td></tr><tr><td>8</td><td>è-</td><td>bé</td><td>bì</td><td>byâ</td><td>dzíéélè</td><td>jó</td><td>é</td><td>bé</td></tr><tr><td>9</td><td>N(-), Ø</td><td>yè</td><td>yì</td><td>yâ</td><td>yíéélè</td><td>yó</td><td>é</td><td>yé</td></tr><tr><td>14</td><td>ò-</td><td>bó</td><td>bà</td><td>bâ</td><td>—</td><td>ndé</td><td>Ø</td><td>Ø</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table><caption>Table 3: Teke genders (sg./pl. pairings)</caption><thead><tr><th>Gender</th><th>PB cl.</th><th>Sg. pfx</th><th>Pl. pfx</th><th>Prox (sg./pl.)</th><th>#</th><th>Semantics</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>wà/bá</td><td>1/2</td><td>ò-, Ñ-, Ø-</td><td>à-</td><td>wù/bà</td><td>79</td><td>animate, human</td></tr><tr><td>wà/bé</td><td>(1/8)</td><td>ò-</td><td>è-</td><td>wù/bì</td><td>52</td><td>inanimate</td></tr><tr><td>bó/bé</td><td>(14/8)</td><td>ò-</td><td>è-</td><td>bà/bì</td><td>18</td><td>abstract</td></tr><tr><td>lé/má</td><td>5/6</td><td>lè-</td><td>à-</td><td>lì/mà</td><td>92</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>lé/bá</td><td>(5/2)</td><td>lè-</td><td>à-</td><td>lì/bà</td><td>1</td><td>'bird'</td></tr><tr><td>lé/yè</td><td>(5/9)</td><td>lè-</td><td>N-</td><td>lì/yì</td><td>12</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ké/bé</td><td>7/8</td><td>kè-</td><td>è-</td><td>kì/bì</td><td>54</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>yè/má</td><td>(9/6)</td><td>N(-), Ø-</td><td>à-</td><td>yì/mà</td><td>45</td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>
## 3 Teke (Ewo dialect)

The situation is quite different in Teke.<fnref n="2" /> The forms found in the Ewo dialect are presented in Table 2. The PB class numbers in the first column are given for reference. Note that it is not clear whether the initial nasal consonant of class 9 nouns should still be analyzed as a prefix in Teke, or whether it has fused with the root (i.e., class 9 nouns do not have a prefix anymore). This will accordingly be shown in all transcriptions of class 9 nouns with a hyphen in parentheses between the potential nasal prefix and the root.

From these tables the following observations and additional facts can be noted:<fnref n="3" />

(i) Class 3 merged with class 1. We know that the form is historical class 1 because of the L tone associative (only classes 1 and 9 had L tone concord in PB).

(ii) Class 4 merged with class 8, thus producing a 1/8 gender (corresponding to PB 3/4).

(iii) The Teke reflexes of PB class 9 is used both as a singular (with a class 6 plural), but also as the plural of class 5 (from class Proto-Bantu class 11, see below), thus producing the two genders 9/6 and 5/9. Again, we know that the plural form is a reflex of class 9 because of its L tone associative (a reflex of Proto-Bantu class 10 would have a H tone).

(iv) Class 11 merged with class 5. Its plural is now in class 9, hence a 5/9 gender (see above).

(v) PB diminutive classes 12, 13 and 19 and locative classes 16, 17 and 18 are not present in Teke.

(vi) Of the eight singular/plural genders in Teke, those not occurring in PB are in parentheses (Maho 1999: 255–261). As seen, most genders are innovations (five out of eight), as schematized in Figure 1 (the numerals refer to

<footnote n="2">²Although Teke languages often have seven (or more) phonetic vowels, e.g. Kukuya (Paulian 1975), we did not find a phonemic contrast in the mid vowels, which we transcribe with *e* and *o*, pronounced as such in noun class markers and other grammatical morphemes, otherwise as [*e*] and [*ɔ*].</footnote>

<footnote n="3">³Note, additionally, that the plural of class 14 nouns is now in class 8 instead of the original class 6 of proto-Bantu, despite the fact that class 6 still exists in Teke. We do not have an explanation for this change. One may surmise that the similarity of the singular *ò*- of 1/8 (from Proto-Bantu 3/4), inanimate, may have caused an analogy.</footnote>
## 3 Teke (Ewo dialect)

The situation is quite different in Teke.<fnref n="2" /> The forms found in the Ewo dialect are presented in Table 2. The PB class numbers in the first column are given for reference. Note that it is not clear whether the initial nasal consonant of class 9 nouns should still be analyzed as a prefix in Teke, or whether it has fused with the root (i.e., class 9 nouns do not have a prefix anymore). This will accordingly be shown in all transcriptions of class 9 nouns with a hyphen in parentheses between the potential nasal prefix and the root.

From these tables the following observations and additional facts can be noted:<fnref n="3" />

(i) Class 3 merged with class 1. We know that the form is historical class 1 because of the L tone associative (only classes 1 and 9 had L tone concord in PB).

(ii) Class 4 merged with class 8, thus producing a 1/8 gender (corresponding to PB 3/4).

(iii) The Teke reflexes of PB class 9 is used both as a singular (with a class 6 plural), but also as the plural of class 5 (from class Proto-Bantu class 11, see below), thus producing the two genders 9/6 and 5/9. Again, we know that the plural form is a reflex of class 9 because of its L tone associative (a reflex of Proto-Bantu class 10 would have a H tone).

(iv) Class 11 merged with class 5. Its plural is now in class 9, hence a 5/9 gender (see above).

(v) PB diminutive classes 12, 13 and 19 and locative classes 16, 17 and 18 are not present in Teke.

(vi) Of the eight singular/plural genders in Teke, those not occurring in PB are in parentheses (Maho 1999: 255–261). As seen, most genders are innovations (five out of eight), as schematized in Figure 1 (the numerals refer to

<footnote n="2">²Although Teke languages often have seven (or more) phonetic vowels, e.g. Kukuya (Paulian 1975), we did not find a phonemic contrast in the mid vowels, which we transcribe with *e* and *o*, pronounced as such in noun class markers and other grammatical morphemes, otherwise as [*e*] and [*ɔ*].</footnote>

<footnote n="3">³Note, additionally, that the plural of class 14 nouns is now in class 8 instead of the original class 6 of proto-Bantu, despite the fact that class 6 still exists in Teke. We do not have an explanation for this change. One may surmise that the similarity of the singular *ò*- of 1/8 (from Proto-Bantu 3/4), inanimate, may have caused an analogy.</footnote>
the PB noun classes that the modern Teke classes correspond to historically; the numerals in parentheses refer to the PB classes that merged with other classes). Examples of each gender follow in Table 4.

<figure><img src="image_4.png" /><figcaption>Figure 1: Teke genders</figcaption></figure>

As can be seen in the shaded column of Table 2, at most eight distinct classes are recognizable, which we identify by their associative marker. The singular/plural pairings (“genders”) are presented in Table 3, where the number (#) indicated for each gender is based on a lexicon of 356 singular/plural nouns.

With this established, we now turn to consider how Teke derived from PB.

<table><caption>Table 4: Examples of each Teke gender</caption><thead><tr><th>Teke</th><th>PB</th><th>Singular</th><th>Plural</th><th></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>wà/bá</td><td>1/2</td><td>mwàánà<br>ò-kúúlù<br>àn-dzìá<br>àn-dzòò</td><td>à-bàánà<br>à-kúúlù<br>à-àn-dzìá<br>à-àn-dzòò</td><td>'child'<br>'uncle'<br>'stranger'<br>'elephant'</td></tr><tr><td>wà/bé</td><td>(1/8)</td><td>ò-bá<br>ò-mbónó<br>ò-nywà<br>ò-kìlà</td><td>è-bá<br>è-mbónó<br>è-nywà<br>è-kìlà</td><td>'palm tree'<br>'leg'<br>'mouth'<br>'tail'</td></tr><tr><td>bó/bé</td><td>(14/8)</td><td>ò-yúú<br>ò-dzá<br>ò-bvwòó<br>ò-nsámbá</td><td>è-yúú<br>è-dzá<br>è-bvòó<br>è-nsámbá</td><td>'poverty'<br>'food'<br>'fear'<br>'judgment'</td></tr><tr><td>lé/má⁴</td><td>5/6</td><td>lè-lémì<br>kélé<br>dzíínì<br>dzíírì</td><td>à-lémì<br>à-kélé<br>mìínì<br>mbíírì</td><td>'tongue'<br>'stone'<br>'tooth'<br>'eye'</td></tr><tr><td>lé/bá</td><td>(5/2)</td><td>lè-nyòní</td><td>à-nyòní</td><td>'bird'</td></tr></tbody></table>
the PB noun classes that the modern Teke classes correspond to historically; the numerals in parentheses refer to the PB classes that merged with other classes). Examples of each gender follow in Table 4.

<figure><img src="image_4.png" /><figcaption>Figure 1: Teke genders</figcaption></figure>

As can be seen in the shaded column of Table 2, at most eight distinct classes are recognizable, which we identify by their associative marker. The singular/plural pairings (“genders”) are presented in Table 3, where the number (#) indicated for each gender is based on a lexicon of 356 singular/plural nouns.

With this established, we now turn to consider how Teke derived from PB.

<table><caption>Table 4: Examples of each Teke gender</caption><thead><tr><th>Teke</th><th>PB</th><th>Singular</th><th>Plural</th><th></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>wà/bá</td><td>1/2</td><td>mwàánà<br>ò-kúúlù<br>àn-dzìá<br>àn-dzòò</td><td>à-bàánà<br>à-kúúlù<br>à-àn-dzìá<br>à-àn-dzòò</td><td>'child'<br>'uncle'<br>'stranger'<br>'elephant'</td></tr><tr><td>wà/bé</td><td>(1/8)</td><td>ò-bá<br>ò-mbónó<br>ò-nywà<br>ò-kìlà</td><td>è-bá<br>è-mbónó<br>è-nywà<br>è-kìlà</td><td>'palm tree'<br>'leg'<br>'mouth'<br>'tail'</td></tr><tr><td>bó/bé</td><td>(14/8)</td><td>ò-yúú<br>ò-dzá<br>ò-bvwòó<br>ò-nsámbá</td><td>è-yúú<br>è-dzá<br>è-bvòó<br>è-nsámbá</td><td>'poverty'<br>'food'<br>'fear'<br>'judgment'</td></tr><tr><td>lé/má⁴</td><td>5/6</td><td>lè-lémì<br>kélé<br>dzíínì<br>dzíírì</td><td>à-lémì<br>à-kélé<br>mìínì<br>mbíírì</td><td>'tongue'<br>'stone'<br>'tooth'<br>'eye'</td></tr><tr><td>lé/bá</td><td>(5/2)</td><td>lè-nyòní</td><td>à-nyòní</td><td>'bird'</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table><thead><tr><th>Teke</th><th>PB</th><th>Singular</th><th>Plural</th><th></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td rowspan="4">lé/yè</td><td rowspan="4">(5/9)</td><td>lè-nkíí</td><td>n(-)kíí</td><td>'neck'</td></tr><tr><td>lè-sálá</td><td>n(-)tsálá</td><td>'feather'</td></tr><tr><td>lè-ntsèrè</td><td>n(-)tsèrè</td><td>'straw'</td></tr><tr><td>lè-ndèlì</td><td>n(-)dèlì</td><td>'beard'</td></tr><tr><td rowspan="4">ké/bé</td><td rowspan="4">7/8</td><td>kè-kàì</td><td>è-kàì</td><td>'hand'</td></tr><tr><td>kè-kàlá</td><td>è-kàlá</td><td>'mat'</td></tr><tr><td>kè-bàá</td><td>è-bàá</td><td>'wall'</td></tr><tr><td>kè-yìrí</td><td>è-yìrí</td><td>'bone'</td></tr><tr><td rowspan="4">yè/má</td><td rowspan="4">(9/6)</td><td>n(-)dzó</td><td>à-ndzó</td><td>'house'</td></tr><tr><td>bí</td><td>à-bí</td><td>'egg'</td></tr><tr><td>n(-)dzálí</td><td>à-ndzálí</td><td>'river'</td></tr><tr><td>m(-)bàà</td><td>à-mbàà</td><td>'fire'</td></tr></tbody></table>

## 4 From Proto-Bantu to Teke

As summarized in §2, the noun classes inherited from PB have undergone a number of mergers. PB classes 3, 4 and 11 all merged their noun and agreements with classes 1, 8 and 5, respectively. Class 14, on the other hand has merged its *bɔ̃- prefix with class 1 (and 3) ò-, but maintains a separate agreement. Similarly, PB class 2 *bà- and class 6 *mà- have merged their noun prefix as a-, but maintain distinct agreements. It is likely therefore that the noun prefixes merged first, and later their agreements. We survey these changes in this section. However, we first begin by considering the three genders that were inherited directly from PB. Table 5 presents examples of PB and later regional reconstructions, as well as their current reflexes in Teke.<fnref n="5" />

As seen in Table 5, the major change has been the loss of the initial consonant of PB class 2 *ba-, class 6 *ma- and class 8 *bì-. The Teke 5/6 examples show that class 5 nouns can be marked by lè- or ò. Nouns in 5/6 are roughly equally divided; those in 5/9 always take lè-, since they all derive from PB class 11 *lɔ̃-.

<footnote n="4">⁴Gender *lé/má* (5/6) contains a few nouns whose class can be identified through initial consonant alternation rather than the regular Teke prefixes *lè-* and *à-*, e.g. *dziíní/miíní* ‘tooth’, *dziírì/mbíírì* ‘eye’. Such words are rare, and constitute exceptional forms in the language (we have not been able to identify any phonological conditioning). Note that the plural of ‘tooth’ *mbíírì* starts with a (historically unexpected) [mb] cluster rather than the expected [m]).</footnote>

<footnote n="5">⁵Proto-Bantu reconstructions are taken from Bastin et al. (2002) (noun roots), and Meeussen (1967) (noun class prefixes, cf. Table 1).</footnote>
<table><thead><tr><th>Teke</th><th>PB</th><th>Singular</th><th>Plural</th><th></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td rowspan="4">lé/yè</td><td rowspan="4">(5/9)</td><td>lè-nkíí</td><td>n(-)kíí</td><td>'neck'</td></tr><tr><td>lè-sálá</td><td>n(-)tsálá</td><td>'feather'</td></tr><tr><td>lè-ntsèrè</td><td>n(-)tsèrè</td><td>'straw'</td></tr><tr><td>lè-ndèlì</td><td>n(-)dèlì</td><td>'beard'</td></tr><tr><td rowspan="4">ké/bé</td><td rowspan="4">7/8</td><td>kè-kàì</td><td>è-kàì</td><td>'hand'</td></tr><tr><td>kè-kàlá</td><td>è-kàlá</td><td>'mat'</td></tr><tr><td>kè-bàá</td><td>è-bàá</td><td>'wall'</td></tr><tr><td>kè-yìrí</td><td>è-yìrí</td><td>'bone'</td></tr><tr><td rowspan="4">yè/má</td><td rowspan="4">(9/6)</td><td>n(-)dzó</td><td>à-ndzó</td><td>'house'</td></tr><tr><td>bí</td><td>à-bí</td><td>'egg'</td></tr><tr><td>n(-)dzálí</td><td>à-ndzálí</td><td>'river'</td></tr><tr><td>m(-)bàà</td><td>à-mbàà</td><td>'fire'</td></tr></tbody></table>

## 4 From Proto-Bantu to Teke

As summarized in §2, the noun classes inherited from PB have undergone a number of mergers. PB classes 3, 4 and 11 all merged their noun and agreements with classes 1, 8 and 5, respectively. Class 14, on the other hand has merged its *bɔ̌- prefix with class 1 (and 3) ò-, but maintains a separate agreement. Similarly, PB class 2 *bà- and class 6 *mà- have merged their noun prefix as a-, but maintain distinct agreements. It is likely therefore that the noun prefixes merged first, and later their agreements. We survey these changes in this section. However, we first begin by considering the three genders that were inherited directly from PB. Table 5 presents examples of PB and later regional reconstructions, as well as their current reflexes in Teke.<fnref n="5" />

As seen in Table 5, the major change has been the loss of the initial consonant of PB class 2 *ba-, class 6 *ma- and class 8 *bì-. The Teke 5/6 examples show that class 5 nouns can be marked by lè- or ò. Nouns in 5/6 are roughly equally divided; those in 5/9 always take lè-, since they all derive from PB class 11 *lɔ̌-.

<footnote n="4">⁴Gender *lé/má* (5/6) contains a few nouns whose class can be identified through initial consonant alternation rather than the regular Teke prefixes *lè-* and *à-*, e.g. *dziíni/miínì* ‘tooth’, *dziírì/mbíírì* ‘eye’. Such words are rare, and constitute exceptional forms in the language (we have not been able to identify any phonological conditioning). Note that the plural of ‘tooth’ *mbíírì* starts with a (historically unexpected) [mb] cluster rather than the expected [m]).</footnote>

<footnote n="5">⁵Proto-Bantu reconstructions are taken from Bastin et al. (2002) (noun roots), and Meeussen (1967) (noun class prefixes, cf. Table 1).</footnote>
5 Number and animacy in the Teke noun class system

<table><caption>Table 5: Genders inherited from Proto-Bantu (Pfx-Noun + Assoc.)</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th>PB (sg./pl.)</th><th colspan="3">Teke (sg./pl.)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>*1/2</td><td></td><td>1/2 wà/bá</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*mù-kádí ù-</td><td>*bà-kádí bá-</td><td>ò-kálí wà</td><td>à-kálí bá</td><td>'woman'</td></tr><tr><td>*mù-gìà ù-</td><td>*bà-gìà bá-</td><td>ò-yìà wà</td><td>à-yìà bá</td><td>'slave'</td></tr><tr><td>*5/6</td><td></td><td>5/6 lé/má</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*ì-jícò lí-</td><td>*mà-jícò gá-</td><td>dzíírì lé</td><td>mbíírì má</td><td>'eye'</td></tr><tr><td>*ì-júì lí-</td><td>*mà-júì gá-</td><td>dzúì lé</td><td>à-dzúì-má</td><td>'voice'</td></tr><tr><td>*ì-kájá lí-</td><td>*mà-kájá gá-</td><td>lè-káyà lé</td><td>à-káyà má</td><td>'tobacco'</td></tr><tr><td>*7/8</td><td></td><td>7/8 ké/bé</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*kì-dìbà gí-</td><td>*bì-dìbà bí-</td><td>kè-dìà ké</td><td>è-dìà bé</td><td>'pool'</td></tr><tr><td>*kì-gàdá gí-</td><td>*bì-gàdá bí-</td><td>kè-kàlá ke</td><td>è-kàlá bé</td><td>'mat'</td></tr></tbody></table>

While the above genders have been stable, four class mergers directly explain two of the new genders: The first, gender 1/8 wà/bé, is the formal merger of *3 > 1 and *4 > 8. Thus, as seen in Table 6, PB 3/4 now corresponds to Teke 1/8 wà/bé:

<table><caption>Table 6: Gender wà/bé (*3/4 > 1/8)</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th>PB (sg./pl.)</th><th colspan="3">Teke (sg./pl.)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>*3/4</td><td></td><td>1/8 wà/bé</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*mù-nùà gù-</td><td>*mì-nùà gí-</td><td>ò-nywà wà</td><td>è-nywà bé</td><td>'mouth'</td></tr><tr><td>*mù-gùndà gù-</td><td>*mì-gùndà gí-</td><td>ò-kùùnà wà</td><td>è-kùùnà bé</td><td>'field'</td></tr><tr><td>*mù-kídà gù-</td><td>*mì-kídà gí-</td><td>ò-kílà wà</td><td>è-kílà bé</td><td>'tail'</td></tr><tr><td>*mù-tímà gù-</td><td>*mì-tímà gí-</td><td>ò-tímà wà</td><td>è-tímà bé</td><td>'heart'</td></tr></tbody></table>

Similarly, gender 5/9 lé/yè derives from the merger of *11 > 5 and *10 > 9 (Table 7).<fnref n="6" />

<footnote n="6">⁶The same *10 > 9 merger seems to have occurred in Lateghe, another B71 dialect (Ruth Raharimanantsoa and Pauline Linton, p.c.), but not in Kukuya (Paulian 1975), Ngungwel, or Eboo (Ruth Raharimanantsoa p.c.). This merger thus seems to be a characteristic of B71 dialects only.</footnote>
5 Number and animacy in the Teke noun class system

<table><caption>Table 5: Genders inherited from Proto-Bantu (Pfx-Noun + Assoc.)</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th>PB (sg./pl.)</th><th colspan="3">Teke (sg./pl.)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>*1/2</td><td></td><td>1/2 wà/bá</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*mù-kádí ù-</td><td>*bà-kádí bá-</td><td>ò-kálí wà</td><td>à-kálí bá</td><td>'woman'</td></tr><tr><td>*mù-gìà ù-</td><td>*bà-gìà bá-</td><td>ò-yìà wà</td><td>à-yìà bá</td><td>'slave'</td></tr><tr><td>*5/6</td><td></td><td>5/6 lé/má</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*ì-jícò lí-</td><td>*mà-jícò gá-</td><td>dzíírì lé</td><td>mbíírì má</td><td>'eye'</td></tr><tr><td>*ì-júì lí-</td><td>*mà-júì gá-</td><td>dzúì lé</td><td>à-dzúì-má</td><td>'voice'</td></tr><tr><td>*ì-kájá lí-</td><td>*mà-kájá gá-</td><td>lè-káyà lé</td><td>à-káyà má</td><td>'tobacco'</td></tr><tr><td>*7/8</td><td></td><td>7/8 ké/bé</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*kì-dìbà gí-</td><td>*bì-dìbà bí-</td><td>kè-dìà ké</td><td>è-dìà bé</td><td>'pool'</td></tr><tr><td>*kì-gàdá gí-</td><td>*bì-gàdá bí-</td><td>kè-kàlá ke</td><td>è-kàlá bé</td><td>'mat'</td></tr></tbody></table>

While the above genders have been stable, four class mergers directly explain two of the new genders: The first, gender 1/8 wà/bé, is the formal merger of *3 > 1 and *4 > 8. Thus, as seen in Table 6, PB 3/4 now corresponds to Teke 1/8 wà/bé:

<table><caption>Table 6: Gender wà/bé (*3/4 > 1/8)</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th>PB (sg./pl.)</th><th colspan="3">Teke (sg./pl.)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>*3/4</td><td></td><td>1/8 wà/bé</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*mù-nùà gù-</td><td>*mì-nùà gí-</td><td>ò-nywà wà</td><td>è-nywà bé</td><td>'mouth'</td></tr><tr><td>*mù-gùndà gù-</td><td>*mì-gùndà gí-</td><td>ò-kùùnà wà</td><td>è-kùùnà bé</td><td>'field'</td></tr><tr><td>*mù-kídà gù-</td><td>*mì-kídà gí-</td><td>ò-kílà wà</td><td>è-kílà bé</td><td>'tail'</td></tr><tr><td>*mù-tímà gù-</td><td>*mì-tímà gí-</td><td>ò-tímà wà</td><td>è-tímà bé</td><td>'heart'</td></tr></tbody></table>

Similarly, gender 5/9 lé/yè derives from the merger of *11 > 5 and *10 > 9 (Table 7).<fnref n="6" />

<footnote n="6">⁶The same *10 > 9 merger seems to have occurred in Lateghe, another B71 dialect (Ruth Raharimanantsoa and Pauline Linton, p.c.), but not in Kukuya (Paulian 1975), Ngungwel, or Eboo (Ruth Raharimanantsoa p.c.). This merger thus seems to be a characteristic of B71 dialects only.</footnote>
<table><caption>Table 7: Gender *lé/yè* (*11/10 > 5/9)</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th>PB (sg./pl.)</th><th></th><th>Teke (sg./pl.)</th><th></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>*11/10</td><td></td><td>5/9 <i>lé/yè</i></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*lɔ̌-dèdù lɔ̌-</td><td>*N̂-dèdù yí</td><td>lè-ndèlì <i>lé</i></td><td>n(-)dèlì yè (*yé)</td><td>'beard'<sup>a</sup></td></tr><tr><td>*lɔ̌-cádá lɔ̌-</td><td>*N̂-cádá yí</td><td>lè-sálá <i>lé</i></td><td>n(-)tsálá yè (*yé)</td><td>'feather'</td></tr></tbody></table>

As discussed above, these mergers appear to be the result of regular sound changes affecting noun prefixes, e.g. the systematic loss of prefix-initial [b] or [m] (prefix-initial [l] and [k] are not affected), followed by the realignment of agreement patterns, as illustrated in Table 8 for the *4 > 8 merger:<fnref n="7" />

<table><caption>Table 8: Hypothesized steps of *4 > 8 merger</caption><tr><td>4 *mì-kídà gí-</td><td>></td><td>4 ì-kídà gí-</td><td>> (...) ></td><td>8 è-kídà bé</td></tr><tr><td>8 *bì-dìbà bí-</td><td>></td><td>8 ì-dìbà bí-</td><td>> (...) ></td><td>8 è-dìà bé</td></tr></table>

The origin of 5/9, and 9/6 can be traced back to class/gender reassignment following the consequences of the *10 > 9 merger, i.e. the loss of a number distinction for N- initial nouns. This again shows the importance of a prior prefix merger in motivating changes in noun class assignments. Former *9/10 nouns could have become a number-insensitive 9/9 gender, but did not. Instead, the *10 > 9 merger led to a class/gender reassignment based on the semantic property of animacy. Animate *9/10 nouns were reassigned to 1/2 *wà/bá*, merging with the human nouns in that class, as shown in Table 9.<fnref n="8" />

As also seen in Table 9, one noun, *lè-nyòní* 'bird', shifted into gender 5/2 *lé/bá*. Note that this is the only noun illustrating both this shift, and the inquorate

<footnote><sup>a</sup>Note that the initial [n] in the singular form *lè-ndèlì* might be an indication that the singular was also initially in class 9, and then reassigned to class 5.</footnote>

<footnote n="7">⁷The fact that only prefix-initial labial consonants are targeted does not necessarily contradict the Neogrammarian principle of sound change regularity: stem-initial prominence, which plays an important role in Teke and more generally Northwestern Bantu languages (cf. Pau- lian (1975), Hyman (1987), Idiatov & Van de Velde (2016), a.o.) is not unlikely to have protected stem-initial consonants (and possibly other non-prefix consonants?) from this change. A de- tailed account of such sound changes in Teke is, however, outside the scope of this paper.</footnote>

<footnote n="8">⁸Most of the former class 9 nouns that were reassigned to class 1 or class 5 start with a nasal consonant, which is a trace of the former nasal prefix of class 9, now part of the root. We have indicated the historical origin of this nasal consonant as a prefix with a hyphen in parentheses.</footnote>
<table><caption>Table 7: Gender *lé/yè* (*11/10 > 5/9)</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th>PB (sg./pl.)</th><th></th><th>Teke (sg./pl.)</th><th></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>*11/10</td><td></td><td>5/9 <i>lé/yè</i></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*lɔ̌-dèdù lɔ̌-</td><td>*N̂-dèdù yí</td><td>lè-ndèlì <i>lé</i></td><td>n(-)dèlì yè (*yé)</td><td>'beard'<sup>a</sup></td></tr><tr><td>*lɔ̌-cádá lɔ̌-</td><td>*N̂-cádá yí</td><td>lè-sálá <i>lé</i></td><td>n(-)tsálá yè (*yé)</td><td>'feather'</td></tr></tbody></table>

As discussed above, these mergers appear to be the result of regular sound changes affecting noun prefixes, e.g. the systematic loss of prefix-initial [b] or [m] (prefix-initial [l] and [k] are not affected), followed by the realignment of agreement patterns, as illustrated in Table 8 for the *4 > 8 merger:<fnref n="7" />

<table><caption>Table 8: Hypothesized steps of *4 > 8 merger</caption><tr><td>4 *mì-kídà gí-</td><td>></td><td>4 ì-kídà gí-</td><td>> (...) ></td><td>8 è-kídà bé</td></tr><tr><td>8 *bì-dìbà bí-</td><td>></td><td>8 ì-dìbà bí-</td><td>> (...) ></td><td>8 è-dìà bé</td></tr></table>

The origin of 5/9, and 9/6 can be traced back to class/gender reassignment following the consequences of the *10 > 9 merger, i.e. the loss of a number distinction for N- initial nouns. This again shows the importance of a prior prefix merger in motivating changes in noun class assignments. Former *9/10 nouns could have become a number-insensitive 9/9 gender, but did not. Instead, the *10 > 9 merger led to a class/gender reassignment based on the semantic property of animacy. Animate *9/10 nouns were reassigned to 1/2 *wà/bá*, merging with the human nouns in that class, as shown in Table 9.<fnref n="8" />

As also seen in Table 9, one noun, *lè-nyòní* 'bird', shifted into gender 5/2 *lé/bá*. Note that this is the only noun illustrating both this shift, and the inquorate

<footnote><sup>a</sup>Note that the initial [n] in the singular form *lè-ndèlì* might be an indication that the singular was also initially in class 9, and then reassigned to class 5.</footnote>

<footnote n="7">⁷The fact that only prefix-initial labial consonants are targeted does not necessarily contradict the Neogrammarian principle of sound change regularity: stem-initial prominence, which plays an important role in Teke and more generally Northwestern Bantu languages (cf. Pau- lian (1975), Hyman (1987), Idiatov & Van de Velde (2016), a.o.) is not unlikely to have protected stem-initial consonants (and possibly other non-prefix consonants?) from this change. A de- tailed account of such sound changes in Teke is, however, outside the scope of this paper.</footnote>

<footnote n="8">⁸Most of the former class 9 nouns that were reassigned to class 1 or class 5 start with a nasal consonant, which is a trace of the former nasal prefix of class 9, now part of the root. We have indicated the historical origin of this nasal consonant as a prefix with a hyphen in parentheses.</footnote>
5 Number and animacy in the Teke noun class system

gender 5/2 *lé/bá*. On the other hand, inanimate *9/10* nouns either became 9/6 *yè/má* (plural reassignment only) or 5/6 *lè/má* (complete gender reassignment), as shown in Table 10.

<table><caption>Table 9: Animate *9/10 > 1/2 wà/bá (+ 1 case of 5/2 lé/bá)</caption><thead><tr><th colspan="2">PB (sg./pl.)</th><th colspan="3">Teke (sg./pl.)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td colspan="2"><strong>*9/10</strong></td><td colspan="3"><strong>1/2 wà/bá</strong></td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-jàmà yì-</td><td>*N̂-jàmà yí-</td><td>nyàmà wà</td><td>à-nyàmà bá</td><td>'animal'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-jògù yì-</td><td>*N̂-jògù yí-</td><td>n(-)dzòò wà</td><td>à-ndzòò bá</td><td>'elephant'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-bùà yì-</td><td>*N̂-bùà yí-</td><td>m(-)bvà wà</td><td>à-mbvà bá</td><td>'dog'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-gòmbè yì-</td><td>*N̂-gòmbè yí-</td><td>n(-)gómbè wà</td><td>à-ngómbè bá</td><td>'cow'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-gàndɔ́ yì-</td><td>*N̂-gàndɔ́ yí-</td><td>n(-)gàndí wà</td><td>à-ngàndí bá</td><td>'crocodile'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-gòì yì-</td><td>*N̂-gòì yí-</td><td>n(-)gò wà</td><td>à-ngò bá</td><td>'leopard'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-gùmbá yì-</td><td>*N̂-gùmbá yí-</td><td>n(-)gùùmà wà</td><td>à-ngùùmà bá</td><td>'porcupine'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-kímà yì-</td><td>*N̂-kímà yí-</td><td>n(-)kímà wà</td><td>à-nkímà bá</td><td>'monkey'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-gùbús yì-</td><td>*N̂-gùbús yí-</td><td>n(-)gùbú</td><td>à-ngùbú bá</td><td>'hippo'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-pɔ́kɔ́ yì-</td><td>*N̂-pɔ́kɔ́ yí-</td><td>m(-)púù wà</td><td>à-mpúù bá</td><td>'rat'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-pìdì yì-</td><td>*N̂-pìdì yí-</td><td>m(-)pílì wà</td><td>à-mpílì bá</td><td>'snake sp.'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-cùì yì-</td><td>*N̂-cùì yí-</td><td>n(-)tsú wà</td><td>à-ntsú bá</td><td>'fish'</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2"><strong>*N̂-jùnì yì-</strong></td><td colspan="3"><strong>5/2 lé/bá</strong></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2"></td><td>lè-nyòní lé</td><td>à-nyòní bá</td><td>'bird'</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table><caption>Table 10: Inanimate *9/10 > 9/6 yè/má or 5/6 lè/má</caption><thead><tr><th colspan="2">PB (sg./pl.)</th><th colspan="3">Teke (sg./pl.)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td colspan="2"><strong>*9/10</strong></td><td colspan="3"><strong>9/6 yè/má</strong></td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-jàà yì-</td><td>*N̂-jàà yí-</td><td>n(-)dzàlà yè</td><td>à-ndzàlà má</td><td>'hunger'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-jùngɔ́ yì-</td><td>*N̂-jùngɔ́ yí-</td><td>n(-)dzùngù yè</td><td>à-ndzùngù má</td><td>'pot'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-jìà yì-</td><td>*N̂-jìà yí-</td><td>n(-)dzìlà yè</td><td>à-ndzìlà má</td><td>'path'</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2"><strong>*N̂-gì yì-</strong></td><td colspan="3"><strong>5/6 lé/má</strong></td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-dɔ́ngɔ́ yì-</td><td>Ñ̂-gì yí-</td><td>lè-ngìngì lé</td><td>à-ngìngì má</td><td>'fly'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-tɔ́dɔ́ yì-</td><td>Ñ̂-dɔ́ngɔ́ yí-</td><td>lè-ndúú lé</td><td>à-ndúú má</td><td>'pepper'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-tɔ́dɔ́ yí-</td><td>Ñ̂-tɔ́dɔ́ yí-</td><td>lè-ntúlù lé</td><td>à-ntúlù má</td><td>'chest'</td></tr></tbody></table>

In addition, a few *9/10* inanimate nouns became either 1/8 wà/bé or 5/9 lé/yè, as can be seen in Table 11.
5 Number and animacy in the Teke noun class system

gender 5/2 *lé/bá*. On the other hand, inanimate *9/10* nouns either became 9/6 *yè/má* (plural reassignment only) or 5/6 *lè/má* (complete gender reassignment), as shown in Table 10.

<table><caption>Table 9: Animate *9/10 > 1/2 wà/bá (+ 1 case of 5/2 lé/bá)</caption><thead><tr><th colspan="2">PB (sg./pl.)</th><th colspan="3">Teke (sg./pl.)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td colspan="2"><strong>*9/10</strong></td><td colspan="3"><strong>1/2 wà/bá</strong></td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-jàmà yì-</td><td>*N̂-jàmà yí-</td><td>nyàmà wà</td><td>à-nyàmà bá</td><td>'animal'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-jògù yì-</td><td>*N̂-jògù yí-</td><td>n(-)dzòò wà</td><td>à-ndzòò bá</td><td>'elephant'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-bùà yì-</td><td>*N̂-bùà yí-</td><td>m(-)bvà wà</td><td>à-mbvà bá</td><td>'dog'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-gòmbè yì-</td><td>*N̂-gòmbè yí-</td><td>n(-)gómbè wà</td><td>à-ngómbè bá</td><td>'cow'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-gàndɔ́ yì-</td><td>*N̂-gàndɔ́ yí-</td><td>n(-)gàndí wà</td><td>à-ngàndí bá</td><td>'crocodile'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-gòì yì-</td><td>*N̂-gòì yí-</td><td>n(-)gò wà</td><td>à-ngò bá</td><td>'leopard'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-gùmbá yì-</td><td>*N̂-gùmbá yí-</td><td>n(-)gùùmà wà</td><td>à-ngùùmà bá</td><td>'porcupine'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-kímà yì-</td><td>*N̂-kímà yí-</td><td>n(-)kímà wà</td><td>à-nkímà bá</td><td>'monkey'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-gùbús yì-</td><td>*N̂-gùbús yí-</td><td>n(-)gùbú</td><td>à-ngùbú bá</td><td>'hippo'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-pɔ́kù yì-</td><td>*N̂-pɔ́kù yí-</td><td>m(-)púù wà</td><td>à-mpúù bá</td><td>'rat'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-pídì yì-</td><td>*N̂-pídì yí-</td><td>m(-)pílì wà</td><td>à-mpílì bá</td><td>'snake sp.'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-cúì yì-</td><td>*N̂-cúì yí-</td><td>n(-)tsú wà</td><td>à-ntsú bá</td><td>'fish'</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2"><strong>*N̂-jùnì yì-</strong></td><td colspan="3"><strong>5/2 lé/bá</strong></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2"></td><td>lè-nyòní lé</td><td>à-nyòní bá</td><td>'bird'</td></tr></tbody></table>

<table><caption>Table 10: Inanimate *9/10 > 9/6 yè/má or 5/6 lè/má</caption><thead><tr><th colspan="2">PB (sg./pl.)</th><th colspan="3">Teke (sg./pl.)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td colspan="2"><strong>*9/10</strong></td><td colspan="3"><strong>9/6 yè/má</strong></td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-jàà yì-</td><td>*N̂-jàà yí-</td><td>n(-)dzàlà yè</td><td>à-ndzàlà má</td><td>'hunger'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-jùngɔ́ yì-</td><td>*N̂-jùngɔ́ yí-</td><td>n(-)dzùngù yè</td><td>à-ndzùngù má</td><td>'pot'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-jìà yì-</td><td>*N̂-jìà yí-</td><td>n(-)dzìlà yè</td><td>à-ndzìlà má</td><td>'path'</td></tr><tr><td colspan="2"></td><td colspan="3"><strong>5/6 lé/má</strong></td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-gì yì-</td><td>Ñ̂-gì yí-</td><td>lè-ngìngì lé</td><td>à-ngìngì má</td><td>'fly'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-dɔ́ngɔ́ yì-</td><td>Ñ̂-dɔ́ngɔ́ yí-</td><td>lè-ndúú lé</td><td>à-ndúú má</td><td>'pepper'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-tɔ́dɔ́ yì-</td><td>Ñ̂-tɔ́dɔ́ yí-</td><td>lè-ntúlù lé</td><td>à-ntúlù má</td><td>'chest'</td></tr></tbody></table>

In addition, a few *9/10* inanimate nouns became either 1/8 wà/bé or 5/9 lé/yè, as can be seen in Table 11.
<table><caption>Table 11: Inanimate *9/10 > 1/8 wà/bé or 5/9 lé/yè</caption><thead><tr><th>PB (sg./pl.)</th><th></th><th>Teke (sg./pl.)</th><th></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>*9/10</td><td></td><td>wà/bé</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-gòdí yì-</td><td>N̂-gòdí yí-</td><td>ò-ngòrí wà</td><td>è-ngòrí bé</td><td>'liana'</td></tr><tr><td></td><td></td><td>lé/yè</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-jùgú yì-</td><td>N̂-jùgú yí-</td><td>lè-ndzú lé</td><td>n(-)dzú yè</td><td>'groundnut'</td></tr><tr><td>*N̂-kíngó yì-</td><td>N̂-kíngó yí-</td><td>lè-nkíí lé</td><td>ŋ(-)kíí yè</td><td>'neck'</td></tr></tbody></table>

Finally, a few former *9/10 nouns alternate between 5/6 lé/má and 5/9 (< *10) lé/yè, e.g. lè-mpàmbù lé / à-mpàmbù má ~ m(-)pàmbù yè 'worm'. Note that all former *9/10 nouns reassigned to 1/2 wà/bá, 5/6 lè/má, 9/6 yè/má, 1/8 wà/bé, or 5/9 lè/yè have kept the historical N- prefix. The cause of all of the above *9/10 class/gender reassignments is presumably the need to maintain a singular/plural distinction, with animacy exploited as the guiding criterion for reassignment.

Animacy plays a potential role in other places in the Teke noun class system. Recall that singular nouns marked by the prefix ò- today may represent the merger of PB *1 and *3 (with the same agreements) or class *14 (with its distinct agreements). From the semantics one can almost perfectly predict whether an ò-prefixed noun will be in gender 1/2, 1/8 or 14/8. As before, animate nouns will all be in 1/2. Inanimates will either be in 14/8 bó/bé if they represent an abstract quality (as in PB *14), otherwise in 1/8 wà/bé. Representative examples are provided in Table 12.

<table><caption>Table 12: Animacy-based gender assignment of ò- nouns</caption><tbody><tr><td>Animate → 1/2 wà/bá</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ò-lúmì</td><td>'husband'</td><td>→</td><td>ò-lúmì wá</td><td>/ à-lúmì bá</td></tr><tr><td>ò-tèé</td><td>'Teke person'</td><td>→</td><td>ò-tèé wá</td><td>/ à-tèé bá</td></tr><tr><td>Abstract → 14/8 bó/bé</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ò-bvwòó</td><td>'fear'</td><td>→</td><td>ò-bvwòó bó</td><td>/ è-mbvwòó bé</td></tr><tr><td>ò-yúú</td><td>'poverty'</td><td>→</td><td>ò-yúú bó</td><td>/ è-yúú bé</td></tr><tr><td>Concrete inanimate → 1/8 wà/bé</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ò-bá</td><td>'palmtree'</td><td>→</td><td>ò-bá wà</td><td>/ è-bá bé</td></tr><tr><td>ò-sìà</td><td>'rope'</td><td>→</td><td>ò-sìà wà</td><td>/ è-sìà bé</td></tr></tbody></table>
<table><caption>Table 11: Inanimate *9/10 > 1/8 wà/bé or 5/9 lé/yè</caption><thead><tr><th>PB (sg./pl.)</th><th></th><th>Teke (sg./pl.)</th><th></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>*9/10</td><td></td><td>wà/bé</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*N-gòdí yì-</td><td>N-gòdí yí-</td><td>ò-ngòrí wà</td><td>è-ngòrí bé</td><td>'liana'</td></tr><tr><td></td><td></td><td>lé/yè</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>*N-jùgú yì-</td><td>N-jùgú yí-</td><td>lè-ndzú lé</td><td>n(-)dzú yè</td><td>'groundnut'</td></tr><tr><td>*N-kíngó yì-</td><td>N-kíngó yí-</td><td>lè-nkíí lé</td><td>ŋ(-)kíí yè</td><td>'neck'</td></tr></tbody></table>

Finally, a few former *9/10 nouns alternate between 5/6 lé/má and 5/9 (< *10) lé/yè, e.g. lè-mpàmbù lé / à-mpàmbù má ~ m(-)pàmbù yè 'worm'. Note that all former *9/10 nouns reassigned to 1/2 wà/bá, 5/6 lè/má, 9/6 yè/má, 1/8 wà/bé, or 5/9 lè/yè have kept the historical N- prefix. The cause of all of the above *9/10 class/gender reassignments is presumably the need to maintain a singular/plural distinction, with animacy exploited as the guiding criterion for reassignment.

Animacy plays a potential role in other places in the Teke noun class system. Recall that singular nouns marked by the prefix ò- today may represent the merger of PB *1 and *3 (with the same agreements) or class *14 (with its distinct agreements). From the semantics one can almost perfectly predict whether an ò-prefixed noun will be in gender 1/2, 1/8 or 14/8. As before, animate nouns will all be in 1/2. Inanimates will either be in 14/8 *bó/bé if they represent an abstract quality (as in PB *14), otherwise in 1/8 wà/bé. Representative examples are provided in Table 12.

<table><caption>Table 12: Animacy-based gender assignment of ò- nouns</caption><tbody><tr><td>Animate → 1/2 wà/bá</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ò-lúmì</td><td>'husband'</td><td>→</td><td>ò-lúmì wá</td><td>/ à-lúmì bá</td></tr><tr><td>ò-tèé</td><td>'Teke person'</td><td>→</td><td>ò-tèé wá</td><td>/ à-tèé bá</td></tr><tr><td>Abstract → 14/8 *bó/bé</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ò-bvwòó</td><td>'fear'</td><td>→</td><td>ò-bvwòó bó</td><td>/ è-mbvwòó bé</td></tr><tr><td>ò-yúú</td><td>'poverty'</td><td>→</td><td>ò-yúú bó</td><td>/ è-yúú bé</td></tr><tr><td>Concrete inanimate → 1/8 wà/bé</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ò-bá</td><td>'palmtree'</td><td>→</td><td>ò-bá wà</td><td>/ è-bá bé</td></tr><tr><td>ò-sìà</td><td>'rope'</td><td>→</td><td>ò-sìà wà</td><td>/ è-sìà bé</td></tr></tbody></table>
Table 13 shows the number of animate nouns that occur in each gender.

<table><caption>Table 13: Genders and animacy [bracketed number = nouns with human referent]</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th></th><th>Animate [incl. human]</th><th>Inanimate</th><th>Total</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1/2</td><td>wà/bá</td><td>73 [34]</td><td>6</td><td>79</td></tr><tr><td>5/2</td><td>lé/bá</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>1/8</td><td>wà/bé</td><td>5 [1]</td><td>47</td><td>52</td></tr><tr><td>14/8</td><td>bó/bé</td><td>0</td><td>18 (abstract)</td><td>18</td></tr><tr><td>5/6</td><td>lé/má</td><td>9 (insects, 'frog', 'tortoise')</td><td>83</td><td>92</td></tr><tr><td>5/9</td><td>lé/yè</td><td>2</td><td>10</td><td>12</td></tr><tr><td>7/8</td><td>ké/bé</td><td>11 [5, kin]</td><td>43</td><td>54</td></tr><tr><td>9/6</td><td>yè/má</td><td>0</td><td>45</td><td>45</td></tr></tbody><tfoot><tr><td colspan="5">Total: 353</td></tr></tfoot></table>

As seen in Table 13, the total number of animates is 101 out of 353 total nouns. Of these 101, 73 occur in 1/2 wà/bá. In fact, virtually all humans are in 1/2. Of the rest only 28 animate nouns occur outside 1/2. Interestingly, no animate noun has a class 9 yè singular (gender 9/6 yè/má). All PB *9/10 animate nouns were reassigned, mostly to 1/2 wà/bá.

To conclude this section, we note with considerable interest the variation in former *11 (and some *9) nouns that have been reassigned to class 5 lé. These have kept the former class 10 plural N- form, even though it has the L tone agreement yè of *9. However, as we have noted, an N- noun is ambiguous in terms of number, and may be interpreted either as singular or as plural. It can be the plural class 9 of a class 5 lé singular (from *11) or the singular of 9/6 yè/má and 1/2 wà/bá. In addition, nearly half of class 5/6 nouns alternate between a prefixed lè- and a Ø or N- singular form, approximately half in our lexicon occur without lè-. (Recall that all 5/9 nouns require lè- on their singular.) This is illustrated in Table 14.

<table><caption>Table 14: lè- vs. Ø sg. prefix in 5/6 lé/má nouns</caption><tbody><tr><td>Optional Ø</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>(lè-)mpéì lé</td><td>/</td><td>à-mpéì má</td><td>'chin'</td></tr><tr><td>(lè-)sàánì lé</td><td>/</td><td>à-sàánì má</td><td>'plate'</td></tr><tr><td>Obligatory Ø</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>(*lè-)kfúrú lé</td><td>/</td><td>à-kfúrú má</td><td>'hole'</td></tr><tr><td>(*lè-)bìlà lé</td><td>/</td><td>à-bìlà má</td><td>'leprosy'</td></tr></tbody></table>
Table 13 shows the number of animate nouns that occur in each gender.

<table><caption>Table 13: Genders and animacy [bracketed number = nouns with human referent]</caption><thead><tr><th></th><th></th><th>Animate [incl. human]</th><th>Inanimate</th><th>Total</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1/2</td><td>wà/bá</td><td>73 [34]</td><td>6</td><td>79</td></tr><tr><td>5/2</td><td>lé/bá</td><td>1</td><td>0</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>1/8</td><td>wà/bé</td><td>5 [1]</td><td>47</td><td>52</td></tr><tr><td>14/8</td><td>bó/bé</td><td>0</td><td>18 (abstract)</td><td>18</td></tr><tr><td>5/6</td><td>lé/má</td><td>9 (insects, 'frog', 'tortoise')</td><td>83</td><td>92</td></tr><tr><td>5/9</td><td>lé/yè</td><td>2</td><td>10</td><td>12</td></tr><tr><td>7/8</td><td>ké/bé</td><td>11 [5, kin]</td><td>43</td><td>54</td></tr><tr><td>9/6</td><td>yè/má</td><td>0</td><td>45</td><td>45</td></tr></tbody><tfoot><tr><td colspan="5">Total: 353</td></tr></tfoot></table>

As seen in Table 13, the total number of animates is 101 out of 353 total nouns. Of these 101, 73 occur in 1/2 wà/bá. In fact, virtually all humans are in 1/2. Of the rest only 28 animate nouns occur outside 1/2. Interestingly, no animate noun has a class 9 yè singular (gender 9/6 yè/má). All PB *9/10 animate nouns were reassigned, mostly to 1/2 wà/bá.

To conclude this section, we note with considerable interest the variation in former *11 (and some *9) nouns that have been reassigned to class 5 lé. These have kept the former class 10 plural N- form, even though it has the L tone agreement yè of *9. However, as we have noted, an N- noun is ambiguous in terms of number, and may be interpreted either as singular or as plural. It can be the plural class 9 of a class 5 lé singular (from *11) or the singular of 9/6 yè/má and 1/2 wà/bá. In addition, nearly half of class 5/6 nouns alternate between a prefixed lè- and a Ø or N- singular form, approximately half in our lexicon occur without lè-. (Recall that all 5/9 nouns require lè- on their singular.) This is illustrated in Table 14.

<table><caption>Table 14: lè- vs. Ø sg. prefix in 5/6 lé/má nouns</caption><tbody><tr><td>Optional Ø</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>(lè-)mpéì lé</td><td>/</td><td>à-mpéì má</td><td>'chin'</td></tr><tr><td>(lè-)sàánì lé</td><td>/</td><td>à-sàánì má</td><td>'plate'</td></tr><tr><td>Obligatory Ø</td><td></td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>(*lè-)kfúrú lé</td><td>/</td><td>à-kfúrú má</td><td>'hole'</td></tr><tr><td>(*lè-)bìlà lé</td><td>/</td><td>à-bìlà má</td><td>'leprosy'</td></tr></tbody></table>
As a result this has produced several cases where the same N- noun can be interpreted as either singular or plural, paired with an appropriate noun class of opposite number, as shown in Table 15.

<table><caption>Table 15: N- nouns as singular or plural</caption><tr><td>Plural class 9 yè (singular = class 5 lé)</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>lè-mbàlà lé</td><td>/</td><td>m(-)bàlà yè 'civet cat'</td></tr><tr><td>lè-ŋkíí lé</td><td>/</td><td>ŋ(-)kíí yè 'neck'</td></tr><tr><td>Singular class 5 lé (plural = class 2 bá if animate)</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>m(-)bàlà lé</td><td>/</td><td>à-mbàlà bá 'civet cat'</td></tr><tr><td>Singular class 5 lé (plural = class 2 má if inanimate)</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ŋ(-)kíí lé</td><td>/</td><td>à-ŋkíí má 'leprosy'</td></tr></table>

## 5 Conclusion

As seen above, an identical prefix shape can not only lead to merger of noun classes (e.g. class *1 and *3, *4 and *8, *5 and *11), but can cause a noun to function in two different genders, one as a singular, the other as a plural. This too can be expected to lead to further realignments as the noun classes prepare for their next move.

In the preceding sections, we have seen that the Teke noun class system has undergone important restructuring with loss of eleven of the nineteen PB classes, four class mergers, and many gender reassignments. As we have shown, only three out of eight genders are inherited from PB. Three variables have played an important role in this evolution: (i) prefix shapes; (ii) animacy; (iii) number. Number and animacy have played a major role in this restructuring, in particular in the class and gender reassignment of PB *9/10 nouns. These become 1/2 *waà/bá if animate, 5/6 *lé/má or 9/6 *yè/má if inanimate (occasionally also 1/8 *wà/bé and 5/9 *lé/yè). Animacy also plays an important role in synchrony. As we have shown, singular *ò- is interpreted as 1/2 *wà/bá if animate, 14/8 *bó/bé if abstract, and 1/8 *wà/bé if concrete inanimate. In addition, a noun with the prefix sequence *à-N-* is unambiguously class 2 *bá if animate, class 6 *má if inanimate. The relevance (and potential conflict) of animacy in the synchronic and diachronic marking of noun classes is attested elsewhere in Bantu (Wald 1975; Maho 1999; Contini-Morava 2008; among others), even to the extent of entirely replacing the inherited noun class system, as in Nzadi (Crane et al. 2011). What is particularly interesting in
As a result this has produced several cases where the same N- noun can be interpreted as either singular or plural, paired with an appropriate noun class of opposite number, as shown in Table 15.

<table><caption>Table 15: N- nouns as singular or plural</caption><tr><td>Plural class 9 yè (singular = class 5 lé)</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>lè-mbàlà lé</td><td>/</td><td>m(-)bàlà yè 'civet cat'</td></tr><tr><td>lè-ŋkíí lé</td><td>/</td><td>ŋ(-)kíí yè 'neck'</td></tr><tr><td>Singular class 5 lé (plural = class 2 bá if animate)</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>m(-)bàlà lé</td><td>/</td><td>à-mbàlà bá 'civet cat'</td></tr><tr><td>Singular class 5 lé (plural = class 2 má if inanimate)</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>ŋ(-)kíí lé</td><td>/</td><td>à-ŋkíí má 'leprosy'</td></tr></table>

## 5 Conclusion

As seen above, an identical prefix shape can not only lead to merger of noun classes (e.g. class *1 and *3, *4 and *8, *5 and *11), but can cause a noun to function in two different genders, one as a singular, the other as a plural. This too can be expected to lead to further realignments as the noun classes prepare for their next move.

In the preceding sections, we have seen that the Teke noun class system has undergone important restructuring with loss of eleven of the nineteen PB classes, four class mergers, and many gender reassignments. As we have shown, only three out of eight genders are inherited from PB. Three variables have played an important role in this evolution: (i) prefix shapes; (ii) animacy; (iii) number. Number and animacy have played a major role in this restructuring, in particular in the class and gender reassignment of PB *9/10 nouns. These become 1/2 *waà/bá if animate, 5/6 *lé/má or 9/6 *yè/má if inanimate (occasionally also 1/8 *wà/bé and 5/9 *lé/yè). Animacy also plays an important role in synchrony. As we have shown, singular *ò- is interpreted as 1/2 *wà/bá if animate, 14/8 *bó/bé if abstract, and 1/8 *wà/bé if concrete inanimate. In addition, a noun with the prefix sequence *à-N-* is unambiguously class 2 *bá if animate, class 6 *má if inanimate. The relevance (and potential conflict) of animacy in the synchronic and diachronic marking of noun classes is attested elsewhere in Bantu (Wald 1975; Maho 1999; Contini-Morava 2008; among others), even to the extent of entirely replacing the inherited noun class system, as in Nzadi (Crane et al. 2011). What is particularly interesting in
the Teke case is the conspiracy between prefix shape and animacy. Noun classes are reassigned on the basis of animacy. As prefixes merge, noun class agreements merge, even those accompanying singular and plural 9/10. This shows that Teke speakers are paying attention not only to the semantics, but are impressively influenced by the forms. Such interplay in the reassignments which we have enumerated should be considered in probing parallel noun class changes in other Northwest Bantu and Niger-Congo in general.

## Abbreviations

<table><tr><td>As</td><td>Associative</td><td>Prox</td><td>proximal demonstrative</td></tr><tr><td>Co</td><td>concord</td><td></td><td>'this/these'</td></tr><tr><td>Dist</td><td>distal demonstrative</td><td>SA</td><td>Subject agreement</td></tr><tr><td>NPfx</td><td>noun prefix</td><td>SPr</td><td>Subject pronoun</td></tr></table>

## References

Bastin, Yvonne, Andre Coupez, Evariste Mumba & Thilo Schadeberg (eds.). 2002. *Bantu lexical reconstructions 3 / Reconstructions lexicales bantoues 3*. Tervuren: Musée Royal de l'Afrique Centrale. http://linguistics.africamuseum.be/BLR3.html, accessed 2017-3-31.

Connell, Bruce. 1987. Noun classification in Lower Cross. *Journal of West African Languages* 17. 110–125.

Contini-Morava, Ellen. 2008. Human relationship terms, discourse prominence, and asymmetrical animacy in Swahili. *Journal of African Languages and Linguistics* 29. 127–171.

Crane, Thera M., Larry M. Hyman & Simon Nsielanga Tukumu. 2011. *A grammar of Nzadi [B865]: A language of Democratic Republic of Congo* (University of California Publications in Linguistics). Berkeley: University of California Press. http://escholarship.org/uc/item/846308w2.

Faraclas, Nicholas. 1986. Cross River as a model for the evolution of Benue-Congo nominal class/concord systems. *Studies in African Linguistics* 17. 40–54.

Good, Jeff. 2012. How to become a “Kwa” noun. *Morphology* 22. 293–335.

Hyman, Larry (ed.). 1980. *Noun classes in the Grassfileds Bantu borderland* (Southern California Occasional Papers in Linguistics 8). University of Southern California: Los Angeles.

Hyman, Larry M. 1987. Prosodic domains in Kukuya. *Natural Language and Linguistic Theory* 5. 311–333.
the Teke case is the conspiracy between prefix shape and animacy. Noun classes are reassigned on the basis of animacy. As prefixes merge, noun class agreements merge, even those accompanying singular and plural 9/10. This shows that Teke speakers are paying attention not only to the semantics, but are impressively influenced by the forms. Such interplay in the reassignments which we have enumerated should be considered in probing parallel noun class changes in other Northwest Bantu and Niger-Congo in general.

## Abbreviations

<table><tr><td>As</td><td>Associative</td><td>Prox</td><td>proximal demonstrative</td></tr><tr><td>Co</td><td>concord</td><td></td><td>'this/these'</td></tr><tr><td>Dist</td><td>distal demonstrative</td><td>SA</td><td>Subject agreement</td></tr><tr><td>NPfx</td><td>noun prefix</td><td>SPr</td><td>Subject pronoun</td></tr></table>

## References

Bastin, Yvonne, Andre Coupez, Evariste Mumba & Thilo Schadeberg (eds.). 2002. *Bantu lexical reconstructions 3 / Reconstructions lexicales bantoues 3*. Tervuren: Musée Royal de l'Afrique Centrale. http://linguistics.africamuseum.be/BLR3.html, accessed 2017-3-31.

Connell, Bruce. 1987. Noun classification in Lower Cross. *Journal of West African Languages* 17. 110–125.

Contini-Morava, Ellen. 2008. Human relationship terms, discourse prominence, and asymmetrical animacy in Swahili. *Journal of African Languages and Linguistics* 29. 127–171.

Crane, Thera M., Larry M. Hyman & Simon Nsielanga Tukumu. 2011. *A grammar of Nzadi [B865]: A language of Democratic Republic of Congo* (University of California Publications in Linguistics). Berkeley: University of California Press. http://escholarship.org/uc/item/846308w2.

Faraclas, Nicholas. 1986. Cross River as a model for the evolution of Benue-Congo nominal class/concord systems. *Studies in African Linguistics* 17. 40–54.

Good, Jeff. 2012. How to become a “Kwa” noun. *Morphology* 22. 293–335.

Hyman, Larry (ed.). 1980. *Noun classes in the Grassfileds Bantu borderland* (Southern California Occasional Papers in Linguistics 8). University of Southern California: Los Angeles.

Hyman, Larry M. 1987. Prosodic domains in Kukuya. *Natural Language and Linguistic Theory* 5. 311–333.
Hyman, Larry M. & Imelda Udoh. 2006. Relic noun class structure in Leggbo. In Larry M. Hyman & Paul Newman (eds.), *West African linguistics: Papers in honor of Russell G. Schuh* (Supplement 11 to Studies in African linguistics), 75–99.

Hyman, Larry M. & Jan Voorhoeve (eds.). 1980. *L'Expansion bantoue, volume 1: Les classes nominales dans le bantou des Grassfields*. (Actes du colloque international du CNRS, Viviers (France), 4-16 avril 1977.). Paris: SELAF.

Idiatov, Dmitry & Mark Van de Velde. 2016. *Stem-initial accent and C-emphasis prosody in North-Western Bantu*. Presentation given at the 6th international conference on Bantu Languages, 6 June 2016, Helsinki, Finland.

Maho, Jouni F. 1999. *A comparative study of Bantu noun classes*. Gothenburg, Sweden: University of Gothenburg dissertation.

Meeussen, A. E. 1967. *Bantu grammatical reconstructions*. Tervuren: Musée Royal de l'Afrique Centrale.

Paulian, Christiane. 1975. *Le kukuya: Langue teke du Congo*. Paris: SELAF.

Wald, Benji. 1975. Animate concord in Northeast Coastal Bantu: Its linguistic and social implications as a case of grammatical convergence. *Studies in African Linguistics* 6. 261–314.

Williamson, Kay. 1985. How to become a Kwa language. In A. Makkai & Melby A. K. (eds.), *Linguistics and philosophy: Essays in honor of Rulon S. Wells*, 427–443. Amsterdam: Benjamins.
Hyman, Larry M. & Imelda Udoh. 2006. Relic noun class structure in Leggbo. In Larry M. Hyman & Paul Newman (eds.), *West African linguistics: Papers in honor of Russell G. Schuh* (Supplement 11 to Studies in African linguistics), 75–99.

Hyman, Larry M. & Jan Voorhoeve (eds.). 1980. *L'Expansion bantoue, volume 1: Les classes nominales dans le bantou des Grassfields*. (Actes du colloque international du CNRS, Viviers (France), 4-16 avril 1977.). Paris: SELAF.

Idiatov, Dmitry & Mark Van de Velde. 2016. *Stem-initial accent and C-emphasis prosody in North-Western Bantu*. Presentation given at the 6th international conference on Bantu Languages, 6 June 2016, Helsinki, Finland.

Maho, Jouni F. 1999. *A comparative study of Bantu noun classes*. Gothenburg, Sweden: University of Gothenburg dissertation.

Meeussen, A. E. 1967. *Bantu grammatical reconstructions*. Tervuren: Musée Royal de l'Afrique Centrale.

Paulian, Christiane. 1975. *Le kukuya: Langue teke du Congo*. Paris: SELAF.

Wald, Benji. 1975. Animate concord in Northeast Coastal Bantu: Its linguistic and social implications as a case of grammatical convergence. *Studies in African Linguistics* 6. 261–314.

Williamson, Kay. 1985. How to become a Kwa language. In A. Makkai & Melby A. K. (eds.), *Linguistics and philosophy: Essays in honor of Rulon S. Wells*, 427–443. Amsterdam: Benjamins.