Get fulltext from our e-platform
The Making of a Mixed Language
The case of Ma’a/Mbugu
The Mbugu (or Ma'á) language (Tanzania) is one of the few genuine mixed languages, reputedly combining Bantu grammar with Cushitic vocabulary. In fact the people speak two languages: one mixed and one closely related to the Bantu language Pare. This book is the first comprehensive description of these languages. It shows that these two languages share one grammar while their lexicon is parallel. In the distant past the people shifted from a Cushitic to a Bantu language and in the process rebuilt a language of their own that expresses their separate ethnic identity in a Bantu environment. This linguistic history is explained in the context of the intricate history of the people. The discussion of the processes that were involved in the formation of Ma'a/Mbugu is extremely relevant for both creole studies and for contact linguistics in general.
[Creole Language Library, 26] 2003. xx, 322 pp.
Publishing status: Available
Published online on 28 October 2011
Published online on 28 October 2011
© John Benjamins Publishing Company
Table of Contents
- List of Tables | pp. xi–xiii
- List of Figures | pp. xiii–xiv
- List of Abbreviations | pp. xv–xvii
- Acknowledgements | pp. xvi–16
- Map 1 of the relevant area of East Africa | pp. xviii–18
- Map 2 of the Usambara area | pp. xix–xx
- 1. Introduction | pp. 1–15
- 2. Historical and geographical background | pp. 17–50
- 3. Linguistic history | pp. 51–93
- 4. Phonology | pp. 95–110
- 5. The verb | pp. 111–162
- 6. The noun | pp. 163–174
- 7. Adjectives and other nominal modifiers | pp. 175–182
- 8. Invariables or other words | pp. 183–196
- 9. Notes on syntax, code-switching and texts | pp. 197–213
- Notes | pp. 215–220
- Appendix: Mbugu — English etymological lexicon | pp. 231–298
- English index to the lexicon | pp. 299–318
- Index | pp. 319–322
“This book is a valuable contribution, as it contains by far the most comprehensive descriptive analysis of a fascinating language. Mous is a genuine authority on the language; the book will surely become the standard source. The status and history of this language are highly controversial in language contact studies, so that the availability of a richly documented grammar will be welcomed by many researchers (as well as by specialists in Bantu and other languages of that part of East Africa). The book has no competitors, and it is a 'must-read' for anyone interested in mixed languages. Scholarly interest in language contact has been booming for some years now, and mixed languages have proved especially intriguing.”
Sarah Thomason, University of Michigan
“Maarten Mous has produced a solid study of the creation of the mixed language Ma'a, parallel to the Bantu language Mbugu spoken among members of the same ethnic group. His analysis is of great interest to all students of language contact, historical linguistics, ethnogenesis, and the deliberate manipulation of languages.”
Peter Bakker, Aarhus University, in Anthropoloical Linguistics 47(3), 2005
“The present book is a wealth of data and information concerning the language under question. In fact it is a complete descriptive grammar of not only the mixed language Ma'a/Inner Mbugu, but also simultaneously the ''matrix'' language Normal Mbugu, showing the close relationship between the languages, something that Mous argues strongly for.”
Michael W. Morgan, Kobe City University of Foreign Studies on Linguist List 15.2005, 2004
“This is a remarkable book. I found this book so extraordinarily interesting, so gripping that I just read and read, from start to finish. Mous sets out an array of possible interpretations, examines each of them, states the pros and cons, and says where he stands. He proposes to enlarge the standard interpretation of the Comparative method, via his conscious manipulation. All this is of general interest. A balanced presentation; a pleasure to read. I predict scholars from different backgrounds will like this book: those interested in mixed languages, and those interesting in language contact, language change, language genesis, and language manipulation.”
Derek Nurse, Memorial University of Newfoundland
“This book makes an invaluable contribution to contact linguistics. Apart from Africanists and scholars working on language contact, this book is of great relevance to general historical linguists.”
Luisa Miceli, University of Western Autstralia, in Language 82(1), 2006
“It is clear that for many years to come this will be the central source on the strange case of Mbugu. Its importance for the study of language change cannot be overestimated, and previous attempts to classify the language have shown that without proper information such attempts are bound to be futile.”
Kees Versteegh, University of Nijmegen, in Studies in Language 31(4), 2007
“This volume offers significant new insights, thanks in part to its thorough and detailed analysis. The book also marks a minor change from Mous's earlier work (e.g., Mous, 1994), where Ma'a is categorized as merely a lexical register of (Normal) Mbugu. The making of a mixed langage provides much detail, and as such it may be a relatively tough read for the uninitiated generalist. But Banto scholars, Africanists, and those interested in mixed languages in particular will welcome Mous's in-depth discussion, and find the book challenging and informative.”
Fred Field, California State University, Northridge, in Journal of Pidgin and Creole Language 22(1)
Cited by (51)
Cited by 51 other publications
Bernander, Rasmus
Mous, Maarten
2025. The history of numerals as a history of East African languages. In Historical Linguistics 2022 [Current Issues in Linguistic Theory, 369], ► pp. 294 ff.
O’Shannessy, Carmel
2024. Source language influences in the Australian mixed language, Light Warlpiri. Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages 39:1 ► pp. 125 ff.
Creissels, Denis
2023. Existential predication and have-possessive constructions in the languages of the world. In Existential Constructions across Languages [Human Cognitive Processing, 76], ► pp. 34 ff.
Uzum, Melike, Nurettin Demir & Metin Bagriacik
Kheir, Afifa Eve
Meakins, Felicity & Jesse Stewart
Mojeiko, Marina A.
Salaberri, Iker
2022. A cross-linguistic study of emphatic negative coordination. Studies in Language 46:3 ► pp. 647 ff.
Connell, Bruce, David Zeitlyn, Sascha Griffiths, Laura Hayward & Marieke Martin
Demo, Šime
Onwukwe, Chimaobi & Nkechinyere Iwe
Aboh, Enoch O.
Beyer, Klaus
Bond, Oliver, Helen Sims‐Williams & Matthew Baerman
Lee, Nala H.
Lipski, John M
Lipski, John M.
2020. Can a bilingual lexicon be sustained by phonotactics alone?. The Mental Lexicon 15:2 ► pp. 330 ff.
Wong Gonzales, Wilkinson Daniel & Rebecca Lurie Starr
du Plessis, Menán
O’Grady Walshe, Clare
Tucker Childs, G.
2019. Ideophones as a measure of multilingualism. In Ideophones, Mimetics and Expressives [Iconicity in Language and Literature, 16], ► pp. 303 ff.
van Gelderen, Elly
Brenzinger, Matthias
2018. Sharing thoughts, concepts and experiences. In Word Hunters [Studies in Language Companion Series, 194], ► pp. 45 ff.
Bakker, Peter
Benítez-Torres, Carlos M. & Anthony P. Grant
2017. On the origin of some Northern Songhay mixed languages. Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages 32:2 ► pp. 263 ff.
Seifart, Frank
2017. Patterns of affix borrowing in a sample of 100 languages. Journal of Historical Linguistics 7:3 ► pp. 389 ff.
Kressing, Frank
Storoshenko, Dennis Ryan
Hyman, Larry M. & Florian Lionnet
Nurse, Derek, Lidwien Kapteijns, Tim Stapleton, Sabrina H. B. Hardenbergh, Greg Queyranne, Brian J. Peterson, Gail Presbey, Sean Redding, Matthews A. Ojo, Allen F. Roberts, Gary Kynoch, David E. Torrance, Amal Ghazal, Denis-Constant Martin & Julie Laplante
Reershemius, Gertrud
Pawlak, Nina
Good, Jeff
2009. Review of Childs (2003): An Introduction to African Languages. Studies in Language 33:1 ► pp. 215 ff.
Good, Jeff
Meeuwis, Michael & Jan-Ola Östman
Meeuwis, Michael & Jan-Ola Östman
Sands, Bonny
Nurse, Derek
Grant, Anthony P.
2006. Review of Matras & Bakker (2003): The Mixed Language Debate: Theoretical and empirical advances. Diachronica 23:2 ► pp. 426 ff.
Anttila, Raimo
McConvell, Patrick & Felicity Meakins
[no author supplied]
[no author supplied]
This list is based on CrossRef data as of 16 march 2026. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.