The Eastern Nilotic languages are one of the three primary branches of the Nilotic languages, themselves belonging to the Eastern Sudanic subfamily of Nilo-Saharan; they are believed to have begun to diverge about 3,000 years ago, and have spread southwards from an original home in Equatoria in South Sudan. They are spoken across a large area in East Africa, ranging from Equatoria to the highlands of Tanzania. Their speakers are mostly cattle herders living in semi-arid or arid plains. Classification According to Vossen (1982), the Eastern Nilotic languages are basically classified as follows by the comparative method. Vossen (1982) also provides a reconstruction of Proto-Eastern Nilotic. Eastern Nilotic Bari languages Teso–Lotuko–Maa: Teso–Turkana (or Ateker; incl. Karimojong) Lotuko–Maa: Lotuko languages Lango language Lopit language Lokoya language Lotuko language Dongotono language Ongamo–Maa Ongamo language Maa languages Maasai language (see also Mukogodo-Maasai) Camus language Samburu language (see also Elmolo-Samburu) It is generally agreed upon that Bari forms a primary branch, but lower-level splits are less clear. Swadesh approach (Vossen 1982) Vossen's classification using the Swadesh approach is as follows (Vossen 1982:114). Eastern Nilotic Bari languages Mondari Kakwa Nyanggwara Kuku Pöjulu Ngyepu Bari Lotuko–Maa languages Lotuko languages Lopit, Dongotono Lotuko, Lokoya Ongamo–Maa languages Ongamo Maasai Camus, Samburu Teso–Turkana languages Teso Nyangatom Turkana, Karimojong Gleason approach (Vossen 1982) Vossen's classification using the Gleason approach is as follows (Vossen 1982:119). Eastern Nilotic Bari languages Kuku, Ngyepu Pöjulu Kakwa Bari Nyanggwara, Mondari Lotuko languages Lopit, Dongotono Lotuko, Lokoya Teso–Turkana languages Nyangatom Teso Turkana, Karimojong Ongamo–Maa languages Ongamo Maasai Camus, Samburu Gender Marking Gender marking through prefixes (or proclitics) on nouns is an innovation in the Eastern Nilotic languages that is not found in the other branches of Nilotic. However, not every Eastern Nilotic language has this feature: for example, Bari does not have it. Comparative vocabulary Sample basic vocabulary of Eastern Nilotic languages from Vossen (1982): See also Languages of Tanzania Languages of South Sudan Serengeti-Dorobo language, of which at least the numeral system is Eastern or Southern Nilotic List of Proto-Eastern Nilotic reconstructions (Wiktionary) Footnotes Bibliography Vossen, Rainer. 1982. The Eastern Nilotes: Linguistic and Historical Reconstructions. Berlin: Dietrich Reimer Verlag. . External links A Classified Vocabulary of the Turkana in Northwestern Kenya, by Itaru Ohta, 1989. Vowel Harmony and Cyclicity in Eastern Nilotic, Eric Bakovic The Consequences of Microvariation in Eastern Nilotic, Eric Bakovic