The Soninke language (Soninke: Sooninkanxanne), also known as Serakhulle or Azer or Maraka, is a Mande language spoken by the Soninke people of Africa. The language has an estimated 2.1 million speakers, primarily located in Mali, and also (in order of numerical importance of the communities) in Senegal, Ivory Coast, The Gambia, Mauritania, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea and Ghana. It enjoys the status of a national language in Mali, Senegal, The Gambia and Mauritania. The language is relatively homogeneous, with only slight phonological, lexical, and grammatical variations. Linguistically, its nearest relatives is the Bozo language , which is centered on the Inner Niger Delta. It is possible that the language of the Imraguen people and/or the Nemadi dialect are dialects of, or closely related to, Soninke. Phonology Consonants Vowels Long vowels are written double: aa, ee, ii, oo, uu. References External links PanAfriL10n page on Soninke Soninkara.org: La langue soninké Collection of documents in Soninke Decree No. 2005-991 of 21 October 2005 relating to the spelling and the separation of words in Soninke via the website of the Senegalese Journal officiel Languages of Mali Languages of the Gambia Languages of Mauritania Languages of Senegal Languages of Ivory Coast Languages of Ghana Languages of Guinea Languages of Guinea-Bissau Languages of Burkina Faso Mande languages