CLICK LANGUAGE

A 'click language' is a language which uses Click consonants in words. Approximately 30 click languages are spoken in the world today; all of them are spoken by indigenous peoples in southern or eastern Africa. The only click language which is known to have existed outside the African continent is Damin in Australia. The click languages of Africa belong to different linguistic groups that are most likely unrelated to each other. As the usage of clicks doesn't imply a common linguistic origin, it is assumed that it was adapted via tribal contacts that took place at prehistoric times.

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Groups

Groups

These groups include all Southern African languages of:

★ Khoe (Hottentots)

★ San (Bushmen)
These languages are often regarded as a "South African Khoisan languages" group, a term which implies a geographical, not linguistic, link between its members. In that respect, Northern Khoisan (which includes Ju’hoansi) is only distantly related to Central Khoisan, which includes Nama and two other Southern groups unrelated to all others.
Two other click languages are spoken by a small number of people in central Tanzania:

★ Hadza

★ Sandawe
The two languages are unrelated to each other (Hadza has no close relatives) but they have strong influences from neighbouring territories. Sandawe's close linguistic similarity to the Central Khoisan languages suggests that the two may have a common origin and/or historical connection.
There is also a Southern Cushitic language that uses clicks, Dahalo, located near the mountain Tana in Kenya.
Finally, a substantial number of Bantu languages use clicks:

★ Xhosa

★ Zulu

★ Ndebele

★ Swazi

★ Sotho

★ pidgin Fanagalo

★ Yeyi

★ Mbukushu

★ Kwangali

★ Gciriku
It is most likely that these languages adopted clicks from the Khoe and San people who dwelled in the region during their arrival.