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{{Short description|Nubian language of northern Sudan and southern Egypt}}
{{More citations needed|date=June 2009}}
{{Infobox language
| name = Nobiin
| ethnicity = [[Nubians]]
| altname = Halfawi, Mahas 
| nativename = {{lang|fia-Latn|Nòbíín}}  {{lang|fia-Copt|Ⲛⲟⲩⲃⲓⲛ}}  {{lang|fia-Arab|نُـٰوبين}}
| states = [[Egypt]], [[Sudan]]
| region = Along the banks of the [[Nile]] in southern Egypt and northern Sudan
| speakers = {{sigfig|685,000|2}}
| date = 2023–2024
| ref = <ref>{{e28|fia}}</ref>
| familycolor = Nilo-Saharan
| fam2 = [[Eastern Sudanic languages|Eastern Sudanic]]
| fam3 = [[Northern Eastern Sudanic languages|Northern Eastern]]
| fam4 = [[Nubian languages|Nubian]]
| fam5 = [[Nubian languages|Northern]]
| ancestor = [[Wiktionary:Appendix:Proto-Nubian reconstructions|Proto-Nubian]]
| ancestor2 = [[Old Nubian]]
| script = [[Coptic script]] ([[Old Nubian]] variant) <br /> [[Latin alphabet]] <br /> [[Arabic alphabet]]
| iso3 = fia
| glotto = nobi1240
| glottorefname = Nobiin
| notice = IPA
}}

'''Nobiin''', also known as '''Halfawi''', '''Mahas''', is a [[Nubian languages|Nubian language]] of the [[Nilo-Saharan languages|Nilo-Saharan language family]]. "Nobiin" is the [[genitive case|genitive]] form of {{lang|fia|Nòòbíí}} ("Nubian") and literally means "(language) of the [[Nubians]]". Another term used is {{lang|fia|Noban tamen}}, meaning "the Nubian language".<ref>[http://www.nlsnubia.net/en/academic.htm Nubian Language Society]{{Dead link|date=April 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

At least 2500 years ago, the first Nubian speakers migrated into the [[Nile]] valley from the southwest. [[Old Nubian language|Old Nubian]] is thought to be ancestral to Nobiin. Nobiin is a [[tone (linguistics)|tonal language]] with contrastive vowel and consonant length. The basic word order is [[subject–object–verb]].

Nobiin is currently spoken along the banks of the Nile in [[Upper Egypt]] and northern [[Sudan]] by approximately 685,000 Nubians. In 2023 there  were 183,000 Nobiin speakers in  [[Sudan]], and in 2024 there were 502,000 Nobiin speakers in [[Egypt]].<ref name="FIA">{{Cite web|url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/fia/|title=Nobiin|publisher=Ethnologue|access-date=12 April 2025}}</ref> It is spoken by the Fedicca in Egypt and the [[Mahas]] and Halfawi tribes in Sudan. Present-day Nobiin speakers are almost universally [[multilingual]] in local varieties of [[Arabic]], generally speaking [[Modern Standard Arabic]] (for official purposes) as well as [[Saʽidi Arabic]], [[Egyptian Arabic]], or [[Sudanese Arabic]]. Many Nobiin-speaking Nubians were forced to relocate in 1963–1964 to make room for the construction of the [[Aswan Dam]] at [[Aswan]], Egypt and for the upstream [[Lake Nasser]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Nubians demand repatriation during Sisi visit |url=https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2022/01/nubians-demand-repatriation-during-sisi-visit |access-date=7 January 2022 |publisher=Al-Monitor}}</ref>

There is no standardised [[orthography]] for Nobiin. It has been written in both [[Latin script|Latin]] and [[Arabic script]]s; also, recently there have been efforts to revive the [[Old Nubian language#Writing|Old Nubian alphabet]]. This article adopts the Latin orthography used in the only published [[grammar]] of Nobiin, Roland Werner's (1987) ''Grammatik des Nobiin''.

==Geography and demography==
[[Image:Distribution of Nobiin speaking communities.png|220px|right|thumb|Before the construction of the [[Aswan Dam]], the Nobiin people lived mainly between the first and third [[cataracts of the Nile]] along the shores of the Nile. Yellow dots show places where communities of Nobiin speakers are found today.]]
[[Image:Egypt-Nubian wedding.jpg|200px|right|thumb|A [[Nubia]]n wedding near [[Aswan]], Egypt]]

Before the construction of the [[Aswan Dam]], speakers of Nobiin lived in the Nile valley between the third [[cataracts of the Nile|cataract]] in the south and Korosko in the north. About 60% of the territory of [[Nubia]] was destroyed or rendered unfit for habitation as a result of the construction of the dam and the creation of [[Lake Nasser]]. At least half of the Nubian population was forcibly resettled.<ref>Rouchdy 1992b:92, citing Adams 1977.</ref>  Nowadays, Nobiin speakers live in the following areas: (1) near [[Kom Ombo]], Egypt, about 40&nbsp;km north of [[Aswan]], where new housing was provided by the Egyptian government for approximately 50,000 Nubians; (2) in the [[New Halfa Scheme]] in the [[Kassala]], Sudan, where housing and work was provided by the Sudanese government for Nubians from the inundated areas around [[Wadi Halfa]]; (3) in the [[Northern state, Sudan]], northwards from [[Burgeg]] to the Egyptian border at [[Wadi Halfa]]. Additionally, many Nubians have moved to large cities like [[Cairo]] and [[Khartoum]]. In recent years, some of the resettled Nubians have returned to their traditional territories around Abu Simbel and Wadi Halfa.

Practically all speakers of Nobiin are bilingual in [[Egyptian Arabic]] or [[Sudanese Arabic]]. For the men, this was noted as early as 1819 by the traveller [[Johann Ludwig Burckhardt]] in his ''Travels to Nubia''. The forced resettlement in the second half of the twentieth century also brought more Nubians, especially women and children, into daily contact with Arabic. Chief factors in this development include increased mobility (and hence easy access to non-Nubian villages and cities), changes in social patterns such as women going more often to the market to sell their own products, and easy access to Arabic newspapers.<ref>Rouchdy 1992a:93.</ref> In urban areas, many Nubian women go to school and are fluent in Arabic; they usually address their children in Arabic, reserving Nobiin for their husband. In response to concerns about a possible language shift to Arabic, Werner notes a very positive language attitude.<ref name="attitude">Werner 1987:31: "{{lang|de|Zwar ist fast jeder nubische Mann zweisprachig, und durch die Schule dringt das Arabische immer weiter vor, doch konnte nie der 'Verlust der Sprachkompetenz' beobachtet werden.|italic=no}}" [''It is true that almost every Nubian man is bilingual, and that Arabic is pervading through education — but a 'loss of competence' was never observed.'']</ref> Rouchdy (1992a) however notes that use of Nobiin is confined mainly to the domestic circle, as Arabic is the dominant language in trade, education, and public life. Sociolinguistically, the situation may be described as one of [[stable bilingualism]]: the dominant language (Arabic in this case), although used widely, does not easily replace the minority language since the latter is tightly connected to the Nubian identity.<ref>Rouchdy 1992a:95</ref>

Nobiin has been called ''Mahas(i)'', ''Mahas-Fiadidja'', and ''Fiadicca'' in the past. Mahas and Fiadidja are geographical terms which correspond to two dialectal variants of Nobiin; the differences between these two dialects are negligible, and some have argued that there is no evidence of a dialectal distinction at all.<ref name="dialects">Werner (1987:18—24), see also Bell (1974).</ref> Nobiin should not be confused with the [[Nubi language]], an Arabic-based creole.

==History==
Nobiin is one of the few [[languages of Africa]] to have a written history that can be followed over the course of more than a millennium. Old Nubian, preserved in a sizable collection of mainly early Christian manuscripts and documented in detail by [[Gerald M. Browne]] (1944–2004), is considered ancestral to Nobiin. Many manuscripts, including [[Bible translations into Nubian|Nubian Biblical texts]], have been unearthed in the Nile Valley, mainly between the first and fifth cataracts, testifying to a firm Nubian presence in the area during the first millennium. A dialect cluster related to Nobiin, [[Dongolawi language|Dongolawi]], is found in the same area. The Nile-Nubian languages were the languages of the Christian Nubian kingdoms of [[Nobatia]], [[Makuria]] and [[Alodia]].

The other [[Nubian languages]] are found hundreds of kilometers to the southwest, in [[Darfur]] and in the [[Nuba Mountains]] of [[Kordofan]]. For a long time it was assumed that the Nubian peoples dispersed from the Nile Valley to the south, probably at the time of the downfall of the Christian kingdoms. However, comparative lexicostatistic research in the second half of the twentieth century has shown that the spread must have been in the opposite direction. [[Joseph Greenberg]] (as cited in Thelwall 1982) calculated that a split between Hill Nubian and the two Nile-Nubian languages occurred at least 2500&nbsp;years ago. This is corroborated by the fact that the oral tradition of the [[Shaigiya tribe]] of the Jaali group of arabized Nile Nubians tells of coming from the southwest long ago. The speakers of Nobiin are thought to have come to the area before the speakers of the related Kenzi-Dongolawi languages (see [[#Classification|classification]] below).

Since the seventh century, Nobiin has been challenged by [[Arabic]]. The economic and cultural influence of Egypt over the region was considerable, and, over the centuries, [[Egyptian Arabic]] spread south. Areas like [[al-Maris (region)|al-Maris]] became almost fully Arabized. The conversion of Nubia to [[Islam]] after the fall of the Christian kingdoms further enhanced the [[Arabization]] process. In what is today Sudan, Sudanese Arabic became the main [[vernacular]] of the [[Funj Sultanate]], with Nobiin becoming a minority tongue. In Egypt, the Nobiin speakers were also part of a largely Arabic-speaking state, but Egyptian control over the south was limited. With the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] conquest of the region in the sixteenth century, official support for Arabization largely ended, as the Turkish and Circassian governments in Cairo sometimes saw Nobiin speakers as a useful ally. However, as Arabic remained a language of high importance in Sudan and especially Egypt, Nobiin continued to be under pressure, and its use became largely confined to Nubian homes.

==Classification==
Nobiin is one of the about eleven [[Nubian languages]].{{Citation needed|date=October 2009}} It has traditionally been grouped with the Dongolawi cluster, mainly based on the geographic proximity of the two (before the construction of the Aswan Dam, varieties of Dongolawi were spoken north and south of the Nobiin area, in Kunuz and Dongola respectively). The uniformity of this 'Nile-Nubian' branch was first called into doubt by Thelwall (1982) who argued, based on lexicostatistical evidence, that Nobiin must have split off from the other Nubian languages earlier than Dongolawi. In Thelwall's classification, Nobiin forms a "Northern" branch on its own whereas Dongolawi is considered part of Central Nubian, along with Birged (North Darfur) and the [[Hill Nubian languages]] ([[Nuba Mountains]], [[Kordofan]]).{{sfn|Thelwall|1982}}

In recent times, research by Marianne Bechhaus-Gerst has shed more light on the relations between Nobiin and Dongolawi. The groups have been separated so long that they do not share a common identity; additionally, they differ in their traditions about their origins.<ref name="origins">In particular, the speakers of Nobiin claim to be the only real Nubians of African descent, whereas the Dongolawi believe they are descendants of Arabian immigrants.{{harvtxt|Bechhaus-Gerst|1996|p=298}}</ref> The languages are clearly genetically related, but the picture is complicated by the fact that there are also indications of contact-induced [[language change]].{{sfn|Bechhaus-Gerst|1996}} Nobiin appears to have had a strong influence on Dongolawi, as evidenced by similarities between the phoneme inventories as well as the occurrence of numerous borrowed grammatical morphemes. This has led some to suggest that Dongolawi in fact is "a 'hybrid' language between old Nobiin and pre-contact Dongolawi."{{sfn|Heine|Kuteva|2001|p=400}} Evidence of the reverse influence is much rarer, although there are some late loans in Nobiin which are thought to come from Dongolawi.{{sfn|Bechhaus-Gerst|1996|p=306}}

The Nubian languages are part of the [[Eastern Sudanic languages|Eastern Sudanic]] branch of the [[Nilo-Saharan languages]]. On the basis of a comparison with seventeen other Eastern Sudanic languages, Thelwall (1982) considers Nubian to be most closely related to Tama, a member of the [[Taman languages|Taman]] group, with an average lexical similarity of just 22.2 per cent.

==Phonology==
Nobiin has open and closed [[syllable]]s: {{lang|fia-Latn|ág}} {{gloss|mouth}}, {{lang|fia-Latn|één}} {{gloss|woman}}, {{lang|fia-Latn|gíí}} {{gloss|uncle}}, {{lang|fia-Latn|kám}} {{gloss|camel}}, {{lang|fia-Latn|díís}} {{gloss|blood}}. Every syllable bears a tone. Long consonants are only found in intervocalic position, whereas long vowels can occur in initial, medial and final position. [[Phonotactics|Phonotactically]], there might be a weak relationship between the occurrence of consonant and vowel length: forms like {{lang|fia-Latn|dàrrìl}} {{gloss|climb}} and {{lang|fia-Latn|dààrìl}} {{gloss|be present}} are found, but {{lang|fia-Latn|*dàrìl}} (short V + short C) and {{lang|fia-Latn|*dààrrìl}} (long V + long C) do not exist; similarly, {{lang|fia-Latn|féyyìr}} 'grow' and {{lang|fia-Latn|fééyìr}} 'lose (a battle)' occur, but not {{lang|fia-Latn|*féyìr}} and {{lang|fia-Latn|*fééyyìr}}.

===Vowels===
Nobiin has a five-[[vowel]] system. The vowels {{IPAslink|e}} and {{IPAslink|o}} can be realized [[close-mid vowel|close-mid]] or more [[Open-mid vowel|open-mid]] (as {{IPAblink|ɛ}} and {{IPAblink|ɔ}}, respectively). Vowels can be long or short, e.g., {{lang|fia-Latn|jáákí}} {{gloss|fear}} (long {{IPAslink|aː}}), {{lang|fia-Latn|jàkkàr}} {{gloss|fish-hook}} (short {{IPAslink|a}}). However, many [[#Nouns|nouns]] are unstable with regard to [[vowel length]]; thus, {{lang|fia-Latn|bálé}}~{{lang|fia-Latn|báléé}} {{gloss|feast}}, {{lang|fia-Latn|ííg}}~{{lang|fia-Latn|íg}} {{gloss|fire}}, {{lang|fia-Latn|shártí}}~{{lang|fia-Latn|sháártí}} {{gloss|spear}}. [[Diphthong]]s are interpreted as sequences of vowels and the glides {{IPAslink|w}} and {{IPAslink|j}}.

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ [[Monophthong]]s
|-
!
! [[Front vowel|Front]]
! [[Central vowel|Central]]
! [[Back vowel|Back]]
|-
! [[Close vowel|Close]]
| {{IPAlink|i}}, {{IPAlink|iː}}
|
| {{IPAlink|u}}, {{IPAlink|uː}}
|-
! [[Close-mid vowel|Close-mid]]
| {{IPAlink|e}}, {{IPAlink|eː}}
|
| {{IPAlink|o}}, {{IPAlink|oː}}
|-
! [[Open vowel|Open]]
|
| {{IPAlink|ɑ}}, {{IPAlink|ɑː}}
|
|}

===Consonants===
Consonant length is contrastive in Nobiin, e.g., {{lang|fia-Latn|dáwwí}} {{gloss|path}} vs. {{lang|fia-Latn|dáwí}} {{gloss|kitchen}}. Like vowel length, consonant length is not very stable; long consonants tend to be shortened in many cases (e.g., the Arabic loan {{lang|fia-Latn|dùkkáán}} {{gloss|shop}} is often found as {{lang|fia-Latn|dùkáán}}).

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
|+Consonant phonemes
|-
! colspan="2"|
! [[Labial consonant|Labial]]
! [[Alveolar consonant|Alveolar]]
! [[Palatal consonant|Palatal]]
! [[Velar consonant|Velar]]
! [[Glottal consonant|Glottal]]
|-
! rowspan="2"|[[Stop consonant|Stops]] and<br/>[[Affricate consonant|affricates]] 
!<small>[[Voicelessness|voiceless]]</small>
| {{IPAlink|p}}
| {{IPAlink|t}}
| {{IPAlink|cç}}
| {{IPAlink|k}}
|
|-
![[Voice (phonetics)|<small>voiced</small>]]
| {{IPAlink|b}}
| {{IPAlink|d}}
| {{IPAlink|ɟʝ}}
| {{IPAlink|ɡ}}
|
|-
! colspan="2"| [[Nasal consonant|Nasals]]
| {{IPAlink|m}}
| {{IPAlink|n}}
| {{IPAlink|ɲ}}
| {{IPAlink|ŋ}}
|
|-
! rowspan="2"| [[Fricative consonant|Fricatives]]
!<small>[[Voicelessness|voiceless]]</small>
| {{IPAlink|f}}
| {{IPAlink|s}} 
| {{IPAlink|ç}}
|
| ({{IPAlink|h}})
|-
![[Voice (phonetics)|<small>voiced</small>]]
|
| {{IPAlink|z}}
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2"| [[Trill consonant|Trill]]
|
| {{IPAlink|r}}
|
|
|
|-
! colspan="2"| [[Approximant consonant|Approximants]]
|
| {{IPAlink|l}}
| {{IPAlink|j}}
| {{IPAlink|w}}
|
|}

The phoneme {{IPAslink|p}} has a somewhat marginal status as it only occurs as a result of certain morphophonological processes. The voiced plosive {{IPAslink|b}} is mainly in contrast with {{IPAslink|f}}. Originally, {{IPAblink|z}} only occurred as an [[allophone]] of {{IPAslink|s}} before voiced consonants; however, through the influx of loanwords from Arabic it has acquired phonemic status: {{lang|fia-Latn|àzáábí}} {{gloss|pain}}. The glottal fricative {{IPAblink|h}} occurs as an allophone of {{IPA|/s, t, k, f, ɡ/}}: {{lang|fia-Latn|síddó}} → {{lang|fia-Latn|híddó}} {{gloss|where?}}; {{lang|fia-Latn|tánnátóón}} → {{lang|fia-Latn|tánnáhóón}} {{gloss|of him/her}}; {{lang|fia-Latn|ày fàkàbìr}} → {{lang|fia-Latn|ày hàkàbìr}} {{gloss|I will eat}}; {{lang|fia-Latn|dòllàkúkkàn}} → {{lang|fia-Latn|dòllàhúkkàn}} {{gloss|he has loved}}. This process is unidirectional, i.e., /h/ will never change into one of the above consonants, and it has been termed {{gloss|consonant switching}} ({{lang|de|Konsonantenwechsel}}) by Werner.{{sfn|Werner|1987|p=36}} Only in very few words, if any, does [h] have independent phonemic status: Werner lists {{lang|fia-Latn|híssí}} {{gloss|voice}} and {{lang|fia-Latn|hòòngìr}} {{gloss|braying}}, but it might be noted that the latter example is less convincing because of its probably [[onomatopoeia|onomatopoeic]] nature. The alveolar liquids {{IPAslink|l}} and {{IPAslink|r}} are in [[free variation]] as in many African languages. The approximant {{IPAslink|w}} is a voiced labial-velar.

===Tone===
Nobiin is a [[Tone (linguistics)|tonal]] language, in which pitch is used to mark [[lexical (semiotics)|lexical contrasts]]. Tone also figures heavily in [[morphological derivation]]. Nobiin has two [[underlying representation|underlying]] tones, high and low. A falling tone occurs in certain contexts; this tone can in general be analysed as arising from a high and a low tone together.

*{{lang|fia-Latn|árré}} {{gloss|settlement}} (high)
*{{lang|fia-Latn|nùùr}} {{gloss|shadow}} (low)

In Nobiin, every utterance ends in a low tone. This is one of the clearest signs of the occurrence of a [[boundary tone]], realized as a low pitch on the last syllable of any [[Pausa|prepausal]] word. The examples below show how the surface tone of the high tone verb {{lang|fia-Latn|ókkír-}} {{gloss|cook}} depends on the position of the verb. In the first sentence, the verb is not final (because the question marker {{lang|fia-Latn|-náà}} is appended) and thus it is realized as high. In the second sentence, the verb is at the end of the utterance, resulting in a low tone on the last syllable.

{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|Íttírkà ókkéé-náà?
|vegetables.DO cook:she.PRES-Q
|Does she cook the vegetables?}}

{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|Èyyò íttírkà ókkè.
|yes vegetables.DO cook:she.PRES
|Yes, she cooks the vegetables.}}

Tone plays an important role in several derivational processes. The most common situation involves the loss of the original tone pattern of the derivational base and the subsequent assignment of low tone, along with the affixation of a morpheme or word bringing its own tonal pattern (see [[#Nouns|below]] for examples).

For a long time, the Nile Nubian languages were thought to be non-tonal; early analyses employed terms like "[[stress (linguistics)|stress]]" or "accent" to describe the phenomena now recognized as a tone system.<ref name="lepsius">The Egyptologist [[Karl Richard Lepsius]] spoke in 1880 of the {{lang|de|Wohlklang}} of the Nubian language, and related this to the vowel distribution and the balance between long and short consonants.</ref> [[Carl Meinhof]] reported that only remnants of a tone system could be found in the Nubian languages. He based this conclusion not only on his own data, but also on the observation that Old Nubian had been written without tonal marking. Based on accounts like Meinhof's, Nobiin was considered a toneless language for the first half of the twentieth century.<ref name="westermannward">In 1933 for example, [[Diedrich Hermann Westermann]] and [[Ida C. Ward]] wrote in their influential ''Practical Phonetics for Students of African Languages'' that "Swahili and Nuba are good examples of languages which were probably once tone languages and which are said to have lost their tones" (p. 139).</ref> The statements of ''de facto'' authorities like Meinhof, [[Diedrich Hermann Westermann]], and [[Ida C. Ward]] heavily affected the next three decades of linguistic theorizing about stress and tone in Nobiin. As late as 1968, Herman Bell was the first scholar to develop an account of tone in Nobiin. Although his analysis was still hampered by the occasional confusion of accent and tone, he is credited by Roland Werner as being the first to recognize that Nobiin is a genuinely tonal language, and the first to lay down some elementary tonal rules.<ref name="ton">Nowadays, Old Nubian is seen as a tonal language just like its descendant Nobiin. Browne writes that the Nobiin minimal pairs {{lang|fia-Latn|ín}} {{gloss|your.{{gcl|SG}}}} vs. {{lang|fia-Latn|ìn}} {{gloss|this}} and {{lang|fia-Latn|úr}} {{gloss|your.{{gcl|PL}}}} vs. {{lang|fia-Latn|ùr}} {{gloss|head}} appear in Old Nubian as {{lang|onw-Latn|en}} and {{lang|onw-Latn|our}} respectively. From the fact that the Nubians must have had a way to distinguish these forms even though they were written the same, he draws the conclusion that "[Old Nubian] probably followed the tone system observable in modern Nobiin".{{harvcoltxt|Browne|2002|p=23}}</ref>

==Grammar==

===Pronouns===
The basic [[personal pronoun]]s of Nobiin are:

* {{lang|fia|ày-}} ''I''
* {{lang|fia|ìr-}} ''you'' (singular)
* {{lang|fia|tàr-}} ''he, she, it''
* {{lang|fia|ùù-}} ''we''
* {{lang|fia|úr-}} ''you'' (plural)
* {{lang|fia|tér-}} ''they''

There are three sets of [[possessive pronoun]]s. One of them is transparently derived from the set of personal pronouns plus a connexive suffix {{lang|fia|-íín}}. Another set is less clearly related to the simple personal pronouns; all possessive pronouns of this set bear a high tone. The third set is derived from the second set by appending the nominalizing suffix {{lang|fia|-ní}}.

<div style="float:right; clear:right">
{|style="margin:10px;padding:5px;width:210px;border:1px solid #CCCCCC"
! my 
| {{lang|fia|àyíín}} || {{lang|fia|án}} || {{lang|fia|ànní}}
|-
! your 
| {{lang|fia|ìríín}} || {{lang|fia|ín}} || {{lang|fia|ìnní}}
|-
! his/her 
| {{lang|fia|tàríín}} || {{lang|fia|tán}} || {{lang|fia|tànní}}
|-
! our 
| {{lang|fia|ùùíín}} || {{lang|fia|úún}} || {{lang|fia|ùùní}}
|-
! your 
| {{lang|fia|úríín}} || {{lang|fia|únn}} || {{lang|fia|únní}}
|-
! their 
| {{lang|fia|téríín}} || {{lang|fia|ténn}} || {{lang|fia|ténní}} 
|}
</div>

Nobiin has two [[demonstrative pronoun]]s: {{lang|fia|ìn}} 'this', denoting things nearby, and {{lang|fia|mán}} 'that', denoting things farther away. Both can function as the subject or the object in a sentence; in the latter case they take the object marker {{lang|fia|-gá}} yielding {{lang|fia|ìngà}} and {{lang|fia|mángá}}, respectively (for the object marker, see also [[#Grammar|below]]). The demonstrative pronoun always precedes the nouns it refers to.

{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|<u>ìn</u> íd dìrbád wèèkà kúnkènò
|<u>this</u> man hen one:OB have:3SG.PRES
|'This man has a hen.'}}

{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|<u>mám</u> búrúú nàày lè?
|<u>that</u> girl who be.Q
|'Who is that girl?'}}

===Nouns===
[[Noun]]s in Nobiin are predominantly [[syllable|disyllabic]], although mono- and three- or four-syllabic nouns are also found. Nouns can be derived from adjectives, verbs, or other nouns by appending various [[suffix]]es. In forming the [[plural]], the tone of a noun becomes low and one of four plural markers is suffixed. Two of these are low in tone, while the other two have a high tone.

* {{lang|fia|-ìì}} (L): {{lang|fia|féntí}} → {{lang|fia|fèntìì}} '(sweet) dates'
* {{lang|fia|-ncìì}} (L): {{lang|fia|àrréé}} → {{lang|fia|àrèèncìì}} 'falls'
* {{lang|fia|-ríí}} (H): {{lang|fia|áádèm}} → {{lang|fia|ààdèmríí}} 'men, people'
* {{lang|fia|-gúú}} (H): {{lang|fia|kúrsí}} → {{lang|fia|kùrsìgúú}} 'chairs'

In most cases it is not predictable which plural suffix a noun will take. Furthermore, many nouns can take different suffixes, e.g., {{lang|fia|ág}} 'mouth' → {{lang|fia|àgìì}}/{{lang|fia|àgríí}}. However, nouns that have final {{lang|fia|-éé}} usually take Plural 2 ({{lang|fi|-ncìì}}), whereas disyllabic low-high nouns typically take Plural 1 ({{lang|fia|-ìì}}).

[[Gender]] is expressed lexically, occasionally by use of a suffix, but more often with a different noun altogether, or, in the case of animals, by use of a separate nominal element {{lang|fia|óndí}} 'masculine' or {{lang|fia|kàrréé}} 'feminine':

*{{lang|fia|íd}} 'man' vs. {{lang|fia|ìdéén}} 'woman'
*{{lang|fia|tòòd}} 'boy' vs. {{lang|fia|búrú}} 'girl'
*{{lang|fia|kàjkàrréé}} 'she-ass' vs. {{lang|fia|kàjnóndí}} 'donkey'

The pair ''male slave/female slave'' forms an interesting exception, showing gender marking through different endings of the lexeme: {{lang|fia|òsshí}} 'slave (m.)' vs. {{lang|fia|òsshá}} 'slave (f.)'. An [[Old Nubian language|Old Nubian]] equivalent which does not seem to show the gender is {{lang|onw-Latn|ooshonaeigou}} 'slaves'; the plural suffix {{lang|onw-Latn|-gou}} has a modern equivalent in {{lang|fia|-gúú}} (see above).

In [[compound noun]]s composed of two nouns, the tone of the first noun becomes low while the appended noun keeps its own tonal pattern.

* {{lang|fia|kàdíís}} 'cat' + {{lang|fia|mórrí}} 'wild' → {{lang|fia|kàdììs-mórrí}} 'wild cat'
* {{lang|fia|ìkìríí}} 'guest' + {{lang|fia|nóóg}} 'house' → {{lang|fia|ìskìrììn-nóóg}} 'guest room'
* {{lang|fia|tògój}} 'sling' + {{lang|fia|kìd}} 'stone' → {{lang|fia|tògòj-kìd}} 'sling stone'

Many compounds are found in two forms, one more [[lexicalization|lexicalized]] than the other. Thus, it is common to find both the coordinated noun phrase {{lang|fia|háhám ámán}} 'the water of the river' and the compound noun {{lang|fia|bàhàm-ámán}} 'river-water', distinguished by their tonal pattern.

===Verbs===
Verbal morphology in Nobiin is subject to numerous [[Morphophonology|morphophonological]] processes, including syllable contraction, vowel [[elision]], and [[Assimilation (linguistics)|assimilation]] of all sorts and directions. A distinction needs to be made between the verbal base and the morphemes that follow. The majority of verbal bases in Nobiin end in a consonant (e.g. {{lang|fia|nèèr-}} 'sleep', {{lang|fia|kàb-}} 'eat', {{lang|fia|tíg-}} 'follow', {{lang|fia|fìyyí-}} 'lie'); notable exceptions are {{lang|fia|júú-}} 'go' and {{lang|fia|níí-}} 'drink'. Verbal bases are mono- or disyllabic. The verbal base carries one of three or four tonal patterns. The main verb carries person, number, tense, and aspect information.

{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|ày féjírkà sàllìr
|I morning.prayer pray:I.PRES
|'I pray the morning prayer.'}}

Only rarely do verbal bases occur without appended morphemes. One such case is the use of the verb {{lang|fia|júú-}} 'go' in a [[Serial verb construction|serial verb]]-like construction.

{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|áríj wèèkà fà <u>júú</u> jáánìr
|meat one:OB FUT <u>go</u> buy:I.PRES
|'I'm going to buy a piece of meat.'}}

===Syntax===
The basic word order in a Nobiin sentence is [[Subject–object–verb word order|subject–object–verb]]. Objects are marked by an object suffix {{lang|fia|-gá}}, often assimilating to the final consonant of the word (e.g., {{lang|fia|kìtááb}} 'book', {{lang|fia|kìtááppá}} 'book-<small>OBJECT</small>' as seen below). In a sentence containing both an indirect and a direct object, the object marker is suffixed to both.

{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|kám íw-<u>gà</u> kàbì
|camel corn-<u>OB</u> eat:he.PRES
|'The camel eats corn.'}}
{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|ày ìk-<u>kà</u> ìn kìtááp-<u>pá</u> tèèr
|I you-<u>OB</u> this book-<u>OB</u> give:I.PRES
|'I give you this book.'}}

Questions can be constructed in various ways in Nobiin. Constituent questions ('Type 1', questions about 'who?', 'what?', etc.) are formed by use of a set of verbal suffixes in conjunction with question words. Simple interrogative utterances ('Type 2') are formed by use of another set of verbal suffixes.

{|style="margin:20px;padding:5px;width:210px;border:1px solid #CCCCCC"
!&nbsp;!!Type 1!!Type 2
|-
!I 
| {{lang|fia|-re}}/{{lang|fia|-le}} || {{lang|fi|-réè}}
|-
!you 
| {{lang|fia|-i}} || {{lang|fia|-náà}}
|-
!he/she 
| {{lang|fia|-i}} || {{lang|fia|-náà}}
|-
!we 
| {{lang|fia|-ro}}/{{lang|fia|-lo}} || {{lang|fia|-lóò}}
|-
!you (pl) 
| {{lang|fia|-ro}}/{{lang|fia|-lo}} || {{lang|fia|-lóò}}
|-
!they 
| {{lang|fia|-(i)nna}} || {{lang|fia|-(ì)nnànáà}}
|}

Some of the suffixes are similar. Possible ambiguities are resolved by the context. Some examples:

<section begin="list-of-glossing-abbreviations"/><div style="display:none;">
Q1:constituent question
Q2:interrogative question
</div><section end="list-of-glossing-abbreviations"/>
{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|<u>mìn</u> ámán túúl áány<u>ì</u>?
|<u>what</u> water in live:PRES.<u>2/3SG.Q1</u>
|'What lives in water?'}}
{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|<u>híddó</u> nííl mìr<u>ì</u>?
|<u>where</u> Nile run/flow:PRES.<u>2/3SG.Q1</u>
|'Where does the Nile flow?'}}
{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|ìr sààbúúngà jáán<u>náà</u>?
|you soap:OB have:<u>2/3SG.PRES.Q2</u>
|'Do you have soap?'}}
{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|sàbúúngà jáán<u>náà</u>?
|soap:OB have:PRES<u>2/3SG.Q2</u>
|'do you sell soap?' / 'Does he/she sell soap?'}}
{{interlinear|lang=fia-Latn|indent=2
|úr báléél árág<u>róò</u>?
|you.PL party.at dance:PRES<u>1/2PL.Q2</u>
|'Do you (pl.) dance at the party?'}}

==Writing system==
Old Nubian, considered ancestral to Nobiin, was written in a [[Coptic alphabet|Coptic]]-like script, an [[uncial script|uncial variety]] of the [[Greek alphabet]], extended with three Coptic letters — {{Coptic|ϣ}} "sh" {{IPAslink|ʃ}}, {{Coptic|ϩ}} "h" {{IPAslink|h}}, and {{Coptic|ϭ}} "j" {{IPAslink|ɟ}} — and three unique to Nubian: ⳡ "ny" {{IPAslink|ɲ}} and ⳣ "w" {{IPAslink|w}}, apparently derived from the [[Meroitic alphabet]]; and ⳟ "ng" {{IPAslink|ŋ}}, thought to be a ligature of two Greek [[gamma]]s.

There are three currently active proposals for the script of Nobiin (Asmaa 2004, Hashim 2004): the [[Arabic script]], the [[Latin script]] and the [[Old Nubian language#Writing|Old Nubian alphabet]]. Since the 1950s,{{Until when|date=May 2023}} Latin has been used by 4 authors, Arabic by 2, and Old Nubian by 1, in the publication of various books of proverbs, dictionaries, and textbooks. For Arabic, the extended [[Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization]] system may be used to indicate vowels and consonants not found in Arabic itself.

More recent educational material implements the teaching and using of the Nubian alphabet.<ref>{{Cite web|date=20 July 2021|title=Reading Nubian: Books for a new generation discovering their language|url=http://www.middleeasteye.net/discover/nubian-sudan-egypt-books-discovering-language-new-generation|access-date=24 September 2021|website=Middle East Eye|language=en}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;"
|-
! [[Character (symbol)|Character]] 
| <big>{{script|Copt|ⲁ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲃ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲅ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲇ}}</big> || colspan="2" | <big>{{script|Copt|ⲉ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲍ}}</big>
| <big>{{script|Copt|ⲓ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲓ̈}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲕ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲗ}}</big>
| <big>{{script|Copt|ⲙ}}</big>
| <big>{{script|Copt|ⲛ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲟ}}</big>
|-
! [[International Phonetic Alphabet|Phonetic value]]
| {{IPA|/}}{{IPA link|a}},&nbsp;{{IPA link|aː}}{{IPA|/}} || {{IPAslink|b}} || {{IPAslink|ɡ}} || {{IPAslink|d}} || colspan="2" | {{IPA|/}}{{IPA link|e}},&nbsp;{{IPA link|eː}}{{IPA|/}} || {{IPAslink|z}}
| {{IPA|/}}{{IPA link|i}},&nbsp;{{IPA link|iː}}{{IPA|/}} || {{IPAslink|j}} || {{IPAslink|k}} || {{IPAslink|l}}
| {{IPAslink|m}}
| {{IPAslink|n}} || {{IPAslink|o}}
|-
|
|-
! [[Character (symbol)|Character]] 
| <big>{{script|Copt|ⲡ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲣ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲥ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲧ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲩ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲫ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲱ}}</big>
| <big>{{script|Copt|ϩ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⳝ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲇ}}</big><big>{{script|Copt|ⳝ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⲧ}}</big><big>{{script|Copt|ⳝ}}</big>
| <big>{{script|Copt|ⳟ}}</big>
| <big>{{script|Copt|ⳡ}}</big> || <big>{{script|Copt|ⳣ}}</big>
|-
! [[International Phonetic Alphabet|Phonetic value]]
| {{IPAslink|p}} || {{IPAslink|r}} || {{IPAslink|s}} || {{IPAslink|t}} || {{IPA|/}}{{IPA link|u}},&nbsp;{{IPA link|uː}}{{IPA|/}} || {{IPAslink|f}} || {{IPAslink|oː}}
| {{IPAslink|h}} || {{IPAslink|ç}} || {{IPAslink|ɟ͡ʝ}} || {{IPAslink|c͡ç}}
| {{IPAslink|ŋ}}
| {{IPAslink|ɲ}} || {{IPAslink|w}}
|}

==Notes and references==

===Notes===
{{Reflist}}

===References===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last=Abdel-Hafiz |first=Ahmed S. |year=2009 |title=A Reference Grammar of Kunuz Nubian |location=Saarbrücken |publisher=VDM}}
* {{cite book |last=Adams |first=William Y. |year=1977 |title=Nubia, Corridor to Africa |location=London |publisher=Allen Lane}}
* {{cite book |last=Adams |first=William Y. |year=1982 |chapter=The coming of Nubian speakers to the Nile Valley |editor-last1=Ehret |editor-first1=C. |editor-last2=Posnansky |editor-first2=M. |title=The Archeological and Linguistic Reconstruction of African History |pages=11–38}}
* {{cite journal |first=Asmaa Mohd. Ibrahim |last=Ahmed |title=Suggestions for Writing Modern Nubian Languages |journal=Occasional Papers in the Study of Sudanese Languages |volume=9 |publisher=SIL Sudan |location=Entebbe |year=2004 |url=https://www.sil.org/resources/archives/35968 |pages=185–213}}
* {{cite book |last=Bechhaus-Gerst |first=Marianne |year=1996 |title=Sprachwandel durch Sprachkontakt am Beispiel des Nubischen im Niltal. Möglichkeiten und Grenzen einer diachronen Soziolinguistik |lang=de |location=Köln |publisher=Rüdiger Köppe}}
* {{cite book |last=Bell |first=Herman |year=1974 |chapter=Dialect in Nobíin Nubian |editor-first=Abd el-Gadir Mohmoud |editor-last=Abdalla |title=Studies in Ancient Languages of the Sudan |location=Khartoum |pages=109–122}}
* {{cite report |last=Bell |first=Herman |year=2000 |title=A survey of Nubian Place-Names |series=Working Paper |volume=19 |publisher=United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names |url=https://www.un.org/depts/dhl/maplib/ungegn/session-20/working-papers/working-paper-19.pdf}}
* {{cite book |last=Browne |first=Gerald M. |year=2002 |title=A grammar of Old Nubian |location=Munich |publisher=LINCOM |isbn=3-89586-893-0}}
* {{cite book |last=Burckhardt |first=Johann Ludwig (or John Lewis) |year=1819 |title=Travels in Nubia |location=London. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080911064744/http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/b/burckhardt/john_lewis//arabia/index.html |archive-date=2008-09-11 |url=http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/b/burckhardt/john_lewis//arabia/index.html |url-status=dead}}
* {{cite journal |first=Muḥammad Jalāl Aḥmad |last=Hāshim |title=Competing Orthographies for Writing Nobiin Nubian |journal=Occasional Papers in the Study of Sudanese Languages |volume=9 |publisher=SIL Sudan |location=Entebbe |year=2004 |url=https://www.sil.org/resources/archives/35968 |pages=215–248}}
* {{cite book |author-link1=Bernd Heine |author-last1=Heine |author-first1=Bernd |author-link2=Tania Kuteva |author-first2=Tania |author-last2=Kuteva |year=2001 |chapter=Converge and divergence in the development of African languages |editor-last1=Aikhenvald |editor-last2=Dixon |title=Areal Diffusion and Genetic Inheritance: Problems in Comparative Linguistics |pages=393–411}}
* {{cite book |last=Lepsius |first=R. |author-link=Karl Richard Lepsius |year=1880 |title=Nubische Grammatik. Mit einer Einleitung über die Völker und Sprachen Afrikas |lang=de |location=Berlin}}
* {{cite book |last=Rouchdy |first=Aleya |year=1992a |chapter='Persistence' or 'tip' in Egyptian Nubian |editor-first=Nancy |editor-last=Dorian |title=Investigating Obsolescence: Studies in Language Contraction and Death |location=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |pages=91–102 |doi=10.1017/CBO9780511620997.010|isbn=978-0-521-32405-2 }}
* {{cite book |last=Rouchdy |first=Aleya |year=1992b |chapter=Urban and non-urban Egyptian Nubian: is there a reduction in language skill? |editor-first=Nancy |editor-last=Dorian |title=Investigating Obsolescence: Studies in Language Contraction and Death |location=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |pages=259–266 |doi=10.1017/CBO9780511620997.021|isbn=978-0-521-32405-2 }}
* {{cite book |last=Thelwall |first=Robin |year=1978 |chapter=Lexicostatistical relations between Nubian, Daju and Dinka |title=Études nubiennes: colloque de Chantilly, 2–6 juillet 1975 |pages=265–286}}
* {{cite book |last=Thelwall |first=Robin |year=1982 |chapter=Linguistic Aspects of Greater Nubian History |editor-last1=Ehret |editor-first1=C. |editor-last2=Posnansky |editor-first2=M. |title=The Archeological and Linguistic Reconstruction of African History |pages=39–56 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050403072826/http://thenubian.net/aspect.php |archive-date=2005-04-03 |url=http://thenubian.net/aspect.php}}
* {{cite book |last=Werner |first=Roland |year=1987 |title=Grammatik des Nobiin (Nilnubisch) |series=Nilo-Saharan Studies |volume=1 |location=Hamburg |publisher=Helmut Buske |isbn=3-87118-851-4}}
* {{cite book |last1=Westermann |first1=Diedrich Hermann |last2=Ward |first2=Ida |year=1933 |title=Practical Phonetics for Students of African Languages |publisher=Oxford University Press for the International African Institute}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
* [http://napata.org/language.html Nobiin audio samples and alphabet]
* [http://starling.rinet.ru/cgi-bin/response.cgi?root=new100&morpho=0&basename=new100\esu\nub&limit=-1 Nobiin basic lexicon at the Global Lexicostatistical Database]
* New website with Nobiin texts and audio samples: www.nobiin.com
*[[Elar archive|ELAR Archive]] [https://elar.soas.ac.uk/Collection/MPI971097 deposit of Nobíin], a [[Nubian languages|Nubian language]] by Kirsty Rowan & Herman Bell

{{Languages of Egypt}}
{{Eastern Sudanic languages}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nobiin Language}}
[[Category:Nubian languages]]
[[Category:Languages of Sudan]]
[[Category:Languages of Egypt]]