Introduction

 

Bissa Barka is one of two dialects of Bissa located in the south of Burkina Faso, West Africa. This ethnic group comprises about 29 villages, separated into two regions: north and south, most of which are east of all Lebri villages. The population of 538,000 Bissa based on the Joshua Project estimates 215,200 Barka compared to 322,800 Lebri. Six church denominations serve in the area. In July 2012, a Bible translation project was begun by a team of Bissa Barka speakers. Much linguistic was previously done on Bissa Barka with the exception of tone, which is part of the current research.

Local pastors and literacy supervisors have been proponents of language development in the Barka dialect. Meetings held to improve literacy development have been well attended by the Barka community as well as government representatives.

The idea that was presented to hold a dictionary workshop in the Barka region was accepted. A Rapid Word Collection workshop took place in Garango in March of 2015. It is evident by the efforts of the Bissa Barka, that they value their language and are promoting dictionary development.