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gʷ

ɣʷ

hʷ

kʷ

ᵐb

ⁿd

ⁿdz

ᵑg

ᵑgʷ

ɗ

ɗakʷa ʸ adj. white blanc (7 groups, 17 languages) B
This root has two primary reflexes, *ɗakʷ and *kʷaɗ. The first is found in the Mandara and Musgum groups, and the second in the groups around the Mandara Mountains. It is not possible to be certain which of these constituted the Proto-Central Chadic root, or if it took the form *kʷaɗak. Palatalization is attested in many of the groups.
1Proto-Daba *kʷɨkʷɨɗak ʸ white blanc 1.1) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) kjkjɗːek (be) white (être) blanc
2Proto-Mafa *kʷaɗ ʸ white blanc 2.1) Mafa (Barreteau) kʷíɗ-kʷíɗɗeʼe blanc 2.2) Cuvok (Gravina) kʷeɗ kʷeɗ tout blanc
3Proto-Hurza *maɗakʷa ʸ, kʷaɗak ʸ white blanc 3.1) Mbuko (Gravina) kʷeɗekkʷeɗek white tout blanc 3.1.1) Mbuko (Gravina) kʷekʷeɗek white blanc 3.2) Vame (Kinnaird) mēɗēkʷé white blanc
4Proto-Mandara *maɗakʷɨ white blanc 4.1) Matal (Branger) mǣɗɪ́kʷᵘ̀ɡā white blanc 4.2) Podoko (Swackhammer) meɗékʷe,-u blancheur 4.2.1) Podoko (Swackhammer) meɗékʷe blanchir 4.2.2) Podoko (Swackhammer) meɗékulá meɗekʷe le blanchir 4.3) Glavda (Nghagyiva) màɗᵊkʷa (be) white 4.4) Dghwede (Frick) matʼakʷa white
5Proto-Mofu *kʷaɗak ʸ white blanc 5.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) mèɗèkʷè white blanc 5.2) Gemzek (Sabatai) kʷeɗek kʷeɗek blanc 5.3) Merey (Gravina) kuɗekuɗek blanc 5.3.1) Merey (Gravina) mezebe kʷeɗek herre (be) white (être) blanc 5.4) Mofu North (Barreteau) kʷēɗék kʷēɗék blanc 5.5) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) kʷéɗék kʷéɗék blanc (des cendres, de poussière, de froid)
6Proto-Maroua *kʷaɗak ʸ white blanc 6.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) kʷeɗek blanc
7Proto-Musgum *mɨɗɨkʷɨj white blanc 7.1) Mulwi (Tourneux) muɗukʷii blanc 7.2) Vulum (Tourneux) muɗukʷii blanc

ɗakʷɨr n. grey hair cheveux gris (7 groups, 17 languages) B
This root is possibly related to the root *ɗakʷa ʸ 'white'. As expected, the *r has become *l in the groups of the North sub-branch, i.e. Mandara, Mofu and Maroua, and in Cuvok (Mafa group). The labialisation component of *kʷ has been reanalysed as the labialisation prosody in Proto-Maroua and Proto-Daba, which is a common sporadic change. In these same languages, the resulting *k has become *h, an unestablished change. The initial *ɗ has been lost in many languages, which is a common sporadic change. This has resulted in compensatory reduplication in Daba, also a common sporadic change.
1Proto-Daba *hɨhɨl ʷ grey hair cheveux gris 1.1) Daba (Lienhard) hùhúl les cheveux gris
2Proto-Mafa *kʷaraj grey hair cheveux gris 2.1) Cuvok (Gravina) kʷalaj white hair cheveux blancs
3Proto-Sukur *kʷir grey hair cheveux gris 3.1) Sukur (Thomas) kʷir grey; having grey hair.
4Proto-Hurza *ɗakʷar grey hair cheveux gris 4.1) Mbuko (Gravina) ɗəɗukʷar grey hairs cheveux gris 4.1.1) Mbuko (Gravina) dədukʷar cheveux gris 4.2) Vame (Kinnaird) ākʷár hair, white se dit des cheveux blancs qui se trouvent sur la tête d'un vieux.
5Proto-Mandara *kʷɨlɨ grey hair cheveux gris 5.1) Podoko (Swackhammer) kulala,-ə cheveu blanc 5.2) Mandara (Fluckiger) kulije cheveu blanc
6Proto-Mofu *ɗakʷɨl grey hair cheveux gris 6.1) Muyang (Smith) ɑkʷɑl white hair cheveux blancs 6.2) Mada (Nkoumou) akkʷal cheveux blancs 6.3) Moloko (Friesen) ɗakʷəl white hair cheveux blanc 6.4) Zulgo (Haller) akúl cheveux (m.pl.) blancs 6.5) Gemzek (Sabatai) akʷal white hair cheveux blancs 6.6) Merey (Gravina) maɗakʷal white hair cheveux blancs 6.7) Dugwor (Jubumna) maɗakol white hair cheveux blancs 6.8) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) egʷel white hair cheveux blancs
7Proto-Maroua *hal ʷ grey hair cheveux gris 7.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) hol cheveux blancs 7.2) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) anhol white hair cheveux blancs

ɗap nf. millet ball boule de mil (10 groups, 26 languages) A
This root is the common word for the lump of cooked millet that forms the staple in the region. The root is extremely stable. It is found across the Northern Mandara Mountains and the Nigerian Plains. In Proto-Central Chadic, *p was realised as [f] word-finally, and this became phonemicized in the descendants of Proto-Central Chadic.
1Proto-Bata *ɗafa food boule 1.1) Jimi (Djibi) ɗafan Nourriture
2Proto-Mafa *ɗaf millet boule 2.1) Mafa (Ndokobai) ɗaf food boule de mil, repas 2.2) Cuvok (Gravina) ɗaf boule
3Proto-Sukur *ɗaf millet lump boule de mil 3.1) Sukur (Thomas) ɗaf food: things that people or animals eats.
4Proto-Hurza *ɗaf millet boule 4.1) Mbuko (Gravina) ɗaf millet ball, food boule de mil, nourriture 4.2) Vame (Kinnaird) ɗə̄fkā boule de mil
5Proto-Margi *ɗɨfɨ millet boule 5.1) Margi (Hoffman) ɗəfə mush, boule 5.2) Margi South (Harley) dufau food 5.3) Kilba (Schuh) ɗəfa tuwo, millet boule
6Proto-Mandara *ɗafɨ millet boule 6.1) Podoko (Swackhammer) ɗafá,-ə boule, nourriture qui se mange avec la sauce 6.2) Mandara (Fluckiger) ɗáfá couscous (m), nourriture (f) 6.3) Malgwa (Löhr) ɗafa food gen.(cooked)
7Proto-Mofu *ɗaf millet boule 7.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ɗàf fufu boule 7.2) Muyang (Smith) ɗɑf ball of millet couscous, staple food boule de mil, nourriture de base 7.3) Moloko (Friesen) ɗaf food; meal; boule repas; boule 7.4) Zulgo (Haller) ɗaf boule (f.) de mil 7.5) Gemzek (Sabatai) ɗaf food nourriture 7.6) Merey (Gravina) ɗaf nourriture 7.7) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ɗaf sorghum ball "boule de mil" (fr. d'Afrique) ; nourriture
8Proto-Maroua *ɗaf millet boule 8.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ɗaf(Mj), ɗaf (Mt, Mv) nourriture, repas, manger (boule de mil plus sauce) 8.2) Mbazla (Tourneux) ɗaf boule
9Proto-Lamang *ɗafa millet boule 9.1) Lamang (Wolff) ɗafa millet boule 9.2) Hdi (Bramlett) ɗafa sorghum mush, food la boule
10Proto-Higi *ɗafa millet boule 10.1) Kamwe-Futu (Harley) ɗafa food 10.2) Kirya (Blench) ɗàfà food 10.3) Bana (Lienhard) ɗàfà nourriture

ɗawɨk n. goat chèvre (15 groups, 42 languages) C
This is a well-attested Proto-Central Chadic root. The evidence for the initial *ɗ is limited. It is only present in Mofu-Gudur and Cuvok. In Sukur and the Maroua group it has the reflex *ʔ, and in the Musgum group it has the reflex *j, both of which are unestablished changes. In Mafa it has fused with *w to become /ɓ/, a common sporadic process. In Podoko, Mandara and Malgwa, the loss of *ɗ has been compensated for by the addition of a prefixed /n/, which is a common sporadic process in these languages. In many groups the *w has fused with the *k to create *kʷ. The *k or the *kʷ has also changed to *hʷ in the Bata and Daba groups, *gʷ in the Lamang group and *ɣʷ in the Kotoko Centre group. None of these changes are established as regular changes.
1Proto-Bata *ɨhʷɨ goat chèvre 1.1) Gude (Hoskinson) ə̀hʷá - ə goat 1.2) Sharwa (Gravina) hʷə Chèvre 1.2.1) Sharwa (Gravina) hʷə chèvre 1.3) Tsuvan (Johnston) ahʷe le chèvre
2Proto-Daba *ŋhʷa goat chèvre 2.1) Buwal (Viljoen) ŋhʷɑ goat chèvre 2.2) Gavar (Viljoen) ŋhʷɑ goat chèvre
3Proto-Mafa *ɗawɨk goat chèvre 3.1) Mafa (Ndokobai) ɓakʷ, ɓakʷaj, ɓakʷij haj chevre 3.1.1) Mafa (Barreteau) ɓókʷ chèvre 3.2) Cuvok (Gravina) ɗakʷ goat chèvre
4Proto-Sukur *ʔɨjɨkʷ goat chèvre 4.1) Sukur (Thomas) ʼijuk goat; an animals with horns and a coat of hairs, that lives as demostic. 4.2) Sukur (David) ijukʼ goat
5Proto-Hurza *awak goat chèvre 5.1) Mbuko (Gravina) awak goat chèvre 5.2) Vame (Kinnaird) āwāk goat chèvre
6Proto-Margi *kʷi goat chèvre 6.1) Bura (Blench) kʷi Goat 6.2) Margi (Hoffman) ku goat 6.3) Kilba (Schuh) kʷa/ku goat
7Proto-Mandara *ɗawak goat chèvre 7.1) Matal (Branger) awak goat chèvre 7.2) Podoko (Swackhammer) nawá,-ə chèvre 7.3) Mandara (Fluckiger) náwime chèvre (f) 7.4) Malgwa (Löhr) nawe goat 7.5) Glavda (Owens) aag goat 7.5.1) Glavda (Nghagyiva) áːgʷa goat 7.5.2) Glavda (Owens) dwág goat
8Proto-Mofu *ɗawak goat chèvre 8.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) āwák goat chèvre 8.2) Muyang (Smith) ɑwɑk goat chèvre 8.3) Moloko (Friesen) awak goat chèvre 8.4) Zulgo (Haller) awak chèvre f. 8.4.1) Zulgo (Haller) awák chèvre f. 8.5) Gemzek (Sabatai) awak goat chèvre 8.5.1) Gemzek (Sabatai) awak goat chèvre 8.6) Merey (Gravina) wak goat chèvre 8.7) Dugwor (Jubumna) awak goat chèvre 8.8) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ɗakʷ goat chèvre (nom gén.), caprin
9Proto-Maroua *ʔawɨ goat chèvre 9.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ʼaw chèvre 9.1.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) aw chèvre 9.2) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) aw goat chèvre 9.3) Mbazla (Tourneux) ʼawu chèvre 9.3.1) Mbazla (SILSurvey) áwūʼ goat chèvre
10Proto-Lamang *agʷɨ goat chèvre 10.1) Lamang (Wolff) ógò goat 10.2) Hdi (Bramlett) gu goat la chèvre
11Proto-Higi *kʷɨ goat chèvre 11.1) Kamwe-Nkafa (Harley) kʷə 1.goat.2.hearsay. 11.2) Kamwe-Futu (Harley) kʷo goat 11.3) Kirya (Blench) kù goat 11.4) Psikye (Angelo) kʷə goat 11.5) Bana (Lienhard) kʷə̀ chèvre
12Proto-Kotoko Centre *nɣʷa goat chèvre 12.1) Mser (Allison) nɣo goat chèvre
13Proto-Kotoko South *awa goat chèvre 13.1) Zina (Odden) àwà goat chèvre
14Proto-Musgum *jawak goat chèvre 14.1) Vulum (Tourneux) jek chèvre 14.2) Mbara (Tourneux) we he-goat bouc 14.3) Muskum (Tourneux) jaw chèvre
15Proto-Gidar *hawa goat chèvre 15.1) Gidar (Hungerford) hawa chèvre 15.2) Gidar (Schuh) hawa chèvre

ɗawɨm nf. bee, honey abeille, miel (14 groups, 36 languages) C
This root is used both for the bee and for honey in most of the languages presented. In the proto-language reconstructions, 'honey' is given as the gloss, but only as a label. The reconstruction of the root poses several challenges. In the Daba and Mafa groups, the *ɗ and *w have fused, resulting in *ɓ in the Daba group and *ᵐgb in the Mafa groups. In many groups, the *ɗ or the *w has been lost. In many languages across almost all groups, this has triggered compensatory reduplication of the *m. In Mandara and Malgwa the loss has been compensated for by a prefixed /n/. In several languages the *w has been reanalysed as a vowel, or as the labialisation prosody. All of these are common sporadic processes.
1Proto-Daba *ɗawam honey miel 1.1) Buwal (Viljoen) ɓɑmɑm bee abeille 1.2) Gavar (Viljoen) ɑmɑm bee abeille 1.3) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) ɓəɓam bee abeille 1.4) Daba (Lienhard) ɓòɓóm le miel, l'abeille
2Proto-Mafa *ᵐgbam honey miel 2.1) Cuvok (Gravina) mgbam bee abeille 2.1.1) Cuvok (Gravina) mgbam honey miel
3Proto-Sukur *mam honey miel 3.1) Sukur (David) mam honey 3.2) Sukur (Thomas) mam honey; a sweet sticky yellow substance made by bees.
4Proto-Hurza *wɨmam honey miel 4.1) Mbuko (Gravina) umam bee abeille 4.1.1) Mbuko (Gravina) umam honey miel 4.2) Vame (Kinnaird) āmə̄māk 1 bee abeille 4.2.1) Vame (Kinnaird) āmə̄māk 2 honey miel
5Proto-Margi *wɨmɨ honey miel 5.1) Bura (Blench) muma Honey 5.2) Margi (Hoffman) məmə honey
6Proto-Mandara *ɗama honey miel 6.1) Podoko (Swackhammer) mama,-ə 1 abeille 6.1.1) Podoko (Swackhammer) mama,-ə 2 miel 6.2) Mandara (Fluckiger) nama miel (m), abeille (f) 6.3) Malgwa (Löhr) nama bee, honey 6.4) Glavda (Nghagyiva) màmː bee
7Proto-Mofu *awɨm honey miel 7.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) āmā bee abeille 7.1.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) āmā honey miel 7.2) Muyang (Smith) àmú honey, bee miel, abeille 7.3) Mada (Nkoumou) áma abeille 7.4) Moloko (Friesen) omom honey miel 7.5) Zulgo (Haller) amúm abeille f. 7.6) Gemzek (Sabatai) awom bee abeille 7.7) Merey (Gravina) wum bee abeille 7.7.1) Merey (Gravina) wum honey miel 7.8) Dugwor (Jubumna) amam honey miel 7.9) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) amam bee, honey abeille 7.9.1) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) amam miel
8Proto-Maroua *amam honey miel 8.1) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) amam honey miel 8.1.1) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) amam bee abeille 8.2) Mbazla (Tourneux) ʼamam miel
9Proto-Lamang *omo honey miel 9.1) Lamang (Wolff) ómó honey
10Proto-Kotoko North *mam honey miel 10.1) Afade (Allison) mam bee abeille 10.2) Malgbe (Allison) mam honey miel 10.2.1) Malgbe (Allison) mam bee abeille 10.3) Mpade (Allison) màm honey miel 10.3.1) Mpade (Allison) màm bee abeille
11Proto-Kotoko Centre *imam honey miel 11.1) Lagwan (Allison) iman honey miel 11.1.1) Lagwan (Allison) iman bee abeille 11.2) Mser (Allison) mam honey miel 11.2.1) Mser (Allison) mam bee abeille
12Proto-Kotoko South *amama honey miel 12.1) Zina (Odden) ámámá honey miel
13Proto-Musgum *wamaj honey miel 13.1) Vulum (Tourneux) aamii abeille 13.2) Mbara (Tourneux) momoj bee abeille 13.2.1) Mbara (Tourneux) momoj honey miel 13.3) Muskum (Tourneux) amtu abeille
14Proto-Gidar *amɨma honey miel 14.1) Gidar (Schuh) aməma/a miel 14.2) Gidar (Hungerford) amama abeille

ɗiɬ nm. bone os (14 groups, 43 languages) B syn: kɨrakaɬ ʸ.
This widely-attested root is close to the root *ɗɨɬɨj 'egg', but the presence of *i in the root rather than a final *j makes a big difference to the reflexes in individual languages. The initial *ɗ is realised as *t in Proto-Mafa, Proto-Sukur, Proto-Mofu and Proto-Maroua, an unestablished change. It has been lost in many groups, triggering compensatory reduplication in the Mandara and Kotoko South groups, and in some Mofu group languages. It has fused with the *i in the Tera and Higi groups to create a palatalised glottal or a velar implosive. In the Kotoko North and South groups it has fused with the *ɬ to create an ejective. These fusion processes are common sporadic changes. The *ɬ is expected to have the reflex *ɮ in the groups of the South sub-branch, but for this root it is only the case in the Bata group. Within the Bata group there is a subsequent change *ɮ to *l. In the Margi group and in Mandara and Malgwa in the Mandara group, *ɬ has become palatalised by processes originating with *i, and *ɬʲ has then been velarised to /hʲ/ as part of a regular process. Regular processes give *ɬ the reflexes *s in the Proto-Kotoko South and Mser, /ʃ/ in Mpade and /h/ in Buduma. In Mser the /ʃ/ is due to the effect of the front vowel on *s.
1Proto-Bata *iɮɨ bone os 1.1) Bachama (Skinner) uule bone 1.2) Gude (Hoskinson) ìlá -ə bone. 1.3) Jimi (Djibi) ilən Os 1.4) Sharwa (Gravina) allə os 1.5) Tsuvan (Johnston) iɮe l'os
2Proto-Mafa *taɬ, ɬaɬar bone os 2.1) Mafa (Barreteau) táɬ os 2.2) Cuvok (Gravina) ɬaɬar bone os
3Proto-Tera *ɠɨɬi bone os 3.1) Tera (Newman) ɠəɬ bone 3.2) Nyimatli (Harley) qu̱ɬi bone 3.3) Gaʼanda (Gwaji) ela bone
4Proto-Sukur *taɬ bone os 4.1) Sukur (David) taɬ bone 4.2) Sukur (Thomas) taɬ bone; any of the hard parts that form the skeleton of the body of a human and an animal.
5Proto-Margi *ɗaɬɨ ʸ bone os 5.1) Bura (Blench) ɗjàhù Bone 5.2) Kilba (Schuh) ɗihji bone
6Proto-Mandara *ɬaɬi bone os 6.1) Matal (Branger) aɬaɬ bone os 6.2) Podoko (Swackhammer) ɬaɬa,-ə os 6.3) Mandara (Fluckiger) hjáhjé os (m) 6.4) Malgwa (Löhr) hjehje bone 6.5) Glavda (Owens) ła bone 6.5.1) Glavda (Nghagyiva) ɬàɬa bone 6.6) Dghwede (Frick) ɬaɬa bone
7Proto-Mofu *ɨtaɬ bone os 7.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) àɬàɬ bone os 7.2) Muyang (Smith) ɑɬɑt bone os 7.3) Mada (Nkoumou) aɬaɬ os 7.4) Zulgo (Haller) atáɬ os m. 7.5) Gemzek (Sabatai) ataɬ bone os 7.6) Merey (Gravina) mətaɬ bone os 7.7) Dugwor (Jubumna) mətaɬ bone os 7.8) Mofu North (Barreteau) ⁿdàɬ os
8Proto-Maroua *ataɬ ʸ bone os 8.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) teɬ(e), ateɬ(Mv), eteɬ (j) os, arrête 8.2) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) ateɬ bone os 8.3) Mbazla (Tourneux) ʼaʼaɬ os
9Proto-Higi *ʔʲiɬɨ bone os 9.1) Kamwe-Nkafa (Harley) ʼjithlə bone 9.2) Kamwe-Futu (Harley) iɬa bone 9.3) Kirya (Blench) íɬə́ bone 9.4) Bana (Lienhard) éɬêr os (pl.) 9.4.1) Bana (Lienhard) ʼjíɬə́ os
10Proto-Kotoko Island *ahaj bone os 10.1) Buduma (McKone) ahaj bone os
11Proto-Kotoko North *enslʼi bone os 11.1) Afade (Allison) enɬʼi bone os 11.2) Mpade (Allison) ènʃí bone os 11.3) Malgbe (Allison) enɬɨ bone os
12Proto-Kotoko Centre *eɬi bone os 12.1) Lagwan (Allison) aɬɨ bone os 12.2) Mser (Allison) enʃi bone os
13Proto-Kotoko South *asisʼɨ bone os 13.1) Zina (Odden) àsàsə̀ bone os 13.2) Mazera (Allison) asisʼe bone os
14Proto-Gidar *ɬaŋɬaŋ ʸ bone os 14.1) Gidar (Hungerford) ɬeŋɬeŋ os 14.2) Gidar (Schuh) ɬeᵑgɬeᵑg os

ɗɨjɨkʷ n. bird oiseau (9 groups, 31 languages) A
This is the generic term for a small bird. The initial *ɗ is attested in most groups. In Sukur, Margi South, Kilba, Mandara, Margi and Bana the *ɗ and *j have fused to create /ʔʲ/, which is a common sporadic process. In the Tera group the *j has probably been reanalysed as the palatalisation prosody, and in Bura and Dghwede it has been reanalysed as a vowel. The labialisation on the *kʷ is reconstructed on the basis of its presence in the Margi group, with support from the Higi, Maroua and Mofu groups. The reason for the development of *ŋʷ in the Mofu group is unclear.
1Proto-Mafa *ɗɨjak bird oiseau 1.1) Mafa (Barreteau) ɗijak oiseau. nom gén. des petits oiseaux 1.2) Cuvok (Gravina) ɗijak bird oiseau
2Proto-Tera *ɗiki bird oiseau 2.1) Tera (Newman) ɗiki bird 2.2) Nyimatli (Harley) djika bird
3Proto-Sukur *ʔʲak bird oiseau 3.1) Sukur (David) ʼjak bird 3.2) Sukur (Thomas) ʼjak bird;- is a general term for flying birds.
4Proto-Margi *ɗɨjakʷ bird oiseau 4.1) Bura (Blench) ɗíká Bird 4.2) Margi (Hoffman) ʼikji bird 4.3) Margi South (Hoffman) ʼjagu bird 4.4) Kilba (Hoffman) ʼjagu bird 4.4.1) Kilba (Schuh) ʼjaku/ə bird
5Proto-Mandara *ɗɨjak bird oiseau 5.1) Matal (Branger) ɗəjaŋ, ɗijaŋ bird oiseau 5.2) Podoko (Swackhammer) ɗija,-a oiseau 5.3) Mandara (Fluckiger) ƴie oiseau (m) 5.4) Malgwa (Löhr) ɠjije bird gen. 5.5) Glavda (Nghagyiva) ɗìːka bird 5.5.1) Glavda (Owens) ďií bird 5.6) Dghwede (Frick) tʼiᵑge bird
6Proto-Mofu *ɗɨjɨŋʷ bird oiseau 6.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) āɗēŋʷ oiseau 6.2) Muyang (Smith) eɗiŋ bird (general word) oiseau (mot général) 6.3) Moloko (Friesen) eɗəjen bird oiseau 6.4) Zulgo (Haller) ɗijeŋ oiseau m. 6.5) Gemzek (Sabatai) dijiŋ bird oiseau 6.5.1) Gemzek (Sabatai) ɗijiŋ bird oiseau 6.6) Merey (Gravina) ɗijeŋ bird oiseau 6.7) Dugwor (Jubumna) ɗijeŋ bird oiseau 6.8) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ɗijaŋ oiseau (nom gén.)
7Proto-Maroua *ɗɨjɨw bird oiseau 7.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ɗiju(w) oiseau (en général) 7.2) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) ɗijew bird oiseau 7.3) Mbazla (Tourneux) ɗijaw oiseau
8Proto-Lamang *ɗɨjak bird oiseau 8.1) Lamang (Wolff) ɗíjáká bird 8.2) Hdi (Bramlett) ɗijak bird l'oiseau
9Proto-Higi *ɗɨjɨkʷɨ bird oiseau 9.1) Kamwe-Futu (Harley) ijo bird 9.2) Kirya (Blench) íkə́ bird 9.3) Bana (Lienhard) ʼjìgʷù oiseau

ɗɨjɨm nm. water eau (17 groups, 53 languages) A
The *ɗ is reconstructed on the evidence from the Bata, Tera, Hurza, Kotoko South and Musgum groups. In all of these groups there is evidence for a glottal element, in most cases [ʔ]. In the Tera group the *ɗ and *j have fused to form /ɗʲ/.
1Proto-Bata *maʔi water eau 1.1) Gude (Hoskinson) màʼínə water 1.2) Jimi (Djibi) maʼi Eau 1.3) Sharwa (Gravina) maʼi eau
2Proto-Daba *jɨm water eau 2.1) Buwal (Viljoen) jɑm water eau 2.1.1) Buwal (Viljoen) jɑm colour couleur 2.1.2) Buwal (Viljoen) jɑm juice jus 2.2) Gavar (Viljoen) jəm water eau 2.2.1) Gavar (Viljoen) jəm colour couleur 2.3) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) jim water eau 2.4) Daba (Lienhard) jə̄m l'eau
3Proto-Mafa *jam water eau 3.1) Mafa (Ndokobai) jam water eau 3.2) Cuvok (Gravina) jam water eau
4Proto-Tera *ɗʲɨm water eau 4.1) Tera (Newman) ƴim water 4.2) Nyimatli (Harley) ɗjim water 4.3) Hwana (Harley) āːmá water
5Proto-Sukur *jam water eau 5.1) Sukur (David) ijam water, rain 5.2) Sukur (Thomas) jam water
6Proto-Hurza *aʔam water eau 6.1) Mbuko (Gravina) aʼam water eau 6.2) Vame (Kinnaird) āhʷám water eau
7Proto-Margi *jimi water eau 7.1) Margi (Hoffman) ʼimi water 7.2) Margi South (Harley) imi water 7.3) Bura (Blench) jimi Water
8Proto-Mandara *jɨwɨ water eau 8.1) Matal (Branger) jːāw water eau 8.2) Podoko (Swackhammer) jəwá,-ə eau, jus 8.3) Mandara (Fluckiger) jawe eau (f) 8.4) Malgwa (Löhr) jawe water 8.5) Glavda (Nghagyiva) jùwa water 8.5.1) Glavda (Owens) íi water 8.5.2) Glavda (Owens) ju water, color 8.6) Dghwede (Frick) jiwe water
9Proto-Mofu *jam water eau 9.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) jàm water eau 9.2) Muyang (Smith) jam water ; colour ; interest l'eau; couleur; intérêt 9.3) Moloko (Friesen) jam water eau 9.4) Zulgo (Haller) jam eau f. 9.5) Gemzek (Sabatai) jam l' eau 9.6) Merey (Gravina) jam water eau 9.7) Dugwor (Jubumna) jam water eau 9.7.1) Dugwor (Jubumna) jam juice jus 9.8) Mofu North (Barreteau) jàm eau 9.9) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) jam water eau ; jus
10Proto-Maroua *jam water eau 10.1) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) jam water eau 10.2) Mbazla (Tourneux) jam eau
11Proto-Lamang *imi water eau 11.1) Lamang (Wolff) ímí water 11.2) Hdi (Bramlett) imi water l'eau
12Proto-Higi *jame water eau 12.1) Kamwe-Nkafa (Harley) jame water 12.2) Kamwe-Futu (Harley) jemji water 12.3) Kirya (Blench) jàmə́ water 12.4) Psikye (Angelo) jemú water 12.5) Bana (Lienhard) jàm eau
13Proto-Kotoko Island *amaj water eau 13.1) Buduma (McKone) amaj water eau
14Proto-Kotoko North *ame water eau 14.1) Afade (Allison) ame water eau 14.2) Mpade (Allison) àmé water eau 14.3) Malgbe (Allison) am water eau
15Proto-Kotoko Centre *am water eau 15.1) Lagwan (Allison) am water eau 15.2) Mser (Allison) am water eau
16Proto-Kotoko South *aʔɨm water eau 16.1) Zina (Odden) ámí water eau 16.2) Mazera (Allison) aʔɨm water eau
17Proto-Musgum *ʔɨjam water eau 17.1) Vulum (Tourneux) jem eau 17.2) Mbara (Tourneux) ʼam water 17.3) Muskum (Tourneux) jamu eau

ɗɨkɨn ʸ nm. claw, fingernail griffe, ongle (6 groups, 10 languages) A
The languages where this root is attested are relatively few, but spread over a wide area. This may indicate that the root did exist in Proto-Central Chadic. The initial *ɗ is realised as /r/ in Cuvok, which is an unestablished change, and in the Kotoko North and Centre groups it has fused with the *k to create the velar ejective *kʼ, which is a common sporadic process. There is no known process to account for the initial /h/ in Mazera. In Kotoko North and Centre, there is prenasalisation of the initial consonant, a common sporadic process. The *k has the reflex /h/ in Cuvok and Hdi, an unestablished process. The final *n has become /ŋ/ in Cuvok, Mbazla and Hdi, which is a regular change. The change *n to /r/ in Maltam and Mser is a common but non-systematic process. The reconstruction of the palatalisation prosody is supported by the presence of the prosody in Cuvok and Mbazla.
1Proto-Mafa *rɨhaŋ ʸ claw griffe 1.1) Cuvok (Gravina) rəheŋ fingernail ongle 1.1.1) Cuvok (Gravina) rəheŋ claw griffe
2Proto-Maroua *ɗɨkɨŋ ʸ claw griffe 2.1) Mbazla (Tourneux) ɗikiŋ griffe, ongle 2.1.1) Mbazla (SILSurvey) lìkíŋ claw griffe
3Proto-Lamang *ɗahɨŋ claw griffe 3.1) Hdi (Bramlett) ɗahəŋ claw, fingernail la griffe, l'ongle
4Proto-Kotoko North *nkʼan claw griffe 4.1) Afade (Allison) nkʼan fingernail ongle 4.2) Mpade (Allison) nkʼan claw griffe 4.2.1) Mpade (Allison) nkʼan fingernail ongle 4.3) Malgbe (Allison) nkʼɨn claw griffe 4.3.1) Malgbe (Allison) nkʼɨn fingernail ongle 4.4) Maltam (Allison) ᵑgare claw griffe
5Proto-Kotoko Centre *nkʼɨn claw griffe 5.1) Lagwan (Allison) nkʼɨni claw griffe 5.2) Mser (Allison) nkʼɨr claw griffe 5.2.1) Mser (Allison) nkʼɨr fingernail ongle
6Proto-Kotoko South *hɨkɨne claw griffe 6.1) Mazera (Allison) kʷare; hɨkɨne; hakane fingernail ongle

ɗɨɬ ʸ v. hatch éclore (5 groups, 6 languages) A cf: ɗɨɬɨj; cf: tsaɬ ʸ.
This root is related to *ɗɨɬɨj 'egg'. In Buwal and Cuvok, the palatalisation prosody has caused *ɗʲ to become *j.
1Proto-Daba *jaɬ hatch éclore 1.1) Buwal (Viljoen) jɑɬ hatch éclore 1.1.1) Buwal (Viljoen) jɑɬ produce produire
2Proto-Mafa *jɨɬa hatch éclore 2.1) Cuvok (Gravina) jiɬa hatch éclore
3Proto-Hurza ɗɨɬ ʸ hatch éclore 3.1) Mbuko (Gravina) ɗəɗeɬ hatch éclore 3.2) Vame (Kinnaird) ɗūɬíjā hatch éclore
4Proto-Mofu ɗɨɬ ʸ hatch éclore 4.1) Muyang (Smith) ɗiɬ hatch éclore
5Proto-Gidar *wɨdaɬa ʸ hatch éclore 5.1) Gidar (Hungerford) wədeɬe éclore

ɗɨɬɨj nm. egg œuf (16 groups, 50 languages) A cf: ɗɨɬ ʸ.
This is one of the most widely attested roots that have been reconstructed. There is significant variety in the realisations, where we can see evidence of most of the significant processes that have taken place in Central Chadic. In the Daba and Musgum groups there has been metathesis of the *ɗ and the *ɬ, and in the Higi group there has been metathesis of the *ɬ and *j. Metathesis is common, but not predictable. In the Maroua and Musgum groups, the *ɗ has become *t, though this change has not been established as a regular change. In many groups the *ɗ has been lost, and this has triggered compensatory reduplication in the Mafa, Margi and Lamang groups, and compensatory prefixation in the Daba group. The final *j has been reanalysed as the palatalisation prosody in Proto-Daba, Proto-Margi and Proto-Maroua, and as a vowel in Proto-Bata, Proto-Kotoko South and Proto-Lamang. These processes are all common, but not predictable. The *ɬ has become *ɮ in the languages of the South sub-branch, i.e. Proto-Bata, Proto-Daba and Proto-Sukur, as part of a regular process, though not in the Mafa group. There is a subsequent regular change *ɮ to /l/ within the Bata group. In the Margi group and Glavda from the Mandara group, the *j or the palatalisation prosody has created *ɬʲ, which is then velarised as part of a regular sporadic process affecting palatalised alveolar consonants, resulting in /hʲ/. *ɬ is realised as /s/ in the Kotoko South group and Mser, and as /ʃ/ in Mpade, both of which are regular processes. The prenasalisation found in some of the Kotoko groups is a common sporadic process.
1Proto-Bata *ɗaɮi egg oeuf 1.1) Gude (Hoskinson) àlínə egg. 1.2) Jimi (Djibi) alin Oeuf 1.3) Sharwa (Gravina) alli oeuf, oeux 1.4) Bata (Boyd) ɗùùle egg
2Proto-Daba *naɮɨɗ ʸ egg oeuf 2.1) Buwal (Viljoen) neɬe egg œuf 2.2) Gavar (Viljoen) ɑnɬi egg œuf 2.3) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) miɬiɗ egg œuf 2.4) Daba (Lienhard) nèɮī ʼ l'oeuf
3Proto-Mafa *ɬaɬaj egg oeuf 3.1) Mafa (Ndokobai) ɬaɬaj oeuf 3.2) Cuvok (Gravina) ɬeɬej egg œuf
4Proto-Sukur *ɗaᵑgaɮaj egg oeuf 4.1) Sukur (David) ⁿdaŋaɮaj egg 4.2) Sukur (Thomas) ɗaᵑgaɮai egg
5Proto-Hurza *ɬaj egg oeuf 5.1) Mbuko (Gravina) ɬaj egg(s) oeuf, oeux 5.2) Vame (Kinnaird) ɮáj egg oeuf
6Proto-Margi *ɬɨɬɨ ʸ egg oeuf 6.1) Margi (Hoffman) ihji egg 6.2) Kilba (Schuh) hjihji egg(s) 6.3) Bura (Blench) hihi Egg
7Proto-Mandara *ɗɨɬɨja egg oeuf 7.1) Matal (Branger) ɬaɬaj egg oeuf 7.2) Podoko (Swackhammer) ɬɨɬe,-i oeuf 7.3) Mandara (Fluckiger) ɬájá oeuf (m) 7.4) Malgwa (Löhr) thlaja egg(s) 7.5) Glavda (Owens) çi egg, testes 7.5.1) Glavda (Nghagyiva) çìːja egg 7.6) Dghwede (Frick) ɬəɬe egg
8Proto-Mofu *ɗɨɬɨj egg oeuf 8.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) ɬàɬáj egg oeuf 8.2) Muyang (Smith) ejɬi egg oeuf 8.2.1) Muyang (Smith) ejɬi egg oeuf 8.3) Moloko (Friesen) eɬeɬeɗ egg oeuf 8.4) Zulgo (Haller) ɬèɬé oeuf m. 8.5) Gemzek (Sabatai) ɗəɬe egg œuf 8.6) Merey (Gravina) ɗəɬe egg œuf 8.6.1) Merey (Gravina) ɗəɬe egg œuf 8.7) Dugwor (Jubumna) aɬaj egg œuf 8.8) Mofu North (Barreteau) ɬéɬēɗ oeuf 8.9) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ɬeɬéɗ oeuf
9Proto-Maroua *ataɬ ʸ egg oeuf 9.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) teɬ(e), ateɬ(Mv), eteɬ (j) oeuf 9.2) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) ateɬ egg œuf 9.3) Mbazla (Tourneux) aɬaj œuf
10Proto-Lamang *ɬiɬi egg oeuf 10.1) Lamang (Wolff) ɬíɬí eggs 10.2) Hdi (Bramlett) ɬiɬik egg l'oeuf
11Proto-Higi *jɨɬɨ egg oeuf 11.1) Kamwe-Nkafa (Harley) ɬiɬə egg 11.2) Kamwe-Futu (Harley) jəɬe egg 11.3) Kirya (Blench) ɬìɬí kòntə́ká egg 11.4) Bana (Lienhard) ɬìɬì oeufs
12Proto-Kotoko North *enɬɨ egg oeuf 12.1) Afade (Allison) enɬo egg œuf 12.2) Mpade (Allison) ènʃó egg œuf 12.3) Malgbe (Allison) enɬɨ egg œuf
13Proto-Kotoko Centre *enɬɨ egg oeuf 13.1) Lagwan (Allison) nɬɨ egg œuf 13.2) Mser (Allison) ensɨ egg œuf
14Proto-Kotoko South *nsi egg oeuf 14.1) Zina (Odden) nsí egg œuf
15Proto-Musgum *ɮat ʸ egg oeuf 15.1) Vulum (Tourneux) eŋɮe oeuf 15.2) Mbara (Tourneux) ŋɮa egg 15.3) Muskum (Tourneux) ɮet oeuf
16Proto-Gidar *ɗaᵑgɮa ʸ egg oeuf 16.1) Gidar (Schuh) ɗeᵑgɮe/e oeuf 16.2) Gidar (Hungerford) ɗeŋle, ɗeŋleɗe oeuf, oeufs

ɗɨrɨnɨh ʸ n. tongue langue (4 groups, 18 languages) C syn: ɣanaɗ ʸ, naɬɨj.
This root is difficult to establish. The initial *ɗ has support from some languages in the Mofu and Maroua groups, either as /ɗ/ or as /ʔ/. The medial *n is expected to have become *r in the Mandara group and parts of the Mofu group, whilst the *r should have become *l in all the groups that are represented except the Mafa group. It is possible that the resulting sequence was reduced from *lɨr to *lr to *r in the Mandara and Mofu groups, which would explain the surface forms that we find. The /l/ in Matal is a regular change from the resulting *r. The *ɗ and *h have both been lost in many languages, which is a common sporadic change. In Mandara and Malgwa, the loss of the *ɗ has triggered compensatory prefixation of /n/. The palatalisation prosody is present in three of the four groups.
1Proto-Mafa *lanaŋ ʸ tongue langue 1.1) Mafa (Barreteau) léné langue 1.1.1) Mafa (Barreteau) léʼén langue 1.2) Cuvok (Gravina) neneŋ tongue langue
2Proto-Mandara *ɨrɨh tongue langue 2.1) Matal (Branger) ālàh tongue langue 2.2) Mandara (Fluckiger) nara langue (f) 2.3) Malgwa (Löhr) nare tongue 2.4) Glavda (Nghagyiva) ɛ̄ɾɛ̄xa tongue 2.5) Dghwede (Frick) rəxe tongue
3Proto-Mofu *ɗɨrɨnah ʸ tongue langue 3.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) màró tongue langue 3.2) Muyang (Smith) arəɗ tongue ; bud langue; bourgeon 3.3) Mada (Nkoumou) árra langue 3.4) Moloko (Friesen) ́hərnek tongue langue 3.5) Zulgo (Haller) àràh langue f. 3.6) Gemzek (Sabatai) arah tongue langue 3.7) Merey (Gravina) ɗərneh langue 3.8) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) neneh langue (organe) (Gud.) 3.8.1) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ɗərne langue (organe) (Mokong)
4Proto-Maroua *ɗɨrna ʸ tongue langue 4.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ʼirne, irne langue 4.2) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) irne tongue langue 4.2.1) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) irne language langue, langage 4.3) Mbazla (Tourneux) ne langue 4.3.1) Mbazla (SILSurvey) nɛ́ʼ tongue langue

ɗɨwah nf. breast sein (13 groups, 42 languages) A
The basic sense of the root is 'breast', but in many languages it is also covers the concept 'milk'. The history of the root is complicated due to the fact that all three of the consonants in the root are prone to reanalysis or loss. The initial *ɗ is only retained in some languages of the Mofu and Maroua groups. In many cases it has fused with the *w to create either *ʔʷ or *ɓ, which is a common sporadic process. It has been lost in the Mafa and Kotoko Centre groups. The final *h has been lost in the majority of languages, but is retained in the Meri subgroup of the Mofu group. When the *w has not fused with *ɗ, it is retained.
1Proto-Bata *ʔʷa breast sein 1.1) Bata (Boyd) wàto uncooked fresh milk, lait cru 1.2) Gude (Hoskinson) ʼwánə (inher. poss., body part) breast, milk 1.3) Jimi (Djibi) wan lait 1.4) Sharwa (Gravina) ʼwa sein, lait 1.5) Tsuvan (Johnston) ʼwakən le lait
2Proto-Daba *ʔʷa breast sein 2.1) Buwal (Viljoen) wɑ breast; milk; udder sein; lait; pis, mamelle 2.2) Gavar (Viljoen) ŋʼwɑ udder; breast; milk mamelle; sein (mamelle); lait 2.3) Mbudum (Ndokobaï) wa udder; breast pis, mamelle; sein (mamelle)
3Proto-Mafa *wa breast sein 3.1) Mafa (Barreteau) wa sein 3.2) Cuvok (Gravina) wa breast; udder sein (mamelle); pis, mamelle
4Proto-Tera *ɓiɓi breast sein 4.1) Tera (Newman) ɓuɓu, ɓiɓi breast, fem. 4.2) Nyimatli (Harley) ɓiɓi breast
5Proto-Sukur *ʔʷa breast, milk sein, lait 5.1) Sukur (David) ʼwa breast 5.2) Sukur (Thomas) ʼwa breast; milk:- is a milk from the breast of either human female and animals.
6Proto-Margi *ʔɨwa breast sein 6.1) Bura (Blench) ʼùwà Woman’s breast 6.2) Margi (Hoffman) uʼwa breast, milk 6.3) Margi South (Harley) uʼwa breast 6.4) Kilba (Schuh) ʼwa breast; milk
7Proto-Mandara *wɨɓa breast sein 7.1) Matal (Branger) awa breast sein 7.2) Podoko (Swackhammer) uɓa,-a sein; lait 7.3) Mandara (Fluckiger) ube mamelle (f), sein (m), tétine (f) 7.4) Malgwa (Löhr) uuɓe breast, female 7.5) Glavda (Nghagyiva) ùːɓa breast 7.6) Dghwede (Frick) wupʼa breast, milk
8Proto-Mofu *ɗɨwah breast sein 8.1) Ouldeme (Kinnaird) āɗūwá breast; milk sein; lait 8.2) Muyang (Smith) ɗuwɑ breast ; milk lait; mamelle; sein 8.3) Mada (Nkoumou) ɗwa lait; sein (mamelle) 8.4) Zulgo (Haller) àwàh lait m.; sein m. 8.5) Gemzek (Sabatai) awah breast sein (mamelle) 8.6) Merey (Gravina) wah udder; breast pis, mamelle; sein (mamelle) 8.7) Dugwor (Jubumna) awah udder; breast pis, mamelle; sein (mamelle) 8.8) Mofu-Gudur (Hollingsworth) ɗəwá sein, mamelle, pis; lait
9Proto-Maroua *ɗɨwa breast sein 9.1) Giziga Moutourwa (Michielan) ɗuwa lait, sein, mamelle 9.2) Giziga Marva (Hamidou) ɗuwa breast; udder sein (mamelle); pis, mamelle 9.3) Mbazla (Tourneux) ʼwa sein, lait 9.3.1) Mbazla (SILSurvey) wāʼ breast sein
10Proto-Lamang *ɗɨwa breast sein 10.1) Lamang (Wolff) úɓá breast, milk 10.2) Hdi (Bramlett) uʼa breast le sein
11Proto-Higi *ʔʷa breast sein 11.1) Kamwe-Futu (Harley) uwo breast (women's) 11.2) Kirya (Blench) ʼwá breast, milk 11.3) Bana (Lienhard) ʼwá lait, sein
12Proto-Kotoko North *eʔʷi breast sein 12.1) Afade (Allison) eʔwi breast sein (mamelle) 12.2) Maltam (Allison) eᵐbi breast sein (mamelle)
13Proto-Kotoko Centre *iwi breast sein 13.1) Lagwan (Allison) iwi breast; udder sein (mamelle); pis, mamelle

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