Tchad
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Tchad Ma Culture

Languages of Chad

Two official languages, a lingua franca, more than one hundred and twenty languages: the country speaks itself in several ways. This page names the most spoken, the families and the regions, without claiming a complete census.

Key facts

Official languages
French (since 1960) and Classical Arabic (since 1978) [Wikipédia, « Langues au Tchad »]
Living indigenous languages
Ethnologue: 123 (55 Afro-Asiatic, 46 Nilo-Saharan, 23 Niger-Congo). French Wikipedia / Glottolog: about 144 to 150. Totals vary by criteria. [Wikipedia, “Languages of Chad” (Ethnologue excerpt)]
Lingua franca
Chadian Arabic: L1 around 10% (Ethnologue 2013); around 60% of the population in L1 and L2 (OIF 2014). Distinct from Classical Arabic. [OIF, La langue française dans le monde, 2014, cité par Wikipédia, « Langues au Tchad »]
Largest local L1
Ngambay (Sara) is often cited as the largest first language, around one million speakers (Keegan 2017, via English Wikipedia). A southern market lingua franca, alongside Chadian Arabic. [Wikipedia, “Languages of Chad” (Ethnologue excerpt)]
French in society
Language of administration, school and prestige. Very small L1; L2 around 10% (Ethnologue 2013). Little used as a market language. [CEFAN, Université Laval, « Tchad » (aménagement linguistique)]
People and languages
One people may speak several languages (Sara, Hadjerai, Kotoko). EDS-MICS shares count ethnic clusters, not languages. See the portraits. [Wikipédia, « Langues au Tchad »]

Most spoken

This is not a census ranking. L1 and L2 figures carry a date. A lingua franca is not always the largest first language.

  • Chadian Arabic

    L1 ~10% (Ethnologue 2013); ~60% in L1 and L2 (OIF 2014). Also Cameroon, Nigeria, Niger, Sudan.

    Role
    Lingua franca of the north, centre and trade
    Where
    Nationwide, especially north and centre

  • Ngambay

    Around one million speakers (Keegan 2017). Also CAR.

    Role
    Major Sara L1; southern market lingua franca
    Where
    Moundou, Logone, south; also N’Djamena
    People
    Sara

  • French

    Very small L1; L2 ~10% (Ethnologue 2013).

    Role
    Official; administration, school, media
    Where
    Towns, institutions, school south

  • Classical Arabic

    It is not the language of the market or the camp.

    Role
    Official; Quranic school, liturgy
    Where
    Mosques, madrasas, the state

  • Hausa

    Also Nigeria and Niger. Long merchant presence in the Chadian Sahel.

    Role
    Urban market language
    Where
    N’Djamena, Mongo, Abéché, Moundou
    People
    Hausa

  • Fulfulde

    Fulani and Mbororo. Also across the West African Sahel.

    Role
    Pastoral, Sahelian transhumance
    Where
    Chadian Sahel, north–south corridors

  • Kanembu / Kanuri

    Also Niger and Nigeria.

    Role
    Lake Chad basin, Kanem-Bornu heritage
    Where
    Kanem, Lac, Hadjer-Lamis

  • Maba

    Maban cluster with Masalit, Mimi, Karanga… Toward Sudan.

    Role
    East, Wadai sultanate
    Where
    Abéché, Ouaddaï, Sila

Language families

French and Arabic, official languages

The Constitution recognises French and Arabic. Schools, the administration and some media use them, very unevenly by region.

Chadian Arabic, the lingua franca

With more than thirty varieties, Chadian Arabic links markets, garrisons and neighbourhoods. It is not the classical Arabic of Quranic school, though it is sometimes written in ajami.

More than 120 languages, by family

Ethnologue counts 123 living indigenous languages: 55 Afro-Asiatic (Chadic, Arabic), 46 Nilo-Saharan (Sara–Bongo–Bagirmi, Maban, Saharan), 23 Niger-Congo (Adamawa, Fulfulde). Named languages follow below; this is not the complete census.

Phrases

In Chadian Arabic: “inta keif” (how are you?), “shukran”. In Ngambaye (Sara): greetings vary by time of day. Audio recordings will join the archive as collections grow.

Writing systems

Latin for French and many national languages, Arabic for Arabic and ajami, the recent Beria alphabet for Zaghawa. Orality remains the first channel of transmission.

Named excerpt after Ethnologue (via English Wikipedia). This is not the complete list of 123.

Afro-Asiatic — 55 languages (Ethnologue)

Chadian Arabic; Chadic: Bidiyo, Buduma, Dangaléat, Gabri, Kabalai, Kera, Kimré, Kwang, Lele, Marba, Masa, Masmaje, Mesme, Migaama, Mubi, Musey, Musgu, Nancere, Pévé, Sokoro, Tobanga, Tumak; Hausa (market).

Nilo-Saharan — 46 languages (Ethnologue)

Maban: Karanga, Kendeje, Kibet, Maba, Marfa, Massalat, Runga, Surbakhal; Fur: Amdang; Saharan: Dazaga, Kanembu, Tedaga, Zaghawa; Sara–Bongo–Bagirmi: Barma, Berakou, Disa, Fongoro, Gulay, Jaya, Kenga, Morom, Naba, Ngambay, Sar; Sinyar; Eastern Sudanic: Tama, Sungor, Mararit, Dadjo.

Niger-Congo — 23 languages (Ethnologue)

Goundo, Kim; Mundang, Tupuri; Bua, Niellim, Gula Iro; Mbum, Laka; Fulfulde; Sango (creole).

By region and across borders

Languages do not stop at the 23 provinces. Many are also spoken in Cameroon, CAR, Nigeria, Niger, Sudan or Libya. A link opens the published people portrait.

South: Logone, Moyen-Chari, Mandoul, Tandjilé, Mayo-Kebbi

Ngambay links southern markets. The Sara speak several related languages, not one.

Lake and Kanem: Lac, Kanem, Hadjer-Lamis, Chari-Baguirmi

Kanembu and Kanuri carry the memory of Kanem-Bornu. The Kotoko speak several delta languages.

Central Sahel: Batha, Guéra, transhumance

Chadian Arabic links the markets. The Hadjerai of Guéra speak several mountain languages.

East: Ouaddaï, Sila, Wadi Fira

Maban and Daju languages cross the Darfur border. Documentation of some eastern varieties remains thin.

Sahara: Borkou, Ennedi, Tibesti, Bahr el-Ghazal

Daza and Teda are cousins, distinct languages. Zaghawa (Beria) has a recent script.

Isolate, creoles and sign language

Outside the large regional families, a few languages hold a place of their own.

  • Laal · Isolate (Gori, Moyen-Chari)
  • Sango · Creole (CAR) · also CAR
  • Bongor Arabic · Arabic creole (Mayo-Kebbi)
  • Chadian Sign Language · Nigerian / ASL lineage; school 1976

What remains to be named

The names on this page are the published archive plus an Ethnologue excerpt. Ethnologue counts 123 living indigenous languages; Glottolog and French Wikipedia speak of about 144 to 150. Wikipedia’s A–Z list has empty letters and uncross-checked speaker figures: we do not republish it as a census. The rest is a research gap, to document with SIL, Glottolog and speakers.

Chadian Arabic

Chadian Arabic, also called kalam arab, is the variety of Arabic spoken in Chad as well as in Cameroon, Nigeria, Niger and Sudan. The first language of about 10% of Chadians (Ethnologue 2013), it is a lingua franca for a much larger share: around 60% of the population in L1 and L2 (OIF 2014). It is distinct from Classical Arabic, an official language.

It varies between towns and regions (N’Djamena, Abéché, Moundou…) while sharing a common base. SIL Chad publishes a Chadian Arabic – French dictionary and a spelling guide.

Chadian Arabic mini phrasebook

Transcriptions quoted as given by the cited source (informal spelling, N’Djamena variety). They will be aligned with the SIL dictionary spelling during review.

  • Bonjour !Hello!

    Lalekou

  • Comment ça va ?How are you?

    Kef ça va ?

  • Je vais bienI’m fine

    Ana afé

  • MerciThank you

    Shoukrane

  • Mon nom est…My name is…

    Oussoumi…

  • Comment t’appelles-tu ?What’s your name?

    Oussoumak yatou

  • OuiYes

    Ayé

  • NonNo

    Han-an

  • Où vas-tu ?Where are you going?

    Machi wene ?

  • Qu’est-ce que c’est ?What is it?

    Da chounou ?

  • C’est à combien ?How much is it?

    Da bé kam ?

  • Je veux de l’eauI’d like some water

    Ni dora almé

  • Il fait chaudIt’s hot

    Watta hammi

  • D’où viens-tu ?Where are you from?

    Djayi mine wene

  • MarchéMarket

    Souk

  • Allons-y !Let’s go!

    Yalla namchou

Counting from 1 to 10

  • 1Wahit
  • 2Tinene
  • 3Talata
  • 4Arba
  • 5Khamssa
  • 6Sitté
  • 7Sabba
  • 8Tamaïné
  • 9Tiza
  • 10Achara

Two recordings of “water” are online (Chadian Arabic and Ngambay). Greetings and numbers still need recording.

See the audio slots and submit a recording

Language preservation centre

Sources

  1. Wikipédia, « Langues au Tchad »
  2. Wikipedia, “Languages of Chad” (Ethnologue excerpt)
  3. Ethnologue, « Chad » (SIL International)
  4. Glottolog, languages of Chad
  5. Wikipédia, « Arabe tchadien »
  6. Glottolog, « Chadian Arabic »
  7. Heath J. et Mahadi M. Z., Lexique arabe tchadien – français, SIL Tchad, 11e éd., 2021
  8. Heath J., Livret d’introduction à l’orthographe de l’arabe tchadien, SIL Tchad, 5e éd., 2024
  9. Ahmat Mahamat Tahir (Matarimi1), Lingua Libre, « المي » (arabe tchadien, N’Djaména), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, 3 juin 2021
  10. Say-Baa, « Première fois à N’Djamena ? Ces mots en arabe tchadien pour se débrouiller en ville », La fenêtre étoilée (Mondoblog), 22 juillet 2020
  11. CEFAN, Université Laval, « Tchad » (aménagement linguistique)
  12. OIF, La langue française dans le monde, 2014, cité par Wikipédia, « Langues au Tchad »

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