Bambara Language - Classification

Classification

Bambara is a language/dialect of the Manding language cluster, a cluster of languages whose ethnic-speakers generally trace their cultural history to the ancient city of Manding, where modern-day Kita, Mali now exists. Bambara is classified as part of the larger, very broad Mandé group. Dialects of Manding are generally considered (among native speakers) to be mutually intelligible – dependent on exposure or familiarity with dialects between speakers – and spoken by approximately 20 million people in the countries Burkina Faso, Senegal, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Liberia, Ivory Coast and The Gambia.