C O N TE N TS . ORTHOGRAPHY Diphthongs Gender and Denominatives Number and ‘ First Class . d and Third lasses Secon C . Fourth Class — in han o m r m N S . c e t No 31, , g d , Nouns used only in First Third Class Fourth Class Nouns in Superlative Degree Anm cr' l vns Comparison of Table of Adj ectives and Nouns Pronominal Adj ectives d o o o o o o o o o o o S OW InfleCte o o o o o o o o o H o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o 0 Table of Compounde d Location of Adj ective Pronouns Table of m n a i nitial i am Ter i l , i y Table of Nouns and Adjective Pronouns“ ' Emphatic SufliL miJmé Dem onstrative Pronouns N CO TEN TS . Decimal o r Digital Us ed as Nouns Table of Cardinal Numbe rs . — Remark s Nouns 1st Class Singular Arrange m ent of Nouns and Numerals Abbreviation of Numerals N e s ecom e N s and N J un N e ed Possessive umb r b oun , umb r Ans wer by show of Fingers Adjective Ph rases Diminutive ye ORD INALS How Formed a Fraction l Parts . PR ONOUN B Pe rsonal Number and Case Table ec n d Pe s ar 17 5 S o r on Singul , Relative Pronouns o i a mi P a , S ngul r, , lur l Agree with Ante cedent in Number and Person Interrogative How Definite Pronoun . Very Indefinite Table of Class and No minative Case changed to Objective PARTICLE S . Adverbs of Place Tim e Verbs as Adve rbs Adverbs of M anne r an d Cause P O T ON S PRE SI I . ’ r Nd ndei and add , , CONJUN CTION S C o ulative c s p Conjun tion . Disjunctive Initial on s nant and Reci ro cal , C o , p Root or Ste m of Verb Table of Change to Imperative C onj ugation of Verb Formation of Pas sive Voice I —Ra ical Con u ation . d j g — II . Causative CONTENTS. ’ — re IV . F quentat e — V. Reflexive — R VI. eciprocal — VII. In definite Compoun d Ta l m d on u ations . b e of Co poun C j g . Augments Parts of the Verbs Ne ative cti e and Pa ssive g , A v , How Formed . — Modes Five In icati e th e Ra ical d v , d Im pe rative Formed Subj unctive Signs of Subjunctive P otential—Characteristics Infiniti e n v Sig of . Tense N u er an d Pers , mb , on Immediate Past Tense Paul o Past Historical Perfect Pluperfect First and Second Future Tense noth er N te be Tense A , Irregular Verbs u stanti e r s S b v Ve b . Participles Imperative 4 t Subjunctive Causative Conjugation Radical LIST OF ADVERB S —N SYNTA" ouns. Place of Nominative Case Verbs and Verbs Passive Voice ° SALUTATIONS ADIEUS N ENT 6 CO T S. ELISION AND CHANGE OF VOWELS In Nouns In Pronominal Adjectives GENERAL REMARKS MP ONGWE GRAMMAR HEADS OF THE . TH E Mpon gw e is a dialect of one (the Southern) of the two great families of language spoken over the greater part of the omm e n n at the am eroons Moun contin ent of Africa . C ci g C tain and R v er at the n ort -east orner of the Gul of Guinea i h c f , this language extends across the con tinent to the Mombas ountr on the east and is s oken over a reat art of A r a c y , p g p f ic outh T ere is five t m es as m u differen e betw een the S . h i ch c D ualla lan ua e s oken in Cam erun s and the Efik s oken g g , p , , p in Old alabar t m les w est as t ere is betw een the D ualla C , fif y i , h and the Z ulu-Kafir s oken in Sout -eastern A r a n ear , p h f ic , three thousan d m iles aw ay. The M on w e or A o o w ise ones as t e m odestl call p g , y g ( , h y y t em selv es l ve on bot s des of the Gabun R v er about a h ), i h i i , hal de ree n ort lat tude e ten d n t or s t m les nte f g h i , x i g fif y ix y i i r Th Orun u a ut s t m l and th m i r o . e bo es sout e d i g , ix y i h, eo le rom e t to on e un dred m les be ond s eak the p p f igh y h i y , p sam e lan ua e w t a few d fferin w ords and a sl t dif g g , i h i g , igh f a n f n un at n e ce o pro ci io . In the resent l m ted e tent to w t ese lan ua es or p i i x hich h g g , d ale ts are kn own and w r tten it w ould be useless to attem t i c , i , p to tra e t e r relat ons and analo ies and w e of the resent c h i i g ; , p da can onl on tr bute our m te for the use of the ones who y, y c i i all ollow us in the om n n r A nd t e ll r v l sh f c i g ce tu y. h y w i e e in the beauties of a language or dialects as elaborate in structure and as m usical in ton e as any of the old unspoken ' (not dead) languages that are the delight of the scholars of the r n n l p ese t day. A d it is on y forty years since any of these di s leets w t er a s one or two e e t ons had a senten e ( i h , p h p , xc p i ) c i t n r v l wr t e o e en an a abet . , ph A l n g A n out i e grammar of the Mpongwe language was printed in 184 wr tten b Rev . Wilson m d l 7 J . Le ton o est cred , i y igh , y (7) 8 means on TH E M N E AM MA PO GW GR R . h i r h F it d M ss na s f t e A B . a i to t e e . M G o n M s e o o . C. b o i i , ” s n WV A as w r t n a u ur ar a r h o . T s w t e bo t o e s te t e i , . hi i f y f m ss onar es rst w e n t to G abun an d i ves the en eral r n i i i fi , g g p i ci le s of the lan ua e w t m arv elous ac ura a te r so s ort p g g i h c cy, f h a The present w ork w as comm en ced at the request of a gen tlem an lon res d n on the oast as the m e r e outl n e o f the , g i i g c , i r m m ar r n i k h a rit n The a to be ted n a boo w e w s w . g , p i hich i g book has n ot een ubl s ed and the work has ro w n to its b p i h , g resen t d m ens on s an d is r nted for the use of the Am er an p i i , p i ic m n r r v n issio a ies and othe s at Ga bun an d ici ity. A ter an absen e of m ore t an sev en ears w t n o o ss f c h y , i h p i bilit of onsult n a n at ve M on w e it is w t m an m is y c i g i p g , i h y gi vings that som e of the m odes and tenses (m ore especially the n egativ e form s) are put fo rth ; and it is w ith little hope f n ll r nted o perfect accuracy that it is ow a owed to be p i . Y ORTHOGR APH . All the sounds in t s lan ua e can be e ressed b the 1 . hi g g xp y l l m od at n Th la ua e has Rom an alphabet with a itt e ific io . e ng g r tten onet all and the letters are used as ollows been w i ph ic y, f VOWELS.