Languages of Sierra Leone

Although English is the official language of Sierra Leone, there are many different languages that are used all across Sierra Leone, each having different dialects that fluctuate in similarity to one another.

Temne is one language that is commonly used in Sierra Leone. The language Temne, does in fact, belong to the ethnic group, Temne. Other names, used to refer to Temne include, Temen, Themne, Timene, Timmannee, and Timnee (globalrecordings.net). Temne is spoken with a number of dialects that vary in similarity to one another. According to ethnologue.com the eleven different dialects of Temne are Banta, Bonmbali, Kholifa, Konike, Koya, Malal, Masignbi, Ribia, Sanda, Pil, and Yoni.

Another language that is commonly spoken in Sierra Leone is Mende. Mende is the language of the Mende people, and much like Temne, there are a number of different names used to refer to the Mende language. These names include, Bompe, Hulo, Kossa, and Kosso (enthologue.com). Mende is used with several different dialects, each being closely comparable to one another with over 90% lexical similarity. Theses dialects include Ko, Kpa, Sewawa, and Waanjama (enthologue.com).

In the book Wild Flower Nina briefly mentions the language of the Temne people as being Temne, when she is explaining her experience in Makump, and her feelings regarding the Bondo society traditions that are commonly enforced by the Temne people.

" Then one day, I became alarmed when I heard rumors around grandma's house about the interest of the Bondo women in this 'Opoto' - that was the name they used for me. In fact, that Temne word is the equivalent of 'Oyinbo,' the Yoruba term for ' white person' by which I was often addressed during my stay in Africa" (Smart 77).