Ebira language page

Classification and where spoken

Ebira (formerly known as Igbera) belongs to the Nupe-Gbari Group of Kwa. It is spoken in Bendel, Plateau, and Kwara states of Niberia.

Number of speakers

UBS (1982) notes 500,000 first language speakers; Voegelin and Voegelin (1977) cite 150,000. Grimes (1996) cites a figure of one million speakers.

Usage

Ebira is a regional language and has gained importance because of the large iron ore mining project in Kwara State.

Orthographic status

As of this writing, we know of no established orthography.

Sets of learning materials

It is not known at this time how many sets of materials would be sufficient; the Summer Institute of Linguistics is preparing one set of literacy materials.