Zay
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A language of Ethiopia
Alternate Names
Gelilla, Lak’i, Laqi, Zway
User Population
14,000 (Meyer 2005), decreasing.
Location
Oromia region: Lake Zway shores and east islands.
Language Maps
Language Status
6b (Threatened).
Language Use
Use of Zay is decreasing due to migration from the islands (the traditional homeland) to the lakeshore, where they become Oromo [orm] speakers. Oromo is also taught in island schools. Speaker number decrease also attributed to dominant role of Amharic [amh] (Dimmendaal and Voeltz 2007). Some young people, all adults. Also use Amharic [amh]. Also use Oromo [orm], especially lakeshore children.
Language Development
Grammar.