Taa language
Taa , also known as !Xóõ (ǃKhong, ǃXoon – pronounced /kǃxóŋ/,English ), is a Khoisan language notable for its large number of phonemes, perhaps the largest in the world. Most speakers live in Botswana, but a few hundred live in Namibia. The people call themselves ǃXoon (pl. ǃXooŋake) or ʼNǀohan (pl. Nǀumde), depending on the dialect they speak.
Taa is the word for 'human being'; the local name of the language is Taa ǂaan, from ǂaan 'language'. ǃXoon (!Xóõ) is an ethnonym used at opposite ends of the Taa-speaking area, but not by Taa speakers in between. Most living Taa speakers are ethnic ǃXoon (plural ǃXooŋake) or 'Nǀohan (plural Nǀumde).
Taa shares a number of characteristic features with West ǂ’Amkoe, and Gǀui which together are considered part of the Kalahari Basin sprachbund.
Relatives
Until the rediscovery of a few elderly speakers of Nǁng in the 1990s, Taa was thought to be the last surviving member of the Tuu language family.
Dialects
There is sufficient dialectal variation in Taa that it might be better described as a dialect continuum than as a single language. Taa dialects fall into two groups, suggesting a historical spread from west to east:
