How to count in Bambara (Bamanankan), a Mande language spoken in Mali, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Ghana.
If any of the numbers are links, you can hear a recording by clicking on them. If you can provide recordings, please contact me.
| Numeral | Cardinal | Ordinal |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | kelen | fɔlɔ |
| 2 | fila, fla | filanan, flanan |
| 3 | saba | sabanan |
| 4 | naani | naaninan |
| 5 | duuru | duurunan |
| 6 | wɔɔrɔ | wɔɔrɔnan |
| 7 | wolonwula, wolofila | wolonwulanan |
| 8 | seegin, ségin | seeginnan |
| 9 | kɔnɔntɔn | kɔnɔntɔnnan |
| 10 | tan | tannan |
| 11 | tan ni kelen | tan ni kelenan |
| 12 | tan ni fila | tan ni filanan |
| 13 | tan ni saba | tan ni sabanan |
| 14 | tan ni naani | tan ni naaninan |
| 15 | tan ni duuru | tan ni duurunan |
| 16 | tan ni wɔɔrɔ | tan ni wɔɔrɔnan |
| 17 | tan ni wolonwula | tan ni wolonwulanan |
| 18 | tan ni seegin | tan ni seeginan |
| 19 | tan ni kɔnɔntɔn | tan ni kɔnɔntɔnan |
| 20 | mugan | muganan |
| 21 | mugan ni kelen | mugan ni kelenan |
| 22 | mugan ni fila | mugan ni filanan |
| 23 | mugan ni saba | mugan ni sabanan |
| 24 | mugan ni naari | mugan ni naarinan |
| 25 | mugan ni duuru | mugan ni duurunan |
| 26 | mugan ni wɔɔrɔ | mugan ni wɔɔrɔnan |
| 27 | mugan ni wolonwula | mugan ni wolonwulanan |
| 28 | mugan ni seegin | mugan ni seeginan |
| 29 | mugan ni kɔnɔntɔn | mugan ni kɔnɔntɔnan |
| 30 | bi saba | bi sabanan |
| 40 | bi naani | bi naaninan |
| 50 | bi duuru | bi duurunan |
| 60 | bi wɔɔrɔ | bi wɔɔrɔnan |
| 70 | bi wolonwula, bi woronfla | bi wolonwulanan, bi woronflanan |
| 80 | bi seegin, bi segi | bi seeginan, bi seginan |
| 90 | bi kɔnɔntɔn, bi kònòntò | bi kɔnɔntɔnan, bi kònòntònan |
| 100 | kɛmɛ, kèmè | kɛmɛnan, kèmènan |
| 101 | kɛmɛ ni kelen | kɛmɛ ni kelenan |
| 200 | kɛmɛ fila | kɛmɛ filanan |
| 300 | kɛmɛ saba | kɛmɛ sabanan |
| 400 | kɛmɛ naani | kɛmɛ naaninan |
| 500 | kɛmɛ duuru | kɛmɛ duurunan |
| 600 | kɛmɛ wɔɔrɔ | kɛmɛ wɔɔrɔnan |
| 700 | kɛmɛ wolonwula | kɛmɛ wolonwulanan |
| 800 | kɛmɛ seegin | kɛmɛ seeginan |
| 900 | kɛmɛ kɔnɔntɔn | kɛmɛ kɔnɔntɔnan |
| 1,000 | waa kelen, ba kelen | waa kelenan, ba kelenan |
| 2,000 | waa fila, ba fila | waa filanan, ba filanan |
| 3,000 | waa saba, ba saba | waa sabanan, ba sabanan |
| 4,000 | waa naani, ba naani | waa naaninan, ba naaninan |
| 5,000 | waa duuru, ba duuru | waa duurunan, ba duurunan |
| 6,000 | waa wɔɔrɔ, ba wɔɔrɔ | waa wɔɔrɔnan, ba wɔɔrɔnan |
| 7,000 | waa wolonwula, ba wolonwula | waa wolonwulanan, ba wolonwulanan |
| 8,000 | waa seegin, ba seegin | waa seeginan, ba seeginan |
| 9,000 | waa kɔnɔntɔn, ba kɔnɔntɔn | waa kɔnɔntɔnan, ba kɔnɔntɔnan |
| 10,000 | waa tan | waa tanan |
| 20,000 | waa mugan | waa muganan |
| 30,000 | waa bi saba | waa bi sabanan |
| 40,000 | wa bi naani | wa bi naaninan |
| 50,000 | waa bi duuru | waa bi duurunan |
| 60,000 | waa bi wɔɔrɔ | waa bi wɔɔrɔnan |
| 70,000 | waa bi wolonwula | waa bi wolonwulanan |
| 80,000 | waa bi seegin | waa bi seeginan |
| 90,000 | waa bi kɔnɔntɔn | waa bi kɔnɔntɔnan |
| 100,000 | waa kɛmɛ | waa kɛmɛnan |
| 150,000 | waa kɛmɛ ni bi duuru | waa kɛmɛ ni bi duurunan |
| 200,000 | waa kɛmɛ fila | waa kɛmɛ filanan |
| 300,000 | waa kɛmɛ saba | waa kɛmɛ sabanan |
| 400,000 | waa kɛmɛ naani | waa kɛmɛ naaninan |
| 500,000 | waa kɛmɛ duuru | waa kɛmɛ duurunan |
| 600,000 | waa kɛmɛ wɔɔrɔ | waa kɛmɛ wɔɔrɔnan |
| 700,000 | waa kɛmɛ wolonwula | waa kɛmɛ wolonwulanan |
| 800,000 | waa kɛmɛ seegin | waa kɛmɛ seeginan |
| 900,000 | waa kɛmɛ kɔnɔntɔn | waa kɛmɛ kɔnɔntɔnan |
| 1,000,000 | mílyɔn kélen | mílyɔn kélenan |
| 2,000,000 | milyɔn fila | milyɔn filanan |
| 1/2 | tla filana, tla flana, tlancè | |
| 1/3 | tla sabana, tla ko saba | |
| 1/4 | tla naanina, tla ko naani | |
| 1/5 | tla duuruna, tla ko duuru | |
| 1/10 | tla tanna, tla ko tan | |
| 1/20 | tla muganna, tla ko mugan |
Ordinal numbers in Bambara are formed by adding the suffix -na(n) to the regular cardinal numbers, The only exception to this is first, which is fɔlɔ.
- Zana Kone: Parlons Bambara. An ka bamanankan fɔ, Tome 1. Edition 2002.
- Francisco Jose. Bambara-French-English / English-Bambara Dictionary. 2005
- В.Ф.Выдрин: Язык Бамана. Учебное пособие. Санкт-Петербург, 2008.
- Dr. habil. Siegmund Brauner: Lehrbuch des Bambara. VEB Verlag Ezyklopädie Leipzig, 1974.
- An Ka Bamanankan Kala: Beginning Bambara. Indiana University Linguistics Club, 1977.
Informaton about Bambara numerals
http://www.languagesandnumbers.com/how-to-count-in-bambara/en/bam/
Information provided by Wolfgang Kuhl
If you would like to make any corrections or additions to this page, or if you can provide recordings, please contact me.
Information about Bambara | Phrases | Numbers
Bambara, Kinyarwanda, Mandinka, Soninke, Susu, Vai
Alphabetical index | Language family index
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