Survey of Bantu ideophones
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Abstract
This survey of Bantu ideophones is meant to report on what in general is known about them and to stimulate further investigation. Its aim is a modest one. To achieve the first goal I have had to depend on what I have read. Therefore the picture that emerges here has its basis largely in the literature that was available to me. All the African grammars in the libraries of the Hartford Seminary \nFoundation (Hartford, Connecticut), the University of Leiden (The Netherlands), and the University of Toronto (Canada) were personally examined. Of these 250 grammars (give or take a few), there were about 150 that dealt in some way \nwith ideophones. Among these were about 90 grammars of Bantu languages. These are listed in the Bibliography, including ten titles added just before this paper went to press ; I was therefore unable to utilize them at all. Among them is Hulstaert's very important work of 1966.