Niger-Congo

proper noun

A major language family of sub-Saharan Africa noted for the use of a noun class system.

Similar
Niger-Kordofanian
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

proper noun
  1. human sciencesA major language family of sub-Saharan Africa noted for the use of a noun class system.

    Synonyms: Niger-Kordofanian

nounNiger-Congo (plural Niger-Congos)

plural Niger-Congos

  1. A speaker of any Niger-Congo language, or a member of a Niger-Congo culture by ancestry or other affinity.
  2. broadlyAn African descendant of the transatlantic middle passage in the Americas.
adjectiveNiger-Congo (not comparable)
  1. not comparableBelonging to the Niger-Congo language family, or pertaining to its associated peoples.

Synonyms & antonyms

proper nounA major language family of sub-Saharan Africa noted for the use of a noun class system.

Similar
Niger-Kordofanian

Origin

Coined in the 1950s by Joseph Greenberg, from the name of the two principal rivers in the area in which this language family is spoken, the Niger River and the Congo River.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Finnish niger-kongolaiset kielet
  • niger-kongolaiset kieletthe language family
Cite this entry
APA

Niger-Congo. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Niger-Congo

MLA

“Niger-Congo.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Niger-Congo. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Niger-Congo,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Niger-Congo.

Source: Niger-Congo on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.