Lolke J. van der Veen DDL/Lyon 2

1. The western Bantu expansionSome implications for Bantu Historical Linguistics drawn from a recent multidisciplinary study Lolke J. van der Veen DDL/Lyon 2 New Directions in Historical Linguistics

2. The WBE: implications for linguistics • The “Language, culture and genes in Bantu” (LCGB) project • Carried out as part of the OHLL & OMLL programmes (2000-2007) • Developing a multidisciplinary approach combining • Linguistics • Population genetics • Cultural anthropology • Archaeology • History New Directions in Historical Linguistics

3. The WBE: implications for linguistics • An major contribution to the study of the populations of west-central Africa (WCA) • WCA: • The presumed homeland of the (Proto-)Bantu-speakers • A region with considerable linguistic and cultural diversity • A good test case for the “Languages and genes debate”: a fairly good understanding of the linguistic situation of the region, limited time-depth, etc. New Directions in Historical Linguistics

4. The WBE: implications for linguistics • WCA: no longer a blank spot on the genetic map • Well-defined and very rigorous criteria were used for sampling • Extensive fieldwork (4 field missions in Gabon) • Informing the authorities and the public • (Blood) sampling in the field • Ethnolinguistic and anthropological questionnaires • 960 DNA samples + 444 from a similar project coordinated by E. Heyer & S. Bahuchet: a total of 1404 samplesfor the Gabon and Cameroon area • 980 agriculturalists (20 pops) • 420 hunter-gatherers (9 pops) New Directions in Historical Linguistics

5. The WBE: implications for linguistics • Innovative research that has given rise to several important studies based on uniparental genomes (mtDNA, Y-chromosome) and autosomal markers • Cf. Quintana-Murci et al. (2008): Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA (PNAS) • Cf. Verdu et al. (forthcoming): relationships between the various Pygmy groups of the area New Directions in Historical Linguistics

6. Populations and numbers of individuals sampled in Gabon Total: 960 samples from 21 populations (i.a. 1 non Bantu-speaking pop.) New Directions in Historical Linguistics

7. The WBE: implications for linguistics • What we have been looking at • Linguistic diversity, cultural diversity and population genetic diversity (i.e. synchronic PATTERNS) • Inferences about the progressive peopling of the area based on linguistic analysis and oral tradition, submitted to population geneticists (Barcelona, Paris) • Linguistic groupings based on shared phonological, morphological and lexical innovations • Evidence of contact from the ongoing study of specialized lexicon New Directions in Historical Linguistics

8. The languages of Gabon • Centres of gravity of indi-vidual languages and lan-guage varieties • Boundary between north-western and central-western Bantu • Eleven clusters represented (colour code) • Baka (Ubangian) ignored here! New Directions in Historical Linguistics

9. One example of cultural diversity of Gabon: masks New Directions in Historical Linguistics

10. The peopling of Gabon: inferred dispersal paths Bantu expansion (schematic representation and relative chro-nology) Peopling of the Gabon area by Bantu-speaking villagers as sug-gested by language studies and oral tradition (relative chronology: (1)2-5) New Directions in Historical Linguistics

11. The WBE: implications for linguistics • What we have been looking for • Correlations between the different types of patterns (as a possible result of coevolution between languages, cultures and genes) • Scenarios capable of explaining the present human diversity (i.e. diachronic PROCESSES) • Matches between the scenarios emerging from the linguistic, cultural and genetic analyses New Directions in Historical Linguistics

12. The WBE: implications for linguistics • The results from the genetic analyses are compatible with: • A “recent” Bantu expansion • 4,000 YBP according to the most recent archaeological findings • A Bantu homeland in the vicinity of Mount Cameroon • Cf. Quintana et al. (2008) • A western Bantu dispersal that moved southward towards the Angola / Namibia area New Directions in Historical Linguistics

13. The WBE: implications for linguistics • There is also evidence for: (1/3) • A clear Central African origin for all the populations examined • Extensive exchange between Bantu-speakers during and following the expansion • High genetic homogeneity, no clear correlations with the current linguistic classification(s) • One exception for mtDNA: The MYENE-TSOGO (B10-B30) cluster shows a partial correlation between languages and genes • This exception can easily be accounted for by a massive integration of TSOGO female individuals into MYENE groups (known from history) • The extent of multilingualism, language replacement and language merger (and death) has clearly been underestimated New Directions in Historical Linguistics

14. The WBE: implications for linguistics • There is also evidence for: (2/3) • Ancient and ongoing exchange between the Bantu-speaking farming villagers and the groups of hunter-gatherers • Clear signs of asymmetric paternal gene flow, from villagers to hunter-gatherers • Ancient common ancestry (cf. Quintana-Murci et al. (2008)) • Contact with *R1b-carrying populations (i.e. an non-African Y-chromosome lineage) in Central Africa before and/or during the expansion • Evidence for Fang, Punu, Teke and some other Bantu populations • This finding sheds new light on the movements and the contacts of these groups • Any linguistic traces of these contacts??? New Directions in Historical Linguistics

15. The WBE: implications for linguistics • There is also evidence for: (3/3) • Strong social and cultural determination of the ethnolinguistic groups examined • Lineages are biologically more relevant entities • Influence of matrilineal/patrilineal descent… • Influence of polygyny… • Influence of patrilocality… New Directions in Historical Linguistics

16. The WBE: implications for linguistics • And there is evidence against • A Sudanic (“Egyptian”) origin frequently claimed for the Bantu-speaking Fang population (Cameroon, Gabon) • The R1b* marker, which is fairly well attested among Fang male individuals, has a much older origin (contact with pops come from northern regions) • No linguistic or cultural evidence either New Directions in Historical Linguistics

17. The WBE: implications for linguistics • Recent evidence from archaeology • Clist (2005) ; Oslisly • Ancient occupation by very small groups of hunter-gatherers • Gradual peopling by new type of population • Slow, wave-like, demic spread • Small groups of villagers practising some rudimentary form of agri-culture • Favourable environmental conditions (regression of the forest, etc.) • Effective communication networks • Different cultural traditions: pottery, ironwork, … • Migrations following the Atlantic coast and/or inland migrations New Directions in Historical Linguistics

18. According to Clist (2005), following Maley (2001): 2,800 YBP: a sudden de-forestaton due to period of severe drought A savanna corridor and other pathways… Reforestation from 2,100 YBP on (Arrows added here.) New Directions in Historical Linguistics

19. Ongoing and future research • Several new perspectives and challenges • The importance of taking into account the ecology of language and the sociocultural environment • Population size and population density • Geographic position (isolated, etc.) • Networks for exchange • Nature of exchange: mating, technologies, etc. • Extent of multilingualism and language replacement • Impact of cultural factors: marriage strategies, descent systems, residence strategies, local (traditonal) slavery, war and conflict, mobility, lifestyle, food resources, etc. • Etc. New Directions in Historical Linguistics

20. Acknowledgments The organizers of NDHL ESF Funding organisms of the LCGB project (CNRS, MEC, DFG) New Directions in Historical Linguistics