EkeGusii, a Language without Consonantal Clusters?

Abstract

The main objective of this study is to argue for the nonexistence of cluster of consonants in Bantu Phonology. Just like Morrison (2009) observes, the segmental status of Homorganic Nasal Consonant sequences has been a topic of debate in Bantu linguistics. While some linguists are of the opinion that these sequences are consonant clusters (Downing 2005 among others), others such as Morrison (2009), Hyman and Katamba (1990) view these sequences as single segments. In this paper, using data from EkeGusii, a Bantu language spoken in western Kenya and native speaker intuition, it is argued that Bantu languages do not allow any consonant clusters, concluding that these languages do not entertain consonant clusters of any kind.