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Manza [MZV] (Central African Republic). A labiodental flap is reported in Manza
by Moñino (1995: 216) (“Manza de Mala”) and Cloarec-Heiss (1998) (“Manja”). Moñino
notes its occurrence in the words for KLK KLK KLK KLK ‘snail’, CKLKD CKLKD CKLKD CKLKD A(D A(D A(D A(D A( A( A( A( ‘bird (sp.)’ and
>(C(L >(C(LC
>(C(L >(C(LC
C C ‘agama lizard’. It occurs in intervocalic position. It is rare.
Ngbaka [NGA] (D. R. Congo). Grand’Eury (1991: 99) and Timothy Assama
Mambo (per. comm.) report a labial flap in “Ngbaka-Minagende”. Grand’Eury considers
the sound labiodental, but Mambo considers it bilabial. Grand’Eury provides evidence of
contrast but notes that the sound is only found in ideophones. The sound is rare.
Grand’Eury reports the sound in the words LK@K LK@K LK@K LK@K ‘type of fruit’, KLK( KLK( KLK( KLK( ‘swallow like a
pig’, L(@L(@
L(@L(@ L(@L(@
L(@L(@ ‘enlarging a circle’. Mambo attests the sound in the ideophone M M M M
‘sound of an animal disappearing into the forest’.
4. Sere-Ngbaka-Mba. The labial flap is found in at least six Sere-Ngbaka-Mba
languages. Evidence for contrast is given in Ndogo, and further research will likely show
contrast in most if not all of the rest of the six languages. It occurs in both nouns and
verbs in all of the languages, in adjectives as well in Sere and Tagbu, and in all
grammatical categories in Ndogo. It is attested in over 40 lexical items in Ndogo, in eight
lexical items in Sere, and in four or five lexical items in Bai, Feroge, Mangayat, and
Tagbu. It occurs in both word-initial and word-medial position in Ndogo.
Bai [BDJ] (Sudan). A labiodental flap is reported in Bai by Santandrea (1961: 13,
148ff) and Tucker & Bryan (1966: 92). Santandrea reports it in five words, including
both nouns and verbs: LE LE ‘child’, LEE LEE LEE LEE ‘girl’, LK LK ‘grinding stone’, L= L=(J= L= J= J=) J= ‘fall (down)’,
>AA >AA >AA >AA LAHA LAHA ‘lie’.
Bangba [BBE] (D. R. Congo). Boone (1995: 52) reports a labial flap in Bangba. 3
He notes its existence in the lexical item L L L L ‘to heal’.
3
Boone (1995) refers to the flap as an “unusual sound”, which he writes as vh. We clarified via
personal communication that it is indeed a labial flap.