Mende Kikakui syllabary
Silabario kikakui del mende
- Date
- c. 1917-1921 · confidence high
- Place
- Mende region, Sierra Leone
- Credited to
- Kisimi Kamara
- People
- 👤 Mohammed Turay1850–
- Field
- Knowledge & symbols
What it is
Kisimi Kamara, a Mende literate in the Islamic tradition, created in 1921 a syllabary of some 200 signs to write his language. It is written right to left and was used for letters, accounts and stories.
A connection with the Vai syllabary (Liberia) and Arabic script has been suggested; the place is approximate and its current use is very limited.
What it led to
- vernacular writing in Sierra Leone
- preservation of Mende texts
- inclusion in Unicode (2014)